Chapter Eleven
Austin
T hat went better than expected. A light tasering, a cuddle starting with some light wrestling, and a heart-to-heart.
Who knew getting a girlfriend could be so fucking easy?
You just have to wait for someone to chloroform you.
And yeah, I said girlfriend. I could do a TedTalk about finding your soul mate because if they exist, then Olivia fucking Daniels is mine.
Her public persona may be so sweet it could rot your teeth, but the girl is dark. She’s not afraid to break the law, and by that, I mean federal law. She’s racking up a hefty number of years behind bars for the shit she’s pulled just this week. But hell will freeze over before I let that happen.
If I know her well, she’s about to freak out in about two minutes. So I’m going to leave her for a few hours to come to terms with what she’s done, what I’ve said, what is going to happen, and then I’ll head back.
I swing open the door to Dr. Alfie’s with such force the handle whacks against the wall.
“Austin Black. You are a fully grown man capable of opening a door properly without whacking it and scaring the shit out of me and the other patients. Close it properly.” Mia stands, hands on hips and looking fucking good in a tight pencil skirt and loose blouse with one button below decent.
How the fuck Alfie hasn’t put a ring on her yet is beyond me, not that I’m interested. There’s just one girl for me, and that’s exactly what I need help with. I’m almost certain that the loose blouse is for Alfie’s benefit.
“Morning, Mia.” I grin, heading straight to his office.
“He has a patient, Austin. You can’t just barge in there.” Mia hisses as she moves around her desk toward me, her heels clipping against the floor.
The other patients are watching intently, obviously enjoying the show.
“I said no. Sit down and wait your turn. Which, by the way, is Friday. You’re two days early.”
“Yeah, no can do. This is an emergency, Mia.”
I push through the door, holding my hands up in surrender the moment I see Dr. Alfie’s face of thunder.
“Austin. So glad to see you’re alive. I’m a little busy right now.” He points at his patient, who is holding a soggy tissue to her nose. “So, if you could kindly speak to Mia about making an appointment.”
I turn to his patient. “Miss, I realize you’re in the middle of something here. But I will pay for your next ten sessions if you leave right now.”
I pull out a wad of cash that I’d picked up from the office and start counting bills. Her bug eyes flit between me, Mia, and Dr. Alfie.
“Austin, no. We’ve talked about this. You can’t just barge in here on a whim when it suits you.”
“Did I say ten appointments? I meant to say ten appointments plus three months’ rent.”
“Deal,” the mousy woman states with such certainty.
“Verity, you do not have to do this, and of course, your session today will be comped,” Alfie interrupts.
“Verity, pleasure to meet you. I’ll pay Mia upfront for your sessions. If you could leave your details with her, I’ll send over the money for the rent. Let her know how much it is as well please.”
“Thank you. Austin, is it?”
“Yes, ma’am. ”
Alfie rolls his eyes, folding his arms over his chest. I know he’s unimpressed, but you can tell he’s keen as a bean to find out what’s been going on.
As Mia guides her out of the door, she looks past me to Alfie. “Sorry, Dr. Adams. I tried to stop Mr. Black here.”
“Not your fault, Mia. Thank you for taking care of Verity.” He’s so polite, but I see the way his pupils dilate.
I take a seat on the couch, making myself comfortable.
“Austin, I don’t need to tell you how fucking inappropriate that was,” he hisses. “My other clients are just as important as you and deserve to be treated with respect and dignity when they come here.”
The vein in his forehead is protruding quite comically, which is a big indicator to me that I need to look contrite and keep my mouth shut.
I nod. “I’m sorry. But I just got out of the basement, and I need your help. It won’t happen again.”
“You said that the first time we had a session.”
“Well, that was two years ago, so I’ve done well for a while, and this is sort of an emergency.”
“Not an emergency, Austin, although I am glad to see you’re alive and well. I take it that things went well with Olivia if she let you out?”
I look around the beige office. It’s supposed to be calming, neutral tones with a few non-descript decorations dotted around.
The couch is a darker shade, bordering on brown, comfortable, and has a few throw pillows that I may or may not have held to my stomach when we were talking about some particularly dark shit.
The back wall has Alfie’s desk and a wall of books, mostly psychology ones, but I’ve noticed the Dr. Seuss ones, too.
