by Lexy Timms
“Thanks.” She took a long sip and smiled when a new song started. A proper dance version of Battlefield. It had a heavy base and great beat line. The drinks of the evening were giving her liquid courage. She set the drink down and pulled Julie away from Simon. “Come on, let’s dance.”
She heard Julie tell the boys, “Wait till you see this.”
Without looking back, Charity slipped by a group of guys and down the five steps to the dance floor. Julie was close behind. Grabbing Julie’s hand Charity led her to the middle of the floor. She waved to Elijah and Simon drinking their beers at their table.
Charity threw her arms into the air and let the beat take her away. Every class she’d ever taken threw a bit of its knowledge into her movements. In no time people had moved away to give her space and watch her move. Julie was a decent dancer and the two of them mimicked and challenged each other with moves. Charity clearly outshone, but didn’t care. She just wanted to dance and have fun. It was the same story every time.
She could feel Elijah’s eyes blazing through her and she wished he was down on floor dancing with her. She’d make more than just his eyes smoulder.
A cute guy moved his way between Julie and her. He danced with the two of them. He grabbed Julie’s hand, spinning her into him and then letting go of her as she twirled away. Julie bowed and dramatically fluttered her fingers in Charity’s direction so she could have a spin as well.
Charity offered her hand to the cute guy’s extended one. He twirled her around and then pulled her to him, wrapping both arms around so she couldn’t step away. His dancing turned into rough, hard grinding and the dirty grin on his face was unmistakable.
Similar situations had happened before when she went to clubs to dance. It had never happened at the Hidden Beat. It ticked her off…big time.
Resisting the guy would be useless. She knew exactly what to do. Moving to his jagged thumping, she shifted slightly to the left and dropped down to match his grind and slipped around to face him. His hot breath hit her face like venom. Driving her knee as she rose up, she nailed him right between the legs. The guy fell and writhed on the floor, holding his balls.
“Sorry ‘bout that. You might want to put some ice on those.” She spun and banged into Elijah whose arm was drawn back. His eyes were dark and his face red with anger. Calm him down. She slipped her arms around his neck and pulled him to a less busy part of the dance floor. His chest heaved and his jaw crushed so tight she could see his facial muscles twitch and clench. She touched his cheek. “It’s fine. Dance with me.”
His hands slipped around her waist but his gaze travelled over to the not-so-cute dancer now limping his way off the other side of the dance floor. “I should punch the shit out of that guy.”
Charity laughed, the moment’s adrenalin running its course and calming now. “That’d be smart, doctor. And break your wrist or fingers for some schmuck? How would that work for performing surgeries?”
Elijah stared down at her, his eyes intense. “Good point.” His hand ran over her derriere. “So this is the reason for these firm muscular glutes?”
“Are you liking my assets?” She pressed closer to him, still easily carrying the beat of the music.
“Damn right.” His fingers trailed up and down her sides, sending sparks deep inside her. Music could drive her crazy but his touch went further. “You do realize you just let your little secret talent out and now I’m going to bug you to dance just for me.”
She playfully punched his shoulder. “I like dancing, but I’m no strip dancer.”
“Lap dance then?” He raised his eyebrows.
She rolled her eyes and then leaned close to his ear. As she spoke her lips brushed against his skin and it took everything not to start nibbling on his neck. “You show me your hidden talent and maybe I’ll dance just for you.”
Elijah stopped moving and his eyes grew bright. “You are seriously killing me here.”
She grinned and slipped her fingers through his. “Come on, I could use that drink about now.”
“I could use a couple.” They walked back to Julie and Simon. Charity let go of Elijah’s hand until they got to the table.
“Where the heck did you learn to dance like that?” Simon asked.
Charity reached for her drink and took a long gulp. She shrugged. “I always loved dancing. My mother danced ballet and signed me up for every kind of dance class as a kid. It was awesome. I had no dreams to become a professional dancer, nor would I have ever made it, but I do like it.”
Simon laughed. “Does Dr. Thompson know you’ve got those moves?”
