by S E Isaac
He had remained faithfully by my side the entire time and he didn’t get anything out of it. I had tried to give him money since he gave me a ride home, but he insisted I keep my money and just allow him to take me out for coffee when I was feeling up to it.
Ding. Ding. Ding.
My phone’s notifications reminded me that I was once again off in Jacob La La Land. I had drifted off to Jacob La La Land several times since meeting him. It was like a spell was put on me.
I grabbed my phone off the coffee table and leaned back in the recliner. It was a text from… Jacob.
A huge smile broke across my face. The kind of smile which made me thankful I was alone. It had to be the cheesiest smile ever.
Hopefully, you are still resting, but when you wake up, make sure you eat before you take your medicine. And, let me know how you are doing — Jacob.
His text made me feel like the luckiest woman on the planet. He wasn’t even my boyfriend and he had messaged me.
I replied, Morning. I just ate a banana and took my medicine, doc.
It wasn’t long before my phone was ringing. Jacob was calling.
“Hello?” I asked answering the call.
“Hey,” he said cheerfully. “How are you feeling?”
“I’m alive but feel like death,” I laughed. “What about you? You must be running on no sleep.”
“I’m fine. Just been worried about you.”
“You’re sweet,” I smiled. “Working hard?”
“Unfortunately,” he laughed. “What are you doing?”
“Just woke up. Debating on going back to bed.”
“You should get some more sleep. I didn’t mean to bother you, I just wanted to —” he began to ramble.
“You’re fine. It’s sweet of you to check up on me, Jacob.”
“Oh. Okay. Good.” He sounded amused. “Just didn’t want to come across as the creepy guy.”
“No. You’re fine,” I replied.
“I feel better then.”
“Good.”
Silence fell between us. I wanted to ask him when we could get together for coffee, but I didn’t want to sound creepy, so I stayed quiet.
“Still there?” he asked laughing.
“Mmhmm.”
“When you’re feeling better, can we still grab that cup of coffee?”
And, the lottery had just been won… by me.
“I’d love that. What day is good for you?” I asked pushing fear to the side and diving headfirst.
“Well… you need to be one-hundred percent better before we do.”
“Why?” It came out nearly a whine. “I mean, how come?”
“I don’t want you to hurt yourself more. You need to take care of yourself. Coffee can always wait.”
“So… you don’t want coffee later today?” I grinned cockily. I had a feeling of what his answer was going to be.
“No,” he said loudly. “I mean,” he stated quieter making me chuckle. “I’m available later today if you’re absolutely sure.”
“Do you like a certain kind of coffee or is any coffee okay?”
“Any kind as long as there is some sort of flavored creamer in it.”
“I have coffee here if you want to stop by after work.” He probably didn’t want to drink coffee late at night. “Sorry. That’s a stupid idea. You don’t want to be wi—”
“I get off at six. How does six-thirty sound?”
I bit back a laugh.
“Sounds like I’ll have a pot of coffee ready.”
CHAPTER FOUR
Jacob and I sat at my small kitchen table with our cups of coffee. I didn’t have a need for a bigger one. The holidays were always at my parent’s house and I didn’t invite people over so a small one was perfect for me.
Today it seemed too big. There seemed like there was a mile between Jacob and me.
“How was your day?” I asked then took a sip of coffee.
“Uneventful,” he laughed. “What about you?”
“It was… interesting. I feel like an old person,” I admitted making him laugh.
“Well, hopefully, you’ll feel like yourself again soon.”
I tried to hide my cheesy smile behind my cup as I took another slow sip of the hot delicious liquid. Jacob watched me over the top of his cup as he drank his coffee. We both set our cups down at the same time.
“Taste okay?” I asked nervously when the silence between us became too much.
“Tastes great,” he smiled. “Thanks again for allowing me over and for the coffee.”
“You’re welcome. I appreciate the company.”
I appreciate the company? Really, Love! Totally lame.
“I’m making a fool of myself, huh?” My words were soft and in a form of a sigh.
“No,” he shook his head. “Not at all.” I raised an eyebrow and he laughed. “Seriously, I’m sitting over here sweating bullets worried that I’ll say the wrong thing.”
He showed me his semi-sweaty palms. I held one of his hands and with my free hand I wiped his hand with a napkin. Then I did the same to his other hand.
“Thank you,” Jacob whispered.
Fear froze me. Did I honestly just wipe a grown man’s hands with a napkin? If I was working my way to a relationship status with Jacob, I had probably just lost all points for getting to know him.
“You look like you’ve just been spooked,” he teased. I looked up at him then let go of his hands and set my hands on my lap.
“Just feeling a bit uneasy.”
“About me being here?”
“No!” I blurted. A groan followed soon after my outburst. “Ugh.” I covered my face with my hands.
“You okay?”
All I could do was shake my head. I heard his chair scoot across the kitchen floor. Before I knew it, he was helping me out of my chair carefully and wrapping his arms around me.
“Just one of those days?” he asked tenderly.
“Something like that.” It wasn’t my intention to sound like I was pouting, but it was exactly what I was doing.
