Valeria needs me.”
“I’m pretty sure she will.”
She tilted her chin down. “My train.”
He tilted his to the left. “My taxi.”
She laughed. It was the best.
* * *
L ISA MISSED HER STOP . She got out at Nostrand and caught the C going south. She didn’t mind. She hadn’t lied about the work waiting for her at home, but all she wanted to do was remember that kiss. Not just the kiss, which was far too rushed and too public, but the man who let her set the pace.
It had been perfect. A soft reentry to the world of dating. He’d wanted to deepen the kiss, hold her tighter. His body had thrummed with energy and desire. For
her
.
She hadn’t even meant to turn him down for dinner, but she’d gotten scared. God, she was like a stalking survivor or something. What did you call it when someone stole your identity and the rest of your world?
Identity theft
didn’t cover it.
Unwilling to go to the dark place when she wanted to ride the pheromone train all the way till morning, she touched her lips. Remembered. God, she’d tasted him. Just a little, but enough to know she wanted more. If she did her work superfast, she could go to bed early. She wouldn’t even need her vibrator.
* * *
D ANIEL HAD JUST finished going over a patient’s chart and was about to enter room 3 when a woman’s scream stopped him cold. It had come from the waiting area and was followed by more shouting and children crying. Staff and patients were sticking their heads out of exam rooms as he ran down the hall to the front. The real fear hit when he saw the unflappable Hector frozen behind the reception desk.
That was all Daniel could see but he heard the mounting hysteria, then felt a hand on his shoulder and turned to see that it was one of the nursing students. She looked terrified and could barely croak out, “He’s got a gun.”
“Have the police been called?”
Eyes wide, she seemed confused. “I think so.”
“Make sure they have.” He glanced over her head at Valeria, who looked equally frightened. “Stay back. I’m just going to check out the situation.”
Walking slowly and calmly, he put down the chart in his hand. Then he rounded the corner. A man he didn’t recognize was waving a gun. He was short and whippet-thin. The room was crowded with adults sitting in the plastic chairs and wide-eyed kids staring from the play area in the corner.
“Sit your ass down,” the guy said when a young woman tried to reach her crying child. “Or I’ll shoot you both.”
With a choked sob the distraught mother sank back in her seat.
Hands up, Daniel walked into the main room, ignoring Hector and everyone else. All he could see was that the gunman was high on something. Likely meth. From the look of him—torn Kanye T-shirt, filthy jeans, huge pupils—Daniel figured he was tweaking now, when he was least stable.
“Who the fuck are you?”
It was everything Daniel could do not to duck when the bastard waved his weapon at him. “I’m a doctor. If you tell me what you want, I’ll make sure you get it. No one needs to get hurt.”
“I already told you Nancy’s in there. She stole my shit. That’s what I want. You’ve got two minutes to get my shit, or people are gonna die. You got that?”
He waved the gun so wildly, Daniel was afraid it would go off any second. But he needed to stall until the police came. “Is Nancy a patient here?”
“What the fuck do you think? She ain’t no doctor. The lying bitch.”
Out of the corner of his eye, he saw Hector carefully getting the people closest to him to duck low and run around the corner to the hallway. But it was the little ones who had Daniel worried. They were too far away from Hector. Where were the goddamn cops?
“Okay,” he said, taking one step closer to the junkie. He could crash anytime, or worse, stay tweaked. “I’ll go back and get her and your stuff. As soon as you let the children go.”
The weapon stilled for the longest moment, pointed straight
“I’m pretty sure she will.”
She tilted her chin down. “My train.”
He tilted his to the left. “My taxi.”
She laughed. It was the best.
* * *
L ISA MISSED HER STOP . She got out at Nostrand and caught the C going south. She didn’t mind. She hadn’t lied about the work waiting for her at home, but all she wanted to do was remember that kiss. Not just the kiss, which was far too rushed and too public, but the man who let her set the pace.
It had been perfect. A soft reentry to the world of dating. He’d wanted to deepen the kiss, hold her tighter. His body had thrummed with energy and desire. For
her
.
She hadn’t even meant to turn him down for dinner, but she’d gotten scared. God, she was like a stalking survivor or something. What did you call it when someone stole your identity and the rest of your world?
Identity theft
didn’t cover it.
Unwilling to go to the dark place when she wanted to ride the pheromone train all the way till morning, she touched her lips. Remembered. God, she’d tasted him. Just a little, but enough to know she wanted more. If she did her work superfast, she could go to bed early. She wouldn’t even need her vibrator.
* * *
D ANIEL HAD JUST finished going over a patient’s chart and was about to enter room 3 when a woman’s scream stopped him cold. It had come from the waiting area and was followed by more shouting and children crying. Staff and patients were sticking their heads out of exam rooms as he ran down the hall to the front. The real fear hit when he saw the unflappable Hector frozen behind the reception desk.
That was all Daniel could see but he heard the mounting hysteria, then felt a hand on his shoulder and turned to see that it was one of the nursing students. She looked terrified and could barely croak out, “He’s got a gun.”
“Have the police been called?”
Eyes wide, she seemed confused. “I think so.”
“Make sure they have.” He glanced over her head at Valeria, who looked equally frightened. “Stay back. I’m just going to check out the situation.”
Walking slowly and calmly, he put down the chart in his hand. Then he rounded the corner. A man he didn’t recognize was waving a gun. He was short and whippet-thin. The room was crowded with adults sitting in the plastic chairs and wide-eyed kids staring from the play area in the corner.
“Sit your ass down,” the guy said when a young woman tried to reach her crying child. “Or I’ll shoot you both.”
With a choked sob the distraught mother sank back in her seat.
Hands up, Daniel walked into the main room, ignoring Hector and everyone else. All he could see was that the gunman was high on something. Likely meth. From the look of him—torn Kanye T-shirt, filthy jeans, huge pupils—Daniel figured he was tweaking now, when he was least stable.
“Who the fuck are you?”
It was everything Daniel could do not to duck when the bastard waved his weapon at him. “I’m a doctor. If you tell me what you want, I’ll make sure you get it. No one needs to get hurt.”
“I already told you Nancy’s in there. She stole my shit. That’s what I want. You’ve got two minutes to get my shit, or people are gonna die. You got that?”
He waved the gun so wildly, Daniel was afraid it would go off any second. But he needed to stall until the police came. “Is Nancy a patient here?”
“What the fuck do you think? She ain’t no doctor. The lying bitch.”
Out of the corner of his eye, he saw Hector carefully getting the people closest to him to duck low and run around the corner to the hallway. But it was the little ones who had Daniel worried. They were too far away from Hector. Where were the goddamn cops?
“Okay,” he said, taking one step closer to the junkie. He could crash anytime, or worse, stay tweaked. “I’ll go back and get her and your stuff. As soon as you let the children go.”
The weapon stilled for the longest moment, pointed straight
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