The Best Medicine (7 page)

Scott huffed out a laugh, his eyes trained on Lauren. “She’s had her moments.”

Quinn dropped her menu on the table and shifted in her seat to angle herself toward Scott. “Laur tells us you’re really young. You must be some kind of medical prodigy to have your own practice while still in your twenties.”

Lauren drew in a silent breath. She anticipated the comment before it even left his lips.

“Ah, so
Laur’s
been talking about me, I see.” Scott’s emphasis on her nickname made it plain that he was on a mission: to infiltrate Lauren’s core group of girlfriends and use their idle chitchat against her.

“Only under duress,” Lauren replied as she took a sip of the water the busboy had just come over and filled.

“So Laur, huh? That’s the best nickname you girls have for her?”

Simone snorted. “The only one we’d tell you.” Her voice was sweet, but the message was clear: there’d be no further breaking of girl code at this table. Even if it meant they had to gag Quinn with a napkin.

“Aw, come on, ladies. We’re all friends here.” Scott let loose with a full, panty-dropping smile, but to no avail. Lauren’s girls weren’t dishing. “I’ll just have to come up with my own then. Let’s see,” he tapped his chin with his index finger. “How about ‘Lo’? Don’t people use that as a nickname for Lauren?”

Lauren tried not to visibly react, but she couldn’t resist her hands flying to the table to grab her napkin and pulling it into her lap, almost as if it were a Kevlar vest that would protect her from the memories that nickname conjured. Her friends all looked at her, sympathetic expressions marring their faces.

“Uh, Lauren doesn’t really like that nickname,” Simone softly informed Scott.

Lauren lifted her eyes to look at Scott. She saw the furrow of his brows, the concern etched on his face, the playboy facade gone, and she suddenly was overwhelmed with the desire for him to call her that again. It felt . . . right. That nickname had been special to her for most of her life. And she wanted it to feel that way again.

“I’m sorry,” Scott said. “I won’t call you that if—”

“No,” Lauren interrupted. “It’s okay. You can call me Lo.”

A moment passed between them as they gazed at
each other. An understanding that they both had pasts they’d rather not share. And they’d just . . . let it be.

“Okay then. Lo it is,” Scott confirmed with a strong nod of his head before looking back down at his menu.

The atmosphere at the table had shifted, and Lauren needed to get it back to a more jovial place. She just wasn’t sure how the hell to go about it.

Thankfully, Lauren could always count on Cass to swoop in and rescue a conversation. “So, Scott—you don’t mind if we call you Scott, right? We don’t need to address you as Dr. So-and-So?”

Scott smirked and shook his head.

“Good. So, Scott, there’s a very important question that we absolutely
must
get an answer to.”

Lauren felt a twinge of nerves as she anticipated where Cass could be taking her line of questioning, but she also couldn’t help but grin slyly. Whatever Cass was going to ask, Lauren would bet her last dollar that it’d fluster him.

“What’s that?” Scott responded with an easy smile as he crossed his arms and set them on the table.

Lauren noticed his hands close into fists and then purposefully release, tension still there even though he no longer hid them in his pockets.

Cass leaned in. “Are you single?”

Lauren snorted as she tried to resist laughing, but the rest of the girls sat there intently, their eyes boring into Scott as they awaited his answer.

Scott was unaffected by the question. He seemed used to women asking him that. “Yup. Why? You interested?”

Lauren knew Scott could probably flirt in his sleep. If
her friends thought they were going to intimidate him simply because they outnumbered him, then they had another thing coming.

“Baby, you couldn’t handle me,” Cass said dismissively.

Lauren knew Cass’ words were bullshit; she suspected that between the five of them at the table that Scott would be the one who’d be the hardest to handle.

“But,” Cass continued, “I will admit you’re a good looking guy. Successful. How do you manage to stay unattached? Oh my God! I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to . . . You’re gay, aren’t you?”

“Cass,” Quinn hissed as a reprimand.

“I’m really wondering,” Cass replied simply.

Scott quirked an eyebrow, clearly entertained by Cass. “Are all gay people single?”

Cass pondered that for a moment. “No, but my question stands.”

Scott laughed and leaned back in his chair. “No, I’m not gay. And I’m single because I prefer to be. Does that answer your question?”

“So you’re a player then?” Simone added.

Scott shook his head in delighted disbelief. “You ladies are a real trip. I see why all of you are friends. Whole group of ballbusters.”

Lauren grinned widely. It was the second time she’d been called that in less than two weeks. And she considered it a compliment each time.

