“No, Declan, thank you for this. I had an amazing time, and you were right. This was fun. I’m glad you thought of it. Maybe next time, pick an activity where we don’t almost end up on our butts on ice.” She laughed.
“All right, I’ll come up with something good next time.” He smiled deep down at the thought that there would be a next time—the following Friday, in fact. He liked that thought. He really did.
Chapter 10
“How come you canceled our appointment this week?” Megan asked as she strolled into Declan’s office on Friday evening. He had seen her in business casual on several occasions, but today, she looked like a dream. She had a deep purple blouse on, but Declan didn’t really care about it all that much. It was the black pencil skirt and knee high boots that caught his attention. He knew he was probably ogling, but he couldn’t help it. She was a vision.
“Huh?” he asked, finally tramping down the thoughts in his head.
“Your secretary called me and told me we weren’t going to have an appointment this week.”
“Oh, yes, right.”
“Uh, why?”
“What’s the point of meeting with me?” Declan asked.
“To get better?” she answered more like a question.
“No, I mean why do you even come and talk to me?”
“You’re not really selling yourself there,” Megan smirked. “Are you implying there is no point to your therapy sessions, and all your patients are suckers?” The smile was still on her face.
“Oh, a smart aleck, huh? Alright. Fine, let me rephrase. You, personally, what is your purpose for seeing me?”
“To talk things through and figure out how to get out of my shell?” Again she responded like it was a question.
“Exactly! So, what are we doing today?”
“Going out.”
“Sounds like you’re getting out of your shell with me.”
“So, this is therapy?”
“Nope, this is us having fun, but it overwrites any appointments we’d have this week. Besides, I thought you might start getting sick of me. I mean, you saw me twice last week. You’ll see me for more than just an hour today…” he trailed off.
“I like hanging out with you,” Megan answered, a curious expression on her face as if she was surprised to realize that was true. “So, I won’t be getting sick of you just yet.”
Declan couldn’t help the smile that reached his face at this response. It warmed his heart, and he wasn’t even sure why, but he liked it. “Good. You ready? I have to warn you, my friends are kind of a lot to handle.”
“As ready as I’ll ever be,” she responded.
“Milady.” He gave a fake little bow before holding his arm out for her to take it.
She hesitated to take his arm, and he felt it deep inside, the hurt that she still wasn’t one hundred percent there with him. It had only been a few sessions, after all, but it felt like he had known her for much longer, and he had been hoping she felt the same way. He wondered briefly if he should pull back, wondering if he was crossing some unspoken line between therapist and patient. He knew he was probably crossing a thousand lines, but he reasoned it was for her benefit, to help her get used to contact, to get her familiar with a stranger as quickly as possible. If he could do that, then it was all worth it. He was lost in his own thoughts and only registered that she had indeed finally taken his arm when he felt her warmth through his shirt. He liked it. He liked it far too much to be considered appropriate. He could smell her perfume from his nearness. Vanilla and jasmine, and a touch of just her, same as the first day he met her. Her scent was intoxicating, but he couldn’t think about that.
“And you said you don’t do these kinds of things with your other patients?” Megan asked as they walked to his car.
“Nope.”
“Oh.” Her smile fell a bit.
“Wait, why? And why does that bother you?”
“I don’t want to be different,” she murmured.
“You’re not, Meg.” He stopped walking and turned so they were facing each other. Her eyes were downcast. He placed a finger under her chin, lifting lightly, forcing her face to tilt up and her eyes to look directly into his. He was vaguely aware that she hadn’t flinched, and it made him feel lighthearted, ecstatic even. “You’re not different, you’re not abnormal, and you’re not a freak or any other name I know you’re calling yourself in your head right now. You’re an amazing, wonderful, and special woman. This, right now, this isn’t a session, Meg. This is us being friends. This is me wanting to hang out with you, because I see something deep inside you, and I want to see it break free. I want to be witness to you spreading your wings and flying. This is you gracing me with that privilege.” It was only after he stopped speaking that he realized his eyes were searching the deep pools behind Megan’s, and it seemed she was doing the same. He noticed that her lips were slightly parted, and her chest was heaving, barely, but just enough for Declan to perceive. If he didn’t know any better, he would have thought his words had affected her the way she was affecting him. Impossible, he told himself. She was vulnerable and grasping onto any comfortable relationship she could find. The bastard that he was, he was taking that in stride. He was so far beyond the threshold of appropriate that he wouldn’t be able to find it even if he tried to step back over. He needed to try. “And, besides, you’re kind of fun when you want to be,” he continued, his words breaking through the fog that had settled over them.