Page 14 of German

“Introduce me,” Tish demanded then.

I really didn’t want to.“Why?”

Blue eyes wide open with disbelief, Tish gaped like a fish out of water.“Because I want a chance to get him into my bed, silly!He’s fucking gorgeous!”

Not sure she’d buy he was gay, I swallowed down my reluctance and tried to hold her off.“Maybe later.I have to finish reading over these texts from patients first.”

“I might not have a chance later.We’ve been busy all morning.I’ll just go over there and introduce myself,” Tish stubbornly stated.

Seeing my story fall apart quicker than a homemade Halloween costume, I said, “I can take a quick break now,” and reluctantly led her over to German.

Clocking our arrival, German looked up from his phone and waited to hear what we wanted.

“Hey,” Tish eagerly greeted before I even had a chance to say anything.So much for introductions.“I’m Tish.”

“Tish,” I said before German could speak, “this is my friend Clark.”The confused expression on German’s face was almost comical.“But he goes by the name German to his friends.”

“Nice to meet you, German,” Tish said, practically devouring the man with her eager eyes.“I hope you don’t mind me calling you that.I just think we’d make great friends.”

I think I’d just thrown up a little in my own mouth.However, German didn’t seem to have the same aversion to the girl’s direct approach.Rather, he seemed to enjoy it.

“Nice to meet you, Tish.”His gaze swept over the girl’s trim figure.When it hit her toes, it bounced back up to her face.

Tish smiled even wider at his open inspection.“So, I hear you're in town visiting.Do you need a tour guide to see the sights?I know all the best spots.”

Jesus!Tish didn’t play.She came to win and she went in hard for the kill each and every time.I almost had to admire her pit bull approach.If I’d been braver, I wouldn’t have waited ten years for Nathan to notice my foolish ass!Maybe then I wouldn’t be single and sitting around with my thumb up my ass waiting for him to finally ask me out.

“I wouldn’t mind that,” German said with a slow grin, his long legs splayed out in front of him.“What’s your number?”

What the fuck was I watching?I felt like the most pathetic third wheel that ever had the misfortune to exist.Tish rattled off her digits as German popped them into his phone.

“I’m free this weekend if you want to hang out,” she tossed in for good measure.

My phone rang then and I had to rush back to my desk.It was for the best.I didn’t want to witness any more of the National Geographic mating ritual unfolding in front of me.As I took down the information of my caller, I forbade my eyes to travel over to the flirting duo.Try as I might, I failed each and every time Tish’s shrill laughter broke through my concentration.

Thankfully, I was mercifully put out of my misery when one of the doctors told Tish he was ready for her assistance in observation room number four.“I’ll be right there,” she called over to the doctor, before finishing up her conversation with German.As she walked away backwards, she said, “That sounds good,” though I didn’t know what she was referring to, and, “Call me,” before spinning around and heading over to exam room four.

German’s smile was wide as he looked back at me.Hating that smug expression on his face, I quickly trained my eyes on the empty screen in front of me.I could hear the asshole chuckle as he went back to his phone and began scrolling again with a self-satisfied grin still frozen in place.Trying not to implode with anger, I began logging back into the computer that had timed out while I’d been rage-watching this ugly scene.

“You okay, kid?”Carol asked, having witnessed the interplay between all three of us like some low-budget Shakespearean drama.

“Yeah,” I sighed, pinching the bridge of my nose.“It’s just been a long week, is all.”

Carol nodded with understanding.“You want some free advice?”she posed, not forcing it on me if I wasn’t in the mood to hear it.

Pursing my lips, I said, “Sure.”

“Tish doesn’t want him.Well, not really.That girl is only ever looking for her next adventure and a little fun,” she clarified.“If you want more than that, tell him now before he takes her up on her tempting offer.”

Shocked she’d read the situation so accurately, I blustered and fumbled my words.“It’s not like that,” I denied, though it was clear I wasn’t being altogether truthful.

“My mistake,” Carol replied gracefully before answering the next ringing phone.

* * *

When my shift ended, I grabbed my bag and said goodbye to Carol.Somewhat of a bad sport, I ignored Tish, who was busy stocking bags of dog food in the main display, and headed outside for my car.As I double-timed it out to the parking lot, I also ignored the tall, imposing figure trailing behind me.

“Keys,” I demanded without looking up, as soon as we reached my convertible.It was my car.I was driving.End of story.

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