Page 44 of Leave a Mark
“What’s wrong with you?” she asked Lee before holding up her gloved hand and shaking her head. “Wait. Scratch that. I don’t even want to know.”
Lee got to his feet. The glint in her eyes let him know she might be pissed, but she wasn’t repulsed. Or worse, indifferent. Pissed he could work with.
“Give me your number, and I’ll leave now and call you later.”
Wren’s brows shot up, but Rocky grinned.
“Hell, no,” she said, pulling off her latex gloves with something close to violence. Lee wouldn’t have been surprised if she’d flung them in his face. “Go away.”
The prettiest blush now crept up her cheeks. Lee shrugged, and a smile he couldn’t control made his face ache.
“I can’t.” It was the truth. The last thing he wanted to do now was walk away from her, not when he was so close to getting closer. He knew he had a long way to go, but a challenge didn’t scare him.
“What do you mean you can’t? The door is right there." She pointed behind him, her face now scarlet. “You can’t harass me at work.”
Lee instantly took a step back. He didn’t want her to feel harassed. Pursued, yes. Desired, yes. Harassed, no.
“Wren, is this the guy?” Rocky asked, looking first at Lee and then back at her.
The guy?
Wren whirled on her boss, the bottom of her gray skirt twirling behind her. “Rocky,” she hissed. “This is none of your business.”
Rocky’s smile only grew, and he nodded at Lee. “Rocky Perrodin. You are?”
“Lee Hawthorne.” He nodded back, relaxing a little. “Nice to meet you.”
“Same to you, Lee,” Rocky said, looking highly amused.
Wren leveled her boss with a glare. “You’re not helping.”
He turned back to the woman on his table, muttering, “I think I am.”
At this, the big guy with the lion tattoo stood up, grinning proudly. “Wren, it kills, but I gotta get to work. Can I put my shirt on?”
Wren turned her back on Lee and her boss. “Wait. Let me dress it for you." Automatically, she pulled on another pair of latex gloves and grabbed a large gauze pad. She had to climb onto a stepladder to reach his shoulder, and while she worked, Lee took his seat again. If he was known here asthe guy, he was in no hurry to leave. “You know the drill, right, Big Cat? Keep the dressing on today. Neosporin twice a day. Keep it clean.”
“Yeah, got it. Thanks, Wren.” Big Cat shrugged on his shirt and circled to the woman on the table, grinning. “That seahorse is looking good, hon.”
The blonde on the table smiled up at him. “See you at home, babe.”
Big Cat leaned over and kissed her right in front of all of them, and Lee couldn’t help but smile.
“Wren, Dallas here has the debit card. Can you ring me up with her? Gotta run.”
“Sure thing, B.C.” Wren pulled off her gloves a second time. She kept her back to Lee, grabbed a spray bottle, and started cleaning up her station. Silently, Big Cat gave him a look that said“Good luck”before he hit the door, the bells jangling again as it closed behind him.
Lee watched as Wren wiped down her station and then moved to her equipment, disposing of the needle set in the orange bin labeledBiohazard: Medical Waste.
“How’s the puppy?” Rocky asked over his shoulder, reminding Lee that his dog Millie was Victor’s mother.
“Don’t encourage him, Rocky,” Wren grumbled.
“He’s great. Smart little guy. Getting bigger every day.” Lee looked back at Wren. “You should come over to see him, Wren. He’d love it.”
“Yeah. Right.He’djust love that,” she muttered. “Because that dog only wants what he can’t have.”
Rocky chuckled under his breath at the jab.
