by Holly Rayner
When he sunk down into the couch and loosened his tie, draping his arm over the cushion where I was meant to sit, I realized the difference was privacy. Now, we were alone. Everything else had been done in public, insuring we restrained ourselves. Now, however, my poor judgment could run rampant.
“You can sit all the way back in the cushion,” he said with a chuckle.
I realized I was perched on the edge of the sofa, back straight. I smiled and leaned back, feeling the warmth of his arm across my shoulders.
“You don’t have to be nervous, Jess,” he said, tipping his head towards me. “Remember? I told you nothing would happen without your permission. You’re in control.”
I placed my glass on the end table and leaned into his chest, tucking my legs beneath me. I needed to relax. When I was situated, I looked up at him, and my breath caught in my throat. He was looking down at me. His lips were parted, and his usually bright eyes were dark, pupils blown wide. Though I felt perfectly safe, he looked almost dangerous, vampire-like again.
“I’m in control?” I whispered, my gaze flicking back and forth between his eyes and his lips.
He nodded slowly, and as his chin lowered the second time, I stretched up and kissed him.
It was happening before I could stop myself. Being so close to him, wrapped up in the smell of his cologne and curled up on his couch, it was hard to resist.
I knew it might all be too soon. That I was crossing a line I could never come back from, but none of it mattered. His lips were soft and warm against mine, and soon, his hands were on my neck, his thumbs brushing against my cheeks and stroking my jaw. He tipped my head back to deepen the kiss, and as he did, I felt all control leave me.
Spencer had told me I was in control, but he’d been wrong. He was calling the shots. I’d do whatever he asked.
“Dad?”
Spencer stiffened and then gently lifted me back to a sitting position before turning around to face the kitchen. I followed his gaze, and just as I turned around, Jamie appeared in the doorway. He was wearing dinosaur pajamas and holding a fleece blanket in his arms.
“What are you doing up?” Spencer asked, standing up and going to pull his son into a hug.
“I couldn’t sleep, and I thought I heard you talking. I just came to say hi.”
“Well, hi,” he said, ruffling Jamie’s hair and making him giggle. “Did you have fun with Erica?”
He nodded. “We polished my mineral collection and didn’t lose any of them down the drain this time.”
“That is great news for our plumber,” Spencer said.
Jamie’s eyes slowly shifted over to me, and I could tell he didn’t know what to make of me at first. If Spencer had been telling the truth, Jamie didn’t see his dad bring women home like this.
“You remember Nurse Jess?” Spencer asked, leading Jamie over to the couch and sitting down next to me.
Jamie thought for a moment and then recognition filled his eyes. Eyes the same exact shade of blue as his dad’s.
“You look prettier now,” he said.
I laughed while Spencer shushed him. “I’m sure she looked very pretty the last two times you met her,” he said.
“She didn’t have a dress on the first time,” Jamie said. “And she was all sweaty the second time.”
“Thanks for saying I look pretty now,” I said, winking at him. “It’s good to see you again.”
“The cut healed right up,” he said, swiping his finger across where I’d placed the bandage. “It didn’t even scar.”
“That’s great!” I leaned forward to inspect it more closely.
Spencer was smiling at me over Jamie’s head. I could tell he was a great parent. Much as he was with all of the patients at the clinic, he was warm and gentle and kind. But with Jamie, there was an undeniable connection, a bond. I could tell Spencer was more comfortable hanging out with his son than he was at any bar or restaurant.
“Jess is off-duty right now,” Spencer said. “Why don’t we put you back in bed?”
“I’m hungry,” Jamie said quickly.
Spencer squinted at the clock across the room. “It’s almost midnight.”
“Just a little bowl of cereal?” Jamie said, holding up his thumb and forefinger half an inch apart.
Spencer looked at me and I could see the indecision in his eyes. I couldn’t imagine dating as the parent of a young child, never sure how people are going to react to your kid.
