I wipe away the rain sliding down my neck. “I’ll figure it out.”
The man exhales slowly. “Do you have somewhere safe to go tonight?”
“Yes,” I blurt the lie of the century.
He shakes his head like he doesn’t believe me.
“Come on. There’s a hotel on the next block.” The man grabs my duffel. “I’ll walk you there.”
“No, I?—”
“I’m not leaving you here alone, hurt, and lying on the sidewalk in the rain.” His tone says he won’t take no for an answer. “I can’t.”
“Why?”
He closes his eyes. “Trust me. I just can’t.”
The way he insists, I should be bristling. I don’t like being told what to do. But something inside me unclenches. Just a little.
“What’s your name?” he asks with an air of authority.
I consider lying. I also don’t like my name. All the teasing I got growing up left me triggered. Scarlett O’Hara, the Scarlett Letter. Then, when I got to medical school, it got worse in a different way.
I’m Scarlett Ford.DeanBradley Ford’s daughter.
The weight of everything ahead of me and the expectations are only harder because I’m a Ford.
“Hello?” The man waves at me.
“Scarlett.”
“Last name?”
“Just Scarlett.” Too many people know my father. And Pierce.
“Okay,Just Scarlett.” He helps me up to my feet, butmy legs go soft, and I fall against his chest.
“Sorry,” I mutter into the rich leather of his coat, also getting wet.
We hold each other’s stare for a moment. Being this close, I’m glad I showered before I left the EMS station.
“What’syourname?” I ask.
He freezes and blinks. “Cormac.”
“Thank you for helping me, Cormac.” I didn’t give him my last name, so I’m not surprised he didn’t give me his.
“Of course. Can you walk, Scarlett, or do you need to be carried?” he asks with a hint of mischief in his voice.
I flush at the thought. “I was walking fine until your taxi ran into me, Cormac.”
He smiles. “Humor. That’s a good cognitive sign.”
Cognitive… Is he a first responder, too?
His height and the way his biceps bulge through the leather, I’m thinking fireman. God knows I feel the heat.
“This way.” He slings my duffel over his shoulder and steers me onto the sidewalk, away from cars speeding into puddles.