Chapter Chapter Two
Amy
I checked my appearance in the mirror. I’d prepped for my date but still looked like something the cat had dragged in. My blonde hair was greasy because I’d run my hand through it too many times.
I took out my mascara but stopped before putting it on. What am I doing? I was in a hospital visiting a friend, for goodness’ sake, not out clubbing where I needed to look my best.
I put the mascara back in my bag and took a deep breath. I was always off kilter around Knox—even though I’d known him forever. In my defense, the guy somehow just got hotter with age.
I left the restroom and headed back to his room, though I stopped when I was close to the door. I didn’t want to accidentally walk in on him flirting with a nurse or something. I wouldn’t even put it past him to seduce the doctor. I couldn’t hear any voices, though, so clearly he was alone.
When I stepped in, he gave me a very charming smile. “Why did you run off, Amy? I didn’t mind if you heard what the doctor had to say.”
I rolled my eyes. “You were full-on flirting with the doctor, Knox. I wasn’t going to ruin your game.” Besides, listening to him flirt with women had always felt weird and uncomfortable. “What did she say?”
He frowned at me as only Knox could do—and even that was sexy.
“I have a concussion.”
I gasped.
“Nothing to worry about,” he added.
“Concussions can be very serious.”
“I feel fine. Anyway, they’ll keep me here under observation, just for the night.”
“Perfect. I think that’s for the best.”
I scrutinized his appearance a little more and noticed he was still wearing the same clothes as this morning: a polo shirt and jeans. I was surprised he wasn’t wearing a hospital gown. God, those arms. How could he have such perfect muscles, and why couldn’t I stop staring at them?
Granted, it wasn’t like I didn’t know Knox was attractive. Then again, I hadn’t seen him in almost a year before running into him this morning. Some friends we were. But he was the CEO of a huge company, and I was a teacher, so we lived in two different worlds.
“Do you want me to bring you dinner? I’ve heard that hospital food is notoriously bad.”
“Nah. I’m fine, Amy.”
“Think I can visit you tomorrow morning before I go to school? Or is six thirty too early? I need to be at school shortly before eight.”
“I’m gonna be asleep.”
I nodded. “Fair enough.”
“You can always visit me at home, though.” He wiggled his eyebrows. “My offer to give you a tour of the house still stands. And you promised to teach me your pie recipe.”
This morning, I’d dropped by his parents’ house with one of my famous pies as a gift. Knox had suggested we could bake that afternoon in his brand-new home. Unfortunately, I’d had that obnoxious date already planned.
I laughed. “Sure, we can do that. Just let me know when they let you go home. I’m usually free in the afternoon.”
“No second date planned?” he asked.
I laughed again. “You’re joking, right? I couldn’t run away fast enough from that guy. And I sure as hell don’t want to see him again.”
He frowned. “Amy, did he try something you weren’t comfortable with?”
“No,” I said quickly, realizing where he was going with this. Knox had always been protective—deliciously so. “I do have another date planned this week, though.”
Knox stopped in the act of reaching for the glass of water on his nightstand and turned to me. “With a different guy?”
“Hey, Mr. I Flirt with Everyone I See, what’s with that judgy tone?”
“I wasn’t judging.”
It was my turn to arch a brow.
“Just surprised, that’s all,” he added.
I sighed. “Well, I haven’t been on any dates for a while, so I made a bet with a teacher friend of mine that we’re both going to get into serious relationships this year. You can’t actually do that without going on dates, so...” I shrugged.
“Women do that? They just decide they want to have a relationship?”
I laughed. “Yeah.”
“And it works?”
“Not really,” I replied. “Hence why I’ve been single for longer than I care to admit. But I’m sure the right one is out there. I figured it’s time I stop waiting until he finds me and actively seek him out instead.”
“You’ve always been very determined.”
I grinned. “Oh, I know. I’ve got big plans this year.”
“Besides...”
“Finding the one,” I finished for him. His expression was comical, almost like he couldn’t bring himself to say the words. “Yeah. One of them is that I want to secure a few sponsorships for the school.”
I was a high school teacher at a K–12 school, and I also helped oversee a class of elementary kids during lunch break and afternoon activities.
The teacher in charge was on sick leave this semester, and I jumped at the opportunity to help with the little ones.
