Page 59 of Examining the Bond

I purse my lips, not entirely convinced, but the promise of spending time with Skylar outside the walls of the Buchanan Center has me nearly vibrating with excitement. French fries don’t sound bad either.

“And a chocolate shake,” I add, narrowing my eyes on her.

She smirks, the gesture making her already stunning features even more attractive. “Anything you want.”

“Alright,” I agree, almost immediately. “But I'm changing. It's too cold to have my ass out.”

I march past her into the changing room with a snort, changing into my slick-dampened leggings and dressing as fast as I can. I wish we had time for me to go to the hotel and change, but I’m not complaining.

When I'm finished, Skylar is waiting for me in the hall. She's ditched her lab coat, and her sleeves are still rolled up, revealing her tattoo-covered forearms.

“Ready?” she asks. The tips of her ears are tinged pink, and she's fidgeting way more than normal.

How fucking adorable.

She'll whisper all kinds of filthy things in my ear and fuck me like there's no tomorrow, but taking me out to eat makes her nervous.

“Ready,” I agree with a smirk. “Lead the way,Dr. Morales.”

She narrows her eyes and I giggle. My stomach is rumbling, and as much as I'd love for her to drag me into another room and punish me for being bratty, I want food.

Food first, spankings later.

We exit the clinic through an employee-only door at the back and cross the parking lot, cold air nipping at my skin. Skylar stops next to a black BMW that looks brand new and opens the passenger door for me.

Heat prickles across my cheeks as I smile and slide in, admiring the black leather interior. I've never ridden in a car this nice, and I'm careful not to touch anything besides the seatbelt as Skylar gets in and cranks the engine.

Her rich scent is soaked into every inch of the car, and I take a deep breath to steady my nerves.

“Are you okay?” she asks, reaching over the console and resting a hand on my thigh. The contact sends little shocks of electricity zipping across my skin. “You’re not a paranoid passenger are you? Should we just order something to be delivered?”

“No.” My eyes snap in her direction. “No, I'm fine. This is just a really nice car.”

She grins and puts it in drive. “Oh, this is just what I drive to work. You should see what I have at home.”

I try not to look as impressed as I am. I never considered how much money Skylar earns as a doctor; what kind of house she lives in or the cars she owns never crossed my mind either.

The only thing I considered was her and how badly every inch of my body aches for her, but as we back out of the parkingspot and roll across the lot, I can’t help but daydream about what a life with Skylar would look like. All the things we could have, the places we could visit.

And I have to admit, I’m rather fond of the idea.

CHAPTER TWENTY-FIVE

RIANN

I don’t know what kind of restaurant I pictured when I imagined fries and milkshakes, but it wasn’t an upscale steakhouse. The place Skylar takes us to easily outshines anything back in Woodside.

She opens the car door for me when we arrive, offering me her hand. I’m mentally squealing and kicking my feet as we cross the lot together, trying to keep my cool. I feel like I’m floating on air, walking next to the sexiest alpha I’ve ever seen, and more than a few curious gazes drift in our direction as we step through the front door.

We sit across from one another in a corner booth, which is probably for the best. I don’t trust either of us not to start something in the restaurant if we’re pressed against one another for any amount of time, even though I just want to be close to her. I’m not eager to give the restaurant goers a show.

Our waiter, a wisp of a beta male, slips up to our table to take our drink order, shooting Skylar curious looks.

“A large chocolate milkshake and a water,” she says after only briefly glancing at the menu.

“Of course,” he says. “And are you ready to order?”

Skylar nods, her eyes sliding over the menu a second time. “Can we have a Caesar salad, a medium rare filet mignon, beef carpaccio, cheesy steak fries, stuffed mushroom caps, and a cinnamon fry?”