Misunderstood. Yup. The man was a real puzzle.
“Gloria, you can call me Ciaran. You have my word I will not share this information; however, it is important I speak to him as soon as possible.”
“I’m sorry, Ciaran, but you can’t. He specifically said he doesn’t want to see you.”
I pretended I wasn’t impacted by her words and bit down on my rolled in lips. It didn’t appear Gloria was going to budge. I had to try something different if I wanted those answers.
“It’s okay, I understand. If you don’t mind, I think I’ll just catch my breath in the waiting room before I leave. It’s already been quite a long day.”
With a shrug of her shoulders she ripped open the candy bag and handed me a perfectly wrapped piece. “I think you may be playing with fire, but it’s your life. Just don’t forget you can’t tell him I told you anything.”
Walking towards a row of chairs, I unwrapped the candy and popped it into my mouth as I sat. I was definitely dealing with fire, but it was too late to stop now. And the gem of information she just volunteered added to my confusion and plucked at my curiosity. It made me ambivalent about the man.
The door leading to the exam rooms opened and Kean stepped out. He was dressed in burgundy scrubs with a laptop bag hanging from his shoulder.
“Thanks Gloria, I’ll see you later,” he called, as he walked past where I was sitting without so much as a glance in my direction.
“Have a good day, Dr. Bennett,” Gloria responded shrugging her shoulders at me.
Rising out of the chair, I rushed after Kean. His giant strides made it a challenge, but I caught up as soon as his feet hit the asphalt of the parking lot.
“Um, excuse me, Kean?” I was immediately saddened by how pathetically soft my voice sounded, as if I were some pitiful female worried about being rejected by a man.
Clearing my throat, I padded my voice with some power. “Excuse me, Kean. I have a couple of questions.”
He ignored me and kept marching towards a gunmetal gray Mercedes. Keeping his head level, he pulled his key fob out of his pant pocket.
Shit. He wasn’t going to stop or acknowledge me.
“Kean!” I desperately yelled.
“Can’t. Busy. Not interested. Take your pick, Ms. Thompson.”
“Please, wait just a second. I promise I’ll keep it short and to the point.”
“It’s Dr. Bennett. And I thought I told you to stay out of my office or I would forcefully remove you.” He had seen me. He just chose to ignore me.
“Dr. Bennett, please. My job is on the line.”
“I don’t care what’s on the line, Ms. Thompson. I don’t do interviews. Never have, never will.”
“But all I need is five minutes of your time.”
“Answer is still no.”
He reached the Mercedes and hit a button on his keychain, disarming the alarm and unlocking the car at the same time. Opening the driver side door, he tossed his laptop case across the console and onto the passenger seat. When he straightened his tall frame to get ready to slide in, I swiftly wedged between his body and the open door, blocking his entry way.
He finally made eye contact with me. “What the hell are you doing, Ms. Thompson? Didn’t your mother ever teach you any manners? No means fucking no. Now get out of my way; I’m late for a meeting.”
“I’m not moving. I need to talk to you,” I insisted.
“Are you so desperate for attention that you had to seek me out? I’m surprised. I would have thought the other night was enough for you but maybe that stick isn’t wedged as far up your ass as I thought.” His harsh words punched low and a tidal wave of hurt surfaced at the hatefulness in his voice. Forgetting my back was against the open door, I angled myself to put more space between us and lost my balance. I fell straight back into the driver’s seat.
Kean leaned over, grasped my arms and easily pulled me out. “I really do not have time for your shit today.”
“Why does Stuart think you’re dangerous?”
“Maybe because I eat silly little females like you for lunch,” he retorted, setting off an explosion of internal flutters. I swear to God, my head couldn’t keep up with my body.
“How do you two know each other?”
“Ms. Thompson, if these are your interview questions, I am concerned about your future as a writer.”
Because he wasn’t taking me seriously I cut right to the point. “Tell me about Dr. Sean Duarte.”
If the forbidding darkness bleeding into Kean’s eyes didn’t announce I’d hit a major artery, his hand shooting out in front of him and wrapping lightly around my neck certainly did.
Natural instinct kicked in and my hands followed his, grasping at his large wrist. He wasn’t hurting me, nor was he cutting off my air supply, but his reaction to my request still scared the crap out of me.
“And here I thought you might actually be different from all the other women I know but you’re just as manipulative, aren’t you?” he growled. “Now listen carefully because I’m only going to say this once. My personal life is off limits. Whatever thoughts you have in that pretty head of yours about including it in your sad little magazine need to stop. If you write one word even hinting to it, I will not only sue you and your magazine, but also make your future a living hell. Now stay the fuck out of my life.”
Releasing my throat, he pushed me aside and climbed behind the wheel before slamming the car door shut.
Taking several steps back, my hand grazed along my collarbone as I watched him gun the engine and speed out of the parking lot.
I wasn’t hurt.
At least not physically.
The emptiness deep inside my chest was worse than any bodily pain he could have caused.
I turned in the direction of my parked car and slowly walked towards it.
One thing was for certain. Dr. Kean Bennett could threaten all he wanted, but the information about Dr. Duarte was public record. And I could use it as I saw fit.
Chapter Twelve
Kean
“You look like shit.”
I frowned at Thad. If he said I looked like shit, I was pretty sure I did. I blamed it on the lack of sleep I’d gotten thanks to the pain-in-the-ass maneuvers of Ciaran Thompson.
“Thanks,” I replied, looking around his office.
It hadn’t changed much over the years. It still contained a few photos of his ex-wife and kid. They had only been married for a couple of years when the love of his life announced she was pregnant and followed it up by admitting she was having an affair and wasn’t sure who was the father.
It amazed me Thad had kept the same cool composure as everything unfolded, even while he waited for the DNA results proving he was the unborn baby girl’s father. Anyone who didn’t know him would have thought he had been indifferent to the entire situation but I knew the truth. It had gutted him. I didn’t blame him. Honestly, if it had been me, I wasn’t sure I could have coped knowing the woman I loved had lied and betrayed our relationship.
“So, what did you find out?” I asked, not bothering to comment on my appearance.
“Not much. I did some digging around but came up empty handed.”
“How is it after a year of absolutely nothing, this shit starts up again?”
Thad crossed his massive arms over his chest and tilted his head as he looked at me. I got the feeling he was sizing me up but for what, I wasn’t sure. I had a bad feeling it had to do with the information I gave him about Ms. Thompson turning up in my office and feeding me some sob story about a fake emergency.
“You sure this woman doesn’t have anything to do with it?”
I absentmindedly tapped my hand against my thigh.
The problem was, I wasn’t sure, especially after what she had just cornered me with. More than one sign pointed in her direction since she had appeared just as the threats started again but I was having trouble seeing down that path.
“She asked me about Dr. Duarte.”
“And she found his name where?”
“I don’t know, the internet perhaps.”