Playing With The Doctor: A Romantic Comedy: Milestone Mischief #1

by Piper James

  Now, that’s a man after my own heart, I thought, then quickly pushed it away.

  No hearts were included in this deal. Just pleasure and companionship. That’s all.

  I had a real “walk of shame” moment the next morning when I tried to sneak into the house, and Dad was waiting for me in the living room. At least, I thought he was waiting for me. He was watching some trashy talk show on the television, and barely looked up to greet me when I all but tiptoed into the room.

  My hand flew to my chest in an attempt to stop my heart from flying right out of it at the unexpected sight of him.

  “Dad!” I shouted, then taking a deep breath, spoke in the calmest voice I could muster. “You’re out of bed.”

  “Why, yes I am!” he replied in a surprised voice as he looked down at himself. Then he gave me a deadpan look. “Thanks a lot, Captain Obvious.”

  “How are you feeling?” I asked, ignoring his sarcasm.

  “I’m fine,” he said, arching one silver brow at me as he looked me up and down. “How are you feeling?”

  “Dad.”

  “Okay, okay,” he said, holding up his palms in surrender. “You’re a grown woman, and you can do whatever you want with your time. I just hope you’re being careful.”

  “Dad!”

  “Are you being careful, Jessa?” he asked, ignoring my censure.

  “Yes, Dad. I’m being careful,” I sassed, my mocking tone grating on my own ears.

  I sounded like a snotty teenager. I shot him an apologetic look, and he waved it off. He was used to my moods, seeing as how he’d been on the receiving end of them my whole life.

  “You going to tell me who you were with all night?” he tossed out as I walked by.

  “No, Dad.”

  “Was it Dr. Walton?” he yelled with a laugh as I turned the corner into the hall.

  “Sharp as ever,” I mumbled, dropping my purse on the bed and giving Butthead a scratch behind the ears before grabbing some clean clothes and heading to the shower.

  I’d never been able to get one over on Dad, and it didn’t look like I was going to be able to start now. I wasn’t sure how I felt about him knowing about Rafe and me. I didn’t want to get his hopes up.

  This was not a long-term arrangement. It wasn’t serious, and I wasn’t going to decide to stay in Milestone to be with Rafe. Once Dad was better, I was going home. To Atlanta.

  And I was not going to think about why the idea of that filled me with regret.

  After my shower, I wandered into the living room in search of Dad, but he wasn’t there. I found him back in bed, light snores filling the silence of the room. Closing his door softly, I walked back into my own room and shut the door. A nap sounded good after getting very little sleep the night before.

  Rafe had been…insatiable.

  My phone chimed an incoming text as I stretched out on the bed, and I grabbed it from the nightstand to check the message.

  Rafe: Hey, did you make it home okay?

  I smiled as I read the words. He was always so considerate.

  Me: Yep. Dad was waiting for me in the living room. Busted.

  Rafe: Ha ha. Does he know you were with me?

  Me: He suspects, but I neither denied nor confirmed his suspicion.

  Rafe: Why not? Am I that embarrassing? ;)

  Me: Totally. Can’t have anyone know I’m slumming it with the likes of you.

  I laughed at my ludicrous statement as I tapped the icon to send it. If anyone was slumming it, it was Rafe. Not me.

  Rafe: Exactly. A successful, good looking doctor who loves animals and knows how to find the G-spot? What would people say if they found out I’d found yours…multiple times?

  He was joking, but it was all true.

  Me: Who says you’re good looking?

  I chuckled as I waited for his response. Rafael Walton was a dark Adonis, and he knew I was one hundred percent attracted to every inch of him.

  A picture popped up in the message thread, and I nearly choked on my tongue. Rafe lay in his bed, his back propped up by a stack of pillows. He was shirtless, his face and entire torso in the frame. One hand lay across the tight ridges of his abdomen, and his face wore the sexiest “come and get it” expression I’d ever seen.

  Rafe: What do you think? Good looking? Or no?

