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“It does. Buckle up. We’ll be at Central in no time at all,” I tell Allie after helping her get situated in the cockpit.
“Oh, boy,” Allie says, running her hands over the belt. “We’re seriously going up in this thing?”
Her grip on the arm of the seat tightens, and I try to stifle a grin. “Hey, there’s absolutely nothing funny about this. It’s just a little new; that’s all. I’ll get used to it,0 though. There’s not much that an O’Conner can’t weather.”
I lift off and propel forward, giving it a little extra juice, and both of her hands grab the armrests, hanging on for dear life. “Nick Montgomery! You did that on purpose!” she exclaims on a breath.
“Perhaps.”
For that I get a well-placed punch to the upper arm, and now I can’t help but grin. “You hit the arm that flies you?”
She ignores me, caught up in the city lights twinkling around us and sprawled out as far as the eye can see. “It’s seriously beautiful from up here. I forget what an amazing city New York is, and it’s even more spectacular flying above it,” she remarks, leaning forward in her seat to take in the expanse of the lights displayed all the way to the water’s edge.
“Couldn’t agree more. I never mind traveling, but I’m always glad to get back home. We were sidetracked at the restaurant by your pager before I could ask you why you didn’t respond to any of the texts I sent when I left. I’d like to know why.”
Allie’s quiet for a while, contemplating my question and taking in the edge of the city around the harbor as we skirt over the interstate below.
“You need time to think of a reason?”
The warmth of her gaze heats my skin as I focus on the vastness in front of us. “I don’t know how to answer it in a way that’s not going to hurt your feelings, Nick. I really don’t want to do that.”
“I’m a big boy, Allie. I’d like to know the reason.”
She shrugs. “I just don’t make it a habit of texting strange men. You were here for, what, a week or so, and then you left, and there was no reason to get into a texting conversation with you. That’s really all there is to it,” Allie says as I navigate us around the no-fly area and head toward the hospital.
I put the helicopter down on the helipad just outside the ED department. “I’ll come around and help you out.” I reach the other side just as the distinct blades of an approaching helicopter can be heard coming in from the south.
Allie’s door is already open when I get to her side, and she’s looking furtively at the ground beneath her. I grasp her around the waist and settle her safely in front of me before tilting her chin with my finger. “I’ll walk with you to the ED. It sounds like your patients are arriving. I asked you an honest question and deserve an honest answer. A woman who lies to me will find their ass bared, laying across my thighs with a spanking they won’t soon forget. I would think long and hard before you decide to lie to me again, Miss Allie O’Conner.”
Chapter Three
Allie
I’m rarely speechless.Damn this man. I’ve not only found myself in that position once, but already twice tonight. Nick hasn’t said a word that isn’t true. He asked me a straightforward question and didn’t deserve a smartass brush off. And now my pulse is racing so fast I can barely think straight. There’s no way he can possibly know about the dreams he’s featured in night after night. And I haven’t been to the club for at least three months, so there’s no way that Liam or Trent could have found out and told him about that part of my life.
Nick places his hand on the small of my back and guides me to the hospital entrance. The heat of his touch keeps my pulse running high, unable to settle the excitement or get the thought of being bent over his thighs from my mind.
We reach the elevator. “I’ll call for a cab after we get done tonight. It may be pretty late.”
“I’ll hang out.”
“Great.” I’m clearly not getting rid of Nick that easy. But I don’t have time to get into a long conversation about my security or the real reason I didn’t respond to his text at the restaurant. “I’ll show you to the break area. Just don’t make a nuisance of yourself with the ladies. I need their full attention on the patients tonight.”
He squints his eyes at me but remains silent as the elevator takes us to the emergency room. “It’s sure to be a long night, so I’ll understand if you’re not here when I get done.” The elevator doors open, and we make our way to the station.
“I’ll be here, and you have my number. Just text me if you need anything.”
“Thanks, Nick.” He walks toward the break room, while I head into the locker room, get changed into a pair of scrubs, tie up my hair, and fill up my water bottle before heading to the floor. I have no doubt as anal about the security protocols that the bodyguards live by, Trent and Liam have already had a team sweep through the area to make sure it’s cleared security wise. I seriously need to have a talk with Sheldon about reassigning them to someone who really needs help.
The nursing station is full of my entire team, many of whom who have already been working for hours on end and are hard at work preparing for what’s to come. They update me on the status of the specialists who have already been called with news of the trauma. Some have already arrived, and some are still en route. We’ve barely gotten through the updates and plans for assignments when the patients start to arrive, and every single one of us rolls up our sleeves, ready for the onslaught we’ve been waiting for to make its way through the emergency room doors.
It’s almostdaybreak by the time the chaos is under control and any of us make it back to our stations. The nurses look entirely wiped out, and the guilt of seeing them like this hits me hard, just like every time they bust their asses to save lives while running short of help.
“I’ll be in the back making some fresh coffee. The stuff from last night turned to sludge,” Lacy says, screwing up her face at the mug she holds in front of her.
“No need for that.” Nick walks toward the station carrying a large cardboard box with a spout sticking out the side and sporting a label from the shop down the street. “The guys and I thought after a night like yours that you ladies might welcome some freshly brewed coffee and a bite to eat. We picked a variety of all the good stuff,” he says, gesturing to the boxes of donuts and danishes that Liam and Trent hold in their arms.
“OMG! You guys are seriously the best,” Lacy gushes, and then all the ladies chime in oohing and ahhing over the rows of cherry, lemon, raspberry, blueberry, apple, and cream cheese danishes. Trent opens the lid to the donuts covered in chocolate, and the moaning starts all over again.
