by Beau Brown
“I’m glad you find this so amusing.” I refilled my glass, giving her a dirty look. “I thought you were on my side.”
“I am. If you kiss up to him your job will be safer.”
I rolled my eyes. “I’ll dazzle him with my amazing work ethic. I don’t need to buy him a drink.”
“Oops.” She winced and gave me an uneasy smile.
Frowning, I asked, “What?”
“Shit.”
I widened my eyes. “Priscilla, what’s wrong?”
“Well, I… I accidentally made eye contact.”
“You did what?” I whisper-screeched.
“Shit.”
“Shit? Why do you keep saying shit?”
“Okay, don’t panic, but he’s coming this way.”
I bugged my eyes even bigger. “What the fuck, Priscilla? What did you do?”
“I just met his eyes. It was an accident.” She gave a weak smile.
“I’m going to murder you,” I said through gritted teeth.
When she plastered on a big smile, I knew Dr. Prost must be right behind me. I closed my eyes, wanting to slide under the table.
Why me?
“Fancy seeing you here, Doc,” Priscilla said cheerfully.
“You work at the hospital, right?” His husky voice rose over the pounding music.
“Yes. I’m flattered you recognize me.”
“I’m good with faces,” he said.
I didn’t turn around because I wasn’t sure how to act. Maybe a small part of me hoped he’d just say hi to Priscilla and not notice me.
He cleared his throat. “And how are you this evening, Nurse Fox?” he asked gruffly.
Once he’d addressed me, I couldn’t very well ignore him. I forced myself to turn, pretending to be surprised. “Well, hey, there, Doc. What are you doing here?” I sounded so lame it was embarrassing.
“Probably the same thing you’re doing here.”
I laughed a little too loudly. “Of course.”
“You should join us,” Priscilla announced suddenly. The look I gave her should have turned her to stone, but she just smiled back at me sweetly. “Fox was just telling me how he wished there was a way he could make it up to you for his behavior the other day.”
“Is that right?” His tone was disbelieving.
“Yep.” She nodded and gave me a pointed look. “Isn’t that right, Fox?”
I mouthed that I was going to kill her later, and then turned again to meet Dr. Prost’s gaze. “Yes. I was just saying that.”
He didn’t look convinced, but he shrugged. “Water under the bridge.”
“Fox should buy you a drink to prove he’s sorry,” she nudged, giving me a pointed look.
“Oh, uh…” I hesitated, sending her yet another surly glance. “Yeah, um... can I buy you a drink?”
He shifted uneasily, but then he said, “Sure. Why not?”
Shocked he’d accepted my invitation; I was even more surprised when he slid in next to me. His spicy cologne filled my nostrils, and the bump of his hard shoulder against mine had my pulse racing. I scooted to make room for him, but it wasn’t a very large booth and our knees bumped. I ignored the embarrassing feelings of arousal our close proximity drummed up in me, and caught the waitress’s eye. When she stopped at our table Dr. Prost ordered a dry martini.
“I had a feeling you’d like martinis,” I said, giving Priscilla a triumphant look.
“Is that right?” He met my gaze. Even in the dim lighting of the club, up close, his eyes were a gorgeous jade color, framed by dark thick lashes. “Why is that?”
“Oh, just that you seem… sophisticated.” He had no idea how hard that word was to say after all the drinks I’d had, but I was determined not to slur in front of him.
He laughed and the warm sound reverberated through my chest.
Jesus, he’s a sexy fucker.
I wanted to pull my leg from his because it was causing my crotch to warm uncomfortably. I guess I really had gone too long without sex. When a guy I could barely tolerate gave me a hard-on this easily, I needed to get laid more often.
“So, what do you think of Sweet Water Medical Center?” Priscilla asked.
He shrugged. “I like it.”
“Do you?” I asked surprised.
He met my gaze, looking puzzled. “That surprises you?”
“I thought maybe you’d prefer a bigger city with a busier hospital.” I sipped my drink, making sure my hand remained steady.
