Page 16 of Embers of Love

“No.” Josephine echoed, her green eyes wide with shock.

Oh fuck.

4

JOSEPHINE

Josephine had found herself daydreaming when she left Emma that morning in the hotel room in The Grand. She’d told Emma that she needed to get to work, but that wasn’t entirely true. She’d run away. Waking up next to such a beautiful young woman, the memory of their previous night together, it all felt too good to be true. She couldn’t bear it anymore. So, she ran. It was one thing she was historically prone to doing. She found a good thing hard to accept.

And Emma’s tall, strong, naked athlete body with her lazy morning eyes was a memory she wouldn’t easily forget. She could have stayed for more. She had wanted to stay for more. But she had lied to Emma and left her there.

She didn’t need to show up to work just yet, but Josephine wanted to make a good impression as she was still new to the job. So, she showed up and tried to familiarize herself with the routine. She was a new doctor here, although she was the boss, but she liked to know how everything worked and every hospital had their own way of doing things.

It was a good day. Becky had been right about Phoenix Ridge, mostly run by women and even the staff at the hospital were kind and approachable on the whole. They were incredibly patient with her, showing her the ropes, so to speak. That being said, she was eager to be back home when she finished that evening. She had barely slept the night before and Emma’s naked, supple body kept popping into her mind.

Her new apartment was amazing. It was insane how much cheaper everything was compared to New York. So she had gone all out on a super luxurious, ready furnished apartment with a roof terrace and incredible views. It was massively spacious with a homey feel that came mainly from the wood finish. Nothing like the sterile, cramped apartments that came a dime a dozen in New York.

She made dinner, showered, and relaxed on the couch for a few hours, catching up on some shows before she went to sleep.

The next morning, she woke up to a text from Becky; her daughter had been in a car accident and was at the hospital. It was one of the most horrifying things she could’ve woken up to.

Josephine burst into the hospital having dressed in a rush to get there as soon as possible. Scared for her friend. Becky had spoken about her daughter a lot and Josephine looked forward to meeting her. Between moving in and getting things going with her new job, the time never presented itself. This would be a terrible way to meet her. Josephine knew how close Becky and Ember were. She had a nurse meet her at the doors of the hospital to go through Ember’s file. Becky needed to be sure they were doing everything they could for her.

To be honest it sounded like Ember Thompson had been lucky.

“Becky?” She caught the fire chief on the way to her daughter’s room and pulled her into a brief embrace. The nurse was still walking next to her.

Josephine took the clip board from the exhausted nurse. She walked next to Becky while she gave the chief of the fire department an earful. Becky knew she should have called, especially for something so serious.

“—you didn’t even give me a call!”

Becky had the decency to look contrite. She apologized and pointed at a door.

“That’s where they put her,” Becky said, lowering her voice significantly.

Josephine decided to keep her grievances down for the moment. They didn’t want to accidentally wake Becky’s daughter after all. The patient needed all the rest she could get. The accident wasn’t as bad as it looked, according to the report. Most of her injury came from a concussion she got, most likely from her head hitting something when her car somersaulted. Her seatbelt prevented the worst of it.

Becky went inside the room while she hung back to go over Ember’s file once more, making sure she got everything right. Also, making sure they got everything right. She’d seen negligence lead to some unforgettable consequences. She was going to order some tests redone, just to be sure, but Ember Thompson looked to be in full good health. Now, time to go say hello to her good friend’s daughter.

Josephine raised her head and smiled, trying to make a good first impression. Then she saw Ember Thompson sit up in the bed. Lazy, sexy, beautiful brown eyes. Long strong legs under a hospital gown. Big strong hands with fingers that could create magic, and a wild mane of reddish brown hair that looked like it needed a brush.

Oh my god. Emma. Ember. The best sex of my entire life.

It felt like the entire world became a giant frozen block of ice around her. Ember Thompson stared back at her.

Becky’s daughter. Oh, Jesus. I had sex with Becky’s daughter.

“Oh, great, you’re still awake,” Becky said. She had clearly been anticipating this moment for some time now.

“This is my friend, Josephine Mars. Josephine, this is Ember, my daughter.”

They’d messed up. The shock had completely taken them both off-guard that Becky immediately picked up on the fact that something was wrong.

“…you two already know each other?” Becky asked, glancing between the two of them.

“No.” Ember growled. She was staring at Josephine as though she had seen a ghost. This was clearly just as awkward for her as it was for Josephine.

“No,” Josephine echoed quickly.

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