Page 20 of Reckless Devotion
Jax:It was stolen from my locker!
Chloe:I might buy it.
Chloe:For important scientific reasons and such.
Teddy:Don’t blame you at all.
Zeke:Excuse me?
Chloe:That wasn’t me. Diego had my phone.
Zeke:Our six year old son wants to buy Jax’s cup for science?
Chloe:I know. Crazy, right?
CHASE
“Why did you even come to my apartment?” Pepper asks, her grim expression trained on the thick glass window on the opposite side of the harshly lit hospital corridor.
“Hmm?” I drift slowly back into the room, having been whirring over the latest kill switch report. Somehow, in the lastweek, seven shipments of defense tech have gone awry, veering rapidly off course in the Middle East. We’ve killed them all, rendering the tech unusable, but it’s still troubling that this issue is becoming so rife. “Oh, I came to tell you that you’ve got the day off tomorrow, so you’re spending it with me.”
“What?”
“Your rant about shoes and fashion shows? Not exactly subtle. It took me one phone call to find out you’re working on my mother’s account at the Abbot Foundation.” I cast my palm down my jawline, feeling the scratch of stubble that needs trimming. I can feel Pepper glaring into the side of my face, but I don’t look at her.
“So wait, how do you two actually know each other?” The teenager with shock-pink hair—her sister, Sunny, as it turns out—bounces a confused gaze between us.
A nurse rushes past in blue print scrubs, and the faint scent of antibacterial permeates the air. I shift in the plastic chair, lifting a conspicuous brow Pepper’s way. The apples of her cheeks flush with a warm coppery tone and she breaks out of my snare.
“We work together,” she explains to the girl, lifting a thumb nail to chew on it anxiously. Her dark eyes scatter between the people milling around in the waiting room, very much on edge with her knee jogging.
Without really thinking about it, I reach over and take her hand, pulling it down from her mouth to her thigh and using it to stop the frantic bouncing. Her chocolate eyes flare wide, slamming back to me. For a moment I’m struck by how small and delicate her fingers feel cloaked beneath mine. Something foreign crackles in the air, warmth flooding up my arm from her skin. The millisecond after a small voice in my brain exclaims how inappropriate this is, we are interrupted and jump apart.
“Chase?”
We both turn our sheepish attention to the blonde woman before us in a white doctor’s coat. I clear my throat, holding my fist to my mouth, and then stand, Pepper following suit.
“Nadine, thank you for coming.” I stoop to place a polite kiss on her cheek and then draw back.
“Of course.” She smiles professionally, her face a picture of well-meaning concern. “How is your mother doing?”
Unease slices me in two, but I paste on my signature smile and offer her a little shrug. “She’s great.”
Nadine has been one of our family doctors for a good decade, and doesn’t look fooled. But instead of saying anything, she turns to reach out a hand to Pepper, who now stands at my side. “I’m Dr. Margyle, it’s a pleasure to meet you.”
“Pepper,” she responds and takes Nadine’s hand after a moment of hesitation. Before I turn my attention away, I catch her throwing a speculative glance my way.
“How is he?” I ask, ignoring Pepper’s curiosity.
“He’s okay. His left hip is fractured and he will need some help and rehab to get back on his feet.” Nadine gives me a stern look very apt for a doctor. “At this age, patients who don’t rehab properly might never regain full function.”
“I’ll see to it that he gets the best care.” I nod, the storm of guilt that has been swirling around my stomach since the old man fell weighing heavy.
“He’s a little disorientated, so it might be helpful to see some familiar faces, if you want to go in?”
“Er…” Pepper rolls her lips inward and then scrunches her nose. “I’m not sure that would be a good idea. He kind of hates me.”
“Really?” Nadine blinks and then glances down at the tablet in her hand. “That’s odd, he’s been asking for you. I assumed you were family.”
