Page 5 of Born Chaos

Sebastian leans against his locker, arms folded over his chest, as he watches me get ready to leave the hospital.

“Honestly, I’m probably going to just be a total lazy bum at home,” I say as I step back into my own pants. “Messy bun, old, gross sweatshirt, no pants. There will probably be ice cream and Netflix involved.”

“Damn, you’re making me think I need to hire more staff, so I can just go with you. No pants, ice cream? Sounds like the perfect day,” he says with a smile, his eyes running down the length of me.

“Are you sure there isn’t anything I can do to help you?” I ask as I step forward, gripping the front of his scrubs and pulling myself closer to him. “I mean, you did ask me to help you run this place.”

He lays his hands over mine, sending bolts of electricity racing through my veins. “You’re an angel,” he whispers as he leans forward and presses a kiss to my lips. “But this is just boring, year-review stuff. It will be over in a few weeks.”

“Ugh, weeks,” I groan as I step away from him and grab my bag from my locker. “Though, I guess this gives us an excuse to put off Elena’s wedding bloodhound for a bit. I do want to get that engagement announcement out ASAP, though. I don’t love all the attention telling everyone over and over brings. Can you carve out some time on Thursday to have the photographer come over?”

“Of course,” he says. He steps forward, kissing me one last time before he turns for the door. “Call me if your plans change today?”

My stomach twists just a little bit. Sebastian still doesn’t quite trust me to be where I say I’m going to be. And that’s on me. It’s going to take a while to gain that trust back. “Sure.”

He flashes that panty-melting smile, before he turns, and walks back into the belly of his hospital.

Shouldering my bag, I head out and then through the main, front doors.

Only to have someone walk right into me. It’s only my vampire instincts that keep me from going right down to the ground.

“Oh, I’m so sorry,” someone mutters, grabbing me to steady me on my feet, though it’s unnecessary.

“It’s okay, I— Oh, hi, Rick,” I tumble through the words.

I look up into the intimidating face of Sebastian’s bodyguard. Even though it’s only about forty degrees out here, he wears only a black t-shirt, exposing those completely tattooed arms. He doesn’t wear a hat either, to protect his shaved head. Not that it matters. Vampires don’t really feel cold.

“Excuse me, Miss Doe,” he says, his eyes widening just a bit. “I wasn’t watching where I was going. My apologies.”

“It’s okay,” I say with the shake of my head. “I wasn’t either. Are you meeting Sebastian? He’s working for a few more hours. I didn’t know there was a Council meeting today.”

“No, just passing by,” he explains. “I live in Sebastian’s building. I was just headed home.”

“Oh, well, maybe we can walk together,” I say, reminding myself that it’s important to be friendly to people. This is my new home, and probably will be for a long time. I need to put in more effort at times to get to know people. “If that sounds good?”

“Sounds perfect,” he says, offering a smile that’s barely visible through his massive, thick beard. “Anything exciting happen through the night?”

“No, not really,” I answer with a sigh. “Unless you count the constipated old man who thought he was dying.”

Rick laughs at that, something full and deep. “Exciting indeed.”

“It sounds like you have a faint accent,” I observe. “Where are you from?”

“Serbia,” he answers, looking over at me and raising his eyebrows slightly. “My real name is Rodovan Ricanovic. But Rick is a bit easier for Americans to pronounce.”

I chuckle. “Rick it is. It’s nice to actually, you know, meet you. We never really got the chance to talk before.”

“No one needs to hear from me at those meetings,” he says with a hesitant smile. “But I do hear lots of good things about you. The city certainly has become a more interesting place since you arrived.”

“Are you trying to call me a drama queen?” I ask in mock offense.

“I would never, Miss Doe,” he says in absolute seriousness.

“I’m teasing, Rick. I’m the queen of sarcasm. Know that about me, and we’ll get along just fine.”

He chuckles, slightly embarrassed. “So, I hear wedding bells are in the future?”

We cross the street and arrive at my building. “Yep. Seven months from now, and life is going to look a lot different.”

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