A large pitcher appeared and someone set it on their table. “Jug of spiced rum and coke for my favourite lady,” a deep voice boomed. “When Charity was in med school, Dr. Thompson had no idea what kind of trouble this little peanut got into!”
“Kyle!” Charity swung around and hugged her friend. “I wasn’t sure if you were here.” A waitress brought four glasses.
“I was upstairs till I saw you start cutting it up on the dance floor. The pitcher is for taking care of the dickhead.”
She laughed. Kyle was still fit like a dancer, but now in his late forties his jet back hair had started to turn grey and a few laugh lines had etched characteristically into his face. “Kyle, these are my friends: Julie, Simon and Elijah.”
Kyle shook their hands. A crackling erupted from the walky-talky on his hip. “Trouble at the back door. Couple of kids trying to sneak in.” He pounded the table. “Let the bartender know if you need anything else. Great seeing you.” He hugged her again and then left.
Elijah’s stared at her, his head slightly tilted. “You went to med school?”
Charity poured each of them a drink. She didn’t want to get into this conversation at a bar. “Yup.” She pressed the glass to her lips, refusing to say more.
Julie leaned forward. “That’s where we became best buds. University roommates and then did med school.”
“How come you never told me Charity can dance? Wait a minute – can you pole dance?” Simon glanced back and forth between the two girls. Julie elbowed him, but he winked at Charity when no one else would notice. He must have understood she didn’t want to talk about it. He turned to his wife. “Julie, do you want to try pole dancing for me? Maybe Charity will teach you… maybe you girls could video tape it.”
Charity tossed an ice cube at him. “I was the maid of honor at your wedding! You’re like a brother!”
As Simon and Julie continued to tease each other, Elijah moved closer to Charity and slipped an around her waist. He pulled her close against him. His lips teased her neck and ear as he spoke. “Where to next, gorgeous?”
SF Chapter 15
“Home.” Julie squeezed between Charity and Elijah. “I’m drunk. I can’t drive. We need to get a taxi.”
Simon grinned from the other side of the table. He had the pitcher of spiced rum and was pouring three glasses. “Ignore my wife. She just needs a girlie drink with a load of sugar to pick her up.”
Julie pouted.
Charity leaned over and grabbed one of the glasses Simon offered. “Juls, put the lip away. I’ll go get you a pretty drink.” She patted her friend’s shoulder. “We’re just getting started. I want to dance some more.”
As she turned to head to the bar, Elijah grabbed her hand and entwined his fingers in hers. “Every guy in this bar wants to hit on you after watching you dance. No way I’m letting you out of my sight.”
She laughed and set her glass down on a table as they passed it. She wanted one free hand and wasn’t about to let go of Elijah’s. “No one noticed me and Julie until that jerk fell over.”
Simon came up behind them. “Sorry guys, but Julie isn’t feeling so hot. She’s headed outside. I gotta go after her.”
Charity stood on her toes to get a better view of the exit. Julie stood leaning against the wall, her hand over her eyes, trying to find Simon.
“We’re coming too,” Elijah said. “She
should get some fresh air.”
They moved through the crowd and found Julia drinking a bottle of water. “The bouncer gave it to me.” She wiped her mouth with a shaky hand. “Kind of embarrassing. The guy knows I’m a doctor because I treated his niece. Can we go?”
Simon put his arm around her and kissed her forehead. “Let’s get you home.”
Charity and Elijah followed without saying anything. Charity suddenly felt awkward beside him. The tenderness between Julie and Simon reminded her of what she wished she had. Drinks and flirting couldn’t come close to even pretending that sweet connection was there.
Outside Elijah hailed a taxi. Charity crawled in the back with Julie and Simon. Elijah got into the front of the cab. He gave the driver Simon and Julie’s address.
Julie, her head lying on Simon’s shoulder, spoke without opening her eyes. “Charity’s hotel is on the way… drop her off first.”
