Pulling Doubles (Wright Brother - Jones, Christina C

Pulling Doubles Copyright © 2016 Christina C. Jones Cover art by Christina Jones, Images courtesy of iStockPhoto. Editing by Trim & Polish. All rights reserved. This book or any portion thereof may not be reproduced or used in any manner whatsoever without

permission of the publisher except for the use of brief quotations in a book review. This is a work of fiction. Any similarity to real locations, people, or events is coincidental, and unintentional.

All Devyn wants – besides a tall, fine husband and eventually a few babies to fulfill her “about to turn thirty, running out of time, cute black family” dreams – is to finish her yearlong internship at University Hospital. She’s excited about the experience, eager to learn, glad to help wherever she can… it should be easy, right? Well, it would be… if it weren’t for arrogant, know-it-all, always-gotsomething-to-say Dr. Joseph Wright. Devyn can’t stand him, and if his attitude is any indication, the feeling is mutual… or is it?

Joseph doesn’t “do” doctors. Or nurses. Or patients. Or anybody else who has anything to do with the hospital, for that matter. University Hospital has infiltrated enough of his life, and the last thing he needs is a blurring of the lines between professional and private. … until smart, sexy, sassy Nurse Devyn Echols comes along, and stomps all over those lines. When you’re pulling doubles with the person you hate to want so bad… something is bound to ignite.

To my family, friends, betas, and readers… thank you so much for helping make it possible to live out my passion: the telling of black love stories. You are so, so appreciated. Thank you!

one

This. Is. Your. Job. I reminded myself of that

annoying little fact as Dr. Joseph Wright strode away from me, mumbling something under his breath about being “the one with M. D. behind his name”. He made me so damned sick – no pun intended – and as it stood, there wasn’t anything I could do about it. Now, if this followed the natural course of a romance novel – and why the hell wouldn’t it? – in a few weeks, I would be in Dr. Wright’s bed. As fine as he was, under other circumstances, maybe that would be appealing. But as it stood? There was only one bed I wanted

his arrogant, know-it-all, can’t-letanybody-else-get-a-word-in ass on. His deathbed. Did I mention I couldn’t stand him? All I’d done was make a simple recommendation for a patient and he wants to go reminding me, “You’re still in your probationary period, Nurse Echols. You report to me, not the other way around.” Just eight more months, and then I was free. Surely I could handle eight more

months. Right? “Nurse Echols?!” I looked up to see Dr. Wright standing a little ways down the hall, and quickly registered that he was snapping his fingers at me, to get my attention. He was snapping. His fingers. At me. To get my attention. So… maybe I wouldn’t make it those other eight months without putting my hands around his neck. Or his dick.

One of the two. “Are you coming or not? You don’t have time to stand around daydreaming. Or hell, maybe you do. But our patients don’t, so… chop chop.” Okay. Definitely his neck. I took a deep breath, literally biting my tongue as I hurried to catch up with his long strides. That was just one more thing that pissed me off about him – why’d he have to be so damned tall, broad shouldered, and lusciously darkbrown-sugar toned? It would be easier

to hate him if my traitorous body didn’t react so strongly whenever we were in close proximity. Which was often, because just my luck, my year-long position as an intern would take place under his direct supervision before I could begin seeing patients on my own – also under his supervision, since for some unholy reason, he was head resident at University Hospital’s Women’s Center. I followed him to Exam Room 4, where he rapped his knuckles against the door three times before turning the knob

and pushing it open. Inside sat a couple who couldn’t have been any older than me, but obviously married – the rings on their fingers were a dead giveaway. “Mr. and Mrs. Sinclair, how are you doing?” Dr. Wright asked, extending his hand first to Mrs., then to Mr. “And how is baby Sinclair?” Mrs. Sinclair – Lauren, according to her chart – put a hand to her swollen belly, then smiled at her husband before turning back to Dr. Wright. “As long as he’s doing well, we’re good. So, we’re hoping for you to

give us some confirmation.” Dr. Wright nodded, returning her smile. “We can definitely do that. Before we start your ultrasound, let me introduce you to my colleague, Nurse Devyn Echols. We’re expanding our team here to include nurse practitioners, and she’s our first hire.” “Oh, congratulations!” Mrs. Sinclair gushed, beaming at me. “You look so young though, to be in that position! Isn’t that pretty much a doctor?” “No,” Dr. Wright interjected,

before I could even speak. “I’m sure Nurse Echols can explain the difference.” I shot him a look bordering on murderous, then wrestled my mouth into something I hoped resembled a smile as I turned to address Mrs. Sinclair. “First, thank you so much for your congratulations and the compliment. Some people like to think of a nurse practitioner as the step between a nurse and a doctor. I’ll be able to provide many of the same services your primary care physician can, but not exactly the

same.” “Ahh,” she said, but I could tell there was still some confusion. Dr. Wright stepped between us, asking Mrs. Sinclair to lay back to start her ultrasound. I stood to the side, observing closely as he spread the warm jelly over her skin, and then put the ultrasound wand to her belly as he easily engaged she and her husband in conversation. It was confusing. I didn’t understand how he could be such a complete asshole with me, but when it came to his patients – our

patients, technically – he was warm, friendly… charming. Hell, not even just the patients. He was nice to literally everyone except me. If this were high school, I’d think it was his way of combatting the fact that he actually had a crush on me, but no. I’d seen the way he flirted with other women, making them giggle and blush. And true or not, I’d heard the rumors of the way he… got around. The man knew how to show he was interested.

So, no. For whatever reason, he simply hated me. But whatever. Eight more months. He finished up the appointment with Ty and Lauren Sinclair, and we left them to get cleaned up. As usual, Dr. Wright strode out in front of me, but this time I stopped him in the hall before we got back to the nurse’s station. “Dr. Wright, I need a second please,” I called out, then fought the urge to roll my eyes as he turned to me with a smirk.

“Yes, Nurse Echols? How can I help you?” He tucked his clipboard under his arm and pushed his hands into the pockets of his dark grey slacks, an action that pulled the open sides of his white coat further apart. Underneath, he wore a starched white button up with a gorgeous tie in tones of cranberry and grey – matching his socks. I couldn’t stand him. “What you did in there, that little comment about me not being a doctor—” “You’re not a doctor.” “I know that,” I snapped, then

immediately took a breath, calming myself. “I am fully aware that I’m not a doctor—” “Then what’s the problem? We’re on the same page.” I lifted an eyebrow. “No, we’re not. The fact is that very soon I’ll be able to provide a level of care that meets, and in many cases, exceeds, a great deal of doctors, even though you seem to love reminding me that I don’t hold that title. I’ve worked incredibly hard to get here and I don’t appreciate you talking down to me in front of

patients as if I’m less than.” For several moments, Dr. Wright didn’t say anything, his warm brown eyes glittering with interest – or maybe malice – as he looked at me. Suddenly, those long legs of his started moving and he was right in front of me, looking me directly in the eyes. I wanted to look away, but I couldn’t let him win. Magnetic brown eyes, perfectly toasted brown skin, always wellgroomed facial hair, those broad ass shoulders, and big ass hands that looked like he could easily toss even a curvy

girl like me around. And his smell… God he smelled so good, and I couldn’t even tell the source of the scent. It was subtle… clean, leathery, manly. I could only smell it when he was very, very close– close enough for his body heat to radiate onto me, making it hard to keep inappropriate thoughts from blazing a trail through my mind. “I don’t feel that you’re less than anything, Nurse Echols,” he said, still holding my gaze. “I think you’re a very talented young medical professional. Have I ever said otherwise?”

“Well, you just made that little comment in front of the Sinclairs.” “I provided clarity for my patient because it’s required by law, and then deferred to you for further explanation.” I narrowed my eyes. “Okay, but what about the comment earlier, after I made my recommendation for the patient? That reminder you like throwing around? That I’m not a doctor…” “You’re not. And you still have a lot to learn before you start making recommendations to me about patients. Is there something incorrect about that

statement?” I ran my tongue over my teeth before I answered. “No.” He shrugged. “Then…” “Well, it’s not even really what you’re saying, it’s how you’re saying it.” “How am I saying it?” “Your tone.” He tilted his head to the side, removing his hands from his pockets to put one on his chin as if he were really trying to figure it out. “So, you’re telling me that the problem is that I’m… mean to you?” he asked, peering down at me.

My lips parted in response, but I quickly clamped them shut again. Because was I really, at twenty-eight, complaining about him being “mean” to me? I wasn’t a child, and I wasn’t some weak, helpless woman either. He wasn’t the first – or worst – asshole I’d dealt with on the job, and I was certain he wouldn’t be the last. “You know what?” I asked, taking a step back and squaring my shoulders. “Never mind.” He shrugged again. “Okay. Was there anything else, Nurse Echols?”

I turned away, started to walk off without answering, but thought about something. “Yes,” I said, pivoting back in his direction. I strode right up to him, tilting my head back to meet his eyes – which took a little of my steam away, honestly, because those intelligent, slighted hooded eyes of his were a damned trap – and said, “Don’t you ever, ever snap at me again. I may report to you, but I’m your colleague. Not a puppy, or a child. Okay?” I didn’t wait for an answer. I turned away, heading down the hall to I-

didn’t-know-where, just anywhere to be away from him for a minute. “Nurse Echols!” he called, and I forced myself to stop, but didn’t turn around. “What?” There was a brief pause before he chuckled, a sound that sent brand new tingles over me –ugh – “Understood.” My eyes widened in surprise so much that I was glad I was facing away from him. Instead of responding, I nodded, more to myself than anything, and then started walking again.

Just eight more months.

-&-

“You oughta be shamed of yourself, you know that, right?” A grin spread over my face as I turned to Mrs. Clara Hall, head nurse for our Women’s Health Unit. She was giving me the evil eye from her perch on

the other side of the information desk, interrupting my careful viewing of Nurse Echols’ ass after she’d snatched off her lab coat and stomped away. “Did I do something wrong?” I asked, grinning wide as I leaned against the tall counter. Nurse Hall peered at me over the top of her bifocal lenses, raising an admonishing eyebrow. “When are you going to stop trying to get under that girl’s skin?” I chuckled. “When she stops letting me. Besides – I think she could

use the challenge.” When Devyn Echols’ resume crossed my desk, along with her application for employment, I’d almost turned it down. We were opening the position for a nurse practitioner to help ease the load I shared with five other doctors, servicing a growing population of women. Between the two colleges we served – Blakewood State University and another local public college – plus the community of the rapidly expanding city and surrounding areas, we were having to turn patients away. Only so

many doctors were finishing their education and deciding to stay in the area. Out of those, the number who wanted to focus on women’s health was even smaller. Nurse practitioners were the answer to that problem. They were already skilled nurses – who were vital to the hospital community – with the added benefit of the advanced training and education to diagnose and treat patients. Serious illnesses, high-risk pregnancies, and other things of that nature would still be

handled by the doctors in the unit, but a nurse practitioner was more than qualified to provide regular patients a great level of care. Too bad Nurse Echols still needed a yearlong internship before her education would be considered complete and she would receive her full licensing. I didn’t want a newbie in the position and most of the other doctors in the unit agreed. Several of them didn’t want to hire a NP in the first place, but that decision was made over our heads,

by the chief of staff. That aside, if we were hiring someone, I didn’t want it to be someone we’d have to babysit. We would already have to provide assistance with prescribing, since NPs weren’t given that capability. The last thing we needed was someone whose shoulders we would have to constantly look over, especially when we were already swamped with responsibility. But Aviva saw it differently. Exactly one year younger than me – we shared the same birthday – and friend since medical school, Aviva

Winslow knew she had a lot of pull with me. She had no problem taking advantage of that, but she didn’t do it often. That’s why when she made her case for hiring Devyn, I listened to her argument. “Look at her grades. Look at her glowing references. She’s a young, black, well-trained nurse, trying to move into the next phase of her career. She’s a BSU alum, Joey. Don’t be the asshole that doesn’t take care of family.” I’d given her a deadpan

expression after that, and – playfully – kicked her out of my office while I thought about it. Even with the internship still pending, if we got really swamped and needed her to do simple consults, or routine exams, we had that option. And her qualifications really were impressive. Excellent grades, current employment at a small, but respected hospital, glowing testimonials from her supervisors and former professors. And, she was BSU alum, which honestly did tug a bit at my heartstrings. Now, here we were.

I’d recommended her for an interview sight unseen. Aviva and the other doctors had ended up being the ones to conduct it. I was busy with a delivery, so I never even saw her until the first day she reported to work. And Jesus… what a sight she was. Simply put, Devyn Echols was fine as frog hair. She had clear, glowing, honey-toned skin, and the kind of face that you might make the mistake of calling “cute” at first. Full, pretty lips, high cheekbones, and a faint sprinkling

of freckles across her nose and cheeks. She wore her hair in a chin-length bob that framed her face in golden-brown strands, just slightly darker than her skin. All of that made for a very attractive girl. But her eyes… damn. Big, striking brown eyes, dark hazel flecked in gold, held a mixture of intelligence, mystery, and playfulness that could easily bring a man to his knees. By accident, I’d discovered that when she was mad, there was an added element of danger that made them even

more hypnotic. I rather enjoyed making her mad, just to bring that out. And the body on this woman – again, damn. Soft, pillowy breasts to fall asleep on. The hips, ass, and thighs of a woman who didn’t turn down a little extra cornbread on her plate, and I was in full appreciation of something to grab and hold on to. Not that I was going to be doing any of that with Nurse Echols, because I did not cross that line with coworkers. But it sure was a nice thought. A very,

very nice thought. “Don’t say I didn’t warn you when you push her too far one day and she smacks you ‘cross the face. I’m gonna tell HR I haven’t seen anything.” I laughed at Nurse Hall’s warning as I picked up another patient chart. “She’s too professional for that. Come with me to check on this next patient since she’s taking a break.” “You mean she needed to get away from you?” Nurse Hall asked, pulling herself up from her seat. “If your mama was living she’d tell you to stop

picking on that girl and just invite her out.” Shaking my head, I grinned at the woman I’d known as “Miss Clara” much longer than any professional title. From the time they were kids, until the day she passed, Clara and my mother had been inseparable as best friends. “Because I don’t date coworkers, ma’am. It’s against hospital policy… and you know what happened last time.” She grunted as she joined me on the other side of the counter and crossed her arms. “Yeah, I remember your little

situation with that fool of a girl. But about this “policy”? Please. The way these folks run around here screwing each other? And they’ve been doing it since before I started here back in ’85. You know how many of us met our spouses right here in these halls?” “That’s all good… if it works out. If it doesn’t, you’ve got a former lover giving you the death stare from across an open uterus on the operating table. I don’t need that kind of spectacle… again.” “And who says it has to be

drama?” “I see the stuff that still goes on around here. It’s always something to talk about.” She snickered. “You must’ve heard about Dr. Samuels and Dr. Woodson?” “Getting caught in the stairwell, yes ma’am.” “Well, they’re young and in love. It happens that way sometimes. Can’t keep your hands off each other, can’t stay away from each other—” “Can’t be focused on your

patients because you’re too busy copping feels in the hall…” “Oh please, Joey,” Nurse Hall laughed. “You’re too young to have gotten so rigid. I bet that’s why you take such pleasure in fraying Nurse Echols’ nerves. If you had a lady friend, you wouldn’t be riding her so hard.” Shit. Unfortunate wording. I definitely didn’t need to hear “Nurse Echols” and “riding hard”, because then my mind drifted to… “Let’s get in here to check on

Mrs. Daniels, shall we?” Nurse Hall chuckled, shooting me a knowing glance as she stopped just outside the door of the exam room. “Mmhmm. We can move along, but let me give you a little advice, alright?” “What’s that?” She grinned. “Sex is a much healthier way to work out stress than this constant back and forth between the two of you. Exerting all this energy to get on the girl’s nerves, when you could just tell her that you want a piece. You’re the doctor, Joey. Shouldn’t you already

know that?” My mouth was still open when she knocked on the door to warn the patient we were coming in. Leave it to Nurse Hall to state what I really was already thinking, but wasn’t about to say out loud. Honestly, she was right about people skirting the hospital rules about fraternization. As long as it wasn’t a situation where someone was screwing the boss, and as long as it didn’t cause problems on the job, nobody cared. I wasn’t really concerned about getting

“in trouble”, but that didn’t change the fact that I had a personal rule against intimacy with coworkers. Before now, it had never really presented itself as a problem. It wasn’t like I was blind. Obviously, I’d worked with attractive women, some of whom weren’t shy at all about making their interest known. Doctors, nurses, pharmaceutical reps – hell, patients, patients’ friends, patients’ mothers. There was no shortage of available prospects, but that didn’t make the idea of blending my love life into my

work life any more appealing. Especially when I barely even had the time for a love life – or any social life, period – outside of my work life. That separation was very, very necessary… and I learned that the hard way. Nobody had ever made me reconsider that, until Devyn. Something about her – other than the fact that she looked good as hell – made it very, very hard to get her off my mind. She came to work every morning bright-eyed and eager to work, eager to learn. She even made some honestly

brilliant suggestions for patients, and had an amazing ability to connect with them, with seemingly no effort. And then there was the little fact that no matter what little barbs I threw her way, no matter how much I got under her skin, she didn’t crack. She didn’t have the best poker face, so I could tell she was affected, but she held it in. That bode well for her future at the hospital, and anywhere else she might end up. I was just playing with her – there would be plenty of colleagues who were not. I was glad to see she could handle it.

And… it made it that much more fun to bug her. I followed Nurse Hall into the room to greet my patient, pushing Devyn out of my mind, even if it was just for the moment, to focus on work. I’d have plenty of time to preoccupy myself once she got back from her “break”.

two.

“Where’s the damn liquor in this house?” Reese giggled as I flipped the cabinet door closed, then slumped onto a barstool at the counter in Jay’s kitchen, dropping my head down. It seemed like

she was always over here lately. I could rarely catch her at her own house. “Dr. Wright still giving you the blues?” she asked, pulling open the pantry door, and holding up a bottle of Crown Royal Apple. She pulled out two glasses, filling them with ice from the dispenser before she grabbed a bottle of apple juice and sat down beside me. “Just a little for me,” I grunted as she poured the drinks. “I don’t think he’s ever going to stop. I still can’t believe that’s Jay’s brother.” She shook her head. “And I still

can’t believe you haven’t just cursed him out.” “Trust me – I wish I could.” If I weren’t trying to build my reputation at the hospital – and keep my damn job – I would have long ago lit into Joseph Wright. He hadn’t done anything I considered heinous enough to report to HR, but his unique ability to run my nerves into the ground was something I’d never experienced before. I hated the fact that despite his rampant assholery… I was attracted to him anyway.

Something about a broad shouldered, fine, arrogant, intelligent man that I just… Okay. Maybe I could believe he and Jay were brothers. They definitely had those qualities in common. “I told you, if you want me to say something to him…” “Absolutely not,” I responded to Reese’s offer, then took a long sip from my drink. “The last thing I need is him knowing I tattled to his future sister-inlaw.”

Reese cut her eyes at me in response to that, but I didn’t miss the way her mouth twitched. She may not want to admit it since they’d barely been together six months, but she was pleased by the thought of being Jason Wright’s wife at some point in the future. Not that I needed her suppressed smile to tell me anything. It was all over her face that she was in love. “Girl, if you say so. I’m actually surprised he’s an asshole to you. I think all three of them, Jason, Justin, and Joseph have a little streak of it in them,

but Joseph is typically laid back around me. He can take himself a bit too seriously sometimes with the “eldest brother” thing, but I figured how to shut that down immediately. I gave him a nickname.” I lifted my eyebrow. “A nickname?” A mischievous glint came to Reese’s eyes as she flipped her newly installed braids over her shoulder. “Mmhmm. At first, it was “Little Joe”, since their dad is Big Joe, right? But that felt too much like I was insulting his

dick size, so I had to think of something else.” “Reese!” “What?” she asked innocently, sipping her drink. “I’m just saying. Calling a grown man “Little Joe” just doesn’t sound right.” Laughing, I shook my head. “Good point. So what’s the new nickname?” She smiled. “Pussy Doctor. He hates it, so much. So whenever he starts getting a little out of pocket, I just start referring to him as Pussy Doctor. Me and

Jay laugh our asses off, Joseph goes away, and it’s a done deal.” “… Pussy Doctor?” She shrugged. “Joseph Wright, P.D. Is it not a fitting title? I’m telling you, next time he starts with you, pull that out. I bet he leaves you alone.” “I’m not calling him that.” “Suit yourself,” she said, taking another sip. “But you know what your only other option is, right?” I narrowed my eyes, knowing her well enough that I had some inkling of what she was about to say. “And that

is…?” “You have to screw him. Soon.” I was expecting that, but still choked a little on my drink as the words left her mouth. “Reesie, please. I will not be screwing Dr. Wright. That man can’t stand me.” Reese pulled her face into a scowl. “Dev, are you stupid? First of all, “that man” is only thirty-four. Stop acting like that’s much older than you. Second, please. He’s bugging the shit out of you because he wants you and he’s mad about it.”

“Thirty-four is grown as hell. And men who are grown as hell don’t pick on you because they like you, like a boy on the playground yanking your pigtail.” Rolling her eyes, Reese gave me a look full of nonverbal “bitch please”. “I hate to be the one to break it to you, but men do revert to little boys when they want something they can’t have. He’s messing with you because it’s the only thing he can do. Don’t y’all have a work rule against screwing each other or something?”

I pushed my hair away from my face, tucking it behind my ear as I sighed. “Yeah, but even if we didn’t. I wouldn’t sleep with him. He’s… he’s…” “An arrogant, fine ass doctor. I distinctly remember a conversation where you used those exact words describing your perfect man. I distinctly remember you dating that man before. Malcolm, hello?” I shifted my gaze away from her. “Yeah. I know better now.” Reese shook her head, pressing

her lips together to keep from breaking into a grin. “Whatever you say, Nurse Echols. I can already see where this is going – stop pretending that you don’t.” “I don’t. You’re just trying to pull somebody else into the Wright family with you, talking about some “already see where this is going.” Uh, no bitch, I see where this is going.” Laughing, Reese grabbed me by the hand. “Come onnn, Dev. Get with the program. You could be my sister in law one day.” “As if I really need another

connection to the likes of you,” I teased, squeezing her fingers. “Speaking of future hubby, where is Jay while you’re over here making yourself at home, serving me his liquor in the middle of the day?” “His internship at Newton Motors started today,” she said, her eyes shining with pride. Jay was graduating soon, with a degree in mechanical engineering. Positions at Newton Motors were hard to come by, and from what I heard, the internships that guaranteed those positions were even scarcer. She

definitely had reason to be proud. “I want to have dinner waiting on him when he gets home,” she continued, standing to go to the refrigerator. “I have chicken, greens, sweet potatoes, a couple of blocks of cheese for macaroni.” I grinned. “So you just went full domestic on me, huh?” With her lip pulled between her teeth, Reese turned to me, wrinkling her nose. “Is it too much? I’m doing too much, aren’t I?” “No,” I laughed. “Being in love

looks really good on you. It’s sweet, and I think he’ll appreciate it. I don’t know what just the two of you are going to do with all of that food though.” “Ah!” Reese smiled as she let the refrigerator door swing closed. “I was thinking about inviting his family, feeding everybody.” I nodded. “That would be cool.” “And… maybe you could stay for dinner too?” “Girl, hell no,” I scoffed, shaking my head. “I see enough of Joseph Wright at work. I’d rather not share a meal with

him.” “Come onnnn.” Reese came back over to me, propping her hands on my shoulders. “You know you want to spend an evening in the presence of these fine ass Wright men.” “I really don’t. Jay is the homie, but I don’t know Justin, and Big Joe and Imara are just gonna be sucking face all night like teenagers. Jose—” “Pussy Doctor.” I rolled my eyes. “Fine. Pussy Doctor is not nearly enough of a draw to get me to stay for dinner, no matter how

fine he is.” “Not even if I’m making a sweet potato cheesecake?” An involuntary moan worked its way up my throat, and my eyelids fluttered a bit. “Ooh, you don’t play fair Reesie,” I whined, crossing my arms. “But no. Not even that. But I hope you’d save your bestie a tiny piece anyway…” She held up a hand, then crossed her arms as she let a smile creep onto her face. “Only if you help me cook.” I tried my best to hold on to a scowl, but I couldn’t help it. I laughed,

then pulled myself up from my seat. “Okay. But if I’m helping cook, I expect a whole damned plate.”

-&“Thank you for coming. You look beautiful – as always.” I smiled across the table at Malcolm as I nervously tucked my hair behind my ear. Not because I was intimidated by him – because I didn’t particularly want to be seen. Luckily,

Reese was occupied tonight by dinner with Jay’s family. “You don’t have to thank me for coming, Mal. Having dinner with you isn’t a hassle.” He smiled, all dark mahogany skin and dimples and perfect teeth, giving me echoes of that fluttery feeling in my belly he used to spark all the time. “That’s good to hear. You’ve been kind of unavailable lately. I wasn’t sure you’d be interested.” I averted my gaze, just for a second, before I looked back to him.

“But here I am, right?” “You are,” he conceded, in a pleased tone. “And you’re a sight for sore eyes.” “You saw me at that club, just a few months ago. And… after.” He pulled his lip between his teeth, and nodded. “And even that was too long ago.” Ah. Malcolm Sevier. Charmer, orthopedic surgeon, and as of about seven months ago, former lover.

I’d be telling a bold-faced lie if I claimed that sitting across from him didn’t stir up feelings I thought we were long past. He and I were together for the better part of two years, so it made sense that emotional ties would linger. The question I was still trying to answer by agreeing to this dinner was: should I fasten them tighter, or let them loose? We turned our attention to the server as she approached, and Malcolm took it upon himself to speak up for me. “My beautiful date would like a glass of

w—” “Water,” I interjected, knowing he was about to ask for a list of wines. “Just a glass of water for me, please.” In front of the server, he simply lifted an eyebrow and went on with his own drink order. Once she’d walked away from the table, he leaned in. “Just when I thought I knew you well. No wine? You were always one to enjoy a nice red.” I shook my head. “I’ve started my new position at the hospital, and the doctor who’s supervising my internship

is on call tonight. Which means I’m on call as well, if I’m needed. Have to be alert. Besides that, I’ve already had a drink today, with Reese.” “One drink? You turning into a lightweight on me?” Laughing, I nodded. “I’m afraid so. I have to be really conscious of everything I put into my body, so…” His eyes lit up. “Well, you know I’m a huge proponent of that. I noticed that you’d…” I tipped my head to the side, and being the smart man that he was,

Malcolm realized he was treading into dangerous waters. “That I’d what?” He leaned to his left a little, peeking around the table to look me over. “You know… you’ve lost some weight. You’re looking good, that’s all.” Immediately, heat spread over my face, and I shifted uncomfortably in my seat. “I have lost a few pounds, but it wasn’t on purpose. My weight is healthy, and I’ve always looked good, Malcolm.” “Whoa, I wasn’t implying otherwise,” he said, raising his hands.

“My bad. I was trying to pay you a compliment. I know in the past, we’ve had some—” “Don’t worry about it.” I forced a smile back to my face as the server returned to the table with our drinks, asking if we were ready to order. I suddenly had an urge to order the most fattening thing on the menu. Instead, I stuck to what I’d already planned – a grilled salmon salad. “Devyn,” he said, as soon as the server had left the table, in a pleading tone that softened the edges of my

annoyance. “I’m sorry. I promise you, I wasn’t trying to imply anything.” I nodded. “It’s fine, Malcolm. Thank you, for the compliment.” I smiled afterward, a real one, trying to convey that we could move on. That little comment had stung, but I could admit that between us, many things – this included – had become sensitive topics. So maybe I was holding on to that, which wasn’t fair. Throughout our conversations over the last few months, he’d sworn to me that he’d changed. For tonight, at

least, I could give him the benefit of the doubt. “So,” he said, and I looked up, searching his handsome face for a sign that maybe we really could make our relationship work. He gave me those dimples again, sending another wave of flutters through my tummy. “Tell me more about your new position.” Dinner went well. I wouldn’t say surprisingly so, because it had never been a struggle to have a good time with Malcolm. If anything, I found myself at a little bit of a

loss as to why I’d broken up with him in the first place. As we devoured our meals, he kept my attention with interesting conversation, but didn’t dominate. He made me laugh, without being overly silly. He made me blush, but never crossed the line of being inappropriate. By the time we finished our meal, I was honestly more than a little bit turned on, and thinking about what harm it could really do to invite Malcolm back to my place. “So, how was everything?” the server asked, stopping at the edge of the

table to refill our water glasses. “Well, you see where it is, don’t you? Not on this plate anymore,” I laughed, and she laughed with me as she removed the empty dish. “I do see that, but you saved room for dessert, right? I can get the list for you if—” “That won’t be necessary,” Malcolm chimed in, then reached for his water glass as if he’d said nothing at all. My eyebrow was damn near vibrating from the desire to hike up to my hairline, but I kept it down.

“Says who?” My voice was cold – much icier than that water he was guzzling down like he didn’t know what he’d done. His gaze met mine and he coughed a little as he finally lowered his glass, looking genuinely confused. “I… I’m sorry, beautiful. You mentioned the salad being hard to finish, so I just thought…” “Right.” I swallowed hard, telling myself not to get bent out of shape over what could have been an honest

misunderstanding, but suddenly I remembered why we’d broken up very, very well. Benefit of the doubt, Dev. You said you were giving it, so give it. “Umm… so… should I bring the dessert menu or not?” the server asked, looking back and forth between us. “No.” I smiled at her, then Malcolm. “I’m full, but thank you.” She nodded. “Okay. Um… I’ll be back with your check.” Ten minutes later, Malcolm was walking me to my car. He’d wanted to

pick me up, but I’d insisted on meeting him instead. Now, I was glad I had, because nothing was more soothing to me, better to work through my thoughts, than a quiet drive by myself. Tonight, I needed it. “So,” he said, tugging at the hem of my jacket as I turned to face him, putting my back to the driver’s side of my car. “I think we’ve had a good time tonight… right?” I narrowed my eyes against a cool gust of wind, then smiled. “Yeah. I would say so.”

“I’m glad.” He moved a little closer, enough that I could feel the heat from his body as he moved his hands to entwine his fingers with mine. “What are you doing, Mal?” I asked, tipping my head back to look up into his eyes. The corner of his mouth quirked into a grin. “Well… I’d like to kiss you, if that’s okay.” “On a first date?” He lifted an eyebrow. “First?” “Mmmhmm. Starting over means

starting over from the beginning,” I said, squeezing his hands. “After the way things went between us before, I think it would be good to have a clean slate. Not just pick up where we left off. Not immediately, at least.” He pulled his hands from mine, moving them to my waist to pull me against him. My breath caught in my throat at the feeling of him against my stomach, already semi-hard. “Are you serious with this?” he asked, sounding more than a little needy. I put my hands against his chest,

using them as leverage to push myself away. “Yes, I am.” “Dev…” “Mal…” He pushed out a heavy sigh, then shook his head as he looked me over again. “Okay, okay. Starting over from the beginning. I guess I can handle that.” “And that doesn’t mean girlfriend and boyfriend,” I warned, easing his hands from my sides. “It means… testing the waters. Seeing how it goes.” He nodded. “Okay. But… a kiss

on a first date is small potatoes.” “You’re pushing your luck.” “Is it paying off though?” I smiled as he threaded his fingers through mine again, then clasped them together, because as confused as my feelings for him were, I really did genuinely like him. Despite his… flaws, Malcolm was a good man. Marriage material. The type you thought about a house and kids with. Maybe I was being silly. Malcolm was a very confident, incredibly passionate, self-assured guy.

