Carson
The door to the storage room closed behind me, and I forced myself to walk toward the stairwell. I didn’t want to leave that room—I didn’t particularly need a vent cover right now, either. But I needed to get out of there before I pressed Joss against a wall and kissed her the way I was fucking dying to.
Once I started, I wouldn’t be able to stop. And I wasn’t the kind of guy who screwed around on the job.
Near the entrance to the stairs, a lithe woman with light brown skin who was wearing blue scrubs made eye contact with me and smiled. She seemed to know me, but I didn’t recall ever meeting her. I nodded politely and glanced at her name badge. Dr. Hattie Lawson.
“You taking care of my girl?” she asked.
I slowed my pace and gave her a confused look.
“I’m Hattie, a friend of Joss’s. She said you were helping out with the room.”
“Oh yeah. It’s coming along. I’ll have it all ready within a couple hours.”
Hattie shook her head slowly. “She’s a great person. One of the best. Joss is much more than just a pretty face.”
I tensed a little. How could Hattie tell I was interested in Joss? Did it show on my face?
“I can tell that,” I said. “She seems like a total package.”
“You like her?” Hattie crossed her arms and examined my face.
I nodded sheepishly. “I like her a lot.”
“Good.” She pointed down the hallway. “I have to get to patients, but it was nice to meet you, Carson.”
“You too.”
By the time I made it to the stairwell, my pumping blood had cooled considerably. Clearly Joss and I were interested in each other. When I’d smelled her perfume close up and tasted her skin, I’d admitted to myself I wanted a lot more than flirting with her.
But what did she want? A relationship? I wasn’t sure I was cut out to do that again. My last one had gutted me, leaving me a cynical asshole. Joss could have as much of my body as she wanted, but my heart wasn’t available, and I wasn’t sure it ever would be.
The basement storage room was a refuge. I walked in and soaked up the solitude it provided. I’d been alone for a long time. Even when I was with other people, I was alone. But I didn’t feel that way around Joss. She saw through me and wasn’t afraid to ask about the things everyone else figured were off-limits.
Whatever was happening between us had been fast-tracked by raw honesty. She was over her ex but was still licking her wounds from being fucked over in front of the entire hospital. The experience had left her doubtful of her physical beauty, which was total bullshit. I didn’t have to know who her ex was to know he was a stupid fuck.
And in the space of a couple of hours, I’d let her see who I was: a man who still hadn’t fully recovered from the hurt of my breakup, either. I was over Rachel but now wondered if I could fulfill a woman both physically and emotionally. Physically? Hell yes. But war had left me pensive and pessimistic. Seeing how little value some people placed on life made me question human nature. Could I trust a woman who said I was enough for her?
I blew out a deep breath. The storage room was very organized. I knew right where to go for what I needed, but I paced the aisles anyway.
A battle was brewing inside me. I wanted to go back up to that room and be with Joss. Talking, working, it didn’t matter what we were doing. I just wanted to be in her presence.
But another voice told me I was on dangerous ground. I’d only known this woman for a few hours, and letting her in even further scared the shit out of me.
She made me feel. I was feeling want and trust and vulnerability. And as much as I wanted to run from it, I couldn’t. I had to know if she felt those things, too.
I went to the end of an aisle and grabbed what I needed. And then I did something that scared me almost as much as being shot at and jumping out of airplanes once had. I turned to go back up to the room where Joss was waiting.
My muscles were tense all over. The closer I got, the faster I wanted to go. It was coming up on 3:00 a.m., and the hallways were quiet.
I paused in front of the door to gather myself. There was no going back now. I’d been a goner from the first time she laid those big brown eyes on me. I opened the door, walked in, and closed it behind me. Joss turned my way, and I dove in.
“I like you,” I said as soon as our eyes met. “A lot.”
Her lips curved up in a smile. “I like you, too. Also a lot.”
“Can I take you out sometime?”
“Yes.”
“What time are you off?”
She licked her lips, looking nervous as she turned to face me. “I’m not really on the clock right now. Just setting up for tomorrow, which would be done if I wasn’t going so slow because I want to stay in here with you.”