Charity told the taxi driver the hotel name and sat back to stare out the window. Elijah chatted politely with the driver about the weather and sports. Charity paid no attention to the conversation; she just listened to Elijah’s accent roll up and down as he spoke.
“Do you stay at this hotel every time?” Elijah glanced back to look at her.
“I do.”
“Why not at your father’s house?”
Julie harrumphed. “That’s a long story. Dr. Thompson’s a great doctor, lousy dad.”
“Juls!” Simon shook his head and mouthed “Sorry” to Charity.
“Don’t worry. It’s kinda hard not to notice that we aren’t going to win father-daughter of the year award.”
Thank goodness they pulled into the hotel. She handed Simon money for the taxi. He rolled his eyes and pushed it back at her. “I don’t want that.”
Elijah stepped out and opened the door for her. “I’ll be right back, just let me walk her inside.”
“Bye Juls, Simon. It was fun.”
“We’ll do it again, but I’m not mixing drinks next time!” Julie said as Elijah closed the cab door.
Elijah walked her inside and at the elevator he asked, “What floor are you on?”
“Second, right above the pool. I get the same room every time.” She smiled when the elevator door slid open and they stepped on. “I usually just take the stairs at the end of the hall. My room’s right across from it.”
Elijah’s eyebrows rose. “Why didn’t you tell me?”
“You seemed like you really wanted to take the elevator.”
The doors opened and she led the way down the hall to her room. “I had fun tonight.”
“So did I.” His tongue ran across his lips as he pressed them together. “Do you have plans for tomorrow?” His fingers rubbed his forehead. “Shoot, I’m on call tomorrow at the hospital.”
“Maybe I’ll see you there. I need to sit behind my computer and get some work done.”
His eyes lit up. “Why don’t you do it in my office? I’ll be in and out and I promise I won’t be a bother.”
“That sounds… nice.” She rummaged through her purse and pulled out her room keycard. “You should—”
Elijah’s lips pressed against hers as she looked up from her bag. They were soft and left hers much too quickly. “Text me tomorrow when you wake up,” he whispered.
Charity nodded but didn’t say anything; she didn’t trust her voice. Inside the room, she leaned against the door and fanned her face with the room keycard. She heard the stairwell door open and close.
She wanted to text him now and then all night. What would be even better, she could crawl into bed and call him, then fall asleep to the sound of his voice.
SF Chapter 16
Charity, of all things, slept in the next morning. She never did that. Ever. It was almost eleven by the time she made it to the hospital. She stopped at a bakery her mother used to go to on the way and bought a plate of treats and three coffees. Her father wasn’t in his office and neither was Elijah. He left a note on the door to say he was in surgery and for her to use whatever she needed.
She stepped in the room and closed the door behind her, inhaling deeply. She could smell his cologne in the room and she momentarily closed her eyes.
Today she needed to work. Not fantasize about the chief.
She reopened the door and walked over to Elijah’s desk. She wrote a note for her father on a post-it to say if he needed her, she’d be across the hall. Then she sat down at Elijah’s desk with her laptop. His office was similar to her dad’s. The large mahogany desk, black leather chair for him and chairs. The far wall had interesting stone inlayed. It almost looked like a waterfall with no water. Across from the door, just under the window, was a table. The pieces of artwork on the walls were abstract. She walked around the room to see if they were signed. It was hard to make out the signatures but she had a feeling they were from New Zealand.
She sat back down at Elijah’s desk and opened her computer. As it loaded, she changed her mind and stood. She should be working on the table under the window so Elijah could work at his when he came back. She dragged one of the ottoman-type chairs over to the table and then carried her computer.
In between internet searching and emailing companies she had worked with prior, she finished her coffee. Elijah came in just as she did a basketball shot with the empty cup.
“Scores!” He laughed. “Nice shot!”
She laughed and dropped back against her chair, feeling a little shy and unsure if she should hug him, kiss him, or shake his hand. “How’d surgery go?”
“Really good. Put a broken femur back together. The guy fell off his roof cleaning his eaves troughs and broke it.”
“Well done.”
He pointed to his desk. “You can sit there you know?”
