Deal Takers (Dealing with Love 2)

“C’mere, buddy.” I snap my fingers to get his attention. His striped legs pad across the mattress until he butts his head against my shoulder before curling into a tight ball. In two seconds flat, he’s purring away with his eyes closed. Affectionate little pussy, isn’t he?

“Brody!” she shrieks from the doorway a few minutes later. “Quit screwing around.”

I give an exaggerated yawn. “I’m too tired to drive, babe. I’ll lock up on my way out.”

I’m pretty sure she just growled. “My door only locks from the outside.”

“Then just leave a spare key on the counter.”

“I don’t have a spare key,” she huffs. “Devyn has the only other copy.”

“Then leave yours,” I shrug. “I’ll drop by your work to return it on my way home.”

“Why are you making this so damn difficult?”

“I’d like to get a few more hours of sleep and I’m already in your bed. What’s the problem, Rainey? Do you not trust me?”

“It’s not a matter of trust,” she grumbles.

I roll over, turning away from her. “Then we don’t have a problem, do we?”

“Fine. I don’t have time for this. I’ll leave it by the coffee maker.”

I smirk as I close my eyes. “Have a good day at work, honey.”

“Wiseass,” she mutters.

Chapter Thirty-Eight

RAINEY

“May I help you?” Sarah, my co-worker says through the intercom. The doors to our unit are locked for security purposes so we have to buzz in any newcomers. Sarah’s silent for a moment, listening to whoever’s waiting. She covers the mouthpiece with her hand and says, “Rainey, this guy says he’s here to see you. Can I let him in?”

I already know who it is, but I check out the monitor anyway and see Brody smiling up at the camera. “Yeah, tell him to come down here.”

Sarah smiles. “Come on in. If you walk straight down the hall and take the first right, you’ll find her at the nurses station.”

As soon as she puts the receiver down, she says, “Who is that piece of man candy?”

I have to remind myself not to glare at her—that Brody’s not mine; therefore, any woman is free to ogle him.

“He’s just a friend.”

Sarah gives me a skeptical look but doesn’t get a chance to say anything else because Brody just rounded the corner.

“Hi, darlin’,” he says as he sets a Starbucks cup on the ledge. “I thought you could use the extra caffeine after having such a late night.”

Both of my fellow nurses at the station snicker. I don’t care to have an audience when he produces my house key so I round the desk until I’m standing next to him.

“Layla, I’m going to take my morning break. Will you keep an eye on 403? She’s only at three centimeters so it’ll be a while before anything happens.”

“Sure thing, Rainey. Take as much time as you need.” She blushes when Brody winks at her. Oh brother.

I grab the coffee cup and yank on his elbow. “C’mon, Romeo. Let’s take a walk.”

I take a sip as we exit the unit. Yum, toffee nut breve. “Good choice. This is my favorite drink.”

“I know it is. That’s why I got it.”