Page 4 of Smoke and Mirrors

“Yup. So you need to come home, bring a giant pregnancy test.”

I giggle. “Yeah, Mama, I’ll come soon, I promise.” I look at the ground as I walk up the staircase to my floor. “I do miss you guys.”

“We miss you, too. And we aren’t that far away. I’ve been trying to get your father to come with me to see you, but you know what he’s like when it comes to the city and traffic.” She giggles, and I can hear a low voice grumbling in the background, only causing her to laugh harder.

My daddy’s a countryman, through and through. I know he’ll never be disappointed in me, but the day I told him I was moving to the city, I almost thought he was going to have a stroke.

I laugh to myself, the sound quickly changing to a loud oomph of air as I strike something hard. Two strong hands wrap around my upper arms, stopping me from stumbling backward down the stairs.

“Shit,” I grumble.

My eyes run up his body, my mind trying to compute exactly what I’m seeing. He’s wearing blue scrubs that stretch tightly across his chest and thighs. A name badge hangs from the right side of his chest, and I don’t even catch the name as I realize whose picture is on it.

My eyes shoot up, my neighbor staring down at me with his eyebrow raised. I try to calm down, suddenly realizing just how close we are, his hands touching my body.

“I… I’m sorry.”

Realizing I’m now stable, he releases me, much to my disappointment. But he just stares at me for a few seconds. I can hear my mom in my ear asking if I’m okay and what the hell is going on, but it’s just background noise.

I lick my lips, drawing his attention to them, his eyes narrowing slightly. “I didn’t know you were a doctor,” I say, my voice a little shaky and strangely high-pitched.

As though my words strike him like a hot poker, his body tightens. “I’m not,” he mutters, stepping around me, his sneakers squeaking against the wooden floor as he jogs down the stairs. I watch him go, my brow furrows in confusion as to what just happened.

Pushing myself to move, I head down the hall toward my apartment, stopping outside the door.

“Hello… Earth to Lily!” Mom calls, clearly frustrated.

“Sorry, Mom. What?” I ask in a daze as I stare back at the staircase where my mysterious neighbor and I have just officially met, after two months of me obsessing over who he is and wanting to get to know him.

“Who were you talking to?” she asks with a deep sigh as though she’s already asked me a million times. Which I bet she probably has.

My mind’s focused entirely on him, though. He was wearing scrubs and had a doctor’s ID pinned to his chest. But he said he wasn’t a doctor.

I bite my lip. “It was just my neighbor,” I answer, once again pulling open my ridiculously large handbag in search of my keys.

“Ooh…” she says. “And he’s a doctor?”

Finally fishing them out, I push my key in the lock and turn it before pushing the door open. For some reason, I turn my head and take one last look back down the hall.

“Who is he?” my mom asks with a little too much enthusiasm in her voice.

I laugh and shake my head. “You know, Mom… I really have no idea.”

But I’m going to find out.

Chapter Two

KACE

You’d think I’d be nervous, but instead, a rush of excitement flows through me as I traipse the halls of the hospital in my fake scrubs dressed convincingly as a doctor.

I look the part.

I always look the part.

My counterfeit ID badge sits proudly where I want it, allowing me to slip in where I need to be. Flashing my badge to the security guards stationed at the door, I walk straight in closing it behind me, just as I knew I would.

I have to do this.

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