Kate’s creased brow said it all. “Saturday night when we were all at Rosa’s for the end of rotation happy hour … Leanne might have, kind of, mentioned that you and Chase might be-”

I knew she was trying to be tactful, but her pause was really irritating.

“Anyway, it was ... sort of the whole team. Jackson, Guy, Sam and his wife, and a couple of other fifth floor nurses ... are you mad?”

“No. I’m not mad, Kate.” I sighed and leaned back in my chair. “It’s fine. Look, I’m happy you told me but I wish Leanne never said anything.” I really, really wished. “But just so you know, the situation between Chase and me ... um, it’s ... nothing.” My chest heaved with a piercing pain. I actually said it was nothing … we were nothing. It was everything, at least to me. I tuned out everything around me, allowing all our playful moments to briefly flash like a slide show. He really just walked away like it never happened. Fuck!

“Hey, are you okay? Where’d you go? You totally spaced on me. Want to talk about it?”

“Yeah, sorry, I’m fine,” I whispered. Now who was the liar? “I just have to go, I have a lot to do before I meet the peds team up on seven.”

Kate’s round eyes widened, and she pursed her lips together as if to say bullshit. I just didn’t have it in me to explain. Not yet. “I’ll see ya later.”

August was here and I was finally off Chase’s service. Ironically, I pushed for discretion and put a date on going “public” with our relationship when he wanted to tell the world about us and claim me as his own from the beginning. And now I was left solo, fielding questions about us with no answers. Chase was gone, who knew where. This sucked. All of it.

The elevator felt like the local train on the way up to seven, stopping on every floor. I sipped my coffee, adding to the inferno already burning my insides. He lied. But why? It wasn’t an insignificant detail he forgot to mention. He blatantly lied. My finger hovered over Chase’s name on my contact list, under ‘favorites’ no less, while I debated calling him out, wanting him to eat his own phrase, truth.

The elevator opened on five. Guy stepped on. “Doll.” He seemed surprised to see me.

“Hi, you.” I smiled.

“Missed you on Saturday night.” His sentiment was so genuine it almost annoyed me. Of course, I had to fall for Dr. Freaking Mystery. “Hey, is everything okay ... with all that legal stuff you had to deal with ... and with Chase?” He stuttered as if he was nervous to ask.

However, the topic was not up for discussion. Not now. Not ever. My chest tightened, as the elevator walls seemed to be closing in. With nowhere to go I shifted my weight and pressed my back into the corner. Damn, it was awkward.

“Um, Guy, why are you even in here?” I waved at the elevator control panel while Guy looked confused. “You’re a surgeon, right? Shouldn’t you be taking the damn stairs?”

Recognition coated his eyes and he laughed out loud, flashing his adorable dimple. “I gotcha, doll. Glad you’re back, though. Resident schedules got all screwed up. Sam and I are with Colton another month, so I’m sure we’ll see you around.” Guy believed I was with Chase. Well, I was, or maybe I wasn’t. “Hey Lil, it’s your floor.”

I didn’t realize the elevator stopped and the doors opened. I stepped off and turned back, hoping he could read between my lines. “Thanks, Guy.” For not drilling me. For being a friend. For always being so sweet.

“Anytime, doll.” Yeah, he read me.

By Friday morning, I was as physically run down as I was emotionally. Literally. I was so dehydrated that I even gave myself a UTI. Between dozens of trips to the bathroom to pee razor blades and the hours I logged in my sneakers ruminating over the days of radio silence, the Central Park loop would have been a freaking cake-walk. All communication with Chase had gone dead. I last texted him Wednesday night, but I still hadn’t gotten a response to we need to talk?

I kept envisioning how angry he was right after court. And how he morphed into a stranger by the time I stepped out of his car Saturday night. He was ... vacant. His eyes were empty. They were devoid of emotion, no feeling. I had suffered through this week without him long enough. I needed to see him whether he wanted to see me or not. It wasn’t a choice.

I stepped outside for the first time all week and let the warm sun bathe my face. I had spent every other lunch break this week choking down crackers and hiding in my office. The unwavering, tight knot in my stomach wreaked havoc on my GI tract.

“Lili?” The voice was vaguely familiar so I turned around and saw bright green eyes shining in my direction. “On lunch?” Dressed in a tailored light suit and carrying a black leather briefcase, I recognized him immediately.

“Um ... hi. What are you doing here?”

