Doctor's Delight (19 page)

Susie looked
hard at her while Maxie rolled her eyes.

Cherry
shrugged. “Okay. A little. Just a little.”

“You were
looking down at yourself in a not-friendly fashion,” Maxie stated
bluntly.

“Do we really
have to talk about this?”

“Yes.” Susie
drained the last of her iced tea and smacked the glass sharply down
on the table.

Cherry
flinched, half expecting it to break, but miraculously the glass
stayed in one piece.

“Repeat after
me,” Susie said. “I am beautiful.”

“Oh,
really—”

“I am
beautiful.”

“For crying out
loud—”

“I am
beautiful.”

“I am not going
to repeat anything.”

“Then I’ll
stand up and yell it out and point to you.”

“I am not going
to—” Cherry stumbled to a halt and grabbed Susie’s hand as she
started to push upright. Knowing her friend had no shame, she
hissed, “Okay okay! I am beautiful.”

Maxie
smirked.

“I am
luscious,” Susie continued.

“Oh, for—”
Cherry grabbed her hand again as Susie started to push upright
again. “I am luscious. Happy?”

“Exceedingly. I
am sexy.”

“What? No-
shit, okay, I am sexy.”

“Me, too,”
Maxie chimed in. “Sexy as hell.”

“I deserve
every hot guy’s attention.”

“I am not going
to – I deserve every hot guy’s attention. Will you stop it?”

Susie smiled
slowly. “I deserve Rick’s attention.”

Cherry went
bright red.

“Say it.”

“I’m not
playing this ridiculous- sit down!”

Susie arched
one brow as she looked down at Cherry. “Say it.”

“I. Deserve.
Rick’s. Attention.” Every word came from between clenched
teeth.

Susie sat down
and smiled widely. “And lastly – Dr Hot Stuff is boinking me with
utter glee instead of Annabelle the Bitch.”

“If you make me
say that, I’m leaving right now,” Cherry threatened. “I mean
it.”

Susie laughed.
“I added that last bit for my own amusement.”

“Speaking of
bitches.” Maxie snickered.

“But you feel
better, right?” Susie’s eyes twinkled.

Cherry looked
from Susie to Maxie, and seeing the affection and laughter in their
faces, she felt the weight of Annabelle’s nasty insinuations lift
from her shoulders. There was no way she could remain down in her
emotions when her friends were trying so hard to make her feel
better.

She gave a
small grin and pointed at Susie. “You’re paying for my food and
drink.”

“Done.” Susie
leaned back in her chair and while the waitress set out Maxie and
Cherry’s orders. Once they were alone again, she said soberly, “You
can’t let people like Annabelle get to you, Cherry.”

“I know. I
don’t usually.” Picking up a hot chip, Cherry blew on it.

“You do,” Susie
replied bluntly.

“Okay, but not
all the time.”

“The ones who
don’t matter, you let them get to you. You’re a nice person. You
love animals, you’re nice to everyone, you’ll help anyone, and
people like you. You need to get over this weight issue you
have.”

“So speaks the
slim lady,” Cherry said dryly, having heard the same lecture many
times in the past.

Susie leaned
forward, her gaze intent. “I’m serious. You can’t let this weight
issue get between you and Rick.”

“Rick?” Cherry
raised her brows in surprise. “I thought you didn’t like him.”

“That was
before I knew he had the good sense to see you. Now I think he’s
great.”

“Oh, that is
such a relief. I can now boink him with an easy conscious.”

“Touch of
sarcasm there,” Maxie cooed.

Susie tapped
her fingertip on the table. “Rick likes you for who you are,
Cherry. He’s not interested in what society thinks is an ideal
woman. Don’t lose him because of your own hang-ups.”

“What makes you
the expert on Rick?”

The smile that
curved Susie’s lips was not comforting. Cherry’s eyes widened. She
looked at Maxie only to find her also staring at their friend with
big eyes.

“You didn’t—”
Cherry began, both horrified and fascinated at once.

“I had a little
investigation done by my cousin, who is a private investigator.”
Grabbing her oversized shoulder bag from under the table, Susie
drew a large envelope from it and proceeded to pull some
photographs from it, which she dually handed over accompanied by
explanations. “This is his mother, she’s a plumpy, right? His
sister is no light-weight. He loves them both very much and isn’t
ashamed of them. See that photo?” She handed over another glossy
picture. “He took his sister to the school dance when her date
ditched her.”