He was a leader. We’d talked often about how those qualities were hard to navigate in the context of a relationship, how he had to figure out how to be a partner, not a… manager. How he had to learn to express his passion in a healthy, controlled way. He swore he’d try. And after seven months apart, and no real prospects… I was starting to wonder if I was letting my best chance at my dream of a cute little black family pass me by. “Yes,” I said, searching his eyes

for the umpteenth time that night, for a sign that I was making the right decision. He pulled one of his hands from mine, tucking it under my chin to hold me steady as he lowered his mouth to kiss me. I was pleased by the buzz of electricity his lips left on mine. He was respectful, not taking it further than a close-mouthed kiss on the lips, but even that was a good indication that the chemistry we’d shared before was still there. When he stepped away, he

squeezed my hand, then brushed my forehead with his lips. “Goodnight, Devyn.” I smiled. “Goodnight, Malcolm.” I climbed into my car after that, and offered him a wave goodbye. As content as I was with how the night had ultimately went, I still wasn’t… sold. I wanted to feel sure, and I didn’t. As I pulled out of the parking lot and headed home, my mind was swimming. I wished I could call and talk to Reese, but I cringed thinking about what her reaction would be to knowing

I’d been out with Malcolm in the first place. She was not a fan of his, not anymore. I had other friends, but none I trusted like Reesie, and my mother was still mad at me for breaking up with Malcolm at all. I couldn’t expect unbiased advice from her, especially when she didn’t even know everything. I let out a hard sigh, turned my radio up, and instead of pulling off onto the exit that would lead me home, I kept driving.

Maybe if I stayed on the road long enough, I’d figure this mess out.

three.

“But with my last pregnancy, the doctor just prescribed something for the nausea. I don’t understand why you can’t just do the same thing?” I stayed quiet from my spot in the corner, and watched Nurse Echols’ face.

That was where all the answers usually were when it came to her, but today her expression was more closed than usual as she considered her response to the patient. Briefly, I wondered if something was wrong, but then I remembered overhearing Aviva mention something to her about it. Nurse Echols had been advised not to allow her thoughts to play on her face while she was dealing with patients, and based on the pleasant neutrality she was displaying now, it seemed she’d taken that advice to heart.

“Ms. Wren, I understand that you were expecting the same drug your last doctor gave you. But, that particular medication has been strongly indicated as a possible cause of birth defects in many, many babies. I can’t offer that to you in good conscience. There are some other alternatives though, natural remedies that other women, even in your condition, swear by to help with the nausea. I’ll get you a list before you leave.” Nurse Echols glanced backwards, her gaze searching mine for

approval of her words. Our eyes held together for a second longer than necessary before I broke out of her spell long enough to nod. She returned her attention to Ms. Wren with a smile, offering her comfort and encouragement. Eliana Wren was in the eighth week of a pregnancy plagued with a condition called Hyperemesis Gravidarum, which was an incredibly severe type of pregnancy nausea. We tried our best to offer natural alternatives and tips that the women could use to survive those ugly few

months of suffering. Dev– Nurse Echols did a great job of calming Eliana’s nerves, encouraging her to try some of the natural remedies, like the ginger tea. We didn’t want to end up having to put her in a hospital bed to save her and her baby. “How did I do?” Nurse Echols asked, stopping me in the hall before we went back to the desk. We’d already said goodbye to Eliana Wren, who was our last patient before the lunch hour. She looked so damned… was it possible to be cute and sexy at once?

Her head was tipped back to look at me, pink-glossed lips set into a straight line as she focused, waiting intently for my response. Eager for my response, for my feedback, as always. Today, she was wearing a gray wrap dress that clung to her curvy frame beneath her lab coat, and heels that made me think about her in nothing except those. I had to force myself to bring my eyes back to her face. I gave her a nod. “You provided an adequate level of care to the patient, Nurse Echols.” “Just adequate? I thought I did a

good job with her.” “Your review form won’t ask if you did a “good job”. It will ask if you provided an adequate level of care. That answer is yes, you did.” She lifted an eyebrow. “Okay, but what do you think? Not what you’ll check off on the form.” “I think you did what you were supposed to do.” The urge to laugh as she took a deep breath, trying to keep her composure, was nearly overwhelming. Her nostrils were flared when she spoke

again. “And I think you just like having me under you,” – if she only knew – “slapping me in the face with your,” – dear God – “massive,” – oh my God – “ego, at every turn. I think you have a problem offering me any sort of praise, or positive reinforcement. How am I supposed to gauge my performance if you won’t give me any feedback?” Whew. She had one hand propped on her hip, chest heaving as she spoke up. Her brow was pulled down, eyes flashing

with anger, and… Damn I want her so bad. I brushed that thought from my mind, and shook my head, letting my expression fall into a glare. “If you were messing things up, I would tell you, Nurse Echols. And if I don’t? Assume that you’re adequate.” I turned away from her, glad for the little bit of camouflage my lab coat provided as I strode away. As I approached the nurse’s station, I noticed a man in a suit standing there with flowers in his hand and immediately

assumed he was waiting for one of our patients, a pregnant wife or girlfriend, as a surprise. “Malcolm? What are you doing here?” I glanced behind me as Devyn approached, eyes wide. My eyebrows drew together in a frown as she walked up to the wannabe-GQ-motherfucker with the – damn, they weren’t from the grocery store – flowers, with a distinct air of familiarity. “Malcolm’s” face spread into a smile, and a quiet chorus of sighs

happened to the left of me. I looked over to see Nurse Hall, Aviva, and a few other nurses playing captive audience for this little show. “I was here to check in with a colleague, so I thought I’d drop in to see you.” “Oh. Um, thank you,” she said, accepting the flowers from his hands. “I also wanted to see what you would be doing later tonight? I’d love your company for dinner again.” Again? My eyes narrowed over his request, and then a little further at the

expression on Dev—shit. The expression on Nurse Echols’ face. She seemed to be enraptured. “Tonight? I—” “Can’t,” I quickly injected, and a second later, all eyes were on me. I swallowed hard, then said, “Nurse Echols will be here at the hospital, working.” Devyn frowned. “I will?” From beside me, Aviva spoke as well. “She will?” “She will,” I said firmly, not even understanding for myself why I was

pulling this out of my ass. “I’m the resident on the floor tonight, and you’re supposed to be observing. I’m not sure how you can observe from somewhere else.” Devyn’s top lip curled just slightly at me before she tempered her expression down, back into the cool neutral she’d been wearing for our patients. “Okay. I’ll be here.” “Good. You and your boyfriend can go talk now since it’s lunch time, but otherwise, social visits are a distraction from work.”

If looks could kill, my brothers would be planning my funeral, based on the venom shooting from Nurse Echols’ eyes. I gave her a wry smile, then turned to head for my office, looking up when Aviva called my name as I strode down the hall. “What the hell was that?” she asked, catching up to me. “No idea what you’re talking about, Vi. Ouch!” I pulled away from her, rubbing the spot on my arm where she’d just pinched me. “What was that for?!”

“For acting like you don’t know what I’m talking about.” Aviva was tiny – at least a full foot shorter than me – with a baby bump protruding from her slender body like a basketball. Even with those two things working against her, she was capable of doing real damage. “I don’t,” I said, dodging her when she tried to pinch me again. “You know visitors aren’t supposed to be hanging around the nurse’s station.” Aviva shrugged. “But he was handsome, and had flowers. I didn’t

even know Devyn was dating anybody, so when he came back here of course I wasn’t going to turn him away. It was sweet.” I shook my head. “So it was you? You know that was against protocol.” “Yeah, it was me. And so what? Who cares?” “I care.” “Because you’re mad she has a man.” I immediately started sputtering, damn near tripping over my own tongue

to deny it, but I couldn’t. I was annoyed by the presence of a man in her life. But why wouldn’t there be? Devyn was an attractive woman. Smart, successful. The lack of a ring on her finger didn’t mean she was as uninvolved as I’d assumed. Or not assumed. To be frank, I hadn’t given the possibility of Devyn having a man any thought at all. When she entered my mind, in nothing but those heels and a lab coat, I was thinking about one thing – her. But this “Malcolm” dude had me

bothered. I had to shake this shit off. Clearing my throat, I faced Aviva head on, meeting her eyes. “I have no reason to be pissed about her having a man. I don’t date coworkers.” She smiled. “If you say so. I just know that in all the years I’ve known you, I’ve never seen this. Not even with Crazy Pants a few years ago.” “Don’t bring her up. What are you talking about, about “this”?” “Yes, this,” she said, waving a hand in my direction. “When I pushed

you to hire her, I thought we were going to take her under our wing, nurture her into a colleague we could depend on. Embrace her. Instead, your ass is hazing her… since you won’t touch her.” “That’s not true.” Aviva laughed. “What’s not true? Are you not thirty-four years old, picking on a girl because you like her? It’s been too long since you’ve had a girlfriend, Joey. You’re devolving back to middle school.” “Damn, Vi!” I said, clutching my chest. “That hurts.”

“Truth does that sometimes,” she giggled, then stepped away to head in the opposite direction. “Get some ass, Joseph. So you can stop taking out your sexual frustration on our intern.”

-&-

I was fuming. Between Malcolm showing up at

my job unannounced, and Dr. Wright pulling imaginary assignments out of his ass, I was convinced that the men in my life – in whatever capacity – had collectively lost their black ass minds. After my dual surprises at the nurse’s station, I’d slipped away to the break room to get a second to myself before meeting Malcolm in the hospital cafeteria. I found him waiting for me just outside the door, and stopped cold when I saw him glance at his watch, then me, with a stern expression. “I’m sorry… is your

unannounced visit keeping you from something?” I teased, then walked past him to get into the cafeteria. I joined the line, glancing back when I felt him behind me. “You know I’m mad at you, right?” He frowned. “Mad at me? What did I do?” “Well, we can start with the fact that it’s barely been a week since our date, and you showed up at my job. Aside from that not looking good for me right now, we’re supposed to be taking things slow, remember. What would you

think if a girl you just had one date with showed up at your job?” I kept my voice low as I spoke, keeping our conversation between us. Still, Malcolm glanced around before he answered, following me through the line. “I’m sorry, but come on, Dev. You know this whole “start from scratch” thing is ridiculous. We dated for two years – I think we know each other pretty well.” I shot him a scowl as I paid for my meal – a turkey sandwich – then headed to an empty table. “Right, and it

didn’t work out. This is a second chance, and so this time, we need to look a little closer. Make sure it’s right before we just dive in.” “I’m already sure,” he argued, frowning at my tray. “That’s a lot of bread.” “Well, I’m not, Mal. I told you I needed time, and I plan to take it.” He sighed, then sat back in his seat. “And so what am I supposed to do while you’re taking your time? Sit around all lonely, waiting for you…” I laughed. “Oh, poor you. So

handsome and successful, you couldn’t possibly…I don’t know… go on a date?” His eyebrow shot up. “Why would I do that?” “Um… to see what else is out there, maybe?” I asked, cracking open the bottle of water I’d grabbed with my sandwich. “I’m not the only woman on the planet.” “But you may as well be to me.” Heat rushed over my face at those words, and I dropped my gaze as Malcolm reached across the table to

grab my hand. “Don’t get shy now. I’ve told you this before, Dev. I’m just waiting on you to come back to me.” I kept my gaze down. God knows I wasn’t into playing with people’s feelings, but when it came to Malcolm, after everything… I honestly just wasn’t sure. “And what if that doesn’t happen?” I asked softly, finally raising my eyes back to his. I flinched at little at the anger I saw, but I blinked and it was gone so fast I wondered if I’d imagined it, replaced with the smile of a man

trying to prove he was sincere. “It’s going to happen,” he insisted, squeezing my hand. “I’ll play along with your “start from scratch” thing, if that’s what it takes. I just have to make sure ol’ boy from upstairs doesn’t try to make a move on you.” I wrinkled my nose. “Ol’ boy from upstairs?” “Yeah,” Malcolm scoffed. “The one you’re supposed to be “observing”.” “Dr. Wright? Please,” I laughed. “He lives to make life difficult for me. Trust me – there won’t be any moves.”

Malcolm shook his head. “I saw the way he looked at you. There might be some moves.” “Yeah, me putting a scalpel through his chest,” I joked, pulling my hand away from Malcolm so that I could eat. “So you think he has you pulling doubles with him just for the fun of it?” “I think that’s exactly why he’s doing it – for fun. His fun. Not mine.” Malcolm grunted. “Yeah well… make sure that’s all the fun he’s having.” “Uh-uh-uh,” I said, wagging a

finger. “Are we getting possessive already?” “I’m just saying…” “Mmmhmm.” I swallowed another bite of my sandwich, then leaned forward. “And I’m just saying – Dr. Wright is not thinking about me.”

-&-

I should have known this shit was going to bite me in the ass. It was abnormally quiet on the maternity ward tonight. No emergency C-sections, no anxiously expecting mothers, no false labor to check on and send the patient home. The nurses had things to do – monitoring vitals, doling out meds, the usual. Outside of that, it was just me, Nurse Echols, and nothing to do. I don’t think I was ever more relieved to get paged into the ER in my life.

After my conversation with Aviva, I’d resolved to leave Nurse Echols alone. I had to prove – to myself – that I wasn’t that messed up about this woman, no matter how fantasy-worthy she was. I didn’t have a schoolboy crush on her, like Aviva and Nurse Hall seemed to think. She was fine. That was all. So instead of asking about “Malcolm”, or rubbing some mistake in her face, I simply left Nurse Echols alone, resisting the urge to treat her any differently than I would any other intern.

All night, she’d been shooting me these wary looks, as if she were expecting something crazy to come out of my mouth. This continued as we headed down to the ER, as we checked in at the desk, as we were led to the tiny exam room that held our patient, and even as I passed the lead role to her. Honestly? She seemed a little shell-shocked. “Lawd,” the patient whispered to herself as we walked into the room, putting a hand to her chest. She was obviously a young woman, maybe a student from BSU, whose campus was

basically across the street from the hospital. She exchanged a look with the friend she’d brought with her – another college girl – and they giggled before they turned back to me, essentially ignoring Nurse Echols as they stared. Suddenly, I was very, very glad I’d turned this patient over to Devyn. It wasn’t uncommon for my interactions with patients to be uncomfortable. Thanks to Aviva, it was no secret to me that this was a pretty direct result of how I looked.

Sometimes, women got really shy, and embarrassed. Sometimes, they got really bold, and inappropriate. I had a feeling this patient would have ended up being the latter. She – Kelly Franklin according to her chart – frowned a little at Nurse Echols as she introduced herself. “Why can’t I get the fine ass doctor instead of you?” Oh, shit. I looked at Devyn, but her face was partially obscured by her hair, blocking me from seeing her expression.

She cleared her throat, then squared her shoulders, standing a little straighter. “Because this is the emergency room, Ms. Franklin. You’re seen by whichever provider is assigned to you. Tonight, that’s me, but if you’d prefer to wait and see your primary care physician, I’d be happy to write a referral for you.” “It’s a Friday night! I can’t see my normal doctor until Monday.” “Well, then I’d be more than happy to take care of you while you’re here. What seems to be the problem tonight?”

“It’s burning when she pees,” her friend giggled. “Oh my God, shut up!” Kelly snapped, then turned to Nurse Echols, carefully avoiding looking at me. “I was having some… discomfort, when I went to the bathroom. Like, burning, and pain.” “Isn’t that what I just said though?” Kelly shot her friend another look, and the other girl shrugged, looking at her cell phone to tap away at the screen.

“Okay,” Devyn said, approaching where the girl sat on the exam table. “Are you feeling any pain anywhere else? In your back, or pelvis?” I watched from across the room as Nurse Echols talked Kelly through a light abdominal exam, while she asked questions about the girl’s lifestyle. Nutrition, hygiene, sex, etc., all in a pleasant, soothing tone that comforted Kelly enough to make her attitude completely change as she chattered about college, the food in the dining hall, and her boyfriend.

“Okay, you’re using protection with him, right? Every single time?” she asked, stepping back as Kelly sat up. Kelly sucked her teeth. “Girl, yeah. I’m trying to graduate, not have any damn babies.” “That’s good,” Devyn laughed. “But protection isn’t just for avoiding babies. Are you both being tested regularly for STDs?” “Yes,” Kelly said proudly. “We’re both clean.” Devyn nodded. “Good. Keep doing that. I’m going to give you a little

cup and let you go to the bathroom to give us a urine sample. Are you having symptoms of anything else? Any burning, itching, when you’re not urinating?” Kelly shifted a little in her seated position, looking down at her hands. “Umm… well…” “Okay.” Devyn smiled at her. “When you come back from the bathroom, we’ll have your friend step out, and you can change into a gown for me. Instead of just a urine test, I’ll do a quick pelvic exam, to make sure everything is okay down there. Alright?”

Kelly agreed, and Devyn and I stepped out, watching as she giggled down the hall to the bathroom with her friend. The friend stood outside while Kelly went in. Devyn turned to me, looking cagey, but obviously wanting feedback. I let out a deep sigh, and her expression went from cautious to annoyed as I took my time opening my mouth to answer. “I don’t have any critiques for you right now, Nurse Echols. Good engagement with your patient, and good procedure. Good

work.” Her mouth dropped open, and her eyebrows shot up before she quickly recovered, trying to play cool. That lasted all of maybe two seconds before her mouth spread into a huge smile, and damn… pissed-off Devyn was appealing, but this Devyn, who was looking at me like I’d just handed her a million dollars was… shit. “Your patient is done with her urine sample,” I said, relieved at Kelly’s appearance in the hall. I was trying to get her on something else, looking

somewhere other than me. That distraction worked for about a minute while Devyn addressed her patient, but as soon as it was just me and her again, after we’d retrieved the urine sample, she started talking. “I can’t believe I got a compliment out of you,” she mused, tugging her bottom lip between her teeth as she glanced at me, then turned back to testing the sample. “I was half expecting you to tell me I’d introduced myself wrong, or berate me for making sure she was having protected sex.”

“You may want to focus on getting correct results from your sample instead of so much talking.” I fought hard to keep from laughing as she glared over her shoulder at me, then shook her head as she finished testing. She didn’t say anything else to me, just notated the test results before she strode back down to the exam room. Once again, I fell back, letting Nurse Echols do her thing. Kelly opted to keep her friend in the room as Devyn draped a thin white sheet over her

propped up knees and sat between her legs with an instrument tray beside her. From where I was standing, Kelly’s legs were pointed away from me, and Devyn’s head was mostly obscured under the sheet. After a few moments though, her head popped up, her expression serious as she looked at Kelly. “Have you been using any new soaps or laundry detergents?” she asked, and Kelly shook her head. “Why?” “Well, I’m gonna swab you and

test just to be sure, but you’ve got a significant amount of yeast here. Any new lubricants, or condoms? Anything foreign introduced to your vagina?” Again, Kelly shook her head. “Not that I can think of… unless…” “Unless what?” Devyn probed. Instead of answering, Kelly looked at her friend, who cringed and looked away. “What is it, Ms. Franklin?” Devyn asked again. “Well…” Kelly averted her eyes, staring straight up at the ceiling. “My

boyfriend’s birthday was a few days ago, and I wanted to do something special, so… we…” Devyn sighed. “What exactly did you put in there?” “Well it wasn’t exactly in there, not on purpose. But I had some chocolate syrup, whipped cream… strawberries… well… those were on purpose.” Holy shit. I swiped a hand over my face and closed my eyes, trying not to chuckle about these young ass kids calling

themselves being grown – and messing shit up in the process. “Kelly, listen to me, okay? I don’t care how sexy it seems – food doesn’t belong in your vagina. If you’re playing with whipped cream, chocolate, whatever, any hands, toys, or mouths need to be washed, and free of any residue before coming in contact with the inside of your vagina. Okay?” “Yes ma’am.” Devyn looked at her a few seconds longer and then shook her head, pulling the sheet back down to cover

Kelly. “We’re going to get you taken care of. Bactrim for a week for the UTI that showed in your urine, and two pills of a medicine called Flagyl for the yeast. Take one when you get the prescription filled, and the other when you’re done with the antibiotic. Okay?” Kelly nodded, then glanced at her friend again as she sat up. “Umm… would it be at all possible for you to write a script for her too?” Immediately, I went from amused to alert, and Devyn frowned. “Excuse me?”

“Well… my boyfriend… he has a twin, so it was both of their birthdays and….um… yeah. So, if I got messed up, that means she did too right? And she doesn’t have insurance to be seen by a doctor, but I do, and I don’t want her just suffering… so if you could write her one… or double mine? Please?” I looked at Nurse Echols, waiting for her to respond with the hell no I knew she’d been taught to give. Instead, she looked stricken by the request, and a little too sympathetic. “Please?!” Kelly eagerly asked

again, with a sneaky little triumphant gleam in her eyes. Devyn sighed. “I… Uh…” “No,” I spoke up, bringing the room’s attention to me. “If your friend wants to be treated, she needs to be seen as a patient. We have rules to follow, for a reason.” Kelly rolled her eyes at me, then looked back at Devyn. “Please? It’s just an antibiotic—” “That your friend could be allergic to,” I shot back. “And I would be held liable for that.”

“I’m not allergic to anything!” the friend chimed in, and I gave her a wry smile. “Good. I’d be glad to write you a prescription for anything you need – as a patient. Otherwise, Ms. Franklin you can get dressed, and pick up your prescription from the hospital pharmacy on your way out.” Their decision didn’t take very long. Not even a minute later, I was strolling down the hall, heading back up to the Women’s Center.

“Oh, you wait a minute!” I heard Devyn’s angry voice behind me. “Is this becoming a thing?” I asked, without stopping. “You running behind me to talk?” There was already an elevator waiting, so I climbed on, pressing the “6” on the glowing panel as Devyn caught up, joining me on the elevator. “How dare you?” she hissed as the doors closed behind us, completely ignoring my little comment about the hallway conversations I’d actually come to look forward to.

I shrugged, crossing my arms as I leaned back against the elevator wall. “How dare I what?” “Undermine me in front of a patient like that?!” “Undermine you? I spoke up because it seemed like you were having a problem doing it yourself.” “I wasn’t having a problem,” she snapped, taking a step closer to me. “I was trying to choose my words carefully.” “A simple no, to an ethically questionable request, is as careful as it

gets – unless your rules and code are different than mine. What exactly did they teach you about that in nursing school?” “Do No Harm, just like what they taught your arrogant ass in medical school, Pussy Doctor. Right between the lessons on “obnoxious ego” and “Being an Asshole 101”.” My eyes got big. “Oh, it’s like that?! I knew you’d run to your little friend to complain about me, since you can’t handle a little friction at work. Too bad it’s not an insult coming from you –

you’re a pussy doctor too. Oh, wait, excuse me – Pussy Nurse.” “And a damned good one too,” she said, eyes narrowed. “Cause see, as a nurse, we learn about caring for patients, not just being some cold robot that treats them. Yeah, it took me a second to answer, because even though I was going to say no, I wanted the patient to feel taken care of. Both of those girls needed care, not just the one with insurance.” “Yeah, well they should have thought about that before they decided to

go serving up pussy sundaes for their little knucklehead boyfriends. Both of those girls had on Blakewood gear. They’re students, which means they could have taken their asses to student health in the morning, or did you forget about that? I’m sure you even had to do some work there, since you’re an alum.” Devyn tipped her head to the side, obviously taken aback. “But she said…” “Yeah, I know what she said. I’ve also been at this hospital long enough to know that female students

don’t particularly like going to student health because they don’t want anybody to see them there. Because they don’t want to become the next rumor on campus.” She sucked her teeth. “Okay, so they were trying to save themselves some embarrassment!” “That’s not my problem! My actual patients, that’s who I have a responsibility to.” “You mean my patient,” she snapped, taking the last step that separated us, putting her right in my face,

scowling up like she wasn’t almost a foot shorter than me. “You said it was my patient – that I was taking the lead – then you should have let me do that. You had no right to butt in!” I scoffed. “I had every right to butt in, because my name is on the prescription pad. Or did you forget that you don’t have that privilege, Nurse Echols?” She went quiet. Quiet was dangerous. For a long moment she simply stared at me, chest heaving. And then,

she pressed a single finger to the middle of my tie, jabbing it into my chest. “I want you to know that I cannot stand your arrogant, egotistical, narcissistic ass. Do I remind you of the girl who wouldn’t let you take her to prom? Are you socially awkward, or sexually repressed, or – and I think this is the winner – are you just an asshole? Tell me!” I moved forward then too, grabbing her at the wrist to keep her from jabbing me in the chest again. And then I hooked her around the waist and

hauled her against me, putting that smartass mouth of hers to good use. She stiffened at first, when my lips touched hers, but then I felt her relax against me, so I pushed harder. I slid my tongue between her lips, savoring the minty taste of her tongue as I released her wrist, burying my hand in her hair instead. Devyn responded enthusiastically, pushing up on her toes to wrap her arms around my neck and arch her body into me. With my hand underneath her lab coat, the only thing

separating us was the lightweight fabric of her top, and she was just as warm and soft as I’d imagined as I tightened my grip at her waist. She verbalized her pleasure, in whimpers and moans that stayed muffled between us as I stroked my tongue in her mouth. Blood rushed to my groin as her nipples hardened against my chest, and I backed her toward the wall, pressing her against it as I lowered my hands to her ass, gripping and squeezing. The elevator chimed to let us know we were back on our floor, and

that seemed to snap Devyn out of our little bubble of pleasure. She pulled away from the kiss, then squirmed out of my arms, her lips parted in shock as she moved further away, with her hand to her chest. For several long seconds, we just stared. The elevator doors closed again, and I scrubbed a hand over my face as I pushed out a breath, then turned my gaze back to her. “Listen, I—” “I’m going to pretend that didn’t just happen,” she interrupted, her chest

heaving as she pivoted to face the doors instead of me. “Because if it had, it might be considered… not okay. So I’m gonna go now. Send that prescription in for Kelly Franklin please.” She pressed the button to reopen the doors, and practically sprinted out of the elevator as I watched. I shot out after her, grabbing her arm to pull her toward the empty hall, instead of the nurse’s information desk. “Wait a second,” I insisted, turning her around to face me. “Are we really about to act like that didn’t just

happen?” “Hell yes,” she hissed, glancing around me down the hall. “I am absolutely going to pretend you didn’t take it upon yourself to kiss me like… like that. It was completely inappropriate, and I…” she took a deep breath and then looked away, lifting a hand to stroke her neck. I tucked a hand under her chin, turning her face toward me, and tipping her head back to see into her eyes. “You… what?” She didn’t answer.

Her breath caught in her throat and she held it, chest heaving as she stared up me. She was giving me that same wide-eyed look that already turned me on, but in this moment, it felt like an invitation. So I lowered my mouth to hers and accepted.

four.

Twenty minutes ago, I would have sworn Dr. Wright couldn’t stand me. I would have sworn that I couldn’t stand him either. Couldn’t stand him more. So why in the world were the

two of us currently making out in the hospital hallway? And why on earth wasn’t I telling him to stop? Footsteps that didn’t belong to either of us rang out around the corner, and before I could process what was happening, Dr. Wright had pulled us into an unlocked supply closet, closing and locking the door behind us. It was a tiny room, and the only light provided was what filtered through the frosted glass pane on the door. Shelves lined two sides, with just

enough space on the unshelved wall for him to push me against it, and kiss me again. His fingers dug into my hips, grabbing and pulling me closer as he devoured my mouth. One hand stayed there, while he brought the other up to bury in my hair as he lowered his lips to my neck, sucking and biting until my knees went weak. Think about this, Devyn. This isn’t a good thing… but it damn sure feels that way. That was what happened in my

head every time I tried to tell myself to push him away. Logic would start to build, and then the pleasure of his mouth or fingers on me would push it off a cliff. He tugged my lab coat off, and I did the same to him, hands and arms clashing as I went for the buttons on his shirt, and he went for the tie keeping my dress closed. He chuckled against my mouth – imagine that, Dr. Wright laughing with me – as we finally pulled the offending items open, and as he buried his face in my cleavage, I

immediately went for his belt. A loud gasp escaped my throat as he closed his mouth over one of my newly freed nipples, gently tugging it between his teeth. I bit my lip, reminding myself where we were as he sucked it hard, then looked up at me in the dim light and winked. So, the asshole remains. But I could play too. I quickly finished opening his belt, and then my hands were in his boxers, gripping and squeezing with one hand while I used the other to tug his

pants down. He groaned, bringing his mouth back to mine as he grabbed my ass, lifting me off the floor. I kept my hand around his dick, squeezing and stroking his velvety flesh as he pushed me against the wall, and I wrapped my legs around his waist. “You see what you’ve done?” he groaned in my ear before he nipped me there, then soothed the sting with a kiss. “So this is my fault?” I gasped as he squeezed my ass, pulling me so close that it was impossible to keep stroking him.

“Hell yes,” he muttered against my mouth, taking a second to suck my bottom lip before he kissed me again, another hungry one that made my heart race. “You have any idea how sexy you are when you’re pissed?” In the back of my head, something clicked as he lowered his mouth to my breasts again. I didn’t even bother trying to suppress a moan in response to the rasp of his tongue across my nipple before he sucked it into his mouth. “So,” I whimpered, closing my

eyes as he pushed my panties aside, pressing a thumb to my clit. “All this time, you’ve been purposely making me mad?” He lifted his head, pressing his bare chest against mine as he made circles with that thumb, making me squirm against him. He looked me right in the eyes as he pushed a first, then second finger into me, and said, “Yeah.” “Asshole.” I wanted to be mad enough to push him off me – especially since what we were doing was nuts anyway. He

dropped his mouth to my neck again, and I willed myself to tell him to stop, but then pressure was coiling in the pit of my stomach, and my legs were starting to shake, and well… Screw it. “You mad?” he asked, watching me with his lip between his teeth as I rocked against his hand. He’d always been handsome, but with his face all intense, eyes dark with passion as he devoured my reactions… “I asked you a question, Nurse Echols.” “Hell yes,” I shot at him, even

though I really wasn’t. Later, maybe, but I was so close to coming on his hand that it was all I could think about. He chuckled then – a deep, warm, sexy sound that felt damn near erotic, then put his mouth right against my ear as he plunged his fingers as deep as they could get, pressing a spot that made my legs turn to liquid. “No you’re not,” he whispered. “You’re too wet to be mad.” “I can’t stand you,” I whimpered as I clung to his shoulders, trying to move away from the pleasure of his

fingers. He tightened his grip around my waist, keeping me still as he pumped faster. “But you’re crazy about me right now.” He lowered his head, slipping his tongue back into my mouth to swallow the high-pitched moans that escaped my throat as I came, eyes squeezed shut as I clenched around his fingers. “Arrogant bastard,” I managed to whisper, after a few seconds to catch my breath.

Joseph grinned at me – a hungry, lecherous grin that made my heart flutter – then glanced around the closet. He grabbed a condom from one of the shelves – from one of the buckets of free ones we put out in the waiting room – and ripped it open, sheathing himself. “Let me show you how sorry I am.” I bit my lip as he positioned himself against my opening, sucking in a breath when he started the push to get inside. My gaze flicked up to his face, where I found him watching for my

reaction. Our eyes met as he entered me, in a slow, deep stroke that pulled a low moan of satisfaction from my throat. He made a similar sound, then lowered his mouth to mine, devouring me as he buried himself as deep as he could go. His hands gripped my ass as he began to move, in languid, measured strokes that felt like he was pushing all the way into my stomach. I closed my eyes, dug my nails into his muscled shoulders, and rolled my hips with the rhythm of his thrusts. This was… blissful. His fingers digging into my

flesh, his mouth on my neck, down to my breasts, then back up to run his tongue along my throat. I moved my head back, giving him better access to suck, bite, and kiss. “Still mad?” he asked, growling the words against my skin. I opened my mouth to answer, but couldn’t catch my breath long enough to form words as he moved into a faster tempo. He pounded into me, filling the tiny supply closet with the smack of flesh on flesh. Faster and faster, as he plunged deeper, kissed me harder,

smacked my ass. It was too much. I bit down on his shoulder as I came unglued. He pulled me even tighter against him, pumping into me hard as my body clenched around him, milking his release as I whimpered through my own. We stayed like that, stuck together, as we caught our breath. After a few minutes passed in silence, he released my legs, letting me lower them to the ground. I let out a shaky breath, then stepped away from him, grabbing onto the shelf to keep myself steady now.