It was one of the very few private schools in San Diego that offered all grades, and it was the reason I’d wanted to work there—along with the fact that it offered scholarships to disadvantaged students.
“Really? What kind of sponsorship are you talking about?”
“Something that allows us to pamper the kids a little while they’re learning something important, you know?
Like taking them on a retreat for a weekend, or working on a farm for a day, or...
I don’t know, I’m still figuring it all out.
But more than that, I want them to be able to intern at companies, too, so they see how the real world works. I have a whole vision board for it.”
Another knock at the door, and we both turned to see that the doctor was back.
“I wanted to check on you before my shift ends.” She looked at me with a frown. “Visiting hours are over, miss.”
“Goodness, I didn’t know that.” Crap. I wasn’t a rulebreaker, and I felt horrible that I’d overstayed my welcome.
“I did,” Knox said with a sly grin, “but I wanted to have you all to myself for a bit longer.”
Oh, that sounded dangerous. Maybe that bump on his head did do something.
“I gave Dr. Wayland all the information,” the doctor went on as if I was already gone.
“Good night, Knox,” I said, quickly interrupting and waving goodbye.
“Good night, Amy. Thanks for stopping by.”
As I left the room, I heard the doctor mention “MRI” and “concussion.” The devil on my shoulder told me to stay and eavesdrop, but I decided not to. This was Knox’s business. Besides, what if he flirted with her again?
I didn’t want to hear that.
I quickly went to the hospital parking lot, then drove away in my small Prius a couple of minutes later.
I’d paid cash for it about five years ago, and it was one of the best decisions I’d ever made.
I remember looking at car payments once and thinking, This is nuts.
I couldn’t afford to spend so much of my salary on a car, so the first few years of my teaching career, I biked everywhere.
Bicycling is a good workout, but not fun in the rainy weather.
Once I had enough money for a car, I purchased this one, and it has served me well ever since.
I couldn’t help but think of Knox. What if he got worse during the night? Well, at least he was in the hospital and under strict supervision.
I wondered again if he’d flirted with the doctor after I left, then chastised myself as I pulled into my driveway. Why the hell did my thoughts always veer that way? Shaking my head, I got out of the car and walked into my home.
It was a one-bedroom house—a rarity in this neighborhood. But I didn’t need any more space, and the rent was fantastic. I’d put up shelves everywhere in the living room, which were now full of books and drawings from my younger students.
I loved being a high school teacher, but I also enjoyed helping out with the little ones this semester. Kids were simply adorable at that age. They had so much love to give and were eager to learn.
My favorite painting was from Lisa, a seven-year-old.
I’d found out early on that something was off with her, because every day at lunchtime, she’d stay back in the classroom while everyone else went to lunch.
It turned out that her parents were very poor and unable to pack a lunch for her, so I always brought her something.
Tomorrow, Lisa was getting leftovers from yesterday’s pot pie—it was full of chopped veggies.
I’d come up with the recipe, and she’d said it was her favorite.
After I packed the lunchboxes, I put them in the fridge, then paced the living room. I usually went to bed early, but tonight I was a bit high-strung. I couldn’t shake my worries about Knox. Sitting down on my small couch, I put my feet up on the ottoman and decided to text him.
Amy: Feeling better?
I stared at the screen, waiting for him to reply. My friendship with Knox was what I liked to call “low-maintenance”—when you didn’t have to constantly keep in touch to know that they’d be there for you no matter what. Whenever we met, it was like we’d seen each other the day before.
I glanced at my phone again. Damn it. Why isn’t he replying?
Maybe his concussion is worse than he let on.
Or maybe he’s too busy flirting with that doctor.
The thought transported me right back to the night when Knox and I went out for the first time back in college.
I’d mistakenly thought he was taking me out on a date.
I’d made myself extra pretty and put on my favorite perfume, only for him to show up with a bunch of guys from his dorm.
I couldn’t understand how I’d gotten mixed signals, but later that night, I’d figured out why: Knox was flirty with everyone. He couldn’t help himself.
We’d gone to a club and danced sinfully—but for one song only. After that, he kept dancing with everyone but me.
Eventually, I realized that we truly were just friends. And honestly, I was grateful for that. To my knowledge, Knox Sterling had never dated anyone seriously, and I would have just been another notch on his bedpost.
