Page 45 of Dr Feel Good
My cock agreed with the final sentiment. The memory of our fucking never failed to get me hard. Ally had reached out to me to discuss our arrangement, but I’d ended that relationship before it properly started, too hung up on Michelle to want anyone else.
I wondered if she felt the same way, or if she’d scrubbed her mind of me as she resettled into her outlaw life. Perhaps she’d found comfort in the brute who’d help sweep her away. Just the thought infuriated me, but there was nothing I could do. Ihad no clue where she was, if she was okay, or if she wanted to see me. So caught up in playing house, we hadn’t bothered discussing what would become of us once we were free from the seclusion of my cabin. An oversight on my behalf, but maybe an intentional choice on hers.
Ian snapped his fingers in front of my face, brows furrowed as he examined my tight expression. “Earth to Felix. You’ve been glaring holes into the wall behind me for the past twenty minutes. What the hell is up with you? You’ve been off since you got back.”
I sighed, then shrugged. He’d tried to make small talk, but I wasn’t in the mood, just as I hadn’t been during last week’s weekly lunch.
“Just a lot of my mind,” I said simply, my words the truth despite their vagueness.
Mainly, Michelle. I was kicking myself for not at least giving her my number.
“How fucking detailed,” he grumbled, spearing a piece of chicken with his fork.
“Has it occurred to you that I don’t want you to know?”
“Has it occurred to you that I’m fucking curious about what has my best friend in such a slump? Seriously, man, I’ve never seen you so…so distracted.”
I recoiled as if slapped, his accusation offending me. “I’m not distracted.”
“You certainly aren’t present.”
“I’m still getting back into the flow of things. The snowstorm has thrown me off kilter.”
Primarily due to the woman who’d ridden it out with me. Taking things to the next level might’ve been a mistake, because now, she was haunting my every thought.
Ian snorted. “Don’t give me that bullshit. You adapt too quickly to be thrown off your game because of a freak weatherevent. And your cabin has a back-up generator for your back-up generator, and pipes deep enough to be unaffected by the wintry weather, so your vacation wasn’t that impacted.”
“My food supplies were low, the lights went out, and I couldn’t hunt.”
“Poor you, unable to slaughter innocent animals.”
I scowled at him. “You make me sound like a psycho, when humans have been hunting for meat since our ancestors left trees.”
I enjoyed hunting, yes, but Ian knew that I had rules. The first was never to kill a juvenile or any animal with its young. The second was to aim for a quick kill, so the animal wouldn’t suffer. The third was to never waste the carcass, a practice I abhorred, and the reason I despised trophy hunters. The meat was prepped for the freezer and used in a variety of dishes. Bones were used for broth. Pelts and antlers were donated to an array of organizations or sold to artists. The leftover carrion was placed in a small clearing not too far from my cabin, so the local animals could have a meal, too. Trees didn’t obscure the area, so raptors could swoop down for an easy meal, scavenging what they wanted until land-dwellers took over the job.
“We’re getting off topic,” Ian declared, as if he wasn’t the one who’d changed the subject. “Tell me what’s bothering you. It isn’t right to keep information from your best friend.”
I hated the guilt I felt at his words, as Ian and I both had our fair share of secrets. Why he wanted to know this one so badly was aggravating. If he were a coworker, I’d understand, as it could be argued that my current state prevented me from caring for my patients to the fullest. It’d be a lie, but a logical one. Instead, he was just nosy.
“You’re not going to drop this, are you?” I asked with a heavy sigh.
He grinned. “You know me so well, man.”
“Very well,” I said, taking a moment to consider how to start. There was no clever way to reveal the information he so desperately wanted to know, so I decided to just summarize the situation. “I came across a woman who’d been shot and nursed her back to health. Turns out she was the president of the Kansas City Royal Harlots, and we began a relationship until her club and theBastardstracked her down and swooped her away. I haven’t heard from her since, and I’m curious about her whereabouts.”
Ian blinked once. Then blinked again, his jaw going slack. If I were in a better mood, I might’ve found his expression comical.
“You’re…you’re fucking with me, aren’t you?” he finally managed.
If only I were. It’d be so much easier if Michelle weren’t the cause of my stupor.
“Unfortunately, I’m deadly serious. Worst of all is how much I miss her.”
“You can’t be serious,” Ian said, disregarding what I’d just said. “You judged one of my clients just for having a Bastard as a baby daddy, and you’re telling me you had an entanglement with the president of their sister organization?”
I considered his words, then nodded. “That about sums it up, Ian.”
“Nah, man. That shit is too unlike you. Were you sober?”
