Page 94 of Time Stops With You

“I’ll drive you.”

“I’ll drive myself.”

“How?” He pats his front pocket. “I have your keys.”

I frown. “Hand them over.”

“I will.AfterI take you home.”

“I’m too tired to argue, Cullen. I can take it from here. I’m sure you have other things to do.”

“I don’t actually.”

While I grapple for a way to shake him off, a doctor walks up to him. “Ronan Cullen? Is that you?”

Cullen stiffens and turns to face the woman in the lab coat. “Doctor Vasques.”

“Howareyou?” Her voice is filled with warmth. “I was thinking of you the other day and I wondered how your treatments were going.”

Cullen shifts uncomfortably on his feet. “Everything is fine.”

I see a chance to make Cullen pay and I take it. “Actually, Doctor Vasques, Cullen isn’t?—”

The rest of my words are muffled against Cullen’s palm.

My eyes roll up to his in fury. How dare he cover my mouth?

“And who’s this?” Doctor Vasques inquires, her eyes sparkling.

“My fiancée. She hurt her wrist so I need to get her home.” He dips his chin in goodbye and steers me around.

On the way to the lobby, I chomp down on the lower, fleshier part of his palm. Cullen yelps in pain and I smirk. Serves him right.

“The hell, woman? Did you just bite me? What are you? Part goat?”

“Baaaa!”

The very corner of his lips tilts up and I frown. I don’t want him smiling at me. He’s cute when he smiles and it’s annoying.

I wipe my mouth against the sleeve of my T-shirt. “I can’t believe you just did that.”

“Me either.” He looks at his hand in shock as if the limb has a brain of its own and planned a mutiny. “Do you know how many germs are inside a human mouth?”

Why is he accusing me whenhe’sthe one who exposed himself to my germs?

“If you’re so disgusted, why’d you put your hand there?” I snap.

“I don’t know.” He keeps moving me, hustling me through the double doors. “I don’t think about things like that when I’m with you.”

The soft admission shocks the fight right out of me and I allow myself to be swept into the car and driven back home, all without uttering another word.

The sun is setting by the time, Cullen parks in front of the apartment building. As we approach the entrance, we all see Big T is hanging out at the door.

At first, he doesn’t put out his cigarette when he sees us, but when he notices my wrist, he flicks the cig away. “What happened to you, Nardi?”

“It’s not as bad as it looks,” I say, keeping my distance.

I haven’t forgotten what Cullen told me about Big T’s past. The fact that I didn’t do any research on Big T before almost being convinced to go on a date with him embarrasses me.

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