“Why?”
“Not sure.” I frowned. “You seem too experienced for Sweet Water.”
Priscilla laughed. “What’s wrong with Sweet Water?”
“Nothing.” I grimaced. “Obviously I love it here. It’s my home.” I addressed him. “But we’re a small town, and you strike me as someone who’d want to have a more prestigious career.”
Chuffing, Dr. Prost said, “Translation; I’m shallow?”
My face warmed and Priscilla scowled at me. “That’s not exactly what I meant.”
“Okay.” He shook his head and took his drink from the waitress when she returned.
I scrunched my face, realizing I was making things worse. I lifted my margarita and held it toward his glass. “To keeping my mouth shut from now on.”
His laugh made me feel slightly better. “I’ll drink to that.”
Priscilla grinned. “My brother sometimes just goes with his emotions, not always his brain.”
I scowled at her. “Excuse me?”
“What? You’re passionate.” She smirked.
Dr. Prost turned to study me. “You two are siblings?”
I nodded. “Yep.”
“Huh.” He laughed. “And you’re both nurses?”
“Yes.” She nodded. “But I’m over in the cardiac unit. Fox wanted to go into labor and delivery.”
“So, your first name is Fox?” he asked.
Wincing, I said. “Yes. It wasn’t a fun name to grow up with.”
“No. I wouldn’t think so.” He continued to study me. “I wasn’t sure if Fox was your first or last name.”
I smirked. “Why did you want to know? So you could get it right when you sent your complaint in to the hospital administrator?”
His grin was white and warm, and my heart squeezed painfully at the sight. Why did he have to be so sexy?
“No. I was just curious.”
“What’s your first name?” Priscilla asked. “I mean, unless you’d rather we just keep calling you Dr. Prost?”
He considered her question, then he said softly, “Liam.”
“I’m Priscilla,” she offered. “Don’t worry, we will go back to Dr. Prost as soon as we’re on the clock.”
He held up his drink. “Nice to meet you, Priscilla.”
Now that he was more relaxed, I felt calmer too. I had to admit he was being so amiable, it reassured me that he really would give me a second chance. So long as I behaved. I was determined to do just that.
Priscilla refilled my glass for me, and then she glanced at her watch. “Oh, my. Would you look at the time?” She scooted from the booth so fast, I was surprised the napkins didn’t swoosh off the table. “I need to get home ASAP.”
I scowled at her. “Why?” I looked at my cell, noticing it was only ten. What was she up to? She hadn’t said one word about having to make it an early night.
“I promised Doug I’d be home in time to watch a movie with him.”
Liar.
“Since when, Sis?” I spoke through clenched teeth. Had she lost her mind? Why in the hell was she leaving me here alone with Liam? But I couldn’t exactly act like I was upset she was leaving, not without making it obvious I didn’t want to be alone with him. But, of course I didn’t want to be left alone with him. It had been awkward enough when she was here too, just the two of us would be torture.
“I told you I had to leave early,” she lied.
“I don’t remember that,” I said stiffly, avoiding Liam’s gaze. Maybe I couldn’t d
o anything right this second to get even with her, but if she thought she could just throw me into an awkward situation like this, and not get payback? She was sadly mistaken.
“It must have slipped your mind,” she said.
“Right.” My tone was clipped.
“You two just enjoy your drinks. I’ll call you tomorrow, Fox.” She turned and walked away, leaving an awkward silence at the table.
I met his startled gaze and we just stared at each other.
“Sorry,” I mumbled.
He blinked at me, and then the tension seemed to drain from his shoulders. “She didn’t have to rush off, did she?”
“Nope.”
He frowned. “What’s her end game?”
“Good question. I assume she wants us to make nice.”
“And we can’t do that if she’s here?”
“I’ve given up trying to figure her out.” I grimaced and sipped my drink. I set my glass down and said, “You don’t have to feel obligated to sit here with me.”
