“Lymphocyte.”
“Easy peasy. It’s a type of leukocyte. Responsible for immune reactions. There are two types—B cells and T cells.”
Josh flipped the card over. “Yep. You got it. Next—Suboxone. Is that how it’s pronounced?”
“Yes. Suboxone is a schedule-three drug. Generic name is buprenorphine and it’s used to treat opiate addiction.”
“Correct. Cranial nerves.”
“Oh, shoot. Um. Hold on.”
Josh smiled at her. She’d scrunched down in a tight ball in her chair, her chin resting on her knees, arms wrapped around her legs with the coffee cup clenched in her hands. She squished up her face. “On old Olympus towering top a Finn and German viewed some hops.”
“Excuse me?”
“Shh! Olfactory, optic, oculomotor...towering top a...trochlear, trigeminal, abducens...Finn and German...facial, auditory, glossopharyngeal, um...viewed some hops...vagus, spinal accessory and hypoglossal. Right? Right?”
Josh looked up from where he was following on the back of the card. “Exactly, Micks. Why’re you worried about this? You got it down.”
“Because I can control this. I’m staring at nursing school like this huge unknown. It’s famous for weeding out the weak and those who don’t belong. I don’t know how I’ll do in the program. So instead of freaking myself out about that, I study.”
“Makes sense. But I think you’re going to do just fine in school.”
“Oh? And why do you think this?”
He held up the cards. “First of all, you’re amazingly smart. I can’t even pronounce most of this stuff and you know all about it. Second, you are incredibly compassionate. I’ve seen it. I’ve seen that caretaker aspect of your personality come out just a naturally as you breathe. Third, you are one of the most obstinately stubborn people I’ve ever met. If you want to be a nurse, you are going to do it.”
She loosened from her scrunch. “I am not stubborn. Nor obstinate.”
He shook his head. “Hey, I see you’re pushing a baby back and forth in ninety-nine-degree weather moving bags and boxes on a stroller. Can I help you? No.”
“I did let you help me.”
“Eventually.”
There was a lull as they looked into each other’s eyes. Josh felt his heart rate kick up a notch. She had her hair twisted up in a bun, held in place by crisscrossing pencils. The walking shorts had been replaced by bright blue yoga pants and a white tank top with a picture of Betty Boop on the front. Her cheeks went pink but she didn’t look away.
“I lied,” she whispered. Her cheeks went from pink to red.
He kept eye contact. “About what?”
“Why I can’t sleep.”
Her breath was coming faster and he could see the cup shaking in her trembling hands. “Oh?” Oh? Get your ass out of this chair and kiss her. That’s what she wants. He knew it because he could feel it. “Micks...”
“Are you going to make me say it, Josh?”
She uncurled from the chair and set down the cup. She stood and he sprang to his feet, unsure exactly what she had in mind. “No. I think I know what you’re saying. I’m just not convinced it’s a good idea.”
She stepped closer. The mad blush spreading across her cheeks and chest made him believe she’d never been this bold before. “Why not?”
“Why not? A billion reasons, Micks. I’m your boss.”
“Only for a few more weeks.”
“I’m not in the market for a relationship right now.”
She took another step, pressing a hand against his runaway heartbeat. He meant to step back, but instead, pressed his hand over hers.
“I’m not looking for a relationship, either.”
His fingers tightened around her hand. “What are you looking for?”
As light as a feather, her free hand traced up his arm, caressing the curve of his biceps before moving to his chest. “I think you know, Josh. I think you want it, too.”
He caught her hand and clasped both of hers between his. “To be one-hundred-percent clear here. You want to just have sex?”
“One night. Just once. We have this attraction, Josh. Don’t lie, I know you feel it. Why can’t we just...do it?”
She blushed again and he laughed. “Do it?”
She pulled her hands out from between his and clapped them over her face. “I am so bad at this.”
“No, you aren’t.”
“Yes, I am. I was getting the wine open. I was going to change into something way sexier than this and call you and make something up. We were going to have a glass of wine and talk and at some point you’d lean over and kiss me and...”
“That was the plan, huh?”
She dropped her hands but didn’t look up at him. “Yeah. Dumb, huh?”
He put his hands on her shoulders. “Mickie.”
She looked up at him and he kissed her. A sweet, tender brief kiss. His plan was to give her this chaste kiss, tell her she was making a tempting offer, but he just couldn’t. But she slid her hands up under his shirt, across his stomach and up to his chest. The heat of her hands on his skin was nearly unbearable. His hands lifted and pulled the pencils from her hair, sending the waves of silk tumbling over his hands.
His mouth found hers again. This time hot and hard and full of want. Her body pressed against his, tiny and hot, soft and yielding. She turned her head, trailing kisses across his cheek to his ear. “I have protection,” she whispered.
As he lifted her into his arms, she wrapped her legs around his waist and kissed him again. Protection. Yeah. Good. But what was going to protect his heart? Because this girl was making him want more than her body.
