“I haven’t dated anyone seriously since my last boyfriend cheated.” She narrowed her eyes and pointed a finger at Heath. “Before I say any more…” She dropped her finger and softened her tone. “I’m realizing how stupid it is to think that a no-strings-attached guy might be faithful when other guys who asked for monogamy couldn’t.”
“You do realize that being faithful comes from within, right? I made a decision not to be in a monogamous relationship because I’d been hurt and didn’t want to experience that again, not because I cheated.”
“Me too.” She twisted her hair again. “Are we fooling ourselves?”
“That depends. Are you a cheater? Because I know I’m not.”
“No, I’m not a cheater!” She swatted his chest.
“Then we’re not fooling ourselves.”
“So, you can handle my promiscuous past?”
He saw the worry in her eyes. “Sweetheart, you weren’t exactly sleeping around with half the docs in the hospital.” He arched a brow and she smiled. “As long as from now on there’s only me, I think I can handle it.”
He lowered her to the couch and came down over her smiling face. “Besides, I really…” He kissed her lips. “Really.” He kissed her jaw. “Really like you.”
“I have one more question.”
“Mm-hmm?” He nibbled on her neck.
“Have you…? It’s hard to concentrate with you doing that.” She closed her eyes and rested her head back.
“Finish your thought,” he whispered against her ear, before taking her lobe into his mouth and making her brain fuzzy again.
“Safe sex.” She panted. “Have you always practiced safe sex?”
He drew back, knowing he was looking at her like she was ridiculous, but he couldn’t stop himself. “Yes. You?”
“Always.” She pulled him into a hard, fast kiss. “Now please show me how much you want this to work between us before it’s time to get ready for work again.”
Chapter Eight
“I CAN’T BELIEVE you are working on three hours of sleep,” Amanda said as they carried their lunch trays to a table in the crowded hospital cafeteria Tuesday afternoon. “And you still manage to look as pretty as Rachel Bilson. So not fair.” Amanda and Ally looked similar in body type and hair color, but Amanda wore her hair straight and shoulder length while Ally wore hers longer and let her natural waves tumble freely. The other big difference was that Amanda dressed in a preppy style while Ally tended to dress trendier, sexier.
Ally sank into a chair with a sigh. “Good sex is rejuvenating. How many times have I told you that? And Rachel Bilson? She looks twelve. Can’t I be a young Sandra Bullock? She looks smarter and has a real body.”
“Fine, Sandra it is.” Amanda speared her salad with her fork and pointed it like a loaded gun at Ally. “You’re sure about this guy, right? You think you can trust him?”
“You’re asking if I can trust a guy I made out with the first time I met him. I had to trust him then, or I would have been opening myself up to something really dangerous.”
“Well,” Amanda said as she chewed her lunch. “I would never do what you did. Just sayin’.”
“Whatever. No judging. Besides, we’ve both been on the other side of the hurt mobile. I think we’re actually well suited for each other.” Her mind traveled back to the evening before and the amazing connection they’d shared. The way their bodies had moved together, the way he’d felt inside her and how she’d hated to see him leave in the wee hours of the morning.
“Did I tell you he brought me orange roses?”
“Yes.” Amanda feigned a dreamy sigh. “The color of fiery passion.”
They both laughed.
“You’re the luckiest girl I know,” Amanda said.
“In this case, I think I’d agree.”
“Can you still go out with me Thursday night, or will you blow me off now that you have a boyfriend?”
Ally’s fork stopped midair. “Say that again.”
“Can you still—”
“No, the last part.”
Amanda scrunched her face. “Now that you have a boyfriend?”
“I like the sound of that. Do you know how long I’ve not wanted a boyfriend?” She felt herself smiling as she met her sister’s gaze.
“Since Chet, so that would be, what? Nine months?” Amanda shook her head.
“Exactly. Doesn’t that tell you something? Because it tells me something loud and clear. I wasn’t looking for a boyfriend. So this must be right. It feels right.”
“For your sake, I hope so, sis. Just be careful, you know?” Amanda looked around the cafeteria, then leaned across the table and whispered, “You work here. What if people find out?” She lifted her eyes over Ally’s shoulder, and as Ally felt a familiar, heavy hand grip her shoulder, Amanda’s eyes widened and her jaw dropped open.