by Gina Kincade
“Oh?” he said. Standing, he shed his clothing quickly and joined her on the bed, crawling up the length of her heated body. She ran her palms down his back to his oh-so-tight ass and squeezed, wrapping her legs around him, poising him at her slick entrance. “Wait,” he said, breathing hard and pulling back just a bit. “As much as I’d love to just plunge straight into heaven, love, I don’t have a condom. I wasn’t planning on…” his voice trailed off.
The look of absolute misery on his face cheered her heart. Oh, Lord. Do not get attached to this man. His lost, dejected from the world and you’re my only friend persona was sucking her into his vortex.
“Lucky for you, I’m like a boy scout. Prepared for any emergency,” she said with a wicked smile. “Night table drawer.”
As if he were on the Olympic Track Team, he reached over, opened the drawer, fetched a condom, and sheathed himself in record time. “Now where was I,” he murmured seductively into her ear. He braced an arm on either side of her head as the hard tip of him nudged her opening.
Her core muscles clenched in anticipation of his thick hard length filling her.
“What do you need, Kate,” he murmured, taking one hard nipple into his mouth, sucking hard before the edges of his teeth scraped the sensitive bud.
A vortex of sensation burst within her. She arched her back, giving him more access. “Every hard inch of you deep inside me.” She gasped, bucking her hips, her need rising like an inferno scorching every part of her. “I want you to fuck me hard, fast, and lose your fucking mind while you’re doing it,” she said, her mind a lust-filled haze. Never had she wanted anything so badly. Later in the light of day, she’d analyze her frenzied and crazed behavior, but for now she opened her legs wider, trying to take more of him.
“Every inch?” He groaned. “Damn, Kate,” he said, sliding in a bit farther and withdrawing, torturing them both. “You keep talking like that and I’m going to embarrass myself by coming right here and now.”
“Deeper, Grant,” she demanded. “I need more,” she begged. “I want you so deep inside it hurts.”
“Fuuuuuck,” he said, drawing out the expletive as he suddenly drove into her hard.
Kate saw stars behind her closed lids and gasped. Her feet dropped to the bed, her body fought against the sharp twinge of pain. It was a good pain. The kind of pain that when she walked funny later she’d have a stupid smile on her face remembering the reason why.
Grant stilled, his labored breathing near her ear. “You okay?”
“Mmmmmmm,” was all Kate could manage.
“I’m going to lose control, Kate,” he said, voice gruff.
“I want you to,” she said, grabbing his ass and tugging him closer. “Lose your mind, your body, your fucking soul,” she demanded. “I want everything, Grant. Give me everything you’ve got. No holding back.” She tightened her core muscles around his thick shaft. A tremor ran through him.
“Jesus fucking Christ.” He growled. Taking her head into his hands and grabbing two fistfuls of hair, he drove into her. “You’re so damn wet, hot, and greedy for me. It’s making me crazy.”
He continued to thrust hard and deep. She gasped as that delicious twinge of pain continued as his shaft obeyed her demands. Nails digging into the flesh of his shoulders, she met him stroke for stroke, daring him to lose his last vestige of control. She wanted him like this. Lost in a sexual haze of abandonment.
The tension built within her a second time as she writhed in pleasure and pain beneath him. She was so close. “Grant,” she pleaded, losing her mind. “Don’t stop. I’m close.”
Their gazes met and locked. The passion and possession Kate saw in the intense, dark blue of his gaze scorched her down to her very soul.
“Yes,” he hissed, his jaw clenched. “Let me feel that tight, wet pussy come all over my cock.”
His hand reached between them and his finger stroked her clit with teasing, fast flicks. Exploding, Kate’s eyes rolled back into her head as she cried out his name over and over while her pussy obeyed his command, convulsing around his shaft. Breathing ragged, she opened her heavy lids in time to watch Grant’s face. With a few short pumps of his cock, agony mixed with ecstasy spread across his features as he stiffened and came inside her. He nuzzled her neck, kissing her. Kate tightened her legs around him and sighed, sleepy. She yawned near his ear.
He chuckled. “That spectacular, huh?”
