Sasha’s breathy cries yanked him back to the present. Hayden forced himself to focus, pleasuring the girl while Olivia danced around her, flicking the whippy cane against tender flesh. He was relieved when Sasha finally climaxed, her tear-streaked face suffused with submissive pleasure.
“Good job.” Hayden pulled off his gloves as he rose to his feet. Sasha would be an excellent addition to the pleasure sub roster. “You passed the exam with flying colors.”
The radiant smile that lit her pretty face made him almost forget his obsessive thoughts about Dahlia Simon.
Almost.
Usually after a medical exam session, Hayden went in search of an available club sub to relieve the sexual tension induced by the exam. But today he just wasn’t in the mood. Damn it to hell, why had he told Dahlia to take the whole fucking weekend to make her decision?
He almost made it through Sunday without texting her. At around ten that evening, after reading the same paragraph for the third time with zero comprehension, he closed his e-reader and reached for his cell.
Though he was dying to grill her about what she’d been doing and thinking every second since they’d parted, he’d forced himself to keep it light and easy.
Hey there. Hope the rest of your weekend was pleasant. I look forward to seeing you tomorrow and hearing your thoughts on what we talked about.
To his delight, she’d replied almost instantly, as if she’d been waiting for his text.
Hey, yourself. ? I actually went in to the hospital to catch up on some charts. See you in the a.m.
He scowled, despite that her response was perfectly appropriate. She’d answered his text as it had been typed, rather than intuiting and responding to what he’d meant beneath the words.
His thumbs took over, tapping a reply.
Christ, Dahlia. I fucking miss you. I can’t believe I was such an idiot, sending you away instead of taking you home. I had you right where I wanted you, primed by what you saw at the party, vulnerable and ripe for the plucking. Why did I have to be Responsible Dom? You could be here right now, naked and over my knee, that cute little ass cherry red from your spanking, your hot cunt soaking wet.
Disgusted with himself, he deleted the text and answered instead:
Great. See you then. Sleep tight.
The weekend had taken its sweet-ass time, but finally meandered its way to Monday. When Hayden entered the staff cafeteria, Dahlia was already there, some yogurt with fruit and granola and a cup of coffee before her. Like him, she was dressed in blue scrubs. Her blond hair was pulled back in a ponytail, her head bent over her cell phone.
Hayden went quickly through the line, loading his tray with scrambled eggs, bacon and a biscuit, along with a large cup of coffee. Dahlia looked up and smiled as he set down his tray and slid onto the seat across from her.
“Good morning,” he said, smiling back. “Already hard at work, I see.”
Dahlia set down her phone, a slight flush moving over her heart-shaped face. “Actually, I was texting with my friend, Naomi. We went to college together. She’s been here since right after she graduated.” She smiled, a cute dimple appearing in her right cheek. “How was the rest of your weekend? Did you miss me?”
Christ, you have no idea.
“Uneventful,” he said, feigning nonchalance.
He took a bite of eggs and a sip of coffee before asking what he’d been obsessing over all fucking weekend. “So, now that you’ve had some time to think things over, what have you decided? Are you comfortable with the idea of an intense exploration of your fantasies?”
Color flooded her cheeks, her pupils dilating as she stared at him with those expressive eyes. “I think—”
A voice suddenly came over the intercom at the same time Dahlia’s hospital beeper went off. “Dr. Simon, ninth floor ICU, stat. Code blue.”
“Shit,” they both said in unison, though probably for different reasons.
Dahlia immediately pushed back from the table. She took a last, hasty drink of coffee and hoisted her purse over her shoulder.
Damn it to hell. Talk about bad timing.
Hayden wrapped his biscuit and remaining bacon in a napkin and stood as well. “I’ll go with you,” he volunteered.
She flashed what looked like a grateful smile. “Thanks. This is my first code blue. I could use the moral support, if nothing else.”
They walked quickly from the cafeteria toward the staff elevator. As the doors slid open, she turned to Hayden, a determined look on her face. “Yes,” she said. “The answer is yes.”
He understood this was her delayed response to his earlier question.
As the door slid closed, Hayden reached out and took Dahlia’s hand in his. His heart was suddenly as light as a helium balloon. He couldn’t wait to begin.
But first, they had a life to save.