We all looked around, spotting the vacant chair that was now toppled over by the door.

Then a small voice from behind me said, "Here."

I turned to survey the counter behind me and came to a stand slowly.

Then I reached forward and opened the cabinet to find the sitter, Audrey, stuffed inside.

"What are you doing in there?" I asked.

She blinked. "He stuffed me in here. I thought it was prudent to stay."

She crawled out slowly and came to her full height, all 4'11 of her, and glared at the patient on the floor.

My height of 5'8 looked mammoth standing next to her small frame.

"Uhh," Mona said smartly. "How about we get you both checked out just in case."

"I'm fine," we both said at the same time.

We shared a giggle, which was quickly cut short with Mona's next statement.

"Actually, you're bleeding, Rue. And Audrey, you have a pretty nifty bruise on your cheek. Let's go," Mona declared.

I looked down at my hand to see blood running down it in rivulets.

Huh, look at that. I thought.

We both went reluctantly, and I avoided Cleo's eyes as I walked out of room 13 and into room 14 where I repeated the story of what had happened no less than fifteen times.

"Your man...he's scary...and hot," Audrey said.

Audrey was twenty and in school to be a nurse.

She was a cute, s.p.u.n.ky little thing that was really fun to be around.

She made me want to be young again.

Not that twenty-eight wasn't young, but it wasn't twenty, either.

"Yeah, he's pretty darn hot. But he's not mine," I tried.

She gave me a look that told me I was dumb if I believed what I'd just said.

Honestly, I didn't know what Cleo and I were.

He'd dropped me off at home three days ago, and today was the first time I'd seen or heard from him. Granted, I hadn't given him my number, but it hadn't changed from a year ago, either. He also knew where I lived, and where I worked.

"Whatever you say," she agreed, albeit reluctantly.

The cut on my arm only turned out to be a minor sc.r.a.pe. My best guess was that I'd hit it on the hardware that held the cabinet doors on, but that was the least of my worries.

The main one was now glaring at me from the doorway.

"What?" I asked.

His eyes flicked from me to Audrey, and then back to me.

"I have to go back to work. I'm flying today," he said.

"What?" I asked in surprise.

I hadn't known he was able to do that.

He nodded.

"Mack's out with strep throat," he looked at me pointedly.

I looked up at the ceiling. "s.h.i.t."

But I mean, really, it wasn't my fault...was it?

"They don't have anybody else that can fly?" I asked in surprise.

He shook his head. "No. Actually, ten people are out right now with various illnesses. I've been working for three days straight."

The wind in my sails died an agonizing death.

I was such a selfish little girl sometimes.

"Be careful, okay?" I asked.

He walked towards me, dropping his head to kiss me on the lips.

His lips tasted like Chapstick, and I wanted to lick them. Nonetheless, I squelched the urge, barely, and kissed him back the only way that was suitable for a work setting.

Chaste.

"I will," he said before walking out the door.

"Not yours my a.s.s," Audrey coughed into her hand.

I gave her a quelling look. "Suck it."

Chapter 11.

Is h.o.r.n.y an emotion?

-Secret thoughts of Rue Loden Rue Four more days pa.s.sed before I saw him again.

However, this time it was because he was eating out.

With a girl.

And I was p.i.s.sed.

Have you ever heard the term, h.e.l.l hath no fury like a woman scorned?

Well, I was about to show the entire restaurant just how truthful that statement was.

"What are you doing?" Cody hissed as I stopped walking in the direction of where our group from work was, and started walking in the direction of Cleo.

My eyes were glued on the young woman he had his arm around.

From the back, I couldn't tell who she was, but it didn't matter. Whomever it was, shouldn't be sitting so close to someone that's taken. Or someone that says he wants me back, that is.

I was nearly right up on her when I realized that the person Cleo had his arm around was his sister.

Immediately realizing I overreacted, I turned, disregarding the surprised faces of the men in the booth facing me.

One of them was Detective Rector, and the smile on his face let me know that he knew what I'd nearly done.

Well I hadn't, which was why I turned and stuck my tongue out at him like a three year old, causing him to laugh his a.s.s off, and the pretty brunette from the other day to look at him as if he was crazy.

"That was quick," Cody said as I made it to the table. "Did you kick any a.s.s in those two minutes?"

I sat down hard. "No. It was his sister. She ruins everything."

Cody snorted into his drink.

I glared at him and reached forward for the Long Island Iced Tea he ordered me, sucking hard and fast on the tastiest thing I'd had in well over twelve hours.

"Ahh," I sighed. "That's good."

"Whoa," Cody said. "Slow down there, sister. Drunk is not s.e.xy."

I flipped him off. Who cared if I was drunk? It'd been nearly a week and a half since I'd seen Cleo outside of work, and there he was f.u.c.king hanging out with his sister instead of me.

Now that sounded selfish...but still.

The man hadn't even texted.

"Out of all the freaking places, how do we keep up ending up in the same d.a.m.n bars? This isn't even the one they own," I grumbled just before taking another deep sip of my tea.

Cody leaned back into his chair. "This is the cop hangout in Shreveport. And it's the closest bar to the hospital. It always attracts a lot of people."

"Harrumph," I sighed as I leaned back in the chair. "I wanted to come here and drink and forget about him for a couple of hours. Not come here and see him out when he hasn't had the decency to call me."

"Would you like some wine with that cheese?" Cody asked sweetly.

I blinked. "Don't you mean would you like some cheese with that whine?"

He shook his head no. "No, I mean the cheese dip is here. Do you want wine?"

"Oh," I said with a blush staining my cheeks. "Yes, I would, thanks."

Wine was the answer. No matter what the question was.

I reached down for my phone to see if maybe I'd just missed a call from Cleo when I realized that I didn't even have my phone at all.

s.h.i.t.

Had I left it at work?

I thought about it for a few seconds while Cody spoke with the server and then came to a conclusion that I'd left it in my nursing bag.

It'd been raining when I left the hospital, and I'd dropped it in my bag when I'd reached for the small umbrella I kept for the occasions that it was needed.

"Hey," I said standing up. "I'll be right back. I left my phone in the car."

Cody nodded. "Do you want me to order for you?"

I nodded. "Yes, please."

Cody knew what I liked. Just as I knew what he liked.

I hurried out of the room, trying my hardest not to stare at the table in the corner, but failing miserably.

He was still sitting next to his sister, his arm slung around her shoulders as they both spoke to Detective Rector and Torren.

Torren's best feature was his hair. It was the color of black licorice, and there was just something about the way he always had it spiked up, whether he tried to make it that way or not, that I found so s.e.xy.

He was cute, too.

Dark gray black eyes, an angular chin, dark stubbled jaw, and the cutest cleft chin that I'd ever seen.

His eyes were on Molly as if she were a mug of beer in the middle of a frat party.

In fact, if I had to make an educated guess, I'd bet that Torren was just as in love with Molly now as he was a couple of years ago.

If she wasn't careful, she'd lose him before she even got him.