* * *
MICKIE ROLLED OVER on her back and tried to quiet her breathing. She listened, worried Ian might have woken up because she’d been, well, rather loud. Since this was a one-time deal, she’d made the most of it. And Josh had been...well, perfection. She turned back on her side and looked down on him. Yeah, perfection.
Hands tucked behind his head, he was laid out like a buffet just for her. The muscles of his abdomen jumped as she lightly traced a finger around the outlines of his six-pack. “You are so beautiful,” she said.
“Men aren’t beautiful.”
“But you are. Look at you.” She ran her hand up his abdomen, across the thick thatch of hair across his chest, over a muscled shoulder. A jagged scar broke the smoothness of his skin at the top of his bicep. “How’d you get this?”
“Bar fight.”
“No, you didn’t!”
“Yes, I did. I was eighteen. Playing pool in a bar. Some guys started a fight. Turned into a bit of a brawl.”
“What was it? Like a knife? Broken beer bottle?”
“No. I got pushed against the cue rack. Caught it on a metal bracket.”
“Hmmph. I’d make up something more exciting if I were you.”
“What about you?”
“What about me?”
He rolled to his side, facing her. His hand slipped around her waist and up her side. His fingertip filled the round scar. “You have two of these. One on each side. Chest tube scars would be my guess.”
She froze. She’d trained herself not to see the scars. So well she hadn’t even thought about them. “Car accident. Long time ago.”
“Must have been a very bad accident.”
“Broke a bunch of ribs, collapsed a lung. I don’t like to talk about it.”
She sat up and he caught her lightly by the elbow. “Where do you think you’re going?”
“To check on Ian and get some water.”
“Hurry back. I’m not quite done with you yet.”
Heat flooded her. “Well,” she said, “I’m not all that thirsty.” If once was all she was go
ing to get, she was going to make it last as long as possible.
CHAPTER SEVENTEEN
JOSH CAME AWAKE INSTANTLY, feeling something was not right. He opened his eyes and had a moment of complete disorientation until the memories of last night hit him. Mickie. It was her makeshift bed on the floor but he was alone in it now. The light filtering through the window felt like early morning. He sat up, rubbing at his face. Just once, she’d said. Just once, he’d agreed. They’d both taken everything they needed from each other during the night. And you want more.
The clink of dishes caught his attention. He could hear Mickie’s voice, sweet and sunny. Damn. The kid. He was out there. Awake. Great, Josh. What are you going to do? Go walking out there in front of the kid? He eyed the window. Laughed. No, he couldn’t slip out on her like that. But he didn’t want Ian to see him. Kid’s too young to understand. He got up and began to retrieve his scattered clothes. If they were in the kitchen, he could slip out the front door. He dressed and cautiously opened the bedroom door.
“Hold on, baby man. Let me get your book.”
Mickie appeared in the hallway. “Hey,” he whispered. “I didn’t want...”
She slipped her arms around his neck and went up on tiptoes to kiss his cheek. “Thank you. Last night was the most amazing time of my life. Sneak out the front door.”
He squeezed her in a brief, tight hug. “Better than amazing.”
Back in his own house, he hesitated before getting in the shower. He could still smell her on him. Could still feel the silk of her hair and the heat of her skin on his fingertips. Get it together, man. It was a one-night stand. That’s all she wanted. And you gave her a great one. Don’t be thinking anything else. He jerked back the shower curtain and got in, scrubbing vigorously as if that would help remove her from his mind.
A couple hours of paperwork was usually enough to take his mind off anything. Not today. He leaned back in the desk chair and stared up at the ceiling. Mickie had somehow gotten under his skin. In the ten years since that night he’d left Ruby, he had never once had any problem drawing that line. What he’d done with Mickie last night, he’d done before. Mutually agreed-upon, no-strings-attached sex. Sometimes a single night, sometimes a weekend. But he’d always walked away with not a twinge of feeling other than respect and gratitude.
But Mickie. The memory of her—scrunched up in the chair, coffee mug full of wine, two pencils holding her hair in a tight bun—rose in his mind. He couldn’t figure her out. She seemed so together and strong. But at times, she’d let the wall down and he could see how alone and frightened she was. But still, she kept going. Refused help. Was determined to make it on her own despite her fears. It was okay to respect that. It was not okay to want to fix that.
He shut down his laptop and leaned back in the chair. You can’t even fix yourself. How’re you going to fix her problems? The feeling still haunted him. Waking up with the sunlight flooding the room, hearing the sound of her voice as she moved around the kitchen making breakfast. It sounded like a home. Family. He jerked up out of the chair and ran a hand through his hair. Heart hammering, he shook his head. No. He had to get out of here. Right now.
Minutes later, he cranked up the motorcycle, heading out to check on the progress of the new guys and to see new clients.
* * *
MICKIE HEARD JOSH leaving and a small frown creased her forehead at the sound of the motorcycle speeding away. Too fast. He always wears a helmet. “Yeah, like a helmet is going to help when you hit a car going ninety miles an hour,” she said out loud.
“Go?”
“No, baby. We’re not going anywhere. Your mommy is going crazy.”
“Kazy?”
“Yep.”
