***
Time is too slow for those who wait,
too swift for those who fear,
too long for those who grieve,
too short for those who rejoice,
but for those who love,
time is eternity.
~Henry Van Dyke
Laying in the darkness, pain wrenches me, sending electrical currents throughout my body. As the pain subsides, I can see nothing at all in this black fortress, not even my hand as I hold it before my face. My breaths are shallow when pain suddenly jerks within me again, but I cannot let on that anything is amiss, for danger is all around. I turn over on the small bed and wrap my arms around myself, trying not to attract attention. I need blood, even though I am human, but I won’t give my captors the satisfaction of knowing.
My thoughts go immediately to Lance: his touch, his dark, chiseled good looks, his bright green eyes. When love finds you, you recognize it, commit it to memory and lock it in your heart forever. You know it in your soul. You sacrifice everything for it.
As I lay in the dark, I remind myself that there are many types of love. Some, you would die for. I steel myself and silently prepare to fight when another sharp pain grabs me. I’m not sure how long I can hold out, but I must. I must hold out for him. I would die for him.
Suddenly, a noise resonates loudly in the darkness, causing the walls to vibrate. Yes, Lance is coming for me. I know it. I have to hold on to all hope, for to let go is to die, and I must survive. I must survive for him. Another pain wracks my body, but I make no noise.
Loud noise resounds all around us, but this time within the cavernous room. Abruptly, a light comes on, sending the room into a bright, white glow. I’m instantly blinded, but my vision slowly returns. He is coming for us. He’s here. I just hope that it’s not too late.
Two months before …
“Rosa, would you be so kind as to show Mr. Dorman to Examining Room Eight?” I checked the chart of a patient that I had just examined. Rosa, my head nurse here at Southside Medical Hospital in Las Vegas, Nevada, and was about to go on break, but I knew that she wouldn’t mind helping me out. Although I’d been on my feet for eight hours straight, I wasn’t ready for a break yet. Working with patients always rejuvenated me.
“Sure. I’d be glad to.” She smiled as I handed her Mr. Dorman’s chart and then she headed toward the waiting room.
I took a deep breath as I pulled the chart from the tray next to Examining Room Seven. The name on the chart read Henry O’Malley, and it stated that he had broken his arm. Not one to keep patients waiting, I gave the door a light knock.
“Come in,” a young man in his mid-twenties answered. When I walked in, a young man was sitting on the examining table holding his arm. Even though he must have been in great pain, his eyes lit up and a broad smile spread across his face when I entered the room.
“Good afternoon, Mr. O’Malley,” I greeted him with a professional smile, and then turned to check his chart again, ignoring his pearly white teeth and the cute dimple on the side of his cheek.
“What do we have here?” I asked, setting down the chart to look directly into his eyes.
“Well, I think I’ve broken my arm… or so it seems.” He smiled and the dimple appeared once again.
“Well,” I replied, returning his smile. “We’ll fix you right up in just a bit.”
“Have I seen you somewhere before?” He lifted an eyebrow expectantly, trying to make small talk.
I laughed to myself. Even though I was only twenty-nine, I had been a doctor for two years now, which included four years of pre-med, four years of medical college, and two years of residency, but my long blonde hair and blue eyes made me appear younger. “Not unless you’ve been to the ER lately,” I said flatly, taking the stethoscope from around my neck. “Let’s get down to business, shall we?”
“Sure, if you like,” he said with a sly smile. “Will this bed do?”
“Perhaps I should introduce myself first.” I laughed, ignoring his proposition. “My name is Dr. Leila Reynolds. I’m the ER attending physician tonight.”
O’Malley let his eyes travel up and down my five-foot, six-inch frame and smiled. “Doctor, huh? What time do you get off work?”
“Later,” I replied sarcastically, and then added, “but I’m married.”
A lock of his dark hair fell lazily over one eye. As he pushed it back, he gave me the sexiest smile he could manage. “Happily?” he asked, raising an eyebrow.
“Somewhat,” I replied, pulling up the rolling chair to get a better look. “Why don’t you relax and let me take a look at your arm?”
