Chapter 11.
Jim said he owns a hospital in town. Is this the hospital?
But the hospital's name doesn't give away any information that it's his... Unless the 'M' and the 'W' are supposed to be initials for Maverick Wright. Then what does the 'J' stand for?
The bimbo's eyes immediately dart in my direction. Blame it on me for having a loud coughing fit as a result of choking on my own saliva.
I flinch when the room door bursts open with the bimbo storming out and stopping in front of me.
It's obvious why Tony left me for her.
Her blonde hair is tied up in a loose bun. Although her eyes are much smaller than mine, they're sparkling blue and have this brightness to charm any guy off his boxers.
Including my boyfriend.
I mean, my ex-boyfriend.
"What are you doing here?" Her voice is cold and bitter. "Hasn't he suffered enough for you?"
"Excuse me?" I'm confused. What's she talking about?
"Don't play dumb. Tony is hospitalized because of you. He wouldn't stop drinking and smoking after that club night..."
"Wait, Tony smokes?"
"No. But he started right after you broke up with him. Then he lit up a cigarette yesterday and forgot to put it out. The fire started from his room," She pauses and takes a deep breath. "His housekeeper... The poor woman got locked in the kitchen by mistake and burnt to death before help came."
I can see the veins popping on her neck as she tries to hold back her anger and tears.
"She was a very nice Asian lady but, of course, you just had to come along and ruin it all!" She was screaming by this time but I didn't really mind.
Tony must have gotten a housekeeper to keep the house clean, since I'm not around any more...
"Leave! Right now!" The bimbo pushes at my shoulders but I'm too shocked to move or speak.
Why was Tony acting like he was depressed after the breakup? Did he regret cheating? And oh, that poor woman.
"Great! Now you're deaf!" the bimbo shrieks - getting, if possible, even more aggressive. "I said that I want you to leave, you freak."
I see her raise her hands up to hit me again and I squeeze my eyes shut, waiting for her hands to land on my cheeks...
But they never do.
Deciding it's safe to open my eyes, I slowly look up to see her wrists trapped in Maverick's grip.
"There will be no violence in my hospital, thank you," he says, softly but firmly.
Bimbo yanks her wrists out of his grip and glares at me. "But I need her to leave. Tell security to get her out of here right now."
"I'm sorry, Madam, but I don't see that happening." Maverick tucks his hands in his trousers and fully faces her. "The only instances a visitor is to be kicked out of the hospital is when they're being violent or abusive, and those things are exactly what you're displaying. So, if anyone is to be kicked out of here, don't you think that it should be you, Ms?"
Her mouth opens to protest, but she seems to decide that it's pointless answering. She closes it with a snap and she storms off in the opposite direction, the sound of her heels fading away as she pushes a door open aggressively and slams it shut.
"How's your face?" I ask Maverick tentatively, trying to break the silence. The bruises from the club night don't look as bad as they did before.
"Wouldn't you like to know," he says sarcastically with a playful arch of his brow. "I could've pressed charges on what happened, you know." "But you didn't."
He doesn't look mad that I caused the bruises on his face, so why is he pressing it further?
"And that's why you're still here having this conversation with me. You're welcome." Maverick walks over to the coffee maker and turns it on, tapping a finger at the top of the machine as the hot liquid spills into the mug below. "Do me a favor and let me be the last person you kiss without permission."
I take the cup from his hands when he stretches it out to me and press it to my lips, enjoying the heat radiating from it.
I study his profile.
He's dressed in his Doctor's coat with a grey sweater vest inside and a pair of blue jeans.
I never thought I'd see the day when I would find a doctor hot.
"Do me a favor and stop being so good to look at," I mutter under my breath and my words must somehow reach his ears because he smiles.
My mouth goes dry and my palms are starting to feel clammy. I can't seem to look him in the eye.
His brown hair looks golden in the glow of the fluorescent light and his eyes sparkle with endless compassion. I see his cheeks lightly flushed - probably because of the cold - and his smile seems to be able to stop time.
My already wobbly heart starts beating violently against my ribcage.
I'm only brought out from my trance when his head snaps sideways, following the sound of someone clearing their throat.
"Sorry to disturb, sir, but we have an emergency." The female nurse standing at the other end of the lobby gives me the stink eye before smiling sweetly at Maverick.
"I'll be there." He nods at her and turns back to me.
"It's a child delivery." she presses further, desperation evident in her tone as they both lock gazes in what seems to be like a staring competition.
I don't know if I'm the only one feeling the unfamiliar tension in the air between them but, whatever it is, I didn't pay it much attention.
"I'll meet you home."
For the first time since I met him, Maverick addresses me curtly before walking in the Nurse's direction. But he doesn't get very far before he stops in his tracks to face me. "It's 2097, by the way."
I don't get to ask what the numbers are for before he disappears into a corner with the female Nurse.
As the typical foodie I am, the first place which pops into my head at the mention of those digits is the address of my and Jim's cafeteria spot - aka, the place where I got to meet my faceless James Bond.
Jim let me use his credit card most of the time, so I didn't need to worry about washing dishes because of not being able to pay for my meals. Seriously, who brought up that stuff about washing dishes? It's a nightmare.
"I'll have two boxes of pizza please," I tell the shop lady, holding two fingers up in the air as she takes my order and retreats back behind the counter.
I contemplate asking her what James Bond looked like the other day, as she was there with me to find my glasses, but decide to drop it so I don't sound creepy.
For what seemed like just minutes, I watch the streetlights outside being flicked on in the already-darkened streets and realize I've spent my whole afternoon staring at customers going in and out of a shop.
My phone beside me signals that it's fully charged so I unplug it from the shop lady's charger - which she let me borrow - and groggily get to my feet, pushing my way into the lit streets and flagging down a cab as a yawn escapes my lips.
I get to the penthouse in no time and make my way into the gate. Maverick's car isn't in the driveway, so I assume he's not back home yet. I'm a bit thankful for that, to be honest.
I can't stand that much hotness in one day.
The door into the house won't budge when I push it open.
Oh great. Now I have to wait for him to get back with his keys before I can get in. Wonderful.
My eyes catch sight of a shiny metal thing beside the door's handle so I slide it up, revealing buttons which contain numbers. It must be a code into the house and I immediately remember the digits he told me earlier at the hospital.
What kind of a person would use the address of a cafeteria as a house code?
I let myself into the house, yawning every second and rubbing at my eyes. It's a long time before I notice anything odd, but when I do it hits me hard.
The lights are all on. And I'm sure the lights were off before I left the house.
I shake my head to clear any doubts.
I wasn't in my right mind this morning so I'm probably just mistaken... but I freeze when I spot something resting on the doormat.
A man's shoe.
I am definitely not mistaken, after all. Someone's in the house.☐☐☐☐☐☐☐☐☐☐☐☐☐☐☐