“So he’s a good
brother and son,” Maxie said, studying the photos over Cherry’s
shoulder. “So what does that prove?”

“A bit of his
background,” Susie replied. “His dad is a hottie, even given his
age.”

“Oh my God,”
Cherry groaned. “I can’t believe you did this!”

“I can,” Maxie
said.

“You’re my
friend,” Susie replied. “Of course I did it. I don’t intend to let
you ruin your life.”

“If Rick finds
out what you did, it’ll be ruined anyway,” Cherry answered.

“Just look at
the photos,” Susie continued blithely. “Admit it, his dad is hot,
his mum is plump. Turns out she always was, and the same for
him.”

“Tell me your
friend didn’t ask someone that.”

“He keeps his
contacts confidential.”

Cherry shook
her head, fascinated in spite of herself at this glimpse into
Rick’s life.

“His first
girlfriend—”

“Tell me you
don’t have her photo as well!”

“His first
girlfriend was slim,” Susie said. “No photos. But he’s had a few
girlfriends since then, and all of them have been of varying
builds. Slim and large, Cherry, slim and large.”

“I get it.” She
wasn’t sure what to think. Relief was a definite emotion, but…
“What was his last girlfriend like?”

“I’ll hit you
on the head with that bowl of chips in a minute,” Susie
threatened.

“Just
asking.”

“My
cousin—”

“The private
investigator,” Cherry said sardonically.

“—says that as
Rick got older, once he got past that first flush of raging teenage
hormones, his taste has been towards the larger female figure.”
Susie held up one finger. “But it never affected his choice of
girlfriend. If he was interested in a girl, be her large or not, he
dated her. But his friends said his eye was always for a larger
woman. He likes them voluptuous.”

“I can’t
believe you did this.” Shaking her head again, Cherry returned the
photos. “If he ever finds out, I’ll never live it down.”

“He won’t find
out.” Susie cheerfully tucked the photos back into the envelope and
replaced it in her shoulder bag. “I’m destroying these photos when
I get home.”

Maxie leaned
back on the booth. “I admire your mind, Susie, but sometimes you
scare me.”

Laughing, Susie
plucked a chip from Cherry’s bowl and bit into it. “Yummy.” Her
gaze transferred to Cherry. “And so is Rick. Feel better now?”

“To be honest
with you, I have no freaking idea how I feel.” Cherry drained the
Diet Coke from her glass, caught the eye of the waitress and
motioned with her glass and a hopeful smile. The waitress nodded
and came over. “Diet Coke, please, very large,” Cherry said. “An
iced tea, very small, for my friend.”

“Hey,” Susie
objected without rancour. “Make it a large.”

The waitress
nodded and left.

Cherry studied
Susie.

“So you see,”
Susie said, satisfaction oozing in her tone, “Rick is a genuine man
who cares little for society’s ideals.”

“Why is it so
important to you?”

Sobering, Susie
reached over and laid her hand atop Cherry’s. “Because you’re my
friend. Because you’ve come alive since seeing Rick. Because you
deserve every good thing that comes your way, and I don’t want your
insecurities to destroy any chance of happiness you have.”

“I was happy
before,” Cherry pointed out, touched with her friend’s concern.

“But wanting.
Wanting a man in her life, a chance for cuddling and kissing,
sharing your life. You have a chance and I’m not going to let you
blow it.”

Cherry didn’t
know whether to laugh or cry. She had to swallow the lump that rose
in her throat. Turning her hand over, she squeezed Susie’s hand.
True, her friend had gone way beyond the scope Cherry would have
done, but she’d meant well. And really, one had to admire Susie,
she was like a dog with a bone when it came to her friends’
happiness.

“Just remember
that when we get sued for interfering in privacy issues,” Maxie
added in amusement.

“No chance of
that,” Susie replied. “I’ve got it all covered.”

“Oh my God.”
Cherry squeezed her eyes shut and rubbed the bridge of her nose,
apprehension setting in. “What’d you do?”

“Nothing! Geez,
have faith. It was a job done by my cousin, who is very discreet,
and whom I happen to have a huge hold over.”