“This never happened,” I said, clearing my throat as I pulled my bra back into position, then hurriedly re-belted my dress. “I don’t… we can’t… I… I’m going home.” “Okay,” he said, after an extended pause. He’d opened a box of tissues for minor clean up, then tucked himself back in, but his shirt was still open, displaying chocolate covered abs that were a fucking distraction. How were we supposed to work together after this? Before he could say anything

else, or finish dressing, I snatched my lab coat from the floor and got my ass out of that closet. I peeked to make sure no one was coming, then practically ran to the bathroom to clean myself up. I checked my reflection in the mirror once the door was closed behind me. I looked…like I’d just had the best sex of my life. My hair was all over the place, clothes a wrinkled mess, and any trace of my lipstick had been kissed off. I shuddered, then quickly worked my way

through a makeshift cleanup with the awful public bathroom paper towels, then pulled on the lab coat. Dr. Wright’s lab coat, with his name embroidered right there on the chest. Shiiiiiit! I jumped, startled, as a knock sounded at the door. I looked toward it, debating what to do, when Dr. Wright’s voice came from the other side. “I think we need to make a switch, please.” I immediately went to the door,

opening it just wide enough for him to pass me my coat. I moved to give him his, but held it a little, waiting until our gazes met to speak. “Never. Happened,” I said, then closed and locked the door.

-&“Y’all so damn nassssty,” Reese teased, her eyes bright and amused as she playfully poked me in the side. It was the day after my little supply closet

tryst with Joseph, and after spending my day off waffling over whether or not to say anything, I found myself next to my best friend, giving her a complete play by play of what happened. I swatted her away, shaking my head. “It wasn’t my fault!” “So he just made you climb up on that hot link, huh?” “Reesie!” “What?” she laughed, standing up to dodge the swat I aimed at her leg. “I’m just saying… can’t really blame it on him when you were a willing partner.

I told you this was going to happen.” I sighed, slumping down on Jay’s couch, since she was over there, again. “You did. And my silly ass didn’t believe you. I legitimately thought he didn’t like me, and yet—” “There you were, getting dicked down in a supply closet at work. With a free condom. The American dream, to be honest.” “Stop,” I insisted, even though I was laughing. “I really don’t even know why I had sex with him. One minute we were arguing, the next minute his tongue

was down my throat, and the minute after that, he’s making me come. Twice.” Reese nodded, her face completely serious. “You know what this means now, right?” I shook my head. “No. What? Please tell me. Please make sense of this for me.” Reese lifted an eyebrow. “I mean… I was gonna say “y’all go together now”, but if you’re looking for a serious answer…” “Yes,” I said, motioning with my hands for her to give it to me. “I am.”

“Well, it’s kind of like me and Jay, right? We “hated” each other, but it was more like we hated that we wanted each other, because we were so different. But, with you and Joseph, the only reason you didn’t like him was because you thought he didn’t like you. But it turns out he did like you. So… hello dirty work sex. You look great though, with your “good sex glow.” I pushed out another sigh, flopping back into the pillows again. I knew Reese was right – I’d actually already worked that conclusion out for

myself. I just needed to hear it from someone else. “So what do I do now?” I asked, sitting up and looking around. “And Jay isn’t lurking around here somewhere is he? My head was so messed up I didn’t even think to ask if he was here.” “Nah, he’s out with his brothers, watching some MMA fight or something. I’m sure Joey is telling all your business.” My eyes went wide. “What?! Do you really think he’s telling people about this?”

Reese wrinkled her nose, looking me up and down. “Are you a crazy person? Those three are best friends. They get together at least once a week to gossip and fart, or whatever the hell men do together. Trust me – just like you’re telling me, Joseph is telling them.” I groaned, putting a hand to my forehead. “Oh my God. Why couldn’t I just keep my pussy to myself?” “Because Joseph is smart, and fine, and charming, and a doctor… should I go on?”

“Not necessary,” I said, with a heavy sigh. “I just wish I knew what to do now.” As if working together with him hadn’t been awkward enough before, how in the hell was I going to look at him now? Would things get weird? Would we really pretend nothing had happened? Could we? I had no answers to any of those questions, but that didn’t stop them from running through my mind. Sex with Joseph had been… shit. It couldn’t have

been as good as I remembered. Maybe it just because it had been a minute since I’d had any. Or maybe it was because he was someone new. Ugh. Those were lies, and I knew it. I dropped my head into my hands again, try to clear my thoughts, but inevitably, they drifted back to that night. Back to him. What the hell am I gonna do?

-&-

Still can’t believe I did that shit. I stared, unseeingly, at the huge flat screen TV, nursing my third beer in the loud, crowded bar. Two men were on-screen kicking each other’s ass – supposedly my reason for being here – but my mind was stuck back at the hospital. Or, wherever Devyn was.

Shit. I tried my best to be focused and professional when it came to my duties as a doctor. Yeah, I messed with Devyn a little, stopping short of being offensive, or disrespectful, anything that might get my ass fired. But I torpedoed that with one kiss. And then a helluva lot more after that. “Yo, what’s up with you Joey?” I was pulled out of my thoughts by my brother, Jay as he returned from the bar with another ice-filled bucket of

beers. He maneuvered himself onto the other side of the love seat, plopping down with less care than I wanted him to use, then looked at me again. “Well? You gonna answer the question?” I sighed, then shook my head, taking another swig of my beer. “Nothing much,” I said, with my eyes on the TV. They were stopping the fight to clean some of the blood off the floor. “Work.” “Problem with a patient?” I looked back to Jay as he popped the cap off his bottle and sat back. “You killed

somebody today?” “What? Nah, man,” I said, with a dry chuckle. “Nothing like that. The patients are fine. It’s actually… one of my coworkers.” “Devyn.” I lifted an eyebrow. “How the hell you know that?” “Because I know you, and I’ve seen her.” “Fuck does that mean?” He shrugged, sitting back. “She’s pretty and thick. Right up your alley, Doc.”

“What are you doing looking at your woman’s friend? Isn’t that against the rules?” Jay sucked his teeth. “I’m not “looking” at Devyn. I’ve seen her. There’s a difference. And besides thatnigga, Reese knows I ain’t blind. I lost a leg, not my eyes, remember?” I cringed. “Will you stop saying stuff like that?” “Why? Cause it makes you uncomfortable? Stop being uptight. I’m chilling, and I suggest you do the same, Pussy Doctor.”

“Motherfu—will y’all stop that shit? Spreading it around. You know Devyn called me that shit last night?” Jay let out a loud shout of laughter. “That’s your own fault, man,” he grinned, tipping back his beer. “You had to know Reese was gonna give her friend some ammunition.” “Not that.” “Why the fuck not?” he asked, still laughing. “Reese told me Devyn said you’ve been hell to work with, so of course she pulled out the big gun. Did it work?”

“Did what work?” Jay and I looked up to see our middle brother, Justin, standing at the table. He pulled a beer from the bucket for himself and then dropped into a seat, looking back and forth as he waited for an answer. “Joey’s over here stressed out cause Devyn has his dick hard at work and he can’t focus. Almost killed somebody.” Jay answered, just barely keeping his expression serious. He and Justin burst out laughing at the same time, and I didn’t say anything. Just

shook my head. “Wait, Devyn… that’s Reese’s friend, right?” Justin asked. “The thick light-skinned honey with the blonde hair, and the freckles?” Jay nodded. “That’s her.” Justin chuckled. “Oh damn. So there’s some truth to it then, huh?” “Not really,” I grunted, staring at the TV again. “Stop lying, nigga.” Justin emphasized his reprimand by throwing a handful of peanuts at me. “Where you think you are? We already know all your

bullshit, no sense in putting on.” I pushed out a deep sigh, then dropped my head back on the couch, staring up at the ceiling for a second before I straightened up, looking between my brothers. “Aiight. I’m gonna tell the story, but I don’t want to see this shit in one of your books a year from now, Mr. Bestseller.” “That’s too bad. Maybe it would actually be good,” Jay snickered, and Justin frowned as he tipped his head to the side before he laughed too. “That’s cold as fuck,” Justin

said, mushing Jay in the side of the head. “Just because you don’t like the series —” I grunted. “And neither did Toni.” Justin scowled again as he turned to me. “Damn, Joey. Et tu?” “Nigga don’t nobody know what that shit means,” Jay said, side eyeing Jus as he took another swig from his beer. “Joseph, you gonna tell us this story or not?” I scrubbed a hand over my face, finished my beer, and then reached for

another. “Man… how much time y’all got?” “Plenty, if you’d stop beating around the bush. Spit it out.” I blew out a sigh, then raised the beer to my lips, draining half of it before I put it down. “Uh… me and Dev…” I stopped, shaking my head. Jay and Justin were both riveted, beers in hand, waiting on me to finish, but damn. I was having a hard time just saying the shit. “You smashed, didn’t you?” I cut my eyes at Justin, who’d blurted that out. Jay’s eyes got big, and

he scooted forward to the edge of his seat. “Wait a minute… did you?! You did, didn’t you?! When?!” “I… last night,” I muttered. “I thought you were at the hospital all night last night though?” he asked, wearing a confused frown that quickly faded into understanding. “Yo… at the hospital though?!” “Motherfucker, will you keep your voice down?” I scowled at Justin, who was bent over at the side, laughing. “Dude,” he said, holding his stomach as he sat up.

“I’m definitely using this shit in a book.” “Justin, I swear to God…” “Chill,” Jay said, trying to pull himself together. “We’re just messing with you, man. Seriously though… you and Devyn? Y’all are a thing now?” I shook my head. “Nah, it’s not like that. We’re on the same page – pretend it didn’t happen. We don’t need any drama at the hospital.” Justin and Jay exchanged a look, and then Justin spoke up. “This isn’t going to turn into another “Mariah” situation, is it?”

“Hell no,” I insisted. “That’s not even Devyn’s vibe.” Jay scoffed. “You sure? I distinctly remember Dev getting very, um… aggressive when I first met her. And that’s Reese’s friend too? She may not cause a big scene, but I wouldn’t put it past her to put some razor blades in your lab coat pockets.” At that, I laughed. “Nah, bruh. I’m sure. Nothing like that. I mean… I don’t think so.” Again, my brothers exchanged a look, but this time neither of them said

anything. They didn’t have to – I already knew. If I wanted to be certain about avoiding any drama, I should have left her alone. Should have kept my hands to myself. But… it didn’t happen like that. So now what was I going to do?

five.

“So what’s the deal between you and Dr. Wright?” My eyes shot up from the patient chart in my hands, landing right on Aviva’s face. It was pulled into a contemplative expression as she leaned

back in her office chair, hands resting on her swollen belly. We were sitting in her office, reviewing the patients we’d seen that day. Since the day I started, Aviva had always been great at sitting down with me, probing to see if I had questions I was afraid to ask, making sure I knew what was going on, that I was learning. It was something Joseph hadn’t done – he avoided being alone behind closed doors with me. After our little rendezvous in the supply closet last week, now I understood why.

I couldn’t shake the intense heat that had swept over me in that moment when he kissed me in the elevator. Him towering over me with that sexy smirk while his fingers played between my legs. Him holding me close as he plunged into me. I had to clench my thighs together to suppress a shiver. Who would have thought it was exactly like Reese said? That his “dislike” of me was actually attraction? That his assholery was flirting? That he was getting under my skin because he

wanted get under my clothes? All this time, I thought he was being mean just because he could. In the week that had passed since The Incident, he barely looked my way. When I reported to work the Monday after the elevator, I found out that my training had been shifted to Aviva, under the guise that she needed assistance since she was so close to having her baby. I didn’t believe that for a second though – he was avoiding me. But what exactly had he told Aviva? Had he told anyone the way I’d

spoken to him? That I’d gotten into his face? As mad as I was, and as well deserved as the verbal lashing had been, he was still technically my superior. Not “exactly” my boss, but close enough to it that my mouth could get me in trouble. Or… had he told her what we’d done? “Nothing,” I said, shaking my head as I finally answered Aviva’s question, wondering just how much she knew. It was the truth, technically. There was nothing between us. At all. “I mean, we’re colleagues, but other than that…”

The smile on Aviva’s face said she didn’t believe me, but she nodded. “Oh. I thought maybe he’d finally gotten up the nerve to make a move and gotten shot down.” My eyes went big. “What?! No! No, nothing like… no. It wasn’t that.” “So there was an it?” “What?” “You said “it” wasn’t like that. So something happened. Spill.” I let out a sigh. Since I’d started at the hospital, it was Aviva, out of all the doctors, who

made me feel most welcome. The nursing staff had been warm and friendly, but the doctors were a mixed bag. Some had an outright distaste for nurse practitioners and were of the attitude that I was trying to be a doctor without the title, which was ridiculous. Some were simply unphased, and made it clear they didn’t really want to be bothered. Aviva and Joseph were the ones I engaged with regularly, and Joseph was an asshole. Aviva wasn’t. She was well liked and well

respected, by her patients and all of the staff. I didn’t have too many qualms about confiding in her, but still… “I…” I hesitated, looking down at the nude polish on my nails before I looked back to her. “I don’t want him to get in trouble. I don’t want either of us to get in trouble.” She lifted an eyebrow at me as she leaned forward, her expression suddenly serious. “In trouble? What did he do? I will murd—” “No, no! It’s not… it’s not like that. It wasn’t anything really bad, and I

wasn’t offended or anything, but I know sometimes hospitals can be strict. So, I’m just saying… I don’t want him to get in trouble.” “You’re sure?” I nodded. “I’m positive. I’m sure I’m making it sound bigger than what it was.” “How about you just tell me what it was then?” Shifting in my seat, I cleared my throat, then began. “Well, we were on the elevator the other night, when he had me stay over. We were… arguing, and

then he—” “Did he kiss you?!” “What?!” I shrieked, raising my hands in protest. “Why would you ask that?!” How the hell did she hit that nail right on the head?! Aviva sucked her teeth, slouching back in her seat, looking completely disappointed. “Too many romance novels I guess. So what happened then?” I took a deep breath, weighing out my options, trying to decide just how much I should say. I trusted Aviva,

mostly… but still. “He expressed that he was… attracted to me. That I was sexy when I was mad.” A strange look came over Aviva’s face and she sat up. “Devyn, I want you to be honest with me. Did you feel at all offended, or taken advantage of, or pressured to do anything…?” “No,” I answered immediately. “Not at all.” “Did Dr. Wright make you uncomfortable?” I blinked. “Um… yes. But it

wasn’t like…” I pushed out a breath. “I was uncomfortable because I was feeling…” Aviva tipped her head to the side. “Feeling… what? Attracted to him too?” “Yes.” “Okay.” Aviva nodded. “Good. Because that means I can do this now without feeling bad.” I tipped my head to the side, confused at first, but then I rolled my eyes as Aviva threw her head back and laughed–a long, hearty peal that made

her eyes water. “Sorry,” she said, between gulps of laughter. “I just… you two are funny.” “This is not funny. We have to work together!” “I didn’t say the situation was funny – I said the two of you were funny. Devyn, are you telling me that you were honestly shocked to find out that he was attracted to you?” “Yes,” I insisted. “I’m used to men flirting with me, making crude comments, or ya know, asking me out. He has been awful to me since I started

here!” “It’s deflection,” Aviva laughed. “Joseph doesn’t date coworkers – despite what whispers may go around the hospital. But then you walk in here and you’re everything that cranks his motor. He can’t handle it.” “He’s a grown man!” “What’s your point?” Aviva shook her head, closing the folder on her desk before she stood. “Joseph is a grown man, yes. One that I’ve known since med school. The vast majority of his time has been devoted to working his

ass off to get where he is at just thirtyfour. On a personal level, it’s hard to get his attention. So when someone does… his circuits get all screwed up. Now, don’t get me wrong – I’m not encouraging anything between you and Joseph. I’m trying to offer some context, on his behalf, since we do still all have to work together. In time, trust me. He’ll be normal, and we’ll all settle into a nice flow. Let’s put these charts back with the others and get out of here.” As I stood to join her, an unpleasant feeling settled into my chest

at the thought of things being “normal” between me and Dr. Wright. I imagined coming to the hospital every day to the pleasant, but mundane working relationship he seemed to have with everyone else. I thought about him not making my heart race when it was time for feedback, thought about me not pushing myself to make sure he had nothing bad to say. I thought about not having those little hallway feedback sessions. I didn’t like those thoughts, at all. I followed Aviva up to the

nurse’s station, almost walking into her when she came to an abrupt stop in front of me. “Lord have mercy,” she muttered under her breath, and I followed her gaze to a tall, handsome, caramel teddy bear of a man standing at the desk, dimples on a hundred as he flirted with the nurses. I strode past Aviva, stopping behind his gallery of fans. I stared at him until he looked up, and then his grin spread even wider. “What’s up, Dev?” I crossed my arms over my chest,

trying to look stern as I cast my gaze over the crowd of women. “I could ask you the same thing. What are you doing here?” He sucked his teeth. “What do you think? I came to take you to dinner. And what, I can’t get a hug or nothing?” Rolling my eyes, I held up my hands, motioning for him to come to me. This was the second attractive man who’d come to my job and charmed his way into the back to see me. As he pulled me into his thick arms for a hug, I wondered if these folks were going to

start wondering if a revolving door of men was common for me. I got my answer a second later, when I stepped back from the hug to see Joseph had approached, and was looking right at me, a clear question in his eyes before he averted his gaze. Shit. “Umm,” I said, turning back the way I’d come. Joseph was behind the desk now, refiling patient charts. “Aviva, everybody, this is my big brother, Eric.” Aviva was instantly right in front of me, pregnant belly and all, extending

her hand. “Nice to meet you Eric,” she practically purred, in a silky-smooth voice I’d never heard before. “I’m Dr. Winslow. We are so grateful to have your sister joining our team.” “Dr. Winslow, the pleasure is mine,” my brother flirted right back, lifting her hand to his mouth to kiss her fingers. Very pregnant or not, Aviva was basically a Jet Beauty of the Week. Pretty mahogany skin, regal features, petite, with long dark hair. My brother didn’t really have a type – he just liked women, period – but if he did…

“gorgeous doctor” would certainly fit. “Devyn has spoken very highly of you,” he continued, still holding her hand. “But she definitely didn’t mention how fine you were.” Aviva giggled, and said something back, but I was too busy watching Dr. Wright to notice. He didn’t seem like he was trying to linger around the desk, and certainly wasn’t trying to get my attention, but when he looked up and noticed me watching him, he paused to hold my gaze. “You ready to go?” Eric asked,

and I tore my gaze away from Joseph long enough to nod, and offer my brother a smile. “I asked Aviva to join us, but she turned me down.” Aviva laughed. “I’m exhausted and honestly not feeling great. The baby and I need some sleep,” she said pointedly, looking up at Eric. “Well, y’all need to eat too right?” Eric lifted an eyebrow, waiting on her to answer, and she shook her head. “That’s what delivery is for. You two go. You’ll be here tomorrow, right

Devyn?” I smiled. “Yeah. You get off your feet, get some rest. I’ll see you tomorrow.” “Goodbye, Aviva,” Eric said, in a tone that made me roll my eyes. Aviva blushed, tugging at the corner of her lip with her teeth. “Goodbye, Eric. See you later Devyn.” I shoved Eric’s arm as he watched Aviva walk away, then turned to where I’d last seen Dr. Wright. He was gone now, probably had been for a while, so I bid the nursing staff goodbye

to join Eric for dinner.

-&Twenty minutes later, I sat across the table from Eric at Roll Play, a trendy little sushi place that served creative spins on the dish. I was eating a roll stuffed with crawfish, chicken, andouille sausage and stewed okra, served in a trench of spicy gumbo. Eric was eating some monstrosity where blanched collard greens replaced the seaweed wrap, macaroni and cheese replaced the

sushi rice, and fried chicken and candied sweet potato made up the middle. I declined the bite he offered. “Instead of trying to entice me with ridiculous food, why don’t you tell me to what I owe the pleasure of being treated to dinner?” Eric scoffed, then took a long drink of peach tea. “Come on, sis. I treat you all the time.” “Not lately,” I said, trying to appear somber as I spooned gumbo into my mouth, then swallowed. “I barely see you.”

“Because of this new schedule you’re on,” he said, pulling up his shoulders. “We’re never off work at the same time anymore. I’m only here now because I took off for a little bit to see you.” “Awww, for me?” I smiled. “Management program kicking your ass?” He sighed, reclining back in his chair with his hands propped behind his head. “Hell yeah. Worth it though, so I’m not complaining.” “You rarely do.”

Eric waved me off. “When you’re blessed, no need to. But forget all of that. I wanna know more about that fine ass doctor friend of yours.” “Of course you do,” I laughed. “She’s single. A doctor, as you know. Pregnant, obviously. Due next month.” “Where’s the father?” I shrugged. “She actually has made it no secret that she used a sperm donor to get pregnant. She’s going to be a single mom.” He lifted an eyebrow. “Wow. That’s pretty major.”

“Yeah, it is, but she has the means, so hey. It works for her. But she’s going to be going on leave soon and I’m supposed to be helping fill in the gap during her absence.” Eric nodded, absently running his thumb over the soft stubble on his chin. “You think she’d be interested in a…” He shifted uncomfortably in his seat, glancing around like he was trying to make sure no one heard him. “Somebody like me? With my history?” I let out an inaudible sigh as I looked across the table at my handsome

brother, then nodded. “E,” I said softly, leaning forward onto the glossy, lacquered bamboo tabletop, “If you weren’t such a whore, I’d say she would be crazy not to.” A long time ago, my brother had gotten himself involved with some notso-great people, in his efforts to escape his understandably tense relationship with our father. Their not-so-legal hobbies had landed him in prison, but when he got out, almost eight years ago, he was determined to turn it all around. It had been slow going – no one wanted

to hire a felon at the kind of jobs that made the kind of money you needed to get a life back in order. When he first got out, he lived with our mother without a single complaint until he got his own place. Eventually, I’d found out that BSU had a program that would assist with a degree, and he went after it with vigor, finishing it right before I started my position at the hospital. He may have had a felony on his record, but he also had a degree now. I had to believe that would make a difference, and it already seemed like it

had – the owner of Refill, after seeing my brother work hard as hell to keep the club safe for the last six years – offered him a position in management. He was moving up. “I’m not a whore,” he chuckled. “I just appreciate and enjoy the presence of beautiful women. May even lock one down, start a family.” I damn near choked on a spoonful of stray rice. “Are you serious, E? You, settling down? Having a family? Does mama know you’ve been abducted by aliens and replaced?”

“Don’t do me like that Dev. Yeah, I’m serious. Been thinking about it for a minute actually.” I nodded. “Mmm. Well, Aviva is perfect then. Wife and child combo.” “Right?!” My lips parted as I stared across at Eric. “I was… I was kidding, Eric.” “And I wasn’t. Something wrong with Aviva?” “No, not at all. I like her a lot. You cannot screw her over though. Especially when she’s eight months pregnant. I will literally kill you. And

what is it with men and pregnant women?” He shrugged. “It’s the titties. And the hormones. And that glowy thing that happens. And the fact that she’s fine as hell. Anyway, I told you, I’m not on that player stuff anymore,” he said, looking me right in the eyes. “But since we’re talking about killing folks… where’s that nigga Malcolm? He still sniffing around?” I rolled my eyes. “He’s not “sniffing around”. We… we’ve been out a few times. Testing the waters. Seeing

what happens.” Eric grunted, then shoved a piece of sushi in his mouth, not saying anything. “What?” I asked, even though I already knew. “I don’t like that nigga,” he said simply, shrugging. “I don’t get a good feeling from him. Never got a good feeling from him.” I scoffed. “Malcolm was good to me. He treated me well, was faithful, we had great conversations, he was—” “Just like Lenny,” – I rolled my

eyes at Eric calling our father by his first name – “A fuckin’ creep. You forgot about the night you called me crying because he wouldn’t leave your house? Then come to find out, this dude has been telling you what you could and couldn’t eat, put you on a damn curfew, Dev?” “Oh come on, E! You’re exaggerating. He knew I was trying to lose a little weight and he got overinvolved in my meal planning. He knew I was taking those classes, so he was helping keep me accountable to

getting enough rest. Making sure I did my work. He was just trying to be helpful.” Eric’s face twisted into a frown. “Dev, do you even believe that bullshit right now? You sound like a battered woman trying to justify an abuser.” “He never abused me and you know that! Know I would’ve had you there for me in a heartbeat. Yeah, he was doing too much and I broke up with him because of it. But we were together for two years, Eric. I loved him. He wasn’t always like that and he says that he can change. That he has changed. I’m willing

to at least give it another chance.” “Aiight Dev. You’ve got it. Let me know when I need to come talk to his ass again.” “E!” “What?! Does Reese know you’re talking about rekindling something with this dude?” Hell no. Reese would still be cursing me out, right now. “Yes.” I made myself busy stirring my gumbo. “Why wouldn’t I tell my best friend?” He sucked his teeth. “Yeah,

aiight. I know this won’t be a problem very long anyway. You were damn near drooling over that little doctor nigga at your job.” My head shot up, and I narrowed my eyes at Eric, who was grinning big. “I was not.” “The hell you weren’t.” “You were too busy with Aviva to even see me looking at anybody.” “You just told on yourself, baby sis. He’s not another Malcolm, is he? I snorted. “Uh, no. He doesn’t even—”

Hmm. I had to stop just short of my canned response of “he doesn’t even like me” when it came to Dr. Wright. After The Incident, now I had no real idea how he felt about me. Yeah, he thought I was sexy and wanted to sleep with me, but was there more to it than that? You could think someone was attractive and still not be able to stand them, right? I mean, Joseph Wright was the physical embodiment of yes, please, but the man ran my nerves in the ground. I certainly didn’t like him.

Did I? And that wasn’t even getting into the guilt I felt over sleeping with him, knowing I was involved with Malcolm. I mean, sure – Malcolm and I weren’t serious, but still. It wasn’t cute to be sleeping with other people, knowing that I was trying to make something work with him. I had to get myself together. Instead of continuing my response to Eric’s question, I changed the subject. We talked through the rest of the meal, with Eric leading the

conversation, but my mind was somewhere else. Somewhere with Dr. Wright.

six.

Everything was going to be fine. It had to be. Eventually, whatever tension there was between me and Devyn would cool off, and we’d settle into a working relationship. In the

meantime, avoidance was the best solution I could think of. But then Aviva called me. From her bed. When she was supposed to be at the office. “Sorry boo,” she grumbled, her voice muffled by her face pressed into her pillow. “This damn sciatica is killing me. I can’t even get out of bed because my back is hurting so bad. Nurse Hall is already contacting my patients, but you’re on your own with Devyn today. Try to keep your hands to

yourself,” she teased, even though her voice was strained with pain as she got off the phone. She had her sister there with her, helping her, so I knew Aviva would be okay. I, on the other hand, may not. Aviva joked about me keeping my hands to myself with Devyn, not knowing that I’d already blown that out of the water. And it was just my luck that on the day I had to work with her again, Devyn was looking especially good. She breezed onto the Women’s Unit with smiles for the whole staff, her

hair pulled into some type of bun on top of her head, with little wisps pulled down in her face. She was in another one of those body-skimming wrap dresses under her lab coat – a bright, sunny gold today – and I had to look away for a second, biting the inside of my lip as a reminder to be on my best, best behavior. “Good morning, Dr. Wright,” she said as she approached me, her smile noticeably more dim than what she’d given everybody else. “I heard we’re back together again today.”

I nodded. “Yes, and good morning to you too. Dr. Winslow is down today, so you’re with me, and we’ll be busy. Any of her patients that don’t get the message about her absence, or want to come in today anyway… we’re picking up that slack. Okay?” “Yes. Pelvic exams, swabs, whatever you need me to do, whatever position you need me in. I’m ready to go.” She smiled again, to reinforce her statement, but my mind was stuck back on “whatever position you need me in”. This girl is going to kill me.

“Dr. Wright?” she said, bringing me back to reality, looking up at me with those deceptively innocent hazel eyes. “Yes?” “I asked who our first patient was today.” I swallowed. “Oh, um, sorry.” I looked down at the files in my hands, so I wasn’t looking at her, and turned to start down the hall. “Let’s go see Anna Weaver.”

-&-

“There’s my handsome boy. Gimme some sugar, come here.” I smiled as Mrs. Weaver waved me toward her from her perch on the edge of the exam table as I approached. She grabbed my face to press a kiss against my cheek, no doubt leaving a red lipstick imprint behind. “How you doing this morning, Mrs. Weaver?” “Better now, young man,” she said, peering around me at Devyn. “And who is this pretty little thing you brought

with you?” “This is Devyn Echols, ma’am. She’s a nurse practitioner, and the newest addition to our staff. She’s shadowing me today.” “How you doing baby?” Mrs. Weaver asked, extending a hand, which Devyn graciously accepted. “You know I usually try to kick those little freakydeaky nurses out of here, trying to look up my pocketbook. I’m strictly dickly, honey. Always have been, always will be. But you seem like a nice enough girl… just make sure you stay up here

and not down there. Imagine a sign ‘cross my legs – men only.” Devyn gave her a weak smile. “Um… okay.” I purposely avoided Devyn’s eyes as she moved toward the head of the bed. Mrs. Weaver was here for a normal pap smear and had already changed, so getting her checked out was a quick process. Afterwards, Mrs. Weaver sat up, keeping a careful eye on Devyn as she rearranged the sheet to make sure she was covered. “How am I looking?” she asked,

pinning me with a sharp gaze that belied her syrupy tone. “Everything all right?” I nodded. “Yes ma’am, everything looked good. Of course we’ll be back to you with lab results from the samples I took, but I don’t believe you’ll have anything to be concerned about. Did you have any questions?” “No sir. Long as she’s healthy.” After that, Devyn and I stepped out to give Mrs. Weaver an opportunity to change back into her clothes. In the hallway, Devyn turned to me, one eyebrow lifted.

“She was interesting,” she said in a low voice, glancing toward the door we’d just come out of. I chuckled. “Nothing like a little homophobia to start your morning, huh?” Devyn’s eyes went wide for a second, then her face softened into a relaxed sort of smile. “Right. Everybody has at least one of those Aunties, huh?” “Sure do. I almost feel bad for whoever claims her. She’s a doublewhammy.” “Hm?” I shook my head, then moved a

little further down the hall, with Devyn following. When I turned around, she was right up under me, giving me that curious stare that always seemed to make weird shit happen in my chest. I leaned toward her, dipping my head down to speak into her ear. I was too aware of the little gasp she let out in response to our close proximity. “Mrs. Weaver has a little problem with her hands. She always tries to kick the nurse out, and I always insist they stay in, to avoid any impropriety – on her part.”

Devyn looked up, confused for a second, but a grin spread over her face as understanding hit her. “So she’s homophobic and horny. Quite a combo.” I laughed. “Yeah. And her husband is one of those old heads that works at the auto plant, and always has one pocket full of hundred dollar bills —” “—and the other pocket full of peppermints,” Devyn giggled. “So she’s the Black Auntie trifecta, is what you’re saying?” “Yeah, basically.”

