Harder Than Stone

by Jacey Ward

  “Oh?” The information surprised him. “You brought another psychiatrist here?”

  Dr. Bennet’s eyebrows rose and he stared at Jameson curiously.

  “Is that going to be an issue?” he asked, sounding surprised.

  “An issue?” Jameson repeated, suddenly feeling embarrassed. “No, of course not. I’m just…”

  He trailed off, struggling for the words to say without offending his new employer.

  “Ah. You’re thinking it’s unnecessary to have two psychiatrists in an impoverished children’s hospital.”

  Relief and chagrin colored Jameson’s face simultaneously.

  “Something like that,” he muttered sheepishly.

  “It’s a good observation,” Bennet told him. “But I assure you, all my hospitals put just as much emphasis on mental health as we do physical. You have to understand that most of these children are orphans or have lost at least one parent. They are victims of violence, natural disasters, hunger, illness, poverty—the list is endless and devastating. I know people in the first world don’t consider it much but I assure you that depression, anxiety and PTSD are alive and well here.”

  “I don’t doubt it,” Jameson said quickly. “I imagine it’s likely worse here than in the States.”

  “Well, as you know, it’s not a competition.” Bennet grinned again to take the sting from his words. “But that’s why I am happy to take all the help I can get.”

  “Well, I look forward to meeting my co-worker,” Jameson told him magnanimously. “I’m ready to go now.”

  “Excellent. I can show you around the hospital. It’s not huge but it’s something,” Bennet continued, leading the way. “I’m sure you got a glimpse of it when you came through on the caravan.”

  “I did but it’s hidden through all the brush.”

  “I purposely had it hidden. I wanted the children to feel a certain sense of security when they came, given their tumultuous histories.”

  “Makes sense. I find it very peaceful myself.”

  They continued through a beaten path and through a throng of trees before the single-floored building appeared. It stretched out quite far to Jameson’s eye.

  “If we’d made a second floor,” Bennet told him, “It would have meant bigger machines. We disrupted the wildlife enough with this.”

  “I’m sure it will do wonderfully,” Jameson assured him. “What does it have?”

  “There are five ORs, two wings and a small emergency room but given the location, I imagine the clinic will be used more than the ER. The area I have set aside for mental health is shared with physiotherapy.”

  “You’ve thought of everything,” Jameson thought admiringly but on the tip of his tongue was the question he really wanted to know.

  “This way, Dr. Landry.”

  They moved into the small entranceway and Jameson was taken aback by the pristine condition of the hospital.

  It’s brand new but it’s also…modern.

  “Who is your benefactor for this hospital?” he asked subtly. Bennet cast him a sidelong look.

  “Does it matter to you?”

  “No,” Jameson assured him. “I was just wondering why he didn’t put his name on the building like the two others did.”

  Bennet snorted.

  “Between you and me, Dr. Landry, some people only give to charity because it makes them feel better. Putting their name on the hospital was their way of patting themselves on the back, even though they would recoup most of what they put out come income tax time.”

  “Not this benefactor though,” Jameson commented, raising a brow. “Very noble.”

  “He donated anonymously. I couldn’t tell you who it was if I wanted to.”

  “You’re kidding!”

  “I am not asking questions,” Bennet replied. “I’m grateful but if he doesn’t want me to know who he is—”

  “Or she?” A woman asked. The hairs on the back of Jameson’s neck rose and he found himself turning to face exactly who he knew would be standing there.

  “Or she,” Dr. Bennet chuckled. “Forgive the pronoun, Dr. McMahon. May I introduce Dr. Jameson Landry?”

  “We’ve met,” Audrey said warmly, gliding toward them to extend her hand toward Jameson. “Good to see you again, Doctor.”

  Jameson looked at Bennet in disbelief.

  You brought a witch doctor to a third world country to help the kids? He yelled silently at the chief of staff. You may as well have called a shaman in from San Antonio!

