Page 82 of Torn In Two

“I’m not much of a sweet tooth,” I admitted.

Hawk and Hayden both laughed. Kara’s cheeks were pink again.

I frowned at her. “What did I say?”

Hawk jerked his head at Hayden, his smirk firmly in place. “You going to invite him?”

“Invite me to what?”

Hayden raised an eyebrow, ignoring me, his question all for Hawk. “He’s your boss. You want to see your boss like that?”

“I’d like the earth to swallow me whole now, please,” Kara said quietly with a giggle in her voice, making me realize she’d clearly had more than one of the fruity cocktails she’d been sipping on since I’d gotten here.

“I’m not anyone’s boss tonight,” I assured them, literally no idea what was going on. “I’m not even on call.”

Hawk sniggered. “Go on. Give him a ticket.”

Hayden shook his head and reached over the bar, saying something softly to the bartender, who handed over a small slip of paper. Hayden thanked him and held it out to me. “Ticket to the after-party. It’s held in the room just down the hallway, past the bathrooms. But just be warned, it’s not your regular sort of party.”

I frowned down at the ticket, not knowing what he meant by that but not wanting to sound stupid either. “Sure. Okay. No problem. Thanks.”

Hawk sniggered into his drink again, thoroughly amused with himself.

Hayden tapped the menus once more. “Eat something, it’s all on the house. I swear the food is edible. I’ll catch up with you all later.”

I tucked the ticket into my pocket and turned my attention back to drinking. Hawk eased up on the teasing, and the three of us fell into conversation about work, the patients we’d seen recently, and the treatments we’d given them. It had been a long time since I’d had someone to teach, and it was nice to share what I did, especially with people who were so eager to learn.

But at the same time, it reminded me I never got to do this. I had no one to go home to at night and talk over my day with. I had colleagues, and gym regulars, but no real friends. I was attracted to Kara, but not just in a physical sense. I liked talking to her. She was curious. Asked smart questions, and it was clear her desire to help people aligned with mine.

Hawk was a different breed, perhaps more in it for the thrill, but it didn’t make him any less interested.

For the first time in as long as I could remember, I was just having a nice time, enjoying their company and conversation. Drinks flowed, all of us downing more than we probably should have, our conversation and laughter getting loud.

The food came out, and it was mouth-wateringly delicious. Kara moaned at the taste of her first bite, and I nearly choked on my mouthful of trout, drunk enough to imagine that moan coming from her lips because of a whole different reason.

Hawk seemed to have the same idea on his mind. His hand dropped below the table, and I was sure it was headed for Kara’s leg.

Or his dick.

The vibe in the room didn’t help matters. It was a soft seduction, the music mixing with the freely flowing alcohol and a buzz of anticipation I couldn’t quite understand but felt the effects of nonetheless. Our little corner of the room felt private and warm, and when Kara let out a tiny gasp, my brain conjured up an image of Hawk’s fingers beneath the tablecloth, creeping up the side of her leg, slipping beneath the hem of her dress and diving between her thighs.

I muffled a noise of need into my drink, but it wasn’t enough. I had to get out of here. Dinner had been nice, but the longer I sat here with them, the more I was just torturing myself. “I think I’m going to leave you to it,” I mumbled as Hawk leaned in and pressed his lips against Kara’s neck, no fucks given that I was still sitting there at the table with them. “Maybe go check out the after-party or something.”

If either of them noticed me leaving, they didn’t comment, too involved with each other.

The air was slightly cooler in the hallway as I searched for the bathrooms. At the bustling kitchen, Hayden caught my eye and raised a hand in greeting. I returned the gesture but kept moving, the alcohol taking its effect on both my head and my bladder.

I did my thing in the empty bathroom, washed my hands, and then splashed cold water on my face, trying to relieve some of the heat from my cheeks.

I needed to distance myself from Kara. If tonight had taught me anything, it was that. If I considered my behavior from an unbiased therapist point of view, I would have diagnosed myself with a clear case of infatuation.

One that wasn’t healthy, considering I was third-wheeling on a date with her and another man, and imagining it was me with my hand between her thighs, making her moan.

I leaned my head on the cool tiled wall of the bathroom and squeezed my eyes shut. I needed to stop this. Stop seeing her. Change my shifts around so I wasn’t in the clinic when she was. Recommend her a different therapist because I’d already crossed so many lines with her that we couldn’t come back from.

That I couldn’t come back from. None of this was Kara’s fault. It was all on me.

I couldn’t stand in the bathroom all night. That was weird when there were guys coming in and out to use the urinals. I slipped from the restroom, gaze catching on the heavy wooden doors at the end of the corridor.

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