The Darkest Joy (5 page)

Bliss heard Leslie mutter, “Whoa,” behind her.

Caim’s
steps now had a purpose behind them as he made a beeline directly toward her.

“Hello.” His simple greeting did nothing to mask the desire and happiness she saw in his eyes.

“Hi,” Bliss answered shyly. “What are you doing here?”

He frowned slightly. “Last night I told you I would see you today. Am I not allowed to anymore?”

His bright face was turning to sadness before her eyes. Bliss felt her heart melt.
He
thinks I don’t want to see him.

“No, not like that, I mean at the hospital. I’m working,” Bliss said in a rush. “I won’t be done until after midnight.”

“I can wait. Any time in your presence for me is a joyous one.”
Caim
smiled, and his fingers trailed along the curve of her face.

Oh,
Bliss thought, and she heard the collective gasps from behind her. When she turned, now three nurses were watching them.

Leslie’s voice broke in. “Bliss, you have a blood draw in curtain seven.” She was in the middle of the trio and handed Bliss a chart.

“Thanks, I’ll get right on it.” Bliss smiled at the nurses. “
Caim
, do you want to wait in my office?”

“Can I watch you work?” he asked hopefully.

“Girl, you better let that hot toddy watch you work. You don’t want him roaming the halls,” Leslie said behind her. “If only I was a few years younger.”

“Your husband would kill you, Leslie,” Bliss teased her as she walked away.

“Yeah, but it would be a good way to go!” Leslie called back.

“Hot toddy?”
Caim
asked curiously, following along behind her.

Bliss laughed. “A hot toddy is a drink.”

“So she thinks I am a drink?”

Bliss laughed even harder. “No, sweetie, she thinks you are hot, sexy and/or good-looking.”

He bent low and murmured into her ear, “Do you think I am good-looking, hot, and sexy?”

With his breath against her skin and his close contact, he made her want to melt. “Y-Y-Yes, I do.”

“Then, that is all that matters.”

Bliss couldn’t even think of an answer to his statement.
Caim
was so assured and already so intense with his feelings that she felt a bit overwhelmed. She had never had someone form this kind of bond with her. It scared her, but excited her, how quickly it was happening.

She pulled back the curtain to reveal a woman sitting on the hospital bed. In her arms, she held a tiny baby girl dressed in pink whose face was crumpled with tears ready to erupt.
Oh no!
Bliss thought as she instantly felt tears prick the back of her eyes. She loved children, and this was her curse every time one came into the ER. She couldn’t bear the thought of children suffering or being in pain.

The doctor looked up at Bliss and
Caim
standing there. Bliss abhorred having to work with Dr. Maynard. He was cocky and treated the staff like his own personal slave bank. He had asked her out once, and she said no. From then on, he really took an interest in picking on her every chance he got. His eyes met hers, and his lips curled into a nasty sneer. He wanted to say something about
Caim
, she just knew it, but because the patient was there, he wouldn’t.

“I need a full panel on the baby. I need the results as soon as possible,” Dr. Maynard ordered. Bliss nodded as he walked past. He stopped for one moment and said under his breath, just enough for her to hear, “Oh, Ms.
Tadeo
, stop bringing your boy toys to work. We don’t need to see who’s sharing your bed.”

Bliss rolled her eyes and said nothing. She put her case down on the edge of the gurney and smiled brightly at the worried mother.

“Excuse me for one moment.”
Caim’s
polite request made her look at him. His eyes were centered on Dr. Maynard as he walked away.

“
Caim
, it’s okay, please,” Bliss pleaded softly. The mother was already scared to death, and she didn’t need to see a scene between
Caim
and Dr. Jerk. He nodded his assent, and Bliss breathed a small sigh of relief.

Bliss focused on the job at hand. “Hi, I’m Bliss
Tadeo
. I’ll be taking her blood today.”

The woman gave a jerky nod before asking, “Will it hurt her?”

“I’ll be as gentle as possible,” Bliss assured the mother. She let her fingers roam over the chubby little hand as she spoke. “What’s her name?”

“Her name is Katie.” Tears were in her voice. Fear for her daughter’s health marred the young mother’s face. “I just want her to be better.”

“We’ll make sure she is,” Bliss promised. “Please hold her as still as possible for me, okay?”

The young woman tried, but as all children do when they are sick and hurting, Katie cried and twisted, and Bliss could not keep her hand still enough to get the needle into the soft skin safely. From the corner of her eye, she saw
Caim
move close, and his hand touched the baby’s cheek.

“Be still, little one,” he murmured.

Bliss watched in amazement as the baby quieted down almost instantly and her big brown doe eyes stared up at
Caim
. She was able to get the twenty-one gauge butterfly needle into Katie’s small vein easily. All present watched as the baby’s blood flowed along the tiny blue tube and into the sample vials. Bliss had to collect four samples for testing, and each had a different colored top so the lab technician would know exactly what to look for. They would look at the white blood cell count and hemoglobin checks to ensure no internal bleeding. Tests for infection to any vital organs would be run as well. They would pay special attention to the liver and screen for blood clots. It was a very slim chance that the baby would have these things, but they still had to be ruled out. They finally had all they needed, and by that time, under
Caim’s
touch, the baby had fallen asleep as if she had not a care in the world.

