Chapter 7
Paige
I t has been a few long days since the chaos that was Bre’s birthday, and I’m still unsure what to make of it. I was woken up in the middle of the afternoon when there is a knock on my bedroom door.
“Paige, do you want some breakfast?”
Bre says in a gentle question.
The scent of freshly brewing coffee and homemade muffins fills my nostrils. I groan as I pull my comforter off of my face. Feeling rather confused and possibly sleep deprived as I notice Bre has her chocolate brown hair in hot rollers, which conflicts with our girls’ night plans of catching up on our favorite smutty reality show this week. A mixed drink of each other’s choice and some serious girl talk.
“Bre, why is your hair in rollers?” I ask, sitting up in bed and taking the coffee from her.
“The muffin is lemon blueberry. Your favorite!”
Bre says with the fakest smile I have ever seen. I glare at her and snatch a muffin. Those are my favorite, but she only makes them when they benefit her.
“Are you ditching me for Chris on a girl’s night?”
I ask as pieces of muffin fly out of my mouth, but I am too tired to care. Taking a sip of my coffee.
“Kind of. How about we treat tonight more like a double date type situation?”
Bre’s tone seems hopeful. However, my anxiety is rampant at the idea of a blind date. The last time I did one of these favors for Bre, I had to get a restraining order against the guy.
He was a paralegal Bre knew, and I went on a single date with him. After I told him I didn’t think it worked out, he broke into our old apartment while I was showering to confess his undying love for me. I actually felt bad for him when everything was said and done. He lost his job, and last I heard, he moved to a different state.
“I don’t know if I have recovered from the last one,” I say, sticking my tongue out at her.
Bre sighs disappointedly and begins to give a pouting face.
“Please, Chris’s roommate has wanted to meet you since he had to cancel on my birthday.”
“You haven’t spent a night away from Chris in weeks. At this point, you could have invited him over for a girls’ night. He isn’t going anywhere anytime soon.”
“She already did that!”
Chris yells from just beyond my open bedroom door as I glare at Bre, who is smiling in a way I have never seen before.
“You are so lucky I love you because he,” I say, pointing towards where Chris’s voice had come from, “is way too hot for you.”
Chris roars with laughter, and Bre smiles softly.
“You can leave now. I want to go to the gym. No arguments,” I say, using my feet to shove Bre away from me.
I recently signed up at a new gym, which typically isn’t packed at this time of day. It is one of the few 24-hour gyms in town, offering hospital staff discounts, which I take full advantage of.
“Fine.” She smacks at my thigh before turning toward the door.
“Thank you,” Chris yells before I hear Bre yelp loudly and say something about not messing up her hair.
I laugh and finish the last bite of my muffin before using the restroom, changing into my workout clothes, and chugging the coffee before quickly brushing my hair and teeth.
I look at myself in the mirror, exhausted.
“It will have to do.” I sigh to myself before grabbing my Air Pods off the charger, keys, and gym bag.
I made my way quickly through the front room toward the kitchen to grab some water. I hear a small scream followed by laughter and moans.
“Jesus, they are fucking like rabbits.”
I groan, closing the fridge and rolling my eyes in annoyance and probably a bit of jealousy before heading out and driving to the gym.
My workout consists of a twenty-minute jog before some upper-body work. While finishing my last triceps dip rep, a man catches my attention. I have only been here a few times, but I don’t recall seeing anyone who looks like him around here before. From behind, he almost looks similar to Graham, but he is wearing a black baseball cap, so it is hard to see his face from this angle.
What I can see, though, is the work and respect the man has put into his body. He is broad-shouldered and well-defined and at least a foot taller than me.
I want to climb him like a mountain.
I can’t help but stare at the ridiculous number of pull-ups he is doing, and I abandon my workout altogether. I decide to approach him, which is something I haven’t done before. Only I find myself nervous when the man turns around, and I drown in the ocean-blue eyes that meet mine. Suddenly, I panic wishing I had put a little more effort into my appearance.
Shit .
I close my eyes and let out a slight whine before opening them in time to see dimples deep across his face.
“Hey, Graham, right?”
Graham’s smile widened as he took a few steps towards me.
“Fairy porn girl?”
I can’t help the laugh that leaves me as we come to stand face to face. My body wants to close the distance completely, but I don’t trust myself.
“Paige, but fairy porn girl works too,” I quip back, and he chuckles softly, almost seeming to linger on me, so I just start talking. “How is your day going?”
His smile somehow deepens again.
“Dropped Kat off at the airport and I’m on call. Nothing too exciting. You?”
I smiled softly.
“Worked a few nights. Got home around eight this morning and finally fell asleep around noon. Bre came barging in about an hour ago demanding my attention, and here we are.”
“Here we are.”
He seems to laugh before we both linger on each other a bit. This is something I have never felt before. I want to reach for him, but I fight it.
“How is Kat doing?”
I am curious, and by the look in his eyes, he seems to be conflicted, but I don’t want to pry.
“Things seem to be back to normal,” Graham says, and his smile softens, causing my heart to ache. I hate she dims his light like that.
“Good.”
I smile as I hear a phone ring. Graham sighs rather disappointedly before clearing his throat.
“Excuse me.”
He smiles softly, and I nod before he steps back. He doesn’t take his eyes off me as he answers the phone.
“Dr. Beckett.”
Damn, this man’s name sounds like porn in my mind. Dr. Graham Beckett.
I can feel the frustration on my face, and he smiles in response as he continues to ask a few questions before giving some orders. I can tell he is talking to a nurse, and I suddenly want to role-play in a very different way. I clear my throat, needing to shut the thought down immediately.
“Yeah, I can be there in thirty.”
I feel disappointment hit, and his eyes meet mine again. Both of us just focus on each other before he finishes his conversation. Hanging up the phone, Graham offers me almost a pout, causing me to giggle. It is pretty damn cute.
“Like I was saying, I am on call.”
“Maybe we can work out together another time, Dr. Beckett?”
He lets out a soft chuckle.
“I’d like that.”
We seem to linger on each other again before he finally pulls himself away. Heading towards the locker room, I try not to linger, but I find myself constantly looking back towards the locker room before noticing when he comes out, freshly showered and in fucking well-fitted navy scrubs.
“Jesus fucking Christ.”
I groan, completely abandoning the free weights I have been doing some shoulder work with. Needing to catch my breath as I watch him walk out of the gym towards that same black truck from the restaurant. I take a deep breath and let it out loudly before grabbing my stuff and heading to drive home.