Unethical (18 page)

He smiled at me through hooded eyes and slipped one finger under the lace. I closed my eyes as he slid it into me.

Warmth rushed over my body as he worked his thumb over my apex. A hunger gnawed at my insides, his fingers suddenly not enough. I wanted to feel that connection—the one we had shared so many times before.

I tugged down his boxers, and he kicked them to the floor. He gasped as I grabbed his hardened length and looked into his eyes.

“I want you,” I whispered.

His gaze swept over my body once more before he pulled down my lace thong one inch at a time, planting kisses down my legs. As soon as he removed them, he threw them onto the floor next to his boxers.

He jumped off the bed and grabbed his pants in the hallway, and, still in sight, ripped open a foil package and rolled on the condom. When he walked back into the room, he stood in the doorway and watched me, his hazel eyes blazing. Making his way to the bed, my gaze rolled over his rippling muscles that flexed every time he took a step. Greek statues had nothing on his chiseled features.

My body tensed, this moment stuck in slow-motion when I needed fast-forward. He climbed on the bed, hovering above me. I opened my legs, and he lowered himself, his erection pressing against my thigh.

He ran his hand through my hair and said, “Is this what you want?”

I nodded and gasped as he slowly entered me, and shockwaves sparked as he thrust farther. His thickness filled me completely when he pushed all the way in. My heart swelled, our two bodies connecting in the most intimate way.

He looked down at me, his eyes glazed in ecstasy. I tightened around him, and liquid heat bolted straight through me. I closed my eyes and enjoyed the moment. As he plunged in and out, I edged closer to the brink, my body trembling beneath his as release built between my thighs.

He kissed my neck, and his breath brushed heavily across my ear. “I love you.”

I wrapped my legs and arms around him. Even though he was inside me, I couldn’t get close enough. I needed to be closer to him. This felt more intimate than any other time I had been with him. We had been through so much crap and still made it out on the other side. I appreciated him more than I ever imagined I could back in high school. “I love you, too.”

A heat wave coursed through my body as pleasure zinged through every synapse. My body shook, and I squeezed my eyelids shut and enjoyed the pure bliss of the orgasm ripping through me. My head swam, colors—deep reds and blues—flashing across my eyelids.

His shallow breaths increased, and he let out a sexy growl before his thrusts turned erratic and he found his own release. His face pinched, and his brows knit together as he plowed into me harder. “Oh God, Payton.”

The way he said my name both melted my heart and sent me spiraling into another climax. Liquid heat rushed through my body, and I realized how much I needed him. He was my rock. He made me complete.

After we found our releases, he kissed my forehead and slid off the bed. My body molded into the mattress as I lay there completely sated. Blake came back a couple minutes later sans condom.

He collapsed beside me and wrapped me in his warm arms. With my body pressed against his warm chest, I decided, at that moment, life could not be any more perfect.

Chapter Twenty-Six

Blake

I ran my hands through Payton’s curls. She had some major sex hair going on, and it was pretty damn hot. Her eyes fluttered open, and she gave me a sleepy smile.

How could someone look so good when they first woke up? Especially after three rounds last night.

We had to stop after round two to get some Thanksgiving sustenance. Best Thanksgiving of my life. Frozen turkey pot pies that we fed to each other while watching Christmas movies. We cuddled on the couch and ate Jules’s Oreos until we were both up for round three.

“Morning, beautiful.”

She closed her eyes and took in a deep breath. She looked like she was savoring the moment. “Morning, handsome.”

She nestled her head in to my neck, and I kissed her forehead. If this wasn’t heaven, I didn’t want to go anywhere she wasn’t involved. Her body, warm and toasty, pressed against mine.

“What do you want to do today?” I kissed along the perimeter of her hairline and then worked my way down to her lips. She let out a soft moan as I kissed her. I maneuvered my body so it hovered above hers and left a trail of kisses down her neck to the swell of her breasts.

“I could think of something.”

She tugged at my boxers, pulling them down to expose my dick in all his morning glory. She spread her legs beneath me, and I lowered myself. Just as I was about to enter her, a noise came from the front of the apartment.

In one swift moment, I jumped off the bed, pulled up my boxers, which did little to hide the raging erection, and grabbed my jeans off the floor. Her roommate wasn’t supposed to be back until tomorrow, and I wasn’t about to beat some intruder to the ground with my wang hanging out.

“What are you doing?” Payton whisper yelled.

I zipped up my jeans and strode over to her bedroom door. “I’m going to see what’s out there.”

She nodded. Her hands fisted the comforter that she held up to her neck as she sat in bed.

When I opened the door to Payton’s bedroom, the front door hung wide open, a suitcase parked the middle of the hallway. I kicked the door shut and made my way to the kitchen, where Jules put something in her mouth, took a swig of water, and tipped her head back.

