Bound to the Fallen (Prophecy #2) (20 page)

I’d finished cop
ying a file and passed Ashley’s office on the way back to mine.

“Brooke?” S
he called for me to come back. “You got plans for lunch?” Ashley asked.

“Um-hmm,
” I smiled at her, twirling my hair around my fingertip.

“God, I really do h
ate you.”

I thought for a moment and then closed her door.
“Hey, Gavin’s never had a relationship with anyone else from work, has he?” I asked.

“A relationship? Nope, not that I know of
, and it’s definitely not from a lack of women trying. I’ve told you that.” She looked at me very seriously. “Why?”

“Dan
insinuated that Gavin had been inappropriate with other girls here.”

Ashley
snorted, obviously annoyed with the little twerp. “Seriously, you’re going to listen to something that fuck face says? Why was he even talking about him?”

“He was asking me about the trip and if Gavin had been
inappropriate with me. He said it was a habit of Gavin’s.”

“Oh
, bull, that man’s just worried. He’s a creeper and has the hots for you. If he doesn’t have a chance with you, he doesn’t want anyone to. You should tell Gavin, get him to smack ‘em in the face with that huge dong of his.”

Ashley always made things sexual, n
o matter what it was. I laughed. “Dan’s so creepy — I don’t like it.”

Ashle
y’s tone deepened. “Tell Gavin, seriously, tell him.”

“I don’t kno
w…I…” my speech trailed off.

Ashley reached up and
touched my wrist. “Dan’s not going to stop. He’s not going to get the picture. If you and Gavin stay together —” She stopped and narrowed her eyes at me. “
Are
you in a relationship?”

“
We’re screwing,” I glanced down at the floor. “Whatever that makes us.” I felt dirty just saying that.

Ashley continued,
“You’re gonna have to tell him. Trust me. Dianne left because of Dan. She went to HR and they wrote him up, but that was it, so she just left. He only made comments to her, nothing crazy like what he’s done with you… and he didn’t stalk her out in public, as far as I know.”

My phone beeped.

Gavin: I’m running behind in clinic, be there just a tad late.

T
he expression on my face must have told her it was Gavin. Ashley peeked over at my phone. “That’s him, isn’t it? I really am jealous of you. Just promise me you’ll give me juicy details at least once a week.”

I
giggled. “What about Colton?”

“Oh, Colton’s
definitely a gem. But the stuff you told me this morning is like porn, without the fear of someone finding it in your search history and thinking you’re a perv.”

I rolled my eyes and shrugged. “Okay
. I mean, if you really want to know that much about my vagina.”

She shook her finger at me, “No, no, no
— about GGP, which is codename for Gavin’s glorious penis. Leave your vagina out of this.”

My adrenaline
amped up because I was sneaking around. Searching the restaurant to make sure no one else from my office was there, I sat down in a booth. A few minutes later Gavin walked up from behind.

He stopped and stood at the end of the booth. A sly smile formed on his lips as he said, “Well, hey Brook
e, would it bother you if I sat down with you?” He winked at me and took a seat across from me.

“No
. Not at all, Dr. Hunter.”

R
eaching his hand under the table, he gently stroked the top of my knee with his finger. “Imagine running into you here.”

Gavin
picked up the menu and opened it with his left hand. His right hand crept further up my thigh, and I grabbed it just as his fingers slid underneath the hem of my skirt. I shook my head slightly from side to side. I couldn’t handle him touching me like that in public.

He
clutched my leg, digging his fingers into my flesh before loosening his grip. He raised his eyes, meeting my gaze intently and causing a tidal wave of lust to crash over my body. “You don’t like me touching you?” he whispered, sliding his hand further up my thigh.

J
erking my leg out of his grasp, I reassured him, “Oh — no. I
thoroughly
enjoy you touching me.” I arched my eyebrows and released a breath. “You
can’t
do that to me in public though.”

Gavin laid the menu down
, pulling his hand up from under the table. He placed his elbows on the table top and rested his face in his hands. His eyes focused on mine, never breaking contact as he tapped his pinky finger on the side of his face. Although his mouth was hidden by his hands, I could tell he was smiling from the way his eyes crinkled up. “Well, now, what if I happen to enjoy public displays of affection? You going to deny me that pleasure? Hmmm?”

I’d seen this man naked
and had him touching me in ways no one else had, ways I knew no one else ever could, and it was almost impossible for me to maintain my composure around him. My nerves were still on edge around him, especially when he spoke to me like that. The waiter walked up, giving me a way to avoid answering his question. Somehow I managed to avoid answering it throughout lunch.