When he went to talk to Mia one time, I pulled them out and read the inscription; both of them were from his lovely receptionist. If I’m not mistaken, there’s something going on there, but today is not the day to further piss Alfie off, so I keep it to myself.
He leans back and puts on his professional face.
His jacket is off, and his sleeves are rolled up to the elbow.
He does this to disarm people. It makes him look softer, less of a doctor and more of a barman you’re about to spill your life story to.
I know this because it fucking works. The second he leans back all relaxed, I want to relax, too.
I just need him to throw a towel over his shoulder and pour me a drink. Then I’ll spill all my secrets.
“Tell me what happened.”
I give him the rundown of the last few days, including the escape—sort of—from the basement and the conversation we had just before I left. He doesn’t ask questions, but lets me talk and run through the events as they happened. Now he’s up-to-date, he taps his forefinger to his lips.
“So you’ve left her there.”
“Yes, I wanted to give her some space so she could process her feelings.”
“That’s...” He raises his eyebrows. “Very mature of you, Austin. I’m proud of you.”
Warmth fills my chest, and I want to smash down the feeling. I hate that I’m seeking validation from a man my own age, no less someone I went to high school with.
“What are you going to do next?”
“Well, I’m going to ask her out on a date. It seems like the next logical step.”
He nods. “And how did she feel about your admission about your father and the expectations he had of you?”
“She was upset for me, I think. She told me it wasn’t right what he did.”
“How did that make you feel?”
“Good and bad. I don’t want to be pitied. I want her to see me as a strong person. Not as a weak person who was used and treated badly.”
He nods. “That's understandable. But perhaps she sees you as strong because you walked away from that situation. She understands a little of your world, so she must realize that it would have been extremely difficult for you to say no to your father.”
“Yeah, I didn’t get a bad vibe from her. I just hope that it stays that way.”
“Good. I think you should continue to be honest. You’ve worked very hard to get where you are now. She deserves to know how hard you’ve been working. Whether you give her the reason why or not is up to you.”
“And what is the reason why?”
“Well, you tell me.”
“I didn’t want to do bad things anymore. Or at least I didn’t want people to be frightened of me anymore. When I saw those kids watching me beat the shit out of their dad, I wanted to die. I’d never felt worse than when I had at that moment.”
He nods. “Any other reason?”
“Can I have more than one?”
“I’d be surprised if you didn’t.”
“I wanted to be someone that was worthy of someone like her. I don’t think I’ll ever get there, but I wanted to try.”
“Ultimately, that’s for Olivia to decide. But I think you have more in common than you originally thought. Olivia in your fantasy is just that. A fantasy. You put her on a pedestal no person could ever reach—”
“But that’s where you’re wrong, doc. Her dark side is just as intriguing to me. It actually makes me like her more. That she has this side of her that only I know about.”
“I’m glad she’s exceeded your expectations, but you will need to be patient in this situation.
She is going to have a lot of catching up to do.
Not only have you had years of cultivating feelings for her, but she’s had less than a week of you being in the basement convincing her that you’re not a terrible person.
She seems to like you, but she’ll find that conflicting with her original feelings.
You’ll need to be calm, consistent, and very, very patient with her.
There will be a lot of up-and-down emotions. ”
“Emotional rollercoaster. Got it. I’ve got this, doc. I want this so bad; I’ll do anything to make it work. I’ll ask her out on a date and be very patient.”
“Good idea. From what you’ve said, the physical aspect of your relationship is not the problem, but her mind and her heart need to catch up. You don’t want to jump the gun and lose her before it starts.”
“Thanks, doc. I’ll . . . settle up with Mia now.”
He rolls his eyes. “I’m glad you’re back. Let’s keep our normal session on Friday.”
And because his mood seems to have improved, I decide, rightly or wrongly, to push his buttons further. “Oh, one thing, doc. One of your patients was flirting outrageously with Mia. If I were you, I’d put a ring on her soon. Let everyone know she’s off-limits.”
He shifts in his chair, and I can practically see him trying to work out what patient it is.
“I don’t know what you’re talking about. Mia is a professional. She would never jeopardize her position here.”
“Whatever you say, doc. But she sure did look good today.”
I swing the door shut behind me as I see the vein pulse in his forehead one more time.
“Are you causing trouble?” Mia asks, arching her perfectly shaped eyebrow.
“Giving him a gentle nudge, that’s all.”
“Here’s your bill. I’ve added a tip for me.” She grins. “For the trouble.”