“You’re here early.”

Jules jumped, spraying water out of her mouth. “Shit, I didn’t know you were home. And maybe you should put a shirt on, cowboy.”

“Headache?”

She cocked her head. “Huh?”

“I saw you take medicine. Just wondering if you had a headache.”

“Oh, uh, yeah. The long drive always gets me.”

Damn
. She rivaled Payton when it came to lying. It wasn’t any of my business what she took, but if she wanted to be secretive, the kitchen probably wasn’t the best place.

Payton appeared in the doorway, dressed in sweats and a tank top that hugged every curve. It’d be so easy to push her back into the room and finish what we started, but I doubted she’d be down for having sex while her roommate was there.

Payton walked over to where I stood and wrapped her arm around my waist, her fingers tracing over my abs. “Weren’t you coming back tomorrow?”

“Had a fight with my parents. Decided to head out before I smothered them in their sleep.”

“Sorry. That sucks.” A moment of tense silence passed between them. “What are you up to today?”

“Unpacking. Maybe working on my O chem homework.” Jules eyed me and Payton and then said, “I’ll be in my room if you need me.” She grabbed her suitcase, took it to her room, and shut the door behind her.

Payton nodded and turned to me. “And what do you have planned for today?”

Now that our previous plans had been ruined? “Nothing. I’m all yours.”

“Good. I have somewhere I want to go.” She pulled an envelope out of the pocket of her sweats and handed it to me.

Otis Law and Associates.

Chapter Twenty-Seven

Payton

I sat in the waiting room of the posh office of Otis Law and Associates. Blake held my hand, stroking his thumb across my palm. If he hadn’t come with me, I doubted I would be here right now.

The cops had all the facts. My dad helped my mom horde enough morphine to overdose, and now he was going to spend a lot of time in that nine-by-nine cell. I didn’t know what I could possibly say to help my dad, but I was willing to try anything to limit his sentence.

A tall, lanky guy in a gray suit and a massive widow’s peak opened the door to a room on the other side of the waiting room. “Ms. Cooper?”

“Actually, it’s Ms. Daniels.” I shoved off the seat, strode over to who I assumed was Mr. Otis, and shook his hand.

“Jack Otis. Thanks for scheduling a meeting.”

“Sorry it’s taken me so long to call.” I pulled back my hand and crossed my arms over my chest.

He raised his brow, giving me the
no shit
look, but didn’t call me out. “What matters now is that you’re here. Please come in and take a seat.”

I pointed to Blake, who remained seated in the waiting room chair. “Can my boyfriend come in?” Was he my boyfriend? It felt right to call him that. That sounded much better than
my ex who I fought with, then made up with, and then made love to last night
. Yeah. Boyfriend it was.

“We’re going to be discussing some confidential information about the case. I’d much rather it be just the two of us.”

“It’s okay, Payton. I’ll be right here when you’re done.” Blake gave a lopsided grin that added a few coins to my dwindling confidence meter.

I nodded and entered Mr. Otis’s office. Stacks of files and coffee mugs littered his desk. A half-eaten sandwich that didn’t look like it was from this month was shoved into the corner between pictures of him with a pretty blonde and two kids.

“So, Ms. Daniels, I think you may be the one person who can get your dad’s sentence lightened.”

“How?”

“You were there around your mother’s time of death, correct?”

My throat immediately constricted as I thought about her chest rising and falling for the last time.
Push through this. For Dad.
“Yes.”

“Did she take the pills or did your dad force her to take them?”

I cleared my throat and stared at a coffee stain on the desk. “My dad was outside mowing the lawn when she took them. I was in my room reading. Dad finished mowing and went in to get a glass of water. When he went to check on my mom, she asked him to bring me in.”

“So there was no way your dad could have given your mom those pills?”

“Not unless someone else was mowing our lawn.”

He scribbled something on a yellow legal pad, his head nodding. “Perfect. And you’re willing to say that in court?”

“I guess.”
I guess?
I didn’t call to make an appointment two years too late just to give a half-assed answer. “I mean, yes. There won’t be a lot of people there, right?”

“Anyone can observe. There might be quite a few people, because this is a high-profile case. We can usher you out the back of the building if you’re worried about cameras.”

My stomach clenched, and bile rose in my throat. All those people would be there because they wanted to see my dad punished. Dad needed me, and, this time, I’d come through. “When do I need to be there?”

After my meeting with Mr. Otis, Blake took me to Fungs, a Chinese restaurant we used to go to all the time in high school.

“I’m really proud of you.”

I looked up from my chicken chow mein. “Why?”

