by A C Warneke
As his eyes widened in surprise and shock, she smiled wryly, “Alexandra Rudnar, the youngest daughter you wanted me to interview.” She laughed but it was a pathetic and hollow sound. Taking an even deeper breath, she held his eyes, “I’m also a Siren and I am so, so sorry.”
Standing up on her toes, she pressed her lips against his and squeezed her eyes shut as she let her love and memories return to him. His hard chest pressed against her breasts and she wanted to take it back but she didn’t, kissing him until there was nothing left. With a cry, she wrenched herself away from him and looked up into his stunned face. Gently laying her fingers over his lips, she whispered, “I love you.”
With one last look, she gather up the robe and slipped it onto her body. She would call Cole and have him take her to the offices so she could pack up her stuff; it would simply be too difficult to continue working at lavish and seeing nothing behind his eyes when he looked at her. As she headed towards the front door, she found her dress and her purse along the way and laughed sadly.
Every moment with him had been worth it.
Chapter 17 (Monday)
When she got into the car nearly an hour later and two miles from Duncan’s house, Cole took one look at her and wrapped his arm around her shoulder, holding her like that as they drove home. He didn’t ask why she was wearing the dress she had worn on Friday morning, nor did he ask what had happened to the wig, he simply held her as he drove. When they got home, she offered a few words to let him know that she was quitting and today was her last day. And while she showered he typed up her resignation and found some boxes.
With Cole by her side, Lexi entered the lavish offices for the last time. It was hell trying to stay awake because she was just plain exhausted, physically, emotionally, and mentally. She would have blamed it on having a sex-filled weekend but she knew that it was her aching heart that was draining her. Or possibly the flu, since her forehead was burning up. Getting sick on top of getting dumped was just great. At least she wouldn’t have to worry about calling in sick in the morning.
Wearing a silky shirt that had a front but really no back, being as it was held together by a few ties, Lexi maneuvered her way through the cubicles to her office. Instructing her best friend on what to pack, she took her final article and her letter of resignation up to Duncan’s office, signing her name as 'The Writer of The Scene.' She smiled at his assistant, ignoring the way the room wobbled. “Hi, Miss Reynolds; can I leave these here with you? They're for Duncan... Mr. Tremain."
“Certainly, Miss Darling,” the older lady said with a soft smile. When she looked up and saw Lexi, she gasped, coming to her feet and pressing her cool palm against Lexi’s blazing forehead, “My goodness, child, you’re burning up! Why aren’t you at home getting some rest?”
Lexi’s smile felt force and she was a little short of breath, “I will be going home as soon as I’ve packed up my things.”
“You’re quitting?” Ms. Reynolds looked even more horrified by that announcement than by Lexi’s flushed cheeks. “But… why?”
“It’s time to move on,” she said easily, lifting her shoulders in a casual shrug that she didn’t mean. “I’ve decided to try my hand at cliff diving. That or macramé, I’m not sure.”
Miss Reynolds chuckled as Lexi knew she would. The older woman pulled Lexi into a soft, motherly hug, smelling of peppermint and office paper. “Take care of yourself, Lexi, and don’t be a stranger.”
“Okay,” Lexi murmured, returning the hug with affection. Setting the folder down on the desk, she rested her hand there a moment longer to steady the world that was suddenly spinning too fast. When she was stable, she straightened and forced a smile to her bloodless lips. “Make sure Mr. Tremain gets this.”
With that, Lexi made her way back to her office, hoping to get the hell out of there before she passed out; she really was feeling ill. Pressing her hand against her forehead, she was shocked at how hot her skin was. She wanted to put off the inevitable as long as possible, severing her last tie to Duncan, but she also wanted to get home and crash.
Not paying attention, she almost ran into Mason Jones, one of the last people she ever wanted to run into, especially in a completely deserted hallway. She stumbled back a step as he smiled cruelly down at her, “Hey, Lexi.”