I loved seeing her laugh. The attitude was sexy, but her laughing, smiling, at me… this was something else. We both flinched as the door opened down the hall and Mrs. Weaver stepped out, extravagant as always in her heeled boots and mink coat. She caught sight of me and Devyn and headed toward us, this time kissing both of my cheeks, and offering similar to Devyn, only with air kisses. “You let me know about those results, okay?” Mrs. Weaver said, as she

headed off. “I don’t want no problems.” “No ma’am,” I responded. “Don’t even get that in your head.” With a last smile and a wave, she was gone, and I turned back to Devyn. “So what’s the story there?” she asked, as we headed to the information desk. “Cervical cancer, a few years ago. We caught it early for her back then, and now she makes sure she’s in here faithfully for her paps.” Devyn nodded. “It seemed like you knew her pretty well.”

“Mrs. Weaver was one of my first patients. Took a chance on a young, black, male gynecologist. Recommended me to everybody she knew, all of that. Only reason I didn’t drop her as a patient when she grab—never mind.” “Oh noo,” Devyn squealed, catching me at the wrist. “She grabbed your what?” I scrubbed my free hand across my face, then swiped it over my head, trying to avoid her bright-eyed gaze. “Okay, fine. She put on this whole act, coughing and stuff like she just

desperately needed water. The nurse stepped out to grab it for her, and Mrs. Weaver grabbed my… speculum.” Devyn’s mouth popped open. “As in your…” “Yeah.” “Oh. My. God,” she giggled, then clamped a hand over her mouth. “What did you do?!” “I got the hell out of there,” I laughed. “What do you think?” She shook her head. “That is crazy.” “Yeah, it was. And I learned my

lesson about being alone with Mrs. Weaver.” “I bet you did.” Our eyes met, and for several seconds, neither of us said anything. I wondered what was going through her head – was she thinking about that night in the supply closet? Or the other day, when I saw her with her brother? She was more in my head now than ever before, and I didn’t know what the hell to do. I hadn’t dated in years, and didn’t know where I’d find the time to start now. With an eight to five shift in

the Women’s Unit, usually followed by another five or six hours in the maternity ward, I was at work more than I was home. And besides that, if I were going to date, it wouldn’t – couldn’t – be a coworker. So why is she under my skin like this? I was pulled out of my thoughts by one of the nurses in the hall. “Dr. Wright?” she said, and I reluctantly tore my gaze from Devyn to respond. “Yeah?” “Mr. and Mrs. Carrol are in

room three.” I nodded. “Thank you. I’ll be there in a second.” When I turned back to Devyn, her gaze was on the floor, but she looked up once the nurse headed back around the corner. “You ready?” I asked, and she gave me a tip of her head. “Yeah. Let’s get to it.” - &Shit. Shit. Shit. I blew out a long, heavy sigh as I

leaned against the wall, trying to catch my breath for a full two minutes. Closing my eyes, I breathed deep, then relaxed my shoulders against the cool surface. A break, finally, after a day that could only be described as hellish. Blood tests and surgeries and ultrasounds, and a D&C procedure on a distraught mother had sapped all of my emotional energy. All back to back, with Aviva out again, and another doctor deciding that now was as good a time as any for a tropical vacation. Like I wouldn’t have rather been

laid up on a beach somewhere. I didn’t know what had gotten into the water around the city, but the Women’s Center and maternity ward were so busy that our chief of staff had made a special allowance for Devyn to see patients with minor ailments on her own. She had to come to one of us to consult or get prescriptions since she was still in training, but I could tell she was excited to be on her own. She worked well, and the patients seemed to enjoy her, so I was grateful to have her lightening the load.

“Dr. Wright?” Shit. I opened my eyes to a concernedlooking nurse standing in front of me. “Yes?” “We need you in room eight, please. Dr. Hintz is stuck in traffic, and his patient… her baby is showing signs of distress.” Immediately, I pushed away from the wall and started towards the room, moving as quickly as I could without running. “Walk and talk please.” “Yes, um, patient is 39 weeks,

came in at four centimeters, at eight now. Water was broken when she came in.” “Has her labor been progressing or is she stalled?” “Labor is progressing fine, but her placenta is partially covering her cervix. It’s not much, so Dr. Hintz was going to let her try a vaginal delivery, which was important to her. But on the ultrasound, it looks like her placenta is starting to pull away from the uterine wall, and the baby—” “Isn’t getting enough oxygen,” I finished, stopping in my tracks. “Shit.

Where did you say Dr. Hintz was?” She cringed. “Traffic. He told us to see if you were available and to follow whatever course you thought was best.” “Okay.” I blew out another breath, rubbing a hand over my head as I tipped it back to look at the ceiling. “Prep OR three. I know she wants to do a vaginal birth, but I bet she’d rather take her baby home today. I’ll talk to her, you get us ready to deliver.” The nurse went in one direction, I went in the other, to deliver the news to

our unhappy patient. I understood that labor and birth were emotional, and a lot of women had a certain vision for what that experience would be. I hated being the one to disappoint her, but after I explained what was happening with her placenta and how it was affecting her baby, the patient agreed to move forward with the C-section. After talking to her, I rushed down to the OR myself, passing the nurse’s station on the way. It was late in the day, which meant that the flow of patients was winding down, so when I

spotted Devyn at the desk, I called out to her. “Nurse Echols, you’re with me,” I said, making her flinch before she looked up and saw me. “I need you in an emergency C-section. First assist.” Her eyes went wide with fear. “F-first assist? I’ve never done—” “Congratulations, today’s the day. Scrub in.” “But Dr. Wright, I—” I was halfway down the hall at this point, but stopped, propping my hands at my waist. “Is there a problem,

Nurse Echols?” Her lips parted like she wanted to answer, but then she averted her gaze to the floor. “Um… no. I just need a little break first, before I—” “Never mind then,” I said, waving her off as I turned around. “I’ll get somebody else since you need a break.” I – nor the patient – had time for me to stand in the hall and argue with her. It bugged me that she wouldn’t jump at this chance, after seeing in her hiring paperwork that it was an area she was

interested in – she’d even obtained a surgical certification. She’d been in surgery with me before, but never as first assistant, so I understood that it was intimidating, but still. If she was too tired – or too nervous – to take it on… “Wait!” she called out from behind me, but I didn’t stop moving. She caught up to me in the hall, panting as she struggled to match my pace. “I can do it!” “Are you sure?” She seemed taken aback by the

question as I pulled open the door to the stairwell, not wanting to wait on the elevator. She was right behind me though as I rushed down two flights. “Yes, I am. I can do it.” I nodded, then pulled open the door that led to the third floor. “Okay. Prove it.” Five minutes later, we were scrubbed in, looking down at our patient’s belly underneath a bright overhead light. Since it was an emergency section, the anesthesiologist had put the patient to sleep, and her

boyfriend was waiting outside for us to be done. I worried about Devyn before we started. She was quiet while we scrubbed in, and her only response to my reassurance that she could do this was a hard swallow and a nod. Now though, she seemed calm. Perfectly still, and waiting for instructions, back to the curious, eager-to-learn NP I was used to. So we began. She was damn near telepathic as I made the horizontal cut to get through the patient’s skin, then the fatty layer

below, then the layer of muscle below that to get into her abdomen. She was quick to make sure nothing I needed was obstructed by excess blood hindering visibility, and when it was time to cut into the filmy layer of tissue that protected that patient’s organs, she was right there with appropriate scissors before I could even say anything. We had to move fast, to get to this baby and make sure it was okay, but we also needed to be careful. Devyn used a retractor to hold the patient’s bladder safely out of the way, and I

cautiously avoided the exposed bowels as I cut into the uterus. “Shit,” I mumbled under my breath, behind my surgical mask. “What’s wrong?” Devyn’s voice was tinged with alarm as her eyes met mine. “Baby flipped again. He’s coming out feet first.” The nurses and pediatric staff let out a round of chuckles as I reached in to retrieve the baby, who started wiggling as soon as I touched him. I chuckled too as I got enough grip to pull him out,

carefully tucking his arms against the chest to make the movement smoother. The nurses started laughing again as I struggled once the baby was up to his neck and still not coming out. Devyn’s eyes were wide as I instructed her to take the baby’s body for me, pointing his little face toward the opening in the patient’s uterus so he could take a breath as I opened the incision a little wider, to accommodate his head. When he was finally out, we clamped his cord twice, cutting between

them to pass him over to the pediatric team for a checkup. With that part done, we went through the process of removing the patient’s placenta and getting her closed up, so that by the time she woke up from her anesthesia, she’d be ready to meet her baby boy. Forty minutes after we started, we were done. We parted ways after we stripped off our gloves, masks, and surgical gowns into the biohazard bins, but I spotted her again less than an hour later, after I’d finished checking on a few other patients.

“You did a great job in that surgery, Nurse Echols,” I said, catching up to her in the hall. “Very, very nice. I’ll make sure this finds a way onto your review form – especially since you pushed through your nerves.” She smiled. “Thank you. I’m just glad I didn’t end up kicked out of here. You were good to observe. Very careful. Precise.” I nodded. “Yeah. You want to make it as easy as possible for your patient to recover, and have healthy pregnancies after this one. So never

sacrifice care for speed.” “Great advice,” she said, smiling at me again, and setting off that crazy feeling in me. “I’m sure the mother will be pleased. Especially when she sees that baby’s head. We saved her today, because he would have destroyed her vagina,” she laughed, but the sound came out as weak, and drained. “Whoa.” She sighed a little, cupping her hand over her forehead. “I need to… need…” She swayed a little on her feet, but batted my hands away when I tried to steady her.

“Nurse Echols… are you okay?” Looking up, Devyn giggled at me, shaking her head. “Of course? Why wouldn’t… why…? Why wouldn’t I be? I just need to… sit…” She never got the sentence out before she collapsed, and I instinctively reached out to catch her, breaking her fall. I swallowed my urge to panic, instead moving my hand to her wrist to check for a pulse as I got the attention of a nurse who was passing by. As I moved her to the ground, a chain that had been tucked under her shirt caught my

attention. The gold medical emblem that hung from it slipped out, and I grabbed it and turned it over, running my thumb over the words engraved on the back. “Okay, Nurse Echols,” I said aloud as people gathered around me to help. “Let’s get you taken care of.”

seven.

It had been storming all day. Great. The gloomy weather was the perfect complement to how I felt, and I was glad. Instead of wasting a nice day on this, I was —relatively— happy to

wake up to a view outside that matched the way I was feeling: gross. Turning over to my side, I peered through heavy eyelids at the digital clock on my nightstand. 6:13 PM, the day after I made a complete fool of myself by neglecting something that should have been second nature by now. I turned to my back, staring up the ceiling in the darkened bedroom. I was on the schedule at the hospital tomorrow since they hadn’t fired my ass, by some miracle. Would everybody be staring at me? Talking about me?

Wondering how the hell I could efficiently care for patients, when I obviously couldn’t even care for myself? I tried to sleep through it. All day, I was interrupted by well-meaning friends and family coming to check on me, but I didn’t need that. I needed to obsess alone. I needed to sleep, even though it wouldn’t come. I got up and ate, then took another shower before I climbed back under the covers and closed my eyes. Clearing my mind, I focused on deep, slow breaths that calmed my body and

relaxed my eyelids to the point that I wasn’t forcing them together anymore. Sleep began to tug at me and I gave in, but I was barely in its grasp before the doorbell jerked me back into full consciousness. Uggghhh! I climbed out of bed, grabbing a short robe to cover my ass, since panties and boy shorts weren’t exactly “guest welcoming” attire. At the door, I peered through the peephole, then rolled my eyes as the bell rang again and I watched my visitor pace on my porch. I took a

deep, mood-improving breath before I opened the door. “Why the hell didn’t you tell me you were sick?!” That was his greeting. Not hello, how are you? Or hey, glad to see you’re back upright! Just why the hell didn’t you tell me your private medical information before he was in my house, uninvited, pulling me into a hug. I squirmed away, stepping back to close the door. “Hello to you too, Malcolm. How was your day?”

“It was fine,” he said, propping his hands on his hips. “Are you going to answer my question? Why on earth would you not tell me you were sick?” “Because I’m not sick,” I shot back, turning to walk away. “I have a condition, there’s a difference.” “Which doesn’t change the fact that I had to find out from another source, instead of my—” “Instead of your what?!” I asked, pivoting back in his direction, my face pulled into a scowl. “Instead of your what, Mal?”

He stared at me for a few seconds before he rolled his eyes. “My friend. Why didn’t you tell me?” “Because I didn’t want to. It’s not like it affects you in any way, at all.” “But it will if we’re getting back together.” “Which we are nowhere near,” I said, crossing my arms. “I’ve only known for a few months and I’m still figuring it out myself. I don’t need you all over me, micromanaging, so I kept it to myself, which is my prerogative. How did you find out anyway?”

He shrugged. “I went to your job to see you and they told me you were out sick.” My eyebrow shot up. “They did what? They aren’t supposed to be giving out my information.” “They didn’t, just said you were out because you weren’t feeling well.” “And so how the hell do you know more?” Immediately, his eyes dropped down to the floor, and his hand came up, massaging the back of his neck. “I mean… I was worried about you. I

called a couple of times and you didn’t answer, so I….” “You what, Mal? Spit it out.” “I looked at your file.” I blinked. “Wait... I don’t think I heard you correctly. You… what?” “I was trying to find out what was going on with you! Devyn, you said you were willing to give it another shot, to see if we could make it work. But since we’ve been talking again, it’s like you have this damn wall up that I can’t get past. You barely tell me anything, barely let me touch you, won’t even let

me kiss you—” “This is exactly why!” I let out a breath, trying my best to keep from screaming at this man. “Malcolm, you swore to me that you had changed, that you would do better, and yet here we are again, with you overstepping. You abused your privileges at the hospital to get my private information, like that was okay, and then you have the nerve to come here while I’m recovering, demanding to know why I didn’t tell you. I didn’t say anything because I don’t want to have to send you daily reports

on my micros, proof that I’m doing my injections on time, that I’m not exercising too much, or having too much sugar, or—” “So I’m wrong for trying to take care of you?!” My nostrils flared. “Yes, Mal. You are. I’m not a fucking child that needs you to tell me what to eat, what to think, needs you to do everything for me!” “Obviously, you need somebody to do it.” I opened my mouth to respond,

then quickly bit down on my lip, keeping it in. Stress was an excellent way to send my blood sugar flying out of control again, and I didn’t need that. “Get out,” I said, simply, walking back to the door and pulling it open. Malcolm scoffed. “Devyn, you can’t be serious with this.” “Oh, I am. And as a matter of fact – don’t come back. Don’t text. Don’t call. Goodbye.” “Devy—” “Goodbye Malcolm.”

He shook his head, but he moved his ass, stepping past me through the open door. I didn’t even look to see if he wanted to say something – I closed and locked the door as soon as he was on the other side. I braced myself, expecting him to knock again, but hoping he wouldn’t. When a few minutes passed with nothing, I peeked out my front window to see if his car was there. There were tiny two car garages on the backside of the line of townhomes where I lived, but visitors had access to a parking lot

across the quiet residential street. In the street-lamp lit darkness, I couldn’t really tell, but whatever. If he came back tonight, I was calling Eric. I stretched and yawned as I headed back to my room, intent on getting back to bed. I was just getting comfortably settled under the covers when I heard the distinct sound of someone knocking on my door. I rolled over onto my back, cursing under my breath. Finally find some sleep, and nobody will leave me alone.

With a heavy sigh, I got up and stomped to the door, telling myself that it had better not be Malcolm. Whoever it was knocked again, sending my already bad attitude through the roof as I pushed myself up on my toes a little to look through the peephole. Oh. Confusion made me frown a bit as I turned the locks and pulled the door open. I already knew who was there, but the sight of him, undistorted by the peephole, in a hoodie, sweats, and baseball cap, made my heart race a

little. “Dr. Wright? What are you doing here?” He seemed a little taken aback by my sudden appearance at the door, even though he’d knocked. For a second, he just stood there in silence, looking at me, and a cold breeze made me quickly remember that I was pretty damned close to naked in just my tank and boy short panties. I crossed my arms over my braless chest after I closed my robe, trying to hide my hardening nipples. Just

knowing that he was looking at me had me turned on, which wasn’t… smart. Not when we weren’t supposed to be doing that again. Me closing my robe seemed to snap him out of whatever trance he was in, and he shook his head a little before reaching to the side, producing a gorgeous bouquet of yellow tulips that he’d put down on the wood bench beside my front door. “Came to see how you were doing,” he said, holding the flowers out to me. “I know it’s a little late, but it was

a crazy day at the hospital today.” I nodded, accepting the flowers – my favorite flowers – from him. “Yeah, I can imagine. Thank you for the flowers. How did you…?” He smiled, and I looked away from him, down at the tulips. “I had a little help. Jay put me in contact with Reese, and I called to ask what you would prefer. I was going to just have them delivered, but I… kind of wanted to see you for myself.” My cheeks got hot. My cheeks got hot.

Bitch are you blushing?! I swallowed, then averted my gaze. “Well, thank you, either way. They’re beautiful.” He nodded. “I’m glad you like them. Feeling better?” he asked and I returned his nod. “I’ve been dealing with some nausea, and a bit of a headache, but I’m mostly fine now. Just embarrassed. I was told you actually had to catch me, so…” Dr. Wright chuckled. “It was no big deal. I’m just glad you had on your medical alert necklace. None of us knew

you were diabetic. Have you had it all your life?” “No,” I said, shifting a little against another cold breeze. “Adult onset, type 1. I actually just got an official diagnosis. Started taking insulin a few months ago, and I’m still getting used to it. I’ve only been wearing my alert necklace for a couple of days.” He drew his head back. “Type 1? I thought only kids got type 1, and then had it for the rest of their lives?” “Nope. It’s not as common in adults, but can happen at any age. Gets

misdiagnosed as type 2 a lot first. Type 2 can possibly be prevented, or at least delayed. Type 1… your body just stops making what you need. Sometimes sooner, sometimes later.” He nodded. “Wow. I didn’t know that.” I smiled. “Most people don’t. I only know because it happened to me, and thank God for my endocrinologist. Dr. Mitchell saved my life.” “So what happened yesterday? Did you go too long without eating, or…?”

I sighed. “Did my injection too late. It’s supposed to be long lasting, so I don’t have to stop as often throughout the day. But we went into that surgery, and it threw me off. I didn’t do my injection until after the surgery, and then I was needed on the floor so I ended up skipping my snack, and I was a lot more active than usual that day. It was just a bad combination of factors.” He tipped his head, distinctly sober as he leaned in my doorframe. “I’m sorry about that. If I’d had any idea that was why you needed a break, I

wouldn’t have—” “But you didn’t. I should have sat out of that surgery so I could take care of myself. God forbid there had been a complication during the surgery, and I’d passed out in there, or while I was taking care of someone else. It was stupid, and irresponsible. I’m just glad I didn’t kill anybody.” “Devyn, don’t–” “It’s the truth,” I cut in, shaking my head. “It’s the truth, and we both know it. I have to accept those consequences and do better. I’m still

learning.” Dr. Wright opened his mouth to respond, but was interrupted by a loud crack of thunder, just before rain started pouring down again. “Shit,” he mumbled, then turned to me as he pulled his hoodie up over his head. “I should probably get going before this storm has a chance to really ramp up again.” “What?” I scowled. “You can’t drive in this! You can’t even see across the street right now with it coming down like that. Come in and wait for it to be

over.” He shrugged. “It’s just rain.” “It’s not.” I swallowed hard, then took a step back and opened the door wider, urging him to come in. “Please? My friend’s father died in a car accident in a storm like this, and I just…can you come in?” Again, he shrugged, then stepped inside, pulling his hoodie down. I put the flowers on the table where I dropped the mail in the evenings, then closed and locked the door behind him. “Shoes,” I said, glancing down at

the pristine sneakers he wore. He toed them off, leaving them beside the door, and we spent the next few seconds in awkward silence before I took off toward the kitchen. “Can I get you some water or something?” I called over my shoulder, knowing he was following. When he didn’t answer, I looked back to find his eyes stuck to my ass, and heat washed over me again. “I asked you a question Dr. Wright,” I said, stopping in my tracks. Joseph’s eyes shot up to my face,

looking dazed. “Oh, my bad. I’m exhausted, sorry. What was it?” I grinned. “Do you want something to drink?” “Oh. Uh, yeah, I guess.” His answer was punctuated by another long, booming rumble of thunder, and we both flinched as the rain seemed to start coming down harder. “Looks like you may have been right about driving in this. It sounds pretty bad.” I nodded, then turned to the refrigerator. “You’re welcome.” As I bent to get a bottle of water,

my loosely tied robe came undone. Instead of retying it, I left it undone, suddenly wondering what Dr. Wright would do. I mean… he was obviously having trouble not looking at me… Devyn… what the hell are you doing? Hmph. A little payback, maybe? For nearly five months now, he’d been an asshole to the highest degree. It was only recently, since he let his real feelings be known, since we’d had sex, that he’d been “nice” to me. Now that I

had something on him, surely he could handle a little teasing… right? I handed him the bottle of water, then pulled my hair out of the messy ponytail I’d thrown it into after my shower earlier. It hadn’t been flat ironed, so it still carried a loose wave, and Dr. Wright followed my every move as I ran my hands through it, fluffing and leaving it tousled, framing my face. He’d sat down on the other side of the counter, in one of my bar chairs. I leaned in his direction, offering what was surely an ample view down my tank

top as I looked him right in the face, and asked, “You hungry?” It was an innocent question. Well… innocent enough, that is. It seemed to catch him off guard and he narrowed his eyes a little, like he was trying to figure out if there was a double meaning behind that. “Depends on what you’re offering.” I smiled. Kept my eyes on him until I couldn’t anymore as I turned around, then opened the fridge again. Bending over, I started moving bowls

around, sorting through my pre-prepared meals, knowing that the robe wasn’t nearly long enough to cover my ass in this position. “I’ve got baked pork chops, sweet potatoes. Some grilled chicken, a cucumber and tomato salad. Ummm…” I stopped speaking to look up, biting back a grin when I saw that he was openly staring. “Any of that sound good to you?” Without giving him a chance to answer, I shook my head. “Nah, I’m not feeling any of that. Let me see what else.”

I turned and bent again, offering the same view from a different angle as I named off the things in the bowls. Suddenly, I felt Dr. Wright’s body heat behind me, and before I could react, he’d pulled me up, shoved the refrigerator door closed, and then pushed me back against the cool stainless steel surface, his body pressed against mine. I had to look up to see his face, and my breath hitched in my throat when I met his eyes, filled with the kind of heat that made a tingle run up my spine.

“Devyn,” he murmured, lowering his head toward mine. “Why are you playing with me like I won’t bend you over this counter right now?” I swallowed hard, defiance in my eyes as I looked at him. “How do you know that’s not what I want you to do?” Wait… did that just come out of my mouth?! I wasn’t really trying to start anything… was I? I was just trying to frustrate him, like he’d spent months frustrating me. But the erection pressed

against my stomach, barely restrained by the fabric of his sweat pants said I was playing with fire. “I don’t date coworkers,” he replied, but didn’t move away. He actually seemed to get closer, pinning me between him and the refrigerator. My hands shook a little as I moved them down to his waist, letting a naughty smile cross my lips as I dipped my fingers past the elastic waistband. “Who said anything about dating?” “What kind of voodoo are you trying to work on me?” he asked,

dropping his hands down to my ass to grip and squeeze. I wiggled out of his grasp, slipping away from the refrigerator to step around him. “You’re the uninvited guest here, Dr. Wright.” I winked as I left the kitchen, with him following close behind. “You don’t have to call me that.” I stopped, turning to face him with my hands on my hips, and his eyes roved over my body again. This time, I made no moves to close my robe. “Fine then, Joseph. You showed

up at my place, not the other way around. So who’s working who?” “You are, and you know it,” he said, moving close enough to finger the silky fabric of my robe. “Why?” I shrugged. “Why not?” I crossed my arms under my breasts, knowing it would push them up. Predictably, Joseph’s eyes followed. Why the hell do I feel so giddy about calling him Joseph now? “You spent the entirety of my first months at the hospital being a jerk to me, and I find out now that it was purely for your own amusement. So why

shouldn’t I have some fun too?” “Because…” he stopped, letting out a chuckle. “You know… I don’t have a reason why not. You’re right. I shouldn’t have treated you like that. I’m sorry.” I narrowed my eyes. “Mmhmm. Are you only apologizing because you hope it means you’re gonna get some ass?” He laughed. “No, not at all. I… can admit that I was wrong.” “Hm. And can you also explain why? Why me?”

“Have you seen you?” “Aviva is pretty.” “Aviva is a friend.” “I could have been too.” Joseph scoffed, taking a step back as he shook his head. “No. You couldn’t have. You’re too…” I lifted an eyebrow. “Too… what?” “Appealing. Distracting. I’ve wanted to peel you out of your lab coat since the first moment I saw you. Then you opened your mouth and brilliance came out, and I knew I had to keep you

at a distance.” My lips parted, in a barely audible gasp as I absorbed his words. Oh. “But at the same time,” he continued, “you never backed down when I challenged you, or when I pissed you off. You fought back. Argued your conclusions, argued your views, argued your resolutions. And that spitfire attitude… Lord knows, you made it hard to not try to bring that out of you.” I averted my gaze, trying not to blush like an idiot over the compliments.

“So you’re saying… this was the adult equivalent of pushing me down on the playground?” Those thick, sexy lips of his spread into a broad grin as Joseph swiped a hand over his head. “I mean… yeah, I guess you could put it like that. But… this isn’t like, me declaring something to you, or anything like that. As appealing as you are to me, I’m pretty firm on the “no dating coworkers” thing.” I nodded, then turned away from him to look out the window, trying to

process my thoughts. My feelings weren’t hurt about him not wanting to date me – because that hadn’t been a consideration of mine. Not to mention the fact that I’d just broken off a budding… something… between Malcolm and I, barely an hour ago. And I still wasn’t factoring in the fact that I was already working sixty hours a week, and if I decided to move into another specialty once my internship was over, that number could increase. I was busy. The idea of a relationship wasn’t exactly tugging at me.

The memory of that night in the supply closet, however, was. “Like I said a few minutes ago…” I turned around, pulling off my robe and letting it drop to the floor. “Who said anything about dating?” I closed the short distance between us, then put my hands on either side of his face to draw him into a kiss. His hands went to my ass – I was realizing that he always went for my ass – using his grip there to pull me close. He pushed his tongue into my mouth, taking over the kiss, and just like

that night at the hospital, it was glorious. He delved deeper, tasting and teasing, making a warm, tingly shot of desire blossom between my legs, as if there was some sort of direct link from there to my mouth. But it wasn’t a “yeah, we’re about to screw” type of kiss. It was more like he was… exploring. Devouring my mouth with carefully measured, unhurried strokes of his tongue, gentle bites at the corner of my mouth, slow, sensual sucks to my lips. I was so wet, and so ready, and—

“Wait a sec,” he said, pulling away from me. So disappointed when he stopped. “What’s up?” I asked, my chest heaving as I searched his eyes for an answer. He let out a little sigh as he stepped back, putting some distance between us. “We have to figure out up front what we’re doing here.” I shrugged. “We’re grown, single people, about to have sex… I hope.” “Single? Cause “Malcolm”—”

“Is a non-factor.” I shook my head. “I am a single woman, with no one to answer to about my sex life except myself.” He nodded. “Birth control?” “Taken care of. STD status?” “Clean. And tested regularly. You?” “Same. This stays between us?” I noticed his cringe over that question and smiled. “I’m referring mostly to at work. Reese knows about the night at the hospital, and I’m sure you’ve… told a friend. But I would

prefer to keep my personal life out of the gossip pool.” “Agreed,” he said, nodding. “Our business stays between us.” “Agreed. So what now?” He grinned. “Now, you lead the way to your bedroom.”

-&“ “ Hey twinnie. I know it’s late (or rather, early), but the storm has me up and down. You okay over

there? – Reese’s Pieces” “ “ I’m okay boo. Thank you for checking on me.” ” “ “ You gonna be good to go to work today? – Reese’s Pieces” ” “ “ OH, and um… did you get any special deliveries yesterday? – Reese’s Pieces” ” “ “ I don’t really have a choice about work. Gotta suck it up. And umm… about that “special delivery”… the er…um… “package” still hasn’t left.” ” I looked away from my phone,

biting my lip to keep from smiling. Joseph was, as mentioned, still in my bed, currently using my breasts as pillows. He shifted a bit, mumbling something in his sleep as he nuzzled his head against my chest, burying his face between my breasts in a position that made me question his ability to breathe. He seemed so comfortable that I didn’t dare bother him. Last night had made it clear that if he died here, he would die a happy man. He loved my body. I was a pretty confident woman

anyway, but I’d be lying if I said that didn’t make me feel good. Although the situations were dissimilar, the way Joseph reacted to my curvy, sizefourteen ass was much different than Malcolm. Joseph couldn’t keep his hands – or eyes off me. Lights on, touching me everywhere. Malcolm—despite my assurance from a professional nutritionist that my size and weight were healthy for my five feet, eight inch height—was always trying to manipulate me into the gym. But screw him.

Back to Joseph. I smiled at the “YAAAAAAAASSSS BITCH RIDE THAT HOT LINK!!” text I’d gotten from Reese, then put the phone back down on the table beside the bed. It was almost six in the morning, and we’d have to get up for work soon, but for now, I was just enjoying the moment. It had been a while since I woke up to a man in my bed. Joseph groaned again, and lifted his head so that he was looking at me through sleepy, half-lidded eyes. “Good

morning,” he murmured, then kissed the side of my breast, making an involuntary shiver run over me. “Good morning,” I whispered back, already feeling a little breathless as he kissed me again, making his way toward my nipple. I watched it disappear in his mouth, then arched away from the bed as he tugged it with his teeth. Unbidden, my hands went to the back of his head, holding him in place as he circled it with his tongue, then pulled it into his mouth, sucking and slurping until I felt the pull of arousal

deep in my belly. “I see you woke up ready to go again, huh?” It was a stupid question. His hard dick against my thigh was more than enough answer, but he still took his mouth off me long enough to grin as he responded. “Is that a problem?” I shook my head. “Not at all. But can I… brush first?” Joseph chuckled, shaking his head as he pulled himself upright, taking the sheet with him. It pooled on the bed around him as he stretched, showing off

dark golden-brown skin, and muscles, and more inches than anybody needed of thick, gorgeous dick. Have mercy. He looked down at me laying there on the bed, biting his lip as he hungrily looked me over. “Yeah. Make it quick.” I… didn’t have to be told twice. I hopped up out of the bed, not making it two steps before his large hand connected firmly against my ass cheek with a loud smack. I squealed a little, turning to give him a scolding look while

he just stood there, trying to look innocent. It was hard as hell to keep the pleasure off my face. This was different – very different than the Dr. Wright I worked with. He joked with me as he followed me to the bathroom, asking if I had an extra toothbrush. I gave him one, and we brushed at my sink together before he wrapped his arms around me from behind, kissing the back of my neck. I closed my eyes, relishing the feeling as one hand cupped my breast,

tweaking and teasing my nipple into a hard peak with his forefinger and thumb, while the other moved between my legs, making me gasp and part my thighs a little more. “So damn sexy,” he murmured against my ear, pressing his dick against the base of my spine. The only response I could offer was a whimper as he slid a first, then second thick finger into me. “Look at you.” My eyes popped open, following his instruction, and I blushed at the sight of myself in the mirror, in such an erotic

image. Mouth open, skin flushed, his hand between my legs, the other massaging my breast. In the mirror, my eyes met his, and he grinned at me, then pressed a kiss to the side of my head. He pulled his hand from between my legs, and the next thing I knew, he was bending me over the counter as he pushed into me from behind. “Shit,” I gasped, pressing my hands to the counter for leverage as he slammed into me. He put an arm around my chest, pulling me back upright so he could press his lips to my shoulder.

