Chapter 17
CHAPTER SEVENTEEN
RIANN
Skylar: Hey, it’s Skylar.
Skylar: Are you okay?
I stare down at the messages from Dr. Morales, my heart racing a million miles a minute. As much as I wanted to talk to her again, I never imagined that she would text me. This has to be breaking some kind of rule…
But I guess it’s not any worse than fucking her in her office.
Heat flares across my cheeks, and my stomach somersaults as I shakily type out a reply.
Hey, I’m good. Great actually.
I hit send before I talk myself out of it and wait, my heart beating hard in my chest. Three little dots pop up and the seconds drag by before another message appears.
Skylar: I’m glad to hear that. I was… worried.
Worried?
Skylar: That I’d really fucked things up.
I swallow over the lump forming in my throat, my numb fingers racing over the screen.
I started it, remember?
Skylar: Yeah, well, I finished it, didn’t I?
That earns a laugh, and my cheeks begin to ache. I realize I’ve been grinning this entire time, and the smile won’t go away.
You’re so ridiculous, Riann.
I guess it’s my turn to finish it next time then.
The dots appear.
Then disappear.
My stomach sinks.
The dots appear again.
Skylar: Maybe. ;)
Skylar: I did want to ask you something. Feel free to say no.
Skylar: Can I come by your room?
My jaw drops so hard it aches, and I forget to breathe for several beats.
Skylar wants to come… here?
I give the boring room a once-over, wishing I was somewhere more glamorous for her to visit. But my disappointment is quickly replaced by an impossible giddiness that has me scrambling off the bed.
The room might look like hell, but that doesn’t mean I have to. I hurry to the bathroom and grab my brush.
Sure. When?
My phone pings almost instantly.
Skylar: Now.
My stomach cartwheels again, my pulse lurching.
Room 311
Skylar: See you in a few.
Shit, shit, shit.
I throw my hair into a messy bun as my nerves mount, wishing I’d left my makeup on from this morning.
I throw on some mascara and lip gloss, and I decide to leave on the leggings and T-shirt I put on after my nap.
I already seduced her; it’s not like I have to do it again.
Besides, I’m exhausted from the day’s events and want to be comfortable as much as cute.
After admiring my reflection in the mirror a final time, I rush back to the room and tidy up, straightening the blankets and making sure everything looks presentable.
That’ll have to be good enough.
Then, I sit on the end of the bed waiting, teeming with bubbling anxiety. The minutes stretch on impossibly long, and my chest gets a little tighter the longer I sit there watching the door.
When a knock shatters the silence of the room, I’m on my feet in a blink. I scramble across the short space, doing my best to collect myself before ripping open the door.
There, in the flesh, is Skylar. But I almost don’t recognize her without her button-up and lab coat.
She’s still in slacks, but she’s wearing a structured black jacket over a dark tank top that hugs her torso perfectly. The strap of a leather messenger bag is slung over her neck.
“Hey.” The corner of her mouth lifts in a smirk.
My brain turns to mush as I stand there staring at her, and my system struggles to reboot. Then I’m stammering and scrambling out of her way.
“Hey. C-come in? Yes, come in.”
She chuckles softly as she passes me, her smoke-wrapped pine scent much fainter than it was before.
“Sorry to drop in on you on such short notice,” she says as I close the door behind her.
I’m instantly aware of the fact that we are, yet again, trapped in a tiny room together. And this time, there’s no chance of prying eyes.
“It’s fine,” I assure her, waving a hand. I take a seat on the edge of the bed as she deposits her messenger bag on top of the dresser, and then she stands awkwardly in the middle of the room.
Who knew someone so drop dead sexy could also be so hopelessly adorable?
“Can I sit?” she asks, her eyes flicking to the empty chair in the corner.
“Yeah, of course. You’re probably exhausted from working all day.” I bite my tongue to keep from saying anything else.
The corner of her mouth hitches up again, and she moves to take a seat in the chair next to the bed.
There are a few feet between us, too much space in my opinion, but the fact that she’s here to begin with is more than I could have asked for.
Getting comfortable, I cross my legs on the bed and rest my elbows on my thighs.
Then the awkwardness kicks in, and I suddenly don’t know what to say.
“Your scent is different,” is the first thing that comes to mind.
Skylar nods, like she’s not surprised. “I took a ton of rut suppressants before I came. I didn’t want to risk a repeat of this morning.”
My stomach sinks, and I try to keep the disappointment off my face. “Oh.”