A
s we were getting up to leave, my phone beeped. I pulled it out from my purse and saw a text message.

Dan:
So, ur lunch plans were with Dr. Hunter?

My mouth dropped open.
Reaching over, I grabbed onto Gavin’s shoulder.

“Gavin,” I said, look
ing down at my phone.

“What?”
Gavin peered over my shoulder at the screen.

I stood there in awe, wondering if this was really happening.
“Dan…”

Gavin pulled his arm through his
white lab coat and straightened the collar. “What does he care?” He looked at me and shrugged his shoulders. “We were just having lunch. I ran into you and asked if I could join you. There’s nothing wrong with us having lunch together.”

I put my phone
away and followed Gavin out onto the sidewalk. He was quiet; I could tell he was thinking about it.

A
group of medical students strolled across the street and my thoughts went to my father – then to the fact that I was now involved in an unethical relationship.

Oh, my God – I’m no better than him. Well, at least Gavin’s not married. It’s not the same – not at all.

I was reassuring myself that I had higher morals than my father when Gavin shook his head and stopped in his tracks.

“
Why
would Dan send that to you?” He seemed frustrated. “That man is unbelievable, he really is.” He took a few steps, then paused again. “He’s not bothering you, is he?”

I
thought for a moment before I responded, “No, not really. I mean, he’s a little creepy and annoying.”

“You’ll tell me if he starts bothering you, right?”

“Yeah. Sure.” I fell silent for a moment. “Why would you think he’d bother me?”

“He’
s just an odd man who has a touch of a superiority complex. I could just see him not knowing where to draw a line.” Gavin squinted slightly to block the sun from his eyes. “Not that I did too well with that,” he grinned. “Honestly, I was doing pretty well until you invited me to play your little drinking game. Had you not done that, I may’ve been able to continue pretending that I was completely uninterested in you.”

I looked up at him and smiled
. “Really? Just that easily, hmmm?”

“Well, at least for a little while longer.”

Gavin stopped at the front of the building. “I’m going to the clinics. I’ll see you later.”

I watched him jog across the street
and then I walked into the building. As I was waiting on the elevator I saw Dan crossing the street, scurrying toward the side entrance. I didn’t want to get trapped on the elevator with that man so I sprinted for the stairwell and raced up the stairs. By the time I reached the eighth floor, I was completely out of breath. Figuring I’d taken a long enough time to miss crossing paths with him on the elevator, I went into the lobby and pressed the button. When the elevator opened, I peered inside. Much to my relief it was empty. Just as I got off, my phone beeped again with another text from Dan.

Dan:
Taking the stairs? That’ll give U buns of Steel!

T
his guy truly was unbelievable, but I didn’t let him phase me. I was in absolute bliss because of Gavin.

Brooke

Friday afternoon I got home, laid down on my couch, picked up the remote, and flipped the television on. I switched channels, trying to find something halfway entertaining to watch. My eyes drifted shut and I fell into a light sleep.

The brightness stung as my pupils tried to adjust to the light.
I saw iridescent white feathers. Focusing my sight, I realized I was being wrapped up in enormous wings. I felt the warmth of someone pressed against my back and quickly spun around. Just as my eyes lifted up toward this creature’s face, the ground began to tremor. A loud rumble resonated within my ears.

A
loud bang on the door behind me woke me up and snapped me back into reality. The sudden noise startled me and I leapt up from the couch, my heart galloping in my chest from the initial rush of adrenaline. The handle was shaking and it sounded like whoever was on the other side was slamming their entire body against the door. Peering through the peephole, I saw Constance standing outside. I opened the door and she stomped into my living room.

She slung her purse down on
to the coffee table and plopped down on my couch. “What the hell, Brooke? I’ve been banging on your door for like, three minutes. You just gonna toss me to the side now that you’ve got a regular piece of dick?”

I rolled my eyes as I shut the door and sat on the arm of my chair. Constance whistled, calling
Simon over to her. He jumped up in her lap and kneaded her jeans with his claws. She ran her hand through his fluffy white fur, following along his spine, causing him to arch his back.

“You know, I have needs too. I came first,”
she said as one corner of her mouth turned up. She reached in her oversized, stained purse and pulled out a book. “Here, I finished it. Pretty damn good, it’ll definitely make you horny.” She pursed her lips together and rolled her eyes. “Like you need any help with that!” She tossed the book down on the couch.