This wasn’t
getting any better. Cherry peeked at her over her fingers. “You
blackmailed your cousin?”

“You call it
blackmail, I call it compromise.” Susie’s smile was all teeth. “I
know things he doesn’t want a certain someone in his life to
know.”

“I’ve just seen
a whole new side to you,” Maxie observed.

“Am I still one
of your bridesmaids?”

“Hell, yes.
Could you get your cousin to investigate my future in-laws?”

Cherry
groaned.

Susie
laughed.

Watching her
friends trade banter, Cherry knew she was lucky to have them. While
she couldn’t condone what Susie had done, she had to admit that she
did feel a little better knowing that Rick had dated larger women
in his past. It made her feel a little safer, a little more certain
of his attraction to her not being a passing phase.

But she still
held some deep-seated fears. A lifetime of being judged on
appearance wasn’t about to be fixed by a few photos.

A few hours
later when she was relaxing at home, there came a knock at the
door. Opening it, she found herself faced with a bouquet of red
roses and a smiling florist.

“Delivery for
Cherry Williams,” the florist announced.

“That’s me.”
Cherry took the flowers. “Are you sure they’re for me?”

“Absolutely.”
The florist winked at her. “Lucky woman.”

Cherry watched
her drive away before she took the flowers inside. Laying them on
the table, she searched for a card while wondering why her parents
would send flowers when it wasn’t even her birthday.

Taking the
little envelope attached to the flowers, she withdrew the petite
card and read it. Incredulous, she re-read the card. Her heart
started to flutter, and she actually placed a hand on her
stomach.

The roses were
from Rick. The card had his no-nonsense script. It read:

Roses are
Red

Cherries are
sweet

I know which I
prefer

In-between
my sheets
.

She started to
laugh. The roses were beautiful, the verse corny, and it was the
most romantic thing to have ever happened to her.

Frizz looked up
at her from the floor and meowed.

Cherry went to
the cupboard and pulled down a vase. “The Annabelle’s of this world
can take a short dive off a long cliff, Frizz. I’m not letting her
spoil my time with Rick.”

Picking up the
phone, she realized that she didn’t have his phone number. To call
him at his surgery wasn’t something she’d even contemplate, and
there was no way she’d call the hospital and get his private
number. With a sigh, she put down the phone. She’d have to wait for
him to contact her.

The rest of the
day was spent alternating between doing the housework and admiring
the roses, and thinking of Rick.

When the phone
finally rang in the late afternoon, she answered it eagerly.
“Hello?”

“Is that my
luscious Cherry?” Rick’s warm tones seemed to swirl through the
phone and down her nerves, tingling her in places she’d only felt
since she’d been with him.

“It is. Thank
you for the roses, they’re beautiful.” Smiling, she sat down in the
armchair and twirled the line around her finger.

“I’m glad you
like them.” Amusement was evident, even though she couldn’t see his
face. “Did you appreciate my poetical effort?”

“Oh, very
much.” She laughed. “Touched me deep down.”

“Keep that
thought.” His tone turned husky. “It’s where I’ll be touching
you.”

A flush went
right through her, starting from her head and sweeping to her toes,
and tickling every delicious nerve in-between. “Umm…”

His laugh was
husky. “Speechless, love?”

“Apparently.”
She grinned goofily at Sugar, who regarded her in boredom before
closing her eyes again.

“But I can make
you scream.”

“Not
words.”

“My name.”

Cherry shifted
in the armchair, mentally fanning herself, then remembering that he
couldn’t see her, she lifted her hand and fanned her face. “So sure
of yourself.”

“I’ve heard
you.” His tone dropped, growing deeper, huskier, a sensual lilt in
it. “I’ve heard you scream my name when I’m deep inside you. I’ve
felt your wet heat around me, the tight clasp of your secrets
around my shaft. I’ve felt your body tremble in my arms. I’m very
sure of you, love.”

Feeling like
she was floundering in a sea of hot tides, Cherry blinked and
struggled to say something witty. Anything. Anything at all. All
she could manage was a croaked, “Well…”

“I just bet
your cheeks are red right now.” Rick’s voice was a soft growl in
her ears that made goose bumps spring deliciously over her arms. “I
bet those little nipples I like to suck are hard and peaking
against your blouse. Am I right, Cherry?”