Page 25 of Her Desire (Pulse Medical #3)

GIANNA

T here were a hundred other things Gianna should be doing on a Friday morning at Oakridge Hospital—reviewing rounds, checking on her post-ops, and preparing for surgery.

Not kissing Holly in the back of a supply closet that smelled vaguely like antiseptic and cardboard, with IV bags hanging overhead and boxes of latex gloves stacked on aluminum shelves.

They were one jostled elbow away from knocking over an entire stack of tongue depressors. Not that it mattered. Not when Holly was kissing her like that.

Gianna had one hand curled around the back of Holly’s neck, and the other, tangled in her scrub top.

“I can’t believe you dragged me in here,” she muttered and was just about to add in that she had rounds to get to, when Holly caught her mouth again, her lips warm, her tongue even hotter.

She tasted like morning coffee and cinnamon.

“You do realize,” Gianna murmured, pulling back slightly again, not enough to put more than an inch between them, but enough to get the words out, “that this is wildly unprofessional.”

“Only if someone were to catch us,” Holly murmured, her hands roaming down Gianna’s back to her hips. “And if they do, we can just pretend we were looking for something.”

Gianna laughed against her lips, savoring the softness of Holly.

It had only been two weeks since Holly had told her mother that she was gay, since Magda had apologized for reacting badly, and since they’d crossed the ferry and gone on their first official date.

But in that short time, everything had shifted.

They’d spent more time together than Gianna had imagined possible.

Dinners at her place out on the deck. Late-night conversations about everything and nothing.

Sleepovers at Holly’s where they’d fallen asleep tangled in each other.

Morning walks through the quiet streets before work, and lazy evenings, where sometimes, all they did was spoon on the couch.

And every day, Gianna couldn’t help feeling amazed—and sometimes a little nervous—about how right it felt.

How natural. How easy it was to be around Holly.

So much so that she could picture spending the rest of her life with Holly.

But that felt way too soon. She hadn’t even told Holly that she loved her yet—that she’d been in love with her since day one and how those fluttering feelings had evolved into something deeper, the kind that wasn’t as fragile as those first few sparks.

The kind that wasn’t just consuming or overwhelming.

The kind that was steady. An infinite kind of love.

“Are you still coming over tonight?” Gianna asked, breaking the kiss at the same time she overheard voices right outside the storage room. But if anyone was coming in, they weren’t doing that now. The voices disappeared and relief washed over her briefly.

It seemed Holly had heard them too because her grip on Gianna’s hips loosened slightly when she said, “Of course, I am. What should I bring?”

“Just yourself?—”

Before Gianna could finish her sentence, the sound of her beeper filled up the room.

Her stomach twisted instinctively, less so because she knew that it meant a sick or injured child needed her help, and more because she didn’t want to move away from Holly.

Not when her body was still humming from the kiss.

From Holly’s lips, her touch, knowing she’d been so close to slipping her hand into Holly’s pants.

“Looks like I’m needed,” Gianna muttered, reluctantly pulling away.

“There’s always an emergency somewhere.”

“Just be at my house tonight at seven and wear something nice,” Gianna said, already at the door. “And don’t be late.”

She didn’t wait for a reply as she slipped out of the storage closet. Her mind was already sprinting ahead of her, somewhere between the storage closet and tonight, where she hoped to finally say what had been living in her chest for far too long.

Everything had to be perfect.

Gianna had spent the last hour obsessing over the little details. This wasn’t just another dinner. It was the dinner. The one where she planned to confess her love for Holly.

The table was set up under the oak tree.

The fairy lights were still there, and she’d even dug some dirt away from the tree shade to plant California Lilacs—just like Holly had suggested.

A white cloth covered the table, fresh lavender sat in a vase and there were two plates, two glasses, and two sets of cutlery.

She walked back to the table and adjusted the napkins for the second time. Then, she checked to make sure the wicks of the candles were sufficiently long. Gianna didn’t want them too bright, but she also didn’t want them so dim it felt like they were eating in the darkness.

“Alright then,” she said, clapping her hands together. “Now all I need to do is put the garlic bread into the oven when Holly gets here and?—”

The doorbell rang.

Gianna snapped her head back to the house. “Shit,” she muttered under her breath, feeling uncharacteristically nervous.

But she’d been planning this moment for days, had imagined it a thousand times in her head, and now that it was happening, she wasn’t sure if she was ready.

What if it was too soon? What if Holly wasn’t on the same page as her?

After all, she was practically a newbie lesbian and Gianna had been the only woman she’d slept with and maybe, just maybe, she wanted to keep her options open, play the field, so to speak.

What if Gianna’s confession put Holly into a box she didn’t actually want to be in and she only felt like she had to reciprocate because it was the polite thing to do?

All those thoughts hit her like a ton of bricks and her mouth went dry and her hands clammy.