  Reluctantly, he turned back toward Audrey and accepted her warm hand — her frozen expression suddenly far from what one would call warm. Her eyes glittered like ice drawing him in even more than they usually did. What had caused her chilly reaction to him?

  “Nice to see you too,” he managed to say, his eyes trailing down her lovely face toward the swell of her full breasts against a white tank top. Her peaches and cream complexion was tanner than usual and Jameson realized that she must have been there much longer than him.

  “Did you just get here too?” he asked innocently and she shook her head, not losing the aloof expression which had fallen over her face.

  “I’ve been here two weeks.”

  “She came with me to prepare,” Bennet offered, casting Audrey a look that Jameson couldn’t decipher.

  She met the chief’s gaze and lowered her eyes.

  What’s going on here?

  A shocking bolt of hot jealousy reverberated through his veins.

  Are they together? Is that why she’s here?

  Audrey turned away suddenly.

  “I should get back,” she muttered and moved away before either man could speak.

  “Is there some history between you two?” Bennet asked, sensing the discord.

  “History? No,” Jameson snorted. “You have nothing to worry about there.”

  “Why would I be worried?”

  Jameson cast him a wary look.

  “We don’t really see eye to eye on our methods,” he explained. “It’s nothing personal.”

  “I know,” Bennet laughed. “That’s why I asked you both here. It’s good to have two ways of looking at the same problem.”

  The chief wandered away, gesturing for Jameson to follow with a wave of his hand.

  Jameson hurried to catch up but he couldn’t stop the feeling of upset that lurched in his gut as he tried to figure out the relationship between Bennet and Audrey.

  It’s nothing. There’s nothing between them. Not that you would (or should) care if there is or isn’t.

  He almost chuckled at the lie he told himself.

  Of course you care. If Bennet and McMahon aren’t hooking up ... If she’s single and you’re both alone out here in the middle of nowhere, you know full well that you’re going after that.

  His determination to let his personal impressions of her push aside his professional opinions of her work, loomed to the forefront.

  He’d be a fool not to explore this further.

  Chapter 5

  Seeing Jameson Landry was as much as a surprise to Audrey as her appearance had been to him. She couldn’t deny feeling secretly pleased by a familiar face.

  Particularly one that shamelessly hot.

  She’d be lying to herself if she said she hadn’t thought about Jameson in the past, his chiseled features wriggling their way into her subconscious as she tried to fall asleep at night. It was more than his intense emerald eyes which bored into her whenever their eyes met or his shocking dark hair which had a slight wave to it, at times falling over his angular forehead.

  Yes, he was built more like a personal trainer than a shrink but Audrey also knew that behind that stunningly handsome face was a brilliant mind.

  Even if he’s all wrong about how to deal with trauma.

  Audrey had been met with opposition in her line of work, of course. Her methods were not widely accepted, despite her high sales and endless speaking gigs. She was used to the cynics but she also knew that psychiatr
y was not an exact science. Not having an open mind was the downfall of most of her colleagues, Audrey knew.

  Of course, I have a better idea of what we’re really capable of than others. If they knew what we could do, they would be more apt to accept my ways.

  Audrey had piped into Jameson’s thoughts enough to know what he thought about her - he certainly hadn’t been shy about showing his disdain for her methods.

  I suppose there’s something to be admired in that. He doesn’t smile to my face and talk about me behind my back.

  In any case, the fact that Jameson was in La Esperanza was still surprising.

  Two psychologists in the same building, treating the very poor. It’s odd, isn’t it?

  She wondered what Jameson thought about it.

  Maybe now was a good time to ask him, before the others all arrived.

  The other doctors had already begun to arrive at the facility, monopolizing Bennet’s time and Audrey wandered through the halls, smiling vaguely at the newcomers but not pausing to introduce herself.

  She wasn’t sure which hut had been assigned to Jameson but she found herself ambling through the doctors’ quarters, hoping to catch a glimpse of him as she did.