“Hi, Mason,” she returned with a grimace, not in the mood to deal with him. She took a step to go around him, but he didn’t move. In fact, he seemed to take a step closer to her, making her apprehension sky rocket. “Excuse me, please.”
“I don’t think so,” he murmured, grabbing her hips and grinding his pelvis against her. “I think that I will keep you.”
She pushed against his chest and glared at him, “Let go, Mason.”
“Come on, babe,” he taunted, refusing to let her go. His cold blue eyes stared down at her with malicious intent as he ran his hands over her bare back, his smooth palms nauseating her. His breath invaded her nostrils and she turned her head as he tried to kiss her. “Without your killer shoes on, you’re the perfect height for me and everyone knows you’re easy; hell, you’re only wearing half your damn shirt. C’mon, Lexi; I can make you scream.”
His behavior made something snap and without quite knowing how it happened, her hand was around his throat, her nails digging into the soft flesh and she was… growling. If she didn’t smell the acrid scent of pee as he pissed himself she would have torn his throat out with her bare hand and the thought made her tremble. Pulling her nails out of his flesh, she continued to hold her hand around his throat and her voice came out in a snarl as she glared at him, “I said to let go, you fucking moron.”
His eyes widened even further in his miserable face as he wrapped his fingers around her wrist, either to keep her hand from pulling away, taking his throat with it, or to hold himself up. “I’m sorry, Miss Darling. God, I’m so sorry. Let me go, please.”
She snorted, pushing him away and noticing the five half-moon marks on his neck, little droplets of blood trickling out, as he crumbled to the ground. Shaking her head in disgust, she started to walk back to her office, throwing her leg out and kicking him in the shin as she passed him, “Bastard.”
Wiping the back of her hand against her moist forehead, she didn’t give the sniveling imbecile another thought. Stepping through the door to her office, she got a little thrill of watching Cole pack her stuff, his shirt straining against his taut muscles as he hefted a full box onto the desk. His red highlights were now purple, a bright and vibrant purple, and when he turned around and saw her he griped, “How the hell did you manage to amass so much shit?”
She gave him a crooked smile, ignoring the fact that there were two of him standing and glaring at her. “A lot of gifts from businesses I wrote about and a lot of gifts from businesses wanting me to write about them. It adds up.”
He grumbled good-naturedly as he struggled to carry the box out the door. As soon as he left, she sagged against her desk and focused on not fainting. She had never felt so ill in her life, it was like her stomach was boiling, all rumbly and hot. Crawling into bed and pulling the covers over her head, not thinking about Duncan, not remembering Duncan, sounded like Heaven.
“Miss Darling,” Kerry said coming into the room with a bright smile on his face, reminding her there was still one person under her spell. “I saw you come in so I ran out and got you a cup coffee. Here.”
He was so damn eager to please and she just wanted to go home. Accepting the hot drink, she smiled kindly, "Thank you, Kerry. I want to give you something since I am leaving.”
“You’re leaving?” he looked crestfallen, his smile disappearing instantly. “Was it something I said? Something I did? Or didn’t do?”
“No,” she shook her head, her smile gentler as she struggled to bring forth her memories of him. She was just so tired…. Crooking her little finger, she purred, “Come here.”
He did so eagerly, only grabbing her elbow when she took a step forward and stumbled. “Miss Darling, are
you okay?”
“Of course,” she lied. Grabbing the front of his shirt, she pulled him down and placed her lips over his, kissing him before he could say anything else. She just hoped that whatever she had wasn’t contagious because poor Kerry didn’t deserve to get sick when she was freeing him.
Releasing him, she fell back against the desk, thankful that it was there to hold her up; her muscles had turned to putty and she was pretty sure her insides were liquefying. If she had been able to, she would have left when Kerry was stunned but she couldn’t seem to move.
When he opened his eyes, he blinked a few times and then looked around the office, startling when he saw her standing there. Smiling warmly, cautiously, he held out his hand, “Hi, I’m Kerry.”
