Room One Hundred and Nineteen: Watching Her (Club Sin: Seattle Session 2)

2. Dr. Rick Montoya

2

DR. RICK MONTOYA

“ S he’s avoiding us,” I murmured and glanced at Miles, who was looking down at a chart next to me.

“I know.”

“And that doesn’t bother you?” I asked. It’d been a week since she had taken up Josh’s offer to use the beach house. And a week of her avoiding being alone with us or even speaking to us.

“Maybe the kids broke something, and she thinks we’ll be pissed?”

“Hmm…” I muttered under my breath, not liking his assumption. “If that’s the case, that means she thinks we’re dicks like her ex.”

“No.” He shook his head. “Because assuming makes and ass out of you and––“

“Miles, I’m not in the mood,” I cut him off. My gaze sliced to the sight of her walking down the hall and into the staff locker room.

“Fine. You wanna go talk to her?” he asked. I opened and shut my mouth. Worried if I followed her, I wouldn’t be able to keep my hands to myself. My self-control was slipping, a thin thread about to snap.

“She’s on her fifteen-minute break. I saw her eat a PB and J earlier between patients, so that means she’s probably?—“

“Napping,” I interrupted. Watching her the way we did, we knew everything there was to know about Elena. Her expressions, her routine, her moods.

“Fuck. Fine.” I walked away. I felt Miles watching my every step until I disappeared into the locker room. Slowly, I opened the door and quietly moved through it to the small area in the back that held cots for the staff who worked overnight.

She was sitting on one of them, her palms pressed to her face. The soft sound of her crying stopped me dead in my tracks.

She was upset.

So upset she was crying!

Fuck, what the hell is going on? I hated this. I understood and even agreed with Josh when he told us we needed to take our time and not crowd Elena about the unconventional things we wanted with her.

But waiting around watching shit like this? Feeling helpless? It was going to fucking kill me. I hated how it felt, unable to do anything. The dark circles under her eyes let on just how freaking exhausted she was. Jesus, if Miles, Josh, and I stepped up, we could help her. Take a weight off her shoulders and make her life easier.

Elena chose that moment to look up, and our eyes connected. Before I could mutter her name, her lips started to wobble. I rushed over and kneeled in front of her.

“Baby, talk to me.”

“I’m…” Her big glasses were smudged, but it didn’t take away from the beautiful brown gaze that stared at me before she shut them. “I’m fine,” she whispered.

“Elena.” She shook her head, silently refusing to look at me. “Talk to me, baby. What’s up?”

“Nothing,” she whispered. “It’s stupid.”

“What is?” Her eyes opened. I was shocked I didn’t fall back on my ass from the pain and almost betrayal that stared at me head on.

“You guys…” Her voice drifted to nothing, and her eyes dropped to my neck, “You guys are so hard to avoid, and when I do, you don’t even notice.” My body locked in place as I slowly processed her words.

“Excuse me?” my voice rumbled firmly, and she sniffled.

“Ignore me. God, I’m an idiot,” she mumbled. “I’m just hormonal, and tired and obviously delu—" And I was done with this fucking conversation. I’d been understanding when Josh suggested we go slow. I’d agreed when Miles reminded us that the timing wasn’t right.

But slow was one thing. Stagnant was another.

I was done for.

My self-control had slowly given away, and before I knew it, I pulled her into my arms, and to my fucking surprise, she let me. I held her close, her body stiff for all of about two seconds before it melted and molded around mine.

“You think we don’t notice? Are you fucking shitting me?” I muttered to the top of her coconut-smelling head. “Jesus, you smell good.”

“You don’t notice. You three have acted like?—"

“We do.” I pulled back and tipped her head up. “Why?” I asked. I watched her blink slowly. Her eyes widened behind her glasses when she realized the corner she had put herself in.

“Nothing. It’s stupid.”

“Nothing about you is stupid. Did something break?”

“What?” Her brows bunched. Confusion marred her beautiful face.

“At the house. Whatever it is, it’s fine. It’s not a big deal.”

“You think I’ve been avoiding you because something broke?”

“I don’t know why you’re avoiding us. But what we do know is it started since you got back. Did you have a bad time? Did you hate it there?” I stupidly bombarded her with questions.

“No. It was beautiful. It’s…”

“It’s what?” I encouraged, hoping I would break through, that she would finally let us in.

“It’s heaven on earth, Rick. The house, the place. It’s so beautiful and peaceful, I’m not sure how you guys don’t live there on a daily basis.”

“That would be a drive to the hospital,” I muttered, and her pretty lips twitched. But Jesus, if that’s where she wanted to spend the rest of her days, we’d figure out how to make it work. “Talk to me,” I pressed, hoping she would give me more.

