“It’s one of my favorites too.”
I needed to have it. “How much?”
He walked to the painting and checked the price tag. “Seven-hundred.”
Way out of my price range. “Oh.”
“This artist is very famous here in San Diego. But her work is worth every penny.”
“It really is.” I couldn’t stop staring at it.
A young woman appeared beside me. “You like it?”
I had no idea who she was. “It’s fantastic.”
“Thank you.” She smiled and a blush overcame her cheeks.
I cocked an eyebrow.
Rydell cleared his throat. “This is Livia, the artist.”
I turned back to her, surprised. She was so young but so talented. “You’re amazing,” I blurted.
“Thank you again.”
And she was humble. “But I can’t take all the credit. My boyfriend inspired this piece.”
“You two love each other very much,” I blurted.
She studied my face. “Are you an artist?”
I held up my portfolio. “A photographer. I’m hoping to sell my work in this gallery.”
“Can I see?” she asked excitedly.
“Sure.” I handed it over.
Rydell came beside her and they looked at it together.
They said nothing while they examined each piece. Rydell rubbed his chin while he looked over her shoulder. Livia didn’t blink every time she looked at a picture. Her eyes roamed to every corner.
Now I was really nervous.
“These are amazing,” Livia said. “They remind me of my own pieces.”
Wow. That was a compliment.
“I’m an awe too,” Rydell added. “I think it’s safe to say we’d love to feature your work here.”
What? Seriously? “Really?” I couldn’t hide my surprise.
“Yes.” Rydell smiled at me. “I don’t accept new artists very often, but I want these. I know people will buy them.”
My cheeks were starting to turn red.
Livia smiled at me. “Welcome to the family.”
CHAPTER SEVEN
Ash
I knew I had a new neighbor, but I had no idea it was her.
The hottest girl in the damn world.
I made such an idiot out of myself last time we spoke. She probably loathed me and thought I was a creep that had no game. Now I had to see her every day. I might run into her on Sundays when I went outside to grab the paper. We might check our mail at the same time.
I was doomed.
I had my clinical shift in the afternoon, so I decided to do my laundry in the morning. I usually got too distracted during the day, and a week would pass without getting it done. But I was out of gym clothes and underwear, so something needed to be cleaned.
I went down to the laundry room then opened the washer. There were delicates inside—woman’s delicates. A lacy black bra and a few thongs were inside. They were dry and abandoned. I looked around and realized no one was around. Perhaps they forgot their things?
I shrugged then pulled everything out, putting it off to the side. I wrapped my hand in a towel so I wouldn’t have to touch anything directly.
Gross.
Then I threw my stuff inside.
“Excuse me?” A beautiful voice reached my ears. It made the hair stand up on the back of my neck. Without turning around, I knew who it was. Only one woman could sound like that. My body had become entranced to her presence and appearance. Even if I were blindfolded, I would know it was she. The smell of lavender was heavy.
I turned around. “Hey there.” Hey there? God, I sounded like a douchebag.
She didn’t look happy. “You can’t wait your turn?”
Huh? “Sorry?”
“My clothes. You just decided to move them and do your laundry instead? Sorry, doc. Other people have places to be too. Maybe we don’t save lives, but we’re still important.”
I was pretty sure she hated me. “I…I didn’t know they were yours.”
She put her hands on her hips. “Regardless of who they belong to, you were still rude.”
“I didn’t know if the owner was coming back.”
She held up her laundry soap. “I just ran back to pick up this. I was gone less than a minute.”
Her attitude was starting to get on my nerves. “I’m sorry. I did what any other person would do.”
“Not me.” She walked over to a different machine and put her laundry soap on it. “I would have just used the other machine.”
“It’s out of order,” I snapped.
“No, it isn’t,” she hissed. She threw her clothes inside then started it. “See?”
It wasn’t working last time I was down here. “I didn’t know, geez.”
“Looks like someone cheated on their MCAT…”
I had a very short fuse and it was hard for me to hold my tongue. I said whatever came to mind and didn’t hold back. And I couldn’t keep my attitude in check with her. “Are you on your period or something?”
She turned to me, her eyes wide. “I just don’t like jerks.”
“Jerks? When was I ever a jerk to you?” I clenched my fist while I stared her down.
She started to mimic me. “Oh, I’m in medical school. Look in my wallet and see how much money I have. Oh, look at my flashy car. Okay, now that you’ve seen my resume, can we cut the shit and fuck at my place?” She rolled her eyes. “Despicable.”
Okay, I did come off bad. “I politely asked if you wanted to hook up. So what? People do that.”
“I don’t.”
I had to admit I was disappointed. “Maybe you wouldn’t be such a bitch if you got laid once in a while.”
She flashed me a look of hatred.
Damn, why did I say that? “I take it back.” I said it before she could open her mouth and reciprocate. “I’m sorry.” I held up my hand. “Sorry.”
She growled then moved to the chair in the corner, taking out her laptop. She didn’t look at me again.
After I stared at her for a moment, I threw my stuff in the washer and started it.
