“Pact. Bargain. Whatever you want to call it.”
“Oh, that. What about it?”
“Just because we went out doesn’t mean I’m ready for anything more than a casual relationship.”
“Okay.”
She waited but he said nothing else. “That’s it? Okay?”
“Our relationship or lack thereof is up to you.” He returned to eating his food. When he finished he asked, “Are you planning to eat the rest of your fries?”
She was talking about their relationship and he wanted to talk about french fries. “No, you can have them.”
“Thanks.” He scooped some off her plate onto his.
“If I want to take this slow, you’re good with that?”
He glanced up and smiled at her. “I’m good with whatever you want, Sierra. As long as you give me a chance.”
Give him a chance. That’s what she was doing, wasn’t it? His response was exactly what she’d wanted. So why was a tiny part of her disappointed that he didn’t at least argue about it?
But that disappointment was nothing compared to the one she got when he took her home. He drove to the apartments, parking in the garage, and walked her to her apartment. “Do you want to come in?” she asked.
“Rain check. Thanks for today.”
She smiled, waiting for him to kiss her good night. He smiled back, leaned down, and kissed her.
On the cheek.
*
Sierra and Connorworked together the next few days and Connor acted as if they’d never gone out together. He hadn’t even kissed her. Unless you counted that kiss on her cheek. Which she didn’t. All that did was make her remember kissing him that night in Las Vegas. Hot, endless kisses. What was he doing? Trying to drive her crazy? If so, it was working.
She’d been prepared to explain why she wanted to take it slow, not expecting him to push her about it, but she’d thought he’d at least make an argument that since they’d already been together there was no reason to wait any longer. She should be happy he was respecting her wishes. And she would have been if she hadn’t thought he had other reasons for not pushing. What they were, she didn’t know, but it sure as hell made her suspicious. Maybe he just wanted to tease her. He was sure as heck doing a good job of that.
She glanced at Connor, who, as usual, had his nose buried in a paperback, with the part he’d read doubled back over the part he hadn’t. No e-reader for him. “What are you reading?” she asked him through the helmet headphones.
“Huh? Oh.” He opened it up to show her the cover.Foundationby Isaac Asimov, she read.
“Science fiction? Really old science fiction?”
“I like science fiction. Old and new. The Foundation trilogy is a classic. Ever read it?”
“No. I’ve heard of it, of course, but science fiction is not my jam.”
“You should try it,” he said, and went back to reading.
She chuckled. Well, that put her in her place.
The patient they picked up in a very rural area of Montana, near the Absaroka mountains, was in bad shape when they reached him. It took both of them working frantically to get him back to the hospital alive. Along with an open fracture of his left femur, he arrested twice on the way, but they were able to resuscitate him both times.
“Think he’ll make it?” Sierra asked Connor after the hospital trauma staff took over.
He squeezed the bridge of his nose. “Maybe. I hope so.”
By unspoken agreement, they hung around for a while hoping for an update on their patient before they had another flight. Forty-five minutes later, Sean Gallagher, the ER doc they knew best, found them. Fortunately since they’d just gotten paged and were preparing to leave for the helicopter.
“Wyatt Gallagher is doing the surgery and Sam scrubbed in. She asked me to tell you two that they think he’ll make it. They can’t guarantee it, of course.”
