CHAPTER 6

-AVERY-

I WAS TOO stumped to do anything other than look at him and hoping he did not plan to make me more embarrassed than I already was.

"You remember-" I managed to croak.

"I do," he growled. "I remember everything."

I took a deep breath in and held my face up. "What are you going to do about it?"

The stunned look on his face was comical. "What am I going to do about it?" He asked. "What is there to do about it?" He countered. "I am here for my daughter, not for a measly sex fling that we had many years ago."

"Measly sex fling?" I gasped. That was all that was to him?

He ran his fingers through his hair and sighed. "I didn't mean it like that. Avery -"

"It's Doctor Avery to you-" I cut into him.

"Doctor Avery," he corrected. "What we had was not a measly sex fling, but you made it so when you ran away in the middle of the night."

"It would not have happened if I knew that you were married and had a daughter!" I snapped.

"I am not -" he closed his eyes. "I am not married." He said through clenched teeth.

"The sex was not all that, anyway," I muttered, walking to my chair. I hoped the lie did not sound as glaring as it was.

He scoffed. "Maybe we should do it again." He said in a tone that made my belly flutter nervously. I cleared my throat and effectively changed the subject, "I do not handle children, Mr Mancini."

"I can not think of anyone better than you," he said.

I pulled out a file from my drawer and flipped it open, "Here. This is a list of my colleagues who have a license to deal with children. I highly recommend -"

His hand covered mine gently, distracting me from what I was saying. "I want you, Avery."

His voice and touch made me ignore that he did not add the title to my name. "I want you."

I swallowed and looked up at him. His face was a few inches away from mine, and his cologne enveloped me. His grey eyes held me captive as his head inched lower.

I snatched my hand away and stumbled away, keeping a safe distance between us. "I was just about to leave the office, Mr Mancini." I held open the door for him.

He had a small smirk on his face as he walked past me.

"Come back to me if you need my recommendations on who can help Iris," I said to him, and then crouched to her eye level. "Everything will be alright, okay?"

She nodded. Her eyes wavered slightly as she looked at me.

"Come on, baby," Adriano said, extending his hand, which Iris took. "We will be coming to see the doctor again tomorrow."

What? "What?" My eyes went wide. "I will -"

"Thank you, Doctor Avery," He said. "Tell the doctor goodbye, baby." She waved at me as they walked out of my empty reception.

How possible was meeting someone for the first time and hating the person immensely?

I gritted my teeth and sat down heavily on the vinyl chair.

Maybe this was a good reason to relocate again. I could move without telling anyone, not even Emily, who had been too engrossed with her new fiancé that she did not have time for me, her best friend.

I took in a deep breath and immediately wished I hadn't because Adriano's scent filled my lungs, making me remember the way I felt when he touched my hand, and the night we spent together.

Groaning under my breath, I locked my office and got into my car. I was not feeling like staying alone at my apartment, so I bought food and headed to Emily's apartment.

She was not around, but I had a key, so I let myself in and put the food in the microwave. As I waited for her to return, I changed into some of her clothes; thankfully, we were almost the same size.

I made myself comfortable on the sofa, watching TV and glancing at the time as I waited for Emily to come back so we could eat. I wanted this to be a surprise; we could have a little girls' night together. But the night deepened, and still no sign of her.

Worried, I called her and she picked up on the second ring.

"Hello, Avery," she said. Her voice sounded out of breath.

"Where are you?" I asked.

"Where am I?"

"Yes, I am at your place," I said. "I've been waiting for you for hours."

"You didn't tell me you'd be coming, Avery," she said.

"I wanted it to be a surprise," I muttered.

"My fiancé already surprised me today, Avery," she said. "I am at his place now. You should have called and told me that you were coming -"

"It is fine, Emily," I said and hung up before she could say anything. I took out the food and curled myself on the sofa, eating angrily and feeling a wave of loneliness and depression wash over me. I scrolled through my phone until I came to Nick's number. In an impulsive moment, I texted him, "Hey Nick, I am open to a dinner date tomorrow." I sent it and switched off my phone before I could unsend the message.

I slept off on the sofa, tightly wrapped with a thick blanket and the TV still on.

***

I WOKE UP the following morning feeling a bit better. The slight loneliness and depression I had felt the night before were gone. I washed up and dressed formally in Emily's clothes. She still wasn't back.

I had a smile on my face. I hope my best friend was having mind-blowing sex with her fiancé. It was very selfish for me to be angry at her.

I grabbed a cup of hot coffee as I headed to my office. When I remembered the text I had sent to Nick, I was suddenly filled with regret. Should I text him and tell him that it was a mistake? Or that I was drunk when I sent it...

My thoughts were cut short when I approached my office building. There was a large truck parked on the road and blocking my way.

I got out of my car as a bulky man approached me. "Are you Doctor Avery Quinn?" He asked in a grunt.

I nodded. "Yes. What is going on?"

"We have a package for you," the man said.

"Is it from Nick?" I asked. He must have seen the text as my agreement to date him.

"Nick?" The bulky man asked, raising his eyebrow. "This isn't from any Nick, ma'am. This is from Mr Adriano Mancini."