Smolder

by Graylin Fox

  “Now you have to share. When you catch your breath.” I waited.

  “That woman is a little big," she said.

  “No, that mother is a lot big, Lee. Easily two hundred pounds, if not pushing two hundred and fifty.” I think I knew what tickled her. “And yes, she was dressed up, head to toe, in fluorescent orange.” The woman had on a large shirt that clung to every inch of her and the thin see-through leggings also hid nothing.

  Lee laughed again. “She kept talking to me. A very nice lady and genuinely concerned for her daughter, but all I could think of was oranges."

  “Now you have a craving?” I asked.

  She nodded as she started laughing again. “Good night, Dr. Quinn. Let's see what tomorrow brings.”

  “Good night, Lee.” I let her out locking the door behind her.

  During the afternoon, I'd received some emails from the hospital staff. My distance from the political games at the hospital gave me a strange perspective. I had to stay objective to do my job, but some of the staff took my kindness as an open invitation to give me the latest gossip of the day. It didn't take long before I knew which doctors were cheating on their wives, the residents who were targeted by the nursing students for marriage, and the folks I needed to speak with ’cause “they were just not right.” Bless their hearts.

  On the way home, I stopped by a local grocery store and got a 'Thank You' cake for Josh. It was a small one so I wouldn't be tempted, and he could finish it before this weekend. He was out when I got home. I checked my phone, and I had a text message from him saying he was going to Atlanta until Sunday to see if he and his girlfriend could work it out. He’d notified Owen and asked him to come by and make sure I was okay.

  I changed into jeans and a T-shirt and headed to the backyard. The throwing knives he got were perfect and I threw for an hour. Back inside with the knives in a pouch in my bedside table, I put in a yoga DVD and stretched out.

  I realized I hadn't talked to my father since Josh got here, so I gave him a call. I knew Josh kept him up to date, but if had asked me how I was during the past week, I'm not sure I could have answered without crying.

  “It's about damn time. Were you going to wait and write on your tombstone?” he said.

  “I deserved that. I'm sorry.” There was no reason to argue. He was right.

  “So the jackass is in jail and can't get out?”

  “That's what they tell me. He was moved to solitary confinement two days ago, and is on twenty-four-hour surveillance. He can't sneeze without an audience.”

  There was silence on the other end.

  “I would have killed him if he hurt you,” he whispered.

  “I know, Dad. And Josh would have held him still so you could," I said.

  “I love you.”

  He sounded older since Mom died. Like a part of him had faded away.

  “I love you too.” I started to cry.

  “So, how's the new job? Anything interesting?”

  I tried to make light of it. “Not much, same old stuff. Serial killers and all.”

  “No, really. How is it?”

  “I love it. I have an amazing assistant, Lee. She is Welsh and more organized than Mom was. The job was open, and she asked for it before I got here. I introduced myself to the staff of the units, and I've spent some time in pediatrics.”

  “And the cop, and doctor?”

  I could see his smile in my mind's eye. “They are fine. The doctor took me to dinner and the symphony."

  “Fancy," he said.

  “Very. And the cop apologized for being jealous that I went out with the doctor.” I heard him yawn. “I'll let you go, Dad, and I promise to keep in touch.”

  We ended the call and I promised to call him if anything else happened. I went to my room and moved the alarm clock to the desk across the room before going to sleep.

  Chapter Eleven

  Mornings and I had a hate relationship. I wasn't good at waking up, and morning refused to start later to accommodate me. In a rush, I sped through my morning routine and headed to work. Lee had the coffee ready and a full consult schedule for the day. I took my coffee, walked into my office, and before I sat in my chair, the door closed behind me. I turned, and Dmitri stood less than a foot away with a single red rose in his hand.

  Okay, mornings. You win.

  “Hello beautiful.”

  He hugged me, and I heard the lock click on the door. He lifted my face to his. He started kissing my forehead, and dropped small, feathery kisses down my nose and on both cheeks before he moved to my lips.

  “I missed you this week," he said licking my lips before deepening the kiss.

  I answered by running my hands over his chest to his neck, and rubbing his earlobes with my fingers. He moaned, and he slid his tongue deeper. He wrapped his arm around my waist, and he turned my back to the wall. He pressed his body up against mine; I could hardly breathe, and still I wanted him closer. He pushed his hips into mine, and my knees felt weak as my desire for him grew. At that moment, if he had taken my clothes off, I would have made love to him right there.

  “I would like to see you this weekend,” he whispered in my ear between kisses.

  “You could have just asked,” I teased.

  “That’s what I'm doing now.” He reached down with his hands, found the waist of my shirt, and ran his fingers underneath to caress my back.

  His hands were soft and strong, and when he stopped short of removing my bra, I moved into him.

  “This weekend,” he said.

  Then he pulled away, unlocked the door, and left.

  “I feel used,” I said with a smile to his back.

  Lee arrived before I moved from the wall. “Well, it seems you have made an impression.”

  “If he doesn't follow through this weekend, I'm going to need the location of the nearest adult toy store.” I took the papers she held out and moved to my desk.

  “Just get a massaging showerhead like everyone else.” She winked and took the signed papers away.