  Holy shit. I was still a bit sore from our sexcapades the night before, but somehow, a selfie from Rafe was making my lady bits sit up and cheer with excitement. I could practically hear them begging for more of him.

  Rafe: You still there?

  Me: Uh, yeah. My hands were just busy.

  Rafe: Really? With what, dare I ask?

  Me: You don’t want to know.

  I was only teasing him, but he must have taken me seriously because my phone started ringing with an incoming video call. My heart fluttered as I hopped up and checked my reflection in the mirror before running to my door and peeking my head out to make sure Dad was still in his room. His door was firmly closed, so I shut mine, locking it for good measure.

  Then I answered Rafe’s call.

  “Hey, I didn’t think you were going to answer,” he said, still in his bed. Still shirtless.

  “I told you I was busy,” I teased, giving him a smirk.

  “I need proof,” he replied, his voice seeming to drop a couple of octaves as his nostrils flared.

  “Wh-what?” I stuttered, then cleared my throat. “I mean, don’t you have to go to work?”

  “Not until later,” he said, then sucked his bottom lip in between his teeth and bit down. “Show me, Jessa.”

  “I wasn’t really doing anything,” I murmured, feeling suddenly nervous.

  Did he want phone sex? On a video call? I’d become pretty fearless with him—I’d learned to trust him in that way—but this was on a whole different level.

  “I don’t want to make you uncomfortable,” he said, smiling softly. “It’s just, the thought of you touching yourself while looking at a picture of me? I couldn’t resist seeing it with my own eyes.”

  My tongue darted out to wet my lips as his words sent heat coursing through me. His free hand had been laying limply on his chest, but with his words, it had slowly crept downward and out of frame. A tiny gasp fell from my lips as his eyes closed and his mouth fell open a couple of seconds later.

  Was he…?

  Rafe’s eyes opened, looking right at the lens of his phone camera. “Do you want to see?”

  His voice was breathy and uncontrolled, and I never wanted anything more in my entire life than to see what that hand was doing. I clicked on my television to drown out our call in case Dad got up. Then I stretched out on my mattress and nodded at the camera on my phone.

  Rafe smiled, his dark eyes burning into me for a moment before the camera angle shifted. Slowly, the image panned from his face to his chest. Moving at a snail’s pace, the picture showed me his pecs, his stomach, his abs, and my eyes widened as his arm came into view. It was moving—slow, rhythmic strokes that made my breath hitch.

  Was this really happening?

  Oh, shit, yes it was happening. The camera reached its destination, showing Rafe’s long, sandy-brown fingers wrapped around his bare cock. His hand moved up and down gracefully, nearly hypnotizing me with its motion.

  Rafe’s voice came through the speakers of my phone, breaking my cock-hypnosis. “This is what you do to me, Jessa. I’m always hard for you.”

  Holy mother of pearl.

  His camera flashed back to his face, his expression concerned, like he needed to know how I was reacting to all of this. And like he wasn’t so sure my reaction would be positive. He confirmed my interpretation of his expression with his next words.

  “Is this okay? It’s not too much, is it?”

  I shook my head quickly, my mouth too dry to speak.

  “It’s not okay? Or it’s not too much?” he asked, though by his smile, I could tell he didn’t really need clarification.

  He just wanted to hear me sa
y it.

  I swallowed thickly and cleared my throat before croaking, “It’s not too much.”

  “Good,” he said before letting out a sexy little moan as his hand started to move again. “I want you to show me how you’d have me touch you, if I were there with you right now. Will you show me, Jessa?”

  My inhibitions gave me pause for about two seconds before I decided to throw caution to the wind and join Rafe in this dirty little game he was playing.

  And holy shit, was I glad that I did.

  27

  Rafe

  “What was I thinking?”

  I mumbled the words to myself for the millionth time as I ended my shift at the hospital. I’d been vacillating between doubt and satisfaction all day, driving myself mad with questions.

  Did I enjoy myself on that video call with Jessa? Absolutely.

  Was it actually a good idea? I wasn’t so sure.

