Page 20 of Seduction
Penina Ross
After leaving the hospital, and while walking to the penthouse, I received a text from Jamie, informing the third-floor tenants that we could come get some essentials if we needed them, but the building must be vacated by six p.m. Once again, she apologized for the inconvenience and asked any displaced tenants to let her know. So I stopped by my place to retrieve my laptop, two clean sets of clothes, six pairs of fresh panties, a few bras, my deodorant, and my special French lilac body cream, which I only used on those rare occasions when I pampered myself.
As soon as I stepped into the penthouse, all the tension drained from my body. The action was involuntary. Something in the air relaxed me.
I stripped out of my clothes and drew a warm bath in the large claw-foot tub, which was attached to the master bedroom suite, then slipped into the water. I had been on the verge of indulging in a bath earlier, before Deb called and asked if I could come in for one surgery. The difference between then and now was that I had a clearer understanding of how Dr. Sparrow felt about me. It was crazy and amazing how excited I’d gotten just by kissing him and having his hands all over me. I fanned my fingers across the side of my neck and let the tips slide down my skin. His lips and tongue had been there. His kissing and licking with the right amount of suction felt so erotic and delicious.
I slapped myself on the back of my hand, and beads of water dotted my face. “No, Pen.”
Sparrow might want to fuck like rabbits, but he was an attending. I had gotten through almost seven years of residency without being the subject of a scandal. One month, one week, and three days, and I would be done. It was not the time to ruin my impeccable reputation.
* * *
After bathing,I dried my skin then sat on a bath bench and massaged my French lilac lotion onto the parts of my body I could reach. I was luxuriating, sliding the cream up and down my legs, visualizing Sparrow’s hands instead of mine.
Then I saw Sparrow moisturizing my thighs. I had packed condoms earlier, ten of them. I was thankful they were large enough to fit him. Holy hell, his bulge was huge. My vagina had cobwebs growing inside it. I hadn’t had sex in a long time. I’d stopped banging Rich a day after he asked me if my pussy was itching, because his dick was. That was early last year. I had to remind him that I was the girl who always made him wear a condom.
“Your girlfriend, the one you’re supposed to be loyal to, Rich,” I yelled so loud, I felt like passing out.
He just showed me that stupid lost-puppy-dog look of his, the one he displayed when he was waiting for me to get over it and let the moment of contention pass so we could go back to business as usual. It always worked. I would shake my head and tell him I had to go to the hospital or something, telling myself that we were over. Then he would call me days later and relay a message from Caroline regarding the next family get-together or remind me that his sister, Blanche, was expecting us at her birthday party or something. He knew what his value to me was and used his family shamelessly to keep me.And now Court gets Caroline, Ray, and Blanche as well as Rich’s multitude of fun and interesting cousins, uncles, and aunts.
I forced myself to stop missing Rich’s family. The way I worked and my taste in untrustworthy men, made me fear that I would never have a family of my own. But I was too hungry to feel sorry for myself. I slipped into my oversized nightshirt then put on one of the many pairs of house slippers lined up under white robes hanging on a rack in the bathroom and sauntered into the living room.
I swiped the room service menu off the end table and plopped down on the comfy sectional sofa. “It was just…” I muttered to myself while looking off, focusing on nothing at all.
I never thought I’d be so interested in sex again after Rich. The cheating made me feel as if I wasn’t sexy enough. Also, he had the worst roving eyes, which I always tried to ignore. Again, I had to shake memories of my complex relationship with my ex-boyfriend out of my head.Why am I thinking about him anyway?
“My intuition is warning me,” I whispered.
There was something dubious about Sparrow. He had secrets—lots of them. Before we started making out, it seemed as if he’d confirmed that he owned the penthouse. I wasn’t sure. I could hardly remember what we said to each other in those moments.
“No,” I said, shaking my head vehemently. I would enjoy the day, but the next evening, when my shift ended, I would stay at a hotel if my apartment wasn’t ready.
Feeling good about my decision, I picked up the phone and ordered a Cobb salad, a shrimp cocktail, and a bottle of sparkling water. While waiting, I checked my email. Usually on my days off, I would have a bunch of messages from other residents about patients. Since I hadn’t had a handoff for two days, I only had about ten messages.
Suddenly, my Messenger started ringing, and when I saw who was calling me, I felt my face light up like the Milky Way.
“Zara?” I answered excitedly.
“Hey, Kit Kat,” she said. “Sorry for leaving so abruptly. I needed to get the hell out of there.”
I folded my legs and got a little more comfortable with my laptop. “Then you’re not coming back?”
“Not to work. I have some loose ends to tie up in New Orleans, but then I’m moving.”
My head jutted forward. “Moving?” I shook my head continuously, hardly believing what I was hearing. “That’s it? You’re no longer a surgeon?”
She fell silent for a moment. “Well, no, Pen. It’s not for me. I don’t want to be stuck in a hospital for the rest of my life, and please don’t say that things will change once we’re attendings. I don’t want to be an attending. I don’t want to slice anyone’s head open and dig out clots and cancer. I’m done. Got it, Pen? Done.”
She was quite emotional by the end of her declaration. I couldn’t say that I didn’t know how she felt, because I did, only I saw things differently. Yes, I hated that I had to clear a blood clot or remove a tumor from someone’s brain. I never took pleasure in having to do it, because I never forgot I was cutting on a sick person who never fathomed in a million years they’d be in that position. Empathy made me love what I did. Zara and I came from two different worlds. Her parents were traditional but rich. My mom had abandoned me emotionally even before Aunt Christine paid for me to go to boarding school at thirteen, and I’d never known my dad. I’d always felt Zara was way more entitled than I was and definitely spoiled.Who drops out of residency less than two months before finishing?Someone who didn’t know what it meant not to have a solid cushion to fall back on, that was who.
“Okay,” I said with a sigh. “Quitting is not the end of the world. It’s the beginning of a new one, I guess.”
“Yeah,” she sang optimistically. “I knew you’d understand. You’re the real deal, Pen. You’re right where you’re supposed to be. Now…” I heard her clap once. “The hot new doctor. Have you banged him yet?”
My gaze rolled around the large room with its heavy draperies and expensive furnishings. “What do you think?” I sounded pessimistic on purpose.
“My goodness, Pen, do you need a matchmaker? I can find you one.”
