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Using every muscle in my body to sit up, I let out another groan until my eyes snap open. Slowly, I turn to my right, my gaze landing on the exposed torso cut to definition. The pit of my stomach churns as my eyes gravitate to the face of the man beside me.
“Shit,” I mumble, followed by a hard swallow.
Austin’s eyes flutter, and as they open wide, they focus on me in a dazed state.
I pull the sheet up, covering my breasts, aware I’m stark naked.
“Ava,” he croaks, then clears his throat. “Why are… oh shit.”
He covers his face with his hands, rubbing it vigorously while letting out a sigh. The memory of last night is hazed, though pieces fall into place of just how intimate we were. Me, in bed with a man who is my sister’s ex-fiancé. What a terrible way to ring in the new year, certain that all the bad luck of yesterday was a warning of things to come.
I clutch the sheet tighter, my back still exposed. Then, in a panicked state, I scour the area around me for my clothes, spotting them across the room. Great, if I take the sheet with me, chances are Austin will be completely naked as well.
“So…” I drag, fiddling with a loose thread on the end of the sheet. “We um…”
“I think so. I mean, yes.”
“I… I…” My words stumble, still shocked at the situation I’ve found myself in. “I was upset.”
“Me too,” he lowers his voice.
I turn to face his direction, waiting for him to elaborate, only to be met with an awkward silence. “You were? I mean, I vaguely remember when you walked into the bar, your eyes were bloodshot.”
“A patient died in the ER yesterday.”
“I’m sorry.”
“He was a kid.”
My stomach becomes even heavier, a wave of nausea causing me to shiver.
“How awful. Understandably, you’re upset,” I say softly, unsure how to express my emotions right now. I duck my chin, licking my lips to quench my dry mouth and feeling somewhat vulnerable as we continue to be in the same bed. “I’m so sorry you had to go through that, Austin. I feel terrible for pushing you to party last night.”
“No, Ava,” he mentions with a slightly annoyed tone. “You were exactly what I needed. The thing is, there is nothing anyone could’ve done in that room to save him. We did everything we were trained to do, but I questioned my ability and if I have what it takes to practice medicine for the rest of my life. And then, you’re there, inside an Irish bar, of all places.”
“But…” I trail off, unsure how to bring up the predicament we find ourselves in. “We ended up here, in bed.”
“We did.”
I’m distracted by how amazing his body looks as he lays with his head resting on his arm, staring at the ceiling. Beneath the sheet, my nipples harden, making me conscious. This is all kinds of wrong. I barely remember last night. I was so drunk, and while bits and pieces are clearer than others, I couldn’t even answer who made the first move. Not that it matters now, the damage is done.
My shoulders weigh heavy as the guilt sets in. Austin is Millie’s ex-fiancé. How is she going to react when she hears I slept with him? You don’t tell her, idiot.
“I’m going to use your bathroom.”
I drag the sheet with me, refusing to turn around in case I catch a glimpse of him completely exposed. As I assume he’s getting dressed, he shuffles behind me, then I lean down to retrieve my clothes from the bedroom floor.
The moment the bathroom door closes, my stomach makes a churning sound, but I manage to suppress the feeling of being sick. Instead, I quickly make my way to the basin, turning on the faucet to run some water to wash my face. After a few splashes, I grab some tissues and wipe my face down. As I stare at my reflection in the mirror, the dark circles around my eyes make me look like a zombie. In my entire life, I don’t think I’ve ever looked so worn out, both physically and emotionally.
My hands clutch onto the basin as I drop my head and close my eyes for just a moment. Yesterday started a chain of reactions from the moment I was told my services were no longer needed. From that moment, the Universe had it in for me—of that, I’m sure. It’s obvious in my previous life, I had pissed someone off.
But then, Austin’s voice replays in my head. “A patient died in the ER yesterday, a kid.”
My eyes snap wide open as my stare fixates on the mirror. I take a deep breath before dressing in my clothes, then leave the bathroom.
When I enter the room again, Austin is wearing sweats and a tee. His hair is a wild mess yet beautifully sitting on his head like it’s been styled to portray a bad boy in a photoshoot. The only thing is, Austin is anything but a bad boy. Instead, he’s a kind, loving, intelligent man—who would never purposely hurt any woman.
The perfect catch if he wasn’t my sister's ex.