“You good?” he asked, muttering the words into my ear between strokes. “Yessss, don’t stop.” I pushed up on my toes as he plunged deeper, lowering his arm to anchor around my waist. “Oh, you like this, huh?” “Mmmm,” I responded as he ground into me, pressing into a sensitive spot that made my toes curl against the cool tile floor. “Let me hear you say it.” He buried a hand in my hair, using a gentle grip to turn my head toward him as he

leaned in over my shoulder. “This is good for you?” “Yesss,” I moaned, closing my eyes as he kissed my neck. “It’s good.” “What is? Be specific, Nurse Echols.” I wanted to give a smart-aleck response, but he snatched my breath away when he slammed into me hard and didn’t pull out, rocking against me in measured, unhurried circles instead. Tightness pulled in my stomach as he moved, bringing his fingers between my legs to drive me crazy.

“Joseph please,” I whimpered, clamping my hands onto his arm around my waist for something – anything – to hold on to. He stopped moving, but I could still feel him throbbing in me, and tears pricked my eyes as he pulled my earlobe between his teeth. “Please what?” he asked, in a low growl as he circled his thumb on my clit. “You want me to make you come?” “Yes please,” I whispered back, not caring – and maybe a little turned one by - how submissive it sounded. I

made myself clench around him, and he groaned as he pumped into me again, just once, prompting me to push myself up on my toes again, but he snatched me back. “Answer my question then,” he said, pulling out of me and turning me around, easily lifting me up onto the counter to stand between my open legs. Be specific, Nurse Echols. I grinned as I remembered his question, and let the smile stay on my face as I wrapped my fingers around his dick, squeezing as I stroked him. He planted his hands on either side of me,

flat down on the counter as he closed his eyes. “This,” I murmured, using my thumb to tease the head. “Is good to me. Very good.” He grinned, opening his eyes as he ran his tongue over his lips. “Very good, huh?” I nodded, sucking in a breath as he pulled his dick away from my hands to sink into me again, burying himself so deep that we were flush against each other. He lowered his head to mine, offering a slow, sensual kiss that made

me moan against his mouth as he began to move again. “Damn,” he murmured, as I wrapped my legs around his waist. “Why the hell didn’t we do this sooner?” “I know. Good thing you came to your senses.” “Oh, I came to my senses?” “Mmhmm.” Joseph’s mouth crashed onto mine as blissful, dizzying pressure pooled in my stomach. I felt so good I could barely breathe as he stroked me, creating a deliciously vivid friction that

made it impossible to think about anything except how good it felt. So I just focused. On the hint of salt on his skin when I kissed his neck, the sound of our bodies moving together, the feeling of his hard muscles underneath my fingers. Tension pulled my body tight, then liquified as I came, and I held onto Joseph’s shoulders until he finished with one last plunge into me. After a few moments, we caught our breaths, and he looked up to meet my eyes.

“I guess we should get ready for work now, huh?”

-&Walking into the hospital that day was… an experience. Everybody’s eyes were on me – or at least it felt like it, and I wanted to crawl somewhere and hide. After Joseph left my place, I realized the hickeys dotting many, many places on my body and wanted to strangle him for it – lucky

for him, he was already gone. And lucky for me, they were mostly in places that no one else would see, so I put on a high-necked blouse and took my behind to work. “Last night was something, wasn’t it?” Nurse Hall asked after greeting me as I approached the desk. My eyes got big, and I glanced around before leaning toward her. My hands played at the neck of my shirt, trying to tug it up in case one of the marks on my neck was peeking out. “Hmm? What do you mean? What about

last night?” She lifted an eyebrow. “The storm, child. It knocked out power for half of the city. You didn’t know?” “Oh!” I said, a relieved smiling crossing my face as I straightened up. “No, I had no idea it was that bad.” “You must have been sleeping hard to miss a storm like that. All that thumping and bumping and screaming.” Oh no, I experienced plenty of that. “But it’s just as well,” Nurse Hall continued, putting a stack of patient

files on the counter. “I’m sure you needed your rest, after what happened. How are you feeling, baby?” I gave her an assuring nod. “I feel okay.” “Good. These are your patients this morning. Dr. Winslow is back in, but we have you taking on some of her load with Dr. Wright. I know he’ll be relieved to see you. He’s been running since he got here this morning.” Right on cue, Aviva and Joseph rounded the corner. I couldn’t help noticing the extra pep in his step, and a

cocky grin played at my lips, knowing that bounce was probably largely due to his night with me. I looked away, pretending to be immersed in my patient files. “Glad you decided to join us, Nurse Echols. Hope you’re not expecting any special treatment though. We’ve got work to do.” I looked up to see Joseph standing there wearing that same smug expression I’d come to loathe over the last few months. Beside him, Aviva sucked her teeth. “Come on, Dr. Wright. She passed

out two days ago, I think we can cut her some slack.” “We don’t have that luxury, Dr. Winslow. Some of us had to be on time this morning.” “I was on time this morning,” I cut in, shooting a glare in Joseph’s direction. “The chief of staff paged me as soon as I got here, so I was occupied.” He shrugged. “And now you’re not. Your ability to hang around the information desk socializing isn’t one of the categories you need a good review

in, so let’s go. We’ve got patients to see.” I fought hard against the urge to roll my eyes, and picked up my patient files to carry to my little section of the desk. “Or course. My first patient is—” “Selena Ross. Come on. You’re with me.” I looked at Aviva, who shrugged, mouthing “I’m sorry” as I grudgingly headed down the hall with Dr. Wright – he was definitely back to that instead of Joseph. His stupid ass was blowing the little high I’d felt after our amazing night.

Honestly? He had me regretting that I’d let him touch me at all. When we were in the corridor alone, almost at the exam room door, he caught me by the wrist. Surprised, I pulled away, but turned to face him. “What?” “How are you this morning?” he asked, catching me completely off guard. “Did you have time to have breakfast before you came in?” I lifted an eyebrow. “I… yeah, I ate. But… what?” He glanced back and forth down

the hall before moving a little closer to me. “I’m just making sure you’re good. Is that… is that okay?” My lips parted in surprise, but I quickly snapped my mouth shut again. “Yeah. That’s fine. I just… I thought…” “Oh,” he murmured, his eyes roving over my face in a way that made heat build between my legs. He reached out, tugging at the hem of my lab coat before he checked the hall again, then turned back to me. “I’m trying to keep these people off our backs. It would be suspicious if I act different with you than

usual. Guess I did a pretty convincing job.” “That’s one way to say it.” He frowned. “Too convincing?” “No,” I said quickly, licking my lips. I straightened my coat, then looked him right in the eyes. “I can handle whatever you throw at me here. And when we’re not here,” – I raised my hands, straightening his tie, then purposely letting my hands brush over his chest and against his groin before I lowered them back to my sides. “I hope you can handle whatever I throw at

you.” I didn’t let myself smile until my back was to him and I was knocking on the patient’s door. I opened it, and as I stepped through, pretended to stumble a little so he bumped into me from behind. I smiled a little bigger when just barely, I heard him mutter. “Lord, have mercy.” “Good morning, Ms. Ross,” I said to our patient. “I’m Nurse Echols, and this is Dr. Wright. We’ll be providing your care. What brings you in today?”

eight.

“So your place or mine?” I tried not to let any strain show on my face as I looked up to meet Devyn’s gaze from across my desk. It was the end of another double shift for us and she’d been extra-flirty all day –

privately, of course – so I wasn’t surprised by her sneaking into my office now, to ask me a question I didn’t want to answer. For the first week of our newfound mutual relief plan, things were good. Things were great. In bed, Devyn was the kind of woman that made everything else – stress, fatigue, coherent thought – nonexistent. Her naked body – creamy caramel skin, breasts like small honeydews, tipped in light brown nipples, lushly curved hips leading to an

ass that was quickly becoming a favorite place to put my hands – was the type of sight that fantasies were made of. The sounds she made – I was already starting to decipher the exact meaning of every little whimper, moan, or purr that came from her throat. Not to mention she had a sexual appetite to rival mine. But the thing that really took it over the edge – how she was afterwards. All giggly and sleepy and wanting to talk medicine with me, giving me that hypnotic, focused, wide eyed look she gave me at the hospital sometimes, the one that drove

me crazy because it was so sexy. She was so goddamned sexy. It was too much. That first week, we’d been together almost every day. But for the last few days, I’d been starting to feel uneasy. We were together too damned much – at work all day and then overnight, and that was getting to be too… normal. I wasn’t trying to get used to a woman occupying the little free time I had, because I wasn’t trying to get used to a woman, period. Which is exactly

why it was stupid as hell to get involved with a coworker. Somehow, I was going to have to ease out of this thing – or at least back away – without hurting her feelings. “Neither, actually,” I said, leaning back in my chair. “I’m gonna um… do my own thing tonight.” I had the pen in my hand clenched hard as hell as I tensed, waiting for her reaction. Dev had never struck me as super-emotional, and definitely not the type to cry at work. Please, God. No tears. “Ugh,” she said, crossing her

arms as she pushed her lips into an exaggerated pout. “I guess I do have to give you room to do your little single man things, huh?” Is this a trick question? “Single man things?” She smiled that pretty ass smile of hers and walked closer to the desk. “Yeah, you know. Hoeing, drinking, scratching your balls. All of that.” “Is that what you really think I do in my spare time? Just sit around with a beer and my hand down my pants?” I asked, chuckling.

“That’s what Eric does, so… yeah. I notice you haven’t denied it.” I shrugged. “I haven’t… because I can’t.” Devyn laughed, and just like always, the sound was like music to me. “At least you’re honest about it then. I’ll see you… not tomorrow, but the day after, right? Aren’t you off tomorrow?” “Yeah,” I nodded. “Gotta take advantage of that to catch up on some sleep.” She let out a dreamy sigh. “I hear that. This week has been rough. But,

anyway… I’m going to head home, to get my little measly seven hours til I have to be back. I’ll see you.” Wait. Wait. Was that it? No pushing to see what my plans were? No real pouting about me not wanting to get together? No cold attitude? Really? “Joseph, are you okay?” Devyn asked, concern creasing her face as I looked up.

“Huh? Yeah. Yeah, I’m fine.” She gave me a slow nod. “Okay… because your face looked kind of…” Confused? “Pained,” she continued. “But okay, if you say nothing’s up. Goodnight. And catch a few extra hours tomorrow for me too, would you? Just send them via brain wave, thanks.” She giggled at herself, then shot me a last smile and wave before she turned to the door. I hadn’t seen any sign of discomfort in her eyes, any hint she

was just trying to keep it together and be strong. She was herself. Warm, and upbeat. She didn’t care that I was opting to spend my time elsewhere. So if she wasn’t the one pushing the amount of time we spent together, maybe it was… Me.

-&It used to be that my father was a simple man. Go to work at his auto

dealership, have dinner with one or more of his sons – or if none of us were available, at his friend’s place. He’d kick it with us on the weekends, or with my niece, or get together with his partners for poker and cigars, things like that. Regular, predictable shit. Until Imara Bryant. It was a little convoluted how they ended up together – they socialized on a website for Jazz lovers before they ever met, but then it turned out that Imara was Reese’s mother and Reese and my brother Jay were dating… well, not

when Imara and my father got together. That happened when she needed a car, and she’d figured out who he was, so she went to his dealership. So my father and Imara first, then Reese and Jay. But everybody didn’t quite realize all the connections until they’d already happened… or something. Like I said – convoluted. Anyway. Imara was, honestly, bad as hell. She was smart, she was funny, and she had a lively spirit that attracted my father and pulled him out of the funk he’d

been stuck in since my mother’s death, four years ago. I was a little uneasy at first, but as I got to know Imara, and saw the person she brought out in my dad, I came to the conclusion that she was good for him. Mostly. When I pulled up at my father’s house, the morning of my day off, he was in hiking gear, so I wasn’t so sure anymore. “Hey, Dad,” I said, moving in for our customary hug. “What are you wearing right now? What’s going on?”

He chuckled, then bent to adjust the straps on his – brand new, cause this man had never been hiking before – backpack. “Headed out to Ellis Mountain with Mara. Had to get suited up.” “Headed to Ellis Mountain to do what?” I asked, alarmed. Ellis Mountain was tall, steep, and notoriously difficult – especially for inexperienced climbers in their damned sixties. He straightened up, excitement making him look much younger than his years. “We’re gonna defeat the beast!”’

“Defeat the – what? Dad, we were supposed to be going to the new fishing superstore that just opened. You made me put this day in my calendar to take off work months ago. Just for this.” Dad tipped his head to the side, like he was trying to remember. “Oh!” he said, then grinned as he shook his head. “I’d completely forgotten. Mara asked me about this yesterday and I said yes without thinking. My bad, son.” I lifted an eyebrow. “Your bad? Who are you turning into?” “Huh?”

“Never mind,” I said, waving it off. “So you’re “defeating the beast” today, huh? You sure you’re up to that?” He nodded. “Oh yeah. Mara has done it a couple of times, and she thinks I’ll be just fine.” “Oh she does?” I chuckled, then dropped into a seat at end of the couch. “And what does your doctor say?” “That my grown son should mind his business and find something to do with his day – or find a woman of his own.” I groaned, leaning my head

against the couch cushions. “Here we go with this, huh?” “Not at all,” Dad laughed, leaning in the doorframe. “I won’t mess with you if you don’t mess with me.” “Fair enough,” I said quickly, sitting up. “But seriously… jokes aside… you and Imara are a good look. I’m happy for you old man.” He gave me a long stare, and then a deep nod before he spoke again. “Well, that makes two of us, son. Imara makes me very, very happy.” “That’s how it should be. Just

tell her to go easy on you. You fall off that mountain and break a hip, you know it’s over from there right?” I was joking – well, somewhat – but apparently my Dad didn’t think it was funny, because he scowled. “See there, now I want you to tell me about this little yellow nurse from the hospital I overheard your brothers talking about.” My eyes got big. “Well, it was good seeing you Dad, nice talk,” I said, standing up. “Boy, sit your ass down.”

Obviously, I sat my ass down. “Why the sudden hurry to leave?” he asked, with an amused grin. “Is it because I’m in your business now? You boys kill me, acting like y’all are the parent and I’m the child.” I shrugged. “That’s what happens when you live long enough. Instead of you worrying about us, we worry about you.” “Unnecessarily. You focus on making something happen so you can have a child to worry about you when you’re my age.”

Shaking my head, I looked up at the ceiling. “Not happening, no time soon, Pops. You know I don’t have time for anything like that.” “You make time for what you care about.” “You’re right,” I said, sitting up. “I care about keeping my patients healthy and bringing their babies safely into the world, so it gets all of my time.” Dad scoffed. “Don’t try to act like you don’t know what I mean. Your mama wanted you in women’s health, because there weren’t many black

doctors in the field. You took it on because you loved her, and you’d do anything your mama asked of you.” “Yeah…” “Well, I seem to recall that one of her last requests was less work, more grandbabies.” “She said that?” “She made you repeat it after her.” “Me?! Like, me?” “Don’t think I won’t go upside your head just because you’re grown.” “Chill, Pops,” I laughed, lacing

my fingers behind my head as I sat back. “You sure it wasn’t—” “Joseph Wright Junior.” “Okay, okay. I remember,” I admitted, still grinning. “But… I’m just not in a place for that right now. We’re still trying to get the Women’s Center properly staffed, so I really can’t help the schedule they’ve got me on right now. And besides that, I’m not… I’m not dating anybody right now.” “And when was the last time you “dated” somebody? That crazy gal that cut the tires up on my Mercedes cause

she thought it was yours?” “Bingo.” Pops nodded. “Well… I think anybody would be a little hesitant after that, but are you really going to allow that situation to keep you from keeping your promise?” “It’s not about her. It’s about…” I sighed. “I don’t know what it’s about. I’m just not there yet.” “Well do you have any prospects at least? Your brothers say this young lady from the hospital is nice looking, smart. And I’m pretty sure Justin

mentioned something about ‘childbearing hips’.” “I’m sure he did.” I shook my head. “But nah, it’s not like that. Not between me and her.” He scoffed. “Yeah, that’s the same thing Jason said about him and Reese and that girl practically lives at his house now. They’re moving fast.” “Didn’t y’all all meet around the same time though?” “Don’t argue technicalities with me, boy. Besides, this isn’t mine or Mara’s first time at the rodeo. We’re old

enough to know exactly what we do and don’t want. No silly pretending we don’t like each other, playing games about spending time together, no waiting on the other to call first. You young men these days waste so much trying to act like being single is better than having a woman. Who are you fooling?” “Wait, wait? I’m not trying to…” Shit. I couldn’t even make that statement with a straight face after what I’d done just yesterday – avoiding making plans with Devyn. Who was I

trying to fool? I’d gone to sleep with her on my mind, woke up with her on my mind. Hell, if I’d known my father was going to flake out on our plans so he could go conquer the beast with his girlfriend, she and I could have made plans to spend the day doing something together. Like sex. But instead, here I was. Jilted. “You’re thirty-four years old, son. If you want a family, it’s time to start thinking about it.” He gave me a

lingering look as he went to answer the doorbell. A few minutes later, Imara peeked into the living room, dressed in hiking gear that was similar to my father’s. Did… did their corny asses go shopping together? “Good morning Joseph!” I pulled myself up from my seat to give her a hug and head towards the front door. “How you doing Professor?” I asked. “Professor” was the compromise on what we would call her. She’d

insisted on Imara, but we weren’t raised to call our elders by their first names. She really was Jay’s professor, so he called her that, and Justin and I picked it up too. “I heard you two are defeating the beast today?” She smiled, gazing up at my father with adoring eyes as he wrapped an arm around her waist. “We are. Would you like to join us? I’m sure—” “No,” me and my father said at the same time, then laughed. He didn’t want me infringing on their date and I didn’t feel like playing third wheel – or

hiking. I shook my head. “I appreciate the offer to include me, but I think I’m actually going to catch up on some sleep. You two have fun though.” “Thank you!” I left them when they started their kissy face stuff and closed the door behind me. As I ambled to my car, Devyn crossed my mind yet again. What was she doing? Was she still at the hospital? … Was she wondering some of the same about me?

I was almost sure the answer to that was no, based on her reaction to me not making plans last night. She really wasn’t fazed, while I was obsessing over this shit like a high schooler with a crush. But that really wasn’t new – I was doing that before we had sex. Climbing into my car, I tried to push her from my mind. I cranked the radio up and pointed my car in the direction of home. Alone. But more and more, that was starting to feel not quite… complete.

-&-

“Can we please just talk? I don’t know any other way to say I’m sorry when you won’t return my calls. I was worried about you, that’s all. I’m sorry for overstepping. – M. Sevier.” “I really don’t think we have anything to talk about. I accept your

apology, and wish the best for you moving forward.” “… Wow. I wanted a response, but I’m shocked to get it. Thank you, for responding. Seriously though? You’re accepting my apology? – M. Sevier.” “Yes, Malcolm. I have no interest in holding on to tension and anger between us.” “So we’re good? – M. Sevier.” “Yes.” “Get off that phone, lil girl. I already barely see you. Are you really

going to cheat me by being glued to your cell phone?” I looked up from my phone after I sent that “yes” to Malcolm, right into the admonishing eyes of my mother. Her face – smooth pecan toned skin and big brown eyes – was pulled into a scowl, and she cast a disdainful look at my device as I stowed it back in my purse. “Let it stay there, please,” she said, then smiled again as she looped an arm through mine. “Sorry mama. You were checking out, so I peeked at my

messages.” “Mmm. You looked annoyed.” I pushed out a heavy sigh, then fell into step with her as we exited the third boutique we’d been in that morning, in a pretty area near the BSU campus. It was one of my mother’s favorite places in our city, packed with shops and restaurants. So, even though I was exhausted from work, when she asked me for a date, I easily said yes, even though I would have preferred to be in bed. “I was annoyed,” I answered,

dodging an overactive puppy on the sidewalk as his owner walked him past us. “It was Malcolm.” “Ah, my Malcolm. How is he doing?” I lifted an eyebrow. “Your Malcolm?” “Well, he will be eventually, as soon as you stop being silly and just marry the boy.” My mother shook her head, stopping to peek into the window of another shop as I stood there, dumfounded.

But then again, maybe I shouldn’t have been so surprised. It wasn’t like I’d told my mother all the details of why Malcolm and I broke up. She’d loved us together so much that I didn’t want to tarnish him in her eyes. I had, however, made the mistake of telling her I was giving him another chance. She was thisclose to planning a wedding and naming our children. “Mama,” I said, tugging to get her to look at me. I’d gotten height from my father, and even with her in heels and me in flats, I was about an inch taller. “I

hate to burst your bubble, but there’s not going to be any nuptials between Malcolm and me. Ever.” She brushed me off. “Ever? Don’t be silly Sweetheart. You two were perfect together, and you gave him a second chance for a reason, no?” “Yeah, a bad one. I was thinking about how I wanted a family, and you were in my ear about how you wanted me to have a family. And with my job and everything right now – and for the foreseeable future – Malcolm was my only option.”

“So what’s the problem?” I sighed. “He is the problem. He treats me more like a baby than a partner.” “He’s just trying to take care of you, Deyvn.” My mother let out an exasperated sigh, shaking her head. “You young girls these days want to be so independent that you don’t know when a man is trying to take care of you.” “I don’t want a man to “take care” of me. I want great sex and great friendship, and to be part of a team. Not to be micro-managed. Not to have

someone obsessing over what I eat and how much I weigh even more than I do.” “You’re misinterpreting his actions, I promise you. Malcolm is just a natural nurturer. Just like your father was.” I stiffened at those words. Just like my father. Eric had made that same correlation, only he hadn’t meant it as a compliment. Honestly? Now that I was back off the Malcolm wagon, I could see the similarities too. Personally, I leaned more toward my brother’s conclusion.

It wasn’t an argument I was interested in having – ever – but my mother had done a great job of convincing herself that my father was a great guy. She was conveniently forgetting that when he died, me, Reese, and her mother, Imara – my mother’s best friend – had been the ones to help her rebuild her life. They were together well before I was born, so I don’t know when it started, but as long as I could remember, my father “managed” my mother. What she wore, how she wore her hair, the

perfumes she used, what she cooked, where she went. It wasn’t so insidious that she had no friends, couldn’t go anywhere, things like that. But I grew up watching my mother freak out about the smallest of things – a nail polish color that looked different than the “approved” shade under the light at home, the “wrong” brand of wheat bread, hair clipped just a centimeter “too short”. And in a way… that was probably just as bad. Because he always noticed. Even the tiniest things my mother

did “wrong”, he was all over her about it. Eric would come and sit in my room, covering my ears while my father screamed at her for what felt like hours. To my knowledge, he never laid a hand on her. We never saw that type of fight, never saw a mark or a bruise. But, he would go days without speaking to her, as punishment for “not listening”, and my mother would fall apart. She couldn’t seem to do anything without his instruction, and when he would finally start speaking to her again, she acted as if he were some type of savior.

I never, ever wanted a man like my father. And yet… that was exactly what I’d attracted. “In any case,” I said, choosing my words carefully, “I don’t want to be with someone who feels like they need to control me. Being caring and protective is one thing. Domineering is something else.” My mother shook her head. “Whatever you say, Sweetheart. But I’m telling you, I don’t think you’re going to find another Malcolm.” Thank God.

“He took care of you so well, and you lost all that weight…” I rolled my eyes. “I lost that weight because my body decided to stop producing insulin, and listening to Malcolm’s silly ass had me ignoring the fact that I was losing at an unhealthy rate. I would have gotten diagnosed sooner and been more in control of my diabetes if I hadn’t let him convince me he knew what he was talking about.” “Well I don’t know anything about that,” she said, kissing my cheek. “Anyway, I need to go on and get back to

work. You can make it home okay by yourself?” “Pretty sure I’ll manage, mama. I love you.” “I love you too, Sweetheart. I’ll see you later!” I let out a cleansing breath as I watched my mother head down the street, toward her real estate offices downtown. I loved her, truly, but she drove me nuts when it came to the topic of Malcolm. Or any man, really. I pulled my cell phone out of my pocket and texted Reese, wondering

what she was doing. She got back to me almost immediately, saying she was coming out of Grill Me In, a little vegetarian restaurant just around the block, so I headed her way. As soon as I turned the corner, I saw her step out from under the awning of the restaurant. Jay was there too, holding the door open for another customer as she went in with a small child clutching each of her hands. Reese didn’t see me yet, but there was a smile on her face, and it only grew wider after Jay stepped behind her, wrapping his

arms around her waist and planting a kiss against the side of her neck. I want that, I thought, then shook my head right after. My deep, nearly desperate desire for what they had - that beautiful black love that I would easily burn an hour admiring through hashtags on social media – was what had drove me back to Malcolm, when I knew better. I wasn’t anywhere near ready to give up on that dream, but it was time to be realistic about it. Could I be civil… cordial… maybe even friendly with

Malcolm? Sure. But romantically, that was a road I never needed to attempt another travel down. Part of what I loved so much about Reese and Jay together was the fact that he never tried to change her, never tried to rule her, or “put her in her place”. He let her be the sassy, lightly bougie, loyal, compassionate person I’d known and loved forever. He wasn’t trying to improve her – other than areas she asked for his help in – he just wanted to be with her. Her, as she was. I want that, I thought again. And

screwing a coworker who has been clear about not wanting anything more is probably not the best way to get it. “Dev, you okay?” I blinked, and suddenly – or so it seemed to me – Reese was right in front of me, her forehead wrinkled in concern. I shook my head, shaking off the fog of my musings. “Sorry, yeah. Where did Jay go?” “He has a shift at the dealership today, and I kept him in the restaurant too long already. He had to jet. But… he waved at you, and you just stared, like

your head was in space.” I frowned. “He did?” “Mmhmm,” Reese nodded. “That’s why I asked if you were okay. You were looking right at us, but like… through us. You’re not having an episode are you? Have you eaten?” “Yeah, yeah. I’m fine. Just thinking too hard I guess.” Reese looped her arm through mine and started down the sidewalk. “Well, tell me about it. What’s on your mind?” I blew out a sigh. “Love, and my

lack thereof. You and Jay are so cute together it’s disgusting to be honest.” “Sorry,” Reese laughed. “But I mean… you and Joseph?” I sucked my teeth. “Girl please. He’s not checking for me like that, and I need to be careful before he thinks I’m checking for him like that. You should have seen him trying to “let me down easy” when I went to make plans for us to meet up last night.” Reese gave me a sly smile. “So you’re not checking for him?” “No, I’m not. I’m not even letting

my head go there when I know he’s only up for something casual. Not going to be that girl.” “I heard that,” she said, giggling. “But I really thought you two were getting cozy.” “But it’s only been like a week and a half!” She shrugged. “So? It’s been a week and a half and this is the first time I’ve seen you because you’d have the doctorial dick too far down your throat to get an appointment.” “Reesie!” I gasped. “I have not. I

haven’t even done that for him yet.” “Oh bitch don’t lie to me. You know what they say about liars.” I stopped walking. “What do “they” say?” “That if you’ll lie, you’ll steal, if you’ll steal, you’ll kill, and I’m really not trying to be besties with a murderer, because I’m pretty sure they throw away your resume for that. Unless you killed Malcolm. Tell me you killed Malcolm.” “Stop,” I laughed. “I did not kill Malcolm.” “But you also didn’t tell me you

were “giving it another try” with him, so why should I believe you?” She stopped, pulling away from me to cross her arms, and attempted to give me a stern look. “Okay, who spilled the beans?” “Your mama told my mama and my mama told me. But you’ve been sleeping with the Pussy Doctor, and I know you well enough to know you aren’t doing two men at once, so I know it’s over… but it doesn’t explain why you wouldn’t tell me.” She’d started out playfully, but the very real hurt in her eyes made me

reach for her hand and squeeze. “Because you would have cursed me out, Reesie. I needed to come to my senses on my own. Trust me, the lesson sank in better.” She pointed her nose in the air, looking at me through narrowed eyes for several seconds before she dropped the act and pulled me into a hug. “You’re right,” she giggled. “You know me.” “I sure do,” I laughed. “What did he do this time? Do I need my Vaseline and sneakers?” “Uh, no thanks, Thug Life. I don’t

need you to roll on anybody. He was just… himself. Which was all he needed to be to make me see the light again.” She nodded. “Well good.” “And for the record, I was serious. The “doctorial dick” has not crossed these lips.” Reese grinned. “But I bet he’s been down there for you…” I wrinkled my nose. “Duh, bitch. It’s a requirement.” “Normally I would agree, but you know…” “Right. You and Jay did it

different. Because you were both interested in a relationship, and so some things were reserved for that. That’s not where I am with Dr. FeelGood.” “But you could be. Joseph is a good man – from what I can tell – and he checks off all your boxes.” I raised an eyebrow. “Except the one that says “wants to be with me forever”. And that’s a little important.” “Do you want to be with him like that?” “No. We’re… friends with benefits I guess.”

Reese smiled. “So he’s your friend now? Not just coworker?” I opened my mouth to give a rebuttal, but quickly realized I couldn’t. When had he made the transition in my mind from coworker to friend? Probably somewhere around the staying up talking after sex, or that time he cooked breakfast and left it for you. Or… shit. I sucked in a breath, remembering one night when he’d come up to me in the bathroom after sex, grabbing me around the waist just like

the cute moment I’d obsessed over between Jay and Reese. He’d nuzzled his face into my neck, then kissed my shoulder like it was the most natural thing in the world before ambling over to the toilet to pee. Right in front of me. Just… super comfortable. And I hadn’t minded a moment of it. SHIT. “Okay, so I definitely won’t inviting the doctor for another sleepover. My ass has gotten way too comfortable, way too quick.”

“But—” “Uh-uh,” I said, shaking my head as I looped my arm through Reese’s, and started down the street again. “Oh whatever. The point I was going to make was that feelings grow, over time. Just because you don’t like him like that now doesn’t mean you never will. And the same thing is true for him. Just maybe don’t rule it out.” “Oh, it’s already been decreed. Chiseled in stone.” “But—p” “But nothing. Besides, he was

already giving me a vibe like he thought I was being too clingy, so it’s probably for the best.” Reese sucked her teeth. “So just like that, you’re done?” I nodded, trying to sound more confident than I felt when I answered, “Yep. Just like that.”

nine.