“Lexi,” she laughed, taking his hand and shaking it. “It’s a pleasure to meet you.”
“You, too,” he grinned, boyishly handsome and oblivious to the things she made him do. She still felt a little guilty, even though it hadn’t been her fault entirely. His brow pulled together in a frown as he looked at her and she was afraid he was remembering. But he simply put the back of his hand on her forehead, “Um, you look really sick. Are you sure you should be here?”
“I’m just waiting for my ride to come back and get me,” she murmured softly, focusing on the Kerry that was attached to the wonderfully cool hand pressing against her forehead. She glanced up as Cole walked through the door, a smile lighting her face, “And there he is.”
Cole’s smile disappeared as he stepped forward and caught her in his arms as she passed out.
*****
Lexi blinked her eyes open and saw Cole sitting at the side of her bed, concern darkening his eyes as he looked at her. It took her a moment to figure out why she wasn’t curled up in Duncan’s arms on his bed, and when she did she grimaced. How could she have fainted at work? How embarrassing; had Cole not been there…. Reaching out, she smiled as he took her hand in his own, “So, you took me to the hospital?”
“You passed out, Lexi,” he scolded her gently, kissing her knuckles in relief. “The doctor says you’re going to be okay but she has you on a full spectrum antibiotic; your white blood cell count was extremely high.”
“I haven’t been here too long, have I?” she asked, wishing she could call Duncan up and ask if she could come over; she wanted to curl up in his arms and have him hold her. But of course she couldn’t. She should stop thinking about him; it was over. He didn’t know her anymore.
“Nah, only a few hours.” He chuckled, brushing a strand of damp hair from her face, “The doctor said that as soon as you woke up you should be good to go; just so long as you pick up the prescription at the pharmacy and rest."
“Ugh,” she groaned with a smile. It was easier to pretend she was all right as long as she kept on smiling; the moment she forgot to smile, the pain would come rushing back in and she would drown. All she had to do was get through the day, the moment. “All this for a little fever.”
“It was a fever of 105,” his voice was rough. “The doctor was surprised by how fast your temperature went down when she administered the antibiotics. She said that it usually doesn’t work that quickly but in your case she was happy that it did. I was surprised they were letting you go but she had the lab re-run your blood and everything was back to normal."
Swinging her legs over the side of the bed, desperate to get out of the hospital, she paused a moment as the room continued to spin. Chuckling to herself, she smiled up at Cole, “That was a rush but I don’t want to experience it again. Get me out of here.”
“Lexi,” he looked at her with his clear green eyes and she stilled. “The doctor noticed a… bite mark on the curve of your neck; what exactly happened this weekend?”
She looked at him for a moment, blinked, and then laughed as her fingers went to the area Duncan bit. Despite her misery over losing him, she would always have the memories from that night and for that she was grateful. “If I told you it would make you blush, Cole.”
“I don’t blush easily,” he said smugly.
She grinned, wagging her eyebrows at him, “This would make you blush.”
He smiled but concern still marred his expression, “At first the doctor thought that perhaps the bite had something to do with your fever but there was no redness or swelling around it. She thought maybe perhaps a dog might have bitten you and was prepared to order up a course of rabies shots.”
Lexi shuddered at the thought, knowing that the treatment for rabies was not something to be taken lightly. “It wasn’t a dog that bit me, Cole.”
Cocking his head to the side he looked at her in confusion until realization dawned and his eyes widened with fascination. Lowering his voice, he leaned in, “That uptight prick in the suit bit you? Kinky.”
“You have no idea,” she whispered back. Stretching, arching her back, she groaned as her tight muscles pulled pleasurably, “I feel unbelievably good right now. And starving. Do you think we could pick up a couple of steaks on the way home?”
“You haven’t been released yet,” he chuckled, helping her to her feet since it was obvious she was determined to get going. “Besides, the doctor wants to check you out once more before releasing you to me; otherwise she will insist on calling your mom.”