When my phone beeped, I looked at it with a grin.
Knox: Feeling much better.
Amy: Are you being truthful?
Knox: Always.
Knox: When do you want to drop by this week?
Amy: Want to lock this down, huh?
Knox: Hell yeah. Otherwise, it may be another year before I see you.
Amy: Knox Sterling, is that your way of telling me that you miss me?
Why did I text him that? I swear, I was holding my breath waiting for his reply.
My phone started vibrating the next second. He was calling me, so I put him on speakerphone. I was a weirdo, but I preferred talking this way when I could. I didn’t do it in public, but always at home.
“Can’t type so much.”
“Still? Aren’t the doctors worried about that?”
“Nah. Doctor said it’s normal. And to answer your question, yeah, of course I missed you.”
“Obviously. You still have my number, right?”
He laughed. “Yes. But I always get caught up in things.”
“I understand. It’s the same for me, and I’m not the one running a gazillion companies. Have you added a few more since we last spoke?”
“Funnily enough, no. Although Wyatt has taken the lead on the wine and hotel business that we scouted out together eons ago.”
“Oh, I remember you telling me that you kept flying to Napa.”
He chuckled. “Damn, that was a long time ago. Anyway, tell me about you. What’s new?”
“Well, I told you my goals for the year.”
“Do you have a strategy for getting the sponsorships?”
“I do, actually. I just haven’t had time to put it in motion.
” I sighed. “I need to organize my time better. I teach supplementary English at the high school, but I don’t have as many afternoons free as before because I’m also helping with some of the elementary kids.
But I need to make these sponsorships a priority. ”
“You’ve always been good at that. I always thought you were the smartest in our class.”
“I was,” I said. “Graduated summa cum laude, remember?”
He scoffed. “You’re going to rub that in my face forever, aren’t you?”
“Yes, of course I am. You were my biggest competition.”
Yes, ladies and gentlemen, aside from being sexy as sin, Knox Sterling was also extremely smart. He and I were neck and neck all the way through college.
“I’m happy that you ended up taking the title after all. I always felt bad for having such high grades and not doing a whole lot to get them. You studied much more than me.”
I burst out laughing. “That’s right, I did. Tell the truth now, seven years later—did you charm your way through college? We did have a number of female professors.”
“Amy, Amy, Amy. Look where your mind went.” I could picture his smirk.
“What? You were easy on the eyes.”
“Oh, and now I’m not? You implying that I’m getting old?”
Goodness, he was being a tease.
“That is not what I said.”
“So, you think I’m easy on the eyes?”
What game is he playing?
“You know you are. That’s not a secret.”
“No, it’s not. I’ve just never heard it from you.”
“Do you need an ego boost?” I chided.
“Yeah, I do.”
“Well, then, you are the sexiest, smartest, most fashionable—”
He snorted. “All right, all right. No need to overdo it.”
I laughed. “Sorry. Just going the extra mile.”
“Back to our original conversation...”
“I forgot what we were talking about.”
It was always like this with Knox. We just went on talking, moving from one subject to another. It was a bit erratic, but I loved our dynamic.
“When do you want to drop by my house?” he asked.
“Tuesday afternoon.”
“I’ve got meetings, but I’ll move them around,” he said.
“You think you’ll be feeling well enough to bake?”
“Fuck yeah. It’s just a small bump.”
That had landed him in the hospital, where they were keeping him overnight. Men. Why were they like this? They either feared every cold was deadly or thought they could walk through fire and come out unharmed.
“Let me know if you can move your schedule around. If not, we’ll arrange something else.”
We were both quiet for a bit, and I realized how much I’d missed my friend.
With a yawn, I said, “All right, I’m going to go to bed, or I’ll be a zombie tomorrow morning at school.”
“Have a good night, Amy.”
“You, too, Knox. It was good to see you again. At your parents’ house, I mean, not in the hospital.”
“It was good to see you too. I’ll make a resolution this year as well. No way am I going to let a single month pass without talking to you, let alone a year.”
“I’ll hold you to it.”
“I’m counting on it.”
Hanging up, I swooned and then sighed heavily, knowing I would not be getting a wink of sleep tonight because I’d be dreaming of Knox Sterling.