Page 48 of Close Quarters

“Alex.” Her voice held a warning note.

He just smiled and kept walking.

Sometimes, she hated him as much as she loved him. Why did he have to tease her so?

They left the hospital and walked to the doctor’s lot. Once in the car, she pounced.

“Where is it?” She opened the glove box and started poking through.

He laughed and laid a hand over hers. “It’s not in there, love.” Reaching up, he flipped down his visor and a set of papers fell out.

“I about had a heart attack when you went to the store. I was so afraid you’d find these.”

“What are they?”

He handed them to her.

She unfolded the papers and frowned. “Plane tickets? To Hawaii?” She looked up, a curious frown on her face.

“I figured after the last several months, we were due a vacation. The powers that be agreed with me. We’ll be spending Thanksgiving soaking up the sun in beautiful Waikiki.”

Her frown morphed into a bright smile. “Yes!” She flung her arms around his neck and kissed him. “This is exactly what I needed. Can we take our climbing equipment too? They do have mountains.”

He grinned. “I was already planning on it.” His face sobered, and he brushed a lock of her hair away from her face, then traced the line of her cheekbone to her nose and down over her lips.

A slow burn erupted in Katie’s belly. Oh, what this man could do to her with just a touch.

“I love you. So much.”

Katie leaned in and pressed a fierce kiss to his mouth, then pulled back to look in his eyes. “I love you too. We need to celebrate later. I might be persuaded to model my swimsuits for you.” She frowned. “If I can find them.” The day after their encounter with Pressley, Alex asked her to move in with him. She hadn’t hesitated and hastily packed her small house. But that meant lots of unlabeled boxes.

He laughed. “I’ll help you look for them.” With the push of a button, he started the car’s engine. “I’m thinking you might not need them as much as you’d think, though.” Heat radiated from his eyes as he glanced at her.

Katie shivered. “Yeah?” She toyed with the hair at his nape with one finger. He growled.

“Yeah. And if you don’t stop that, we’re not going to make it out of the garage once we get home and then we’ll be really late to the rehearsal.”

She grinned. “Hmm… It’s been a long time since I had sex in a car.”

“Jesus, Katie, you’re killing me.”

She giggled and sat back. “Good. Payback for all the years I had to watch you strut around the office in scrubs and a lab coat.”

His smile was wicked. “I have one at home. Do you need a doctor?”

“Desperately.” She laughed, loving the freedom that came with their relationship. Ruffling his feathers now led to great fun rather than a load of frustration, sexual and otherwise. She shifted in her seat and left him alone so he could get them home safely. She didn’t want anything to derail their plans.

“I have one more surprise waiting. It was delivered today while we were at work,” he said, turning onto the main road.

She turned in her seat, curious. “What is it?”

He waggled a finger at her. “Oh, no. I’m not telling you anything. You’re just going to have to be patient.”

Katie huffed and crossed her arms, making him laugh.

“You look like a pissed off kitten.”

“Cats have claws, remember.” Her angry meow and hiss filled the interior of the car.

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