“I’m not used to someone being this nice, and you guys?—"

“That’s not true, and you know it,” I cut her off again, and by the frown lines on her brow, she didn’t like that.

“What?”

“Your sister is nice. She helps?—"

“She’s also family. She kinda has to be nice.”

“That’s not true. Josh has half a dozen brothers, and they never offer him shit. I doubt one of them would piss on him if he were on fire. Especially if it meant they were slightly inconvenienced or nothing were in it for them.” Her eyes widened, but then that damn mask of indifference tried to settle back over her features.

“You’re shutting us out and—" I started to rant.

If I had been paying attention instead of being far up my own ass, I would have noticed something about Elena changed in that moment.

“That’s not fair.” I kept on talking. Telling her we were friends, that we cared about her. That it wasn’t cool to give us the cold shoulder and make us worry. Not when at the end of the day, all that mattered to us was her happiness and peace.

That’s when I noticed it. Her eyes were gentler than I had ever seen. I was about to ask her what was wrong, but the words got lodged in the middle of my throat as the scene in front of me unfolded in slow motion.

Her small soft hand rose to rest in the middle of my chest, just as she lifted her small body to the tips of her toes and leaned forward. Stunned and taken completely off guard, I stood there like an idiot caught in headlights.

Until her lips touched mine and my body finally reacted.

My arm pulled her flush against me. Without thinking or second-guessing, running on pure animal instinct, I kissed her back. Hard and deep. Fiercely. Holding her to me as my senses took their fill of her, and fuck me, I couldn’t get enough.

Her warmth.

Her scent.

The way her body fit against mine. Her soft to my hard. There was no doubt about it—she was it. She was mine. She was ours. She was our missing piece.

I didn’t have a lot growing up, so what little I did have, I had not been big on sharing. Now older and a hell of a lot smarter, even as I kissed Elena, I was looking forward to seeing my best friends with her. Not in a perverse way, but in a way that made my heart and soul feel full. All I wanted was their happiness as much as I wanted Elena’s and my own.

I kissed her until my lungs literally burned. When I pulled back, her eyes were still shut, and the only sound surrounding us was of our heavy breathing.

“Talk to me, gorgeous.” My voice sounded foreign in my own ears.

“I… Rick…” Her eyes opened slowly, and when they connected with mine, there was so much to untangle. Lust. Desire. Heat. Love but also worry.

Worry I wanted to wipe away.

“I shouldn’t have done that,” she said, causing my heart to crack.

“Baby—“

“No! I’m serious! Um…” She touched her lips. “You were being so sweet, and I-I jumped you!” she exclaimed. She tried to take a step back, but I stopped her, putting my hand on her lower back and pulling her back into my arms. “Oh god! Who does that! I assaulted you because you were being nice!”

“Elena, look at me,” I demanded gently. My girl was having a moment, not so quietly freaking out. But even in the throes of a moment, she did as I asked. Like the good girl she was. When our gaze connected, my other hand moved up between us. Slowly, I caressed the side of her face.

“Babe, I don’t know if you noticed, but I kissed you back.”

“I know.” She sighed, her brows bunched with concern. “You shouldn’t have done that either,” she whispered.

“Why not?” I took a step forward, moving us toward the end of the room, just in case someone decided to walk in.

“Because! I mean, what about the guys and?—“

“The guys?” My brow rose, and Elena’s face brightened. Fuck, that is a pretty shade of pink , I thought to myself, immediately imagining that color running down other parts of her body.

“The guys?” I repeated. She licked her lips. When her gaze dropped to my mouth. I knew she could still taste me. Good. I want her to taste me all day. My cock strained against my scrubs, and her eyes widened, letting me know she could definitely feel it.

“We’re all friends. That’s what I mean. Like this was— and I shouldn’t have— I didn’t mean that they would care or that I want all of you. I mean?—”

“Breathe,” I demanded firmly but gently. She did my bidding, taking a deep breath, and when I told her to, she exhaled.

“Good girl,” I praised. “Again.” I nodded, encouraging her, and she did it once again. “Okay, a couple of things to untangle there. First, I’m glad you kissed me. I’ve been thinking about those lips since we met,” I confessed. Her pretty mouth parted into the perfect O.

“You have?” she whispered, leaning into me. I nodded and smiled.

“Oh yeah.” I swallowed hard, my mind immediately moving to all the other things I had thought about when it came to Elena and her body. “And just so you know, I don’t regret it. Not at all. I hope one day, you won’t either.”