He lifted his arm, cringing a bit. “After you set my arm, why don’t you let me take you out for a drink?”
I raised an eyebrow, brushing a strand of my long blonde hair away from my face, turning the full force of my blue eyes on him. “Look, I’m your doctor. Let’s set your arm, shall we?”
He let his good hand trial up my arm, raising gooseflesh that traveled down my back, and then turned his smoldering, eyes to mine. “Then, afterward, you’ll let me take you out for a drink?”
“Nurse!” I yelled, standing up straight as Rosa entered the room.
“Yes, doctor?” she asked professionally, raising an eyebrow.
“I think this young man here needs a sedative,” I said, then added, “In fact, why don’t we knock him out?”
“Knock… knock me out?” His seductive smile suddenly disappeared. “Is that really necessary?”
“Well, you tell me? Is it?” I raised an eyebrow and crossed my arms. Rosa suppressed a smile, knowing what was happening and why I had called for her.
“No, no… not at all,” he stammered, changing his mind. “I’d rather stay awake, if you don’t mind.”
I eyed him for a moment, letting him squirm, then said to Rosa, “On second thought, just a pain killer will do. I don’t think it’ll be necessary to knock him out… yet.”
“Right away, doctor.” Rosa bit her lip, trying to conceal a smile that spread across her smooth, mahogany cheeks as she walked out and closed the door. She came back, brandishing the longest syringe that she could find. His eyes grew wide. A moment later, we began the arduous task of setting his arm, and he behaved for the rest of the evening.
After I finished setting his arm and Mr. O’Malley was on his way out the door with a temporary cast, I noticed the dark shadow of a tall man standing at the end of the hallway. It was hard to tell, but he was extremely attractive with dark, wavy hair that just touched his collar, brilliant, green eyes, and a regal air—a true Renaissance man. His black Armani suit and pristine, white shirt open at the color and no tie was evidence that he was a hospital benefactor, a businessman.
I walked to Examining Room Eight and lifted the chart from the tray. Trying to be inconspicuous, I lifted a page of the chart and stole a quick glance back down the hallway again. He was leaning against the wall, watching me.“Thank you for your most generous donation to our hospital, Mr. Steel,” Dr. Drake Summerfield, the hospital administrator, said to him as he walked around the corner.I looked down at the chart in my hand again, pretending not to notice.A brunette woman suddenly walked up to stand between the two men, dressed in an impeccable Channel woman’s suit with her hair pulled back into a tight bun, carrying a leather legal-pad folder. She was gorgeous, despite her effort to downplay her looks by wearing square, black glasses that matched her black suit. But on her, they were chic. She looked over at Mr. Steel and followed his gaze to me. She quickly snapped the leather folder shut in an effort to claim his attention, but he didn&r
I knew from the way he said it that he wouldn’t take no for an answer. Mr. Summerfield was my boss, after all. The patient could wait another moment. I closed the chart and gave the two men my full attention.“It’s a pleasure to meet you, sir,” I said, extending my hand.“The pleasure is indeed mine, Dr. Reynolds,” Mr. Steel said, accepting my hand. Then, he raised it to his lips, never taking his eyes from mine. His hands and lips were unusually cold, but it was probably just from the air conditioning.Just then, Rosa appeared outside the examining room and gave me a look.“Well, I really must go,” I said, turning to leave. “I have patients.”“Until we meet again,” Steel said, as a smile played at the corner of his luscious lips.Man, is he hot, I thought to myself. As I walked away, a shiver shot down my spine. There was something about him that I couldn’t quite
The alarm rang all too soon the next morning, jolting me awake. Slowly, I opened one eye and hit the snooze. It was five o’clock in the morning. Ugh, I groaned as I turned over and shoved a pillow over my face. I was almost asleep when the alarm blared loudly again, causing my body to jerk. I closed my eyes, but all I could think about was Lance. I sat up on the edge of the bed and shook my head, then shut the alarm off and got up to take a shower.A few minutes later, the heat from the water blast rushed over my body, waking me up. I squirted body wash into my hand and rubbed it slowly over my body, closing my eyes, imagining that my hands were Lance’s. I rubbed across my breasts and over my nipples as images of Lance danced through my mind. Slowly, I ran my hand between my thighs to my heat. The water rushed over my body and my breaths quickened as I imagined that I was with Lance under a waterfall on a tropical island. My clit swelled at the thought and I let m
