Mikayla massaged her neck wearily. As usual, she hadn't had any time to rest all morning due to the number of patients. This time she was especially grateful for that. It was a welcome distraction.She looked down at her wrist wrapped in a cute, decorative scarf. It was supposed to hide the bruises on her wrist grin yesterday which had worsened just as predicted. They were now an angry shade of purple.She'd done it to avoid calling attention to the bruises but it was so out of character for her to tie a scarf that way that it seemed to be drawing even more attention.She got a lot of questioning gazes but she simply pretended not to notice. Her only fear now was people who knew she was with Cael thinking that he'd been the one to hurt her. Already, people assumed he was dangerous but this would cement that in their mind.But she didn't know what to do about it. She couldn't call everyone one after the other and start explaining things to them. So instead she ignored them as muc
"What are you doing here?" Mikayla choked out at Antoine Moreau who was standing in her doorway."Hi, Dr Wall. I just wanted to come see you. To apologize...for yesterday.""No, you need to leave," she exclaimed, her back pressed against the wall, eyes wide with fear."I just..." he looked back and noticed Nurse Kim and Rachel watching him with interest. He stepped into the office and shut the door. Mikayla shrunk back even more at the action.Her eyes darted to her bag on the ground. Could she reach it in time?She knew she should have put the pepper spray and taser in her drawer. Could see reach in time before he reached her?"I want to apologize for what I did yesterday," he said ashamedly. "I was drunk and I wasn't thinking straight. I shouldn't have come to your house that late and in that state and I shouldn't have said the things I said."Mikayla shook her head. "I don't care. I want you to leave." She waved her hand towards the door indicating that he should get out.He noti
Mikayla asked for the last patient to be let in. It had been a long, eventful day and she couldn't wait for it to end. As the door opened for the last patient to come in, she caught a glimpse of Cael sitting in one of the waiting chairs in the outer office. She smiled.Just seeing him there lifted her spirits in a way nothing else could. He'd said he'd be back after his meeting and there he was true to his word. She felt relieved and safe. A small part of her had been worried about Antoine possibly waiting for her in the parking lot after work. Even though she knew it was unlikely, she couldn't shake the irrational fear.But now that he was here, she knew she was completely safe. She welcomed her last patient with a smile. Barely five seconds after the patient left, her door opened and without looking up, she knew it was Cael.She rose from her seat and went around the table to him. She hugged him. "Hey," she whispered against his chest, listening to the calming, steady beat of
Cael wordlessly grabbed Mikayla's bag and walked ahead. At the door, he motioned to her to wait and stepped out first, scanning the surroundings before turning back and saying she could come out.Mikayla stepped out chuckling, completely amused by his overprotectiveness."Make sure you lock up tight," he said."Yes, sir!" She snapped a salute, chuckling. She locked up the house securely, turning the knob a few times to make sure then she followed him to her car. "You're driving," she announced. "I'm too tired to drive." She tossed him the keys and he caught it deftly."I was going to drive anyway," he said, unlocking the car and opening the door for her. He tossed her bag into the back and got in himself."You know I don't even know where you live," she pointed out. "We've never once spoken about it.""Orange estate," he answered.Mikayla gasped. "Orange estate?" Everyone knew orange estate. It was one of those areas in town where the rich people lived behind high fences and gates
The loud crash on the TV snapped Cael and Mikayla out of the trance-like state they were in.They sprung apart. Mikayla chuckled nervously. Her body still hummed in anticipation, failing to get the message that the mood was broken."I got you a beer too," Cael said causally, nodding towards the centre table which had an identical can sitting on top of it. He took a long gulp of his own beer too and she knew that he felt as uncomfortable as she did. It gave her some relief."Thank you." She leaned forward and grabbed the beer. "Why are watching this anyway?" Blasted decoration show, she thought. Way to ruin the mood."You said my house looked boring," he said simply, flatly. There was no antagonism in his voice. He was simply stating a fact.Still, Mikayla felt bad. "I didn't exactly say that. I-- okay, yeah, I said that," she laughed nervously.He smiled back reassuringly to show that he didn't take offence to it. "I stumbled on this channel and thought I'd give it a watch, see if
Mikayla walked the halls of hospital with her hands in the pockets of her dress. The dress was a cool shade of yellow, almost golden, clinched at the waist by a matching belt and had pockets in the front. She wore gold heels with a matching gold purse and finished off the look with some chic shades. She'd thought of putting a scarf around her neck for added effect but after the incidents of the previous day, she didn't want to give anyone any wrong ideas.Her hair was pulled up in a simple ponytail as usual but her auburn hair looked wonderful against the yellow of the dress. She knew because she spent an inordinate amount of time in front of the mirror that morning.It had felt so strange waking up in Cael's house, even if it was in the guest room. After Armani left, they'd gone back to catch the end of the movie while eating their pizza and then had an extra can of beer eachAfter that, Cael had declared that it was late and that they should go to bed to her utter disappointmen
Cael Lautner was having a very busy day. After drooping Mikayla at work, he'd immediately headed into this first meeting of the day and by two 'o clock, he'd had three more.It seemed like a lot of work but he didn't mind working like that. It came naturally to him. The only thing that bothered him was the very important task he was going to take care of right now. Mikayla had stayed with him the night before and it was wonderful. He'd loved every moment of having her here.Usually he kept people as far away from his house as possible. It was his personal sanctum; a place to get away from people. Only Armani frequented his house like it was hers and because it was her, he didn't mind too much.But he loved Mikayla being there. Seeing her walk his hallways, sit on his couch, watch TV in her pajamas just felt right in a way he couldn't even begin to understand. He wanted her around more often. For the first time in his life, he actually wanted someone else in his space.Then there w
Mikayla was racing against time. She needed to be at the reunion thirty minutes ago! But she'd had several appointments that day and had closed late from work. Anna had left work earlier which meant she was now ready but Mikayla wasn't. And for someone who was perpetually late, she was really giving Mikayla a lot of flack. She'd already called her twice and the phone was ringing again.Mikayla had just stepped out of the shower. She still needed to take care of her skin, dress up and put on some makeup. Anna would either have to be very, very patient or go ahead without her.She went to grab her phone, reaching out just as it stopped ringing. She sighed and dialled back. "Hi," she said."Mikayla, where are youuuu? Are you ready now?""Anna, how do you expect me to have gotten ready in the..." she checked her phone "...past five minutes since you called me. I basically just had a speed shower. I'm just stepping out of the bathroom.""So you're not dressed yet? Oh no!" She cried. "