“I didn’t want to kick you out of your spot.”
“I don’t mind sharing.” He leaned against the wall, his arms crossed over his chest.
“Do you work everyday?” She had wondered that last night while lying in her bed.
“Not always.” He rubbed his neck. “But I am here a lot. I don’t mind.”
No family to come home to. “Is my father here all the time too?”
Elijah tilted his head as he considered his answer. “I think the hospital is his home now.”
And his family. He still had a huge house and a daughter, but both seemed irrelevant now. She sighed. “I think I know what you mean.”
“Hel-lo?” Charity’s father called from across the hall. He stood in Elijah’s doorway a moment later. “You can work in my office if you’d like a desk, Charity.”
Behind him, Elijah pointed to himself and then his desk. He mouthed, “I offered.”
“Thanks, but this is great.”
Her dad noticed the tray of baked goods on the table by her. “Are those from today?”
“I brought them in a bit ago. There’s coffee for both of you. Just not sure how hot it is.”
Both men came over and started eating the cookies. As they snacked, they talked about patients and procedures. Charity politely tuned out and went back to work on her laptop. The rest of the day continued in a similar manner. Elijah would come in, snack on whatever Charity had set on the table and then scoot out again when his pager went. Her father would do the same thing. He seemed to show up minutes after Elijah would walk into the room.
The heat between Elijah and her seemed to hit a simmering level. Inside of Charity it felt like it would boil over at any moment. It didn’t and by the end of the day, she had caught up on everything she needed to do. Elijah was in surgery and she did not plan on sitting in his office waiting for him.
She packed her things back into her briefcase and left him a note that said she promised to text him this week. She underlined the word promise twice. In the hall, she tried her dad’s door. It was locked. She could call him tomorrow morning.
On the way back to the hotel, she stopped and bought a bottle of red wine and a set of wine glasses. Plastic cups from the hote
l would not suffice, she wanted to relax and enjoy a glass or two.
SF Chapter 17
Charity poured herself a glass of red wine and settled on the couch. She set her phone facedown on the coffee table and picked up her glass. She took a sip and then pressed the tip of her finger against her lips. What was Elijah doing right now? Did she ever cross his mind? Instead of taking another drink, she set the glass down and checked her phone.
Nothing.
Should she text him?
“Just leave it alone,” she mumbled, quickly setting the phone back down. She savoured the sip she had hesitated on. A few moments later she reached for her phone again and started to text a message. Halfway through, she deleted it. She got up and set the phone by the TV cabinet. Out of sight, out of mind.
She walked to the window and stared vacantly through the glass, seeing more of the room’s reflection than outside. Images of Elijah ran through her head. The day they met in the elevator, dinner later that night, his piercing blue eyes looking so surprised when she had kissed him to save him from the crazy lady, and how handsome he had looked the night after on the hospital balcony. His face with its tender lips, high cheek bones and that scruff which always seemed to be playing sexy on his face; all it wouldn’t leave her head.
After she finished her glass of wine, she grabbed the bottle to pour another. Maybe burying her thoughts into a litre of Merlot would put her thoughts to rest. Her phone’s little red light flicked to say there was a message. She raced over and hit the screen with a slightly shaky finger. From nerves or excitement, she couldn’t tell.
Julie.
Her heart dropped as she exhaled a disappointed breath. Julie just texting to ask if she wanted to come over for dinner tonight.
Charity didn’t. She’d rather be alone tonight.
Pacing the room was apparently next on her to do list. She stopped abruptly when an idea hit her.
No text. No more phone.
She walked to the closet and pulled out a sleeveless black dress she’d recently purchased. It was body hugging with enough of a v-cut to show a flash bit of breast. The skirt front hung short and the back ran longer with the hem just touching the top of her calves. It was the closest thing she had to sexy. She refreshed her makeup and went with a gloss lipstick instead of the red she always wore. Her hair had spent the day tied up in a bun and as she pulled it out, for once it actually cooperated and fell against her shoulders in a wavy, windswept way.
