Page 6 of The Doctor

RAINE

Blindinglight wakes me in an unfamiliar but comfortable bed. Cracking my eyes open, I immediately shut them as pain ricochets through my skull. Where the heck am I? I try to take in my surroundings with my eyes closed to find a heavy arm is thrown over my stomach, keeping me pinned in place.

Images of last night flash through my mind, making my already throbbing head start to pound to the elevated beat of my heart.

Oh my god! What did I do? I can’t believe I went home with a man I met last night and slept with him. What was I thinking? Nothing, obviously. I let the alcohol and my hormones drive the train.

I slowly turn so as to not wake Kade, afraid if he realizes what he did last night, I’ll see the rejection in his eyes, and he’ll be kicking me out before I have a chance to make my escape. It will destroy me to know I was a mistake.

I need to get out of here.

Moving at a snail’s pace, I try to extricate myself from under his arm and out of bed. It feels like hours before I finally slip off the mattress and onto the floor. I dart my head up to look over the bed to find Kade sound asleep. He’s moved over to where I was hugging the pillow I slept on. Almost as if he’s missing me before I’m gone.

I know I’m delusional. He’s sleeping and doesn’t even know who I am. Therefore, he can’t miss me, but I can’t help but hope. Hope he’ll miss me, and I’ll be a fond memory when he remembers our time together and the amazing sex we had last night.

Tiptoeing around the room, I search for my bra and panties, and when I find them, they’re a gross sticky mess. There’s no way I’m putting them on under my clothes.

I leave them by the dresser, sad that they only got one use, but they did their job. They drove Kade wild when he saw me standing before him in my sexy lingerie. I search for the dress I had on last night but can’t seem to find it.

As I walk through Kade’s house in the light of the day, I take in how beautiful it is. All the furniture is rich, dark wood. The couches are big with fluffy dark gray cushions. It’s not the house of a bachelor.

Oh dear God, please don’t tell me I slept with a married man last night.

I stalk back into the bedroom, about ready to wake him up and give Kade a piece of my mind, but halt in the doorway. The room is full of the same dark woods and colors as the living room. There’s not a single trace of a woman in the bedroom. Quietly, I make my way into the bathroom, shut the door, and start opening drawers. If I find out he cheated on someone with me, I’m going to kill him.

Okay, not really since I wouldn’t kill a fly, but I’ll send eye daggers his way and wish he was dead for making me an accomplice to his sordid affair.

With each drawer I sling open, I find half of them empty and clean as if they’ve never been used. I don’t find anything but the bare minimum of what a man would own.

Leaving the bathroom, I go in search of the closet. That will be the true test. Maybe his girlfriend or wife is out of town and took all her toiletries.

Even in my own mind, I sound crazy, but I can’t stop myself. I need to prove to myself that I didn’t make the biggest mistake of my life last night.

It’s then that I think back and can’t remember using a condom. Going back into the bathroom, I look inside the trash can only to find a crumpled piece of tissue in it and no condoms or wrappers of any kind.

How could I have unprotected sex with a man I just met? I could very easily have gotten an STD last night. It’s been two years since I had sex, so I know I didn’t give him anything.

I’ve got to get out of here. I need to get to a clinic and get checked out and then kill Lexie for taking her advice.

I run back into the living room on silent feet and slip my dress on, unsure how it got in the living room. Grabbing my high heels and clutch with my phone inside, I take in Kade’s space one last time, knowing I’ll never see it or him again.

I hold my breath as I close the door behind me, hoping Kade doesn’t come out and ask me what I’m doing. I barely breathe as I wait for my Uber on his front porch.

When my ride pulls up, I quickly walk to the car like the ground is on fire. Once again, I vow to kill Lexie for urging me to let my hair down last night.

As we drive away, I turn and look back at Kade’s house. It’s a beautiful Mediterranean style, reminding me once again that Kade is out of my league.

This is my first and last walk of shame.

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