  She’d been a little shy at first, but quickly joined in to give me a show I’d not soon forget. The whole thing had been spectacular, ending with both of us reaching climax—in that aspect, instigating phone sex with her had been a success.

  My fear and doubt stemmed from how Jessa might have felt about it afterward. Was she embarrassed? Did I push too hard? Did she regret it?

  I knew I didn’t, but I wouldn’t know how she felt about it until I talked to her again. And even then, I wasn’t sure if I should even bring it up. If she was regretful, I didn’t want to embarrass her further by making her talk about it.

  “What is up with you?”

  Ivy’s voice startled me, and the locker door slipped from my fingers to slam shut as I spun around to face her. She had one blonde brow arched as she studied me with a frown.

  “Jesus, Ivy, you scared me.”

  “Obviously,” she deadpanned before softening her expression. “You’ve been preoccupied all day. Do you want to talk about it?”

  My shoulders drooped as a sigh slipped between my lips. “Yes, I do. But I don’t know if I should.”

  “Something to do with Jessa?” she asked. At my nod, she said, “That’s a slippery slope—talking about your…whatever she is…with another woman. I get it. I like Jessa, a lot, but you’re my best friend. My loyalty lies with you, so if you need to talk something through with someone, I’m here. You know you can trust me to be discreet.”

  The emphasis she put on the words “a lot” made my heart stutter and flop. I liked Jessa a lot, too. My brain pushed the thought away and replaced it with words like temporary and casual.

  “Let’s go. We’ll talk in the car,” I said, making up my mind quickly.

  Ivy had picked me up for work since she had my car from the night before, so I needed to take her home. It was the perfect opportunity to lay everything out for her—with little to no actual details—and get her advice on what I should do.

  Before I even finished, Ivy started laughing.

  “What the fuck, Ivy?”

  “I’m sorry,” she said, wiping tears from her cheeks, “but you are too fucking cute.”

  “What’s that supposed to mean?” I asked, my ire rising.

  “Put those hackles down, buddy. I’m just saying, if you’re in a self-described short-term, no-strings-attached, casual affair, why are you so worried that you may have scared her off or offended her in some way? If you did, and she ends it, what does it matter?”

  I knew she was testing me, throwing these facetious questions out to make me answer them for myself, not for her. Was she right? Was I growing too attached to Jessa? Was I starting to catch actual feelings for her?

  That was a stupid question. Of course, I was. I’d been ignoring it, convincing myself that I had everything under control. That way, when things ended with Jessa Maddox, I’d be fine with it. It was what I’d wanted when this whole thing started, and it was what I wanted right now.

  My mind was set, but my heart was another matter.

  I needed to dial things back a notch. I was having a great time with Jessa—she was sweet, fun, and sexy as hell. But there was a reason I didn’t do relationships. Today had been a perfect example.

  I’d obsessed so much about her possible regrets over our video call, my work had suffered. I’d been preoccupied. My patients deserved one hundred percent of my attention, and with half my mind on Jessa, they just hadn’t gotten that from me. Even Ivy had noticed.

  I needed to put everything back into perspective. Maybe a short break from the object of my obsession was in order. Yes. It was the right thing to do.

  I dropped Ivy off at her apartment and headed home. The house was quiet. Peaceful. Serene.

  Those were terms I forced myself to think when my mind was screaming one word on repeat—lonely, lonely, lonely.

  “So what, if it’s a little lonely?” I muttered into the silence.

  Making myself happy at the expense of everyone who was counting on me was selfish. Lola, Nate, my patients, and even my ex-patients needed me. I had to be present for them. If something happened to any of them while I was busy making my own life better, I’d never forgive myself.

  My past came back to haunt me, much like it did any time I had a crisis of conscience. Any time I wanted something or someone for no other reason than to make myself happy.

  What if I’d never asked Mamá to drive me to the mall? Would she still be here with us today? We wouldn’t have been in that intersection at that exact moment. Lola would’ve had her mother during those difficult teen years. Nate wouldn’t have been such a playboy, sleeping around and letting his grades slip if Mamá had been there to set him on the right path.