“To answer your question, I’m very upfront about what I want. I don’t lead women on, and my goal isn’t to get every woman I meet into bed. However, when I’m seeing a woman, I’m monogamous with her until we decide that it’s time for us to move on. Also, it’s clear from
the beginning that eventually—sooner rather than later—we
will
move on. I’m not looking for a girlfriend or a wife. I’m looking to satisfy a need that we both have as often and as completely as possible. And I don’t try to hide any of these facts. So, no, I don’t think I’m a player.” Scott was answering Simone’s question, but his eyes drifted to Lauren during his explanation. He was putting it out there for her. If she was in, so was he.

*   *   *

As the waiter took their dinner plates away, Scott briefly surveyed the women at the table with him. He’d actually learned a good deal about them over dinner. Where they had gone to college, their majors, and their current employment status. Quinn was a writer at a local magazine, Simone was working in an art gallery in downtown Falls Church, and Cassidy was trying to work her way up the ladder in a major Virginia PR firm. He had to admit he liked Lauren’s friends. Not simply because they were hilarious and interesting, but because they were obviously great friends to Lauren. Why that was so important to him, he’d rather not ponder. But the fact remained that no matter how he tried to wheedle information out of them about Lo, they were a tight bunch who had one another’s backs. Scott knew the value of that. He may not have had a ton of friends, but the ones he did have were loyal to a fucking fault.
Speaking of that . . .
“We’ve got to get you ladies together with my buddies sometime. They’d be all over you. Though I have a feeling that all of us together may get a little rowdy. All kinds of chaos would ensue.”

“Lauren’s great at causing chaos, aren’t you, Laur?” Cass shot Lauren an overly sweet smile.

“I curse the day you were born,” Lauren muttered as she took a sip of her beer.

“Is she now? I find that hard to believe.” Scott’s eyes were twinkling at the prospect of getting some juicy gossip about Lauren.

Lauren set her drink down and her lips quirked into a small smile. “You don’t get arrested for encouraging peace and quiet.”

Scott’s eyes widened. He’d been wondering about her legal troubles since she first mentioned them to him, and he was desperate to know the details. “You know, I’ve been thinking about this. I believe that, as your employer, I have a right to know exactly what caused you to turn to a life of crime. Spill it.”

Lauren was opening her mouth to respond when Quinn interrupted. “Wait. I have a great idea. Let’s all go around the table and say a few words about all the stuff Lauren did to get herself arrested, and then let Scott try to put it together.”

Lauren infused as much excitement into her voice as possible. “That sounds like,” then let it all fade away, “a horrible idea.”

“No, no, I like where her head’s at on this one,” Simone added. “I’ll start. Fire alarm.”

“I object. That’s already inaccurate. I didn’t pull a fire alarm,” Lauren protested.

“But you were the reason it was pulled, were you not?” Simone countered.

Lauren let out a huff and waved her hand, signaling the girls to continue.

Scott was riveted. He knew from Lauren’s drooped
shoulders that she really didn’t want to get into all of this. Which made him want to know every detail about it.

“Broken car window,” Cass chimed in.

“Inciting a riot,” Quinn quipped.

Scott’s head bounced from girl to girl like a ping-pong ball as they added words like fights, trashed bar, kicking ass and taking names, screaming, trampled patrons, sassing law enforcement, propulsion of a missile, drunk in public, and banned from a bar.

“Okay, Scott, now put it all together. What do you think happened?” Quinn asked.

Scott brought his elbows to rest on the table and propped his chin on his steepled hands as he appraised Lauren. She had been smiling slightly throughout the game, but he could tell that she’d rather not rehash the details of the night. But as she sat there waiting for him to share his version of what may have happened, she lifted her eyes to his and held his gaze. And as he watched her, he suddenly realized why she kept him so off balance. She was simply . . .
different
.

Lo’s friends were all similar to her, but they
weren’t
her. Not by a long shot. None of them saw Scott like she did.

Lo saw right through all the bullshit. She had been watching him engage with her friends all night, dissecting his behavior. And the only times she fully participated in conversation with him had been the few times he’d dropped the act and been real. She saw beyond the bright lights and fanfare that Scott wrapped around himself like a defense system, and right into the haze beneath. It scared the fuck out of him. But it also turned him on.

He suddenly realized that he’d prefer to get to know Lauren and her story on his own terms, without her girlfriends’ interferences.

“I think I get the picture,” Scott said, never breaking eye contact with Lauren.

Lauren tilted her head, showing just how surprised she was that he wasn’t going to push this issue any further.

