Page 43 of Wild

"I liked you from the first second," Lexie had whispered against her neck while she undid her pants, "when I saw you standing next to Mia…"

Erin had caught her by the jaw and pulled her mouth up to hers.

"Try not to mention her, okay?"

Lexie had half-closed her eyes, dark with want, and nodded before sliding her tongue into her mouth. She didn't mention the singer again. What she did do was bury her face between Erin's legs and do a job Erin catalogued as impressive, concluding thatLexie was very skilled with her tongue and very good at reading what she liked most. Erin came smothering her moans against her own fist, and later, already in bed, she smothered Lexie's by pressing a hand over her mouth while her fingers unraveled the journalist with pleasure. Lexie never brought Mia up again, but Erin thought about her more than once. The singer kept surfacing in her mind every time she heard noise in the hallway, wondering if she'd arrived yet and whether she was alone or with the woman who'd been all over her in the dressing room. And it was Mia's eyes flashing in her mind that stopped her cold right when she was about to have her second orgasm—she froze so completely in that moment that Lexie had to work a lot harder to get her there.

She turns her head for a moment and sees her there, the journalist still asleep, and Erin checks the time. She needs to get up, shower, and go check on Mia. The thought sends a strange flutter through her stomach—not anxiety, not fear, nothing like either of those—something else she can't quite name, though if she could, she'd realize it's equal parts irritation and jealousy.

"How long have you been awake?" Lexie's voice comes out in a low rasp, and Erin nearly jumps out of her skin when she feels her hand on her hip.

"A while."

Lexie covers her mouth to yawn and pushes herself upright, raking her fingers through her messy hair. Erin doesn't move, just watches her. Last night was pretty good, Lexie's presence doesn't bother her, and she feels like she did what she needed to do—but she feels just as empty as she always does.

"You okay?" Lexie glances over at her.

"Yeah. You?"

"Amazing," she says, and smiles with a hint of mischief.

Erin smiles back and swings her legs over the side of the bed, planting her bare feet on the floor.

"I'm guessing you have to work," Lexie says.

Erin nods without turning around.

"Yeah, I need to shower and then check on Mia in a bit, but I've got time for breakfast if you want—just pick up the phone and order whatever you like," she says as she stands.

"Room service." Lexie lets out a low whistle. "I can't afford this kind of thing."

"Then take advantage."

When Erin comes out of the shower, breakfast is already set up on the table by the window and Lexie is dressed, having asked permission to use the bathroom while Erin was still under the water.

"Should we meet up in—" Lexie pauses, trying to remember the next city.

"Philadelphia, I think," Erin says.

"Right, that. Meet up there?"

"You're covering the tour, Lexie. We're going to see each other everywhere," Erin says, breaking off a piece of toast spread with strawberry jam and folding it like a sandwich before taking a bite.

"That's true. I mean this. You and me in a bed," she clarifies, amused.

"Maybe." Erin smiles.

She likes Lexie, and she really likes what she does with her tongue.

"So mysterious," the journalist teases.

The doctor's eyes lift as she watches her.

"I'm not trying to be mysterious, but I'm not looking for anything serious, or anything that ties me down."

"Wow." Lexie leans forward, resting her arms on the table. "On top of being attractive and good in bed, you're honest. Watch out, Dooley—you're quite a catch."

Erin can't help but laugh. She feels comfortable with this woman, more than she expected to, and part of her is bothered by that, because something inside her is blocked. She can't figure out what it is when she tries, but what she does see—every single time—are Mia Wilder's blue eyes.