“All done,” Bliss whispered, not wanting to wake the now-sleeping infant. “I’ll check back later.”

“Thank you,” the mother whispered. Her eyes settled gratefully on
Caim’s
face and then Bliss. “Thank you.”

As they passed the nurses’ station, Bliss asked one of the nurses to get the woman something to eat. It would take a few hours for the tests to come back, and the tired young mother already looked dead to her feet. A hot sandwich and maybe some coffee or soda would give her a little more staying power for the long night ahead.

She turned her thoughts back to
Caim
. Just one touch from him had calmed the baby in mere seconds. There was more to him than he let on. Bliss could tell, and she was excited to find out more about her charming new suitor.
Suitor.
Bliss laughed at herself as they walked silently down the corridor to her office.
I
sound like an old historical romance novel
. But yet, as they moved together down the lighted hallway, his hand took hers with a simple grace that made her breath catch. This was unlike anything she had ever experienced, and Bliss knew that even though she feared it, she could not deny herself the chance to see where it could go.

Chapter Four

The office door closed with a small click, and suddenly the room felt too small for Bliss. But there was also a familiarity to having
Caim
in her office, as if she had felt his presence before sharing the same small space. She dismissed the thought as ridiculous since she had only met him the day before. He turned to her and cupped her cheeks. Bliss could not help the sigh that escaped her lips.

“Your hands, your touch, why does it make me feel this way?” she whispered, rubbing her cheek against his palm. “It’s like a cat. I want to lay my head against your chest and purr.”

“I’m glad I make you feel like that.”
Caim’s
voice was a low rumble in his chest.

“It’s not just me. Look at how you calmed the baby with just one touch. If I didn’t know better, I’d swear you were magic,” Bliss murmured. Her eyes were closed while she luxuriated in the feel of his touch.

“Do you believe in magic or the unknown?”

Bliss gave a husky laugh. “If I have to believe in something, why not magic?”

“Why not. Can I kiss you again?”

“Are you going to always ask to kiss me?”

“Isn’t that what I am supposed to do?”

Bliss let her hands smooth up his chest to around his shoulders. “I was hoping that one day you might feel comfortable enough to kiss me whenever you want.”

“You say one day as if you plan to keep me around for a long time.”
Caim’s
lips were so close to hers she could feel his breath when he spoke.

“I want to,” Bliss said fervently. “I want it very much.”

The kiss was even better than the first. It buckled her knees, but
Caim
compensated by pulling her roughly against his chest. She moaned
,
a sound filled with pleasure and need. His lips tasted and tempted. He drank from her like a thirsty man who craved a drink of water. Bliss gave willingly and let the kiss slide her deeper into the sensual oblivion he was creating. His hands roamed her shoulders and cupped her neck before moving down to pull her hips closer to him. She could feel his hardness against her, and she rubbed against the cause of her aching. His reaction was a low moan in the back his throat.
Caim’s
hands journeyed up her body to cup her breasts through the material of her green scrubs. Bliss felt the heat of his hands through the cotton material. It was almost more than she could bear. She wanted him then, right there, to be underneath him, to feel his cock sink into her and take away the ache he was causing.

“More, I need more of you,”
Caim
whispered harshly against her lips. Between kisses, he bit and licked at her neck and molded her breasts in his palms.

“I need you too!” Bliss was lost in the intensity of the moment. His scent, his touch and taste had her surrounded, and she did not want to break free. He lifted her against him, and she wrapped her legs around his waist before her back was pressed against the wall of her office.

Caim
lifted his head as if he heard a sound from a distance. She turned his face back to her and captured his lips, letting her tongue dart into his mouth. He moaned in response, and Bliss gave a sexy chuckle knowing she affected him just as much. He pulled away once more and let her slide to her feet, backing away as if he suddenly regained his senses. There was a look on his face, like dark storms rolling in off the sea, harsh and angry. The warmth of their passion cooled as she looked at the turmoil on his face.

“
Caim
, what’s wrong?” Bliss reached out to touch him, but he stepped back and shook his head. She let her hand drop in alarm.

“I have to go,” he whispered brokenly.

“Why?” Bliss asked, fearing the answer.

He raised his eyes to hers, and she saw unshed tears glistening in his gaze. “There is so much I have to tell, so much . . .”

His shoulders dropped as if he carried the weight of the world. He tried to move past her, and on instinct, she threw her arms around his waist and held on tight.

For a moment, it stopped his steps, and he pressed kisses into her hair. “Your hair always smells like honeysuckle, no matter how many times I am close to you . . .” With those words he stepped through the door and closed it behind him.

Your hair
always smells like honeysuckle.
His words echoed in her mind. He said it as if he spent every day close to her. She opened the door in a rush to race down the hall, to ask him what he meant. She looked up and down the long corridor, looking for his back going down the hall, but he was already gone. Bliss stepped back into her office and closed the door with trembling fingers. She moved to her desk, sat heavily onto the soft chair, and laid her head on the desk. They were so many questions swirling through her mind.
He is
in trouble
. She could feel it. She laid on the cool surface of her desk with thought after thought bombarding her mind. Bliss reached out, took the black feather from its crystal vase holder, and began to rub it against her chin.