Asher leaned down and kissed my cheek. He was the last person I expected to see outside the hospital.

“Nice to see you too, Lili.” He sarcastically chuckled.

“Oh, sorry.” I blushed at my rudeness. “I didn’t know you were in town, you surprised me. I assumed you were still away with Chase on your business trip ... wherever that is.” My voice trailed off.

“Business trip?” Now Asher looked surprised. He studied the sidewalk, avoiding eye contact. “Not sure what you mean. I just drove down to get a few signatures off him. I spoke to him earlier and he told me he had a few cases today. You didn’t see him this morning?”

My nervous stomach took a backseat to my new friend, nausea. Seriously. He confirmed it. Chase lied. But something about the way Asher asked if I’d seen him made it clear that he was completely unaware of any problem between Chase and me.

“Um, I haven’t really talked to him since last Friday. We ... texted a couple of times. I sent him a message Wednesday night, but I never heard back.” I caught myself fidgeting with my nails. “I assumed he was with you.”

“He was ... last Saturday when he showed up in New York.”

“So wait, he wasn’t away with you all week?” I clipped.

Asher ran a hand through his tawny brown hair. “Shit,” he muttered.

“What, Asher? What aren’t you telling me?”

He stood, pensive. Enough was enough with the boys covering for each other. It was obvious Asher had put his foot in his mouth, but I wasn’t waiting around for him to come up with a plausible lie.

“Well, I need to go. I don’t really have time for this, and I need to be back soon.” I paused, hoping he would slip and say something. Anything. “Good to see you again.”

I made it two steps before Asher gently tugged me back. “Lili, please wait. Chase ... he’s a fucking mess. Saturday was ... intense. I’ve never seen him like this, not even when Kimi died.” A sadness filled his eyes. My jaw dropped open and my throat clogged. That was the last thing I expected Asher to say.

Stuck on he’s a fucking mess, my emotions pinballed so quickly between sadness and anger I could barely keep up. Something snapped and my brain-to-mouth-filter turned off. “So I guess when you find out your girlfriend isn’t as pure and sweet as you thought, tarnished with a sad pregnancy story, you become a fucking mess.” The anger in my voice was raw as I repeated Asher’s words.

He looked at me with disbelief. “He told you?”

Told me? “Told me what? I have no idea what you’re talking about. Remember, he doesn’t tell me a freaking thing.” I crossed my arms against my chest trying to ease the burning pain. “I don’t get it, why won’t he talk to me?” Hot tears filled my eyes.

“Lili, you should talk to him. I’m not comfortable saying any more. I really should stay out of your relationship.”

“Relationship? He left me, Asher, when I needed him the most. He dropped me off and left.” A tear slid down my cheek.

He placed a hand on top of mine and squeezed.

“Lil, you’re upset, and I’m not sure what went down between the two of you, but he’s in a fucked up place right now. Just talk to him,” he pleaded.

I wiped my wet cheek, smoothed my skirt and politely said goodbye. Asher had a bleak look in his eyes, but he was right. I needed to find him.

The empty void deep within filled with a swarm of bees. And within minutes I was on the fifth floor staring at the posted operating room schedule. Chase had cases all day. Back to back. I found Kate in the recovery room right away.

“Lil, you look ... I mean, is everything okay?”

I wasn’t exactly sure what I looked like, but I was guessing it wasn’t good. Kate sympathetically ran a hand down the side of my hair.

“Have you seen Chase today?” My voice was melancholic. I should have been angry. He blatantly lied. But I just needed to see him, make sure he was okay.

“He’s been operating all day, trying to make up for the week off, I guess. I haven’t seen him.”

He always accompanied his patients to the recovery room. My patients, my responsibility.

“Oh.” My eyes quickly scanned the room searching for him, even though I knew he wasn’t there.

“He hasn’t been wheeling any of his patients in today, only Guy or Jack, but he still has one case left. I don’t think it started yet. Do you want me to tell him anything if I see him?”

“No, don’t say anything. Actually, can you do me a favor?”

“Sure, anything. You know that.”

“Can you text me when the last case is over?”

“Okay, no problem.”

“Thanks, Kate.” I turned to leave, but she grabbed my arm.

“Lil, I saw him with you. I mean when you guys were in here last week. I saw how he looked at you ... how he touched you.” She smiled softly. Heat hit my cheeks with visions of him claiming my ass. “It was really sweet ... I hope everything works out.” She wrinkled her brow and shrugged.