Sawyer (Alluring Indulgence #7)(67)
Author: Nicole Edwards

Her coffee had gone cold by the time she heard the bells chime when the front door opened, so she grabbed her cup and stepped out of her office, heading down the hall and to the front, smiling at Olivia when she found her dropping her things at the front desk.

“Good mornin’,” Kennedy greeted.

“Oh, hey,” Olivia replied, glancing over her shoulder with a huge smile on her face.

“Did you have a good day off?”

“Yep. But probably not as good as you did, from what I hear.”

Kennedy stopped in her tracks, staring at her assistant, trying to figure out the meaning behind those words. Obviously her confused expression said enough because Olivia jumped into her explanation quickly.

“Word is that Sawyer Walker’s car was parked at your house this weekend.”

You have got to be kidding.

How the hell had that gotten around town so fast? Kennedy knew her face had turned beet red, but she couldn’t speak, not sure what she was supposed to say.

“Well, I promise, you won’t hear a peep out of me,” Olivia told her. “I’m happy for you, actually.”

“Why’s that?” Kennedy inquired, hoping to mask her surprise.

“Because . . .” Olivia glanced out the front doors into the parking lot before looking back at her. “Sawyer likes you, Kennedy.”

Well, she hoped he did. After what they’d done, it wouldn’t work for her if he didn’t, but she didn’t say as much.

“I thought you and Tim were gonna make it official there for a while,” Olivia said. “But that didn’t happen, for whatever reason.”

Kennedy could hear the inquisitiveness in Olivia’s tone and she understood it. Her relationship with Tim, which had lasted years longer than she’d ever thought it would, had fallen apart at the very end and Kennedy had refused to talk about it. With anyone. Not that she wanted to think about Tim now. He was a very nice guy and she didn’t have any regrets about the time they’d spent together, but after seeing him last night, she had no intention of going back. Truth was, over time, the chemistry between them had simply fizzled out. And Kennedy definitely couldn’t live without that sort of thing in a relationship.

Chemistry was the one thing she and Sawyer had. In spades.

“But seriously,” Olivia stated with a glowing grin, walking out from behind the reception desk. “Sawyer’s a good guy, no matter what the rumors say. I really think you need to give him a chance.”

“Did he pay you to say that?” Kennedy asked, acknowledging that her shock was showing, but she couldn’t help it.

Olivia snickered, her grin splitting her face. “No. And I wouldn’t take his money if he tried. I’m serious. I like him. But more importantly, I like him for you.”

Kennedy wasn’t sure what to say to that and she was grateful when a car pulled up into the lot. Their first appointment was there and right on time.

“I’m gonna grab some more coffee. I’ll meet Brendon in exam room one,” Kennedy informed Olivia before slipping down the hall.

Holy crap. She was breathing like she’d just sprinted a mile. Her worst fears had been realized and to think, it had only been one day since she’d given in to Sawyer. Now the rumors were starting, people mentioning that his car had been parked at her house. She was never going to live this down. As soon as he moved on, she was going to be talked about by everyone, but more than that, they would look at her with pity on their faces. Another one bites the dust, she could practically hear them saying already.

Shoving the thoughts to the far recesses of her mind, Kennedy made her way down the back hallway, choosing to come into the exam room through the employees-only door. She wasn’t sure she was going to be able to show her face in the waiting room knowing that everyone would probably know what had happened between her and Sawyer by the end of the day. She might not be able to show her face ever again.

Opening the door, she stepped into the room, noticing Scrap bouncing up and down on the floor. She immediately looked up, ready to greet Brendon, but she realized she wasn’t looking at Brendon.

“Jessie. Hey,” Kennedy said, surprised to see the other woman.

“Mornin’,” Jessie greeted. “Sorry, he’s a little hyper today.”

“No worries,” Kennedy said, grabbing Scrap’s file and setting it on the counter before squatting down beside the anxious little mutt. “How’re you doin’, boy?”

She was welcomed by a lick to her cheek as Scrap stood on his hind legs, resting his front paws on her knee. “He’s just here for shots, right?” Kennedy asked, snatching Scrap up in her arms and lifting him onto the exam table.