Chapter 16

Sticking resolutely to leaving Clara alone, I give her the rest of the night to relax.

But every time she's that close, all I want is to taste her incredible lips.

Still…

I also want her to come to me—to enjoy the moment she finally lets go of all pretenses and lets us be what I know we should be.

Naked.

The remainder of the evening goes smoothly enough, and I hit the sack with enough of a buzz on that I think it'll be okay.

A few hours later, however, I wake up drenched in sweat and ready to throw up.

The nightmare is just as potent as ever, and even now that I'm awake, I can't get the images out of my brain.

"Fucking hell."

I reach into my nightstand, where I keep a backup bottle, and take a few pulls.

The whiskey burns, and I heave a heavy sigh as I lie back down.

The ceiling stares back while I wait for unconsciousness, and the same churn of thoughts starts up.

I know this is wrong. I shouldn't be using alcohol to sleep, but the medications I tried made the nightmares more vivid and…colorful.

No-fucking-thank you.

And I'm not about to "talk" to someone. I've tried therapy. Shrinks don't understand.

They've just gone on and on about how it's a normal response.

Yeah, no shit.

Doesn't really help, and I know I need to sleep, so…

And that nonsense about just doing my duty. Yeah, the point is, it shouldn't have been necessary.

"Okay, not helping." I sigh, rolling over. "Think about something else."

At that, my mind kicks up memories of watching Uncharted with Clara. And what do you know, I'm smiling again.

She's just so damn funny when she's not up in her head. Charm oozes out of her when she isn't standing in her own way.

The frustration dies as I remember laughing with her, and eventually, I fall asleep again.

* * *

Once I've hadmy coffee and I feel a bit more like a human, I see Clara has left her lunch bag in the fridge.

I'm sure she'll be able to get by without it. She has her wallet now, released by the police, who are taking their time with her excuse for an apartment.

Clara can just pay for something else, or…

I could bring this to her.

The hospital isn't too far from the penthouse, and I arrive with plenty of time before the clock strikes for a lunch break.

As I walk up to the nurse's station, the people behind the desk look me up and down.

"Hello." I smile, turning up the charm. "I'm looking for Dr. Stewart. She forgot this."

I hold up the lunch bag, and the woman I'm speaking to raises her brows.

"Oh, okay. I'll page her to come to the desk."

She lifts up the receiver, and I just keep grinning because this is going to be hilarious.

"Dr. Stewart to the nurse's station on two."

The woman hangs up, and I give a polite nod.

As I wait for Clara, I can't help but be tickled by how I've been here all of three minutes, and the station behind me is in a flurry with whispers.

It doesn't take long for Clara to round the corner, and when she locks eyes with me, her mouth falls open.

"Hey there, roomie."

Clara's eyes flare, and she hurries over.

"What are you doing here?"

You'd have to be an idiot to miss the panicked tone in Clara's voice, and damn me to hell, but I just can't stop myself from teasing her.

"I'm delivering your lunch, which you absent-mindedly left in the fridge this morning. Besides, is it so wrong for me to check on my girl when I have a minute?"

I certainly don't scream it, but I'm not whispering, either, and the pink that floods over Clara's skin is fucking delectable.

The doc snatches her bag, clenching her jaw so hard I worry she'll crack a tooth.

Don't laugh. Don't do it, Luke.

"I'm very capable of getting my own food," she huffs out, and then she's looking around us like I've just handed her drugs. "And please watch what you're saying."

I cock a brow. "Oh, but aren't we dating?"

"No one has asked about where I'm staying, so I'm just leaving them to wonder, okay?"

Looking over my shoulder at the nurses who have all their attention focused on us, I turn back to Clara with a smirk.

"Well, you might have to now."

She eyes them with a glare, and then there's a flurry of activity behind me as they try to find something better to do than gossip about the surgical resident.

There's little to offer around here, however, and I know they'll be keeping an ear pinned to the conversation.

"Dammit. Now…ugh."