I arched my brows with amusement and walked closer to her. “I want to take you out as soon as possible,” I said.
“What time are you off?” she asked softly.
“Five. You want to go out for breakfast?”
Her cheeks pinked a little, and she grinned. “I was thinking more along the lines of going to my place. Maybe, at some point . . . I’ll make you breakfast. I don’t have to be back here till ten.”
My cock stiffened fully in an instant. “Yeah. I’d like that. But just so you know, I still want to take you out.”
“As long as you plan to take me to bed afterward.”
“Holy Christ, you’re sexy.”
“You make me feel . . . bolder than I’ve ever felt before.”
I glanced at the hole in the wall and swore under my breath. “I have to finish that because I am not staying one fucking minute after five unless something in this hospital is on fire. But please keep talking.”
“How old were you when you lost your virginity?” she asked.
I thought about it. “Uh . . . sixteen.”
“So let’s hear the story.”
She was unpacking faster now, and I got to work on the return as I spoke.
“It was with my buddy Cody’s older sister. She was home on college break for the summer. Their parents were at work all day, so we were alone in the house. She invited me into her room one afternoon and gave me a blow job. It just sorta happened from there.”
“How old was she?”
“Nineteen.”
“You must’ve been a rock star.”
I shrugged. “Not at first, I’m sure. But we fucked almost every day that summer, and I was by the end of it.”
“Did your friend know?”
“I think so, but we never talked about it. So now do I get to hear about the lucky bastard who was your first time?”
She sighed and laughed at the same time. “It was awful. His name was Luke McCann. We were both seniors in high school. He got a hotel room for the big occasion. From the time he got the condom on to the time he was done was less than a minute, I swear. He made this noise with every thrust, and I thought he was in pain. Then at the end he goes, ‘Oh my goodness!’ and then it was over.”
I shook my head with disgust. “That’s unbelievable. What a jackass.”
“New topic: What’s your favorite flavor of ice cream?” she asked.
“Mint chocolate chip. Yours?”
She considered. “Mmm . . . strawberry, I guess. But honestly, I’ve never met an ice cream I didn’t like.”
I was so turned on by her sweetness and honesty. I reminded myself to stay focused on the task at hand so I could leave with her at five on the dot.
“I have to put my head in this wall for a little bit to work on something,” I said.
“Sure. I’ll just be out here staring at your ass.”
I couldn’t help grinning. “You like my ass, huh?”
“Very much.”
“I like yours, too. It’s kinda begging me to do all sorts of things to it.”
She bit her lip and gave me a look that made me want to throw the fucking tools down and take her right then.
“Is it five yet?” she said sweetly.
“Soon,” I promised, resuming my work.
I’d never installed an air return, but so far it was going smoothly. In the army, I’d developed an ability to fix things almost mechanically. My hands often knew what to do before my mind had even sent them a message. I did the work on autopilot, my mind wandering to Joss.
“I’m done,” I finally said. “Just have to sweep up this mess.”
“I’ll go find a broom,” she offered.
“Nah, I’ve got it. Then I should be able to help you finish up.”
“I’m pretty much done, too. I just need to send a message to Domestic to have some chairs and tables moved in here. I don’t know where they keep that stuff.”
I glanced at my watch. Almost four thirty. When I looked back up, Joss’s soft brown eyes were locked on me.
“I’ll clean up, then go sign my logs, and we’ll be out of here,” I said.
“Carson, I’ve got the cleanup. Go finish your stuff.”
“All right . . . hey, you can ride with me if you want,” I offered. “I’ll bring you back here for your thing later.”
“Okay.”
Her smile pulled on me like a rope attached to my heart. I was drawn to bring out that smile and then follow wherever it led.
“Black pickup truck,” I said. “I’ll be at the front door at ten after.”
“See you then. And thank you for getting this room cool. This project means a lot to me, and you saved the day.”
“I was glad to,” I said, taking her hand and stroking my thumb across her wrist. I couldn’t say the words, but I was pretty sure she’d saved my day, too. And maybe, hopefully, more days to come.