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“This hospital doesn’t get very many channels, so someone please tell me that you watch supernatural, and fill me in on what Sam and Dean have been up to. I would so totally turn into an evil vampire just so I could get in a tangle with the two of them. ”
Ari’s tactic worked. Her words shocked everyone enough that they forgot all about what she’d said about Rafe.
“Well, Dean got into another pinch…”
Ari sat back as Lia caught her up on the adventures of the Winchester boys. The show was her one weakness. She had a thing for the sexy brothers. Who could blame her?
Chapter Twenty-Seven
“That’s four Kings. Read ‘em and weep!” Ari shouted as she did a victory wiggle on the bed and waived her arms.
Rafe’s body instantly hardened as her br**sts swayed and her face flushed. It had been a month since he’d felt her tight body grasping him while he was buried deep inside her. He was on edge and it seemed that even a small draft of air was making him turn solid these days.
“Oh, quit being a sore loser. You’re not concentrating at all today because I’m up about ten dollars,” Ari said with glee.
The comment pulled him from his sexual frustration. When he’d demanded that there had to be a prize when playing cards, she’d insisted on playing for nickels. The really funny part was that she actually got excited when she won a large jackpot of two dollars. What was even more comical was Rafe found himself excited to win, too. Somehow being in Ari's presence brought out the kid in him.
Ari was messing with his head and what frightened him most was the amount of joy he was finding in something as simple as playing games for a few hours. Never had he taken an afternoon off of work to play poker. He had to get her out of the hospital and into his bed.
“Are you going to silently brood all day about your loss or are you going to deal again?”
“Hasn’t anyone ever told you that patience is a virtue?”
“Once or twice. Now, deal. I’m on a winning streak,” she commanded as she rubbed her hands together.
Rafe found himself laughing as he shuffled the cards, not a fake humor-a-person laugh, but a real deep-from-the-gut one. She had a way of knocking him off his feet.
When he looked up, she was staring at him in wonder, her eyes dilated as they moved down to gaze at his lips. Just when his body had started to behave, she had to look at him like that. His erection came back full-force and more painful than ever.
“If you’re going to look at me with that come-hither expression, I’m going to forget that you’re injured and take you right now,” he warned as he began moving the table aside.
Her mouth opened in a shocked gasp, but she didn’t refuse him. Rafe stood up to shut and lock the door. He’d be gentle, he assured himself as he reached for the button on his pants.
“Knock, knock. Time to take your vitals. ”
Rafe nearly growled when the nurse walked in. He about told the woman to get the hell out, but caught himself at the last minute. Without turning back to look at Ari, he fled the room. His body was on fire and it looked like he wasn’t going to find relief anytime soon. He knew the moment was over and she’d be back on guard when he got back.
A stiff drink, or ten, was about all that would help him until he got her in private. He left the hospital, deciding it best not to come back for the rest of the night.
*****
“You’re doing much better today. The doctor said if your vitals remain stable, you can return home. ”
Ari glared at Rafe as he invited himself into her room. She’d been in the hospital for two weeks, and each day Rafe had been there. He’d been kind, considerate, played games with her, brought her amazing food, and treated her like royalty.
His hands were constantly touching her, rubbing her feet, brushing her arm, pushing back the strands of her hair. She was a mess, and this news was the greatest thing she’d ever heard. She had to get away from him before she did something stupid like sign the damn contract on one of his nightly partings.
“Good. I’m ready to go home. I can’t believe I still have a job after missing work for weeks, but I’m counting my blessings. I just want my life to return to normal. ”
“Of course you still have your job, Ari. Would your boss really fire the woman splashed all over the papers for assisting in taking down a killer?”
Rafe sat on the edge of her bed and she automatically scooted over, not wanting to be in contact with him. Each time their bodies brushed, heat surged through her, making her decision to resist him so much harder as more time passed.