Tease (Tease 1)

I had to talk to Mia. Had she meant it when she’d said she’d take me back in a second if I gave up my life for her? I kissed Beth on the cheek.

“Thank you.”

Chapter Twenty-Seven

Mia was back to not answering her phone. I sent a few texts and waited. Still no response. Starting the car, I headed toward Northwest Hospital. I was getting anxious. I needed to talk to her, immediately. It couldn’t wait.

Hell, what am I doing? Am I going to corner her at work and force her to talk to me?

I didn’t even know if she was working. Regardless, I was going to find out.

Driving down into the underground parking at the hospital, I pulled into a spot. Getting out, I ran to the elevator. I pressed ground level, having no idea where to start to look for her.

I stepped out of the elevator and spotted a reception desk at the far end of the hall.

“Hi,” I said, as I approached it.

A surly looking woman in her late fifties glared at me.

“I’m looking for Mia Weston? She’s a nurse here.”

She narrowed her beady eyes at me, as if she were weighing up the legitimacy of my story. Or maybe she just recognized me from the news. Either way, I didn’t see myself getting anywhere with her.

“I’m her roommate. She left her key at home, and I’ll be out tonight.”

She kept her eyes on me, her mouth turning downward into a frown.

“Fourth floor, north wing,” she sighed.

I nodded and turned back for the elevator. Once inside, I contemplated just what I was going to say. My head was a jumbled mess of words. Glancing at my reflection on the mirrored wall, I ran my hand through my hair. At least l looked remarkably better than I had the last time she saw me—not that that would’ve been hard.

No sooner had I stepped out of the elevator, than I saw her. She had her back to me, deep in conversation with someone else—another nurse. I hid behind a corner and watched. My heart was pounding. What if she’d changed her mind? I wanted to explain everything to her, but what if she didn’t want to listen to me?

She laughed and waved at her friend, then walked into a room. I quickly walked over to the doorway of the room she’d entered, waiting for her to exit. Five minutes felt like hours, and I was sure I couldn’t look any shadier than I did right then, loitering in a hospital. Finally, she appeared, letting out a loud yelp when she saw me.

That went well. Make the girl feel special by scaring the hell out of her.

“What the hell are you doing here, Coop?” she gasped, her hand over her chest. Her eyes were wide with . . . annoyance? No, it was more excitement…or maybe both.

“I need to talk to you. Now.” I grabbed her hand. “Is there, like, a closet around here or something?” I asked, glancing around.

She chuckled. “What do you think this is, Grey’s Anatomy?”

I rolled my eyes.

“Come with me. Maya!” she yelled out “I’m taking my break.”

The nurse from earlier nodded as Mia led me down the corridor.

We walked down the hall the same way I’d come, both of us trying hard to ignore the awkward silence that was brewing between us. She pushed open a door. I went inside. It looked like a lunchroom that was, thankfully, empty. She gestured to one of the tables.

“I only have ten minutes, so you might want to get to the point.”

“Okay.” I sat down, my hands on the table in front of me. “I want to tell you everything. The escorting, it wasn’t something I did for the hell of it. I mean I enjoyed it—” Her eyes narrowed. “—but I had a reason. I needed the money,” I added hurriedly.

This wasn’t going according to plan. Or maybe it was, considering I had no fucking idea of what I was saying in the first place.

Get yourself together, Coop. You’re losing it.