Chapter 5 McDaddy
FIVE
MCDADDY
Milly
The next morning, I wait for my latte by the coffee machine.
I’m desperate for it. It wasn’t nightmares that caused my dreadful night’s sleep—it was a handsome, pierced biker with a sexy smile.
I have an emotional hangover, and I’m unable to stop the feelings I have for him.
I hear footsteps and peer over to see the man himself walk into the kitchen.
“Were your ears burning?” I mumble to myself.
He gives me a funny look. “What did you say?”
“Nothing,” I quip.
He has a devilish grin. My pulse skyrockets as he stands directly in front of me, his hand grazing the skin between my shirt and pants. I frantically search around the kitchen. No one is there.
“What are you doing?” I whisper.
He leans down, and my breathing turns into panting. Just when I think he’s going to kiss me, he grabs my latte, brings it to his lips, and takes a sip. “Thanks for this.” Then the asswipe backs away.
I stand there, stunned for a moment. “Hey,” I whine, “that was mine.”
He shrugs. “Mine now. It tastes good.”
“Yes, because I made it. You watch yourself, Twitch,” I warn, and put my hands on my hips. “I know where you keep your secret chocolate stash.”
His eyes just about pop out of his head.
“Yeah, that’s right,” I murmur, quite pleased with myself. That’s where I’ll be getting my snack tonight after work.
His hand comes toward me with the drink.
“Oh, no. You keep it now. You started this!”
His eyebrows pinch together—he’s clearly unhappy that I threatened his precious chocolate. “When’s your lunchtime? Is it about one?”
I nod. “Yes, why?”
“I was going to come have lunch with you.” He looks away. “Oh, that’s right. I can’t. You’ve got a date with another man.”
I smirk and lower my voice. “Are you jealous?”
He scoffs, and I laugh. “No, I’m not,” he says defensively.
I point at him. “You so are!”
Ivy and Demon walk in, so I get to work making another damn latte. “Excited for your date?” Ivy asks.
I watch Demon raise a brow at Twitch. His lip quirks as if he’s amused.
“It’s not a date. He’s my colleague. We’ll be working together, so it makes sense we get to know each other and get along.”
Ivy snorts. “You’ll get along all right.” She looks over at Twitch and cringes. “Morning, Twitch.”
“Morning.” His voice his dull, and he sounds unenthusiastic about this conversation.
I turn to Ivy. “I have to drive to the hospital. We’re doing the same shift. Are you sure you don’t want me to take you?” I peer at Demon. “Saves you a trip into town.”
With a sharp shake of his head, he answers my question.
Ivy gives me a tight smile. “Thank you. My paranoid partner here”—she elbows Demon in the ribs—“is still insisting on taking me.”
“That’s okay. I wanted to double-check.” I find it sweet that he still takes her to and from work. Even though the MC men are overprotective, it just shows that when they love, they love hard.
After my coffee is ready, I drink it while chatting with Ivy, then go upstairs, grab my bag, and wander back down to make my way to work.
As I pass by the computer room, someone grabs my arm and pulls me inside. The door bangs shut, my back up against it. Twitch leans into me. I’m breathing heavily, and the room feels like it’s getting smaller. “What are you doing?” I ask quietly.
His body is firm against mine, and he rubs his hard-on against my groin. I whimper. His lips brush against mine, his breath fluttering against my face. He kisses the corner of my jaw, then lightly trails his tongue up to my ear, making me tremble. “I hope you remember this on your little date.”
My mouth drops open. I grab his shoulders and push him off me. “You’re evil!”
He laughs. I leave the room as quickly as humanly possible.
I rush outside and to my car, where I attempt to get my breathing back to normal.
He’s making some risky moves in the clubhouse.
Anyone could have seen us in the kitchen or him grabbing and pulling me into the computer room.
I get a thrill from the teasing. It’s addictive .
. . or it will be until we get caught, that is.
Together we are a firestorm, both intense and destructive, threatening to burn down our lives around us.
I get to work and head straight to the ER. Edward is already there, at the computer. I glance around. There don’t seem to be any serious emergencies that aren’t being attended to.
“Good morning,” I say to Edward.
He looks up from the computer and gives me a lazy smile. “Morning.”
“You’re here early.”
“Just trying to wrap my head around your computer system and seeing if I can help out.”
I peer over at his screen. “Would you like any help?”
“Not for the moment. But I’m sure I’ll be asking soon.”
“No problem at all. Feel free to ask away.”
“Are we still on for coffee?” he asks.
I smile. “Sure. I can have a chat with the most eligible bachelor in Crown Village Hospital.”