  “Dr. McMahon, are you looking for something?” Bryan popped up from behind a well and Audrey almost gasped.

  “Do you always hang out behind wells, Bryan?” she laughed, regaining her composure. The man cast her a taut smile.

  She suddenly found herself put off by that smile.

  “I was testing it,” he replied shortly.

  Testing the well. How does one do that?

  She studied him for a long moment, her head tipping to the side as she did.

  His aura is indigo. Conflicted. Dark.

  She considered probing his thoughts but she stopped herself.

  Everyone is entitled to their own lives and secrets, she thought, shaking her head. You can’t just go around reading everyone’s thoughts when their colors are off.

  It was something she had to remind herself about often. Since being out in the world, away from the compound, she had forgotten that the general public didn’t have the same way of blocking her as her family.

  “Are you lost?” Bryan asked again, his thick Spanish accent not affecting his perfect English in the least.

  It was another matter that Audrey had found interesting since her arrival. Bryan was supposed to have been brought in from San Antonio to help with the natives and locals.

  Where did a poor dirt farmer learn English so well?

  “I’m looking for Dr. Landry’s dwelling,” she offered, realizing that Bryan was staring at her with suspicion. “Can you tell me which one it is?”

  He nodded curtly and pointed to a small house two down the path from where they stood.

  “I think he is in there now,” he said. “I just saw him, not five minutes ago.”

  “Gracias,” she said brightly, smiling. Bryan nodded but didn’t answer as he turned away, leaving Audrey to stare after him with some curiosity.

  There’s something else going on with that guy for sure.

  A movement out of the corner of her eye caught Audrey’s attention and she pivoted to see Jameson leaving his hut.

  “Oh,” she breathed, hurrying toward him. “Dr. Landry.”

  He looked up and before he could replace it with stoicism, a glimmer of appreciation lit up his face.

  “Dr. McMahon.”

  “Are you heading to the hospital?”

  “Actually, I was going into town,” he replied. “There’s not a lot for me to do until the doors open.”

  “Oh.”

  She stood awkwardly before him, suddenly embarrassed and he peered at her with those penetrating eyes which seemed to be reading her soul.

  “Were you looking for me?” he asked suddenly, the idea seeming to amaze him and she sighed.

  “Yes,” she admitted. “But it’s nothing urgent.”

  “I’m not in a rush,” he told her quickly, sensing that she was about to leave and not really wanting her to. “You want to come in? We can compare furniture.”

  She chuckled.

  “Sure.”

  They stepped into his cottage and Audrey idly noted that their set-ups were exactly the same—haphazardly put together and sparsely decorated.

  “I don’t have anything but water to drink,” he said. “Standard bottles.”

  “I’ll take one,” she replied. “I couldn’t imagine drinking alcohol in this weather anyway.”

  “I don’t drink.”

  He said it with such firmness, it was almost rude and Audrey peered at him, steeling herself from reading his thoughts.

  “Then you probably won’t dehydrate as fast,” she responded jokingly, accepting the bottle of water from his outstretched hand – their fingers brushed briefly, and the connection seemed to catch them both off guard. The water was icy cold, from the bar fridge in the corner and she resisted the urge to rest it against her suddenly too warm cheeks. She uncapped it, taking a swig of it as she remained standing near the door.

  “What’s up?” he asked. “Did you want to discuss a practice plan?”

  Her eyes crinkled and she chuckled.

  “Do you think we could agree on one if we tried?”

  A wry smile touched Jameson’s full mouth and he, too, took a sip of his water bottle. She watched as the muscles in his neck swallowed the water, the tension within her winding tightly again.

  “Probably not,” he agreed, his lips curving in an easy smile. They stared at one another for a long, silent moment, the energy flowing between them undeniable.

  We might not have anything in common but that doesn’t mean I don’t want to sink my dick into her so far that she never forgets how it feels.