Scott accepted that look as his first victory. He’d finally surprised Lauren Hastings. And he had a feeling that there was a lot more where that came from. When the waiter dropped the bill off at the table, Scott reached for it and pulled out his wallet. Knowing Lauren would remember using the same words, he looked at her and said, “It’s only fair. This one’s on me.”

The five of them left The Curveball and walked back toward the hospital. When they reached the main entrance, they all said their good-byes as the girls walked toward Quinn’s car, which they had parked in the visitor lot, while Scott and Lauren entered the employee lot.

“You really don’t need to walk me to my car. I’ll be fine,” Lauren griped.

“Shut up,” Scott responded playfully. Had he bet money that she’d have some kind of sarcastic reply, he would have lost.

“That’s me,” Lauren said, pointing to a green Cabrio.

Scott had been walking with his hands in his pockets, but as Lauren unlocked her car and pulled the door open, he quickly propped his hands on the roof, caging her in.

She stood stock-still. She didn’t turn around to face him. It was as if she was waiting to see what he’d do next before she moved.

“I meant what I said, Lo.”

“About what?” Her voice was low, husky.

“I don’t do relationships. At least not in the traditional sense. I’m not going to lie: I want you. So if you decide to walk down this road with me, you need to know that there’s no happily ever after at the end of it. No love or prolonged commitments. It’ll be raw and consuming, but eventually it’ll be over. Can you handle that?”

Lauren started to turn around but Scott pressed himself against her, putting a stop to her movement. “Don’t answer me right now. Think about it. I need you to be sure. The last thing I want is to hurt you, Lo.” He pressed a soft kiss to the nape of her neck that was somehow both innocent and filthy. “I’ll see you tomorrow.” And with that, he pushed off the car and left, hoping like hell her answer would be yes.

Impulse Control Disorder

On Tuesday morning Scott opted for an extra shot of espresso in his coffee. He knew he’d need it because he’d been kept awake much of the night because he couldn’t stop contemplating what he may be getting himself into. Never had a woman caused so much turmoil in his life. Shocking, considering he’d only known Lauren for a few days and hadn’t even slept with her yet.

Yet.
As he made his way up to his office, Scott repeated the word in his mind over and over. And he hoped that his silent mantra would be correct. He’d left Lauren the previous night with a clear proposition. He wasn’t normally so concerned about getting a woman to be with him. If it wasn’t them, it’d be someone else.
But
what the fuck is it about this girl?

With Lauren, it was different. In fact,
everything
with her was different. That’s what caused him to break his own rule about not getting involved with anyone from work. Rules and routines made him feel in control. But
just like every other day since he met Lauren, he was feeling a complete and utter
lack
of control.

Still, he took comfort in the fact that he was still doing things on
his
terms. I’m
the one breaking the rules. My
own
rules.
Plus, he justified his decision by telling himself that even if things between them got awkward after the sex ended, that awkwardness would only be temporary. After all, Lauren would only be in the office two days per week, and her time there had a definitive end date.

When Scott arrived in the office, he found his newest patient in the waiting room. Scott greeted him with an outstretched hand. “There he is. Sayid, good to see you out of the gym.”

Sayid rose to shake his hand. “Thanks for fitting me in, Dr. Scott. I know it was short notice.”

“Anything for the guy who taught me how to kick anyone’s ass,” Scott replied with a smile. “Just give me a few minutes and I’ll be right with you.”

“Take your time, Doc. I don’t have any classes until this afternoon.”

Tammy looked up from her desk. “I was wondering how you knew him,” she said to Sayid as Scott flipped through Sayid’s records from his previous doctor.

Sayid tilted his head slightly, clearly not understanding Tammy’s remark.

“Dr. Scott’s highly requested. He only accepts new patients who know him somehow. The maître d’ at his favorite restaurant, the guy who fixes those midget cars he races, his Krav Maga instructor,” she said, gesturing to Sayid with a smile.

“Ahh, I had no idea. When I told him my back’s been
bothering me for a few weeks, Scott just told me to come in first thing Tuesday morning.”

Tammy shook her head and laughed. “Yup, sounds like Dr. Scott. He usually keeps Tuesday mornings open for new patients or anyone he tells to just ‘pop in,’” she said, using air quotes. “I think you’re actually his only patient this morning.”

“As it should be,” Scott chimed in. “This guy’s spent hundreds of hours helping me perfect my counterattack. One appointment’s the least I could do. Come on back, Sayid. Pam will be in to take your vitals, and I’ll be back in a moment.” Scott pointed Sayid in the direction of Exam Room Three before turning his attention back to Tammy. “Lauren should be here at nine, Tammy. When she gets here, can you please let her know that I’ve e-mailed her a list of tasks for today.”

