Page 60 of Tempting

Dr. Dick places his hand at the small of my back, and my skin crawls. When the right man does this, it’s calming. When this man does this, icky is the only highly educated word that comes to my mind. “Why don’t I walk you out, Mackenzie?”

I step forward, out of his touch, and angle my body away from his. “Oh, that’s all right.” I pull my phone from my pocket, ready to act like I have to call Nixon or Becket or anyone who can remind this man that he’s the last man I would ever look to in my life. But I’m saved from resorting to that tactic when Bellamy skips down the final few stairs. Her jacket is on, and her bag is over her shoulder.

Relief washes over me. “Hey Bellamy,” I wave her over. “You ready to leave?”

She looks from Dr. Dick to me and moves into my side. “I am. You ready?”

“Yes.” I breathe a sigh of relief. “Have a nice night, Dr. Richardson.”

Bellamy and I walk out together without looking back, but Dick’s eyes burn into me the whole time.

“Are you okay, Kenzie? You look a little... off.”

There’s a crisp chill in the air tonight. A definite marker of the changing of the seasons. Goodbye, summer. Hello, fall. I feel like I may have lost a season sometime over the past week.

The moon is full as we walk toward the employee parking lot, but there’s still not enough light, and I’m so relieved I didn’t have to walk out here with Dr. Dick. “I swear he’s getting bolder. He asked me about going to a football game earlier and put his hand on my back before you came over.” I try to shake off the disturbing feeling.

This man’s sense of entitlement is escalating.

“Maybe you should tell someone, Kenzie. It would be very different coming from you than from other people. Your aunt is a well-respected doctor at the hospital, and so are you. And let’s not forget that your word will carry more weight than a nurse’s would. It’s a shitty fact, but that doesn’t make it less true.”

It is a shitty fact.

One we need to work on fixing.

“Maybe... I’ll think about it.” I point toward my car. “I’m parked over there. Where are you?”

She nods in the opposite direction. “Are you off this weekend? We’re having a watch party for Callen’s game Sunday night.”

“I am. No on-call for the next five days,” I tell her without saying I’ll be there.

“You should come. It’ll be fun.” When I don’t answer, she smiles and shakes her head as she starts to walk away. “I know where you live.”

“I’ll try,” I offer to appease her, and she laughs.

“Yeah . . . We’ll see.”

Right now, I can only think as far as getting to Nixon and whatever he has in store for our next lesson. And the sleep that will come after.

Kenzie

Just pulled in. You still feel like company?

Nixon

Company? No. You? Always.

Kenzie

Good answer, Sinclair. I bet you say that to all the girls.

Nixon

How about you get that perfect little ass up here and let me show you just how many girls I want in my life, Mac.

Shit. That just took a turn I’m not ready for.

Maybe this isn’t a good move.

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