school fantasy.
Nothing but a little on-the-sly nookie to keep them both occupied until she left town. At which point he would no doubt immediately find another playmate. Someone from the next town, or a little ski bunny once the snow started.
Slowly she pulled on her clothes, silently berating herself as she dressed. God, for a supposedly brilliant woman, she was colossally stupid. Stupid to think the torch she'd always carried for Nick wouldn’t flame out of control. Stupid to think he would change his mind and his attitude toward relationships just because they had great sex together.
She had to end this now. Not only for the sake of her heart, but the sake of her life. She'd allowed this thing with Nick to distract her.
Instead of pursuing real job opportunities, she was muddling along, biding her time at the county ER between shifts at Sullivan's. Based on his recovery rate, her father would be back at work full time in a couple of weeks, and Kelly needed to get her career back on track after this unplanned hiatus.
She had school loans to pay off and a reputation to build. Having to turn down the position in New York was a blow, but she was confident that she could find something comparable, but only if she got off her butt and focused.
It had been fun to indulge in a little hanky-panky with Nick. Her brain had dominated her whole life, and it was nice to be reminded that there were other interesting parts of her body.
But she hadn't counted on falling in love. Now the only thing to do was to get out of this situation, and get out of town, as quickly as possible before her heart hurt even more than it did now.
She finished dressing and checked herself in the mirror over the dresser. She grimaced at her messy hair and smeared mascara. Yet another reason why sleepovers were a bad idea.
Kelly repaired the damage as best she could with the hand lotion, concealer, and lipstick in her purse. She brushed out her hair and was pulling it back into a ponytail when Nick walked in wearing only jeans and a sheepish smile. He looked so gorgeous with his dark hair tousled from sleep and his beard shading his jaw, she nearly forgot she had something important to tell him.
Oh, right. Tell him she couldn't see him anymore. Her mouth pulled into a frown.
"Sorry about that," he said. "I'm late for work, and I think we knocked the phone off the hook."
Kelly glanced at the bedside table, and sure enough, the handset had been knocked askew at some point during the night.
Nick handed her a cup of coffee, and she took a sip. She was stalling, she knew. What was so wrong with continuing this for a little longer, until she left town?
Her eyes met his over the rim of her cup and her heart did a triple salchow. That's what's wrong, she reminded herself sternly. She loved him, idiot that she was, and every moment she spent with him would only make that feeling grow, and she didn't have time to deal with heartbreak on top of everything else in her life.
But the words wouldn't come. How was it that she was so outspoken at work and yet she couldn't for the life of her think of the right thing to say?
This has been fun, Nick, but I can't see you anymore.
Easy, right?
She opened her mouth, but before she could speak, Nick said, "Look, Kelly, I've been thinking about what we're doing here. This morning was a really close call. This sneaking around thing has been fun but..."
Kelly closed her eyes. He was saying it for her. I'm relieved , she told herself sternly even as a basketball-sized knot formed in her stomach. "I know exactly what you mean," she interrupted. "I've been thinking too. This has been great, but I really don't think we should do this anymore."
Nick jerked his head back, looking startled. "What?"
"I agree with you. Today was too close, and it just emphasized how silly this whole situation is. It's been really great, don't get me wrong," she said. "But I need to figure out what I'm going to do next, and you"you need to
Nothing but a little on-the-sly nookie to keep them both occupied until she left town. At which point he would no doubt immediately find another playmate. Someone from the next town, or a little ski bunny once the snow started.
Slowly she pulled on her clothes, silently berating herself as she dressed. God, for a supposedly brilliant woman, she was colossally stupid. Stupid to think the torch she'd always carried for Nick wouldn’t flame out of control. Stupid to think he would change his mind and his attitude toward relationships just because they had great sex together.
She had to end this now. Not only for the sake of her heart, but the sake of her life. She'd allowed this thing with Nick to distract her.
Instead of pursuing real job opportunities, she was muddling along, biding her time at the county ER between shifts at Sullivan's. Based on his recovery rate, her father would be back at work full time in a couple of weeks, and Kelly needed to get her career back on track after this unplanned hiatus.
She had school loans to pay off and a reputation to build. Having to turn down the position in New York was a blow, but she was confident that she could find something comparable, but only if she got off her butt and focused.
It had been fun to indulge in a little hanky-panky with Nick. Her brain had dominated her whole life, and it was nice to be reminded that there were other interesting parts of her body.
But she hadn't counted on falling in love. Now the only thing to do was to get out of this situation, and get out of town, as quickly as possible before her heart hurt even more than it did now.
She finished dressing and checked herself in the mirror over the dresser. She grimaced at her messy hair and smeared mascara. Yet another reason why sleepovers were a bad idea.
Kelly repaired the damage as best she could with the hand lotion, concealer, and lipstick in her purse. She brushed out her hair and was pulling it back into a ponytail when Nick walked in wearing only jeans and a sheepish smile. He looked so gorgeous with his dark hair tousled from sleep and his beard shading his jaw, she nearly forgot she had something important to tell him.
Oh, right. Tell him she couldn't see him anymore. Her mouth pulled into a frown.
"Sorry about that," he said. "I'm late for work, and I think we knocked the phone off the hook."
Kelly glanced at the bedside table, and sure enough, the handset had been knocked askew at some point during the night.
Nick handed her a cup of coffee, and she took a sip. She was stalling, she knew. What was so wrong with continuing this for a little longer, until she left town?
Her eyes met his over the rim of her cup and her heart did a triple salchow. That's what's wrong, she reminded herself sternly. She loved him, idiot that she was, and every moment she spent with him would only make that feeling grow, and she didn't have time to deal with heartbreak on top of everything else in her life.
But the words wouldn't come. How was it that she was so outspoken at work and yet she couldn't for the life of her think of the right thing to say?
This has been fun, Nick, but I can't see you anymore.
Easy, right?
She opened her mouth, but before she could speak, Nick said, "Look, Kelly, I've been thinking about what we're doing here. This morning was a really close call. This sneaking around thing has been fun but..."
Kelly closed her eyes. He was saying it for her. I'm relieved , she told herself sternly even as a basketball-sized knot formed in her stomach. "I know exactly what you mean," she interrupted. "I've been thinking too. This has been great, but I really don't think we should do this anymore."
Nick jerked his head back, looking startled. "What?"
"I agree with you. Today was too close, and it just emphasized how silly this whole situation is. It's been really great, don't get me wrong," she said. "But I need to figure out what I'm going to do next, and you"you need to
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