“Not because I don’t want it, to be clear.” She meets my gaze with a pointed look. “I’m trying to be responsible, trying to help you.”
Right. Responsible.
That’s what I get for going after an older woman. She’s worried about professionalism and responsibilities.
Meanwhile, I’m worried about whether she’d let me crawl into her lap and bury my face against her neck.
“Is that… why you’re here now?” I ask, still fighting the sinking feeling in the pit of my stomach. “Something to do with my results?”
She nods slowly. “I should have waited until tomorrow, but an idea struck me this afternoon, and I wanted to get started as soon as possible. If you’d rather wait until the office opens in the morning, that’s fine too. I just need a DNA sample.”
My stomach sours, and I make a face. “You mean more blood?”
“This should be the last round. Hopefully.”
My eyes slip over to where she laid her messenger bag, knowing it’s probably full of medical equipment. My insides twist and my skin crawls.
I fucking hate needles…
“I know I’ve already asked a lot of you, but please don’t mention me coming here to anyone at the office.” Skylar’s voice grabs my attention again, and my eyes snap in her direction. “It probably wouldn’t go over well with the board.”
I nod, understanding. “You must not like your job very much, considering how much you like to break the rules.”
At that, she laughs. “Let’s just say, I’ve made better decisions.”
I take a deep breath, steeling myself for the needle stick I know is coming, and sit up a little straighter.
“Alright,” I say, turning my arm to offer her a vein. “Let’s get this over with.”
To my surprise, she doesn’t move. I’m beginning to wonder if I misunderstood, but she was pretty clear. What other kind of DNA sample could she possibly need?
I blink, waiting for a response.
“That is why I came, but…” She trails off, debating her next words. “But I also wanted to see you. Is it okay if I hang out for a little bit? You can say no, and I’ll—”
“Yes.” I cut her off. “Please, stay. It’s not like I’m doing anything tonight.” I gesture around the boring room, then to my comfy clothes.
“Okay, cool.” She runs a hand through her hair, and it falls perfectly above her eyes.
She’s so hot it should be a crime…
A long second of silence stretches between us, discomfort prickling over my skin, and I wonder if she can feel it too. We’re doing things a bit backward—fucking and then trying to get to know one another—but my intuition tells me we’re exactly where we’re supposed to be.
We just have to get past the awkward tension…
“If you’re staying, you might as well get comfortable too,” I say, turning to crawl up the bed. I grab the remote off the side table and click the TV on, patting the bed beside me. “Do you like TV? I have three decent channels to choose from.”
Her eyes bounce from me to the bed and back. “You’re serious?”
“Uh, yeah? You’ve already been inside me. Being in bed together should be nothing.”
Her cheeks pinken, which I pretend not to notice, and my stomach flutters as she shoves out of the chair again.
She unzips her jacket and peels it off, and my eyebrows nearly hit my hairline.
Her tan arms are perfectly sculpted, like she spends her afternoons in the gym, and they're covered in vibrant, black-lined tattoos.
Holy hell.
She tosses her jacket on the chair and kicks her shoes off before hesitantly crawling into bed next to me. Sitting with her back against the headboard, she folds her hands respectfully in her lap. When she finally looks in my direction, she finds me staring.
My breath catches.
“Is this okay?”
Warmth sinks through me at the question, and I can’t get over how cute she is outside of the clinic. She’s much more timid and reserved than I’d imagined from the way she proudly ate me out in the middle of her office, but maybe that’s another effect of the suppressants.
“Very.” I nod before turning my attention back to the TV. I flip through the few decent channels, settling on a sci-fi movie I’ve heard of but never seen, and then I toss the remote aside.
I lay down next to her, curling up with my favorite throw blanket, but I can’t keep my eyes off Skylar for more than a few seconds. Even though she’s here, hints of her smothered pine scent teasing my nostrils, it still feels like a dream.
A dream I don’t want to end.
“Say it,” she finally says, her dark eyes falling down to meet mine. “What are you thinking?”
I shake my head guiltily. “No, no. You don’t want to know what I’m thinking.”
Her lips purse, and I want to feel them against mine again.
“Pretty sure I do.” She raises an eyebrow that makes me giggle.
“Fine.” I grumble. “I’m just wondering how the hell anyone could be so hot. First, you’re a doctor. Now, you’re ripped and covered in tattoos. What else are you hiding?”
She laughs again, and the awkward bubble shatters, a pleasant sense of comfort settling between us. “Nothing, I swear. Ask me anything you want; I’m an open book.”