So many emotions were hitting me at once. Being around men had never intimidated me before. Even when they came over to my house; yet, being alone with Jacob made me giddy, nervous, and act out of my norm.
“Would it be better if we try this another day?” he asked softly. I shook my head and looked up at him.
Wrong move. Definitely the wrong move. My eyes were locked on his. The world around us seemed to freeze. All I saw in that moment was him. Doctor Jacob Holiday.
Minutes seemed to tick by with us just looking into each other’s eyes. Neither of us moved. Even our breathing seemed slowed by the moment.
The way he was looking at me made me melt in his arms. His look was sweet, yet passionate. He was looking at me as though I was the only woman in the world.
“Love?” he whispered.
“Hmm?” My whisper was as faint as it could get without being mute.
“If we don’t sit back in our seats, I’m going to kiss you.”
Butterflies. Millions of butterflies seemed uncaged in the pit of my stomach. A warm sensation began to cover my body as anticipation of us kissing grew.
“Is it bad that I’d let you?” I asked.
“Not even a little bit.”
He angled his head slightly before leaning down and capturing my lips with his own. His lips were warm and soft. At first, he seemed as though he was going to end the kiss as a swift, gentle one. However, his hand came up behind my neck and his tongue slid between my lips.
Wantonly I parted my lips. My own tongue slid inside his mouth. He tasted of peppermint and coffee. A taste I could definitely get used to.
The kiss was slow and passionate. The kind of kiss you see on the Hallmark channel. The kind of kiss I always dreamed of sharing with a man. A man like Jacob.
Slowly, Jacob pulled away, ending the kiss. Our foreheads rested against each other’s.
My heart was still fluttering from our kiss.
CHAPTER FIVE
“Wow,” Jacob whispered breaking the silence between us.
“Mmhmm,” I breathed. “Definitely wow.”
Jacob cupped the side of my face with one of his hands. His other hand was wrapped around my waist. He stood tall and looked down at me.
“I promise, this isn’t the reason I came over,” he smiled bashfully. Color was rising in his cheeks. The tip of his fingers was playing with the edge of my shirt.
“It’s okay.”
“I really did come over here to check up on you and have that coffee with you,” he whispered.
“Really, it’s okay.”
Everything inside me told me he was telling the truth. It wasn’t like me to trust without someone earning it, but Jacob gave me a feeling I couldn’t describe. Somehow, I just knew he wasn’t like other men.
“Well, I still want to get to know you.” He pulled out my chair and I took a seat, and then he took his seat.
“What do you want to know?” I asked before taking a sip of coffee.
“Hmm…” he chuckled. “How long have you lived here?”
“For almost, seven years. I moved here after I graduated college.”
“What’s your degree in?” He took a sip of his coffee but watched me over the brim of the cup.
“Dentistry.”
“You’re a dentist?” He seemed beyond shocked, which made me laugh.
“Why do you say it like that?”
“I’ve never had a dentist look like you.” He set his cup down.
“Um...thanks?” I wasn’t sure how to take his comment.
In the past, my patients had commented on my looks. I guess being a blonde haired, blue eyed dentist was outside the norm. When I moved to this city and opened my practice, I was surprised by the number of male patients. It wasn’t until I heard a teenaged boy call me a smoking hot dentist that I realized why so many men were my patients.
“Sorry, I’m not trying to be a typical man,” Jacob sighed. “It’s just that you’re extremely pretty and all my dentists have been old dudes.”
That got a laugh out of me. My first boss, after graduating, was a super old guy. Mr. Breck. I’ll never forget that man. He was hard on me because I was a newbie; however, he taught me so much that the school hadn’t. I made it a point to send him a Christmas card and a birthday card ever year.
“Thanks,” I chuckled. “What made you become a doctor?”
“My parents.”
Judging by the tone in his voice, his parents and him becoming a doctor was a sore subject.
“Sorry. I didn’t mean to pry,” I offered. He shook his head and smiled.
“No. You’re fine.” He took a deep breath. “I grew up in foster care.”
Two simple words sent my heart shattering into a million pieces. Foster care. I couldn’t imagine what he and thousands of other children had to go through growing up without their parents. I was fortunate to come from a tight-knit family.
“I’m sorry.”
“It’s okay,” he gave me a forced smile which made my heart hurt even more. “I chose to be a doctor so that I could rub it in their faces that I was better off without them.”
“Being a doctor is quite an accomplishment,” I smiled.
The topic was weighing him down. His entire body language shifted from confident and happy to self-conscious and… sad? I wasn’t sure if it was sad or disappointed. I just knew that I wanted to cheer him up.
“When did you move to town?” I asked a little too cheerful and instantly regretted opening my mouth. “Sorry,” I sighed. “I was trying to change the subject without being too obvious… epic fail for Love.”
“You’re fine,” he smiled then reached across the table and held my hand. “I appreciate the attempt.”
My eyes were glued to his large, warm hand covering mine. His thumb was stroking across the top of my hand. I brought my gaze up to him. He was smiling.
“You don’t have to feel sorry for me, Love,” he said. “I learned to put it all behind me. The no birthday celebrations. The crappy holidays. No one being there for me as I walked across the high school and college graduation stages. All of it made me the man I am today.”