While Ian finished his breakfast, she cleaned up the kitchen. Memories of the night before kept surfacing. Dear Lord, she’d seduced a man. Josh. She’d seduced Josh. A smile crossed her lips. And damn if it hadn’t been worth it. Maybe. Just maybe they could renegotiate on that just once deal. No. She shook her head. No more. You got want you wanted. Leave it at that. He doesn’t want anything more and neither do you.
There was a note taped to her front door. She stopped and stared. Her initial spasm of fear dissipated when she recognized Josh’s handwriting.
Mickie: I’ve got the phone. Going to do some field work today.
Take the day off.
Josh.
Her face burned as she crumpled the note in her fist. He didn’t even want to look at her. Stuffing the note in her purse, she felt the stirrings of something that was suspiciously close to relief. Maybe she should have listened to him. The sex had been better than she’d ever expected. But now they were going to be all awkward and weird. She let out a sigh.
“Maybe we should go, Ian. Want to go to the playground?”
This was better. Out in the fresh air, pushing Ian in his stroller down a shady street to the park. Not a thought of Josh in her... Yeah, right. She pulled her phone out.
“Hey, Tee. What’s up?”
“Me. Now. What are you calling me this early for?”
“It’s after nine.”
“I worked a night shift last night. Girl, I need to sleep.”
“Sorry. I needed someone to talk to. Besides Ian. His conversational skills aren’t the best.”
“Something wrong?”
“No.”
“Okay. I’m going back to sleep now. Bye.”
The call ended. Mickie sighed. Maybe there would be some other moms at the park and one of them would be chatty. Because she seriously needed a distraction. When the phone rang, she tapped it.
“That was really rude, Tee.”
Silence. She looked at the number. Icy fear shot through her limbs. Unknown. She ended the call. Crap. Never answer an unknown call. All thoughts of Josh and his talents were immediately extinguished as the paranoia crept back. She glanced over her shoulder. Nothing but a shady street. She slowed her steps. Maybe they should just go back home. Forget the park today. She felt exposed and helpless.
“Swing!” Ian called out. His little hands waved in the air.
She squared her shoulders. “I see the swings, baby.”
They were going to the park. She was going to push Ian in the swings and let him play. She was not going to be afraid. She was not going to hide behind locked doors and closed curtains. The phone rang again and she flinched. Unknown number. The same one that had just called. She sent it to voice mail.
“Swing!” Ian’s voice contained a bit of a whine this time.
“Okay, baby man. We’re going.”
Heart hammering, legs wobbly, she pushed on to the park.
* * *
SHE HADN’T KNOWN she was waiting until she heard the sound of Josh’s motorcycle pull up the driveway and a knot of tension between her shoulders loosened. It was late and Ian had long gone to bed. She looked down at the card in her hands. NSAID. Nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs. She flipped over the card. Heard the thump as Josh shut the door of the storage unit behind the duplex. Statins. A class of cholesterol lowering drugs that inhibit the enzyme... What the heck is it? HM something something-tase. She looked at the back. HMG-CoA reductase. Yeah, right. How’d you forget that one?
Her phone buzzed on the table. Stop it. Stop jumping every time it rings. The name flashing on her screen chased the fears away. Josh. Why was he calling from right next door?
“Hey,” she answered. “What’s up?”
“Nothing. Just wanted to check on you.”
“Check on me? Why?”
“Because I sort of ran out on you this morning.”
“Oh! Oh. No. I’m fine. You didn’t run out. I thought it would be better, I mean...less complicated if Ian didn’t...”
“Yeah, yeah. That’s what I thought, too.”
There was a long pause. “Damn, Micks, I’m sorry. That wasn’t it. I was just trying to get my head straight. You make me think things.”
“What kind of things?”
“Things I can’t have.”
She scrunched up in a tight ball in the chair, pressing the phone close to her ear. She wanted to pursue his meaning, but he had that sad, defeated tone of voice that she’d pried into once before and got barked at for her troubles. She didn’t want to make him mad right now. She wanted... Him. Again. “Thank you for last night. It was pretty marvelous.”
“It wasn’t bad, was it?”
She laughed, happy to hear the snark in his voice. Much better than that sadness. “Smart-ass. You know how good it was.”
“So what are you doing now?”
“Studying.”
“Of course you are. How stupid of me to ask.”
“Why?” Her heart began to pound as the word fluttered out. Was he thinking what she was thinking? The sensations of the previous night washed over her. His hands and mouth... “Did you want to come over?”
“Yes, I want to. No, I don’t think I should.”
“Oh.”
“Do you want me to?”
“Yes, I want you to. No, I don’t think we should.”
He laughed and she smiled at the warmth of it.
“So we’ll stick to our original one-time deal?”
“We should.”
“Yeah. We should.”
“O-r-r-r,” she said, drawing the word out. “You could help me study.”
“Well. That would be a completely acceptable reason to come over. To help you study.”
“Yes. Admirable, in fact. Such a great friend.”
“What will we be studying?”
“Anatomy.”
The word was barely out of her mouth when there was a tap at her front door. “Is that you?”
“Put your phone down and open the door.”
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