P
icking it up, I flipped through the pages.

Constance kicked her flip flops off and propped her feet up on my coffee table.
“So, we’re goin’ out tomorrow?” she asked. “You’re not gonna be all shacked up with him, right? You can just wait until afterwards to start your hunch fest?”

I sighed
. “Yeah, I’m comin’. Wouldn’t want to miss a night out with you guys, not even for the most amazing, incredible, earth-shattering orgasms I’ve ever had.” I jostled her shoulder. “That’s how much you mean to me, dear.”

She
shot a slightly disgusted look my way and shook her head. “Well,
whatever
. Why don’t you bring him with you? I want to see him up close, make sure he’s not like, an oil painting or something.” Inspecting her nails, she pushed her cuticles back with her fingernail.

“What are you talking about?” I had no idea what the hell an oil painting had to do with Gavin.

“You know,” she put her forefinger in her mouth and pulled the loose piece of skin from her cuticle, “like he looks all hot and sexy from thirty feet away, but when you get up real close he looks like freakin’ Quasimodo.”

“Oh, please
! He is even more breathtaking up close,” I said.

“Okay, well
, bring him out, or is he too snobby to hang out with us common folk?”

I glared at her and
her eyes widened in surprise at my annoyed expression.

Her
tone was defensive as she explained herself. “What? Look, I Googled how much those neurosurgeons make, and
damn!
That’s all I got to say. He’s probably too cool to hang out with people who can’t afford to pay cash for cars. I mean, he’s okay with hanging with you ’cause you’ll fuck him, and let’s not forget, you come from a strong doctor bloodline. He can probably sniff out that you come from money.” Constance paused and then giggled, punching me in the arm. “Come on, Brooke. Just bring him out.”

“I d
on’t know, Constance, I mean, we’re just kinda screwing.” I paused and scrunched my eyebrows. “I think — what if he thinks I’m being too needy?”

S
he pushed Simon off her lap and made her way into my kitchen. “You, needy? Never.”

She
ransacked my pantry for something to eat, crinkling the bags as she moved the items she didn’t want out of her way. Finally finding something she wanted, she grabbed a bag and walked back over to the couch while shoving handfuls of greasy chips into her mouth. “Just be completely casual about it, you know, don’t make a big deal out of it,” she mumbled through a mouthful of soggy chips. “Just tell him you’re goin’ out with your friends, see if he wants to go. I mean, I need to be able to pick him out from a line up in case he kills you are something!”

“Constance!”

She tossed her hands up. “Hey. Just taking precautions here.” Cramming another large portion of chips into her mouth, she muttered, “Promise him a blow job, that’ll do it.”

As I
debated on whether to ask him to come out I realized that wherever we went, Ashley would be there with Colton. Gavin had no idea that Ashley hung out with me outside of work, much less that she had a code word — GGP — for his genitals. I thought about how I’d recounted, in very vivid and explicit details, how he’d screwed my brains out. I’d even used a horrible English accent when I told her the dirty things he’d whispered in my ear.

“Shit,” I yelled.

Constance stopped stuffing chips in her mouth long enough to get out a gargled, “Huh?”

“Ashley
,” I said

She
swallowed and looked at me with a confused look, “Uh, yeah... Ashley… Help me out here, Brooke, I can’t read minds yet.”

“Gavin, do you
think
he’s gonna want to hang out with Ashley? Damn it, he’ll know that she knows about us.”

“So?” she said
, licking the grease from her fingers.

“So? He told me
not
to tell anyone.”

“Okay, we
ll, you didn’t, I did,” she paused, shooting a tight-lipped smile in my direction “You’re welcome!”

S
ighing, I covered my face with my hands and threw my head back against the couch cushion. “I guess I better go ahead and tell him before Ashley blurts it out accidentally one day. She can’t keep her mouth shut.”

Constan
ce laughed. “Yeah… you’re telling me.”

I grabbed the bag from Constance
and pulled out a handful of chips, chewing loudly as I wondered how Gavin would react when I told him Ashley knew about us.

Friday morning
I walked down to Ashley’s office to discuss this obvious dilemma. Just as I reached my doorway my phone beeped. I made my way back to my desk and saw a text from Dan.

Dan:
Good Morning.

I vomi
ted in the back of my throat a little. As I put the phone back down, another text came in.

Dan:
I hope you slept well.

Immediately followed by another.

Dan: I’m on my way in, we need to talk.

“Damn it
.” Sighing, I threw my phone down. I rushed to Ashley’s office, closing the door behind me and leaning against it. Ashley spun her chair around.

