She wasn't waiting for him. She was simply enjoying her morning coffee, and the window she was staring out of just happened to overlook the parking lot where he always parked. She didn't purposely show up early, she had just been worried about traffic. She really wanted to impress her shift supervisor. It had nothing to do with him.
Until he roared into view. She heard the motorcycle before she saw him. She could feel the rumble from her toes all the way up her thighs, and she tingled slightly as she watched him. He swung his leg over the black and chrome body and pulled his helmet off. God he was good-looking – always with that three-days beard growth, slightly disheveled hair, jeans and his motorcycle jacket. No need to wear work clothes, since they all changed at the hospital, anyway.
And that wasn't a bad thing – he looked great in his greens, too. What was it about scrubs that were so sexy, she wondered to herself? Maybe it was because of the way they were designed - easy to remove, especially the pants – untie that drawstring at the waist and off they went. Or, it might be the fact that they were all the same – so she got pretty good at telling what was under them. His hung lose on his torso, tight on his arms and across his back. He must be so strong – just thinking about his arms around her gave her goosebumps. Just thinking about what filled out his pants made her temperature rise.
She knew his name was Hank... she'd sleuthed that out the day she first saw him.
They'd had a few brief conversations in the elevator, and one outside the ICU, waiting for a patient to arrive. She had walked up, and he was sitting down, palm to his forehead, shaking his head back and forth. "Hey, are you okay?" she asked. He hadn't noticed that she was standing in front of him.
He looked up at her and smiled. "Oh, yeah. Thanks. I just... well, my little brother is an idiot, that's all."
She laughed. "I have one of those, too. Not much you can do but let them make their own mistakes." He started to say something else, when the elevator opened and their patient was being wheeled towards them.
It had been a hard week, and she was happy to see it end. She was meeting friends after work, so she had changed in the locker room. She was in the parking lot, wearing satin capri pants and 4 inch heels, staring at a flat tire on the car she had received as a college graduation present. She heard the bike before she saw it, felt the rumble of the engine and she immediately knew who it was.
"Looks like you're slightly over-dressed to change a tire..." he said, laughing.
She rolled her eyes at him and said "Um, not exactly what I planning on doing just right now. I'm actually late to meet some friends."
"I can give you a lift if you'd like, but the helmet might mess up your hair. Wasn't it up earlier?" Her heart fluttered a little. It had been up in a bun, out of her face for work, but she had let it down, falling in soft waves around her shoulders, to go out. "Oh, it's just hair" she said blithely, grabbing the helmet from him. She sat behind him on the bike, and put her hands tentatively at his waist.
"Honey," he said, "You're going to have to get a little friendlier than that. Don't worry, I don't bite."
She laughed nervously, but what she really thought was,
I wouldn't mind a little biting
. She pressed herself right up against his back and held her arms tightly across his chest.
"Hold on tight," he said, and they took off.
It wasn't but a few minutes, and they pulled up in front of the club. "Thanks" she said, as she reluctantly removed her hands from around him, and slid off the side of the bike.
"It was my pleasure" he said smiling, and then drove off. Her friends were none-too-shy about demanding details as soon as she walked in.
"Whoa! Who's the hottie?"
"What's his name?"
"Where can I get one?"
She held her hands up in mock self-defense.
"Okay, okay, one at a time... His name is Hank. He's a doctor at my hospital. I don't know
him
very well, but his bike got very friendly with me."
They all laughed, and her friend Sarah said, "No fair – it's
my
birthday, but it looks like
you
got the gift!"
The next day, as she was waiting for AAA to come change her tire, she saw him drive by. Just the thought of him, and his vibrating ride, left her all-a-quiver. She'd heard of people hooking up in the supply closet, and she was wondering how she could drop the hint to him that she was DTF. Which would sound a little skanky, if she was to actually say it, so she would probably refrain from using those exact words... but she hoped he would utilize his ESP and pick up on the vibe.
He stepped into the elevator. She smiled at him, and said "Thanks for the ride the other day..."
He raised his eyebrows and smirked as he replied "I'll give you a ride any day, Nurse Dayna."
This must have been her lucky day – she decided to be bold. "Hmmmm, really? It just so happens I need a ride to the bar after work."
He smiled and said "I'll see you on the back of my bike at six..."
She was nervous. Maybe he hadn't meant it – it could have been just a flirty elevator comment. But she rolled the dice, re-applied her lipstick, and went out to the parking lot at 5:55. He sauntered out the door at 6:01 with the confidence she expected from a hot-shot surgeon. He grabbed her hand as he walked past her and said "Where to?"
"Um, On The Rocks?" she said. There certainly were bars located closer to the hospital, but that would afford her less time holding onto him.
"Let's hit it," he replied, and threw his leg over the back of his Triumph, pulling her with him.
It took seven delicious minutes to drive to the bar. Four hundred and twenty seconds of her arms around his chest and the power of ninety-five horses between her legs. She was smiling as she walked in beside him. The post-work crowd was a typical mix of suits, scrubs, and hipsters. There was one unoccupied high-top table in the corner, and they headed straight to it. Once they sat down, they were immediately greeted by a waiter.
"Yeah?" he asked. Dayna laughed. Hank ordered a whiskey, neat, and she ordered a Manhattan. Both men looked a little dubious at the choice, but neither said anything.
"So, " Hank said, "You
needed
a ride here? Are you meeting someone?" He started to look around.
Dayna smiled. "No... I just wanted to ride on your bike." And they both laughed. "Seriously, I wanted to thank you for giving me a ride the other day. It was birthday drinks for my friend Sarah, and I was already running late. I really appreciate it. So, this round's on me."
He smiled and shrugged his shoulders. "If you insist..."
She liked the fact he didn't argue, or act all macho about it. The waiter returned with their drinks as they were rehashing what had happened at the hospital earlier that day. He had spent most of the day working on a 17 year-old kid who came in with a gunshot wound to his face. She had spent hers in the NICU, working with critical care infants.
"I don't actually
love
how this drink tastes" she said, as she put the Manhattan up to her lips, "but they ALWAYS come with cherries." With that, she popped the stem in her mouth, and ten seconds later, plucked a neat little red knot off her tongue.
He started to laugh, as he said, "I've never actually seen anyone do that!"