I stood up and smoothed down the front of my dress. “I’m hungry too.”
“We can both have cereal!” Jamie said, licking his bottom lip and smiling.
“Hmm. Two against one.” Spencer shrugged. “I guess it’s time for a midnight snack.”
Jamie cheered and pattered into the kitchen, sliding to a stop in front of a large white pantry door. When Spencer lifted him up by the waist, he grabbed a box of chocolate puffs and then helped his dad pour all three of us a bowl. We sat on the bar stools that were lined up at the kitchen island.
“This tastes incredible,” I said. “I’m so glad we didn’t eat dessert at the restaurant.”
Spencer pulled Jamie close to his side for a minute and then reached around him to smooth his hand down my back. “Definitely better than any fancy dessert we could have bought.”
“Can I come next time you go out together?” Jamie asked, looking from Spencer to me, his eyes wide and pleading.
Spencer gave me a mischievous smile and raised his eyebrow. “I don’t know. What do you think, Jess? Can Jamie come with on our next date?”
I smiled, rolled my eyes, and then leaned forward to squeeze Jamie’s shoulder. “You can even pick what we do.”
“Laser tag!” he shouted, both arms raised above his head, milk dripping off the spoon still in his hand. “And maybe Greg can come, too?”
“I’m sure he’d love that.” I couldn’t help grinning.
Jamie took as long as possible to finish eating his cereal, and then we watched a television show about cartoon dinosaurs saving the world from an asteroid, an irony Spencer didn’t seem capable of letting go. In fact, he was still going on about the scientific inaccuracies when I nudged his shoulder.
“What?” he said softly, turning to look at me.
I pointed to Jamie, who was leaned back against his dad’s chest, eyes shut. His breathing was slow and even.
“I’m going to put him to bed,” he mouthed.
I gave him a thumbs-up and then curled up on the couch, pulling a throw blanket over my legs and texting Greg for a ride. I’d stayed out much later than I intended, especially considering we had work the next morning, but I just couldn’t bring myself to leave when we were having so much fun. The part of the evening spent with Spencer and Jamie was the most enjoyable part of the whole night.
When Spencer came back into the living room, he collapsed on the sofa and closed his eyes. “I’m exhausted. Are you exhausted?”
I laughed and brushed my hand across his chest. “Yeah, I’m pretty spent. I’ll leave you to pass out on the couch, then.”
His eyes popped open and he reached out for me, his fingers wrapping around my wrist. “You’re leaving?”
“I have to,” I said with a smile.
“You don’t have to.”
“I should, though.” It was a hard decision to make, but it was the right one. “We have plenty of time to be together. After all, you already asked me out for a second date.”
He smiled. “Would you believe me if I told you I didn’t even train Jamie to say that?”
“I would,” I said with a laugh. “He is just a natural-born wingman.”
“That, and he likes you.” Spencer looked at me with the same eyes as before—passionate.
“I like him, too,” I said, slightly breathless.
Spencer leaned towards me, his eyes half-closed. “I like you, too.”
His lips brushed across mine.
“And I like you,” I breathed.
I felt him smile a
gainst my lips, and just as I almost let myself fall against him and make a reckless decision, my phone vibrated.
“That’s my brother,” I said with a groan, suddenly regretting my decision to text him.
“Your brother?”
“I texted him for a ride home.”
Spencer sat up. “I would have called a car for you. I hope you don’t think that because I sent the sitter home as soon as we got here that I expected you to stay the night. Oh God, I didn’t even think of how that would look. I’m sorry, Jess.”
I reached out and grabbed his shoulder. “I didn’t think any of that, Spencer. Don’t worry.”
He took a breath and let his shoulders relax. “I’ll walk you out.”
Our fingers twined around one another as we walked through the kitchen, down the hallway, and into the entrance hall. When we reached the door, I turned to face him, and before I could even look up, his fingers were under my chin, tilting my face up to his. He caught my lips in a gentle kiss. It was warm and sweet and the perfect end to the perfect first date.
