Total pages in book: 117
Estimated words: 115186 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 576(@200wpm)___ 461(@250wpm)___ 384(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 115186 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 576(@200wpm)___ 461(@250wpm)___ 384(@300wpm)
Good. Her office wasn’t big enough for both men’s egos.
Roger wedged himself into the gap, jutting out his hand. “Let me introduce myself. I’m Roger Smith, owner of this center. I see you picked a good therapist to work with.”
What? Did an actual compliment pass Roger’s lips? Maddie didn’t think it was possible.
She waited for Roger to self-combust from his attempt at being nice. It had to be a struggle.
Without bothering to get up, Romeo twisted around to squeeze Roger’s offered hand. Hard.
Roger’s slight wince almost made her smile, but Maddie knew better than to let him see her enjoying his discomfort.
But… Was Romeo so damn astute that he already figured out what her problem was at work? Or more like who was her problem?
That couldn’t be possible. Maybe he was only testing the waters.
When Romeo finally released Roger’s hand, her boss pulled it into his chest with a frown. “So, what injury brings you here? What sports do you play?”
Romeo stared at the intruder.
Some people rubbed you the wrong way the second you met them. Roger Smith was a damn good example of that.
Did the owner greet all new patients? Or was he particularly interested in Maddie’s?
Was he her problem? Was he harassing her for sex?
Was he fucking touching her without permission? Did the fucker not know how to take “no” for an answer?
His jaw tightened and shifted. He forced himself to remain seated and not launch himself at the guy simply because of a gut feeling. If he ended up behind bars for knocking out a guy possibly innocent, he couldn’t help Maddie with her problem.
“All kinds, Roger. Like to keep in shape, so I work out a lot. Love to wrestle.” Naked. “Play a little ball.” Especially with the ones hanging between his legs.
“A little B-ball?”
“Didn’t say that, Roge. Shouldn’t assume I play basketball ‘cause I’m Black.”
Ol’ Roger paled at Romeo calling him out for a stereotype. Hopefully, his asshole was puckered, too.
“Prefer golf. A bit of tennis. Some pickleball.” How the fuck did he even say that shit with a straight face? He deserved one of those gold statues they gave movie stars.
“You sound like a well-rounded athlete, then,” Smith murmured.
“Ain’t an Olympian, but I’ll admit I like to have a bit of fun.” With women. And currently with one in particular.
Smith clapped his hands together once. “All right, well… It was nice meeting you…”
When Maddie’s boss left that hanging, Romeo supplied, “Mr. Carter.”
“Mr. Carter,” Smith echoed. “I’m sure Mad here will take good care of you. She’s one of our best.”
When he heard a noise come from Maddie, Romeo glanced at her, missing the moment Smith ducked out and closed the door.
“He fuckin’ calls you Mad?” he just about bellowed. Somehow, he managed to keep it at a non-deafening level.
She sighed. “I’ve asked him not to, but…”
“He touchin’ you?” Unfortunately, that came out a little louder. He wondered about the thickness of the office walls. Smith could be a nosy fucker and have his ear plastered to the door.
“What? No. Why would you think that?”
Her look of disgust told him she wasn’t lying. So, being sexually harassed by her boss might not be the problem.
“Assholes like him tend to think they can do whatever the fuck they want.”
Her eyebrows rose and she gave him a pointed look. “Oh, really? I wonder why you’d think that?”
“Might be a lotta damn things, but never had to force myself on a woman.” And never would.
“Not when you have sweet butts at your beck and call.”
His spine tightened with what she was insinuating. “Nothin’ to do with sweet butts. Ain’t ugly. Ain’t stupid. Got a pretty fuckin’ impressive dick. Got more positives than negatives.”
When she dropped her head to hide her face with her hair, her body shook. Was she laughing at that?
“You sure didn’t have a problem gettin’ naked with me.”
“It was only a test drive. I wasn’t looking to buy.”
“Again, you got fuckin’ jokes.” She needed to reevaluate her comedic material.
“Oh, you giving me a short list of your attributes wasn’t supposed to be amusing?”
“Heard no complaints when my dick was splittin’ your pussy in two last night.”
It only took a fraction of a second for her cheeks to bloom red. Now the tables were turned, and he was the one amused.
She glanced at the door in panic.
He peered over his shoulder to make sure her boss hadn’t poked his head in again.
Maddie sighed. “All right. Can we end this farce now?”
“Gonna tell me what’s stressin’ you the fuck out?”
She hesitated, but only for a second. “I don’t need you getting involved, Romeo. It’ll only create more issues.”
“Might be able to solve them for you.”
“Not without making a bigger mess.”
“Maddie…”
“No, Romeo. I don’t belong to you. I don’t belong to the Knights. It isn’t your job to step in.” She pushed off her desk and grabbed the clipboard. “I’ll walk you out. You can tell Maribeth that… Actually, I don’t care what excuse you give, just come up with one on why you won’t be a patient here.”