“Mmmmmmm,” she managed, snuggling closer to the warm heat of his flesh. She had no idea where the covers went to and the air-conditioned condo cooled her sweat-slicked skin.
“Be still, my ego,” he said, disengaging himself.
Eyes closed, Kate heard him move to the bathroom where she assumed he discarded the used condom. The tap water ran for a minute or so before the tread of his heavy steps came back into her bedroom. She felt the coolness of the bed linens cover her body, the dip of the mattress as he climbed in next to her and snuggled in close behind her with his chest against her back, one leg possessively wrapped around hers and his large palm against her breast.
“Sleep well, love,” he murmured against her hair.
With a contented sigh, Kate allowed sleep to overtake her.
Chapter Nine
Kate’s cellphone vibrated in her scrub pocket. She was about to answer when the all too familiar blast of Magnum PI’s theme song filled the nurse’s station. “I got it,” she called out to no one in particular. Picking up the hand held radio, she cradled the receiver in one ear with pen poised over a generic intake sheet. “Phoenix General ER, go ahead,” she said.
“Phoenix ER, this is Life Flight One. How do you copy?”
“Loud and clear,” Kate replied.
“Copy that, Phoenix General. We are in bound with a 45-year old male involved in a roll over MVC. He’s currently sedated, intubated with fluids wide open. Head trauma visible. Right pupil blown. No breath sounds on right. Needle decompression performed several times. Possible pelvic fracture, open tib fib fracture. He’s on a fentanyl, versed, and norepinephrine drips. Last set of vital signs heart rate 135, respiratory rate 32, blood pressure 88/44, oxygen sats 89% on a 100% oxygen and end tidal CO2 25. ETA 15 minutes. Any questions?”
“Copy that, Life Flight One. No, no questions. Fly safe and we will be ready for you guys when you get here. Phoenix General out.” Kate placed the receiver back in its cradle and activated the trauma team.
By the time the flight team arrived with the patient in the trauma bay, all disciplines were ready to go to work. X-rays were taken, blood drawn, and primary and secondary assessments were completed. Once all of those interventions were accomplished, Dr. Henderson called for a chest tube insertion for the hemopneumothorax that was the cause for the absent breath sounds in the right lung. The combination of blood collected there with the puncture of the lung didn’t permit for adequate gas exchange or for the lung to inflate properly. A chest tube allowed for the blood to drain and for re-expansion of the lung.
Several hours went by while the team worked to stabilize the patient, obtain cat scans of his head, chest, and pelvis completed before he went to the operating room. From there, the patient would be admitted to the intensive care unit. Every so often, Kate’s phone would vibrate in her pocket, but she ignored the persistent buzz.
Stripping off the blood stained plastic isolation gown, she glanced around the trauma bay and sighed. It looked like a bomb had gone off with the cupboards open, used chest tray, central line insertion kit, discarded syringes, caps, empty intravenous Lactated Ringer liter bags all littering the floor. Some of the debris was mixed with the patient’s blood. “What a mess,” she said.
“Ya,” Brian, one of the ER techs said. “He was one messed up, dude, too. I can’t believe his alcohol level was 335!” He let out a low whistle.
“Another fine example of why alcohol and driving a car doesn’t mix,” Kate agreed. “Thank goodness no one else was hurt in the accident.” She discarded her soiled gloves, her h
ands slick with sweat from having them on so long.
Her phone buzzed once more. After washing and drying her hands, she retrieved the device from her pocket. “Will you call housekeeping, Bri? I’m starving and I’ve had to pee for like eons. All the sharps are taken care of.”
“Sure thing, Kate. Have a good one,” he said.
She looked down at her cell in her palm, curious as to who had been blowing up her phone for the last couple of hours. Excitement swelled, but she dared not hope.
7:32 PM Sexy Neighbor: I’ve got to know…
7:33 PM Sexy Neighbor: What are you wearing?
Kate laughed. She hadn’t heard from Mr. OCD since he’d snuck out of her bed in the wee hours of the morning a few days ago. Since she was a night shifter, she didn’t do mornings, unless it was at an all night bar where her and her co-workers would get off at 7 AM and go to church. And church meant cocktails and shop-talk where they gossiped over the latest hair raising events in the ER. Now, as she scanned the texts on her phone, her heart ratcheted up several notches as his words brought back panty melting memories.