“I’ll see you tomorrow,” he whispered, his breath chocolatey and sweet.
“See you tomorrow,” I said, half-worried my knees would give out right there in his doorway.
But they didn’t. They carried me all the way down the sidewalk and into Greg’s car. Though, to me, it felt like I was walking on air.
Chapter 13
The next few days at work went more smoothly than I’d thought they would. I caught Spencer looking at me more often and we shared smiles in the hallway, but otherwise, things seemed to function as normal. He didn’t touch me while we were at work, no matter how often I wanted him to, and we didn’t tell anyone about our relationship.
It wasn’t that we’d decided to keep it a secret, but at such an early stage, it just seemed like the mature thing to do. If we did decide to part ways early on, it would be much more difficult if we also had to explain to each of our coworkers that we were no longer dating. It would be easier to let everyone in on the news only when things became official.
And it was true we’d only been on one real date, but we spent all our lunches talking in the break room or going out for lunch together, and Spencer had taken to calling me every night after Jamie fell asleep. I’d lay on my bed, feet crossed in the air, smiling into the phone like I was in high school again. It was incredible.
Greg, of course, couldn’t stop bragging about how right he’d been. Every time he walked by my room and caught me on the phone he would make kissy faces in the doorway and then spin around, massaging his hands up and down his sides as though he were making out with someone. Like I said, I felt as though I was in high school again.
On Friday, I had just finished assisting Dr. Johnson with a surgery for the debridement of a burn on a little girl whose hand had gotten too close to a campfire. I checked my watch and saw it was mid-morning, which was usually when Spencer took his coffee break. So, I decided to pop in and see if he wanted to go out to get a cup of coffee with me and perhaps bring back coffee for the whole office.
The entire office was shaped in a circle, with exam rooms, surgical rooms, and offices set into the rounded walls and extending outward like slices of pie. Spencer’s office sat in the direct center, across from the nurse’s station. I followed the curve of the building around to his door and lifted my hand to knock, but hesitated when I heard voices inside.
It took me a moment to recognize Brittany’s voice, and I was about to turn and leave, planning to come back when Spencer was alone, until I heard Brittany say my name.
“Of course, I don’t want to start any rumors. You know me, and I’d never do something like that, but I have reservations,” she said, her voice low but harsh.
Reservations about me? Surely not. Brittany and I hadn’t become as close as I hoped—certainly not as close as Ciara and I were at the hospital—but we had a tenuous working friendship. Or, at least, I thought so.
Spencer hesitated and then responded in a clipped voice. “What kinds of reservations?”
Brittany sighed. “I know this may sound hokey, but I just have a gut feeling about her. I’m good about things like this. I can read people really well.”
My stomach flipped, and I could feel adrenaline and nerves pumping through my veins. So much for going to get coffee. Adding caffeine to my current state would leave me twitching and anxious all day. What was Brittany even talking about? I quickly replayed my time at the practice, trying to find any moment where I’d slipped up, where I’d given her reason to doubt me, but nothing came to mind.
“I don’t make decisions based on gut feelings,” Spencer said.
“I know that,” Brittany said. “I’m not here to document anything official. If I was, I’d go see Juanita in HR. I’m just here to warn you to keep an eye on her. For some reason I can’t place, I don’t trust her.”
“Jess has gotten along with everyone here just fine,” Spencer said. “She has worked hard and done her job well. So, until you can come back to me with a legitimate reason as to why I should take your feeling seriously, I’m going to have to end this conversation. It doesn’t reflect well on either of us to gossip about employees.”
“I’m sorry, Dr. Hunt,” Brittany said, sounding extremely apologetic. “I hope you know it was never my intention to gossip. I just know that the two of you are friends, and I wanted to warn you not to get too comfortable until we know her a bit better. But, I can see now that I overstepped my bounds. I apologize.”
