Page 8 of Unbroken

Just a Kiss

Alittleoveran hour later, thanks to his lead foot and his ever-growing need to see her, Zane arrived at Common Grounds. He smiled widely as the little bell tinkled over his head announcing his arrival and he saw Maggie at the back of the cafe. Her back was to him and she was talking animatedly with a table full of customers. She was wearing a pink sweater set, linen pants and her ubiquitous pearls. He gave a wave at Sofia, their waitress, who had started toward him. He put a finger to his lips requesting silence. Sofia nodded and smiled, veering off to another table. Once Maggie had finished and stepped away from the table, he quietly came up behind her, grabbed her hand and spun her into his chest where he trapped her in a big hug. She gasped and started to push him away but broke into wide grin when she recognized him.

“Zane! What are you doing here?” she asked as she placed her palms flat against his chest

Zane grabbed a quick kiss on the cheek, unable to wait any longer to taste even that small bit of her skin. It was as soft as he had imagined “It was a hard day at work, and I needed a little sunshine.” ??

Maggie beamed and just a faint tinge of pink brightened her cheeks at the compliment. He couldn’t remember the last time he had seen a woman actually blush other than his Maggie. His Maggie? When had he started thinking of her like that? She took his hand and led him to a table tucked away in a corner. “Well, I’ll see what I can do. What happened at work? Do you want to talk about it?”

Zane sighed and dropped heavily into his seat. He rubbed his jaw making a rasping noise from the brown and blonde stubble already there even though he had shaved just this morning. “One of my favorite patients isn’t doing well and there’s not a damn thing I can do about it.” He shut his eyes and pinched the bridge of his nose. “It’s the worst part of the job. You do all you possibly can, everything you can think to do, and, sometimes, it’s still not enough.”

Maggie knew she was probably being forward but couldn’t help herself. After all the hours they had spent on the phone, she felt like she knew what he needed and she wanted to give it to him. She wrapped her arms around his neck and hugged him to her chest, resting her cheek on the top of his head. “I’m so sorry, Zane. I know how much you care about your patients.”

Zane leaned into her embrace, wrapping his arms around her waist, feeling the tightness in his chest release just a bit. He took a deep breath and took the captivating scent of her into his lungs. “Mmmmm, what perfume are you wearing?”

Maggie leaned back, looking amused. “Gucci Bloom.” She tucked a lock of chestnut hair behind her ear and averted her gaze as she reluctantly left his embrace and took her seat across from him. “it’s an indulgence but...”

Zane took her chin lightly in his hand, bringing her eyes up to his. “I know how you’re always taking care of everyone else. You should never be embarrassed to treat yourself. You deserve it.”

She smiled warmly at him, and he gave her his best rakish smile. “See, I knew I was coming to the right place. I already feel better.”

“I wish I could do more,” she said thoughtfully. “All I can do is give you a hug and feed you, though.”

“That’s more helpful than you can imagine.” Zane took her hand and stroked her palm with his thumb. His mind was calmed just by having that little bit of physical contact with her. They continued to gaze at each other for several beats.

Sofia was soon at their table breaking the spell. “Can I get y’all anything?”

“I was serious about feeding you. Did you eat lunch?”

“No, I didn’t have an appetite after looking at my patient’s scans and knowing she was coming in for bad news. I guess I should eat something, though,” Zane confessed.

“JT’s special today is bison burgers and sweet potato fries, if that sounds good,” Maggie offered.

“Sounds great, Maggie, thanks.”

“Two specials please, Sofia, and two sweet teas.” She raised her brow inquiringly and Zane nodded his agreement.

Before long, Sofia was back with their orders and refilled their drinks. “Anything else I can get you?”

“Thanks, Sofia but I think we’re good for now,” Maggie answered. “You go ahead and get ready to cash out once the Everhart table is done. It’s almost time to close.”

“Thanks, boss! See you bright and early!” Sofia grinned and her shiny, black ponytail whipped around as she turned to go.

They enjoyed their food and talked of inconsequential things for the next half hour. Zane could feel the tense muscles in his neck and shoulders relaxing. He had obviously made the right decision to come here. He finally sat back in his chair and dropped his napkin on the table. “I’m stuffed! I don’t know how you aren’t round as a bowling ball being around food like this all the time.”

Maggie giggled. “Oh you! Honestly, this is the first thing I’ve had since a cup of coffee this morning. I’m running around here all day. If you hadn’t come in, I probably wouldn’t have eaten until I got home.” She shrugged one shoulder. “Occupational hazard.”

“Well, I’m glad then that….” Zane started then stopped as a shadow loomed over their table. “Hey, JT. Great burgers, man.” Zane stuck out a hand to Maggie’s brother to shake. JT paused two long beats before grudgingly taking it. Zane noticed the hesitation but decided to ignore it. JT had been affable enough when they had met that afternoon when Dani had brought him for lunch at their cafe and he had first met Maggie. Maybe the guy was just having a tough day, too,

JT stood with his arms crossed across his chest making his biceps strain against the Fall Out Boy T-shirt he wore. “Glad you enjoyed it. Doctors don’t work on Fridays?” he asked sarcastically.

“Joshua Trent! Where are your manners?” Maggie chastised her brother. “Zane had a really hard day and he’s a guest!”

JT took a step back and mumbled “sorry” and tried to relax his posture. Zane knew from what Maggie had told him that JT had taken over being the man of the house at a young age after his dad had deserted them. He took his protection of his baby sister seriously even though there was only a little over a year between them. He’d do anything to keep her from getting hurt and Zane really couldn’t fault him for that, though, it could make things damn uncomfortable.

Zane’s eyes narrowed slightly. He was willing to give the guy the benefit of the doubt, to a point, but that had been just plain hostile. His pride wouldn’t let him let JT know he was bothered by it though. “If we’re lucky and plan our schedules just right, we get to take the afternoon off and spend time with a pretty lady,” Zane rejoined in his usual breezy manner and took Maggie’s hand, planting a kiss on the back while JT watched. Can’t resist poking the bear, can you?

Maggie’s lips quickly curled up in a sweet smile for Zane then, just as quickly, scowled at her brother. “Did you need something?”

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