Even half broken, the man was ravenous for me, and I could only guess what my future held once he fully healed.
It was strange, living in his place. At first I thought it would be weird, but I quickly got used to it, and then I fell in love with it. I loved going to sleep with him, waking up with him, letting him joke with me, laugh with me, kiss me when he wanted, touch me where he wanted. It was like a new dream every morning and every night, and I never wanted to wake up from it.
I squirmed off him and he groaned. “No fair. Why don’t you quit your job and stay in bed with me?”
“Because one of us has to earn some money.”
“Please. I’ve got savings. I was a single man working as a doctor.”
“I bet you do, but I’m not looking for a sugar daddy.”
“How about a baby daddy?” He grinned at me. “I’d be happy to knock you up.”
“Weirdo.” I walked to the bedroom door. “Sleep in a little more. I’ll see you at like 8:50 down in lobby, okay?”
“Sounds good.”
I blew him a kiss and he winked as I slipped out of the room and padded down the hall.
As I made coffee and had a light breakfast, I marveled at how comfortable this all felt, and knew that eventually it would have to end. Not our relationship, exactly— he hadn’t said he ever wanted me to leave, although I hadn’t asked yet—but this in-between period, this interregnum, whatever it is we were doing. I knew we’d have to talk about what we were to each other if we were going to keep on with this thing, although I didn’t want to.
I wanted to revel in what we had, and not think about anything else, but I knew that wasn’t how the world worked.
The morning was crisp and clear as I walked to work. He lived closer to Mercy than I did, which was another perk of staying with him. I arrived a little early, dropped my things off, then got settled behind the nurses’ station as the nightshift headed home, looking exhausted, smelling like bleach and blood.
Mary joined me a few minutes later sporting an enormous coffee in a Thermos. She sat with a sigh and gave me a little nod. “Morning, darling. How’s your boy?”
“Alive and kicking.”
“Lucky you.” She winked and got up to check on a patient.
The hospital knew about my relationship with Dean. It was hard to keep it a secret, and honestly, I didn’t care if they talked. Mary was surprisingly okay with it, and actually encouraged me to keep it up. I hadn’t expected that—she talked a big game about how handsome the doctors were and all that, but she seemed pretty adamant about never settling for one. Maybe I changed her mind.
I watched the clock, feeling nervous and excited, and headed down to the lobby at exactly ten to nine. I found Dean already there, sitting in an overstuffed chair with coffee in his hand, wearing a pair of jeans and a gray button-down.
“It feels weird, being here as a civilian,” he said, and kissed my cheek.
“I know, right?”
“Nobody’s stopped by to say hello. It’s like I’m dead.”
“And you’re a ghost, haunting me.”
“You love it. You can call me Casper the Fucking Ghost.”
“Gross.”
He laughed and stood then hugged me against him. I pulled away, looking up into his face, when someone barked his name. I turned to see a good-looking guy, square jaw, blond hair and blue eyes, come striding toward us wearing a dark black coat and carrying a briefcase. Everything about him screamed ‘lawyer.’
“Curt,” Dean said. “I hear you convinced Fiona here to drag me into this godforsaken hellhole.”
“And you’re going to be happy that I did.” They shook hands and Curt stood next to him, arms crossed, briefcase dangling. “I don’t have much time, but I came for the show.”
“What’s going on, exactly?” Dean asked.
Curt nodded toward the door. “Watch this shit.”
As if on cue, eight men came storming in through the doors. They were a mix of federal agents in suits and ties, Philly detectives, and uniformed officers. They strode through the room like they owned the place, ignored the elevator, and started to climb up the steps.
“Okay,” Dean said. “That was exciting. But what’s it all about?”
“I came through for you, my man.”
“Explain to me, in detail, what that means.”
Curt laughed. “Last night, two mafioso motherfuckers were arrested. They go by Aldo and Davide. I believe you’re very well acquainted with them.”
Dean grinned. “No kidding?”
“No kidding. They’re rotting in a cell right now, and they’re going down, big fucking time. I checked out the case they’re building, and it’s solid.”
“Good news,” he said. “But what about this?”
“This is about your girl. Just watch and enjoy, man.”