There was a long pause and Spencer sighed.
“I appreciate your concern, Brittany. But let me assure you that I am more than capable of taking care of myself. Until you have any specific reason to doubt Jess’s dedication to the practice, then I’d caution you to keep these feelings to yourself.”
“Of course. Thank you.”
I stood there, ear angled towards the door for one breath and then another before I realized the conversation was over and Brittany would be coming out of his office to find me standing just on the other side of the door. I jolted to attention and quickly reversed away from the door, grateful no one was standing in the immediate vicinity to see me moon walk across the floor.
The room directly next to Spencer’s office was an exam room, but the door was cracked open and one peek inside revealed the light was off. I ducked inside the room and pushed the door shut just as I heard the squeaky hinge of Spencer’s door sound off. A few seconds later, Brittany walked down the hall.
The room was dark, and I leaned back against the wall for a minute, trying to understand what had just happened. My immediate supervisor had gone to the head of the practice to tell him she had a bad feeling about me. That would have been bad under normal circumstances, but it seemed even worse now that Spencer and I were romantically involved.
Would he believe her? Would I lose my job and Spencer in one fell swoop? He seemed to mostly dismiss her feeling, but I knew how invasive thoughts like those could be. Once someone planted the idea in your head, it could become impossible to stop thinking about it.
I took a deep breath. There was nothing I could do except continue to be a good employee at work and honest with Spencer in our personal lives.
Brittany, on the other hand, felt like a completely different puzzle. How could I address her “feeling” about me? And what had I done to cause it in the first place? I wanted to confront her, but then I’d have to admit I’d eavesdropped on a private conversation, which would certainly do nothing to dispel her baseless thoughts about me. I would just have to swallow my frustration and continue working as if nothing had happened.
So that’s what I did. I held my head high, marched out of the room, and went about my day. Though, I did decide to skip a coffee break with Spencer. I needed time to cool off, and if I was being honest, I wasn’t ready to face him just then.
Chapter 14
Days passed. Spencer didn’t say anything to me about his conversation with Brittany, and Brittany’s behavi
or towards me didn’t alter in any noticeable way. We all continued to work in harmony, so much so that I slipped back into my routine and didn’t think much about it.
“I didn’t see you over your morning break,” Spencer said, his palms flat on my desk, blue eyes making me lose my train of thought. “I went to the break room, but you never showed.”
“A surgery ran long, but Dr. Johnson got it figured out. Sorry,” I said.
Spencer winced. “That’s too bad. I haven’t seen you much this week.”
“I know.” I pouted out my lower lip and then slid my hand halfway across the desk, arching an eyebrow at him in a dare.
He smiled and then moved his hand forward until our fingers brushed. It was such a small amount of contact, but warmth radiated from every place our hands touched. My fingers seemed to be filled with extra-sensitive nerves that only Spencer could activate.
“I have some meetings tonight and Jamie has karate tomorrow, but Friday is open,” he said, lowering his voice. “I know you promised Jamie he could pick out our next date, but what he doesn’t know won’t hurt him. Maybe we could go out again, just us?”
My heart revved, and I nodded excitedly. “Yes, please.”
Spencer leaned forward so I could smell his cologne, squinting as if he was examining something very important on my desk.
“And maybe this time, a very adorable ten-year-old won’t interrupt the later portion of the evening.”
I inhaled sharply, and Spencer caught it.
He looked up at me, laughter in his eyes, and winked. “Sounds like you agree.”
I adjusted in my seat and straightened my shoulders. “I believe I do.”
“Great, then we’ll plan on Friday. Have a good afternoon, Ms. Richards,” he said with a grin.
“You too, Dr. Hunt.”
As soon as Spencer disappeared into his office, Brittany appeared. Her mouth was set in a hard line and she dropped a stack of pamphlets on my desk.
“We need fifty copies of each of these, front and back. And then take them to the informational station in the lobby.”