  My mouth dropped open. I may have to get one of those anyway.

  The six consults for the day were easy, with no melodrama or threats; simply hospitalized patients who wanted someone to talk to about their illness and their life. I looked for Dmitri each time I went down a hallway, but never caught a glimpse of him. Lee decided we needed a treat for lunch, and she picked some barbecue from a local restaurant right down the street.

  When I got home, I called Dad. He said his golf game was off but so was Tiger's, so he called it even. Life was back to normal. Josh called at nine and told me his girlfriend cheated on him with the man who played his manager ringside. The affair went on for months before he came to visit me, and now she was pregnant with the other man's child. Josh wanted kids, and offered to stay and raise the child as his, but she told him it was best if he left.

  He planned to pack up the truck that night and drive the four hours to Savannah. He asked if he could store his things at the house while he found a place.

  “Of course you can. You can live here if you want.” I'd really enjoyed him being here when I got home each day.

  “Temporarily. You have a developing love life there, and I'm not going to get in the way.” He joked, but I could hear the pain in his voice. He loved easily and deeply.

  “They are grown men, Josh, with homes of their own. At least, Dmitri has his own house. I don't know about Owen. Besides, you let me worry about my love life. It's hopping.” I laughed.

  He thanked me and hung up the phone. Josh was so kind, all of his girlfriends except one broke his heart by cheating on him, or taking advantage of him. The only exception was Julie, his high school sweetheart with a father in the military who transferred to Hawaii their senior year. I was in junior high school then, and I wasn't sure he would ever get better. I fell asleep with memories of my very happy childhood.

  I woke up without the need for my alarm clock, for a bizarre change, and in a happy mood. A long hot show
er sounded wonderful and after yesterday's close encounter in my office, I made sure to do some personal landscaping that I'd let slide. Josh had come home while I slept, and he looked exhausted, with his hands wrapped around a coffee cup.

  “Sorry." It was all I could say.

  “I'm not up because of her. I had my suspicions before, but thought I was being paranoid based on my track record.” He paused. “I'm up because there was a teenage boy dressed all in black with a stocking cap on top of the side fence when I drove up.”

  “Shit," I said. “Did it show up on the cameras?”

  He nodded. “Yes. I called the lady cop twenty minutes ago. She’s on her way.”

  “We thought it was over.”

  “Wanted it to be over," he corrected me. “It could just be a kid playing a prank.”

  The lady cop knocked on the door, and Josh handled it. I didn't know or see anything, so she told me to get to work, and she would call me if she needed me asking that I keep this quiet.

  My schedule was light for the day, which gave me time to hand-score the tests from the other day and write up their reports. Each took me from three to four hours for scoring and the report. Lee brought lunch in from the cafeteria. I sent the completed reports to Lee, who would edit them, and give them back for corrections and signatures.

  As I stood to leave, Dmitri walked in the door. He had on a pair of snug blue jeans and a button-down shirt opened at the neck. Again, I wondered just how far south that dark hair went. He had a small plant in his hand.

  “Life for your office," he said and set it on the windowsill behind me.

  He was inches from me, and I could smell his musky cologne. I wanted to reach out and pull him to me, but I stood there and waited to see what he did.

  “A walk on the beach?” he asked.

  “I would love to," I answered.

  Josh hadn't called, so I assumed they found out the teenager was not connected to Travis, The Carver. I texted him, and told him I was going to the beach and didn't know when I'd be back.

  We took Dmitri’s truck. It was an old, beat-up pickup with rust and primer scattered all over the body. It was perfect.

  “My other car.” He opened the door and helped me in.

  It smelled like him, and I realized this must be what he drove most of the time. He got in and drove to Tybee Island. We parked in a lot just off the beach and walked hand-in-hand to the shore. It was beautiful and peaceful as we walked in comfortable silence along the water line. Kids and families dotted the beach with seagulls swooping down to steal food from tiny, unsuspecting hands.

  “I love the beach,” he said. “There is a peace here I can't find anywhere else.” He pulled me in front of him and kissed me. “And the romance factor helps.”

  I laughed. “Yes, it does.”

  “You listen to people all day long; I thought a quiet night at the beach would relax you.”

  He wrapped his arms around me and I leaned into his chest. “I needed this.”

  “There is more.”

  I looked up at him, and he had a huge grin on his face.

  We walked back to the truck and he uncovered a picnic basket. There was a spot between dunes, hidden by long grass, where he laid the blanket and motioned for me to sit down. One by one, he unpacked a bottle of wine, crackers, cheese wedges, and two small plastic containers of homemade lasagna. He put the crackers and cheese on a plate, and poured us each a glass of wine.

  “To new beginnings,” he said.

  “New beginnings,” I echoed.

  The wine was excellent, and we polished off the crackers and cheese before he opened the lasagna. It had stayed warm in the small pot and was delicious.

  “Where did you get this?” I asked between bites.

  “I made it.”

  He didn't look offended; he looked proud.

  “It's excellent.” I was impressed.

  A sexy surgeon who can take a walk on the beach and cook? I could hear my mother's voice in my head again. “Listen missy, this is a rare find. Hold on. Even when it gets rough, hold on.”