I could do it. I knew I could, I just had to prove it to myself. So for a whole week, I did not avoid Dr. Wright… but I didn’t ask him

to get together either. And he didn’t ask me. Which confirmed for me that I had no business getting too comfortable with him in the first place. We were in what was kind of an odd space with each other, because of the unspoken dissolution of our… benefits. When we were sleeping together, we were careful to keep up the appearance of our normally contentious relationship, and it seemed to work. Once we stopped, it was just awkward, which furthered my annoyance with

myself for going there in the first place. I was in the middle of an awkward-moment filled double-shift with Joseph when I was paged to the nurse’s desk, saying that I had a visitor. Oh thank God. I’d texted Reese earlier, venting my frustration – and need to see a friendly face since Aviva was officially on leave now. Not that there weren’t others I enjoyed at the hospital, but there were few I could really talk to. In any case, I was hoping to see my bestie’s face when I turned the corner

after rushing away from Joseph, with a weak explanation of where I was going. My mouth was already turning up into a smile… and it immediately dropped when I saw Malcolm standing at the front desk, with another bouquet of flowers. My footsteps stalled and my mouth went dry. I debated turning to walk the other way, but he’d already looked up, grinning when he saw me standing there. I forced myself to smile as he approached. “Malcolm… what are you doing

here?” I asked, warily eyeing those flowers. He pushed them toward me, but I didn’t move. Wouldn’t, until I heard his answer. “Well,” he said, balancing the heavy glass vase against his body with one hand, while he used the other to rub his chin. “I umm… I thought surprising you with flowers would be a nice way to break the ice. Get us back on track.” “Back on track?” He grinned wider. “Yeah. I mean, I asked if we were good, and you said yes, so I—”

“Yes as in, I’m not holding a grudge. Not yes as in… I want to pick up where we left off. I’m not…” I hesitantly moved closer to him, trying to create some semblance of privacy. “I don’t think we’re going to work romantically, Malcolm. Actually, no. I know we aren’t going to work.” “Is this about me checking up on you when you passed out?” he asked, his expression completely dumfounded. “I just wanted to be sure you were okay.” “You used your clearance at this hospital to inappropriately get access to

my medical records. And then you used that information to come to my home, demanding to know why I hadn’t told you. Neither of those things were even remotely okay, especially with our history, and where we stood when that happened. But no, it’s not about that. It’s about a fundamental difference in the way we believe relationships should function. We’re not on the same page.” He scoffed. “Devyn, come on. We have to believe in compromise for a relationship to work. We can get on the same page.”

“I don’t believe we can. But I’m sure there’s someone out there who would consider themselves honored to be with you, and knowing that I’m not fully invested, I don’t feel comfortable being in the way of you meeting that person.” Malcolm stared at me for several seconds, and my heart started racing a little as his eyes narrowed, and demeanor changed. “You need to tell me what’s really going on.” I wrinkled my forehead. “Excuse me?”

“You heard what I said to you, and it’s time to stop playing,” he practically growled, stepping so close that the flowers he held were pressed between us. His free hand went to my wrist, and I tensed at his touch. “I’ve invested too much time and energy for you to continue these games. I want to know what your problem is.” I yanked my arm away from his hold, and took a step back. At the same time, Joseph came from the opposite hall and stopped at the desk. I barely glanced in his direction, but even that must have

been too long before my gaze returned to Malcolm, because when it did, his face was filled with barely contained rage. “So that’s the problem, huh?” I rolled my eyes. “What are you talking about?” “Your desperate fascination with Dr. Wright. Don’t be ridiculous, Dev. You can’t possibly think he wants the chunky nurse.” That sardonic tone almost pulled me out of character. I quickly reminded myself where I was and clutched my fists at my sides as I moved into his face

again. “You’ve got a lot of nerve implying that I’m undesirable when you’re here with flowers in your hand, trying to win me back. You’ve been practically begging me for a second chance, and you have the nerve to call me “chunky” in some disgusted tone like I didn’t have your miserable ass craving just a whiff between my legs, even when I was two sizes bigger. Who the fuck do you think you are?” “The only one who wanted you. You may want to adjust your tone.” I giggled over how ridiculous

that was. “You really are clueless, Malcolm. I’ve got a pretty face, and tits, hips and ass that are bigger around than my waist – ain’t no shortage of men that want me. Including Dr. Wright.” At that, his face dropped into a stony, lost expression, and I smiled even bigger. “Oh, yes,” I continued, dipping my head forward to take a deep inhale of the flowers. “Remember, you were so concerned the last time you came to see me at the hospital, about the way he was looking at me? Well, you see… Dr.

Wright and I have been seeing each other for weeks and it’s going beautifully. He has touched and tasted every inch of me – even those extra ones – and loved every moment of it.” Malcolm’s lips parted, and I tipped my head to the side. “So… I think I’ll be just fine. You have fun finding that woman to appreciate you though, Dr. Sevier.” I couldn’t have possibly planned it better, but just then, Joseph walked up, looking carefully between us like he didn’t want to interrupt. “Nurse Echols… we have a patient waiting for

us.” I pulled my lip between my teeth and gave him full-on bedroom eyes. And Joseph – thank God for him – reacted perfectly, grinning a little before remembering where we were and schooling his features back into a neutral expression. “I’m ready when you are,” I said, mimicking the way my voice sounded at the end of the night, sultry, sleepy, and full of honey. “Oh my.” Joseph mouthed to himself as he turned to head down the

hall, and I barely gave Malcolm the courtesy of a backward glance as I followed. As soon as we were away from Malcolm, I grabbed Joseph’s wrist. “Hey, the patient… is it an emergency? Cause I need a second,” I said, back to my normal voice. He stopped walking to look back at me. “No, it’s not emergency. Are you okay?” “I…” I took a deep breath, trying to hold back the tears that were threatening

to break through, now what I wasn’t in Malcolm’s face. Joseph squeezed my hands. “Devyn, you’re shaking. Are you okay?” “Yes,” I said, nodding for emphasis, but all it took was the look of disbelief on Joseph’s face to make me shake my head instead. “No.” “Because of ol’ boy?” I nodded again. “Okay. Come here for a second.” I didn’t resist as he pulled me past the exam rooms, and into his office

instead. He put a box of tissues into my hand, then pulled one to dab my face for me. “You want to talk about it?” I shook my head. “Not really. He’s just… he said some ugly things, that I wish didn’t affect me, but they do. I got his ass back though.” Joseph chuckled, then took a step back, smiling at me. “Is that what the hotline operator voice was about?” “I don’t sound like a hotline operator.” “You sound like the best kind of

hotline operator. But is that what it was about? Getting under his skin.” I swallowed hard. “Uh… yeah. I may have also told him that you and I were a thing.” “May have?” “Definitely did,” I admitted, sheepishly lifting my eyes to his. “I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to throw you under the bus. He was saying stuff about my weight, and nobody wanting me, and—” “The fuck? You’re above average height, and you’re well within the healthy weight for the height. Not

anywhere near health risk range—” “I know, Joseph.” I shook my head, feeling stupid for even tripping about this. I wasn’t low on self-esteem, I didn’t hate my body, but still… “But it doesn’t feel good for someone you’ve been intimate with, who’s seen all of you to say ugly things.” His shoulders sank at first, but then his eyes lit up as he moved closer to me. “Well… you and I have been intimate, right?” I narrowed my eyes. “Right.” “And I’ve seen all of you, right?”

“Right.” “Right,” he repeated, standing so close that I could feel the heat of his body on mine. “So for what it’s worth… I didn’t see a single flaw. Never had a complaint. Okay?” “Okay.” “And give me a hint next time we’re putting on a show. So I can really play it up.” I laughed. “I’m hoping there won’t be a next time and he’ll just go away. Also hoping he keeps it to himself.”

“If he doesn’t, oh well,” Joseph shrugged. “I’ve been paired in gossip with people not nearly as fine as you are, so it’s not a big deal.” I put the box of tissues down on the table beside the door, and pushed out a breath, trying to shake off the negative energy of that interaction with Malcolm. “You good now?” Joseph asked, touching my shoulder. I shied away from his touch as subtly as I could, not liking the tingles that erupted from the pressure of his hand. “Yeah. I’m okay.”

He nodded. “Good. Let’s go see our patient.”

-&-

Cold showers at the hospital. That was the only way I made it through the next two weeks without snatching Devyn back into that supply

closet. We were working long ass hours together due to Aviva’s absence, and somehow, Devyn and I had settled into… something. Not exactly friends and not even close to lovers, but decidedly different than the dynamic we had before. Professional, with an edge of flirtation that I could never see coming when she went there, and always felt damn near lecherous when I went there. Not awkward, but not… comfortable either. And it didn’t help that while I

was obsessing about this shit in my head, she seemed completely unbothered. It was driving me crazy. My saving grace was the fact that because we hadn’t touched each other in weeks, most of the time I could compartmentalize her presence in my mind to the hospital. That was the only place I saw her, so everywhere else, I could just utilize distractions. Most of the time. For Jay’s birthday, Reese organized a little kickback at Sammy’s BBQ and Bar. Walking in, I recognized

most of the people I saw. Friends from the neighborhood, people Jay worked with, some of his veteran buddies. A good mix of men and women, young and old, dancing, laughing, and celebrating my brother, who I spotted at a loud game of spades in the back corner. “Reese,” I said, catching her by the arm as she passed, with a tray of red cups filled with something that didn’t smell like fruit punch. “Hey Joey!” she smiled, giving me a one-armed hug as she balanced the drinks. “Did you just get here?”

“Yeah, sorry. Got held up at the hospital.” “No worries, I’m just glad you could make it!” “Wouldn’t have missed it,” I said, looking around before I turned back to her. “You got a pretty good crowd out here.” “Yeah, I’m honestly surprised. Happy, but surprised.” “Why surprised?” She shrugged. “I don’t know. I mean… Jay doesn’t really kick it with anybody except you and Justin. I put the

word out and all these people showed up for him, that I’ve never even seen before. I was even able to wrangle enough info to get some of his army buddies out here. They flew in for him!” I laughed. “Yeah, with guys, we don’t have to talk all the time to maintain, you know? Once I consider you a homeboy, you’re that until you do something to fuck it up. Jay is the same way. So… keep that in mind.” Her eyes got big. “What does that mean!?” “It means, I hope you’re thinking

long term with Jay. The way he is with you, isn’t his normal speed. I’ve never known him to be settled like this.” Reese propped a hand on her hip as he eyebrows lifted. “Mmmhmm. The brothers and the homeboys usually make this kind of speech to help convince the girlfriend that their boy isn’t trifling. You know that, right?” “Nah,” I chuckled. “That’s not what I’m doing. If it was like that, I’d been sitting back waiting on this shit to blow up, ready to stitch Jay up when you busted his head. Cause I have no doubt

that you really might.” Reese laughed. “You know me well.” “I do,” I agreed. “And you’re good people. Good for Jay. We were worried about him for a second, cause he was so… reclusive, after the accident you know? But then you came along, not cutting him any slack, and he opened right up. So you’ll always be cool by me… “Reesie”. She beamed. “Are we… are we having a moment right now?” I laughed. “Yeah, I think we

might be.” “Okay, I’m tearing up a little.” “Chill,” I said, nudging her shoulder. “Seriously though… good looking out on the party. This is nice.” “Thank you,” she grinned. “I love Jay, and I just wanted to make him happy, you know?” I nodded. “Yeah. I can tell. Let me stop interrupting what you were doing though. You need help with anything?” “Nope, we’ve got it! Just enjoy.” She smiled again before she

disappeared into the crowd, and I moved on to talk to a few other people. It wasn’t long before somebody else caught my attention though. Devyn. I’d seen her dressed for work, I’d seen her in scrubs, and I’d seen her in nothing. I hadn’t, however, seen her dressed for a casual night out and… well… damn. She was standing near the bar, in jeans that had her ass looking like dessert, strappy-heeled sandals that made me think about her legs around my

waist, and some sort of silky orange top that made her cleavage looking like the perfect place to rest my head. Some dude I didn’t recognize was in her face, but she seemed to be enjoying the attention so I resisted the urge to interrupt. I wasn’t that dude, who was willing to cock block, but not pull the trigger himself. And I wasn’t about to turn into one tonight. Instead of doing that, I found Justin tucked into a corner, absorbed with his phone. “What’s got your attention, bruh?

Another five figure advance?” Justin scoffed, then tucked the phone into his back pocket as he looked up at me. “Man, I wish. Everybody can’t make your annual salary though.” “Nah, you’re the moneymaker,” I laughed, extending my hand for our customary greeting. “Seriously though, you looked pretty into that screen.” He shook his head, then pushed out a sigh. “Gotta be, man. Trying to reorganize this signing with Tomes & Tones.” “The one you had to cancel last

year because the book wasn’t finished?” Justin groaned. “Don’t remind me. I’m trying to focus on the fact that this book is done, printed, and once I finish this promo tour, I’m officially done with that contract. The signing at Tones & Tomes is going to be the last thing.” “How does it feel?” “How do you think it feels?” he chuckled. “Man, I’m trying to get this shit over with, so I can be free and just write what I want.” I grinned. “So instead of

enjoying our baby brother’s party, you’re handling business?” “I’ve got to, man. Dealing with Toni…” he whistled. “I’m just trying to stay on her good side.” I lifted an eyebrow. “Toni? Y’all are talking again? And at this time of night.” “Not… exactly.” He scratched his head. “You know Toni’s family owns the bookstore, and I guess they have her handling author events now. So we’ve been communicating about that.” I smirked. “Just that?”

“Yeah.” “At this time of night?” “It’s like nine in the morning for her. She’s in Japan right now, meeting with one of her authors. Two days ago, it was the Philippines. She’s hands on with her people, likes to see them in person.” “Do I detect a hint of regret, little brother?” Justin scoffed. “A hint?” Before I could comment further on his wistful tone, Jason’s voice rang out across the crowd. A second later, the music cut out, and me and Justin made

our way to the front, where Jay was standing. “Aiight, first of all, where is my girl? Come ‘ere Reese,” he said, looking around, and letting a big smile take over his face when she appeared at the edge of the crowd, confused. I hadn’t been exaggerating at all when I told Reese I thought she was good for Jay. He needed somebody with a tongue just as sharp as his was. I smiled as he looped an arm around Reese’s waist, then kissed her cheek. “Thank you, princess,” he said,

“for getting all my people out here. This is dope. I love you.” “I love you too,” she said back. “And thank you, everybody, for coming out. I’ve kicked several of your asses in spades, so I would call it a good night.” The crowd erupted in laughter for a few moments and then Jay spoke again. “Aiight, I’m not gonna draw this out, but I have something I want to do – and no, I’m not about to pull a ring out of my pocket… Devyn.”

We laughed again, and I glanced across the crowd to see Devyn near the front of the circle that surrounded Reese and Jay too. She playfully rolled her eyes. “But,” Jay continued, “I do want to ask…” he reached into his pocket for something, and put it in Reese’s hands, “If you will officially move in with me?” “Seriously Jay?! Y’all damn near live together already!” Devyn yelled, even though she had a big smile on her face.

“That’s why I said officially,” Jay teased. Reese laughed at the exchange between the two, then held up the keys that Jay had placed in her hands. “How could I possibly say no to my very own bright purple keys to the bunker?” Jay pulled her into a hug, and as soon as he let her go, Devyn stepped up, making an “I’m watching you” motion to Jay, who brushed it off and pulled her into a hug too, as she laughed. The rest of the crowd moved in to talk to and congratulate the couple. I shared a hug

with my brother and then whispered “I told you so” to Reese before moving out of the way to let other people get to them. I spotted Devyn at the bar talking to Lana – one of Sammy’s owners. Lana laughed at something Devyn said, then pushed a drink to her across the bar before she moved on to another patron. I took the opportunity to slide into the empty seat next to Devyn. “You having a good time?” She took a sip from her drink, looking in my direction. “Yep. You?”

“Yep.” “They’re disgusting together,” she said, turning around on her barstool. I followed her gaze to where Reese and Jay were now seated together at a table across from some of Jay’s friends. Reese was practically in his lap. I chuckled. “You’re not jealous are you?” “Yes.” She closed her mouth around her straw, taking a long sip before she looked up me again. “Aren’t you?” I opened my mouth to deny it, but

couldn’t manage to get the words out. It wasn’t like I didn’t think Jay deserved what he had with Reese, or wanted her for myself, nothing like that. But… it – the easy-going, comfortable vibe they’d settled into with each other… Shit. Maybe I was jealous. Devyn leaned backwards onto the bar, propped on her elbows as she looked around, her expression unreadable. “I’m not about to make any weird proposition, Joseph.” I lifted an eyebrow. “What? I

didn’t think you were.” “So then answer the question. Tell me I’m not alone.” “You’re not alone.” A little grin played at the corners of her mouth for a second before she took another sip from her drink, finishing it off. For a long while, neither of us said anything, but I kept my eyes on her, until finally she looked my way again. “What?” she asked, eyebrows perked. “What do you mean, what?” She smiled. “You were staring at

me, Joseph.” “You’re a beautiful woman, Devyn.” At that, she rolled her eyes, then stirred the ice around in her empty glass. “Thank you.” “Come home with me,” I spoke aloud – a thought I hadn’t actually meant to verbalize. But it was out there now and there was no telling what her response would be after nearly three weeks since our last rendezvous. Devyn pulled her bottom lip between her teeth, focusing intently on

her glass. Finally, she turned to put it down on the bar, then looked me right in the eyes. “My place is closer.”

-&The vibe wasn’t right. Well, not that it wasn’t right, it just wasn’t what I expected – keyed up sexual anticipation. Instead, I felt a subtle sort of awkwardness settle over me as I followed Devyn up the front steps to her townhouse.

What was I doing here again? Why had we fallen off in the first place? What was happening right now? All of those questions ran through my mind, but I had no satisfying answers for any of them. Devyn led us inside, flipping on lights as she went. “Sorry for the mess,” she said, as I locked the door behind us. “I wasn’t really expecting company.” I chuckled. The “mess” she was referring to was a glass – on a coaster –

on her coffee table, her lab coat tossed across the back of a chair, and a few other things out of place, but nowhere near enough to qualify as a mess. She picked up her coat, cursing under her breath when the contents of her pockets spilled out. “You and this old lady candy,” I teased, bending to help her pick things up. She sucked her teeth. “Werther’s Originals are not “old lady candy”, excuse you.” “The hell they aren’t. You’re the

only young person I know who buys these. Why do you buy these?” I laughed. “Because they’re good, first of all. And good to have in my pockets when I feel like my blood sugar is dropping. They hold me over until I sit down and eat, if it’s not time for my injection. Which, speaking of, I need to eat something after that drink at Sammy’s. You want something?” “No thanks,” I shook my head, following her into the kitchen. “I’m going to occupy myself with a few of your old lady candies.”

“Stop calling them that, asshole.” I sat down at the counter, keeping my eyes on her as she pulled a covered bowl of sliced cucumbers from her refrigerator and popped some in her mouth before she opened the door again and pulled out a bottle of water. I took my gaze away long enough to unwrap one of the candies in my hand, then snickered like a twelve-year-old when I saw it. “What’s funny?” she asked, unscrewing her water and raising it to her lips.

“These look like your nipples.” “No they don’t,” Devyn sputtered, coughing as she choked on the water. “Those oblong ass candies?! My nipples don’t look like that, do they?” “Nah,” I laughed. “The color.” Devyn lifted an eyebrow, then ate a few more slices of cucumber before she pulled on the front of her shirt, peeking inside her bra. “No they aren’t. You’ve seen so many nipples in the last three weeks you forgot what mine looked like?” I moved the candy around in my

mouth so I could speak. “No, I haven’t. It’s the same. Come here, I’ll show you.” “Show me how?” “Just bring your ass over here.” Devyn tugged her lip between her teeth, then took a deep breath. She seemed in no particular hurry as she ate a few more slices of the cucumber, covered the bowl and put it away, and then moseyed around to my side of the counter. Grabbing the front of her shirt, I pulled her between my open legs, then tugged the shirt over her head. “Front

snaps or back?” I asked, in reference to the lacy, orange sherbet colored bra that had her breasts sitting up like ripe melons. “Back.” “Turn around.” She grinned a little, then turned her back to me, which put her ass right in my view. I indulged myself with enough of a squeeze, to make her giggle, then reached up to undo the hooks of her bra. I groaned when she turned back around, showing me those hard, dark golden brown nipples and areolas

against her creamy, light golden skin. Those breasts were just one of the things I loved about her body. I put my hands at her waist, drawing her close. “Look at this,” I said, then stuck out my tongue with the candy on it, putting it right against her nipple. “You see? Almost exact match.” “That’s a stretch, Joseph.” “You think so? Let me show you again.” This time, I looked right up into her face as I stuck my tongue out, making sure to graze her nipple. The shudder

than ran through her body gave me exactly the excuse I needed to cover her with my mouth, mixing the buttery taste of the candy with the sweetness of her skin. Her hands went to the back of my head, keeping me pressed to her as I moved back and forth between her breasts. I suckled hard – a little too hard – and a second later I was detaching myself from her chest to try to cough out the candy lodged in my throat. “Oh my God, are you okay?!” Devyn shrieked. Suddenly she was behind me, shoving her arms under mine

to wrap around my chest. “Dev, chill,” I coughed, hopping up to get away from her. I took a few seconds to clear my throat. “Were you about to do the Heimlich on me?!” She stared at me for a few seconds, then burst into laughter. “Hell yes,” she said, between giggles. “You weren’t about to choke and die on a piece of candy in my house! With my titties out! How the hell would I explain that to your family?!” “Choke and die, though?” She shrugged, crossing her arms

over her bare breasts. “Sorry. You were choking, I freaked out. I was trying to save your life.” “And I appreciate it,” I chuckled, shaking my head. “So now that you aren’t dying… What the hell was that?” she laughed. “How the hell are you going to try to be all sexy with the candy and literally choke, man?” “It was impromptu. My bad.” “You’re right, your bad.” “Daaaamn,” I said, moving closer to her, now that my airway was

clear. “You know you don’t have to go in on me like this, right?” She grinned as I pulled her against me, then lowered my lips to graze against hers. “You sure? It seems appropriate, no?” “No,” I muttered before I kissed her. Immediately, she melted into me, and the lack of skin-to-skin contact made me realize we both still had too many clothes on. We kissed all the way into her bedroom, shedding clothes as we went. Once we were free of everything, she pushed me backward onto the bed

and climbed on top of me, positioning herself so that the heat and wetness from her pussy was right up against me. Her nipples pressed into my chest as she leaned down, getting right in my face. “Do I need to get a condom?” she asked, grinding against me to stimulate herself against the hard length of my dick. “I haven’t been with anybody else, if that’s what you’re really asking.” She stopped moving for a few seconds to stare at me, then averted her gaze like she was embarrassed. Instead

of saying anything, she pushed herself up and then reached between us and pointed my dick in the right direction for her to sink onto me. We both let out a low moan and I closed my eyes as she propped her hands against my chest, and started riding me. My hands started at her thighs, but it wasn’t very long before they were on her ass, gripping and squeezing as she rolled her hips against me. This felt way, way too good. And way too much like home.

I wrapped an arm around her waist to keep her close as I sat up, then used both hands to pull her face to mine. I kissed her deep, savoring the faint freshness of the cucumber that still lingered on her tongue, sucking, biting, and licking as she draped her arms over my shoulders. “I missed this,” I muttered against her lips when we finally drew apart. I felt her sharp inhale just before her hips stopped moving and her eyes flickered upward to meet mine.

Apparently, she was just as surprised as I was that those words had come out of my mouth. She ran her tongue over her lips, then rocked against me again. “This? Or me?” “Both.” “Then why did you stop making plans with me?” I swallowed hard, then let out a sigh as I tipped my head back, looking up to the ceiling. “Because… I didn’t want to get too wrapped up in you. Didn’t want to seem like I liked you too much.”

She scoffed. “Liking someone you’re sleeping with. Such a crazy phenomenon.” “You know what I mean.” She bored her nails into my shoulders as she bared down, sinking as far onto me as she could get. My fingers dug into her lush curves, gripping her tight as she moved in fluid circles instead of up and down, creating a slick, wet friction. One of her hands moved up, cupping the back of my neck as she buried her face there again. “I missed this… and you… too.”

Shit. Was that relief that I felt? “Then why did you stop making plans with me?” She let out a soft, sexy giggle against my neck. “Because I didn’t want to seem like I liked you too much.” “So you do like me though, huh?” Devyn lifted her head to meet my eyes again. “I’m not really into onesided feelings, Dr. Wright.” “Who said they were one-sided, Nurse Echols?” She sucked her teeth and cut her eyes toward the ceiling, which made me grab her at the hips, stopping

her motion. “What, you think I don’t like you?” “I think you like this,” she said, wiggling her hips. “We wouldn’t be doing this if I wasn’t interested beyond sex.” She lifted an eyebrow. “So what are you interested in?” I met her eyes. There was no hint of… anything that would make me feel pressured to answer the question a certain way, especially with her naked in my lap. She wasn’t looking for anything except a response.

“Something that I’m not convinced is even… plausible, right now. For either of us.” She gave me a little nod. “Okay. So… what are we doing here, then? What’s happening right now?” “I…” I shrugged, then wrapped my arms around her waist. “I don’t know.” Her lips parted a bit as she looked at me, then finally let out a sigh. “Me either.” “So what now?” “Well… unless you have an

objection…” She moved my hands back down to her hips, then looked at me with a wicked spark in her eyes. “I say we finish what we started, and then figure everything else out.” I grinned, then sucked in a breath as she anchored her hands on my shoulders and started riding me again. “No objection to that at all.”

ten.

“I’m sorry… you hired who to work in Aviva’s place until she comes back from maternity leave?” A grim smile came over Dr. Thompson’s face as he leaned back in his chair. He was chief of staff, and had

called me into a meeting as soon as I arrived at the hospital. I’d walked in with a smile on my face because I’d spent the night – and the seven or eight before that – skin to skin with Devyn. It had been just over a week since Jay’s birthday party, and my… reconnection with her. And I had enjoyed every second. This news was blowing my high. “Mariah Kennedy is an excellent doctor, despite your history with her. It’s been what… four years now? Don’t tell me there’s still friction there?”

I shook my head. “No sir. But the friction was never on my part… if you remember?” He chuckled. “Yes, I remember the day the you and Dr. Kennedy turned this place into “University Hospital’s Anatomy”. But I am almost certain those are events of the past, right?” “As far as I’m concerned, yes sir.” “Good. How are things going with Nurse Echols?” he asked, not looking at me as he flipped open the file on his desk.

My mouth went dry. “Ummm…” “Has she proven to be an asset? I’m thinking about pulling her out of the Women’s Center, letting her get some time in the ER. Do you think she can handle that?” “Yes,” I said confidently. “She’s worked many ER shifts with me when I do doubles and she’s completely capable.” “Good. I might make that move soon, so you’ll be losing her. Dr. Kennedy’s presence will be necessary in the Women’s Center, until Dr. Winslow

rejoins the staff.” I let out a heavy sigh. This was two blows, at the same time. “Is that all, Dr. Thompson? I have appointments starting soon.” “Yes,” he nodded. “That was all. I know that you usually would have had hiring authority in this situation, but Dr. Kennedy needed a quick answer.” “Understood.” “Good. She starts today.” Today?! I didn’t do anything except nod before I tried stepped out of Dr.

Thompson’s office, but inside, I was real close to wigging the fuck out. “Oh, and Dr. Wright?” I glanced back. “Yes?” “We’re sending a group of firstyears to the Women’s Center today. They’ll be with your department every morning for the next few weeks. They were supposed to go to neurology, but we had to make a switch.” I walked out of that office in a daze. Mariah Kennedy, aka “Crazy Pants”, aka “the Mariah Situation”, aka

“That crazy girl that busted up my Mercedes” was coming back to University Hospital. Today. And there wasn’t shit I could do about it. Oh, and Devyn was going to be leaving. And eight or nine neurotic, inexperienced young doctors were about to be released on my unit. So much for a laid-back day. I slid my phone out of my pocket as I headed to the elevator, to send a text to Aviva. She was due any day now, and from our text conversations over the last

few weeks, bored out of her mind. “Guess who’s replacing you?” I sent that, then stepped onto the elevator. A few moments later, as the elevator began to move down, my phone buzzed. “Replace moi? They could never! Who?! – Aviva W.” “Crazy Pants, as you call her.” “Whaaaaat?! I can’t believe Dr. Thompson is even allowing her back on the premises, LOL! You may want to head to the pharmacy, see if you can write yourself a script for

some something. You’ll need it. – Aviva W.” “Ha! For me or her?” “Both. When does she start? – Aviva W.” “Today. Don’t even have a chance to meditate or nothing, just BAM! OH, and they’re sending us a round of fucking first-year residents.” “That’s messed up…….. whelp, have fun – Aviva W.” “LMAO. I’m really tickled about this. – Aviva W.” “Because you’re at home.”

“Right. Keep me updated. I’ve got popcorn. – Aviva W.” “That’s cold, Vi.” “Not as cold as you were when CrazyPants busted the windows out of your dad’s Mercedes. – Aviva W.” “Bye.” “LMAO. KEEP ME UPDATED – Aviva W.” The elevator dinged to alert me that I was back on the sixth floor. My feet felt heavy as hell as I trudged into the hall, heading toward the Women’s Center.

As soon as I pushed through the double-doors, I heard elevated voices. Elevated female voices. Well, one. Mariah Kennedy. Sent a fucking chill down my spine – and not in the good way. I rounded the corner to see Mariah standing at the nurse’s desk. I hadn’t seen her in seven years, but she was exactly like I remembered. Copper skin, lots of hair, furrowed eyebrows, and crossed arms. And she was facing Devyn.

Lord, help please. “What’s happening here?” I asked, stepping forward, even though I would have much preferred to hide in my office for the rest of the day. Mariah perked up as soon as she saw me, her scowl disappearing in favor of a syrupy smile. “Joseph!” She reached out to give me a hug, and when I didn’t immediately return the gesture, she threw her arms around me anyway. “It’s been so long! And it’s so good to see you!” “Is that right?” I asked, detaching

myself from her embrace. “Of course. I missed you,” she said, giving me a grin that implied something completely different than the actual relationship we had – which didn’t exist. “I can’t wait to catch up over dinner tonight.” “Oh how nice,” Devyn said, looking up at me with a pleasant smile. It was the same smile she’d been wearing when I turned the corner – the same smile she wore when a patient was driving her nuts. “Like, a date?” “Yes,” Mariah answered.

“No,” I said, in a voice that sounded more like a growl than I wanted it to. “I already have plans tonight, Dr. Kennedy.” She scoffed. “Dr. Kennedy? Oh please, call me Mariah.” “I’ll refer to you by your professional title, Dr. Kennedy. Hospital standard.” Mariah grinned. “Ohhh, right. You have to follow the little rules since you’re chief resident of this wing, right?” I swallowed hard. “Right.

Now… back to my original question. What seems to be the problem here, ladies? What did I walk in on?” “Well,” Devyn started, but Mariah held up a hand. Oh, shit. “This nurse,” Mariah said, emphasizing the word with a disgusted tone that made every nurse moving around the area cut their eyes in her direction. “Seems to think she has some sort of authority around here.” I watched Devyn’s nostrils flare, but just as quickly, she’d recomposed

herself. “Can you believe it?” Mariah continued. “Walked up and took a handful of charts. When I asked her what she was doing, she said she was reviewing files for her patients. Her patients. Can you believe the nerve?” Because I was pretty sure her head would explode if she spoke, I didn’t even turn to Devyn. She was in scrubs today, because she was assisting me with another C-section for our third patient that morning. I was already dressed too, but with Devyn being in

scrubs, I could almost, maybe, a little understand Mariah’s confusion. “Dr. Kennedy, Nurse Echols is an N.P. She absolutely does have treatment and diagnostic privileges at this hospital. She’s finishing up an internship before she receives her full licensing.” “What the hell is an NP?” Mariah scoffed. “Another fancy title for not a doctor?” “Actually,” I said, trying not to sound as annoyed as I felt, “It’s a nurse who has received advanced education

and certification in the medical field, enough to diagnose and treat an incredibly wide range of injuries, illness, and conditions, without the supervision of a doctor – once she’s gotten her licensing. Nurse Echols also has surgical and ER experience.” The nasty, mocking grin Mariah had worn before I spoke faded, replaced by haughty indignation. “Whatever. About our date tonight?” “We have no date tonight. I told you, I already have plans.”