7:40 PM Sexy Neighbor: I keep thinking about how fucking sexy you looked in your underwear. Next time I want to remove those sexy panties with my teeth.
8:00 PM Sexy Neighbor: Where are you? I just knocked on your door and no answer.
An emoji? A smile curved her lips. Somehow, Kate hadn’t thought him the emoji type. She read on.
8:30 PM Sexy Neighbor: Why aren’t you answering? Did I do something to upset you?
9:30 PM Sexy Neighbor: What if it wasn’t me but you’re stuck or hurt somewhere? If you are alive and well, at least give me the courtesy of letting me know…pissed or not!!
Kate lifted a brow. He sounded a bit upset. Whether it was at her supposed demise or the fact that she hadn’t returned any of his text messages…she couldn’t be sure. To be fair, he was the one who’d left without so much as a note or kiss goodbye. And, it had taken him three days to make contact with her.
10:03 PM Kate: Yes, I’m alive. I’m in the ER.
She pressed the send button and slipped the phone in her pocket of her scrubs. Just as she was about to head toward the staff bathroom when her phone buzzed once more. Pulling it out, she opened the text icon on her way to use the restroom. If she didn’t pee soon, her bladder was going to burst.
10:04 PM Sexy Neighbor: Oh My God! I’ll be right there! What happened? Are you ok? Can you talk?
Kate frowned. He knew she worked here. Why was he freaking out? Then she remembered his parents and how they’d died. Empathy welled deep within her.
10:05 PM Kate: Slow down, there, Cowboy. I work here. Remember? I’m not hurt. No need to call in the Calvary for a rescue.
Without waiting for a reply, Kate yanked on the handle of the bathroom only to find it locked. “Damn,” she muttered. “Why is someone always in here when I have to pee? All I hear is nurses complaining about how we never have time to pee!” she said to the empty break room, hopping from foot to foot. If she didn’t relieve the pressure soon—
The door opened and Jonathon came out. “Dude! Thank God! I’ve had to pee for hours,” she exclaimed and without another word slammed the door and locked it.
A sigh left her as she emptied her over full bladder, the pocket of her scrubs vibrating a couple of times. She ignored the notifications and washed her hands. Food first, then she’d check her phone. A girl had to have priorities. Heating up the last of her spaghetti leftovers in the microwave, she got a fresh cup of coffee and sat down. Only then did she allow herself to glance once more at her phone.
10:07 PM Sexy Neighbor: ?
A question mark? What was that supposed to mean? Curious, she replied.
10:10 PM Kate: What’s the question?
10:10 PM Sexy Neighbor: It’s several actually. First, you never answered my original question. Second, when do you get off?
Puzzled, Kate scrolled up to see what his original question had been. I’ve got to know… What are you wearing… She smiled. No reason to make this too easy for him.
10:11 PM Kate: Scrubs.
Satisfied, she set her phone down with a satisfied smirk then began shoveling pasta into her mouth at breakneck speed. She was the only trauma nurse on shift tonight and she still had to re-stock all of the supplies used by the last patient.
10:12 PM Sexy Neighbor: Cute, real cute, nurse. What’s under your scrubs? Maybe that dicey little red number I saw in your clean laundry basket on my way out the door the other morning? Or the hot pink panties with bright yellow bows? Your lingerie basket has been driving me crazy ever since I walked by it. I was half tempted to stuff a pair of your mouth watering panties in my suit jacket. Put a man out of his misery, would ya?
Kate stared, mouth open, half eaten spaghetti falling onto her plate. He’d rummaged through her clean laundry basket she’d had on the lounge chair next to her bed? She was half fascinated, half creeped out. He’d wanted to snatch a pair of her underwear? Laughing out loud, a noodle tried to go down the wrong pipe and she began to cough. She gulped down a few swigs of water and cleared her throat. Under control once more, she responded.
10:15 PM Kate: That, my dear sir, would make you the Panty Snatching Neighbor. Much much worse than a nosey neighbor with binoculars. Don’t ya think?
