“Shh.” She felt the tug on her jeans, heard the distant sound of a zipper.
“Wait.” She couldn’t even tell if she said it out loud over the blood pounding in her ears, everything felt far away. The sharp pain between her legs jerked her back. He was inside her, grunting, his hot beer breath at her ear.
“Wait.” It hurt and she moved her hands to his shoulders, but then the metal jammed into the top of her head and she put them back behind her. Three hard thrusts, each time the door handle digging into her head. Then he stopped, made a loud guttural sound, and became so heavy on top of her she couldn’t breathe.
Someone pounded on the back window behind her and Gary laughed. “Shit. Come on, baby.” He straightened his jeans. “You still sick?”
“No. I’m okay,” she mumbled, sitting up. Her head was still spinning, but she felt nauseous for another reason. It burned like fire between her legs and her underwear was immediately soaked.
Gary opened the door and helped her out. “Want to go back inside?”
“Sure,” she mumbled. She needed a bathroom. She also didn’t want to go home and think too much about what just happened.
Two months later, that night with Gary had seemed like a dream, parts of it clear, other parts fuzzy. But the positive pee stick in her hand had been crystal clear. She’d never, ever regret Casey, but she did regret how it had happened.
When she couldn’t keep her eyes open any longer, Paige stood from the kitchen table and shuffled through her bathroom routine. She crawled into bed next to Casey, closed her eyes, and hoped she dreamed of Jake.
Chapter 6
“Carson is ready to try out the new finger plate whenever you are,” Simon said, stepping out of the elevator ahead of JT.
“Great.” They’d been waiting on the placement of sensors in the man’s chest that would translate sensory feedback to his brain. If it worked, he’d not only be able to move his prosthetic hand with his mind, but he’d be able to feel the heat and texture of what he was touching. The new finger joint he was working on for the patent should greatly increase reflex speed. “I’ll let the team know, and you can get him scheduled for next week. Anything else?”
“No. I sent over the rest of the data I had this morning.”
“I got it. Haven’t had a chance to look at it yet. I’ll get to it by the end of the day.”
“No problem.” They passed the rock-wall area on their way to the PT side. He wanted to see their latest robotic arm in action.
“How’s the sexy mom from the diner?”
“Haven’t you given me enough shit about that yet?”
“Not possible. Jake. She’s hot.”
JT’s jaw clenched. “Stop saying that.”
Simon busted out a laugh. “God, you’re so easy. Have you seen her again?”
“No.” Not since last week when he’d kissed her and had his entire world rocked. And he wanted to again.
“Well, you’re about to.”
He glared at Simon, about to ask what the hell that meant as they rounded the corner.
“I asked her to come back, let Casey play around some. Make sure the fit was still good. Did I forget to mention that?”
JT saw Casey first. She was with a young therapy assistant, Marcy, working in a small open area off to the side. There were mats, weighted pieces of foam, and a treadmill he knew was able to detect and measure the slightest gait inconsistencies. But as interesting as that was, his eyes searched for Paige.
The second Casey saw him, she called out, “Jake! Watch me!”
He stepped closer, watching as Casey bent forward on her hands, kicking up her one foot, no prosthesis. She went five steps on her hands before coming down. “That’s good stuff.”
“Yeah. I’m showing Marcy. You should try it,” Casey said and tried again herself.
His gaze landed on the woman who was keeping him up at night. Paige knelt on the floor in jeans and a white sleeveless top. Her eyes collided with his, then slid slowly to his mouth. She swallowed, cleared her throat. Yeah, she was thinking about that kiss too.
“Hey, Marcy.” He took another step until he was standing just inches in front of her. “Hi, Paige.”
“Hey.”
She wet her lips and pressed them together, and just that was enough to make him sweat.
“Hi, Paige,” Simon said. “Good to see you again.”
“You too. Thank you so much for having us back.”
“You’re welcome. I’m sure Jake can set up another visit if you want.”
Casey moved to a set of parallel bars used for walking support. “Look what I can do!” She hung by her hands, then her knees.