“Because, a couple months ago, you wouldn’t even be okay with seeing your dad, and now you’re testifying for him. If that isn’t progress, I don’t know what is.”

I pointed my chopsticks at him. “Don’t get all sappy on me now.”

He grinned, his eyes crinkling in the corners. Maybe Mr. Otis was right—I could help get his sentence reduced. If Dad didn’t actually administer the morphine to Mom, then he couldn’t be charged with homicide. At most, he’d be looking at manslaughter, since he helped Mom horde pills.

The check came, and Blake handed me a fortune cookie. It was a tradition to read our fortune and add
in bed
to the end.

He cracked open the cookie, a smile breaking out across his face. “You’re going to love this one.” He cleared his throat and shot me a gaze that lit my blood on fire. “Tonight is your lucky night
in bed.
”

I swallowed hard. After the day I’d had, I definitely needed that. Splitting mine open, I stared at the fortune that I’d claim as my mantra for the next few weeks.

Conquer your fears, or they will conquer you.

“For your last assignment, you’ll need to prepare a two-minute speech about one of these topics.” Dr. Centafont pointed to the screen with ten topics listed. “The sign-up sheet is at the back of the room. Once a category is taken, it’s gone.”

I worked my way to the back of the classroom and stood in line, waiting to sign up. After Jules marked her name under nursing home abuse, she handed me a pen and walked back to her seat. I moved up to the table and scanned the list. Should I take the easy way out and prepare a speech on elderly care, too? I stared at the open slot under assisted suicide. How many times in the last couple years had I copped out? Would I just sit back and let all these people continue to think my dad was a monster?

You can do all that redemption crap when you’re accepted into med school.

My pen hovered over the open slot for elderly care.

Easy way out
.
You’re better than that.

My pen crossed over the page, underneath the assisted suicide slot. It wasn’t like I needed to admit who I was. I could defend him without everyone knowing our relation.

“Yo, Payton. Paint’s peeling. Pick one already.” Andrew huffed out a sigh and crossed his arms over his chest.

Ass.

I quickly scribbled my name under the assisted suicide slot before I could chicken out and shoved the pen at Andrew as I walked back to my seat.

As Dr. Centafont wrapped up class, he said, “The debate will be on the last day of class. Class is cancelled next week. I’ll be attending the Cooper trial.”

My pulse flatlined.
No
.

No, no, no.
That wasn’t part of the plan.

I took a deep breath through my nose and tried to push my heart out of my throat. It was one thing to defend my dad anonymously in class, without everyone knowing my identity, but I’d be front and center in court when I gave my testimony. No hiding. No Drexler med school.

Blake rubbed my back. “Everything’ll be fine.”

Good one, Blake. Far from it.
“Yeah.” I pulled out my cell and clicked on my Facebook app. Anything to keep from concentrating on the fact that Dr. Centafont would find out who I was.

After he dismissed the class, I skipped anthro and headed home. I couldn’t concentrate on the Zulu tribe when my med school acceptance hinged on Dad’s trial. One
no
from the admissions board and,
poof,
no Drexler.

When classes ended on Wednesday, I stopped home for a quick snack and running sesh before the internship. I still didn’t know how to avoid Dr. Centafont, and the thought of him finding out my identity chipped away at my resolve to testify in the trial. I mean, how much of a difference could my statement make?

I unlocked the front door and went in the kitchen to look for my energy bars.

“Did you eat the last of my Luna Bars? I need to scarf something down before my run,” I shouted, rummaging through the cupboard.

Jules didn’t answer me, but I knew she was home. Her car was in our spot.

“Jules?”

Muffled sniffling came through her closed door.

I knocked on the door. “Jules? What are you doing in there, skank?”

She didn’t answer. Inner alarm bells sounded.
Danger, danger.
Jules wasn’t the emo, lock-myself-in-my-room-and-write-bad-poetry type, so what the hell?

I tried the handle, and when I found it unlocked, I pushed open the door. Jules was throwing clothes into her suitcase, tears streaking down her face. Rushing to her, I pulled her into a hug.

“What’s the matter? What happened?”

She tore away from me and continued frantically packing, the clothes spilling over the side of the suitcase. “I need to go.”

“Where?”

“My parents are going to be here any minute. They’re sending me away.”

What? Why were her parents sending her away? What had she done? “What do you mean?”

“They gave me an ultimatum. Either I clean up or bye-bye college money.”

My heart turned to lead, plunking down my chest and ripping through my stomach. “Like rehab?”

“Yeah.”

How could I dismiss all the warning signs? Sure, they were subtle, but I wasn’t stupid. For God’s sake, I just assumed she’d stop when I flushed those damn pills down the toilet.

“How long will you be gone?”

“I don’t know. My parents talked to all my professors. They’ve given me extensions.”

