Page 16 of Doctor I Do

“Night.” I don’t remove my hand, and she doesn’t twist out of my grip until they all turn to walk away. And I can’t help but watch her walk out the door, stopping myself from offering to make sure she gets home safe. Even though I know it's ridiculous, because she lives with Maddison.

What on earth is wrong with me?

Must’ve been the alcohol tonight…maybe it was stronger than usual.

Yeah, that’s it.

“Where did you go?” Ryan asks sliding his arm around a woman he was kissing passionately only moments ago. He’s wearing a smug grin, probably thinking I’ve been hooking up with someone.

I wish I had another drink in hand. “Dancing.”

I take my seat back on the sofa and, suddenly, I want to leave too. Being here is no longer appealing without Tahlia.

“I saw you talking to Alice's friend. What's her name?” He clicks his finger.

“Tahlia,” I answer, but immediately wish I didn’t.

“You going to tap that?”

I scoff. “No way. Mike and Alice would cut off my balls.”

Ryan snorts. “That’s true. But she’s hot, even if she’s a tad quiet—"

“But it’s always the quiet ones,” Jackson cuts him off and bumps his shoulder, winking.

I stay silent, looking down, knowing they might be right. However, it’s not going to happen, no matter what I think or want.

Since I’ve been dancing with Tahlia, the guys have acquired a group of women hanging around us. Usually, I’d be chatting one up, with plans of taking one home for the night, but it’s doing the opposite. My stomach rolls as I think about it, and bile rises when one sits down beside me, purring into my ear and asking if I want to dance with her.

No, I don’t. As a matter of fact, I want the petite blonde to get her sweet ass back here so I can dance with her instead. The woman lays her hand on my thigh and squeezes, and I immediately rise to my feet, hating her touch on me.

Peering down at her, and then over to Ryan and Jackson, I clear my throat. “I’m out of here. You two comin’?”

“You want to leave already?” Jackson bellows with a frown, clearly upset I’m even asking.

“Yeah, a big week at work,” I lie, not wanting to tell them I had a feel of Tahlia, and the idea of another woman touching me irks me. That isn’t something I want to confess to my buddies right now, if ever.

“Can we stay a little longer?” Ryan asks.

I don’t want them to leave because I’m being a grumpy dick. “You two stay. I’ll call my driver.”

“You sure?” Jackson asks.

“Yep. I’ll talk to you tomorrow,” I say, pulling out my phone and texting my driver to meet me out the front.

I stop by the bar, grab a shot, and walk through the crowd, and straight out to grab my ride. Sitting in the back of the car, I slump, staring at my phone with deliberation. I want to text her and see if she got home okay, but I don’t. Instead, I stare out the window, replaying the night in my head. From how she looked in that sexy dress, to the way her warm skin felt, and her sweet scent causing my brain to misfire. It was a good thing she left, because if we were to hook up, I know how it works the next day. I know how I am, and she wouldn’t be any different. Would she?

Chapter 6

Tahlia

Surely, there is more to life than making coffee?

Yeah, that’s the same question I keep asking myself as the manager’s son, berates me for burning a customer's coffee.

When your head is thumping and your eyes feel like they are going to come out of their sockets from sleep deprivation, the last thing you care about is coffee. I want to go home and sit on my sofa with Maddison and eat cheesy pizza and chug soda while watching trashy movies until I fall asleep. But I’m here, getting my ass handed to me for making a mistake. Does he think he’s perfect? Has he never used the wrong temperature water?

That’s right, he doesn’t know how to make one. The way he struts around, belittling everyone. Acting like we are nothing more than a piece of gum on his shoe. He’s such a jerk.

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