Page 14 of Love Medley
As she turns around and I catch sight of her entire face, my heartbeat thuds in my ears. She’s even more gorgeous than Iimagined, with large brown eyes and lips that curl into a radiant smile that leaves me speechless.
“That’s me,” Lucy says, her voice soft but musical. Immediately, I envision her on the stage of Tunes and Tonic, the dueling piano bar where I perform. Somehow I bet she’d bring the house down.
As she rises from her chair, I realize that Lucy stands a few inches below my height. With a quick sweep of my eyes, I take in the medical student short coat, the blue, button-down blouse, and khaki skirt. My gaze briefly dips to the curve of her breasts before I immediately course-correct and yank my eyes back to her face, but I’m just as distracted by what I find there. The combination of her delicate, heart-shaped face, expressive dark eyebrows, and that one slightly crooked tooth undoes me in a way I can’t explain. “I just wanted to let you know that I placed Room 3’s blood and drew the IV.” My face burns as I clear my throat. “I mean, I placed the IV and drew blood.” I cough. “For the labs.”
Fuck. Do I not have any brain cells left? She must think I’m a complete idiot at this point.
Lucy’s eyes twinkle at me. “Great, thanks! I feel like I’ve seen you around. Do I know you?”
Dazed, I scramble for a coherent answer, but instead, I have the strangest urge to breathe her in deeply. God, it’s like I’ve turned into some kind ofTwilight-inspired werewolf sniffing at a potential mate. Fuck me, how do I even know whatTwilightis?
“I’m Jake Whitlock, one of the ER nurses. I started a few months ago. Nice to meet you.”
As soon as our hands touch for what was supposed to be a simple handshake, I’m overloaded by the smoothness of her skin and the warmth of her slim fingers wrapped in mine. Before now, I’ve never noticed nail polish in my life, but hers is perfect, the pale pink glistening on her neatly-trimmed fingernails. In slow motion, we meet each other’s eyes, and as I gaze into those luminous, brown pools, I forget what I was doing here in the first place.
After a moment, Lucy seems to come back to her senses and clears her throat. “Um…I do think I’ve seen you in the ER before.” At that moment, I realize our hands are still joined, and I release her, noticing a trace of pink on her cheeks as she looks away. And that’s when I wonder…could she be feeling the same way? My fingers still tingle from where they touched her skin, as fleeting as that was.
But when my brain finally catches up, I compute what Lucy has just said. She’s been here in the ER before? I definitely would have noticed her. “Really? Sorry I haven’t introduced myself before.”
“No, no. Not for an actual shift.” Lucy glances at her red flats, her dark eyelashes dipping downwards.
I have a compulsion to tip her chin upwards so I can see those glowing eyes again.
“I’ve had to get some signatures, so I think I saw you from afar at some point.” As soon as the words leave her lips, I notice a stricken look on her face that she tries to hide—is sheembarrassed?
And then, I’m suddenly acutely aware that Lucy has definitely noticedme. But before I can further analyze that thought, those soft eyes flick back to me, and my mind suddenly goes blank.Where has my ability to speak gone? And why have my mind and body gone completely haywire just from standing next to her?
As if from a great distance, a resident with curly dark hair tied up into a bun calls out, “Lucy! Do you want to help me with an I and D?”
And the spell is broken. Incision and drainage is one of the few procedures that medical students can actually assist with in the ER, but it’s totally gross with pus and blood everywhere. There’s no way Lucy would want to participate.
But I’m proven completely wrong when her eyes light up. “Yes, Cecelia, thank you so much! I’ll be right there.”
Cecelia grins as she looks her up and down. “You maaaay want to gown up.”
Lucy laughs. “Don’t worry, I will.” She starts gathering her dark hair into a ponytail, exposing the graceful line of her neck.
Jesus. Whatisit about this woman? I’ve seen beautiful women before, but not a single one, not even Sam, has affected me like this. As someone who has always worked out his thoughts through music, I bet I’ll be settling down at my keyboard tonight, crooning a tune or two, right after this shift.
Because one thing is crystal clear: Lucy Chang is an irresistible melody that I won’t easily forget.
Chapter six
Lucy
It's another day, another shift. But for the first time in a long while, I realize I’m not just pasting a smile on my face and going through the motions. I actually want to be here.
And maybe that’s partially due to the cute nurse I met yesterday.
Jake Whitlock.
I flush at the memory of our meeting. I was such an idiot. Did I really say that I must have noticed him from afar? How many times do I have to blurt out embarrassing things before I shut my mouth like asensible person?
I’m scrolling through the list of patients currently in the ER, but I’m unable to absorb the words on the computer screen because of my churning thoughts. Jake is extremely attractive, but I’m not in any state to be interested in anyone new. My relationship with Weston was a disaster, and I should remember that before making any rash decisions.
But there’s nothing wrong with enjoying the scenery, right?
My mind drifts to the cut of Jake’s jaw, the indent of his dimples, his clear gray eyes, his full lips. Broad shoulders, narrow waist, and toned arms. I need someone to hose me down. This isn’t like me at all.