Then it became awkward. She stared at her laptop and ignored me. I stood in the corner and played with my phone. When I got tired of standing, I sat in a chair, a foot between us. Curious to see what she was going, I peeked at her screen.
I expected her to be on Facebook or looking at her own selfies but she wasn’t. She using Photoshop to crop and enhance an image of the foothills. A silhouette was in the background, a woman’s silhouette. “Did you take that?” I blurted.
She flashed me that same look of annoyance. “Maybe you should mind your own business.”
“I was just curious, geez. It’s not like you work for the government.”
“How do you know I don’t?” she challenged.
“Then I really want to know what that picture is for.”
She turned her gaze back to the screen.
“If that is a picture taken by you, you are very talented.” Maybe a compliment would douse the heat between us.
She glanced at me from the corner of her eye. “Thank you.” There was no venom.
Phew. We made some progress. “When did you move in?”
“About a week ago.” She changed the color of the background slightly, and cropped a rock in the distance.
“You like it so far?”
“I did until I realized you were my neighbor.”
I smirked. “Well, I’m a nice guy. I’ll get your paper for you when you are on vacation and I’m pretty quiet.”
“No roommates?” she asked.
“I’m alone.” I wanted to make sure she knew that. “Are you alone?” Say yes.
“I don’t have any roommates.”
“Cool.” Cool? “So, what do you do for a living?”
“I’m a photographer.” She saved the image then exited out of the program.
I wasn’t expecting that. “Oh.”
“Oh?” She eyed me. “W
hy are you surprised?”
“I just assumed you would be the subject of the picture, not the person behind the lens.”
She cocked an eyebrow. “What?”
“I thought you were a model or something.”
She chuckled. “No, definitely not.”
Why was that funny? “How long have you been doing it?”
“For a few years. I do free lance stuff but I’m trying to get better gigs.”
“Judging that picture, I’m sure you’ll go far.” I wasn’t feeding her a line.
“Thanks…”
I wanted our conversation to keep going. “My sister is an artist.”
“Really?” She seemed interested. “What does she do? Paint? Sculpt?”
“She’s a painter. And she’s very good.”
“I guess you’re the analytical one of the family.”
I shrugged. “She’s way smarter than I am. She just applies it in a different way.”
She looked at me again. “You’re fond of her?”
“I hate her but I love her. You wouldn’t understand my meaning unless you had a sibling.”
“I do. I have a younger sister.”
That must have been her friend at the bar. “Then you do.” I leaned back in the chair and crossed my foot at my knee.
“A little too well.” She laughed lightly.
Silence ensued again. Talking to her was nice. Most of the time I was annoyed with girls. They talked too much and said things I didn’t care about. I had to pretend I was listening most of the time. But Alaska seemed cool.
She was wearing yoga pants and a yellow t-shirt. Her legs looked nice but I hadn’t gotten a look at her ass yet. I’m sure it looked fucking wonderful. Being near her made me think dirty thoughts. I wanted to pin her to my bed and pound her pussy hard and fast. I was a good-looking guy. She must be attracted to me too. “The laundry is going to take awhile…”
She didn’t pick up on my hint.
“We could go to my place and pass the time…”
She looked me straight in the eye. “Doing what?”
I had a feeling she already knew. I sat up and leaned toward her, giving her my best smolder. “Whatever you want, baby.”
She cringed. “You’re gross.”
What…?
“Why do you do that?
“Do what?”
“We were having a great conversation and then you tried to have sex with me. I made it pretty clear I’m not a one-night stand kind of girl. And you ask in such a sleazy way. I’m sure you get girls to do it all the time, but call me old-fashioned or call me classy, but that’s not how I roll.”
She should have just slapped me in the face. It would have hurt less.
She rolled her eyes then turned her attention back to her computer.
That blew up in my face. I stayed silent while I waited for my laundry. She didn’t try to make conversation and neither did I. My pride was wounded and now I was in a bad mood. I could score any girl that I wanted, but then when a really spectacular girl came along, I couldn’t have her. It wasn’t fair.
When her laundry was finally done, she pulled it out of the dryer, giving me a gorgeous view of her ass.
I shoved my fist in my mouth because it looked so nice.
She folded her laundry, keeping her back to me.
I let myself fantasize about her. Her legs were thin and toned, and she had a tiny waist. Her shoulders were slim and her hair reached down her back.
When she finished, she didn’t turn around. “Are you done staring at my ass?”
Fuck, how did she know that?
I looked up and noticed the mirror on the wall. The angle was perfect for her to see my face on the other side of the room.
Just shoot me.
She grabbed her basket and walked out.
Yeah…she hated me.
It was another night at the hospital. It wouldn’t be so bad if I were getting paid. Doing this for free wasn’t exactly fulfilling. I checked my patient’s lab work before I walked inside. Her blood thinners weren’t helping. Heparin didn’t work and her D-dimer was still through the roof.
Surgery was looking like a greater possibility.
