Page 28 of Egotistical Jerk
"Did you have a good time?" I asked.
Her lips lifted, that dimple popping out again. "I did. Do you guys do this often?"
"Mhm, as often as work and life allows us to."
"It's nice."
We reached her car far too soon; I wasn't ready to let her go. Turning, I leaned against the back door and folded my arms in front of me. "I gotta know, exactly how old do you think I am?"
Amusement flashed in her eyes. She pulled her bottom lip between her teeth and tilted her head slightly. Then the most wonderful thing happened; she smiled at me. It was big, dimpled, and brilliant.
"Did my comment get under your skin, Dr. Ryker?"
I shook my head. "Sebastian."
"What?"
"I want you to call me Sebastian." And then before I could stop it, more words spilled from my mouth. "Your comment didn't get under my skin, Mia. You did."
My eyes dropped to her mouth just in time to see the pink tip of her tongue dart out to slide along her bottom lip. It probably wasn't the best thing to say, but shit if it wasn't true. She'd gone and burrowed so deep beneath the surface, I knew getting her out wasn't going to be easy.
Without saying a word, she stepped forward and pulled open the driver's side door. I'd never felt like a bigger idiot in my life. But still, I couldn't take my eyes off her. Head bent down, she focused on something for a long, intense moment before slowly lifting her eyes to mine.
The deep breath she drew to her lungs seemed to trap the air inside mine.
"The feeling is mutual… Sebastian."
She didn't linger. Didn't wait for me to say anything in return. She simply slipped behind the wheel and after I stepped back, she pulled away.
She shocked the shit out of me right then. So much so that I was only vaguely aware of walking back to my own car and driving home. I was still in a daze when I stepped through my front door. Without turning on a light, I collapsed onto my couch and let out a long breath.
Teddy's meowing sounded a lot like complaining when he jumped onto the armrest. I brought my hand up and scratched under his chin until the annoyed noises he was making turned into soft purrs.
"I'm so freaking screwed."
There was no denying I was insanely attracted to Mia. She was the first woman in who knew how long to spark something inside me. I wanted to get to know her, find out what made her tick. Simply put, I wantedher.
But her career had only just started. I might've been jumping the gun, but what would happen if we got involved and she was chosen to stay on my team—because out of the four of them she was the best. Would she think she only got the job because of us? Would our coworkers make the same assumption?
One part of me wanted to say screw it, go for it and face the consequences later. The other part—the part that knew the kind of hard work that went into being a doctor—was yelling at me to step away and leave her the hell alone.
Chapter 13
MIA
"The feeling is mutual?The feeling is freaking mutual?Ugh!" With a very unladylike grunt, I dropped my forehead to the steering wheel cradled between my arms. "What the hell?"
I'd been sitting in my apartment block's parking lot for almost an hour, cursing myself for saying something so…stupid.
There were a million other things I could've said, but my brain just had to go and pick those five words. Why? Maybe my wires were all crossed from watching him all day? He'd been so different. Friendly and approachable were words that didn't fit with the Dr. Ryker I knew. But then again, he hadn't been Dr. Ryker today.
No, he was Sebastian.
The man who had tea parties with little girls without complaining—and while doing so blew my ovaries into oblivion. Who lit up more than just the room with a simple smile. Who made me want and think things that had no business being in my mind.
I let out a sigh and screwed my eyes shut. Behind my closed lids, I could still see the look in his gaze when he'd told me to use his first name. It was dark and intense and caused an explosion of sensations inside my body. Even now, I had trouble suppressing the shiver.
I'd have to have been blind to miss the heat simmering in those chocolate irises. The fact that it was directed at me, shook me so much I hopped into my car and drove off. But not before uttering those dreadful words.