He chuckles. “Is that what I am now? How do you know that?”
I glance at the three nurses staring at us, then lean in and whisper, “The nurses know everything.”
He laughs again, and it makes me smile.
“Would you like to know your nickname?” I’m having way too much fun teasing him.
He cringes. “I’m not sure . . . Do I want to know?”
I give him a sharp nod. “It’s a good one. I think you’ll find it amusing.”
He looks unsure. “Ahh . . . okay . . . shoot.”
“McDaddy.” I try to hide my laughter but fail miserably.
He looks stunned. “That’s uh . . . interesting.”
“Oh, come on, it’s pretty funny.”
He runs a hand through his hair. “Must be the gray hair. I’m not that old.”
“How old are you?” It slipped out of my mouth before I could stop it.
“Late forties.”
My eyebrows shoot up. That’s not old at all. “Must be the gray hair.” Plus the fact that he’s ridiculously good looking.
“Get out!” a man yells. Our heads turn to a security officer pushing a guy out the door.
I rush to them with Edward by my side. “What’s going on?”
“He was sitting with his friend over there,” the officer says, glancing at the guy on the bed, who had overdosed. “He was stealing medical supplies out of the cabinet.”
“You’re a fucking liar!” the man spits. He pulls his arm back and punches the officer hard. The officer falls to the floor, blood gushing from his face.
Edward tackles the man while I kneel and tend to the officer. There’s a cut above his eye that’s bleeding.
“Are you all right to get up? You’re going to need a couple of stitches.” The officer sees the blood on his hand and faints, out cold. I sigh. “Can I get some help over here?” I yell. Nothing is ever dull around here.
The morning goes by quickly, with just a couple of minor workplace incidents and some teenagers being stupid with concrete. Yes, concrete. The stupidity of men will never cease to amaze me.
My stomach grumbles as I’m finishing up the paperwork. It’s ten past one.
Edward leans in. “Ready for that coffee?”
I gulp. “Yes.” I finish up on the computer, and we walk toward the exit. “Mary, are you okay here if we go grab a coffee for fifteen minutes?”
She looks between us and gives me a sly smirk. “Of course.”
“Would you like me to grab you a coffee while I’m out?” I ask her.
“I’m all good, thanks.”
As we walk down the corridor, Edward asks, “Is there anywhere in particular that sells the best coffee?”
I chuckle. “Sorry, you’re out of luck. They’re all average, but they do the job.”
We wait in line at the closest indoor café. “So where are you from?” I ask.
“Reno.”
When we reach the head of the line, the woman at the counter asks me, “What can I get for you?”
“I’ll have a latte, with full-cream milk, thanks.”
The lady gives me a small smile, and I pay.
“What’s your name for the latte, so we can call it out when it’s ready?”
“Milly,” I answer, and then I go wait off to the side.
Once Edward orders, he waits next to me.
“There’s a big hospital there. Why’d you move here?” We are still a decent-sized hospital, but we don’t compare to the cities.
“I needed a change of scenery.” He stares at me a little too long. “It was too suffocating there with my ex-wife.”
“Didn’t it end well?” I’m being nosy, but I’m curious.
He flinches. “No. It did not.”
“Do you have kids?” I ask.
“My ex-wife and I never wanted them. Our careers came first.”
I bob my head. “I understand that.”
He focuses on me and leans forward. “Do you have kids?”
“No, and to be honest”—I glance away—“I don’t know if I’ll ever want them.”
“When you have a career like ours, it’s difficult to juggle everything,” he adds, and I agree.
“Latte for Milly.”
I step forward and grab my coffee. “Have a good day,” the woman says.
I smile back. “You too.”
“Flat white for Edward,” she calls out next.
I step over to a four-seater table.
“Do you have a husband?” he asks.
I bring the hot mug to my lips and take a sip. “Certainly not.” Even if I wanted to pursue one, I don’t have the time.
He chuckles. “Why not? Someone as attractive and as smart as you, you’d have them lining up for you.”
I snort loudly, and my cheeks flush with shame. “I guess when my life is work and my family is a bunch of bikers, meeting new people is difficult.” Understatement of the year.
He coughs. “Bikers?”
Here we go. Every time I tell someone who my brother is, they all judge. “My brother is the president of the War Brothers Motorcycle Club here in Crown Village.”
His eyes widen.
“Before you say anything and are quick to judge—they’re not your typical motorcycle club. They help with the women and children’s shelter here in town, and they are genuinely a good group of people.” Unless you hurt any of them or the people they love.
His eyes are still wide. “Does your brother scare away your dates?”
Twitch’s face is the first thing that pops into my head. “You could say that.”