herself she shouldn't. It just wasn't fair.
Sam had turned away from Riley not wanting the woman to see her hurt
expression.
"I'm sorry." Riley said softly before quietly making her exit.
Chapter Five
Sam sat in a chair in her hospital room waiting to be discharged. It felt good to
be back in her own clothes again even if it was only a pair of sweats and a t-
shirt. When she had gotten the message from Riley through one of the nurses
that she was going to be discharged, she'd asked one of her fellow officers to
get her some clothes from her locker. Her uniform had been a total loss. She'd
called her brother and let him know she was being discharged. They were due to
come directly from the airport and pick her up. As she waited for Frank and
Cheryl to arrive her thoughts turned to the subject never far from her mind, Riley.
She just couldn't believe she was willing to throw away something that seemed
so strong between them over a misplaced sense of ethics. Sam had admitted to
herself that she already cared deeply for the charismatic doctor. It thrilled and
scared her at the same time. She'd dated and enjoyed a lot of women but had
never felt as strongly as she did for the little redhead. It just didn't make sense
they hadn't even dated. At first, she tried to convince herself it was just physical
attraction and gratitude for saving her life. However, as time passed and she
saw more of Riley she knew it wasn't true. She was drawn to her in a way she'd
never been to any other woman she'd ever met. The thought that Riley was
willing to throw that away without even trying infuriated her. She knew the doctor
had feelings for her, she'd felt it the night they'd kissed and Riley had sought
comfort in her arms. Riley herself had admitted it the night she'd removed her
sutures. Sam sighed in frustration turning to stare out the window.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Riley was at the nurse's desk completing Sam's discharge orders. She knew
there was no reason to see her before discharge but she couldn't resist one last
chance to spend a few minutes in the beautiful cop's presence. She wished
things could've turned out differently between them, that they'd met in another
place and time. In a few hours she'll be gone and you can go back to your
pathetic life, Riley sighed to herself. She'd watched Kim and Jess together and
couldn't help wondering if that was what she was giving up a chance of having
with Sam. Sam stirred feelings in her she'd never felt before. Her thoughts were
interrupted by a deep male voice asking for Sam McKenna's room number. She
looked up into familiar blue eyes and couldn't hold back a gasp of surprise.
Standing across the counter from her was the male version of Sam and
Jess. Damn did their parents have some kind of weird copy machine
somewhere? It's just spooky how much alike they look. Riley watched as one
eyebrow rose and the man smiled at her. She realized with embarrassment that
she'd been staring open mouthed at him. Mentally shaking herself, she
addressed the man.
"Let me guess you're Sam's brother." It wasn't a question. That little half smirk she'd seen grace both sisters' faces appeared on their brothers'.
"Yeah, that's me." The big man held out his hand to Riley. Her hand disappeared
in his huge paw. He put an arm around a petite blond that had come up next to
him. "Nice to meet you Riley, this is my wife Cheryl."
Riley was momentarily taken aback by the man's use of her first name. How
does he know who I am? She wondered. Her surprise must've shown on her
face.
"Sorry Dr. Connolly." She jabbed her husband in the side before continuing.
"Jess described you perfectly."
Riley blushed as she stood up to greet the small blond. She was very similar in
height and build to Riley. Her blond hair was shoulder length and pulled back
into a ponytail. Her sparking hazel eyes met Riley's in frank appraisal.
"Nice to meet you both." Riley said as she stepped around the desk. She craned
her neck to meet Frank's eyes. He was even taller and bulkier than Sam and
Jess. "Follow me and I'll take you to your sister's room. I was just completing her
discharge papers."
Riley stepped into Sam's room with Frank and Cheryl in tow. Sam's head turned
as the door swung open. She saw Riley and her expression hardened. Riley met
Sam's eyes hesitantly and flinched when she read the anger in them.
Sam slowly rose from her chair totally ignoring Riley. Her face lit up when she
saw her brother and Cheryl. They both quickly stepped over to Sam and
wrapped her in a hug. Riley watched with something akin to envy as Sam
wrapped her arms around first her brother then Cheryl.
"So you ready to blow this joint?" Frank asked Sam teasingly. She'd come back
into his arms after hugging Cheryl. He could sense the tension in the room and
Sam was trembling slightly. He didn't have a clue what was going on between
Sam and the beautiful doctor. Kim and Jess had filled him in and he'd thought
now that Sam was being discharged things might work out between the two.
Except Sam was acting strangely refusing to even look at the little redhead.
Sam still in her brother's arms finally looked over at Riley. "Was there something
else you wanted Dr. Connolly?" She asked coldly. Presenting an angry front to
Riley was her only choice. It was taking every bit of her willpower to keep from
rushing across the room and sweeping the doctor into her arms.
Riley stood rooted to her spot by the door. She wanted so badly to connect with
Sam, explain again how sorry she was. It was obvious Sam had no interest in
anything she had to say. Riley just couldn't let it go she had to see and touch her
one last time and damn the consequences.
She cleared her throat trying to keep her voice from shaking. "Yes, I need to do
a final check on your incision before I release you."
Sam looked like she was going to refuse then her shoulders slumped and she
gave in.
"Okay," she agreed unwilling to meet Riley's eyes.
Riley turned to Frank and Cheryl. "Could you wait outside please? This won't
take long."
Frank met Sam's eyes making sure she was okay with this before taking
Cheryl's hand and leaving the room. "I'll be right outside if you need me Sis." He glanced sharply at Riley before leaving. He couldn't help wondering what'd
happened between the two women. All his protective instincts had come
charging forward when he'd felt Sam trembling slightly in his arms.
The silence in the room was deafening. Though they stood only 10 feet apart, it
might have been 10 miles. Riley finally broke the silence.
"If you'll get on the bed please and lower your sweats I'll check your incision and
then you can go." Riley said with a slight quaver in her voice.
Sam slowly made her way over to the bed. Once she was lying down, she lifted
up her hips and slowly lowered her sweats to her knees. Riley gulped and felt
the wetness pooling between her legs as she watched Sam lower her pants.
She tried to force herself back into her professional persona. The upper incision
was covered by Sam's boxer shorts. When she reached out to lower them Riley