"Have a good night, Josie," Kevin says as he puts his gym bag on a bench and starts pulling out workout clothes. He's clearly going to take advantage of the small gym here at the hospital.
"Back at ya," I say lightly as I turn for the door.
My shoulders are tight with tension as I walk the back corridors to the emergency room lobby. All the ugly feelings of bitterness toward Aiden for choosing a life for us I didn't want. For making me fall in love with him and leading me on to believe that we'd be together forever.
For tossing all of our plans to get married, build a life together, and the happily ever after that never occurred.
All because he "got a calling" two years ago to join Doctors Without Borders, and that appealed to him more than I did.
There's a small internal voice inside of me calling out weakly, telling me I'm not exactly being fair to Aiden. It's not like I didn't know he had a passion for that type of work. And it's not like he didn't talk about it to some extent as we were making grand plans after we completed our residency. Mostly, it's not like he didn't ask me to come with him so we could be together. But I push that voice aside. I choose not to let the hurt and anger dominate my thoughts, or otherwise I'd succumb to heartbreak again. And that's something I decided I wouldn't do anymore.
Aiden is my past, and my future is without him.
I keep my head ducked as I walk through the lobby, slipping out the sliding doors and past security. Turning right, I head toward the east parking lot, my thoughts still vacillating between Aiden and kittens. My hand jams down into my purse, roots around, and comes up with my keys. My head lifts as I near my car and I come to a dead halt as I see Reed leaning back against the hood. There's a paper bag on the asphalt at his feet.
"What the hell are you doing here?" I ask, and I know the irritation in my voice is because I'm angry over Kevin bringing up Aiden, which has in turn brought me down.
Reed isn't fazed and gives me a cocky grin. Bending down, he reaches into the bag and pulls out a six-pack of beer and a box, which he shakes. "Got beer and a new puzzle. You and me, girl...it's on tonight."
I look around the parking lot, then back to Reed as I start walking toward him. "Where's your Tahoe?"
"Had Marek drop me off," he says as he puts the beer and puzzle back in the bag. "We swung by the store first so I could stock up on essentials. You're about an hour past quitting time, which is par for the course, so I knew I'd be in for a little bit of a wait."
I come to a stop before him, looking up with a slight grin over his assumption I'd be free to drink and work on a puzzle tonight. "I could have had plans tonight, you know. Then what would you have done?"
"I'd have Ubered my way home," he says with a careless shrug, but then I get warmed down to my toes when he adds, "Been thoroughly disappointed, but I'd have survived."
Reed had been out of town this past weekend. He went to the beach with Marek and Holt for a little sun and relaxation, or as I assume to mean, chasing after hot women in bikinis.
Admittedly, that sort of stuck in my craw a little. Not that it should bother me, because Reed is nothing but a friend.
A friend who for the last two days has texted me constantly while he was away. Funny texts, stupid texts, one butt dial that resulted in an hour-long conversation, and even a late-night text that simply said, Wish you were here. We're having a blast.
That sort of made me think that he really meant it, but surely just as a friend. Because...we're friends. Nothing more.
"Give me your keys, Doc," Reed says as he holds his hand out. "You look exhausted."
I don't even think about it, but toss them to him. He catches them easily and then surprises me by stepping past me to the passenger door. He opens it for me and I get in, feeling both awkward and charmed at the same time.
I shamelessly gawk at Reed as he crosses back in front my vehicle. He's tanned and glowing from a few days at the ocean and walks with the assured grace of someone who is completely confident with not one worry in the world. That's just one of the things that makes him so damn attractive.
Reed has to adjust the driver's seat backward before he can slide in, but once he gets settled, he turns to look at me. "I do believe I missed you, Doc."
I just blink at him, because his tone is light, but his eyes are locked on mine as if he's trying to convey some type of deep message.
"Overload of Beach Barbies?" I tease, more as a defense mechanism than anything.
He shakes his head. "Not a single one to be had. Well, not by me at least. Marek and Holt weren't so discerning, though."
I snort, because as much of a playboy as I know Reed to be, I know Marek and Holt are even worse than he is. We've all hung out a time or two, so I've observed it. I've also had Reed entertain me with stories of their past exploits while we labored over puzzles or lounged by the pool on my days off.
"You up for beer and puzzle or just want a good night's sleep?" he asks as he starts my car.
"Beer and puzzle," I tell him without thought.
Because the truth is, I missed him too.
