Everything You've Got: Anything & Everything, Book 2 (5 page)

“Thanks. You can put them on the desk there.” She wasn’t sure she had the energy to even get out of the chair. This whole Tom situation was sucking the life out of her.

“Well, I’m supposed to wait for your answer.”

Ah. Well, whatever it was she’d probably say no. It was all too much. Between what had happened with them last night and now this mess—she could only concentrate on one earth-shattering situation at a time and her conscience demanded she focus on the patient who had trusted her with his care rather than on the guy who wanted in her pants.

“Answer to what?” she asked.

“The question’s on the card.” Robbie handed it to her.

Luke had written on the tiny card himself. At the sight of his handwriting, her heart flipped. How stupid was that?

Say I’m going to see you tonight.

She smiled, then sighed, turned the card over and wrote
hope so
before handing it back to Robbie.

The Camelot was her favorite place to unwind. And she really did stop every night. It wasn’t just about feeding herself—though it was pretty much the only real meal she ate each day—it was also about the atmosphere. Her friends and family went there, the music was great, the food amazing. Ninety-eight percent of the town ate there on a weekly basis and a good percent showed up more than once a week, even if it was just for drinks or dessert.

Kat wasn’t there every night just because the shrimp salad and chocolate caramel cheesecake were the best in the state.

It was because Luke was there.

She’d long ago acknowledged that she was pathetic where Luke was concerned, but she figured there were worse addictions.

And how could she really help it?

Her heart raced when she saw him. She stopped breathing when he smiled directly at her. She tingled when he put his hand on her back or arm—or anywhere. His wide shoulders, dark hair, blue eyes, big hands…he physically appealed to her on every level.

But what really got her was who he
was
.

Luke was a good guy. The best she knew. Dependable, honest, loyal. He was the first to pick up a hammer if someone needed help building or repairing something. He was the first to pick up a spatula to serve pancakes at the church breakfast. He was the first one with an idea or suggestion or donation when something needed done.

Everyone loved him.

He was easy to love. He did the right thing for the right reasons, always did what he said he would do, and always kept his sense of humor.

And he made her feel calm. Which sounded pretty stupid. But it had always been true and he didn’t even have to try. Just being around him made her feel good.

Her work life was dramatic. Illness, injury, trauma, emotions. That’s what she did every day. Sure, some days were more hectic than others, but the fact that she never knew what was going to come in, had to be ready to go all the time, had to give one hundred and ten percent whether she felt energetic or happy or well rested—or not—made it tough to be laid back. When she was the patient she didn’t want her providers to be laid back. She wanted them intense, focused, dedicated. And she gave that to every person who trusted her to take care of them. At least she tried to. Her head ached thinking that she might not have given that to Tom.

But that was how it had become a routine to see Luke every day. Being around him helped bring her down from the tension of the day. And she could really use that today.

Along with her kick-ass boots.

“When’s my next appointment?” she asked Nancy.

“Twenty minutes. Pull yourself together.”

“Right. I’ll be back in fifteen.” Kat made a beeline for the front of the clinic. She needed all the help, all the confidence, she could find for this day.

“Where are you going?” Nancy called after her.

“I need to change my boots.”

The Camelot was the only place she wanted to be.

She’d waited all day for a call from Dr. Brickham. Sure, he’d be upset with her, but he might at least tell her what was going on. The not knowing was going to kill her. But he’d never called and now she was wound tighter than before and there was only a tiny chance
anything
could settle her down at this point anyway. The Camelot was her best bet.

Kat pulled into the parking lot and stopped the car. Then took a deep breath.

It wasn’t The Camelot she needed. She needed Luke. Even without the kiss last night, she would have needed to see him. He made her feel good, unlike anyone else could. He made her laugh, he made her feel confident and intelligent and capable. And, after last night, he made her feel sexy and wanted.

Her ego needed some of all of that today.

She knew that most people saw her as a tough, confident, no-bullshit kind of woman. And that was absolutely the image she worked to project. Most of the time it was easy and most of the time it made her feel that way. But there were days like this, when even the boots, the makeup, the piercings and body paint didn’t make her
feel
tough.

It had always fascinated her how outward appearance colored the way people perceived things. She’d chosen her battle armor back in junior high. She changed the color of her hair and the body jewelry and paint she used, but her general look was the same—
don’t mess with me
.

It had worked like a dream in junior high and high school to keep the mean girls away and the cocky boys at arm’s length. A guy had to really want to get close to make a move. She admired those that tried.

The look had followed her to college and even med school. She was very comfortable with it by then and liked seeing how people responded to her. Some avoided her, feeling intimidated, some labeled her a rebel, some a bad-ass slut. Some found her intriguing, some figured she was just trying to be odd, still others assumed she was disturbed and felt sorry for her.

And then there were the ones who prayed for her. She’d never confirmed whether it was the black clothing, the piercings, or what, but something had her permanently on the prayer list for the ladies at the nondenominational church.

But who couldn’t use a few additional prayers?

She was more than a little fascinated by the whole thing. She’d grown up in small-town Nebraska, so she knew she was an anomaly. After all, it was completely on purpose.

No one knew that behind closed doors she preferred baggy sweats, no makeup and that nothing was pierced or painted anywhere others couldn’t see it.

It was armor, a costume, a Spiderman suit for the Peter Parker that lurked inside her—awkward, unsure, and breakable.