He quirked one brow. “Are you trying to get rid of me?”
My face warmed. “No. God. No, not at all. I just don’t want you to feel obligated to sit with me.” I glanced around. “There are plenty of single omegas here tonight.”
He nodded and followed my gaze. “Yeah, there are.” He finished off his drink and signaled the waitress. “But I’m happy enough where I am.”
Chapter Three
Liam
Fox looked as shocked at my statement as I was. But it was the truth; I was okay with sitting here with just him a bit longer. Fox intrigued me. Plus, he wasn’t hard on the eyes at all. In fact, he was beautiful. His skin was smooth and tanned, his eyes so blue it reminded me of the sky after a hard rain. I knew I should probably steer clear of him, considering he and I hadn’t exactly hit it off at first. But the booze was settling warmly in my stomach, and I wanted to sit here with Fox some more. There was plenty of time to pickup some other omega later.
“I’m surprised you didn’t make some excuse to leave the table,” he said quietly.
“Are you?” I frowned. “Why?”
“I thought you didn’t like me.”
I grimaced. “I didn’t like your behavior in the delivery room. I don’t even know you well enough to have a real opinion of you.”
He nodded slowly. “Fair enough.”
I leaned back, and put my arm along the back of the booth. “So, why don’t you tell me about yourself?”
Now that his sister had left, there was more room, and he could have scooted away if he’d wanted. I found it intriguing that he didn’t. With my arm along the back of the seat, my fingers were close enough to his soft blond hair that I could have touched it. I was puzzled by why I was so strongly attracted to him, especially considering our first meeting yesterday. Maybe it was simply the alpha in me that was tempted to conquer him because he was an omega, and he’d challenged me. Or maybe it was simply that I was buzzed and horny. But whatever the reason, I had to admit I was really attracted to him. He’d been mouthy all right, but at the moment, I could think of all sorts of things I’d love for him to do with that beautiful mouth of his.
“What do you want to know?” he asked. He’d been very confident in the delivery room, but now he seemed more passive.
“Why did you go into nursing?” I figured we could start with the basics, and maybe move onto more personal stuff if he seemed interested in staying at the table with me.
He twisted his lips. “Truth be told, I wanted to be a doctor, but we both know that isn’t something omegas are encouraged to do.”
“There are omegas who are doctors.”
“Not in Sweet Water.”
I lowered my head, accepting the truth of his statement. “It is true the road would be harder for you.”
“Which is pretty much unfair bullshit.”
“I agree.”
He narrowed his eyes. “You do?”
“Yes. Why is that a surprise?”
“Seems to me alphas prefer to keep omegas in their place.”
I laughed. “You’re very opinionated.”
He smirked. “Does that bother you? Do you prefer your omegas to speak when spoken to?”
“You’re not my omega.”
“True.” He sipped his drink, staring across the room.
I studied his angular profile. “So who was this person I remind you of?”
He glanced at me, his expression at first confused and then wary.
“You said I reminded you of someone, and that was why you overreacted toward me in the delivery room.” It wasn’t really any of my business, but I found it hard not to be curious. Whoever that person had been, he’d done enough damage that Fox was still working through shit.
He finished off his margarita, and eyed the pitcher, as if trying to decide whether to have another drink or not. I reached over and grabbed the pitcher, refilling his glass. He glanced at me, his expression hard to read. But he didn’t complain, and he sipped the drink once I’d finished filling his glass. He set his beverage down and he licked his lips, sending another burst of arousal through me. I swallowed hard, and pulled my gaze from him. I could tell he was attracted to me too. Was that because I reminded him of that other alpha from his past who’d pissed him off? I wasn't sure I liked the idea of that.
“That other person was my ex. You reminded me of him.” His voice was soft.
“I figured it was probably something like that.”
He poked at the condensation on his glass. “We had a rough break up.”
I nodded, but didn’t speak.