I avoided such drastic measures as much as possible. No matter how simple a procedure was, it was still surgery, and the side effects were usually worse than the procedure itself. She could get an infection or worse. In terms of medicine, I was a conservative. I always postponed serious decisions as long as possible, hoping something else would come up.
I walked inside and began my work.
She didn’t look happy to see me. She glanced at me then ignored me.
“Hello, Mrs. Patelo.” I said it right this time.
Her eyes turned to me. “Wow. You finally remembered.”
I smiled. “Or did you prefer the other name?”
“What do you think?” she challenged.
I got to work and took care of my patient. When I sat on my stool at the foot of the bed, I checked the swelling of her leg. It was still greater than I wanted it to be. In my line of sight, I noticed the book on her nightstand. It was untouched.
I pulled her gown back down and made my notes. Then I stood up. “Is there anything you need before I leave?”
Here it comes.
She stared at the soap opera on the TV. The volume wasn’t working so she was watching the subtitles. “No.”
No? She wasn’t going to bug me?
“Bye, Dr. James.”
Okay. That was too easy.
She seemed down today. “Mrs. Patelo, is there something on your mind?”
She shrugged. “I’m stuck in the hospital. That’s about it.”
I flipped through her chart quickly. “Where’s Mr. Patelo?”
“He died a few years ago.” She said it without sadness, just calm acceptance.
“Oh. Your children?”
She was quiet for a while. “I don’t have any children.”
“I thought you said you have a granddaughter?”
“I do. Actually, I have two. But their parents are worthless and horrible people. I want nothing to do with them, and they better not come near my grandbabies.” She said it calmly, without any rage.
I didn’t realize she was so lonely. I sat back down on the stool. Silence stretched for a while as I sat beside her. The pity rose in my heart, something I hadn’t felt in a long time.
Then I grabbed the book on her nightstand. “Can I read to you?”
For the first time, she smiled at me. “I would love that.”
I examined the cover. “Harry Potter?”
“It’s one of my favorite books.”
“I’ve never read it.”
“Now you will.”
I smiled then opened the book. Then I began to read.
She stared at my face while I read through the pages. The reading level was low, so it was easy to get through. I felt awkward at first but it became more natural as time went by.
When I got a page from my supervising physician, I shut the book. “I have to go.”
“Okay. Thank you for reading to me, Dr. James.”
I smiled. “No problem.”
She kept staring at me. “I don’t believe the façade you put on. You act like you don’t care about anyone but yourself but I know it isn’t true. Deep down inside, you’re a sweetheart.”
This woman was more observant than I gave her credit for. “Don’t tell anyone.” I gave her a wink.
“Why don’t you want anyone to know?” Her voice became serious.
I shrugged, not responding.
“Come on. You can tell me, dear.”
I didn’t know this lady very well, but I felt strangely comfortable around her. She was honest and blunt but she was also gentle and loving, very maternal. Plus, she didn’t know who I was, and after her visit was over, I’d never see her again. “I guess I don’t want anyone to like me.”
She examined my face, watching every time I blinked and eve
ry time I breathed. “Why?”
“Because if they like me, they’ll get close to me.”
“And what’s bad about that?”
“Because if you care about someone, they can hurt you.” It was something I knew too well. “If you’re never close with anyone, you’ll be safe.”
“Who hurt you?”
Why was I telling this lady this? “My sister…something horrible happened to her. I was always withdrawn before but now I want everyone to stay away from me. My heart has already been broken. I couldn’t bare it if it broke again.”
She processed my words for a moment. “Your sister passed away?”
“No. Worse.”
“What?” she asked gently.
I hated saying the words. It made me sick. My sister was happy with Scotty. She didn’t seem haunted by her past, but it still killed me inside. I should have protected her. I was at that party. If I wasn’t busy being a jackass, I could have protected her. But I didn’t. “She was raped.”
Sadness came into her eyes. Then she reached out and grabbed my hand. “I’m so sorry, dear.” She seemed genuine. Her eyes squinted and her lip quivered.
“Thanks…I love her a lot. And I feel responsible for not protecting her.”
“Sometimes things are out of our control.”
I regretted a lot of things afterwards. I was a dick to her, constantly putting her down for becoming so reclusive to the world. Instead of helping her get back on her feet, I pushed her down. Even if I didn’t know why she was behaving that way, I should have been more sensitive. “She’s better now but…it still gets under my skin. I have nightmares about it.”
She rubbed my knuckles. “Your pain will pass in time.”
I had a feeling it wouldn’t.
My pager went off again. “Sorry, I have to go.”
“It’s okay,” she said. “Until our next meeting.”
“Yeah…”
CHAPTER EIGHT
Alaska
When I got a call from Livia, I didn’t know what to expect. All she said was she wanted to meet me. She didn’t explain why. What could a renowned artist have to say to me? We dealt with different mediums, but she was still a much better artist than I was. She captured images from her mind, not from reality. And that was an accomplishment in itself.
She walked into the coffee shop, wearing a purple sundress. I knew it was she the moment she stepped through the door. All the guys turned their heads, looking at her legs. Even I was looking.
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