“I don’t,” she immediately shared and pressed her lips together. “I just… I haven’t kissed anyone since, umm?—“

“The douchebag we don’t talk about?” I asked, and her lips twitched on a slight nod. Fucking hell. She’d been divorced for a while. She could have easily kissed and done a hell of a lot more while Josh made us wait around to make a move. I had no idea how lucky I was that she chose me to kiss first, but fuck me, that wasn’t something I would take for granted.

“Another thing you should know is, if you wanted the three of us, it wouldn’t be so bad, right?” I asked quietly. Her eyes flared, but she didn’t blink. It was almost like she was trying to read me. To see if I was joking around.

“You wouldn’t report my to HR?” she asked just above a whisper. I shook my head.

“No, baby. No reporting to HR needed. Miles and Josh… I know they would be beside themselves.” She blinked, and her head tilted.

“Are you joking or?—“

“I’m serious. Very, very serious.” I was crossing all sorts of lines, lines that Josh would probably lose his mind about, talking about this shit with her without them around.

“But you guys are best friends, and, umm…” She tried to move out of my hold again, but I didn’t let her once again. “You guys share?” I nodded. Just as she was about to say something else, the door opened, and this time when she backed away, I let her. A doctor and radiology tech walked in, both of them talking, and waved hi before heading to their lockers.

“I should get going. Umm…” She turned toward me then back to the door and back to me. “I’m sorry,” she apologized again when she didn’t need to. “I mean about, umm, attacking you and…” She shook her head and hurried out just in time to bump right into Miles’ arms, who had chosen that moment to walk in.

“Whoa, there, gorgeous. Are you okay?” he asked as he looked down at her before quickly looking above her and at me. I knew by the way he studied her, he knew something had most definitely happened between us.

“Umm—“ She licked her lips and glanced over her shoulder to look at me one more time. I grinned at her, standing to my full height.

She’d kissed me.

She had confirmed she not only wanted me but the three of us. Which was a fucking great thing since we came as a package deal. I winked at her, and she turned back to meet Miles’ waiting stare.

“Umm, I’m so sorry about that. I’m a little…”

“Tired?” His hand cradled her jaw. I watched her all but melt into his touch. “You haven’t been sleeping well, have you?” His tone was laced with concern, and Elena’s little body slumped slightly.

“You have no idea,” she whispered, and he nodded.

“That’s not good.”

“I know,” she whispered. “Maybe this weekend.” She shrugged and cleared her throat. “I should get back out there. My break’s almost over, and you know how Tabitha can get if someone isn’t back on time.”

“Right, baby,” I said. She glanced over at me. Her back ramrod straight as her eyes bounced to Miles and then back to me before she stepped to the side and hurried out to nurses’ station.

Miles walked toward me, and with a knowing look, he asked, “What was that all about?”

“That, buddy, is us knowing now for sure she’s into us. The three of us.” A brow rose before he frowned.

“What did you do?” he asked.

“I didn’t do shit. She kissed me,” I shared because we didn’t keep shit from each other.

“She… what the fuck?” he said under his breath before his eyes moved to the door. “She kissed you?”

“Yup. She did. It was fucking fantastic. Then she said she shouldn’t have done that because of you guys.”

“Us.” I could feel the hope that bloomed inside of him. “She wants us?” I nodded.

“I think she’s worried about it. But yeah. I’m ninety nine percent sure she wants us.”

“So? What do we do now?”

“Now we talk to Josh and set shit in motion.”

“In motion,” he repeated. I couldn’t exactly read him. Which wasn’t unusual for Miles. He was a tough nut to crack sometimes.

“She’s ours, Miles,” I reminded him, and he scowled.

“You don’t think I know that?” I scratched the back of my neck. Miles wasn’t like Josh and me. He kept his feelings close to his chest, which I got. He’d bounced in and out of foster care because his mom was an addict. He’d done everything he could and worked hard to get what he did.

“Wanting her and having her are two different things.” I treaded carefully. I knew by the muscle twitching beneath his eye, I was off base. Yet I couldn’t seem to shut the fuck up. “If you’re having second?—“

“Don’t even finish that sentence, man.” His jaw clenched. “Let this be the last time this needs to be clarified. I want her just as much as you and Josh do.”

“You know she comes?—“

“As a package deal? Yeah, man, I know that. I know I come off as the jokester and sometimes a little aloof, but don’t confuse that with my intentions when it comes to her.” Maybe I had needed to hear that kind of confirmation from him myself?

“Finally,” he whispered. Miles’ bright blue eyes seemed to almost fucking glow under the fluorescent lighting of the locker room. “Fucking finally.” His shoulders relaxed, and I found myself smiling, too.

Finally, indeed.