  The thought floated through her mind without her even trying to grab it – proving that he felt it hard.

  Instantly, moisture pooled at her core as she pictured him rising above her, pounding deeply as she moaned.

  Jameson broke the quiet first by clearing his throat. His voice was rough as he ran a hand through his hair, turning slightly to hide the bulge that had formed in his pants.

  “So, uh—”

  He paused then, his head moving up and their eyes locked again.

  How could I possibly think her eyes were icy before? They were like liquid silver now.

  Then he wondered suddenly why she had come to see him.

  Jesus, could she want me as badly as I want her? Has she been waking up, heat tightly coiled and dreams of hot passion still lingering in her mind as well?

  Audrey’s face flushed, knowing he was right.

  She’d been in La Esperanza for two weeks, biding her time, mostly alone but for John Bennet who made her vaguely uncomfortable, despite the fact that he had been kind to her and had probably saved her life by getting her out of the country.

  Perhaps it was the way he tried to force conversation with her, despite seeming uncomfortable in her presence.

  Mostly, Audrey had kept to herself since arriving.

  Is that why I’m here with Jameson? Boredom? Loneliness?

  Uh, no.

  Definitely not, it was past time to be honest with herself. The attraction between them was palpable, and she had sensed enough from Jameson to know the feeling was mutual.

  What happens in Nicaragua, stays in Nicaragua?

  Her libido started doing push-ups in preparation for what it sensed was about to happen. Her core spilled more moisture, rejoicing with a not so subtle ‘hurrah!’.

  Audrey barely noticed that he had stepped closer to her, his eyes glaring at her intently, almost accusingly. As if it was her fault he was attracted to her.

  Her heart started thumping as she realized that he was stalking toward her, the intention plain to see in his eyes.

  He’s going to kiss me. Jameson’s intention was clear and Audrey leaned forward subconsciously, closing the space between them.

  He was ready for her, pulling her towa
rd him, his shockingly strong arms encircling her waist.

  “Jameson, I—”

  He didn’t want her to talk, to break the heady flow of heat racing between them and he shook his head. Her eyes met his as he pressed his fingers over her lips. She watched his pupils dilate, as her mouth opened to nip one finger.

  “Shut up, Audrey.”

  Slowly, his lips replaced his fingers, gently at first, then with more aggression, his tongue thrusting into her mouth as a soft sigh escaped her.

  The awkwardness she was feeling melted away, transforming to a sensation of pure desire, and she allowed herself to relax into Jameson’s arms.

  Instantly, she felt the bulge of his crotch and Audrey’s brow shot up in amazement, entranced by his eyes as they lit with desire.

  Is that all him?

  It wasn’t what she was expecting, even though in her gut, she had always suspected that Jameson would be…well endowed.

  His lips pressed harder against hers, his form firming against her body as the heat between them grew and Audrey found herself being danced backward toward the cot at the far side of the one-roomed hut until she was splayed onto her back. Jameson’s lips followed a line down her neck toward the swell of her breasts and Audrey propped herself up on her elbows to watch as he slid down over her body like an inflamed snake ready to strike.

  Yanking her clothes off in a blur, Audrey’s legs encircled his own bare skin, pulling him close in an embrace which locked him into her as his breath trailed along her flesh. Goosebumps exploded over her, his nose nuzzling the rigid nipples before he sampled the nub deliciously.

  “God, you taste just like I imagined you would,” he muttered between nibbles of her breasts. “Sweet honey.”

  She sighed, his words only fuelling the heat already in her loins and she arched her back up, gently pushing his head lower against her belly. Beads of sweat formed along her body when Jameson reached around to cup her cheeks firmly in his hands and draw her upward, his tongue lashing out to delve into her core, long and deep.

  Audrey mewled, a shiver of pleasure causing her to shudder. Jameson’s mouth did not slow, his fingers kneading into the muscles of her buttocks and Audrey’s breaths caught in her throat when he added his index finger into her wet center.