Page 16 of Hearts on the Table
I had groped her.
Maybe it didn’t count as groping in the traditional sense, but I’d gone three years without so much as brushing past her in the hallway. My fingers on Lainey’s body had felt indecent.
It didn’t matter that I’d barely touched her or that I’d kept everything above the waist and completely professional. Her ass had been about two inches away from my dick and she’d been sweating. The simple connection of my fingertips with her torso had nearly sent me over the edge. It all had made me think much too deeply about other ways I wanted to be behind her while she panted and I told her she was perfect.
Shit. What had I been thinking? I avoided my reflection as I wiped down the medicine balls. I knewexactlywhat I’d been thinking.
That the last time I’d taken a risk and opened up to her, it hadn’t crashed and burned as badly as I thought it would. I’d been thinking about how gorgeous she was and how she’d asked yesterday if it was weird that she’d been staring at me during rounds.
It hadn’t been weird. It had been glorious. Demoralizing, really, how much I’d liked it. But I cut myself some slack. Ever since we’d met, I’d been the one to sneak furtive looks in her direction. It was nice to be on the receiving end for once.
By the time she’d hinted that she would be open to working out together again, I’d been ready to buy this whole place out from under my brother’s nose and gift it to her as a token of my affection. I sighed, tossing a towel into the laundry baskets by the front desk. Being around her did stupid things to me to begin with. Now that I had her attention? I was certifiable.
Didn’t matter, I told myself, finally squaring a stern look in the mirror. We weren’t dating. That wasn’t even on the table. I needed to keep my hands to myself.
“Hey, great workout today!” The woman Lainey had been talking to earlier—Meery, I think—exited the locker room with Lainey and the blonde on her heels. I hadn’t caught her name.
“You put in some nice work. The vibes in here were on point today.” Will nodded to Lainey. “I think I’ve got you to thank for that.”
“I take no responsibility for the vibes. You should just know for future reference that my competitive streak cannot be silenced. No challenge can go unmet.”
I nearly grinned. I’d seen that competitive streak in action every day since I’d met her. The rivalry between her and Jones was like something out of a Shakesperean tragedy. I’d caught herpracticing her stitches in an empty OR once, hours after a nurse had complimented Jones on his needlework. She’d cranked out nearly five hundred sutures before her hand had cramped up.
“Noted for next time.” Will winked as he grabbed a pack of gum off the counter. I wanted to punch him in the face. I settled for leaning over and pinching the shit out of his arm under the desk until he gave me a piece.
“Fuck's sake, Sam,” he muttered, shuffling over a few feet. He’d felt like shit when I told him Lainey had overheard his comment about asking her out. So guilty, he’d been my first call last night after Lainey had asked to work out together again. I think he’d been as relieved as I was at the turn of events. He was still on my shit list, though, and he’d have to rein in the flirting if he wanted to get off it anytime soon.
“Don’t be so modest! You have a gift.” Meery looked at him with unfiltered interest. “Do you do any private sessions?”
Will’s face transformed from genial to distant in a second. “Sorry, no. Groups only. We don’t get into the personal side of personal training.”
“That doesn’t seem to be stopping them.” Meery’s head tilted to where Lainey leaned on the counter in front of me. Far enough away to be civil, close enough to be…distracting.
I froze, but Will jumped in before I could fumble something up too badly. “He doesn’t work here. He was just helping out during the rush today.”
I cleared my throat. Now I felt bad about pinching him.
“They can get up to whatever they want.”
Nevermind.
“You don’t work here? Are you a trainer somewhere else?” the one with the purple in her hair asked softly.
“I work at Cedar.”
She blinked, seeming to expect more, but I wasn’t sure what more there was for her to know.
“The hospital?” she prodded.
“Yes. We work together in the cardiac unit,” Lainey chimed in. “Reese is one of the best educators in our program.”
I blinked down at her. I didn’t know she felt that way.
“But you did pretty well today,” she continued. “I didn’t realize you’re such a fitness buff.”
“I—”
Conner butted in. “He is. Worked as a trainer through college. Studied kinesiology before he went to the dark side with the heart thing.”