“Absolutely,” Tammy replied.

*   *   *

Lauren strolled leisurely into work despite the fact that she probably should have felt slightly anxious about how her interaction with Scott might go. She had to admit, she was intrigued.

From the moment Scott had made his offer, Lauren knew what her answer would be. She wasn’t someone who slept around, but she never shied away from sexual encounters she wanted. Lauren believed in partaking in every experience that allowed her to live more fully, more honestly, and more happily. Maybe it was because Cooper hadn’t gotten to do any of those things that pushed her to confront life that way. Whatever the reason, diving into things that scared her was liberating, and Lauren loved the feeling.

“Hey, Tammy,” Lauren said with a smile as she made her way behind the reception desk and toward her own.

Tammy turned to address Lauren. “Morning.” She took a sip of her coffee and winced when it burned her mouth. “Oh, before I forget, Dr. Scott e-mailed your to-do list to you.”

“Thanks.” Lauren smirked as she wondered if he’d put his own name on the to-do list. She took a few minutes to put her lunch away, pour herself a cup of coffee, and start up her computer. Once it was loaded, she clicked into her work e-mail that had been set up for her yesterday.

Dear Office Maid,

I’m assuming by your title that you don’t mind cleaning the bathroom a little. It can get messy in there due to some of the patients’ incontinence, but I’m sure you’ll figure it out. Don’t forget to wear gloves.

Dr. Scott

P.S. Just kidding about cleaning the bathroom, but I do need you to do a little organizing in the filing room. Most of our patient files have been transferred to our computer system, but we still need to keep the hard copies. It’s kind of a mess in there, and I hate messes. I’d like you to go through the stacks of files that are sitting out, cross-check them with our electronic database, and then file the ones that are already digitized in the cabinets according to last name. If they
haven’t been entered into our system, please let Carla know. Have a good day.

Lauren clicked out of her e-mail, unsure of what to think. Scott clearly had a sense of humor. That she already knew. But the second part of his e-mail had been direct and professional. And he’d closed it out with “Have a good day
.
”
Will I not see him today? He’s always in this office Tuesdays.
She didn’t know why she even bothered to dissect his final sentence. She wasn’t one for overanalyzing things. But with Scott, she found she had a certain curiosity about his underlying motives.

She sat back for a moment, her hands crossed calmly in front of her before opening her e-mail back up and typing a quick response.

Got it, boss. Just wanted to check to make sure it’s ok if I listen to music in the file room while I work. I know some employers are strict about that sort of thing.

See you when I see you,

Lo

She had considered not even signing her name at all. After all, Scott would know who’d sent the e-mail. But for some strange reason, it felt almost as good to
write
that nickname as it had to hear it when Scott had said it the previous night.

Lauren trudged into the file room and spent the next fifteen minutes flipping through the folders that were placed in stacks and scattered around the small room.
Scott wasn’t kidding. The place was a disaster. A small wooden table had been pushed up against the wall across from the door. It was overcrowded with paperwork and a computer that looked like it could have been made in Steve Jobs’ garage. Six four-drawer filing cabinets of various colors were placed haphazardly around the cramped room.

Before beginning Scott’s task, she decided that it would be better to at least push the filing cabinets neatly against the wall so she had a space in the middle of the room to work. Then, she retrieved her laptop from her desk—since she was certain the computer on the table wouldn’t even turn on—and began separating the files. At 10:13 she heard her Outlook ding: an e-mail from Jacobs, Scott.

Lo,

Music is fine, though I appreciate that you asked my permission. I may be a hard-ass, but not about things like that. Hope you are making a dent in those files.

Scott

P.S. I like it when you call me boss.

*   *   *

Once Scott had finished seeing his morning patient, he had time to catch up on paperwork. And time to think about Lauren being one room over. Alone. As he pushed to his feet, he decided that the patient notes he had sprawled across his desk could wait until later. He heard
the muffled words of Sam Smith’s “Stay With Me” playing as he approached the file room and his eyes immediately landed on Lauren as she sat on the floor looking over files.

“So I take it you got my e-mail?” Scott asked with a raised eyebrow.

He leaned against the doorframe, hoping he conveyed the powerfulness he was going for. Lauren registered his presence. And as her eyes raked their way up his body before finally meeting his, he was sure he’d been successful.

“Or did you have this playing the whole time?” he continued. Scott took a few steps toward the table, picked Lauren’s phone up, typed in the passcode, and turned down the music.

“How did you—”

“Know your passcode?”

Lauren nodded her head in response without standing up.

Scott wore a sneaky grin. “Twelve-twenty. Figured your birthday would be a good guess.”