Working a few more kinks out of her back, she looked at him with a slight frown, “You didn’t call up my parents, did you? You know I don’t like to worry them.”
“I was prepared to if the fever didn’t come down,” he admitted. “But no; I didn’t. I did call Dima and he said he would be here in a few minutes which is right about….” Glancing at his watch, he grinned as Dima rushed into the room with Ashley hard on his heel. “Now.”
“Lexi,” Dima panted, pulling her into a tight hug. “When Cole called and told me you had fainted I thought the world had stopped spinning; thank God you’re all right.”
Lexi awkwardly patted him on the back since her arms were plastered to her sides. “I had a slight fever and they put me on some antibiotics; no big.”
Ashley’s nostrils flared slightly as she took a deep breath and looked around the room in confusion. When her gaze landed on Lexi, she paused, blinking a few times. Coming closer, she tilted her head to the side in an inquisitive manner, “Antibiotics you say?”
When Lexi nodded, Ashley asked, “You weren’t, by any chance, bit recently, were you?”
Lexi and Cole exchanged a look before they both burst out laughing, “I was but it wasn’t the bite that made me sick; it was something else.”
“Interesting,” Ashley murmured, contemplating something. Her gaze darted to Dima and a slow smile curled her lips, “Very interesting.”
“As soon as I am released from this sterile prison Cole and I are going to pick up some steaks,” Lexi grinned, ignoring the dull ache where her heart used to be. “Do you think you two might want to join us?”
“Honey, when it comes to steak, I will be there with bells on,” Ashley grinned, her eyes dancing with intense joy that seemed oddly out of place in the hospital.
*****
As soon as she finished the last bite of her monstrous steak, Lexi wiped her mouth off with the napkin and then leaned back in her chair, “My God, has meat every tasted so delicious?”
“Do you really want me to answer that?” Ashley asked with a sparkle in her blue eyes, making the small group chuckle.
“No, we really don’t,” Dima groaned, throwing his napkin down. Putting his arm around Ashley’s shoulders, the pair also leaned back and Dima put his hand over his stomach as he looked at Lexi with a glimmer of laughter in his eyes, “I have never seen you eat so much in my life; have you turned into a carnivore?”
“It’s the hospital food,” she said with a completely straight face. It was easy to pretend everything was okay when one was surrounded by good friends. “You know how bland that stuff tastes. If it weren’t for the promise of real food after I got out I would never have made it.”
“You were there
for only a few hours,” Cole grumbled, throwing his napkin at her. “And most of that time you spent asleep.”
“I know,” Lexi groaned dramatically, putting the back of her hand against her forehead and tilting her head back in a languishing pose, “I nearly perished.”
Cole abruptly stood up and tackled her around the waist, sending her and the chair backwards until she was looking up at the ceiling and laughing as Cole lay next to her. But he wasn’t laughing; his eyes blackened as he growled, “Don’t ever do that to me again, Lexi; never again.”
“I’m so sorry,” she whispered, her lips curled up into a smile as her eyes watered. If her smile faltered for even a moment she wouldn’t be able to hold back the waterworks and so she held that smile in place even when she apologized to Cole. “I don’t even know what happened; one moment I was fine and the next the room was spinning. It happened so fast.”
“Why are you smiling?” His teeth were clamped together in a wounded grimace as he glared at her with hurt eyes.
“If I stop smiling I’ll die, Cole,” she said as a tear slipped down her cheek. “Give me a few days and I’ll be able to go out without a smile plastered on my face.”
He brushed the tear away, glancing at Dima and Ashley who were staring at them in confusion. Clearing his throat, he stood up and then pulled her to her feet, pulled her into a hug. Softly, he asked, “Do you want me to send the love birds home?”
“No,” she smiled softly at Dima and Ashley. “I think it’s nice that people can fall in love and be happy.”
“Hey!” Ashley beamed, standing up and pulling Dima to his feet. “We should go to a karaoke bar and get up on the stage and sing.”