  Our father would have never become an alcoholic before committing suicide when he could no longer bear her absence.

  A chain of events set into motion by my own selfish need to buy a gift for some girl.

  No. This was my penance, and I was okay with that. Helping people by putting their needs above mine was a good thing. A righteous thing. Being selfish just wasn’t an option for me.

  I needed to put the brakes on…whatever was happening with Jessa. I needed to refocus on my priorities.

  And I needed to convince myself those priorities hadn’t changed.

  28

  Jessa

  “I haven’t heard from Rafe in four days,” I announced as I slumped into a chair at Felicia and Karly’s table.

  “Have you tried calling or texting him?” Karly asked, her red curls brushing the table as she leaned forward to take a sip of her drink.

  “What? No,” I said, the words quick and sharp.

  “Why not?” she asked.

  “Because she doesn’t want to appear desperate. Duh,” Felicia cut in, turning her dark almond eyes on me. “Isn’t that right, Jessa?”

  Something in her expression told me she didn’t think that was the reason, and her statement and follow-up question were a challenge. She was throwing down the gauntlet, waiting to see if I would pick it up.

  I could’ve said yes, and I wouldn’t have been lying. I didn’t want to seem desperate. But that wasn’t the only reason I hadn’t reached out to Rafe. I didn’t want to bug him if he was just busy. He’d call me when things slowed down. And I was trying to appear as cool and casual as I’d insisted we both be when we started this thing between us.

  But the number one reason was the fear I’d lived with my entire life. It was the dread that swirled in my head on repeat for four days while my phone remained silent. It was what I feared, but also what I knew in my gut was the absolute truth—Rafe was done with me.

  He’d stuck to his side of the bargain, kept things light and fun with no real attachment, and now he was moving on with his life. I couldn’t blame him. The whole casual-sex thing had been my idea to begin with. A way to protect myself from the feelings of rejection and abandonment I was feeling in this very moment.

  But I hadn’t held up my end of the bargain. Though I’d played it cool on the outside, on the inside, I’d turned all mushy and started feeling real aff
ection for the guy. No matter how much I didn’t want it to be so.

  But facts were facts, and I couldn’t deny the truth. Not even to myself. His silence made my heart hurt. His absence left me shivering with cold loneliness.

  “Jessa. You okay?” Karly asked, snapping me out of my thoughts.

  “Yeah. Of course,” I said, sipping my glass of water.

  “No tequila tonight?” Felicia asked, arching one black brow.

  “I don’t feel like drinking,” I murmured.

  “Let’s get out of here,” she shot back, looking to Karly for her agreement. “Jessa obviously needs to talk, and the bar her dad owns is not the place to do it.”

  “I’m fine. Really,” I argued, then flinched. There was that word again. The one that never meant what it was supposed to mean. Fine.

  “No, I agree with Felicia. I’m not feeling the bar vibes tonight, anyway. Where should we go? My place is a dump, so that’s out.”

  “We can go to my apartment,” Felicia offered.

  “Sweet,” Karly said, standing up as she slurped down the rest of her drink. “I’ll pay the tab, and we can go.”

  Felicia rolled her eyes before meeting my gaze. “She’s excited because it’s her turn to pay, and we’ve only ordered one round.”

  “So?” Karly chirped before letting out a loud belch. “Oops. Excuse me.”

  “Maybe if you got a permanent job, you wouldn’t have to worry about how much the bill is,” Felicia said, arching a brow at her friend as she, too, stood up.

  “Tonight’s on me,” I said, signaling to the bartender to put the drinks on my tab. Then I turned back to them and grinned. “Ready?”

  “You didn’t have to do that,” Karly said, “but thank you.”

  “What are friends for?” I asked.

  A streak of heat rushed through my chest as I said the words. Up until recently, I’d had no idea what friends did for each other. I had no clue how amazing it would feel to have a squad—women I could talk to and relate with, who I knew would be in my corner whether they agreed with me or not. It felt good. Damn good.