Lauren’s eyes narrowed. “I see you’ve been going through my file again.”

Scott moved toward her and extended a hand to help her up off the ground. “Not
again
. Just remembered it from the first time. I’m not one to forget details.”

The feel of Lauren’s smooth skin on his made his pulse race as he helped her to her feet. But instead of letting go when she stood, he lowered their clasped hands between them, his warm palm still holding hers. Finally, he let her hand drop, but not before it was obvious that the prolonged contact had been intentional. “So how’s your
morning been?” he asked, hoping she’d feel the heat from his intense gaze.

“Pretty uneventful,” Lauren replied, a slight hesitation in her voice.

Scott swept his tongue across his bottom lip and tilted his head to the side slightly. “Hmm . . . I’m not a fan of
uneventful
.” He was daring her to make the first move, and he wondered if she could feel the obvious flush to her cheeks.

“Neither am I,” she said before pushing the door closed softly and pressing the lock behind her—silently answering the question that Scott hadn’t wanted to actually verbalize. She wanted him, and he’d be damned if he wasn’t going to act on her desire. The moment the door latched behind her, Scott pressed Lo up against it with his hips—one hand roughly massaging the back of her neck as it tangled in her hair, the other resting firmly against the door just above her head.

As Lauren let her eyes linger on his, he saw her breathing hitch. She already knew him so much better than most of the women he’d been with—waiting for him to kiss her, knowing that
he
was going to take control. But he was excited to show her all the things she didn’t know too.

Scott struggled to restrain himself. He wanted to throw her legs around his waist and fuck her against the door.
That’ll have to be another time
, he thought.
A time when I don’t have to hold back.

“Are you gonna kiss me again?” Lauren whispered.

As soon as the question left Lauren’s mouth, it was as if Scott had caught it with his own. He’d needed his lips on hers. Needed to feel her want him back this time.
When he’d kissed her before, it had been so sudden, so unexpected. For both of them. But this time was different.

This time Lauren was his to devour, and the way she surrendered herself to him as he slid his tongue forcefully inside her mouth made him want to lick more intimate parts of her.

Lauren tugged on Scott’s white coat, her mouth parting just enough to allow Scott to suck hungrily. His teeth clamped over her bottom lip, just hard enough to make her wince slightly. But she didn’t try to pull away. Instead, she let her head tilt back, giving Scott access to her neck.

But he withdrew for a moment, his tone brusque with need. “I wasn’t done with your mouth yet,” he said, his forehead pressing against hers. “And if
that
tastes this fucking good, I can’t wait to find out what your pussy tastes like. I bet you’ll be like vanilla ice cream—sweet and creamy when you melt against my tongue.” Scott didn’t wait for Lauren to respond before he captured her mouth in his again to continue his erotic assault.

She let out a soft moan and the vibration caused Scott’s cock to grow from stiff to rock hard instantly.

The hand that had been grasping the back of Lauren’s neck skated down her throat to her chest. In seconds, Scott had some of the buttons of her white satin blouse undone and was slipping his hand beneath the fabric to pull on the taut nipples above the lace of her bra. She arched her back to give him better access, her right breast fitting perfectly in the palm of his hand as he roughly massaged it.

But again, Scott pulled back, knowing he’d leave
Lauren breathless and wanting at the absence of his lips on hers. “Don’t stop,” she pleaded.

God, did he want to comply. It took everything he had not to pull those tight black pants of hers down and bury himself inside her. “I need to let you know,” he began, “what I want to do to you. I can’t do that here . . . now.”

“Why?”

It was a simple question. But one that was difficult to answer. So Scott chose his words carefully. “Because when I finally get to have you, I want
all
of you. I want my fingers and tongue tracing every inch of your body inside and out until you beg me to fuck you. And when I do, I want to know how loud I can make you scream.”

Lauren hesitated a moment before responding. “How about I get that now? And I’ll save the screaming for later,” she replied with a playful smile.

She moved to kiss him again, but he put two fingers over her mouth to stop her. “There’s one thing I need you to understand.
You
don’t call the shots here.
I
do. If we’re going to do this, that’s how it’ll be. Are you good with that?”

Lauren nodded her silent affirmation, and Scott slowly removed his hand from over her mouth. “Good. Now get on the fucking table and spread your legs.”

*   *   *

It took Lauren a few moments to compose herself enough to force her legs to move. Since the moment Scott’s lips had touched hers the first time, she’d fantasized about him taking things further. And until now, the image had only been that—a fantasy. But the reality was even hotter than what she’d envisioned. And it made the
slickness between her thighs increase steadily with his every word and touch.