And for the rest of the night and into the next few weeks, Aiden doesn't cross my mind again.
Chapter 7
Reed
I slow the speed on the treadmill, taking me down from a brisk run to a slow walk so I can cool down. I'm not much of a runner, but I try. Five miles under my belt and I'm ready to hit the weights.
Normally I like to run outside, but mid-July in North Carolina is too brutally hot and humid. So my workouts take place either at the gym at my town home complex or here at the arena. I actually prefer to work out at the arena because not only is the equipment better, but I have an abundance of teammates to work out with.
After I walk for five minutes to cool down, I power the machine off and wipe my face with a towel. I grab my phone and water bottle and turn for the barbells, as today I'm working my chest and shoulders. Marek and Holt are already lifting, both defensemen who tend to focus on brute strength versus speed and stamina, so they're less about running than I am.
"Have a nice run, princess?" Marek asks dryly as I set my stuff down near the bench press. They're both at the squat rack today.
"I'm not the one who has to prove my manhood by how much weight I can lift," I return with a sly grin.
"Yeah, well, your manhood is in a dry spell," Holt says as he loads some weight onto the bar.
I know he's making a point about this past weekend at the beach. Both Marek and Holt had a very good time with some of the local girls, and I got so much shit from them because I didn't. While I certainly did my share of looking while we hung out at the beach, I didn't touch at all.
Which, yes, is very weird and totally contradictory to my goal of experiencing one long fuck fest for the entire off-season.
But what can I say...I've got Josie on the brain, and as much as I'd like to say we're just friends, the truth is I don't want to be just friends with her. The thing I can't figure out is how to have something else with her, and that's mainly because I've given her the impression that I'm only interested in her as a friend.
Even more confusing is the fact that I don't get anything more from Josie other than a friend vibe, and that's driving me batshit crazy trying to figure out how to get around that. She's the very first woman in my life who's intrigued me in more than just a sexual way. That leaves me feeling off balance, because if it were just about physical chemistry, I'd have made a move long before now.
But not knowing if the chemistry is only one-sided has made it difficult to figure out where to go. I suppose I could man up and just ask her. Or I could make a move...
The only problem with either of those two solutions is that I'm afraid I'll get shot down and then Josie will never be anything but a friend to me, and that thought just plain fucking sucks.
"Notice he doesn't deny it," Holt says to Marek. I don't bother looking at either of them, content to let them have their fun while I load my own bar with weight.
> "I'm thinking he's got a very particular girl on the brain," Marek says slyly.
"Yeah," I respond in a bored tone. "And just who would that be?"
"That would be Josie, you fuck-wit," Holt taunts me.
I glare at him for a moment before I pull another plate from the weight rack. "What makes you think it's Josie?"
Marek and Holt both met Josie at the Cold Fury party the night Sutton went into labor. They both flirted with her shamelessly, which got my hackles up a bit. A few days after that party, I invited them to hang by the pool with Josie and me. They flirted with her some more, and she ate it up.
My hackles bristled hard but I didn't say a word. If I was a betting guy--and I am--I think they were doing it on purpose just to get a reaction out of me.
Of course, having just spent a few days at the beach with them where I remained chaste and virtuous while they banged everything that moved was sort of an indicator, I guess.
"Dude, why don't you just admit you got something for her?" Holt asks curiously, and it's because there's no teasing in his tone that I look back to him.
"So what if I got something for her?" I mutter. "She doesn't feel the same."
"How do you know?" he shoots back.
"Because we're just friends and that's all she wants."
This time it's Marek who presses me. "But how do you know?"
I shrug and then flip a leg to sit straddled on the bench. "It's just a vibe from her."
As I lie down on the bench and position myself under the weights to do some chest presses, Marek walks over to spot me. He looks down at me as I position my hands on the bar. "Make a move, dude."
"What kind of move?" I ask him, and then don't wait for an answer. I push the weight off and start my reps. Marek doesn't respond but counts off my reps until I hit ten, then helps me guide the bar back onto the rack.
When I sit up to take a sip of water, Marek gives it to me. "Romance her, man. Dinner, candlelight, sexy music. Whisper sweet nothings. Send her flowers or some shit like that."
I cock an eyebrow at him, ignoring Holt's snicker. "And this works for you? Because that sounds lame as hell."
"Chicks love that shit," Marek replies with resounding confidence.
"Josie's not like that," I say stubbornly as I set my bottle back down. "She's not into that stuff."