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The silence stretched on for so long that it became uncomfortable. There was weight to it. Wyatt had always been a guy to trust his instincts, and he knew something was up. He kind of had a feeling that something wasn’t exactly a good thing. He frowned. What if he’d been concussed? That wouldn’t be good. Not so close on the heels of his last one.
Concerned, he shot a look over to Lisa, but the nurse stood quietly, hands shoved into the pockets of her pink-and-blue scrubs, head cocked to the side in expectation as she waited for the doctor to speak.
Doctor Hello Kitty cleared her throat, and Wyatt was about to say something when her head jerked up and he was nailed by the greenest eyes he’d ever seen. Eyes that punched a hole straight through his gut.
Gold flecks. Thick dark lashes. And an expression he couldn’t quite read.
Those eyes narrowed, just for a second, and then she turned to Nurse Booker. “Thanks, Lisa. I’ll take it from here.” Gone from her voice was the smoke and sex. This woman was all business.
Lisa answered with a smile. “Perfect timing. I’m heading for break.” She winked at Wyatt. “Give my best to your father.” She slid past the doc and closed the curtain behind her.
Wyatt stared at the woman who was now almost directly in front of him. Her face was averted once more, and he angled his head for a better look. She was damn familiar. That voice. Those eyes.
“You can button your shirt.”
“Excuse me?” His eyebrow shot up.
She gave a curt nod but didn’t make eye contact. “Your shirt. Tests are done. We don’t need the peep show.” She pursed her lips, eyes on her tablet, a small frown marring her forehead.
He glanced down. His shirt hung open, still undone from when the previous doctor had given a listen to his heart and lungs. His head felt a little thick, and maybe he was concussed, because he felt more than a little confused. He was definitely missing something. Doctor Hello Kitty didn’t like him one bit. That kind of irritated him.
“Do I know you?” he asked, slowly buttoning his shirt, eyes on her once more.
“You’ve got to be kidding me.” Her head whipped around, and this time there was no mistaking the dislike. It was black. Hot. Full. Her cheeks flushed, and disbelief hung between them.
And then it clicked. Nice and simple like, as if it had been there all along. For several moments, he stared at her in silence, sorting through the pictures that flooded his mind.
Prom.
Balloons. Blue, purple, and white.
Pale pink dress. Keg party.
Mud splatter along the skirt and a tear along the neckline.
Smudged makeup.
Tear tracks down her cheeks.
“I hate you.” Her words echoed in his head. Angry. Hurt. So damned hurt that even now, they made his throat tighten uncomfortably.
His stomach turned over like a stone, heavy with guilt and a bunch of other stuff he hadn’t thought about in years. She looked different. And yet the same. He was an idiot not to know who she was.
“Regan?”
Her chin lifted. “It’s Doctor Thorne to you.”
Shit. She wasn’t going to make this easy. The girl could definitely hold a grudge. And while he’d been a dick that night, the fact it had happened over ten years ago should count for something. Hell, he wasn’t a self-absorbed eighteen-year-old who only cared about himself anymore. The kind of kid who would ask a girl to prom on a dare and end up with another girl at the after-party. He was an adult, and so was Regan. Things didn’t have to be like this. And though he was pretty sure some of the women in his life would dispute that claim, at the moment he decided to do what he did best. Charm his way out of a sticky situation and make her see he wasn’t the same guy.
“Doctor.” He offered up a killer smile, though it did nothing to penetrate the frost in her eyes. “I’m impressed.”
“Are you?” She glanced back at the tablet and swiped her finger across it.
“If I remember right, you were the smartest girl in school.”
“For such a smart girl, I didn’t always make the right choices, now did I?” The dig was unmistakable, her tone dismissive, but Wyatt wasn’t the sort to give up. Character flaw? Maybe.
“Captain of the debate team,” he said, smile still in place.