“Doesn’t make it right though,” I whispered. “Does that mean you don’t have any holiday plans?”
“Not a one. I don’t celebrate holidays.”
“What?” I gasped. He shook his head and laughed. “You have to celebrate them! It’s, like, mandatory to do so if you live in this city.”
“So, I’ve heard.” He continued stroking the top of my hand. I was slowly melting in his hands. The way he was looking at me. His warm soft caress. I was a goner.
“You just haven’t celebrated the holidays with the right person... like me.”
The words left my mouth so fast that I didn’t have a fighting chance of stopping them. Jacob and I had just met. Why was I offering to celebrate the holiday with him? I was making myself out to be one of those women.
“Oh yeah?” He laughed but I’m sure it was a How the hell do I get out of here without her going crazy on me? laugh.
“Sorry. I just really don’t like people being alone during the holidays. And, you sound like you haven’t had a good holiday so I just —” I took a deep breath and shook my head. I was rambling like an idiot. “Sorry. I’m rambling.”
“Relax, Love,” Jacob smiled. “Holidays just aren’t my thing.”
Bummer. Rejection.
“What made you get into the field of family medicine and not pediatrics?” It was taking everything in me not to bolt out of the room and lock myself in my bedroom.
Jacob looked at me as though he was searching for the right words or maybe he was trying to read my mind. I hoped he was just going to ignore the previous conversation and move onto the next conversation.
“Honestly, I don’t know,” he smiled. “It just sort of happened. Then I realized I liked it and I’ve been working in the field for the past ten years or so.”
“Ten years?” He didn’t look a day over thirty-five.
“Yes, I know. I’m old,” he chuckled.
Old? Not even close. He was more like a damn fine aged wine.
“I don’t see you as old. Not even close.”
“Well, that’s good. I guess I can relax about my age being a factor.”
“A factor?” I asked cocking one of my eyebrows.
“In asking you out on an official date.”
CHAPTER SIX
“Official date,” I asked trying to keep my breathing under wraps.
He was already at my house for coffee. Wasn’t that an official date?
“Yes. I’d like to take you out to dinner and a movie once you’re feeling better.” With his free hand, he rubbed the back of his neck. “I mean, if you wanted to. Not trying to be bossy or anything. I know that you —”
“I’d love to, Jacob,” I interrupted.
“Really?”
“Mmhmm.”
“Great,” he smiled. “Now, I can breathe.” We both chuckled softly before taking a sip of coffee.
“Were you that nervous?” My curiosity was piqued or maybe my ego wanted to be stroked.
“Nervous is an understatement,” he laughed. “I thought I was going to have a heart attack.”
“Good thing you didn’t since I'm a dentist and you’re the doctor,” I teased, although I would be more than willing to practice mouth-to-mouth on him.
“Mouth-to-mouth, eh?” he asked.
“Oh. No. I didn’t?” He smirked and nodded at my question.
This is the part where I run out of the room, lock myself in my bedroom, and hope he lets himself out. I placed my head on the table and groaned.
“Going to hide from me now?” Jacob mused.
“Yep. That’s the plan,” I sighed.
“Relax,” he paused. “You can practice mouth-to-mouth on me anytime you’d like.” He gave me a playful smile and brought my cheerful mood back to life.
"Thanks." It was hard not to smile at him. The man had a way of molding me in his hands.
With him around, I couldn't imagine ever being in a bad mood. His personality wouldn't allow that to happen.
"What are you thinking about, Love?"
I did it again, I growled at myself internally.
"Honestly, I was just thinking how nice it is to be around someone like you." The words barely left my mouth and I was already chewing nervously on my bottom lip.
"I enjoy your company, too." He chuckled softly and shook his head. My eyebrow rose out of both curiosity and habit. "Sorry. I was just thinking about yesterday's turn of events."
I sat on the edge of my chair waiting for him to tell me about the turn of events he was thinking about. However, he just chuckled a bit more then took a sip of his coffee.
"And…," I prompted, making him laugh.
"Curious about the turn of events that happened to me yesterday?"
"Just a little," I laughed holding up two fingers gesturing a little.
"It's hard to say no to you, when you give me that innocent look," he smiled. "Since you're curious… just a little bit, I will tell you."
Jacob told me about how his yesterday was almost as crappy as mine. Most of his patients had been extremely grumpy or severe hypochondriacs. He’d spent an hour trying to explain to a woman that she didn't have the measles and that it was just acne. Another hour was spent on the phone arguing with an insurance company. Somewhere in the afternoon, he’d spilled coffee all over him when the bottom of the cup gave out.
"You were like a fallen angel." Jacob flapped his arms like they were wings then laughed. "Literally. I've never ran so fast across the street before."
"Could have left me there for someone else so help me or was it your doctor duty?" I was teasing but he wasn't laughing. I looked up from my cup at him. His cheeks were red.
"So… about that…" He rubbed the back of his neck.
"Go on, Doctor Holiday."
He rolled his eyes and smiled.
"Okay, Love."
I loved the way my name rolled off his tongue. Growing up I had hated my name. It wasn't until my college years that I accepted my name being weird.