“Well, tomorrow then.” “I have plans then too, and for the foreseeable future. I’m not available to spend any personal time with you, Dr. Kennedy.” She poked her full, deep red painted lips out in a pout. “Are you still mad at me Joey?” “No, Dr. Kennedy. I just have no interest in revisiting the past. Nurse Echols, please take your charts, and prepare for your patients. Dr. Kennedy was mistaken.” With that same deathly calm

expression, Devyn looked Mariah up and down and then turned back to me. “Gladly.” “And I’ll see you in about an hour for our C-section,” I called after her, once she’d reached across Mariah to get her files from the desk, then headed down the hall. “Of course,” she answered back. I watched her until she turned the corner, then looked back to Mariah. “Listen,” I said, in a low whisper that the eavesdroppers still in the hall couldn’t hear. “I don’t ever want to see

about, hear about, even get an inkling that you’re thinking about disrespecting any of this staff again. If you have a question about somebody’s duties, I’m the department chair. You can ask me or you can take it to Dr. Thompson, but what you won’t do is talk down to our peers like you’re in charge. You got that?” “Yeah,” she whispered back, then pulled her lip between her teeth as she smiled. “You know I always like when you got all authoritative, and—” “Alright so good talk,” I said,

backing away from her. “Nurse Hall will get you set up with some patients and we have a round of medical students starting today, so you’ll be assigned a few of those. You need the patient’s permission for them to be present during any treatment. If you don’t know the protocol for having students on the floor, Nurse Hall will fill you in.” I took off down the hall before she could get anything else in. Luckily for me, I’d already put my patient files in my office, so I could have at least these twenty or so minutes

of peace before I had to venture back out. I stepped into my office, locked the door behind me, and then… turned around to find Devyn looking right in my face, her arms crossed over her chest. “Who the hell is she?” Oof. This was an anger I hadn’t seen in a while, since our dynamic had changed. Even though it wasn’t directed at me, her ire made heat rush to my groin and I had to mentally check myself. This was not the time. “She is Aviva’s interim

replacement and I had no idea she was starting today. It was news to me too.” “I thought I was helping carry the weight of Aviva’s absence?” “You were, until Dr. Thompson decided he wanted to pull you into ER services.” She blinked, and some of the anger left her face. “Oh.” But then… it came right back. “Still. Where does she get off acting like she’s my boss? She’d better be glad I have some home training and care about finishing out this internship. I mean, it’s not like I can’t

handle a little friction at work – I mean, look at me and you! You may have been an asshole, but you never, ever treated me like I was gum under your shoe, or disrespected me. That woman, just—” “Devyn, calm down,” I said, putting my hands on her shoulders as she pushed out a harsh breath. “Listen to me. I may not be your boss, since your internship is with the hospital as a whole, but as head of this department, I do supersede her. I know Dr. Kennedy can be a handful, and I do want you to try to keep your cool, no matter what she

does. But I don’t expect you to stand back and be disrespected. If she takes something too far, you do what you need to do. I’ll back you.” Devyn shook her head. “I appreciate that, but I won’t be letting that woman make me act of character. I’m here to heal people, and that’s what I plan to focus on.” “Good,” I nodded. “But what I said still stands. I know Mariah can be a lot.” She lifted an eyebrow. “Mariah, huh? You must know her pretty well for

first-name basis. And she certainly seemed very… into you.” “We dated,” I admitted. Better to hear it from me first. “Briefly. Three or four years ago. Long story short, she was ready to pick out wedding colors about three months into it and I… wasn’t. I suggested we cool things off, she flipped out. I called it quits, she flipped out more.” “Mmhmm. Would “Mariah” tell the same version of that story?” I chuckled. “Probably not. But Aviva would.”

“I guess that’s good enough for me… not that I care who you dated in the past.” She brushed her hair back from her face, then headed to the door. “I need to get ready for my patients.” And then she was gone. As the door closed behind her, a grin spread over my face. She may have said she didn’t care, but her body language told a different story. One that I was surprised to like much better than her being unaffected.

-&“Liking for your girl to be jealous about another woman being all over you is normal shit, Joey.” Jay said that and then cursed under his breath about whatever he was doing under the hood of the sleek black Lexus he’d been working on since I came into the service shop at J&P Auto. Propping my hands behind my head, I leaned back onto the painted concrete block wall. “That may be

true… but Devyn isn’t my girl.” Jay sucked his teeth. “Yeah, nigga. Sure.” “Really though. We’ve talked about it and everything.” “You mean y’all lied to each other about the obvious? Cause she’s all you talk about, bruh.” I scoffed. “And all you talk about is Reese.” “Yeah,” he said, leaning around the open hood to grin at me. “Because that’s my girl.” Jay chuckled as he turned his

attention back to the engine, leaving me to keep thinking about the same thing that had been on my mind since my exchange with Devyn earlier that morning. Mercifully, I’d been able to leave after a simple eight-hour shift. Just enough time to catch my baby brother at work. “You know this is some “student becoming the master” type shit don’t you?” Jay asked, straightening up and wiping his hands on a stained towel that hung at his waist. “What are you talking about, man?”

“This right here,” he said, gesturing between us. “You don’t remember all the conversations we’ve had, with you dropping knowledge about women?” I whistled. “That’s been a minute ago.” “Yeah, since Mariah fucked up your head. Just messed you all up, and that’s why instead of giving the advice to your baby brother, you have to come and get it.” “Who said I needed advice? I was just coming to vent.”

“Bullshit, Joey,” Jay laughed. “You came here to “vent” because Pops is running around town with Imara, so you can’t catch him. And Justin? That fool couldn’t keep his wife or his “best friend” who he happened to be in love with. I’m the one that’s making this relationship shit work.” “Okay, see now I’m gonna call bullshit,” I said, sitting forward with my elbows propped on my knees. “You and Reese have been at it for what… seven months, max? You’re an expert now?” He shrugged. “I have a smart,

strong-willed, sexy, soon-to-be advancedegreed woman waiting for me at home. So, yeah, as a matter of fact. And I don’t mind helping my brother out either, so it’s your lucky day.” I laughed as he stuck his head back under the hood. Standing up, I moved closer until I could see under the hood with him, and watched as he replaced the car’s spark plugs with new ones. “You gonna tell me this secret or not?” Jay looked up at me and grinned.

“Ohhh, so you do want to know, huh?” “Stop playing and tell me.” “Aw, nah,” he chuckled, straightening up. “First, you tell me the real deal about what’s up with you and Devyn.” “Nothing to tell. We’re sleeping together.” He scoffed. “There’s plenty to tell. Like… how you feel about her.” “I… “I shrugged, then swiped my hand over my head as I moved back so he could let the hood down. “I like her. A lot.”

“So what’s the hold up?” “I don’t have time for a girlfriend.” “Bullshit. You find time for y’all to fuck, you found time to be over here bugging the shit out of me, you find time for the bar, and Sunday dinners, all of that. You have time.” I… couldn’t offer a rebuttal to that. “And besides that,” Jay continued. “You don’t have to work as much as you do. They can hire more doctors to help carry that load.”

I shook my head. “I wouldn’t make a request like that just to date though, that’s crazy. Maybe if I had kids, a family.” “Isn’t that what you promised mama you were gonna do anyway though?” Pops had brought that shit up too, and I wasn’t exactly trying to revisit it. “I’m not ready for that,” I said, brushing him off. “Then when will you be? You’ll be 35 in a few months, bruh. Wait too long and you’ll be shooting dust.”

“Man shut up,” I laughed. “I’m not talking about waiting that long, just…” Shit… I didn’t have an answer for that either. “Listen… obviously you’re bothered by where you are now, or we wouldn’t be talking about it. You’d have sure answers, instead of these long ass pauses and shit you keep giving me. So I’m saying… I know you’re not ready to put a ring on the girl’s finger, but the only way to get there is by taking a step forward. You wanna know the “big

secret” to what I have with Reese?” I sighed. “What?” “I stopped bullshitting. We both did. It’s that simple. We wanted each other, so we said it, and we’re making it happen. We make time for each other, we compromise, we talk, we have sex, we fight sometimes, and then we make up. Shit isn’t that complicated.” “But—” “Nah.” “Wait though—” “Nah. It’s really that easy, bruh. If you like her, she likes you, be with

her. If it doesn’t work out, that’s life. Learn and move on. Don’t sit around and overthink it, making it harder than it has to be, damn.” Jay picked up a clipboard and started marking things off, giving me the distinct impression that I was being dismissed. It wasn’t like there was more to say – he’d said it all, and I really had no rebuttal for any of it, even though I’d tried. Me and Jay exchanged goodbyes and then I headed out to my car. Once I was there, I pulled out my cell, staring at

it for a long moment before I unlocked the screen, navigated to my text messages, and started typing. “Hey… you busy right now?” I tossed the phone into the passenger seat and then started the car, but it buzzed with Devyn’s response before I could shift into “drive”. “Yes and no. Fixing dinner. What’s up? – Dev.” “Oh really? What are you cooking for us?” “Wow, LOL. Us? Are you inviting yourself to dinner? – Dev.”

“Only if my presence is welcome. ;)” “Silly ass. Yeah. Come on by. – Dev.”

eleven.

“Good morning Devyn.” My keys slipped from my hand as I looked up. The day had started great – morning sex and omelets for breakfast before Joseph slipped out to get ready for work. Hot shower, great hair day,

and my blood sugar levels were beautiful. Everything was going great until I went out to get in the car, for my drive to the hospital. Because Malcolm was lurking outside. How long he’d been there, I had no idea, but the sight of him, distinctly rumpled and unshaven, nothing like his normally impeccable appearance, creeped me out. I hurriedly bent and snatched up my keys, intending to lock myself in my car, but he caught my arm as I opened the door.

“What the hell do you want?” I asked, trying to snatch away. Instead of letting go of my arm, he gripped it tighter as he pushed me against the car. “I want you to respond when I greet you. I said good morning.” “Go to hell!” I yelled, using every bit of strength I had to shove him away. That gave me just enough room to get a good grip on the tiny pepper spray can attached to my keys. As soon as he saw it aimed at his face, he let me go. “So what now, huh Devyn? You’re gonna spray me with that?”

“If I have to! Why the hell are you grabbing on me like you’re crazy?!” “Why the hell are you out here acting like a whore?!” He screamed that at me, like he was asking the whole neighborhood and I shrank backward, putting my free hand on the door handle as I moved to a position that would let me slip into the car. “What are you talking about?” He scoffed. “Oh, you don’t know what I’m talking about? I didn’t watch that motherfucker go in your house last

night and not come out until this morning?” “Spending the night with the man I’m dating makes me a whore?” “Devyn please. Dating? I remember what you said to me about him. That he hated you, wasn’t thinking about you, all of that. You remember that? Spreading your legs for a man that doesn’t even like you isn’t dating.” The air rushed out of my lungs, and I blinked, then blinked again. “Okay. Fuck you. Don’t come near me again, or I swear to God, this pepper spray will

be the least of your worries.” “I’ll keep that in mind when you come crawling back. See you at the hospital.” He yelled at my car after I’d slipped inside, locking the doors behind me. He kept yelling, spewing ugliness as I cranked the car and whipped it out of my spot, not caring if I “accidentally” hit him. My heart raced all the way to the hospital. I searched my mind, over and over for what I could have possibly seen in Malcolm, but that was obvious. The

problem was what I hadn’t seen. His ability to turn into… whoever that was. I considered myself lucky to have noticed his controlling nature, but this was… this was something else entirely. Even when we broke up the first time, he’d never put his hands on me before. But then… me not wanting to be with him hadn’t involved another man, either. I was still shaken by the time I pulled into the hospital parking lot.

Taking a deep breath, I turned my car off, then made sure to look around me before I stepped out of my car. I hurried into the hospital, then up to the sixth floor, not realizing until I got off the elevator that I was gripping my keys so tight they were imprinted in my hand. I cursed in my head as I felt tears stinging the backs of my eyelids. Don’t let this man make you cry at work again, I told myself, then took another deep breath before I started down the hall. It was still early, so no patients had arrived yet, but the nurse’s

desk was crowded with – annoying – first year residents. Not only did they barely know any practical things, they were under the mistaken impression that I didn’t either, and treated me accordingly, which Dr. Kennedy ate up. I averted my gaze as I headed past them, opting not to stop at the desk for now, and heading… I didn’t know where. But then I passed a particular door and suddenly I did. At Joseph’s door, emblazoned with his name engraved on a gold plaque, I hesitated. Even though I’d told

that lie to Malcolm twice now, he and I weren’t dating. We were… something. But either way, I didn’t want to become a story he told a few years from now, like the one he’d told about Dr. Kennedy. Oh, Devyn Echols? Yeah, we messed around a few years back. Great sex, but she was always crying about this ex-boyfriend of hers. I couldn’t see it for anything more than that. Before I could completely make up my mind to walk away and cry in the bathroom instead, the door swung open, and Joseph almost barreled me over as

he stepped out. “Oh, damn. I’m sorry,” he said, smiling as he caught me around the waist to keep me from falling. “Were you coming to…” the smile dropped from his mouth as he noticed my face, probably puffy and red from my attempts not to burst into tears. “Dev… what’s wrong? Are you okay?” Dr. Kennedy’s voice carried from around the corner, acting as a trigger for Joseph to pull me into his office. With the door closed and locked behind us, he cupped my face in his

hands. “I need you to answer me, Dev. What’s wrong?” “M-Malcolm.” Was the only thing I managed to get out before I dissolved into the tears I’d been trying to hold back. At first, Joseph wrapped his arms around me, holding me tight, rocking back and forth until my tears subsided. Then, he drew backwards, looking me right in the eyes. “Tell me what the fuck he did to you.” I shook my head. “I’m fine, Joseph.”

“You’re not fine. You’re—is that a bruise on your arm?! Did he put his hands on you?!” “Joseph,” I insisted, putting my hands on his shoulders. A fierce anger that I’d never seen before burned in his eyes as he shrugged off my touch to cup my elbow in his hand, and brushed his fingers over the already purple mark on my arm. “It’s nothing. He grabbed me by the arm, that’s all. He was just trying to talk to me.” Joseph scoffed. “Oh, is “that all”? Really?!”

“Joseph, please.” I shook my head. “I don’t… I don’t want to make my day about this, please. I need to get my extra lab coat from my locker and then can we just go see our patients? Anything except harping on this. I just needed a second to breathe.” “Devyn…” “Drop it. Please? We can talk about it later, but I just need to… I need to do something else. I need to think about something else.” Joseph let out a harsh sigh before he nodded, but I noticed that none of the

anger left his eyes. Even with the barely constrained rage I felt in the tightness of his body, his touch against me was gentle – nothing like the aggression from Malcolm. “Aviva had the baby,” he said finally, after a long moment of silence where I could tell he was trying to calm himself down. “What?!” I exclaimed. “When?!” “A few hours ago. Her sister sent me a text. She’s here at the hospital. That’s why I was rushing out of the door like that. I was about to try to call you,

since she said you weren’t answering your phone.” I patted my pockets – or where my pockets would have been if I hadn’t forgotten my lab coat. “Shoot. I must have left it in my car. Was it a boy or a girl?! Can we go see her?” “Yeah,” Joseph said, finally cracking a smile, even though it was short-lived. “Are you sure you’re okay? Because—” “Yes. Yes. Going to meet Aviva’s baby is exactly the kind of thing I need. Can we… can we do that right now

though?” He nodded. “There’s four other doctors here today, plus all the nurses and residents. I don’t have an appointment for another hour. We’ve got time.” “Good,” I said, pushing out a short breath. “Let’s go.” Instead of moving to the door, Joseph pulled me into his arms. Before I could say anything, his lips were on mine, and a second later, I was opening my mouth to let his tongue inside. A low moan slipped away from me as he kissed

me deeper, tasting and teasing my mouth. He didn’t let up until we were both out of breath and he drew back, propping his forehead against mine. He didn’t say anything, but he didn’t have to. His eyes said it all. “I’m okay, Joseph. Really.” He stared at me a moment longer, then nodded. “Okay. Let’s go meet the baby.”

-&“Umm… what is this?” I asked,

when I walked into Aviva’s room at the hospital and saw my brother sitting at her bedside. Eric rolled his eyes, and Aviva grinned from her reclined position on the bed. I really, really didn’t mean to blurt that out, but still… what the hell?! “Good morning to you too,” Eric said, standing to pull me into a hug. “Sorry. You being here just caught me by surprise. So… you two have been talking?” Aviva nodded. “Yep. I was actually on the phone with him when I went into labor last night. He talked me

through a lot of it.” “I wanted to come by last night, but she didn’t think it would be proper,” Eric interjected. “I’m enough of an anomaly as it is,” Aviva laughed. “The last thing I needed was you here while I was having someone else’s baby – whether I knew him or not.” “Not like I haven’t seen your pussy already, Vi.” I gasped, and so did Aviva. I’d actually forgotten Joseph was in the room with me until I heard him mumble,

“Holy shit.” “Really, Eric?!” Aviva asked, giving him a look that would have sliced him in half if her eyes had blades. “Yes, really Eric?” I added. “When did all of this talking happen between the two of you?!” He shrugged, then shot a grin at Aviva. “In the last month or so. Since Vi went on maternity leave. She came into Refill to see that neo-soul chick, Dani, sing one night. We exchanged numbers… been communicating since then.” I glanced at Aviva, then back at

my brother, looking him right in the eyes. “And I hope you’ve communicated everything… right?” It wasn’t that I had a problem with Aviva and my brother dating… or whatever. But whatever they were doing, Aviva had a brand new baby. I didn’t think my brother would sleep with her, pregnant and all, without disclosing his past, but… “If you’re asking if I know about your brothers past, I do,” Aviva said, prompting me to turn to her again. “And I love a good comeback story. We’re all

good here, Dev. Relax.” “Yeah, Devyn, Relax,” Eric teased, shaking his head at me. “Come on, you know me.” I sucked my teeth. “Apparently not, since you two have been talking and I had no idea!” “You’ve been preoccupied.” Eric cut his eyes to where Joseph was standing, then back to me, raising an eyebrow. “You want to talk about that?” I swallowed hard, then looked to Aviva. “Congratulations girl. Ummm…. Where’s the baby?”

“Oh now you want to change the subject, huh?” Aviva laughed. “My sister walked down there with them to take her to the nursery. I was supposed to be resting, but then Eric showed up.” “Congratulations,” Joseph said, finally approaching the bed, and bending to give Aviva a half hug. “Eric… let me talk to you for a second.” “For what?” I asked, quickly turning to look between them. Neither of them answered me – they simply exchanged a look before Eric nodded, then said, “Keep Aviva

company for a minute baby girl, while I holla at your boyfriend.” Before saying anything, I waited for Joseph to refute his status as my boyfriend. He… did not. And by the time I realized it, they were heading out of the room. “Wait a minute,” I hissed, catching up to them. “Is one of you going to tell me what this is about?!” Joseph sighed, then swiped a hand over his head. “Malcolm.” “Malcolm?!” Eric asked, his

voice rising. “What about him? What happened? I thought he was done?” “He grabbed her this morning, trying to make her talk to him,” Joseph answered, before I could get a word in. “Left a bruise on her.” “He did what? Where was this?!” Eric’s question was directed at me, and I hesitated before answering. “He… he was waiting outside my house when I left for work this morning. Didn’t I tell you I wanted to drop this?” I asked Joseph.

“What did he say to you?” Eric completely ignored the fact that I’d said something to Joseph, who didn’t look the least bit sorry to have stomped over my wishes. “Nothing important. He was just trying to piss me off. He’s upset about the… well, I don’t know which thing he’s upset about, but I know he’s upset.” Eric grunted. “He can be as upset as he wants to, but leave you the fuck out of it. What are you going to do if he shows up at your house again? Knocks your head in cause he’s upset?”

“He’s not going to—” “He put his hands on you already, and you know I don’t play that shit, Devyn. You know that.” “I do,” I said quietly. “Did he threaten you at all?” Joseph asked, his voice controlled, but still heated like when I’d first told him about Malcolm. I rolled my eyes, not looking at him as I answered. “No. Not really. He just… he thinks I’m going to end up running back to him, or something. And he…” I paused, and my heart raced a

little as I remembered something he had said that had sent a chill up my spine. “He said he would “see me at the hospital”.” Immediately, both Eric and Joey seemed to swell with anger. “Wait,” I said, suddenly short of breath. “I don’t think he would—” “That’s not good enough for me, Dev,” Eric said, shaking his head. “I’ve already warned his ass before. This time, I’m making sure he gets the message. You got a little time, Dr. Wright?”

Joseph nodded. “I sure do. If he’s in this hospital, we’ll find him.” “What?!” I looked back and forth between them. “Find him and do what? You can’t–” “Devyn, can you come here please?” Aviva’s voice rang out, interrupting my thought. “I’m having a hard time with this pillow and I could sure use a friend.” “Just a sec—” “Oh man I need this pillow bad. Come help me while those men have their conversation. Now.”

I let out a sigh. “Please don’t get in trouble,” I said, to Eric and Joseph. “He’s not worth it.” Eric shrugged. “Maybe not. But you are. Come on, man.” Moments later, it was just me and Aviva in the room, and I turned to her, trying to fight back new, worried tears in my eyes. “Well that was exciting,” Aviva teased, smiling as she easily sat up and adjusted her own pillow. “Come sit down. Those boys will be fine.” “Yeah, I hope so. This is exactly

what I didn’t want today to turn into.” I flopped down into the chair Eric had left, planting a hand on my forehead with a sigh as I closed my eyes… and then popped them right back open. “Oh my God. This was not supposed to be about me and I’ve turned your recovery room into a soap opera.” “You have,” Aviva agreed, even though she sounded excited, instead of as mortified as I felt. “Girl, I’m glad for the distraction. My coochie hurts.” “Aviva!” She shrugged. “What? It’s the

truth. I gave birth to all seven and a half pounds of little miss Avery with no drugs. Adrenaline got me through it, and then I passed out for a few hours, but now my ass is on fire.” I giggled. “I’m sorry. Do you want me to page someone to bring you something?” “Nope,” she shook her head. “I’m doing hands-on research for what my patients do all the time. What better way to empathize with a natural-birthing mama than to know what it feels like for myself?”

“Whew. You’re braver than me. I’d want the drugs.” She lifted an eyebrow. “Hell, I do too,” she giggled. “Anyway… like I said, distraction. What was all of that about?” I took a deep breath, then launched into the story of what had happened that morning, including some details about past occurrences with Malcolm for context. When I was done, she shook her head. “I can’t believe you were trying to get them not to go talk to that man.

Girl, he needs a little persuasion.” I sighed. “But I didn’t want this. And I can’t believe Joseph told Eric, after I specifically told him I didn’t want to deal with this today. It’s the same type of thing Malcolm would have done.” “Oh come on, Dev.” Aviva wrinkled her nose at me. “You can’t possibly conflate those two. Joseph is trying to protect you from your crazy ass ex.” “By stomping over my wishes?” “By enlisting the help of your brother, so they can act sooner than later.

After what you’ve just told me, listen, I get it. You don’t want to be with someone like Malcolm, who steamrolled you, and didn’t treat you like your own person. But girl… this isn’t the time to be upset about him doing something you asked him not to. Let that man beat his chest and defend your honor.” I groaned, and Aviva laughed. “Seriously, Devyn. I like the idea of you and Joey together and he’s a good guy. Don’t make him wanting to protect you a reason not to be with him. That’s kind of one of the points of having a

man, is it not?” “I guess… but who said Joseph and I were together?” Aviva rolled her eyes. “Oh please, Devyn. You think I didn’t peep that you had slept together? I noticed the change in your chemistry right before I went on leave. And Joseph is horrible at playing cool when I ask about you.” “But sleeping together doesn’t mean we’re… together.” She smiled. “Maybe not. But the way he just charged out of here to make sure your ex doesn’t bother you

anymore… that does.”

-&-

How many years in jail do you get for involuntary manslaughter? That question was just one of many flipping through my mind as Eric and I headed to the Orthopedics wing of

the hospital. According to some quick information gathering, Malcolm – Dr. Sevier around here – was in one of the open offices on-site today, since he had more than one surgery scheduled here. Oddly enough, consideration for his patients was one of the few reasons I could muster that doing him bodily harm wasn’t a good idea. If I knocked his head in, who would do those surgeries today? Still, as Eric gave the man a courtesy I wouldn’t have given, of knocking on the office door first, rage filled my head. I had no respect for a

man who used fear and intimidation with a woman. You want to get physical? Fine. Do that shit with a man. When no one answered the door, Eric pushed it open anyway. Startled, Malcolm jumped up from his desk with a scowl. “What the hell are you doing?” he barked – but stayed behind the desk. “Coming to find out where I was unclear last time I told your ass not to fuck with my baby sister.” “Who is your sister?” Eric scoffed. “Don’t act like you

don’t remember exactly who I am. I’ve snatched your ass up before and please believe I’m not at all bothered about doing it again. Stay the hell away from Devyn.” “Oh,” Malcolm said, pushing his hands into his pockets. “Her? Don’t worry. She’s old news to me anyway. Especially now that it’s been confirmed again that she’s not exactly from good stock. I thought I could do something with her, but I guess not – a felony is probably next on her career goals too. Like brother like sister?”

I watched Eric’s nostrils flare, and his hands twitch, like he was trying his best to stay calm. But then… he shook his head and started to charge toward Malcolm – something I couldn’t let him do with that murderous look in his eyes. “Hey,” I said, stepping in front of him and grabbing his shoulders. “You don’t want Devyn to have to visit you in jail, do you? Over this motherfucker? Come on.” That seemed to flip a switch in Eric, and he stopped trying to get past

me, but his expression didn’t change. He was pissed and I didn’t blame him, but with his past, why risk his freedom over this coward bastard? “Ohhh, there he is!” Malcolm jeered, prompting me to turn around. “Playing babysitter, keeping the jailbird in line? I’m surprised, Dr. Wright, that you would come to her defense. Would have sworn it was just pussy for you, right?” “You can shut the fuck up,” I shot back. This bastard had the nerve to

grin. “But why, Dr. Wright? It’s just us guys, and I’m sure even Eric understands. Devyn is pretty enough – beautiful really – but we’re doctors. You don’t marry the girl with the “hood” booty. If you can’t mold her, you play with her until the trophy comes along. And we both know Devyn isn’t the trophy. Consolation prize at best.” “Yeah, whatever,” I laughed. “You’re speaking about her like that because you’re pissed you can’t have her. Everybody in this room knows the real deal, man. You’re not going to rattle

me with this. Just let it go, and leave her the hell alone.” Malcolm crossed his arms. “Or what? The felon can’t do shit if he doesn’t want to spend the rest of his life behind bars. And what… am I supposed to be scared of you, Mr. Peacekeeper? I’m a grown man, bruh. I don’t take orders, I do what I want. And what I want just might involve paying a little visit to your chubby girlfriend to remind her she isn’t shit without me, whenever I feel inclined.” His mouth spread into a shitty,

mocking grin after he finished speaking. That flipped a switch in me. I didn’t even think about it – I went over the desk because that was the quickest route, and two seconds later, my fist was connecting with his jaw. He fell backwards, but my hands were around his neck before he hit the ground. “Do you think somebody is fucking playing with you?” I asked, right in his face, as I tightened my grip around his neck. I could feel Eric behind me, trying to pry me off, but that just made me dig in harder. “I said leave her alone,

and I mean that shit… bruh.” Finally, I let him go, shoving his stupid ass away from me. I shrugged Eric off, then strode across the room, swiping a hand over my face as I tried to pull myself together. “Daaaaamn,” Eric said, and I looked back to see him standing over Malcolm with a big grin. “I see you thought you were safe talking that shit to Dr. Holyfield over there, but apparently not. You aiight man? You need some help up?” Malcolm jerked away, scowling

as he scrambled to his feet, massaging his neck. “I’ll have your license for this shit,” he choked out, backing towards the corner of the office. I scoffed. “Try it, please. My phone has been recording this whole conversation, and I don’t think the hospital, the police, or the medical review board would take so kindly to your threats against Devyn. I’ll pay my dues for what I did, but your ass is coming down with me, if that’s how you want it to go.” “And I mean, good luck proving

anything anyway,” Eric said. “See, I know the maintenance man and the security guard for this floor, and the surveillance cameras have been kinda wonky lately. Whole long stretches of video missing. You may not even be able to place us here, other than your word. And I bet Dr. Wright’s reputation around here is a lot stronger than yours. Damn shame.” “Just get out of my office!” “Our pleasure,” Eric chuckled. “But hey – about that whole “leave Devyn the fuck alone or next time I’m

catching your ass somewhere alone and eliminating the problem” thing? I mean that. He means it. Keep that in mind.” “Out!” “Have yourself a blessed day, Dr. Sevier.” I was quiet as we left the office, not even reacting to Eric leaving the door wide open so Malcolm would have to shut it himself. Honestly? I was still dazed about the fact that I’d went after him – but I didn’t feel bad. Not even a little. Threatening her, to my damn face? That was taking it too far.

“I must say I’m surprised,” Eric chuckled as we stepped onto the elevator to go back to the maternity wing. “I thought you were one of those buttoned up types, but I see I was wrong… at least when it comes to defending my sister.” I shrugged. “It wasn’t something I planned to do.” “That makes it even better. You acted out of what you feel for Dev, and I’m just glad that whatever that is, it’s strong enough to make you come out of character when necessary. Aviva said

you were a good man. Glad to see it for myself.” Eric extended his hand to me across the elevator, and I accepted his shake and the brief hug that followed. “Long as you’re treating her right, you’re good by me.” I nodded. “I appreciate that man… but I’m pretty sure she’s pissed about me telling you what old boy did to her this morning.” “And she’s gonna be even more pissed when she finds out you choked him,” Eric laughed. “But nah… she’s just tripping because she doesn’t want

anything even remotely reminiscent of Malcolm. Give her a little bit. She’ll come around.” I let out a sigh as I leaned back against the elevator wall, waiting for it to reach our destination. I really hoped that was true. Me saying something to Eric wasn’t about disrespecting her wishes – I just wanted her to feel safe. I wanted her ex to leave her the hell alone. By the time we made it back to Aviva’s room, her sister was there too, and they had the baby in the room.

Devyn was holding her, rocking her back and forth as the women talked and laughed. Aviva was the first to look up, and she smiled. “There you guys are… with no handcuffs! That’s good, right?” Eric laughed. “Yeah. Joseph has old boy shook. I highly doubt he’ll be bothering you again baby girl,” he said to Devyn, kissing the top of her head. Devyn shot me a scolding look, then handed the baby back to Aviva as she stood up. “I told you I didn’t want to deal

with this right now. That I didn’t want to think about it, and you forced the issue anyway,” she said in a quiet voice, after she’d pulled me over to the door. I nodded. “I know, and I’m sorry. I just… couldn’t stand the idea of him thinking that shit was okay. It wasn’t.” She stared at me for a few seconds, and just when I was starting to wonder if I was getting cursed out, she put her arms around my waist. She rested her head against my chest as she pulled herself close, and I wrapped my arms around her shoulders.

“Thank you,” she mumbled into my lab coat, and I smiled. “You’re welcome.”

twelve.

