Page 47 of Beating Heart
“And she’s a doctor!” Saylor said as she shook her head and winked at me.
“So what? Doctors need the dick sometimes, too.”
Now it was my turn to laugh. And I laughed so freaking hard that tears pricked my eyes. And then they were falling down my cheeks as I continued laughing.
They were the first tears I’d shed over the situation that weren’t sad tears.
“What’s going on over here?” Nash asked, and I nearly jumped out of my chair at the sound of his deep voice and his hand landing on my shoulder.
“You know, baptism by fire, Peyton-style.” Ruby chuckled.
“All right. Well, she’s laughing, so that’s a good sign. You aren’t running her out of town just yet.” He gave me a little squeeze. Maybe it was the three beers that I’d had since I’d arrived or the fact that I was more relaxed than I’d been in a very long time, but I melted a little at the gesture. Maybe all men weren’t evil after all. Maybe just the one I’d planned to spend the rest of my life with was evil. “Do we need another round of beers over here?”
“Oh, hell yeah!” Peyton shouted, and his gaze locked with mine before he agreed to go grab us some more drinks and walked away.
“You are really on one tonight,” Demi said, shaking her head at her best friend as a big smile spread across her face.
“Well, speaking of hot men in Magnolia Falls. You’re living next door to the most eligible bachelor in town,” Peyton said.
“Nash is definitely a catch.” Saylor took the last sip from her bottle and set it down at her feet. “And that could be perfect, since you aren’t looking for anything. He’s definitely all about raising Cutler, so I think he likes to keep it casual when he does get out, from what I’ve known of him over the years.”
“Have none of you heard the rule, don’t shit where you eat?” Ruby asked.
“I’ve heard it, but I can’t really wrap my head around the meaning,” Demi admitted, which was a call for more laughter.
“Agreed. It’s a stupid saying.” Peyton threw her hands in the air. “Plus, she can eat at home and go next door to take a shit.”
Hysterical laughter bellowed around us just as Nash walked back over with five beers between his fingers and one brow raised as he took us in. “You ladies are having way too much fun over here. Fireworks in fifteen minutes. Get ready for a great show.”
“Oh, we’re ready for a show, all right!” Peyton shouted as he walked away. “So we agree. She can shit wherever the hell she wants to. And as far as the eating part. I say, let the man work his magic between your thighs. Bon appétit, Nash Heart.”
Now it was Saylor’s turn to spew beer across her lap after she’d just taken a sip from the bottle that Nash had handed her.
I leaned forward. “The meaning of don’t shit where you eat is recommending that one doesn’t have a fling with their neighbor, who’s also the father of one of their patients.”
“Thank you,” Ruby said, flinging her thumb at Peyton. “I think this one took it a bit too literally.”
“Whatever. I know what it means; I just think it’s stupid. You live next door. It would be so convenient for a late-night booty call. And you’re Beefcake’s pediatrician; you aren’t the psychologist for a mob boss who just confessed to all the murders he’s committed. Pediatricians are allowed to mess around with the father of their patients, especially if he’s a hot single dad.”
“Ahhh… single dad romance is my absolute favorite,” Saylor said.
This conversation definitely had my mind racing. Obviously, I’d wanted to kiss him the other night.
But where would that lead?
We were neighbors.
Friendly neighbors.
I was his kid’s doctor.
I was moving in a few months.
I raised the beer to my lips and took a sip as they all waited for a response. “It’s too messy. Too complicated.”
“So you aren’t saying that you don’t want to do it? You’re saying it’s too…” Demi paused.
“Messy and complicated,” Saylor finished her words.
