Chapter 7
Quinn
“You really said no to giving him your number?” Aubrey asked me later that night following my run-down of my lunch and coffee with Theo. We were in the break room at the children’s hospital where she worked as a nurse.
I did have plans last night and tonight, but Oli and Theo had incorrectly assumed it was a date.
Nope.
My Wednesday nights were always spent here, volunteering. Aubrey and I had been doing it since university. Last night she’d been off when I volunteered but since there was an open spot tonight, I took it too.
I got to hold babies in the NICU when their parents couldn’t be here or when they needed a break.
I loved it. I took evening shifts and would head here straight after work.
Wednesdays were the only day I refused to leave work late, even starting earlier in the morning or working afterwards, to make sure I could make it on time.
My shifts were only supposed to be four hours, but most of the time I didn’t leave before ten because I couldn’t walk away. Plus, I got to spend time with Aubrey on her first break when she was on night shift which was a bonus.
“Yep.” I popped the P as I stirred the yogurt she had passed me.
“Quinn.” I looked up to find her brown eyes waiting for me, I braced myself for the ‘you need to get yourself back out there’ lecture, but it never came, since the door opened.
“Hey girls.” I hid my eyeroll and looked over my shoulder as Max came strutting in, walking over to plant a kiss on Aubrey’s lips. Max was her boyfriend and a doctor here.
I kind of hated him.
He was nice enough… I guess. But he was arrogant and a giant flirt. Something about him bothered me but I tried to be supportive by not making my dislike obvious.
“Done for the night?” Aubrey asked, looking at her boyfriend with stars in her eyes.
They’d been together a year, but something just felt off about the guy. I tried broaching the subject with Aubrey, but it didn’t go over well so I kept my feelings to myself and my eyes on him.
The thing about Aubrey was that she could probably go out and get any man she wanted, one much better than Max.
She had this confidence about her that made people notice her.
Even in her scrubs she was a knockout with her curves that she knew how to dress.
She, unfortunately, didn’t see that and felt like she got lucky when Max ‘picked her.’
“Yep, I’ll head home to Luna,” Max replied as Aubrey swooned. She had to convince him hard to get a dog. When he finally gave in she was so excited, not noticing how he couldn’t care less. I’m surprised he was paying it any attention honestly. “How you doing, Quinn?”
“Swell,” I said with a tight smile. He didn’t really care about my answer.
“Lucas was asking about you the other day.”
I held back my gag as Aubrey whipped around to look at me. Her brown hair brushed the top of her shoulders, she’d been rocking a bob for years. “Gross. Pass.” I threw my trash in the bin next to me.
Lucas was my ex-boyfriend, the one that manipulated me, treated me like shit and then blamed me for everything going wrong.
Maybe it was part of the reason I didn’t like Max, he was his best friend, and Max had set us up.
Although to be fair, I liked Max more while I was dating Lucas, he had me convinced he was a good guy.
But Lucas was a liar about a lot of things.
“What did he ask?” Aubrey turned back to Max.
She knew how he ended things with me. The manipulation however, I wanted to keep to myself. I felt stupid for falling for it in the first place. I knew better than that. I’d seen it happen before, read about it, and was sure I would never fall into that kind of situation.
Max shrugged. “He wanted to know how she was doing.” I rolled my eyes as Aubrey scoffed.
“There is no reason he needs to be asking you about her.”
I loved the hatred she had for him, if only she knew.
“Babe, come on. Give the guy a break,” Max said in a critical tone that made me bite my tongue.
“A break?” Aubrey’s voice rose an octave at the end.
I knew what was about to happen. They were going to argue, he would convince her to forgive him and they would agree she could hate Lucas if she wanted to. I’d seen the fight enough over the past few months.
“Alright, I’m going to head out. I’ll see you guys later.” Neither said anything as I slipped out of the breakroom, their raised voices silenced by the door closing behind me.
I lived a fifteen-minute walk from the hospital, so I’d left my car at home before coming here. It was dark out when I finished but the fresh air felt good. It was a safe area and I had bear spray in my purse within easy reach.
As I entered my apartment, I threw my keys on the counter and kicked off my shoes, heading to the couch.
Snuggling babies always made me sleepy, especially because it was warm in the NICU and the babies were like little furnaces.
But on my walk home, I got myself a little wound up.