“So how was your first day in the ER?” Joseph asked, looking me right in the eyes. Instead of answering, I sucked in a breath, holding it as he pushed his fingers into me, then broke our eye

contact to press his lips to my inner thigh. I moaned as he pumped them into me, trailing kisses closer and closer to the place where I needed his mouth. “Why do you always try to start conversations at times like this?” I whimpered as he hooked his arm under my thigh, opening me up to bury his face between my legs and inhale. He brushed his nose over my clit, then chuckled at my frustrated groan. “Because this is when I can guarantee your full attention.” I fell back onto the pillows,

closing my eyes as he covered me with his mouth. I had been distracted lately, after the news that I would be spending a week on ER rotation. I’d been rereading the notes from my classes, quizzing myself, doing everything I could to prepare, which meant less time for moments like this. And after the shift in my relationship with Joseph two weeks ago, after that incident with Malcolm… I craved these moments. The last two weeks had been beautifully free of any reference to Malcolm – except the news in passing

that he’d accepted a position at a hospital across the country – and I was glad. It gave me time to focus on the happy things in my life – my job, and family and friends, and… Joseph. Well, it would have, if I hadn’t been busy trying to make sure I was ready to spend a week in the ER. I had to be as prepared as possible. There were only five months left in my internship at the hospital, and I needed to make them count. Good impressions on my peers and superiors, not killing anybody, and learning

everything I possibly could before I got my full licensing, and had to move into a real job. There was no guarantee I’d be offered – or accept – a position at University Hospital, but there was no reason to drive those chances lower. I preferred to keep them high. Very high. “Higher,” I moaned, and Joseph obliged, licking and sucking and devouring me like my skin was coated in honey. I dug my fingers into the sheets as my legs began to tremble and shake, and tension coiled in my belly. A few

moments later, I collapsed against the mattress, basking in post-orgasm euphoria. “Are you going to answer me though?” Joseph chuckled, then pressed his lips to mine as he moved to lay on top of me. “How was your day?” I grinned as he moved down, laying his head in his favorite place – my breasts. “It was stressful, and draining, and amazing.” “All three at once, huh?” “Mmhmm.” I moved my hands to his shoulders, then the back of his head

as he lifted it to look at me. “It’s so much more fast paced during the day, and so… wild. I helped get a knife out of man’s leg while the girl who stabbed him cried and freaked out… then tried to stab him again. I watched an emergency bypass, I helped set a broken arm. So much happens. Some of it life or death, some isn’t. Some of the patients are sweet as pie, some not so much. One of the doctors told me there was no such thing as a “typical” day, and I believe it. It was stressful, yes… but exhilarating too.”

When I finished speaking, I looked down to see that Joseph was staring at me, with a little smile on his face. “What?” I asked. He shook his head. “Nothing. I just like listening to you talk about work. So you like the ER, huh? You think that’s where you want to be?” “I have no idea. I’ve kind of floated through my whole career, you know? I was a nurse, period. Didn’t focus on a specialty, I went where I was needed. But now that I’m finishing up,

and getting the advanced practice license… I don’t know if I want to do a specialty or not. How did you end up in gynecology? What made you choose to look at pussy all day?” Joseph laughed. “Well, it was actually decided for me, kind of. My mother had a hard time finding a black doctor for those needs. She talked to me about the racism she’d faced – and not just her, other family, friends, all of that – just trying to get prenatal care, or get a UTI treated. At the time, I just wanted to heal and help people. I didn’t have a

specialty in mind. But after talking to her about that, I decided I wanted to do my part to help women like my mother, who just wanted quality care without any stupid prejudice.” I nodded. “Yeah, I’ve run into that too, even as a nurse. Doctors who didn’t think the black mothers needed as much pain management, or assumptions that they wouldn’t breastfeed, what their home life was like, all kinds of nonsense.” “Exactly,” he agreed. “So that’s how I ended up focusing on obstetrics

and gynecology. I saw an unfulfilled need in our city and decided I wanted to help make a difference. Dragged Aviva with me when we were still students, and the black medical population is steadily growing now, because that’s part of it too. Seeing others in the field, so you know it’s possible.” I moved my hands to cup his face. “That’s kind of amazing, Dr. Wright.” “I know, it is, isn’t it?” “Ugh, arrogant ass.” I pinched his cheeks, and he

groaned and moved away. “Chill,” he laughed. “So what do you think you’re going to do?” “I have no idea. I’ll finish out my week in the ER, then go wherever else Dr. Thompson sends me. I still have five months to figure it out.” “Yeah. You’ll be fine.” “I’m already fine.” Joseph grinned, then moved his hands under me to grip my ass. “Who’s the arrogant ass now?”

-&“Ah, Nurse Echols! There you are!” Shit. Briefly, I considered taking off running in the other direction to avoid Dr. Kennedy, but she’d already approached, flanked by those damn first year residents. Outside of the opportunity to get some new experience, I’d been glad for my week in the ER because it meant

getting the hell away from her. She was rude, and condescending, and if I had to hear another reference to the fact that she’d “had” Joseph – and wanted him back, even though he paid her no attention – I was going to lose my mind. That week had been a great break, but now I was back in the Women’s Unit, and Dr. Kennedy was back on my nerves. “Do you have a moment?” she asked, in that fake ass syrupy sweet voice of hers. “I’m quizzing our young doctors on a few different simple

procedures and I wanted to show how these things should be common knowledge for medical staff.” I pushed out a sigh. “Sure, Dr. Kennedy. I have a quick moment. How can I help?” She smiled. “Well, this one is a real case. A patient we’re seeing again for a follow-up today. I’d love it if you could tell us the proper procedure for treating a female patient who has developed large, debilitating fibroids on her uterus.” Questions about simple

procedures my ass. “Well, does this patient have any known cancer risks?” Dr. Kennedy rolled her eyes. “Nurse Echols, I would have given you that information, if our patient was one of the rare women whose fibroids were actually cancerous, so, no.” I fought the urge to roll my eyes too. “Well, for large fibroids, if the woman is still interested in having children, I would say a laparotomy. If fertility isn’t a consideration anymore, then possibly a hysterectomy. But it

would depend very largely on the patient.” “That’s what you think?” I lifted an eyebrow. “Uh… yes. It is.” “Well,” Dr. Kennedy said, turning to the students. “Nurse Echols is wrong, and that’s why most women choose doctors to make these decisions about their care.” I crossed my arms over my chest and tipped my head to the side, waiting to her explain my “wrongness.” “While Nurse Echols may be

content to butcher our patient with an unnecessarily invasive procedure, I’m not,” Dr. Kennedy continued, wearing a smirk that was calling me to smack it off her pretty face. “You see, for the removal of even a large fibroid, laparoscopy is an option, through power morcellation. We would actually cut the fibroid into smaller pieces, which can then be removed through the small laparoscopy incision, instead of the large laparotomy. You may want to write that down, Nurse Echols.” I shook my head, looking her

dead in the face. “Why on earth would I want to write down your suggestion, Dr. Kennedy? Or hell – maybe I should, since power morcellation is currently discouraged by the FDA. Or did you not know?” I bit my lip to keep from smiling as the smirk melted off her face. “You see, class, there’s been recent concern about power morcellation spreading cancerous cells – uterine sarcoma, specifically – that aren’t discovered until the examination of the tissue removed during the procedure. Now, this is admittedly rare, but as medical

professionals, we have a responsibility to reduce risk to our patients, and only choose that procedure if it’s the only viable option. Other options are laparotomy and hysterectomy, like I said. But again… depends on the patient.” I walked away after that, but not before I got a good look of the humiliation on her face, of having her attempt to embarrass me turned around on her. Silly bitch, I thought to myself as I headed down the hall to the nurse’s

desk to get the files for my next patients.

-&-

“Dr. Wright, I need to talk to you now!” The fact that Mariah called me “Dr. Wright” was my first clue that whatever was about to come out of her

mouth was bullshit. But still. I looked up from my desk, cursed myself internally for leaving my door open, and gave her my attention. “Yes, Dr. Kennedy? How can I help you?” “That nurse,” – why the hell did she say that with such disgust? – “Nurse Evans, or whatever the hell her name is.” “Nurse Echols?” “Yes. Her.” Mariah stepped into the office, shoving the door closed behind her. “She’s a burden to this unit

and I would even venture to say, this hospital.” I sat back. “Wow. That’s a strong accusation.” “And I mean every single word of it.” “Okay,” I said, pulling out a pad to take notes. “You want to tell me what happened?” She hurried forward, perching herself in the chair across from my desk, pulling her lab coat open in the process. She made a big show of “getting comfortable”, which involved making

sure the gravity-defying amount of cleavage created by her low cut top was on full display. “Yes, I sure do.” “Okay. Proceed.” “Well, I had the residents with me – they love being with me – when I approached Nurse Evans—” “Echols.” “Whatever. When I approached her to answer a question.” My eyebrow shot up. “You approached Nurse Echols with a question?” “Well, yes,” she huffed. “She

supposedly is “as good as” a doctor, I thought maybe she’d be able to provide some answers or insight for me. Was I wrong for thinking that?” Ha. I had to give Mariah credit – she really was a good actress. “No,” I answered. “Not at all. Please proceed.” “Thank you. I approached her to ask a question, to which she provided an answer that I didn’t deem correct.” “What was the question?” “Why does it matter?”

I tipped my head to the side. “So… the question isn’t relevant to your complaint?” “No.” “I… okay. Proceed.” “Gladly.” She adjusted herself again, trying her best to get me to give my attention to her breasts, but I wasn’t about to do it. Not because I didn’t like breasts – because I wasn’t trying to give this woman any hint that I was interested in her. Was I still mad about what had happened between us? Of course not, it

was too many years ago to be hanging on to that. But what I lacked in anger, I did not lack in common sense. She showed her ass with me back then, and I knew better now. And besides that… there was Devyn. We hadn’t put an official title on anything yet, and we were still playing it cool around the hospital, but as far as I was concerned, I was no longer an available man. There wasn’t anything Mariah could do – or show – to make me jeopardize that.

“So after she gave her answer,” Mariah continued, when I kept my eyes on her face, “I gave my students the information that I knew to be correct. And that bitch—” “Whoa,” I said, holding up my hands. “That’s some pretty strong language to use in a complaint against a colleague.” “Well, when the shoe fits, it fits. She completely embarrassed me in front of the residents, and presented unsubstantiated information as if it were medical fact. And then had the gall to

just walk away from me, as if I were nothing. And I cannot, will not, work under these hostile conditions. I refuse to. She needs to go. I want her out of here.” I shook my head. “That’s actually outside of your authority to decide, Dr. Kennedy.” She sucked her teeth. “Well, who does have the authority?” “Myself, and Dr. Thompson. What I’ll do, is have you give me a detailed recount of what happened. I’ll talk to Nurse Echols–”

“So she can lie?!” “So she can give her version of what happened. I’ll also talk to the residents and see if there was anyone else in the hall who may have overheard.” Suddenly, her eyes went wide. “Seriously? All of that? Why can’t you just take my word for it?” “Because this is someone’s job and future at hand. Even if it happened exactly as you’d said, this wouldn’t be enough for anything more than a reprimand, maybe. And even for a

formal reprimand, I would have a responsibility to investigate the claim. I can’t just take your word for it, no.” “Well then fine,” she snapped, jumping up from the chair. “You know what I think? I think you’re just mad about the way things ended between us, and you’re still punishing me for it. And I don’t understand why!” I twisted my face in confusion. “Dr. Kennedy, our past has nothing to do with me following the proper procedure for a complaint.” “Are you sure, Joseph?” She

stepped around the desk, moving around to my side before she lowered herself to sit down, leaning toward me. “Because there was a time when you were so into me, you would do pretty much anything I said.” “Thank God for growth,” I said, standing up so I could move away. She wasn’t lying – before I realized she was crazy, I really was sprung. Incredibly hot sex tends to do that… but there was nothing like waking up to a bridal magazine with dream gowns marked and potential dates scribbled on the cover to

get you un-sprung, in a big hurry. “Do you really not feel anything for me anymore?” She hopped down from the desk and came to stand in front of me. “Nothing? Like you said, we’ve both grown.” She ran her fingers along my tie. “We could be really great together, you know? A power couple.” I gently grabbed her wrist, moving her hand away from me. “No, Mariah. We cannot. I’m not interested in revisiting a relationship with you—” “Well, yeah, maybe not right now —”

“Not ever, Mariah. Aren’t you only here temporarily anyway?” She pouted. “I could change that though. My position in South America can be filled by someone else, and—” “But when Aviva comes back from maternity leave, she’s going to need her position back. But even if that wasn’t the case, no. There’s not a chance.” She crossed her arms over her chest again. “I don’t understand why you’re doing this. Are you… are you dating someone?”

“Yes, actually. I am.” Mariah sucked her teeth. “And she understands what it’s like dating a doctor? Doesn’t complain about your long hours? Doesn’t nag you about not coming to bed at night? Doesn’t get suspicious about the pretty nurses? Does she know about how closely you work with Nurse Echols?” I chuckled. “Yeah, I’m pretty sure she does.” Her eyes narrowed. “Wait… is it Aviva?! It’s Aviva, isn’t it?” “What? Not that it’s your

business, but no. Aviva is my friend, and that’s it.” “Then who—” – her eyes narrowed even further – “That’s why you aren’t taking my complaint against her seriously, isn’t it?!” “What?!” “The Nurse,” she screeched. “You’re not taking my complaint seriously because you’re screwing Nurse Echols!” “I’m not taking your complaint seriously because it’s bullshit and we both know it,” I said, crossing my arms.

“I think what really happened is that you tried to make Nurse Echols look incompetent, she flipped it on you, and now you’re mad. But I have no problem doing a full investigation, not at all.” She scoffed. “But you haven’t denied that you’re seeing her. So I guess it’s true. Does Dr. Thompson know?” I sighed. “I assume he will after this. And frankly, I don’t care, Dr. Kennedy. He hired you back after what you pulled, I don’t think my uneventful dating of my peer will cause too much of a splash. Do you?”

She rolled her eyes. “Whatever. I’m sure he won’t like to hear about you showing favoritism to her.” “I’m not. I said I would do the investigation, and I will, if you want to file the complaint. But we both know she didn’t do anything to you that you didn’t deserve, after the way you’ve been acting. Just… chill, damn. Let’s have some peace around here. You’re leaving in three months – there’s no reason for this drama.” “Again. Whatever.” She stomped out of the office,

slamming the door closed behind her. Once she was gone, I pushed out a deep breath. If I knew Mariah like I thought I did, half the hospital would know about me and Devyn before lunchtime. Strangely though… I really didn’t mind.

thirteen.

“Girl… are you okay?” I blinked a few times, then looked up at Reese, who was watching me from across one of the shelves at Tomes & Tones. She’d asked me to come with her to pick out a relationship

book – something on successful cohabitation – but I was having trouble keeping my eyes open. I nodded. “Yeah, just tired. You know I went in for a half day this morning to help out at the hospital. I am drained,” I said, bracing myself against the shelf as another wave of dizziness washed over me. “And I’ve been having trouble keeping my blood sugar up lately. I could probably use something to eat.” “Okay. Well let’s get this book and then we can grab a bite… if you can

last that long,” Reese said, her face wrinkled in concern. “Oh quit it.” I waved her off, then turned my attention back to the shelf. “Tell me why you need a book on cohabitation anyway. You were practically mistress of the house for two months before you officially moved in. Don’t you already know how to live with him?” Reese sucked her teeth. “Girl, I thought I did, but I guess that’s what I get for thinking. Actually living with him – like, for real living with him? Nothing

like when I was just staying over.” “That’s so crazy to me. How is it different?” “Well, for starters, he’s always there.” I lifted an eyebrow. “Well, I mean… he lives there, so…” “Yeah, exactly. I’m used to coming home and studying in quiet, being able to bask in silence. Or long soaks in the tub while I blast my music. Or falling asleep with the TV on. He’s always wants to be quiet when I want to be loud and loud when I want to be

quiet. The man can’t get clothes in a laundry hamper to save his life, and he puts the tissue on the roll backwards. And he uses cheap paper towels. And he hogs the remote. And I have to share my snacks. And—” “You do realize that most of these could be solved by you not being a selfish brat, right?” Reese tossed her hands up. “Duh, Dev. That’s why I need the book. To tell me how to not be a selfish brat.” “You don’t need a book for that,” I laughed. “Just stop, crazy girl. The stuff

you listed can be solved with compromise and communication. If that is all you have to complain about with Jay, you’ve got it made.” “I know,” she whined. “But this shit is driving me nuts, and I don’t want to mess our relationship up over petty things. Can you imagine if he’d proposed to me?! I’ve got to make sure I can live with the man without killing him before an engagement ring ever enters this equation.” I giggled. “So you’re just not even going to try not to be dramatic,

huh?” She shook her head. “Nope. Not today. But we can skip the book… for today. I don’t like how shaky you look. Let’s get you fed, boo.” Coming around the shelf, Reese grabbed my hand to start pulling me toward the front of the store. We were halfway there when a familiar face at the front counter caught my eye and I nudged Reese in that direction. “Hey Toni,” I said, smiling as the owner’s daughter looked up from the paperwork she was filling out.

Her face spread into a grin too. “Hey… give me a second… give me just a second… Devyn? And you’re Reese, right?” she asked cautiously. “Yes,” I laughed. “I haven’t seen you in forever, where have you been?” She let out a sigh through her deep-purple painted lips. “It would be easier to tell you where I haven’t been.” Toni Shepard had been a fixture in Tomes & Tones as long as I could remember, since Reese and I were young girls coming to the store with our mothers. She was three or four years

older than me, so we’d never had the benefit of going to school together to foster a friendship. Still – as teenagers, whenever Reese and I would see her in the store, we went straight to wherever she was. She always had the best book suggestions, and she was pretty and had an eyebrow piercing. Obviously, we had a girl crush. She was still pretty as ever, too. Deep, rich dark brown skin, dimples, and big brown eyes. Her hair was in a chic pixie cut now, instead of the long bob style I remembered from when we’d

last seen her, years ago. “I guess the publishing business has been good to you?” Reese asked. Toni nodded. “Lately, it has. Scattered Seeds Press is up to ten authors now. I just signed a black romance author who lives in Japan. Writes about black expats finding love, adapting to new cultures. It’s really nice stuff.” “It sounds amazing,” I said. “Put me on the waiting list.” “Me too,” Reese added. “What brings you home?”

Toni raised her hands, gesturing around her. “The store. Parents are getting older, and we have a major signing coming up, so they asked me to come and help.” “Oooh, who’s coming?!” “Uh, Justin Wright.” At first, Reese frowned, but then her face softened. “Man, you know I was about to say “Really? Justin is a big name?!” But then I remembered that a few months ago, I would have totally fangirled about him. I guess the magic gets lost when you’re dating the author’s

brother, and see him all the time.” “Dating the author’s… you’re dating one of the Wright brothers?” Toni asked, putting down the pen she’d held in her hand. Reese grinned. “Not just me. Jason,”— she pointed to herself – “and Joseph,” — she pointed to me. “Joseph with a girlfriend?!” Toni exclaimed. “Never thought that would happen again, after that crazy girl that jacked up Big Joe’s car. Good catch,” she said, nodding as she looked me over. “I’m putting it together in my head and

you guys are cute couples.” I lifted an eyebrow. “So… you know them?” Toni nodded. “I know them well. Justin and I were best friends from the time we were… I don’t know, seven or eight years old? All the way through high school, and college, and even after that, and then…” I watched as Toni pushed out a sigh, trying to shake the distinct sadness that had dropped over her at the mention of her friendship with Justin. He’d actually been traveling a lot since

Joseph and I started getting serious, so I hadn’t been around him enough to get a good handle on his personality. Still, he seemed like a decent guy, just like his brothers were. I couldn’t imagine their father raising a son who’d turned out to be too much different… so I wondered what had happened. “Anyway,” Toni continued, pulling a bright smile onto her face. “I’m a big fan of the Wright family. They all have a little streak of…” “Arrogance?” I supplied. “Assholishness?” was Reese’s

suggestion. “I was going to say confidence,” Toni laughed. “But… I kinda think any of those would work.” We said our goodbyes to Toni and headed out, stopping to get something to eat before we climbed in Reese’s car. She dropped me off at home, and since I knew Joseph would be at the hospital late, I showered, and climbed right into bed. More times than I was comfortable with over the last few weeks, I’d had an unexplained blood

sugar drop. I hoped that I wasn’t over doing it on physical activity and expecting too much from my insulin shot. My phone buzzed as I made a mental note that it was time to check in with my endocrinologist. I smiled when I saw that it was a message from Joseph. “Hospital is slow as hell. Rather be laid out on my favorite pillows. ;) – J. Wright.” “You’re on a break?” “Yeah. Think I could make it to your place and back in fifteen

minutes? – J.Wright.” “Not unless you’ve grown a jetpack since I last saw you.” “Don’t underestimate me, Nurse Echols. – J. Wright.” “Hey, did you make an appointment? – J. Wright.” “Can’t be going into hypoglycemic crisis while I’m knee deep in it. – J. Wright.” “You’re a damn fool. I’m calling in the morning. Too sleepy now.” “Okay. I’ve got to get back to

it. I’ll see you tomorrow afternoon? You know I have that seminar in the morning. – J. Wright.” “Hey, you already went to sleep? – J. Wright.” “Goodnight, Beautiful. Sleep tight. – J. Wright.”

-&I really, really didn’t want to go to the doctor. Even though I worked in the

healthcare field, and absolutely understood the value of doctors… I couldn’t say I enjoyed going to them. Even when I was feeling bad. And I felt… bad. I went to work, just like normal, but even with my properly timed insulin dose, I still found myself feeling groggy, dizzy, and just gross. During my morning break, I sat down in the cafeteria and pulled out my phone, just staring at Dr. Mitchell’s phone number. But I didn’t call it. I’m a nurse… I can figure this

out. I hurried back upstairs to the Women’s center, ducking and dodging my coworkers, especially Dr. Kennedy, who’d been especially weird since news of me and Joseph dating had spread. Nurse Hall didn’t make things better – she only cared to make a big deal about how cute Joseph and I were, how good of a couple we made, all of that, in front of Dr. Kennedy. Otherwise, she was cool, just like pretty much everyone else had been. In any case, I slipped into our

tiny lab to take a blood sample from myself. I checked my current glucose levels, then sat back, wondering if I should bother trying to do my own A1C test. And then my stomach flipped upside down – or at least it felt like it did. That had been a problem over the last few weeks too, and I was tired of waking up in the morning feeling like I was going to puke my lungs out, even though I never did. If I didn’t know any better, I would think…

But no, I knew better. … didn’t I know better? I sat up, wracking my brain for any possibility that that was even an option. Even a remote possibility. I was one of the rare people who took their birth control pill every day, exact same time, no deviations. Every single morning, even when I was with Joseph. I’d driven home in the middle of the night before because I’d forgotten it. It was just that serious to me. I took the pill every day. Every day.

The only times that I’d ever missed where when I was debilitated, or out of it. Last year, when I had the stomach flu. A few years ago, when I broke my ankle and didn’t feel like getting out of bed. In college, when I’d gotten so drunk graduation night I couldn’t move the next day. The day after my silly ass was late with my insulin shot, and ended up passing out at the hospital. Wait… SHIT. The same day Joseph and I went

at it for the first time since the supply closet. When we sexed each other for hours. And hours. I couldn’t get to the last of my blood sample to run an hCG test quickly enough. If I was feeling weak and dizzy before… I really felt it after that. Several minutes later, I headed out of the lab, with a sheet of paper covered in test results in my hand. I headed straight for Joseph’s office, to

see if he was back from the seminar he’d been at all morning. My stomach flipped again as I knocked on the door, hoping he was there, and simultaneously hoping he wasn’t. My heart dropped to somewhere around my knees when the door opened and I saw his handsome face on the other side. “Hey,” he said, grabbing my free hand to pull me inside. “You’re a sight for sore eyes. What’s going on?” I cleared my throat. “I um… I need a consult.” I held the paper out to

him, and he took it immediately, scanning the numbers on the page. “Okay… patient seems healthy, according to this. Good iron levels, decent blood counts. Just decent though. I’m guessing about seven weeks pregnant, looking at the hCG count.” I nodded. “Yeah… just about.” “So what’s the problem?” he asked, handing me the page back to pick up his lab coat. “What’s giving you the blues?” He smiled at me as he pulled the coat on, and my stomach turned inside

out. “Well, she wasn’t trying, at all, to get pregnant.” “Was she using protection?” “No.” “Well if you’re having sex without protection you aren’t exactly trying not to get pregnant either, are you?” I let out a dry chuckle. “That’s… that’s funny. Um… in any case, she hasn’t been having a ton of symptoms, not until very recently. And she still menstruated last month, despite what that

hCG count says.” “It’s not that rare to still have a menstrual cycle, but it could have just been heavy spotting. Nothing you’ve said sounds out of the ordinary, even the quiet pregnancy symptoms. What is she experiencing now?” “Um, nausea. Fatigue. A bit of dizziness.” “Still normal… What do you need the consult on?” I let out a short, shaky breath. “I need consultation on um… on what to do, Joseph. I need to know what we

should do, because this,” – I held the paper up – “Is me.” Joseph stared at me, not blinking for several seconds before he finally shook his head a little. “I’m sorry, what?” “I’m pregnant. Me. The patient that goes with these test results, who is seven weeks pregnant right now… that’s me.” He swiped a hand over his mouth, then swept it over his head. “That’s what I thought you said, but I… holy shit, Devyn.”

“So we’re on the same page then.” Joseph put his hands to his temples, and started pacing, which didn’t make me feel the slightest bit better. Actually… he was freaking me out. “Uh, so… your low blood sugar lately, how you’ve been feeling… it’s because of the pregnancy, right?” I shrugged. “I found out literally five minutes ago, bruh. I have no idea.” “Okay. Uh… but it makes sense, right?”

“I guess. I’m going to call Dr. Mitchell to see if I can come in today and get some answers. I know I have to get and keep my blood sugar under control if we’re keeping this baby.” “If?!” Joseph shot over to me, cupping my face in his hands. “What do you mean if? Are you thinking about... not keeping it?” The fear in his voice – in his eyes made a lump build in my throat. I shook my head. “Like I said, I just found out five minutes ago. I haven’t thought about

anything yet. But unless it’s going to kill me or something, no. Not keeping it didn’t cross my mind.” “Good,” he nodded. “I mean… we’ll have some things to figure out, but… we’ll figure them out. Okay?” For the first time since I’d seen those hCG numbers, my face broke into a smile. “Okay.” “This is too soon.” “I know.” “Are you going to think I’m crazy if I tell you I love you?” My eyes went wide as I looked

up into his face, but then I shook my head. “No, but… I might think you’re just feeling a little sentimental because of the news I just gave you.” He tipped his head to the side like he was thinking about it. “Okay. That’s fair. But I definitely care about you, a lot. I’m pretty damned charmed.” I blushed, looking away. “The feeling is mutual, but… I’m pretty freaked out about this baby.” “Good,” he said, leaning in to press a kiss against my forehead, then further back to murmur into my ear.

“Because I’m pretty freaked out about this baby, too.”

-&-

Repeat it back to me, son. I want to hear you say it. Yes ma’am. I promise to slow down and make you some grandbabies.

I grinned as that memory played in my head. One of the last nights that I had the honor of being in my mother’s presence, before she died. Guess I’m finally keeping that promise I made you. Devyn’s soft, subtle snores just barely carried across the room to my ears – a soothing part of the nightly background noise I’d grown accustomed to. Now? I could barely sleep without it. It wasn’t night anymore though. The sun had been up for a few hours, and I was up with it. It was a rare – very

rare – day that both Devyn and I had off together. She needed the rest and I wasn’t about to wake her up, at least not for a little while longer. Instead, I just watched. Those light freckles sprinkled across her nose, head scarf on the floor and hair a mess on her head, lips parted, a tiny puddle of drool gathering at the edge of her mouth because she was sleeping hard as hell… I loved everything about that face, even if the owner of that face wasn’t quite ready to say “I love you” back.

She was turning ten weeks pregnant today, which meant we’d been “together” even less time than that. There was no good reason to be in a hurry to say words that were meaningful, yes, but wouldn’t change a single thing about what we meant to each other. She was in my house, in my bed, in my tee shirt, drooling on my pillow, and having my baby. I was content with that. Suddenly, she frowned in her sleep, and without opening her eyes, felt behind her. Her frown deepened when

her hands met my empty side of the bed. I smiled as I padded across the carpet on bare feet, and slid back under the covers with her. “What time is it?” she mumbled, as she moved backwards, planting her barely-covered ass right against my groin. “A little after eight.” I wrapped an arm around her, letting my hand rest on her stomach. She groaned. “I’ve got to get up. I need to do my insulin, and fix me something to eat.”

“Frittatas are already in the oven.” “Ooooh,” she mused, placing her hand over mine. “You’re good, Dr. Wright. But you know what would be even better?” “If I did your injection for you?” I’d offered to do it for her one time, and distracted her enough that it didn’t hurt when the injection went into the muscle in her thigh. Since then, she always wanted me to do it if I was around. After my offer, she turned over in

the bed, a sleepy, content smile on her face as she looked me right in the eyes. “Would you think I was crazy if I told you I loved you right now?” I grinned. “No. But I might think you’re feeling sentimental about me doing this injection for you.” She tipped her head to the side like she was thinking about it. “Okay. That’s fair. But no… I really do.” “In that case,” I said, leaning in to press my lips to her forehead. “I love you too. Let’s get some food in you.” “And the baby.”

I smiled. “And the baby.” We climbed out of bed, and went into the bathroom first, where she brushed her teeth. I’d done my morning routine when I got up, so while she stood in the mirror, I pulled out the injection kit she kept at my place and prepared to give her the shot. I watched as she rinsed out her mouth, and as soon as she was done, I turned her to face me and then sat her up on the counter, stepping between her legs. “Did I tell you Jay and Pops were mad at me?” I asked.

She wrinkled her nose. “No. What for?” “Cause we’re beating them for best couple at Sunday dinner now. We’re having a baby. That trumps moving in together and mature romance.” Devyn giggled. “Mature?” “They aren’t old enough to call it “golden years” romance yet.” “You’re a damn fool.” I grinned. “And you are restocked on your insulin,” I said, as I pulled the needle out of her leg. Her lips parted, and she glanced

down at the injection spot as I stepped back to open a Band-Aid. “How the hell do you always manage that?” “Magic,” I teased, then spread the Band-Aid over the tiny hole, even though it didn’t really need one. “And for my next trick… I’m gonna make you come before we have to get those frittatas out of the oven.” “Oooh,” she moaned, wrapping her arms over my shoulders as I stepped between her legs again. “Do I get to play assistant?” “Only if you know the magic

words.” “Hmmm… I’m gonna go with Pussy Doctor.”

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Christina C. Jones is a modern romance novelist who has penned more than 20 books. She has earned a reputation as a storyteller who seamlessly weaves the complexities of modern life into captivating tales of black romance. Prior to her work as a full time writer, Christina successfully ran Visual Luxe,

a digital creative design studio. Coupling a burning passion to write and the drive to hone her craft, Christina made the transition to writing full-time in 2014. With more than 17,000 books sold or borrowed, Christina has attracted a community of enthusiastic readers across the globe who continue to read and share her sweet, sexy, and sometimes

scandalous stories. Most recently, two of Christina’s book series have been optioned for film and television projects and are currently in development. Other titles by Christina Jones Love and Other Things Haunted (paranormal) Mine Tonight (erotica) Friends & Lovers:

Finding Forever Chasing Commitment Strictly Professional: Strictly Professional Unfinished Business Serendipitous Love: A Crazy Little Thing Called Love Didn’t Mean To Love You Fall In Love Again The Way Love Goes Love You Forever Trouble:

The Trouble With Love The Trouble With Us The Right Kind Of Trouble If You Can (Romantic Suspense): Catch Me If You Can Release Me If You Can Save Me If You Can Inevitable Love: Inevitable Conclusions Inevitable Seductions The Wright Brothers: Getting Schooled – Jason &

Reese Pulling Doubles – Joseph & Devyn Bending The Rules (Fall 2016) – Justin & Toni