“He didn’t listen to me, and kind of treated me like an idiot sometimes, just because I’m an omega. For some reason yesterday old resentments came back, and you got the brunt of that.”
“I don’t think you’re an idiot.”
“I appreciate that.” He winced. “I sometimes bristle at authority. Especially from alphas.”
“I can’t help that I’m an alpha, or that I was the one in charge yesterday.”
“No. Of course not. It wasn’t about you. Not really.” He sighed. “Jerry— my ex— didn’t approve of my decision to go into medicine.”
“Why not?” I frowned. I’d never understood why our society tried to keep omegas out of certain jobs. It was stupid to me. If they could do the job, and do it well, what did it matter if they were an omega or an alpha?
“He wasn’t terribly enlightened. He didn’t like the long hours. I guess he wanted me home to tend to his needs.”
“Pfft.” I shook my head.
He swiveled his gaze to mine. “You don’t feel the same?”
“Hell, no.”
A tentative smile touched his lips. “Huh.”
“You had me pegged as a backward thinking alpha?”
Grinning, he said, “Naturally. Alpha and backward thinking are synonymous, aren’t they?”
When he smiled, he was even more attractive. A warm flush rippled through me as I held his gaze. “I like to think things are changing.”
“Maybe they are. Very, very, very slowly.” His smile faded.
He sounded discouraged, which for some reason bugged me. “You should go back to school and become a doctor.”
He scowled. “Uh, sure, I’ll just put my life on hold for eight years.” He shook his head.
“If you really want to be a doctor, you could do it.”
“I’d have to go to medical school for four years, and then do a residency for three or four years. I’d be in my thirties by the time I was done.”
“So? If you really want it, you could still do it.”
Wrinkling his brow, he said, “Uh, I’m an omega. I can’t start having kids in my mid-thirties. Most alphas aren’t going to wait around for me to get my doctorate.”
He had a point. Many alphas wanted their omegas to have the babies while they were still in their twenties. “I guess you’d need a special alpha.”
“Yeah.” He gave a bitter laugh. “
Not a bunch of those in Sweet Water. In case you haven’t noticed, we’re a little on the conservative side around here. Or at least, the alphas are.”
“That’s too bad. From how you were in the delivery room, I’d guess you’d make a good doctor. You like to be in charge.”
He smirked. “Yeah. Look how well that went over with you.”
“That’s because I actually was the one in charge. It had nothing to do with you being an omega.”
He didn’t look like he believed me. “It doesn’t matter.”
“I’m serious. I don’t have a problem with omegas being in charge of stuff. But in the case with you and me yesterday, I was the primary doctor, and you were there to assist me. If you want to take my place, go back to school and make it official. But nobody, especially an alpha, is going to let you just barge in and start calling the shots, merely because you’d like to be in charge.”
I half expected him to get pissed off at me, and maybe leave the table, but he didn’t. He simply watched me with a funny expression. Finally, he said softly, “Okay. I actually think you might not be full of shit.”
I barked a laugh. “Gee. Thanks.”
He grinned. “You’re welcome.”
God damn. He’s pretty.
It was obvious he was tipsy, and I was buzzed myself. I knew that the smart thing to do would be to leave the table and go find some omega I didn’t know to help me release my sexual tension. But I found it impossible to tear myself away from Fox. The more we talked, and the more I gazed at his sexy face and body, the more my booze soaked brain convinced me there would be nothing wrong with fooling around with each other; if he was interested. He looked interested. He still hadn’t moved away from me, even though there was room now. Was that because he enjoyed the press of my leg against his as much as I did? Or was he oblivious that our legs were still touching?
“I didn’t think I’d like you.” He sounded breathless.
“But you do?”
Grimacing, he said, “Let’s just say, you’re far more pleasant to spend time with than I’d have guessed.”
“Back at ya, Fox.” I smirked.
“It’s a bit of a shock.”
“Yeah. I agree.”
He bit his lower lip. “We’re getting along so well in public, it makes me wonder how compatible we’d be in private.”