I could have prevented this. If I hadn’t been so absorbed with all my stupid problems, I could have helped her. But I missed the signs. I let her down. “Jules.” She looked up from her suitcase, her lip quivering. “I’m so sorry.”

She opened her mouth to say something, but someone burst through the front door.

“Jules, are you ready?” Jules’s dad stood in the doorway, his hand sifting through his gray hair. “Hello, Payton. Sorry to be seeing you on these terms.”

“Hi, Mr. Carmichael.” This was my fault. If I had said something sooner, if I had gone to her parents, she wouldn’t be in this situation. I knew something felt off right before she left for Thanksgiving break. I shouldn’t have ignored it.

“Come on, Jules. Your mother’s waiting in the car.”

“I’ll be right there, Dad.” Jules stared down at her shoes. I had never seen her like this before. When did this happen? How did it escalate so quickly? I swore it was just yesterday that we were laughing over something stupid Dr. Centafont said while drinking lattes, and now she was an addict. Going to rehab. I caught the sob before it left my throat.

Mr. Carmichael patted the doorframe, and Jules let out a loud sigh when the front door closed. She zipped up her suitcase and sat down on the bed. What was I supposed to say to her? Nothing I said would make it better. She was going to rehab, and it was my fault. If I had just seen the signs. Checked to make sure she was okay. Something.
Anything.
But I didn’t.

“I’m so sorry, Jules.” I pulled her into a hug, and her tears soaked through my shirt. She let out a few muffled sobs and backed away.

“I’m going to miss you.” A million tiny syringes stabbed my heart. How would I survive without her for—god, I didn’t even know how long she’d be gone.

My eyes burned, and tears streamed down my cheeks. “Me, too.”

A car horn blared through the window, and Jules jumped up quickly. She wiped her eyes with her sleeve and gave a weak smile. “I’d better get going. I’ll call you as soon as I’m able to. They’re going to take my phone, so I don’t know when that’ll be.”

I pulled her into one last hug. “Okay. I love you. Be strong.”

And with that, she grabbed her suitcase and walked out of the apartment. The door slammed shut, and I slid down the wall, curling into a tight ball.

I had failed my best friend. If I hadn’t been so focused on my own shit, totally neglecting her, she might not be in this situation. Worse, if I was this blind to my friend’s problems, how could I deal with other people’s as a career?

How would she ever forgive me? How would I forgive myself?

My phone alarm blared a few hours later while I still lay curled up in the corner of Jules’s room. I looked at my phone, the alert a reminder to get ready for my internship. Lucky for me, my tear supply was fully depleted. I rubbed my itchy eyes and pushed off the floor.

After pulling on slacks and a dress shirt, I walked to my car. I miraculously made it to the hospital parking lot fifteen minutes later, having no recollection of driving.

Maneuvering through the hospital, I was just about to walk through the ICU wing when Dr. Centafont pressed the button on the wall, opening the automatic door.

“Payton, how are you doing tonight?”

Crappy? Feel like crawling into a hole and dying? Maybe put myself in a carb coma later when I get home?
“Fine. And you?”

“Good. Looking forward to the trial.” He grinned and fiddled with a clipboard in his hand.

A strangled cry blew past my lips, and I tried to cover it up with an awkward laugh. On Friday, he would know my real identity. Bye-bye, Drexler med school.

“I just wanted to say how impressed I am with your work ethic. Brittany raves about how hard you work and your ability to establish good relationships with patients.” He knocked my shoulder with a folded-up paper. “Keep up the great work.”

“Thanks.” My cheeks heated. I’d never liked compliments. They always made me feel uncomfortable, like somehow they were just trying to be nice and not meaning what they said. Plus, he wouldn’t feel the same way about me come Friday. “I was actually just going to visit Mrs. Cripps really quick.” Her spunky attitude was a much-needed pick-me-up.

He frowned. “I’m afraid she passed away earlier this evening.”

My thoughts muddled, the world turning topsy-turvy. I braced against the wall to support my buckling knees. “What?”

“She went peacefully in her sleep.”

No.
I didn’t even get to say good-bye.

“Oh.” Tears built up in the corners of my eyes.
Do not cry.
I flinched to keep them from spilling over. I about lost it at the thought of Mrs. Cripps telling me this would cause wrinkles.

“Losing a patient is one of the hardest parts of this job.” He put a hand on my shoulder. “Let me know if you need anything.”

I nodded, biting the inside of my cheek.

As he walked off, a shot of terror bolted through my body. I wanted to be a doctor more than anything, to work with a million Mrs. Cripps’s. But my chances at my top-choice college were fading away. Would I even be able to show my face here next week? Everyone would look at me differently once they found out who I really was.