Throughout the night, Kellen worked with experience beyond his years, despite his youthful appearance. “How long have you been a nurse?” I asked later in the day when he handed me another chart.“For a while,” he said, and then changed the subject, “Mr. Rollings is waiting in Room Six.” He pointed to the door and I nodded.When I turned around, my breath caught at the sight of Lance Steel walking in our direction with Drake Summerfield. Shit! I had successfully pushed him out of my mind for most of the day and now here he was, a Greek god in all his glory, walking toward me. I headed to the examining room and pulled the chart from the tray outside the door, pretending not to notice. Why did he have such an effect on me?“Leila,” Drake called out to me, then corrected himself, “Dr. Reynolds, do you have a minute?”I looked up from the chart casually, even though my heart was doing flip flops in my
Suddenly, a male figure stopped in front of me and I froze. The man was in silhouette and I couldn’t see who it was. All of the self-defense classes that I had taken over the years rushed into my brain as I tightened my grip on my car keys. I could ram them into his jugular vein and it would be over in seconds, or shove the heel of my hand into his nose …“Dr. Reynolds, it’s me, Lance Steel,” he said, almost reading my mind.“Oh, you scared me …” I said, taking a deep breath.“What are you doing out here alone?” he asked, suddenly angry. “Anything could happen to you …”“I’ll be fine,” I said, trying to walk past him. Actually, at this point I would rather take my chances with a complete stranger.He grabbed my arm, not letting me pass. “I’m walking you to your car.” It wasn’t a question.“I beg your pardon?”
The rest of the day passed uneventfully until sundown. Rosa, Kellen, and I worked throughout the day, making a good team. Kellen was so young—probably fresh out of nursing school—that I was surprised he was as knowledgeable as he was about nursing. He performed as if he were a seasoned veteran—just as good as Rosa, and she had been a nurse for over twenty years. I pushed the thought aside, deciding to go home early, or on time, actually.“I don’t believe it. The sun is just setting and you’re going home,” Rosa teased with a twinkle in her eye. “The days of miracles aren’t over.”“Love you, too!” I said, knowing it would irritate her.“You know …”“I know, your boat don’t float that way,” I teased as a smile curled my lips. “But if you ever change your mind …”“I won’t let you know,” Rosa returned. She had
I stepped in line to buy my ticket inside the theater when I heard a voice that shouldn’t be so familiar. “Dr. Reynolds! What a surprise to see you here!”Oh, shit! Why did I have to run into Lance Steel? “Mr. Steel, what are you doing here?” I asked, donning my best poker face.“It’s nice to see you, too.” He looked me up and down, his eyes lingering over my light blue blouse and heels a bit too long. “You look nice today.”“Thanks.” I chose a movie and stepped up in line, trying to ignore him.“What movie are you seeing?” he asked, stepping up behind me.“Why? Are you going to the movies, too?” I asked, suddenly surprised. He was dressed in blue jeans with a sexy button down black shirt, open slightly at the neck and black leather boots. His usually coifed, sexy dark brown hair was falling lazily across his face, accentuating his bright green eyes.
Although it was a movie that I really wanted to see, I paid no attention to it. As the love story unfolded on the screen, I studied Lance more than the movie, taking note of his chiseled features, piercing green eyes, and testosterone overload. The electricity in the air was so thick between us that you could cut it with a knife. I took a deep breath, forcing my eyes back to the screen without really seeing what was happening, forgetting momentarily that I was married. Then, the lights came up, bringing us both back to reality.“Thank you,” I said as we walked out of the theater.“For what?” he asked, amused.“That was the most fun I’ve had in a very long time.”“My pleasure,” he returned as we left the theater and walked into the darkness of the night, when he stopped abruptly. “Do you want to catch a bite to eat while we’re here? There’s a restaurant around the corner.”