Aubrey knew what she wanted to do with her life since we were in high school and I still had no idea.
Leaning my head against the back of the couch, I looked at the ceiling and tried to let myself relax.
One deep breath.
And then another.
It wasn’t working. Coming home to a quiet house usually didn’t bother me, actually I preferred it. But tonight I was feeling lonely and my mind kept wandering—against my will—to Theo Knight.
His stupid broad shoulders, dark hair, his dumb mesmerizing eyes and an intensity that was intoxicating.
I’d said no to him both times because honestly, he intimidated me, and I had no idea how to handle that.
“No more thinking of Theo Knight,” I reprimanded myself. “I’m never going to see him again.” I puffed out a breath and pushed up from the couch.
Sometimes I considered getting a dog but with some unpredictable working hours I didn’t feel right about it; but on nights like this, I wish I had a companion.
“Great. Now I’m talking to myself.”
I walked to the shower to burn a layer of skin off with the heat.
“You look terrible,” James commented as he sat beside me. I glared at him as I finished the last of my second coffee.
Unfortunately, he was right, because for the last two nights, I hadn’t slept for more than a few hours. I’d tossed and turned but couldn’t settle, and then when I finally did fall asleep my dreams were plagued with someone who looked suspiciously like Theo Knight.
So I’d woken up hot, bothered, and exhausted. By four a.m. I had just gotten up and gotten some work done from home before coming in.
“Wow, thanks,” I said as James chuckled. “All I can say is I’m so happy it’s Friday.” I tightened my ponytail and rolled my shoulders trying to release the tension I was holding there.
“Any big plans this weekend?” He asked me this every week. He knew what my answer was.
“Nope, what about you?” He spent the next ten minutes running through his action-packed weekend of going to a new bar in town, a brunch and he was joining a group on a hike. Even listening to his plan was exhausting me.
“Miss West.” James and I both turned to face Margret who was standing behind us. I hid my surprise, she only ever called me over the phone, rarely leaving her post.
“Are you in trouble?” James whispered low out the side of his mouth.
“Mr. Walters has requested your presence in the boardroom. Now.” She didn’t wait for my response before turning around and walking away.
“What did you do?” James asked as I shrugged and stood up, heading in the direction of the boardroom at the back of the office.
My stomach tightened with anxiety as I thought about what I could have possibly done that required a boardroom meeting. I pushed my shoulders back, huffed a breath, and knocked.
“Come on in, Quinn.” I heard Richard call from inside.
About three steps into the room, I froze.
At the head of the table sat the man who had been haunting my dreams. Theo Knight sat there looking like he owned the room.
He was sitting back in the chair, his ankle resting on his knee, one arm resting on the table casually.
He looked just as charming today in a dark charcoal grey suit and white button up shirt.
The color really made his eyes greyer, which only made them more intense.
Again, he didn’t have a tie on, the top few buttons of his shirt were undone, and he was staring at me with an eyebrow raised.
“What the hell are you—”
“Miss West!” I hadn’t even noticed Richard sitting in the chair on his right, looking startled and embarrassed on my behalf. Theo took up the room and sucked up all my attention.
“It’s fine, Richard.” Theo’s voice was curt and authoritative, and I would have laughed at how quick Richard shut his mouth if I wasn’t so focused on Theo.
“Sit down, Miss West.” Richard had never called me by my last name before; guess he was trying to be professional.
His eyes were only on my chest for a moment though, breaking any ruse of professionalism before he waved at a chair across from him but I didn’t want to sit. Theo must have seen my hesitation.
“She can stand if she wants.” Theo raised an eyebrow, daring Richard to protest but again he kept his mouth shut. It was fascinating to watch.
“Can you explain what’s going on?” I asked Theo, linking my fingers together to keep from fidgeting.
“I would like to offer you a job.” I started to laugh, but when he held my gaze I realized he was serious and the sound died off.
I looked over at Richard who said nothing. He didn’t have a good poker face and yet I couldn’t tell what he was thinking. I looked back at Theo and frowned.
Was he trying to get me fired as pay back for turning him down?
“Excuse me, Mr. Walters.” I looked back at him. “Can I speak with Mr. Knight alone for a minute?” Rather than look at me, Richard looked at Theo who gave a nod.
I tried to hold in my eyeroll as Richard stood and walked out of the room without saying another word. The door pulled closed behind him.