Page 12 of Seduction
“What the fuck,” an intern named Sarah Locke said as she stepped up beside me. “I don’t see a fire. Do you see a fire?” The circles under her eyes were deep and dark, and she was shivering slightly. I recognized the sort of exhaustion she was feeling. It certainly sucked to be in her shoes. The first year as a resident was the worst year.
To console her, I put an arm around her. “You okay?” I asked.
She nodded stiffly.
“Did you just get off shift?”
Her head bobbled as she moaned, “Mm-hmm.”
“This’ll be over soon,” I assured her.Fingers crossed.
Suddenly, she stood up straight as if she’d just gotten a burst of energy. “Who’s that?”
I looked at her then followed her line of sight. When I saw who she was referring to, I stifled a gasp. It was the handsome Dr. Sparrow.So he does live here.
* * *
Two more firetrucks arrived on the scene, blue and red lights shining on our faces. Murmurs swept through the crowd. Slowly, those who were really pressed for sleep dragged themselves to the hospital to grab a bed in one of the call rooms. Gnawing on my lower lip, I felt anxiety race through me. I would never be able to rest well in a call room.
I checked the time on my cellphone. It was 10:36 p.m. I was thankful that Deb had handed me the gift of being off all the next day, which meant I could stand in front of the building a little while longer. Maybe we would hear something soon.
“I can’t take this anymore,” Sarah said. “I’m going to the hospital. By the way, the hot guy keeps staring at you. I would claim him before he’s persuaded to divert his attention elsewhere.”
My heart beat quickly as I watched her saunter off all cutesy-like. She was hoping her stroll would make Dr. Sparrow rip his gaze from me and paste it onto her.
I’d been avoiding looking at Sparrow, so I couldn’t confirm whether he had succumbed to her powers of seduction.
Look and see, Pen,part of me kept saying.
Forget about him,my other side said.
Then an optimistic thought came to mind. If Sparrow was tied up in a relationship with Sarah, then perhaps he would be a lot nicer to me. But picturing the two of them making out feverishly made my chest feel heavy.
“When are they going to come out?” a guy named Claude asked.
I hadn’t noticed him standing beside me. I glanced at him then watched what he was observing. One by one, others peeled off from the crowd and headed toward the hospital.
“I guess I should go too.” He turned to me. “Are you coming?”
I gazed down the street toward the hospital anxiously. The thought of sleeping in one of those hard beds in the call room made me feel nauseated. I could stay in a hotel. I had the money Aunt Christine sent me each month.
“Dr. Ross,” someone with a mesmerizing voice said. I recognized the speaker right away. Not only that, but I could feel the excitement his nearness inspired within me.
Slowly, I looked up to see Dr. Sparrow, who was at least five to six inches taller than I was.
I swallowed nervously. “Yes, Doctor.” Gosh, he was so gorgeous. I had to remind myself to blink or else he would think I was some sort of psycho.
Sparrow narrowed his eyes at Claude, who nervously shifted his weight from one foot to the other. Claude and I both got the message that Sparrow wanted to speak to me alone.
“Okay, well… I’m going,” Claude said, walking away with his head hanging.
Then it was just the two of us standing so close that I could feel the heat emanating from him. The fact that he smelled so good made me further notice his black pants, which fit him nicely, and his soft cashmere cream V-neck sweater. I wondered if he was just returning home from a date. I also spotted certain onlookers pretending they weren’t noticing us together. Sparrow was new meat, and that meant his mere presence teased everyone’s curiosity. And I hated that my body betrayed me by reacting to his deliciousness. My vagina throbbed, and my nipples stiffened, reminding me how long it had been since I’d had sex, and not just sex but good sex.
“If you’re looking for a place to land—”
I shook my head adamantly. “I’m just going to stay in a hotel.”
“I know a place where you can stay for the night. It belongs to a friend of mine, and it has all the accoutrements of a five-star hotel and more.” He raised his eyebrows when he saidmore, and I nearly choked.No way, Pen. Stop being attracted to the man who’s been more of a douchebag than a nice guy.