She took a deep breath. Then another. She wanted to go inside and see Luke, but there were a lot of other people in there too. Many of whom had surely heard about Tom by now. Not the details, of course, but that he was in the hospital for sure.

She shut her car off and headed up The Camelot’s front sidewalk. She might regret it later, but she wanted to see Luke more than she wanted to avoid the questions.

It was almost as if he’d been waiting for her. Luke was beside her two seconds after she stepped through the doors.

“If this is your way of saying you’re sorry for not calling me back all day, I approve,” he said, taking her elbow and starting for his office.

She’d gone home to change before coming in. She’d chosen her outfit with Luke in mind. Even if she wasn’t feeling like the world’s greatest doctor at the moment, she knew one thing that always made her feel confident—making men crazy.

The skirt was black leather and hugged her waist, hips and thighs where it stopped two inches above her knees. The front had crisscrossed mini silver chains hanging from it and the back dipped into a deep
v
ending just short of being scandalous and had corset lacings that crossed over her lower back, showing more than a hint of bare skin between the laces.

Her top was basically a jacket, with only one button fastened—the one just below her breasts. It kept the lapels over her breasts but showed plenty of cleavage and gapped below, showing off her stomach and the bright red jewel in her belly button. And, of course, she wore knee-high black leather boots.

“Maybe this isn’t for you.”

He scowled at her. “It is now.”

She smiled. “Now what?”

“Now that I’ve seen you.”

“You’re staking a claim?” Her heart pounded at that. She wanted him and wanted to be his but there was nothing wrong with teasing him a little.

“Definitely.”

“Whether I like it or not?” As if there was anything about that she wouldn’t like.

They stepped into his office and he immediately moved in close, pressing her back against the wall. “You’ll like it.”

She did have to take a deep breath but she still asked, “Even if I like the actual claim staking, I don’t get a vote about it happening in the first place?”

“Look me in the eye and tell me you didn’t wear this for me.” He put a hand on her hip and slid it up and down over the soft leather.

She met his gaze and felt swirling, take-me-now heat. “I wore it for you.”

He gave her a cocky half smile. “I appreciate it very much.”

“I’m hoping it makes you more apt to say yes to my request.”

He moved in closer. “Yes. Whatever it is, yes.”

She leaned into him. “Strip off my clothes, lay me back on your desk and fu—”

“Katarina Dayton,” he interrupted, his voice sounding like he’d swallowed sand. “Are you testing me?”

She didn’t think so. She just really wanted to have sex with him.

Everything she wanted from Luke seemed within her grasp and she was afraid it was going to start unraveling any minute.

So, she was going to take what she could get from him for as long as she could get it.

“I’ve had a bad day at work and could really use some distraction and release and getting what I want,” Kat said, putting her hand over his heart. “I’ve been thinking about you all day and there is only one thing I’m sure of at this point—I want you.”

His heart was beating fast and his pupils dilated but he pulled in a breath and said, “I want more than that, Kat, and I’m going to prove it.”

Dammit.

She wasn’t surprised that he was jumping in with both feet now that he knew their attraction was mutual. Now he’d want to focus on what had happened, what was going to happen next, make a plan, and go full steam ahead. That was Luke.

It happened with the Camelot—the restaurant was built in six months. It happened when the church needed a new roof—Luke got a committee together and they got the thing done in two days. It happened when a family in town found out their little boy had leukemia—Luke talked to the other businesses in town and they raised twenty thousand dollars in one weekend. It happened with Sabrina too. When Sabrina came home this last time penniless and pregnant, he decided to marry her within two hours of finding out. Luke was known for quickly analyzing a situation, making a plan and going for it.

The problem was, Kat wasn’t sure she could just go for a whole big relationship right now. “Lucas Hamilton, are you telling me that you don’t want to have sex with me right now?” she asked, pressing against him and running her hand up his chest. She could talk him into this, she was sure.

He cleared his throat. “Somehow I don’t think there’s a correct answer to that question.”

Her eyes widened. “You really do think I’m trying to trick you?”

“I think you really want me to say yes.” His fingers slid to the bare skin on her back just above the waistband of her skirt. He stroked back and forth along the strip of skin. “I think that your nipples are hard right now and your panties are wet and you’re imagining what it will feel like the first time I thrust into you.”

Holy…
She took a shaky breath and wet her lips. This was definitely different. She and Luke flirted but they’d never been blatantly sexual with one another.

She liked it. A lot.

“But I think you also really want me to say no,” he went on. “You want to know that even though I’m hard enough to drive nails right now and want so badly to make you come hard, fast and loud, I can still say no because I want even more.”

She was barely breathing, staring up at him.
Hard enough to drive nails. Come hard, fast and loud.
Oh, yeah.
This
she could handle. “I, um… No, I really do want—”

“I also think wearing this—” again he ran his hand up and down over the soft leather at her hip, “—and testing me is kind of like a matador waving a red cape in front of a bull. The matador not only knows the bull’s coming—he
wants
the bull to come.” He gave her a little grin and dropped his voice. “And I do plan on coming.”

“Wow,” she breathed. If she’d wanted him before, hearing him talk like this and look at her like that made her certain she’d do anything he asked. “So let’s go. Your house? Or your desk? It’s closer.”

“Not yet.”

She stared at him. “Seriously?”

“Seriously.”

This was really typical of Luke. Most guys would take her signal and ask her to dinner. Luke would take it and jump to something much bigger, something like…