Page 29 of An Indecent Longing

Chapter Four

When she woke, Dorrie’s first thought was of her dream.

It’d felt so damn real that she rolled over, almost expecting to see Ian.

Of course, he wasn’t there.

Stupid. You’re so stupid.

Still, the disappointment that swept through her made her furious. And the hammering headache behind her eyes made tears rise.

Damn it. What the hell had she done?

Since she was still dressed, the answer to that question was probably nothing. And since Ben was nowhere to be found… Guess there’d be no walk of shame.

Yay me! Still haven’t gotten laid.

Maybe she really was untouchable.

With a sigh, she moved carefully to the edge of the massive bed, swung her legs over the side, and gently placed her feet on the floor. She caught sight of her phone on the bedside table…and three little white pills and a bottle of water.

Ben.

Nice to have someone take care of her for a change, even if he hadn’t wanted to sleep with her.

And that probably wasn’t something she wanted to think about now. Not with a hangover threatening to tear her head apart.

That’d been a particularly stupid move on her part, especially since she needed to get back to her office to check on Blank.

Picking up her phone, she found a text from her head nurse.

Patient sleeping well. No complications.

Another sigh, this one heartfelt. Blank would be okay. She’d make sure of it. And she’d never tell him about her one-night indiscretion. Which hadn’t involved much indiscretion.

Swallowing the pills and following it with half of the water, she got to her feet and headed for the door, running her fingers through her hair.

Head held as high as she could, considering the pounding in her temples, she found her way downstairs, following the faint sound of conversation.

She saw the front door, noticed her purse, coat, and sneakers on a chair not far from it, and wondered if she should cut her losses, grab her stuff, and leave before Ben and whoever he was talking to knew she was up.

Coward.

Right this second… Yep, pretty much.

But if she did that, she wasn’t sure she’d ever be able to face Ben again. And that thought didn’t sit well. Because she actually did want to see Ben again.

The thought didn’t surprise her. She’d been attracted to him last night. Attracted enough to make a play for him. A play he’d turned down.

Par for her course, right?

So…did she leave before he realized she was up? Or did she set herself up for more disappointment?

Well, hell. Might as well make this the second-most-awful weekend of her life.

After a deep breath and a silent thanks that her hangover had slightly receded, she headed for the back of the house.

On her way, she let herself look around. Other than a few framed pictures on the fireplace mantel, there weren’t a lot of decorations. Scratch that. There was absolutely no decoration.

---