Chapter Six
“Well, this is awkward,” Payton muttered after she’d convinced Elara to leave.
The doctor was classically pretty, with old-money looks. The kind Dailey’s bitch mother would approve. Mary-Alice Cobb had probably danced in her sensible-heeled shoes when he brought Dr. Hope Weatherspoon home.
“Isn’t it just?” Hope replied dryly. “Are you ready to discuss why you fainted, or should we stretch this awkwardness even longer?”
“Look, no offense, but I’m not interested in having Dailey’s girlfriend examine me, okay?” Payton surged to her feet. “You can tell him you did, and I promise, when I get back home, I’ll follow up with my regular GP.”
“I can’t treat you if you don’t want me to,” Hope said evenly, “but I will say, I’m not Lee’s girlfriend.”
Hearing his nickname on another woman’s lips sliced her open from stomach to breastbone. The searing pain was almost as horrific as the day she’d made the decision to leave Witchmere and everything she loved behind.
“Only people he’s extremely close to call him Lee. Not even his mother or brother calls him that.”
“I didn’t say we hadn’t been intimate,” Hope replied coolly. “But I’m not currently his girlfriend. I suppose I never was.”
Her eyes showed her quiet disappointment, a private truth she didn’t bother to hide.
Payton could relate.
“I’m sorry.” And weirdly enough, she meant it. Dailey was a good man. Considerate, loving, kind—or at least he had been before she did a number on him. “If it’s any consolation, his distance is probably due to a spell, not anything you did or didn’t do.”
An amused smile curled Dr. Hope’s mouth, but steady gaze remained serious. “I never believed I was the cause, Payton.”
“Oh, well, that’s good, then.” What was it like to be so confident in who you were as a person? It wasn’t something she was familiar with, despite the rebellious kiss-my-ass front she liked to put up.
“You seem to be fine, but I’ll leave my card in case your symptoms return. Hydrate, rest, and keep your stress to a minimum.” Hope’s smile widened. “And yes, I believe it’s probably simple dehydration. We all get a bit rundown after an epic party. Tripp and Elara’s was legendary.”
“His mother’s doing, not my sister’s or Tripp’s. They aren’t the type to host a town-wide shindig.”
“Hm, yes, well, meddlesome mothers can be problematic.”
Payton’s brows shot up. “You’ve had experience in that department? Or was it our beloved mayor?”
“Both.” Hope surprised her when she snorted. “It’s disturbing how much our parents are alike.”
The rub was that Payton found herself liking the woman. “You have my sympathy.”
“Yes, well, I should’ve taken a page from your book and run away from the drama years ago.” Hope froze the instant she registered what she’d said, and her hand flew to cover her mouth.
If the good doctor’s face held even a smidgeon of malice, Payton would’ve eviscerated her. But her embarrassment was genuine. She waved it off.
“Don’t stress it. I’m not offended by the truth.”
Hope closed the distance between them and clasped her hand.
“I like you, Payton Hawthorne. I think we’d be great friends without the specter of dating Dailey hanging between us. If you ever want to grab a drink sometime, let me know.”
“I doubt I’ll be around that long.”
“Ah, well, that’s a shame. My office is two doors down if you change your mind about either the exam or the drink.” She sniffed lightly. “Mm. Maybe you can tell me what perfume you use. It’s delicious.”
“I don’t use perfume.”
The doctor frowned, then nodded before picking up her bag and exiting.
After she was alone, Payton collapsed back onto the couch. Yes, she could leave, but she’d promised Dailey she would take her lumps, and it was exactly what she intended to do. Follow-through had never been her strong suit, and she couldn’t shake the fact that she’d been a disappointment to him.
The door opened, and there he was, cheeks lightly flushed by the cold. He had a wary look in his eyes.
“Don’t panic. Everyone’s gone but the jailbird,” she quipped. “Your girlfriend might have a word or two for you later, though.”
Her teasing fell flat. Perhaps he recognized it as a probing question disguised as sarcasm. Payton wanted to believe Hope, but she’d seen the silent exchanges between the two. And she couldn’t rule out the good doctor’s “I didn’t say we hadn’t been intimate” comment.
“Are you trying to convince me you haven’t had a lover in three years, Hawthorne? I’ll call you a damned liar,” he retorted with a scowl.
“Then call me a damned liar,” she said softly.
Oh, she’d gone on a handful of dates, even kissed a few toads, but none were the prince standing before her, so she’d given up. Worse, while she had expected him to move on, it hurt like hell knowing he had.
A thoughtful frown drew his brows together, and he set the coffee carrier on the desk. He drew her to her feet and looked deeply into her eyes. “To clarify, you’ve never dated anyone else?”
“I didn’t say that. I said I didn’t take a lover since our breakup.”
“How many?”
“How many what?”
His gaze swept over her face and settled on her lips. “How many did you date?”
“Four.”
“Hm.” He rubbed his thumb across her lower lip. “And did you kiss them?”
“They kissed me. I didn’t initiate anything.”
He nodded, as if it confirmed some inner theory of his, then said, “Good.”
