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What an idiot she was, Talia lamented as she dropped the car in gear. She purposely dropped her head to bang it on the steering wheel as she drove off.
CHAPTERFOUR
What the fuck had just happened? One minute, Fleet was reveling in the best kiss he’d seriously ever had, and the next he’d been doused with the equivalent of a cold bucket of ice water.
Had he…?Ah, shit.
Talia must have taken his words wrong. He’dwantedto reassure her that he didn’t do casual; that she could just let things unfold naturally and count on him to allow things to progress to the next level without any pressure. She’d clearly taken his words to mean he thought she played fast and loose.
He watched her tail-lights fade away, and with her disappearing act, a sinking feeling invaded his stomach. She was…pissed.
How the fuck was he going to fix this? Unfortunately, at the moment, he could barely think because of how blinding his headache had become. He needed to get back to his apartment and sleep, but he couldn’t help lamenting what he’d said. He might have blown it with Talia. For good.
One thing was unequivocally certain. Talia wasn’t going to approach his weenie-ass a second time, like she had tonight. The next move, if he dared, would have to be up to him.
Fleet made his way back to his apartment and didn’t even bother with the niceties of brushing his teeth before falling into bed. Somehow, he’d managed to remove his clothes, but all else was beyond him. For sure, first thing in the morning, he’d be making a trip to the local eyewear store where he hoped the optometrist would, with the help of lenses, magically make his headaches go away.
* * *
Fleet stretched,not quite willing to open his eyes and face the day for two very different reasons. One, he still had his headache—albeit a lot milder than last night—but would his cranium feel like it was going to explode once the sunlight hit his retinas? And two, how was he going to deal with the mess he’d made out of things with Talia?
He knew both problems would have to be faced sooner, rather than later, but getting his eyes checked would be easy compared to the uphill battle he faced with his wanna-be relationship.
He needed to man up and grovel, but he was otherwise clueless.
How lame was it to say “it’s me, not you” in regard to how he’d reacted to Talia physically last night? She’d wanted to take things further, and dammit, so had he. But he’d gotten spooked. He had proof from his past that blindly following his feelings without taking into consideration all the caveats was dangerous. And he wasn’t about to let loose his carnal desires too rapidly, potentially derailing things with a woman whom he felt certain could mean something incredible to him.
Unless he already had. Derailed things, that is.
Shit.
Okay.Where getting out of bed was concerned, it was time to face the music. And it wouldn’t necessarily be a stellar score.
He cracked one eyelid.
Huh.The pain was there. Definitely. But at a handleable level. He threw back the covers and carefully swung his legs out of bed, slowly rising to his feet.
So far, so good. There was nothing debilitating going on with his head this morning. Just a dull throb. That was progress. He had several projects that desperately needed his attention today, and he’d already decided the only distraction he’d allow would be a quick trip to the mall for an eye-check.
Luckily, or unluckily, he knew Talia had another full day of drills, so he wouldn’t have to face her, yet.
Two hours later, Fleet’s head was not only pounding again, but he’d gone to three different eyeglass stores, and because it was Sunday, not one of them had an optometrist on duty. It figured. Just as he’d finally given in to the glasses possibility, there was nobody to take a look and tell him what he needed for lenses. The only appointment he could get was for a week from tomorrow, and he grabbed it, but… Cripes. Was he going to be able to work like this over the next few days?
He finally dragged himself back to his studio, groaning when he saw it was closing in on eleven. He sat in front of his console and popped two more pills; acetaminophen this time, changing it up from the nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs that were his norm, hoping he could make it through the day.
Within an hour, Fleet knew he was beyond useless. He’d been fussing over the same exposition mix since he sat down, with no good results. He had a choice, continue to fiddle around with nothing to show for it, or…go for a hike. That never failed to clear his head. And even though he was way behind on work, he’d have Everlee’s help for the next few mornings before she went to class. He hoped. They hadn’t exactly talked about her schedule for the upcoming week. Sometimes, after overseeing a drill weekend with her SWAT team, she liked to have a little down time. He hoped that wouldn’t be the case tomorrow.
Fleet eyed the phone. He could call her and find out, but… He sighed. Chances were good he’d ask her some stupid question about Talia that would clue Ever in to last night’s troubles. Did he want to go there?Mmm… Maybe.
Before he could talk himself out of it, he picked up the phone. She’d most likely answer, because her job was to be on the command bus, helping to spot potential problems within the squads.
“Fleet!” Everlee’s cheery voice perked him up. The woman who had always been upbeat before marrying her long-time love, Mason, was now a never-dimming ray of sunshine. “To what do I owe this pleasure?”
“I, uh, just wondered if you were going to be in tomorrow,” he queried. “I’m having a bit of a headache today, and I need to get out for some fresh air for a while. I’ll be back to work later, after I’ve done some good oxygenating, but I already know I won’t be getting as much done as I like.”
There was a huffing sound. “You still haven’t had your eyes checked, have you?” Ever scolded.
“Hey. I went to three different places this morning, and not one of them had a professional in the building. The best I could do was get an appointment for next week.”