Clara refocuses on me, but there's nothing her hard stare can do to diminish my entertainment.

And I'm pretty sure the knows it, too.

"Thank you for bringing me my lunch. Now, would you please go home or to work or something?"

I take a step forward, getting right into Clara's personal space, and lean toward her ear to whisper in it.

"Of course, darlin'. Just need my goodbye kiss."

Before she can say a word, I pull back enough to plant one on her cheek and then give Clara my best impression of a sweet boyfriend.

"Don't work too hard, doc." I tuck some hair behind her ear. "I'll see you later."

I can feel Clara seething behind me. It's way too much fun, and I just walk past the nurse's station again and wave.

"Thanks for your help—" I look at her name tag "—Melody. You've been a peach."

She smiles, clearly flustered, and I almost feel bad for working the entire area into a tizzy, especially the likely twentysomething nurse.

Almost.

My phone buzzes in my pocket as I walk to the elevators, and I pull it up to see a message from Clara.

Exchanging numbers was such a good idea, until right about now.

Flipping open the text screen, I'm greeted with Clara's all-caps screaming message.

I CANNOT BELIEVE YOU DID THAT. AND PLEASE STOP FLIRTING WITH MELODY. SHE'S 19.

"Whoops."

Internally cringing a bit, I sigh at the overestimation of the nurse"s age. She must still be in school.

Well, too late now. And I'm not about to stop teasing Clara, so…

DO WHAT? HAVE TO GO. TALK TONIGHT…DARLIN'.

I laugh to myself about the reply and then start my journey back downtown to my office.

When I arrive, I pull up my emails and start working through them.

Most are people looking to be represented by Diamond PR. Unfortunately for them, we can't handle another client.

Wrapping that up, there are the two accounts that need promotion trajectory timelines. Lucky for me, one is just my brother.

"Diedra!" I just yell for her since I've left my door open.

I hear the gentle click of her heels against the wood floor.

"Yes, Mr. Shaw?"

As Diedra comes in, I smile. It's nice to see her even after the short break.

I know she has my back, and honestly, I wouldn't have taken the time off if she wasn't here.

"Hey. Where are we with Dom's PR timeline and the one for Clearwater?"

Coming to sit in the chair in front of my desk, Diedra leans forward, her elbows on her knees.

"Well—" she talks with her hands, and I get a kick out of watching it, like a puppet show "—Dom would like to remind you that it's a lakeside restaurant, not a club. So I think he's not feeling the theme for the grand opening."

"Just can't take a joke, huh? Well, I shouldn't be surprised he thought I was serious about the wet T-shirt contest. Send him the plans for the actual reveal party. The fireside chat one."

Diedra nods. "Can do. As for Clearwater, I've got the timeline drawn up, as you requested. I just need your final approval to send it out."

"Great." I lean back, raking my hand through my hair. "Where did we end up with their request of a waterfall for their investor's meeting?"

"I found a company that can do an install of a waterwall, and it can go behind their board table or the hors d'oeuvres table."

I consider what I know about the things, shaking my head slightly.

"Let's avoid the board. They'll want to talk and shit, and the walls can be loud from what I've heard."

Nodding once, Diedra stands up and claps her hands lightly. "We're all set, then. I'll shoot the timeline over so you can take a peek."

"Sounds good. Thank you, Diedra."

She offers a tight smile, and I think back to the date.

"Hey, wasn't it Kate's birthday? How'd that go?"

As usual, Diedra lights up when I mention her wife.

"Oh, it went good. Thanks. We went to Oja Steak and Sushi. Ate way too much."

"Oh, man. I could definitely go for some Japanese right now."

"I definitely recommend it. Kate really liked the mussels, and I got spicy tuna. Because?—"

"You always get spicy tuna. I remember."

We laugh and say our pleasant goodbyes. I forgot how much hearing Diedra talk about Kate makes me hungry for a bit of that stability.

My mind flickers to Clara, and I have to shake it away. She's already decided she doesn't want that.

And I am losing the battle with her.