Dailey lowered his head, capturing her mouth in another of his bone-melting kisses. Her feet warmed, and fire swept through her veins. All she wanted was to get horizontal with him, but Dr. Hope became an intrusive thought, cooling Payton’s ardor.
With a hand on his chest, she stopped their runaway sex train.
“I’m not the other woman, Dailey.”
“No one said you were.” He moved to dive back in, but she sidestepped. “What’s this, Pay?”
She shrugged and lifted one of four red holiday cups from the carrier.
“It was sweet of you to get enough for everyone,” she said instead of answering.
But then, that was part of the problem. His consideration. Only it hadn’t been when it mattered—like with his mother.
“Hope isn’t my girlfriend,” he said quietly. “We dated steadily, but before feelings could grow, Elara’s spell hijacked my emotions.”
Payton’s relief was a funny thing. In large part because she didn’t want him to find someone else.
Her flawed logic said, if she couldn’t get over their relationship, he shouldn’t be able to.
It was unfair—some might say childish—but he’d imprinted on her soul, and her heart had claimed him as hers after their first meeting.
“I’m sorry.” She faced him so he could see her sincerity. “She seems nice.”
“She is. And she’s reliable.”
Her breath seized at the deliberate dig.
“Wow,” she finally said. “It’s hard to fathom how much you still hate me.”
“I’ve already told you, I don’t feel much of anything since the curse.
” He stormed forward and tipped up her chin.
“You told Elara to ‘take away the love he feels’ and that you didn’t want me to hurt anymore.
But that love was woven into every fiber of my soul, Payton.
And now, it seems, I don’t possess one anymore. ”
And the blows kept coming!
Dailey didn’t gain any satisfaction from her gasp or the shimmer of tears in her eyes. Hell, he wished he did. But once again, he felt hollowed out, as if the brief surges he’s been experiencing over the last twelve hours had fizzled.
All except for desire. He couldn’t seem to get a handle on his need to fuck her senseless. Maybe it was the dress, or possibly her particular brand of pheromones, but the drive to claim her again was unrelenting.
“There’s a bagel for you. Eat up,” he said, stepping away and putting the desk between them. “We can’t have you fainting again.”
“I’m not hungry.”
He cast her a quick glance, noting how pale she seemed. Hurrying back to her, he urged her into the chair.
“If you won’t let Hope check you out, let’s find another doctor. You don’t look well, Pay.”
“You already told me you can’t feel, Dailey. Cut the concern, okay?” Her voice was as tight as her expression. “Let’s discuss the charges you intend to leverage against me. The legit ones, not resisting arrest. Instinctively hiding my hands doesn’t count.”
The tingling tickled his diaphragm, and he fought a grin. Sitting on the edge of the desk, he picked up a to-go cup and sipped it to hide his reaction. When he’d regained control, he said, “So the B&E and drunk driving are legit?”
Her eyes narrowed in irritation. “I’m not admitting to anything. That’s what lawyers are for. But if you’re going to charge me, do it now, or I’m going home. I have a bridal shower to plan for my sister.”
The mention of Elara’s planned wedding left a sour taste in his mouth, and he set the coffee aside.
“What did I say this time?” she snapped.
Her cluelessness was maddening.
“Oh, I don’t know. Maybe it’s hearing you say ‘bridal’ as if it’s a throwaway word. I suppose to you, it is.”
She surged to her feet and stabbed a finger into his chest. “Stop it, Dailey. Just stop!” Her voice bordered on a sob.
“You know damned well I love you. But you did nothing to stop your mother from making sure I didn’t feel good enough every chance she could.
Do you really believe anyone can live through an entire lifetime of criticism without it extracting a price? ”
“It wasn’t a lifetime—”
“No, but it would’ve been,” she said. “She hates me. There’s no changing her mind. But whenever I tried to bring it up, you distracted me with romantic gestures and sex.”
He stared at her empassioned visage, happy to see color in her cheeks again.
Happy.
Odd choice, all things considered.
But she’d made a valid point. Dailey dealt with strife throughout his day as a law-enforcement officer. He hadn’t wanted to come home to complaints, too. In ignoring the problem, he was to blame.
He opened his mouth to apologize when something she said clicked.
“You love me?”
“Are you stupid, or did Elara’s accidental curse steal what was left of your brain? Of course, I love you. Something so pure doesn’t just go away.” She shoved past him and headed for the door, intent on escaping.
His panic paralyzed him for all of five seconds.
“Payton!” The cry was ripped from him, and there was no disguising his desperation. It made him sick to hear it again, the ragged despair at her leaving. His nerve endings buzzed, and his vision grew cloudy.
In the next second, she was there, guiding him to the couch.
“Breathe, Dailey—”
“Lee,” he blurted, as the piercing pain returned to his heart. “It will always be Lee for you, Wildfire.”
Her eyes softened to match her smile. Just as she opened her mouth to reply, the door opened, and the visitor was one neither cared to see right then.
His mother took in the scene with a look of distaste. “What the hell is going on here? Get away from my son!”