She hit send and giggled. The idea was ludicrous and incredibly arousing. He was a stuffy psychiatrist, rigidly stuck in his ways. That much about him, Kate knew without a doubt. And he’d almost stolen a pair of her underwear? When he’d been over for dinner the other night, she hadn’t missed how meticulous he’d been when he’d loaded the dishwasher, even going so far as to rearrange the dirty dishes she’d already placed in the machine.
An idea occurred to her. Something absolutely outrageous. Should she do it? Well, he wanted to know… She glanced down at her watch. There was enough time. Don’t overthink it, just do it. Like the commercial. Kate smirked. “I don’t think they had this in mind when they came up with that slogan,” she muttered.
Jumping up from her chair, she ran into the bathroom, stripped off her scrub top, released her hair from her ponytail, fluffed the strands into a tousled sexy look and took a selfie in the mirror. She glanced down at the picture on the screen critically. A seductive smile spread her unpainted lips and her large breasts were barely contained in the lavender lace Chantilly demi bra. Before she could talk herself out of it, she sent the photo to Grant. By the time her scrub top was back in place and she had her hair contained in the simple black elastic holder, she was second-guessing her actions.
Have you gone insane? What if he posted that picture on social media somewhere? What if he thought you were some kind of slut who sent pics like that to men all the time?
The recriminations continued to barrage her as she washed her dishes and put them away in her lunch box. Several minutes had gone by since she’d sent the text with no reply. “That’s it,” she said aloud to the empty room. “He thinks I’m a slut now.”
Just as she grasped the handle to the break room door her phone buzzed. Heart pounding, she was half afraid to look down at the screen. Gathering her courage, she pushed the message icon.
10:32 PM Sexy Neighbor: When do you get home?
She raised a brow and typed a reply.
10:32 PM Kate: BTWN 730 and 8 am. Why?
10:33 PM Sexy Neighbor: Because if your panties match THAT bra… they’re coming off—Wait IN THE MORNING???
10:34 PM Kate: Yesssss… Night shifter, remember?
10:35 PM Sexy Neighbor: Damn it! I have clients to see in the morning. We definitely need to talk about your schedule.
10:35 PM Kate: Okay, whatever. I have to get back to work now. I have lives to save and addicts who want their refreshments and narcotics.
10:37 PM Sexy Neighbor: When are you off next?
10:38 PM Kate: Saturday. But be warned. I’ll be coming off a 48 hour stretch and I am sleeping my day away. So don’t plan on anything before 3pm. I don’t
function before that time of day. OK?
10:41 PM Sexy Neighbor: Deal. Your night belongs to me. Wear something sexy and be prepared to be dazzled.
Kate smiled and replaced her phone in her pocket. So he plans to dazzle me, huh? She had just the thing to turn the dazzling on the dazzlerer.
Chapter Ten
Grant sat across from Kate in Café Monarch’s dining room. This was one of his favorite restaurants in Scottsdale. They sat outside on the cobbled stone patio with the dusk painting the desert sky all shades of pink, orange, and purple. The candlelit covered surroundings were a perfect complement to the wrought iron chairs and lush greenery that surrounded them. His heart pounded and the crowd of people encroached upon his senses, crushing him. He took more than a few steadying breaths, eyelids closed for several seconds.
Kate’s warm hand covered his on the white linen tablecloth. “You okay?” she asked, concern in her voice. “Because if this is too much, we can go.”
He opened his eyes and his gaze locked on her soft brown one. A funny thing happened. His world seemed to tilt on its axis for a fraction of a second before righting itself. His heart rate slowed to normal, the crowds receded from his periphery, and the voice was silent in his head. Turning his palm up, he laced his fingers with her long, slender ones and gave a gentle squeeze.
“Yes.” He exhaled. “For the first time, I think I am.”
He’d meant what he’d said, he realized. With a cool mask of façade covering the secrets of his lost humanity, he’d tell people he was fine when he really wasn’t. Not this time. When he was with Kate he felt like anything was possible. Like tonight, here in this crowded restaurant. There was no soul crushing sense of impending doom deeply rooted in fear.