Mack (King #4)(7)

For Christ’s sake, get a hold of yourself, Ted.





CHAPTER FIVE





Once I got home and calmed my jittery nerves (with the aid of a greasy jalape?o cheeseburger and fries, due to still feeling like I had years of culinary deprivation to make up for), I thought the worst was over. With some comforting junk food in my belly, I would begin the process of dissecting the events and identifying the catalyst for my new mental state.

But as I sat on my balcony, bundled in a warm purple sweater and scarf, my mind simply wouldn’t settle. I thought about calling Sue, one of my best friends (who hadn’t slept with my ex), but she was at some librarian convention in Minnesota. I tried Melody, my other best friend, also a non-backstabbing-whore to the best of my knowledge—but it went into her voicemail. I didn’t leave a message, of course. What could I possibly say? “Hi. It’s the new me. Crazy, hungry, and with real emotions versus the fake ones you’ve come to know and love over the years.” Best to tackle all that another day.

I leaned back in my red Adirondack chair and felt the cold night wind picking up. I suddenly felt a dark heaviness in the air, like a cosmic storm brewing just for me. Was it a sign of things to come? Probably. I was already chomping at the bit to get back into that room again and listen to the sound of that hypnotically deep voice, feeling my toes clench and my pulse accelerate.

I craved it. Yes, more than fake cheese.

As soon as I arrived at the center Monday morning, I asked Shannon to block out my entire day. I would lie to myself and say it was best to give Mack as much time as he needed to talk.

“Are you sure?” Shannon asked, sitting behind her immaculately organized desk right outside my office. “Because you have Doctors Cole and Snow scheduled back-to-back for their one-on-ones.”

“I’m sure. I have to see a patient of Dr. Wilson’s.”

Shannon gave me one of her passive-aggressive smiles. She didn’t like my request, and this time I was quick to pick up on her emotion: Irritation.

This is what I’ve been missing? The world was so much easier to navigate when you understood what people were subtly saying with their eyes or body language.

“I know you worked hard to schedule everything, Shannon. I’m so sorry. But the patient really needs someone to listen to him. I don’t think anyone ever has.”

Shannon’s eyes softened a bit.

Sympathy. That’s sympathy! I mentally patted myself on the back.

“You’re right, Dr. V, he probably needs you more than the other doctors do.”

“Thank you for understanding, Shannon. And…Dr. V?” I lifted a brow.

She shrugged. “Your last name is kinda long. Hope you don’t mind.”

“Dr. V” made me think of Dr. Vagina or Dr. Viagra or Dr. Vaseline or…

Why am I thinking about that?

“Let’s stick to Valentine.” It sounded more appropriate and, frankly, it had always helped soften my cardboard-like image.

“Okay,” she said with a quick shrug. “Good luck with John Doe.”

I was about to tell her his name, but I found myself wanting to keep it to myself, like some strange coveted gem that belonged only to me.

Damn, next I’ll be sitting in a swamp, wearing a ratty thong and petting a ring.

“Thanks.” I grabbed my notebook and headed straight for my delicious cosmic storm, not bothering to batten down the hatches. I wanted to feel every drop of stinging rain, every gust of wind, and hear every bolt of deafening thunder. I’d never been more excited in my life for anything.

Or anyone.

~~~

I knew I wasn’t the only person in contact with Mack at the center. After all, the man was brought three meals a day and the janitorial staff cleaned his room—trash, clean sheets, and towels, etc. But when I approached his door and heard a soft voice on the other side, it instantly struck me as…well, it made me cranky, frankly.

He’s mine.

I mentally jerked back from my reaction, pressing my hands to my mouth. Holy shit. What was that? I had never felt possessive of anyone. Not once.

I shook it off and reached for the door, but as I did, it opened and out walked a short and extremely thin blonde woman in very tight red pants.

She stopped inches from my face with a gasp, almost plowing into me.

“Who are you?” I asked. She wasn’t staff, and she had no visitor’s badge.

She looked me over as if I were a piece of gum stuck to the bottom of her zebra-striped heels. She then stepped around me and started walking away without so much as a word.

“Excuse me, but I asked you a question.” As I spoke, the strangest, vilest sort of hatred began bubbling out of me. Yes, I hated the woman. And it wasn’t because she’d just dismissed me.

“Keep on going, then, sweetheart…” I growled, wanting to rip her teased blonde hair from the roots, while I watched her disappear out of sight down the hall.

Whoa. This is too much. I gathered myself with a few quick breaths and then turned the handle and stepped inside the dark twelve-by-twelve room. The institutional beige curtains were pulled shut, and the bathroom door to the side of the room, opposite the twin bed, was closed tight, creating a cave-like feel.

As expected, Mack’s menacing frame sat in the corner. He was so still that he could easily be mistaken for a statue.