She smoothed them over her black jeans and considered running her tongue under the tap.

But deep inside, Gianna knew that none of those scenarios were true.

She and Holly shared something real, something that had grown between them, not just over the last few weeks, but through other moments over the last years—stolen glances, stomach-aching laughs, hugs and conversations, and small, lingering touches.

Again, the doorbell rang, and with it, Holly’s voice shot through the room. “G! Are you in there? I thought you said I had to be here at seven pm sharp. Well, it’s seven pm, and you seem to be the one who’s late.”

“Coming!” she called and walked up the steps leading onto the deck.

By the time Gianna unlocked the front door, she was feeling slightly calmer, and less nervous.

But that all changed again when the door flung open, and Holly stepped in wearing a soft rose-pink dress with nude wedges.

Her hair was up, sleek, and parted in the middle and she wore a delicate gold chain around her neck.

“Wow, you look amazing,” Gianna blurted, not caring that she was practically gawking.

“So do you,” Holly replied, beaming. She kissed Gianna on the cheek, her hand smoothing down her arm.

“But then again, you always look amazing.” She headed toward the living room, her dress sashaying behind her.

“So, tell me, G, what’s the reason I couldn’t show up here in my sweats and hoodie like every other night? Are we celebrating something?”

“Just thought we could change things up,” Gianna said, feeling her cheeks warm to the point where she had to look away.

She spun around to the kitchen counter where the bottle of red wine she bought especially for tonight—a Chateau Margaux imported from France and sold in the local wine boutique—stood.

She fumbled with the corkscrew lying beside it.

“Why don’t you go outside, and I’ll meet you in a second. ”

Holly didn’t immediately head out to the garden. Instead, she lingered in the living room, giving Gianna a quizzical look as if she wasn’t sure whether or not to ask her if something was going on. “Alright then,” she said finally, “I’ll see you out there.”

Gianna waited until she was alone in the kitchen before she twisted the corkscrew into the bottle of red. She was nervous. Hell, she was way more than just that. A thousand wings were flapping in her stomach and there was no way for them to get out.

As the bottle gave that satisfying pop, Gianna closed her eyes for a moment, just to steady herself. “You can do this,” she muttered. “It’s easy. Just tell her how you feel. The worst that can happen is she doesn’t say anything at all.”

But the thought did the opposite of calm her. On top of the nerves in her belly, she was feeling a twinge of nausea. Great. Just fucking great.

Shrugging it off, or at least trying to, Gianna walked out onto the deck, the early evening air warm and still.

“You’ve really outdone yourself,” Holly said once Gianna reached the table. “I’m not sure what I’ve done to deserve this, but I’ll take it.”

“It’s nothing really.”

“It’s definitely something.” She pointed to the rolled-up earth. “Are you planting the California lilacs there? I think that’s a great spot. Even my mother would approve.”

“Well, that’s one way to get her approval.

” Gianna poured the wine carefully, trying to keep her hands from shaking.

“Look,” she began, slipping into her seat.

Initially, she’d planned on telling Holly how she felt after the main course were served, but it couldn’t wait.

She might explode from the stress if she didn’t get this off her chest that very minute. “There’s something I want to tell you.”

Holly’s smile faltered. “Is something wrong?”

“No. Not at all,” Gianna replied, not sure how she was already messing this up.

The last thing she wanted Holly to assume was that something was wrong, when in fact, it was the complete opposite.

“Everything is perfect.” Her heart felt like it might burst out of her chest. “It’s just…

I love you,” she said. Well, no, blurted .

No preamble. No lead-up. Just straight out of her mouth before she could think better of it.

“I love you, Holly. And I know it's still early, and I know that you might—” she cut herself off before the words tangled themselves.

Holly didn’t say anything, and Gianna knew she had fucked up. It was too early. She should’ve waited at least another month before saying those three simple, yet life-altering words.But then Holly pushed back her chair and stood.

For a terrifying moment, Gianna thought she was leaving. Walking out. Running away.

But then Holly came around the table and bent down in front of her, cupping Gianna’s face between both hands.

“I love you too,” she muttered, smiling.

“And it’s not too early to feel this way, because if I’m being honest, I’ve felt this way for a long time.

Even before we slept together, before you showed me what an orgasm was supposed to feel like.

You showed me what love is supposed to feel like. ”

Gianna laughed, breathless and absolutely giddy. “Fuck, I love you SO much.”

And then they kissed. Holly leaning in first. Right there under the fairy lights, with the earth freshly dug, the candles flickering, and the garlic loaf forgotten on the countertop.

Gianna kissed her back, the woman she loved, the woman she knew she was going to marry one day. But that was a conversation for another time.

For now, she was just grateful to have this moment.

This kiss.

This night.

And the woman who had saved her life in more ways than one.