“More juicy details for me? You’re glowing
. I know you guys did it again, didn’t you? You filthy little whore! God, I hate you! Now tell me,” she demanded, pulling her legs up into her chair and eagerly waiting on me to spill.

“That’
s not a glow. It’s perspiration,” I looked at her with a very serious expression.

Ashley’s shoulders dropped slightly.
“Dan? What’s the shithole done now?”

“No, not Dan.
Gavin. He doesn’t know about you.” I said.

Ashley
stared blankly at me like she had no clue what I was talking about.

“Dumbass… you go out
with me on the weekends, you’re dating my best friend’s brother, I can’t very well have him come out with me and then be all like ‘surprise — Ashley from work is here
and
has a nickname for your penis!’ ”

Her eyes widened a
nd her legs slid out from her chair. “Ohhhhhh,” she laughed. “Shit, didn’t think about that, did we?” We both stared off trying to come up with the best way to tell Gavin.

Ashley looked up to the ceiling and
rubbed her lips together. “Huh, well, you’re just gonna have to tell him. I mean, you don’t have to tell him that I know he has the most amazing dick in the world, or that I know what his ‘O’ face and moans of passion are like, thanks to your Oscar-winning reenactments.”

I
pulled my hands over my face. “Yeah, I guess. I’m not good at lying. I mean, if he asks me, I’m not gonna lie. I’ll just tell him. I mean,
I
didn’t tell you. Really, I’m the victim here.”

As soon as I stopped
rambling I heard a light tap on the door. I reached over and cracked the door. Dan’s face appeared in the crack before he pushed it fully open and barged in.

“
Are we having a secret club meeting or something?” Dan chuckled as he placed a hand on his hip and stared at me. He curled those ugly, purple-tinted, disgusting excuses for lips up into a hideous grin. “Glad you gals get along. When you get done here, I need to talk to you, Brooke.”

“
All right,” I said and turned back to Ashley, my eyes widening in a for-the-fucking-love-of-all-things-great-and-wonderful look.

Ashley
snorted. “Well, you’ve got quite the day ahead of you, my friend. Sadly, I feel no pity for you because at the end of the day you’re going to get to screw and re-screw that disgustingly beautiful man down the hall, and for that I will always hold a small twinge of jealousy and revel in the fact that you have to put up with Dan the Man.”

I
flashed a bitchy smile and slowly trudged down to Dan’s office. I could hear him singing – well, trying to sing. Stopping outside his door, I couldn’t help but laugh. Dan obviously didn’t realize I was laughing at his butchering of the song because he smiled and continued to sing it. He stopped and threw his head back, pretending to play a horn along with the music. He turned down his speakers and drug that damn chair right up next to him.

“Have a seat, please
,” he said as he stood up and closed his door. He walked in front of me and leaned down on his knees, holding his droopy chin with his thumb and forefinger. “So, I’m assuming you got my text yesterday, although you never responded?”

“Which text
, Dan? You send me texts
all
the time.” I tapped my foot on the floor because I knew where he was going with this.

He
moved in very close to me and placed his sweaty, stubby fingers on my knee. I quickly jerked my leg from under his hand. His lips curled as he backed away from me. “The text about you and Dr. Hunter having lunch together.”

“Yes, I did see that one. Wasn’t
sure why you were sending that.” I tried to regulate my breathing so Dan wouldn’t know how nervous I was.

Dan squinted until
his eyes were nothing more than black slits. “Well, fraternization is frowned very heavily upon here.”

“Fraternization? Oh, no…. Dr. Hunter and I ran into each other at the restaurant and started talking. I invited him to sit with me.”

“You told me you had plans.”

“I did
. My friend got caught in traffic and ended up not being able to make it.”

Am I really making up excuses
? It’s not really any of Dan’s business.

Dan sat there trying to
determine if I was lying or not. “Well, I told you Dr. Hunter can’t be trusted. You don’t need to socialize with him. It’s
not
in your best interest, Brooke.” Straightening himself up, he smoothed out his dress shirt. “Is that understood?”

I sat there and didn’t utter a word. I just stared at him like he was a fucking idiot. Who the hell did he think he was to tell me not to socialize with Gavin?

Dan reached down and picked lint from the bottom of his slacks. “Now, where are we going for lunch?” he asked. Looking at me, he waited on a response. He’d just attempted to reprimand me for going to lunch with Gavin, and now he was asking me to go to lunch with him? This little creep was ridiculous.