  I'm listening, Mom.

  We finished the lasagna, and he packed everything away except the wine. He told me to stay put, and took the basket back to the truck. Two seagulls landed nearby looking for scraps. They flew off as Dmitri returned.

  “Now,” he said as he sat down next to me. “I want to hold you and watch the sunset.”

  He shifted me so I sat between his legs, with his arms around my waist. I leaned back against his chest. We sat there for an hour while the sun set. My eyes felt heavy, and as hard as I fought, I nodded off. I don't know how long he let me sleep, but the beach was empty when I woke up.

  “I'm so sorry, Dmitri,” I apologized.

  “It’s more intimate to trust someone to hold you while you sleep than make love to you while you are awake.” He put his hand on the small of my back, pulled me to him, and wrapped his arm around me as we walked to the truck.

  “I think you're right,” I said.

  He helped me into the truck.

  “About what?” he asked.

  “About sleeping being more intimate than sex.”

  He leaned in and kissed me. “We aren't in any hurry.”

  On the drive back to my house, I realized I had butterflies. I reached over and held his hand first. This time, the kiss in my driveway was short.

  “I have my kids this weekend. They will be here in the morning and leave Sunday afternoon. Then I want to cook dinner for you at my place Sunday night.” He paused. “Does that sound good?”

  “It sounds wonderful,” I said.

  The front door wasn't locked, and I went to look for Josh. Frightened that something had happened to him, I ran through the house calling his name.

  He was outside in the pool swimming laps. He stopped when he saw me.

  “What?” He got out of the water.

  “The front door was unlocked," I answered. “I was afraid...”

  “I'm fine. I forgot to lock it when the police left. They are sure it was a local kid on the fence. There were some burglaries last week in another neighborhood, and they think the kids moved here last night. Two of your neighbors reported break ins last night.”

  “I never thought I would be grateful for thieves.”

  He threw his towel at me. “So what are the weekend plans?”

  “Dmitri has his kids this weekend, so he’s cooking me dinner Sunday night.” I felt myself blush.

  “You have a nice glow, El. He's a good man. I know, I asked around.”

  I threw the towel back at him. “He is a good guy.” I agreed. “And the lady cop?'

  “She was professional the entire time. Her eyebrow only raised a small amount when I told her I moved here. I need some time before I dive into anything else.”

  “Or anyone else,” I said.

  “Exactly. I'm exhausted. See you in the morning. We have any plans?”

  “Sleep in, lay out in the sun, take a nap, the usual,” I answered.

  He hugged me and went to the spare room at the front of the house.

  I found myself humming while I got ready for bed. I had it bad.

  Chapter Twelve

  I got up on Saturday morning to find Josh already gone. I changed into my bikini. The cooler was in the garage, so I pulled it inside and filled it. If I was going to be lazy, that would include not getting up for food or drinks. There was a small hot tub next to the pool, and I put it on high while I swam some laps and did water aerobics. I hated working out, but if I could fool my mind into pretending it was swimming, or self-defense practice, it helped.

  Steam came off the hot tub by the time I got in it. I turned on the jets and let myself fade away. Two hours later, I woke up relaxed and shriveled. The steam fogged up the glass pool enclosure around the hot tub. I turned the heat down, and when I looked at the glass, I started to shake in fear. Words were scrawled into the steam.

  “Don't testify against Travis or else.”


  And the capital 'E' written underneath it matched the carving on the inmate from the hospital.

  As I got out of the tub and went to my phone, I realized the writer had to be on the inside of the pool area to write that. My fingers shook as I dialed Owen's phone number. He didn't answer, so I hung up and decided to call the lady cop's number. Her card was stuck to the refrigerator but I found myself afraid to walk inside my house. What if the person who wrote this waited behind the door?

  I dialed 911. “This is Dr. Ellie Quinn. Someone broke into my home and left a threatening message in the steam over the hot tub while I was in it.”

  The officer on the other end calmed and reassured me. She asked if I had a smart phone, and then asked me to take a picture of the message before the window cleared up. It took me three times to get a picture that was clear. She stayed on the phone with me until the police arrived. I let her know the person may still be in the house, and she passed that information to whoever was on the way.

  The lady cop, Officer West, arrived first. She stepped out from the kitchen, through the sliding doors I had left open.

  “How did you get in?” I asked her.

  “The front door was open. We saw someone run down the street as we turned the corner. It appears they left in a hurry,” she said matter of factly.

  “So when I woke up?” I asked.

  “He or she was still here with you, and likely moved quietly to the front door to leave. It's okay, Dr. Quinn. If Travis wanted you dead, you would be,” she assured me.

  That doesn't really help me. But thanks...

  “So he just wants to play with me. I hate this,” I said.

  I wrapped my towel around me. The entire investigation took an hour. The police turned the hot tub back on so they could see the writing clearly. Even thought they found a good fingerprint. I know that was supposed to reassure me, but I was being harassed by a serial killer from solitary confinement. I worried about how many assistants he had, and if any one of them would kill me the next time no matter what he said.

  They wrapped up, and Officer West joined me at the table. I put my shaking hands in my lap.