Page 40 of Captivated

“Damn right. Listen, I have to get to work, but I’ll be at the retirement center Wednesday night. Wanna come play a game of Scrabble with me and Birdie and then we can grab some dinner?”

I can’t help the instant giddiness I feel at the prospect of being alone with him again. I’m crushing on him, hard—a familiar feeling I recall only one other time when I was in middle school. There was a new boy in my class and the instant I saw him, my pulse picked up. I doodled my name attached to his last name and fantasized about being his girlfriend one day. But then he became boyfriend-and-girlfriend with this girl I hated, and it ruined my attraction to him, and broke my heart.

Even the prospect of dating Mason never made me react the way I do at the anticipation of dating Cash. He’s making me feel every stereotype I’ve ever heard about—how you have trouble focusing on everyday life because you can’t stop thinking about the other person, and that all you want to do is spend time with them and ignore your friends and family, eagerly immersing yourself in a world where only the two of you exist.

Every time I think back to our date, I can’t help the euphoric feeling that takes over my body. Long gone are the thoughts from when I first met him and when he came onto me in his hospital bed, when the strongest feeling I felt towards him was disgust layered with annoying attraction. It’s almost like his kiss has erased any ill thoughts I ever had about him, which is so dangerous—because if his kiss can erase my concerns, I can’t imagine what sex with him will do to my conscience—especially because as I continue to fall for him and let myself surrender to the idea of moving on with my life, my old life haunts me and reminds me of the fact that I’m lying to him about who I really am. The awareness of the truth is poking me in the shoulder, reiterating that I have secrets to keep and my safety to think about.

But right now that blinding smile and those blue eyes that suck me in are staring down at me, waiting for an answer to his question.

“Are you sure you’re going to be able to handle me kicking your ass in Scrabble?”

Cash throws his head back in laughter. “Oh, don’t count your chickens before they hatch, Piper. You have no idea who you’re about to encounter.”

“Challenge accepted, Deputy. I’ll see you in a few days.” I rise on my toes to plant a chaste kiss on his lips, the disappointment evident in his face when I pull away too quickly.

“Have a good shift.” He kisses me on the cheek and then turns to leave, but not before someone pummels into me from behind, causing me to fall forward, luckily into Cash’s arms.

“Hey, buddy. Watch where you’re going!” Cash bellows as he helps me find my footing again, addressing the man I can see out of the corner of my eye.

“Uh. Sorry. Seems I stubbed my toe on the ground and it caused me to lose my balance,” his deep voice resonates, and instantly I feel the hairs on the back of my neck stand up.

That voice. I’ve heard it before.

No. That can’t be.

As I turn to take in the man entirely, his eyes seek mine out, but a wave of relief washes over me when I realize I’ve never met this man before in my life.

A bald head, beady black eyes, and a dark beard round out his face attached to a large, burly body. He looks like he could be a bouncer at a club with how he’s built, but I’m positive I don’t know him. Although with the way he’s studying my face, it’s almost like he’s contemplating the same thing.

“Accidents happen. It’s not a big deal.” I rest my hand on Cash’s arm, silently communicating for him to stand down. Narrowed eyes and a calculating look on his face, he’s giving the vibe that he could shoot this man right now just for crashing into me.

“Sorry again,” the man grins and then walks away, but not before turning back and locking eyes with me once more.

And there go the hairs rising tall again.

“Are you alright?” Cash peers down at me, moving his eyes all up and down my body like I might be bleeding or something.

I chuckle. “Yes, I’m fine. But thanks for being so concerned. That was kind of hot,” I whisper, bouncing my eyebrows a few times.

“My pleasure,” he grins and then kisses me once more before he leaves. “Have a good night.”

“Holy crap. I feel like my eyelashes were just burned off from the fire burning between you two.” Jess pulls my attention back to her since I was watching Cash walk away from me.

“Right? God, I’m in over my head.”

“Uh, yeah, I think you are. But come on, we’ve got work to do. Lunch is over, Piper. Let me take a drink of that?” Jess reaches for my coffee and takes a taste. “Damn, that is good. I haven’t had that one yet.”

“I think I may need one of these during every shift from now on,” I joke and then walk back to the nurse’s station.

It’s a slow night in the ER, which gives me more time to dwell and think, my mind veering back to that man that ran into me. There’s something about him that’s making me uncomfortable, even though I’m trying to convince myself that I’m being paranoid. It’s been eight months since I’ve left home now, and not once did I feel like I was being followed. My mother did say that they haven’t heard from Mason for a while which is alarming, but given the amount of trouble he was in, it doesn’t surprise me that he might hide, especially after everyone found out about his extracurricular activities.

After I left, he pounded on my parent’s door, demanding to know where I was. I never told him goodbye, sneaking away in the middle of the night in an unmarked car with a new ID and name, headed for Denver where I would start the next phase of the plan my parents mapped out for me. But even in Colorado, I never got an ominous feeling that someone was following me like I just did when that man looked me in the eyes and flashed me that pleased grin before he left.

When I get home, I rush to call my mom from our phone, the one only reserved for conversations with her.

“Pfeiffer. How are you?” My mother answers, cheery since it’s early in the morning, though I feel about ready to pass out having just finished my shift.

“Hi, Mom. I’m doing well. Things are changing so fast for me out here.”

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