“I thought you already knew.”
“Those were rumors!” She stares at me like I’m crazy. “I never thought I’d actually see you kissing the damn girl in the hospital.”
I glance away from her. That was probably a stupid move, in retrospect.
But it felt good.
I’ve been pushing aside what feels good for a long, long time. I’ve been sacrificing, giving this hospital everything. I’ve saved countless lives.
But I haven’t saved my own.
“So what do you want to do about it, Liza?”
“I want you gone,” she whispers harshly.
I clench my jaw. “Excuse me?”
“If you can’t keep your hands off that girl, I’m going to fire you.”
“I doubt that.”
“You think your board members are going to protect you? Aiden, she’s half your age, and she’s a family member. It’s so inappropriate it makes my head spin.”
I stare at her, trying to keep myself under control. “I’m discharging the woman tonight. She’s going home tomorrow.”
“Too late. Should’ve done it sooner.”
“What does any of this matter?”
“You put the hospital at risk,” she snaps at me. “I know, I know, you’re such a good doctor. You save lives, and it’s true, it’s why you still have a job at all. But this is too far.”
I glare at her, hands in fists. I want to say every fucking shitty thing I’ve ever thought about her. I want to pour venom on her, rip her face off, pound her into dust.
But she’s right. I know she’s right, which is part of why I’m so angry.
I fucked up.
I chose myself for once.
“Threatening me won’t work, Liza,” I say softly.
“It’s not a threat. I’m telling you what will happen if you don’t get in line.”
“Go to hell.”
She rolls her eyes. “Grow up.”
I turn and leave the room. I can feel her eyes on me still, but I don’t give a fuck.
I know I’m going to lose my job if I don’t stop seeing Ruby. If I don’t make some public display of leaving her, it’s all over. I can forget about being a doctor at this hospital ever again, maybe anywhere for that matter.
If this rumor gets out, that I’m dating a girl half my age and she’s the family member of a patient, it could ruin me entirely.
Nobody will touch me. Why would they? I’m notoriously hard to work with.
Sure, I’m good. The best in the fucking region.
But I’ll be toxic.
I know it, Liza knows it.
She has all the cards.
I storm back to my office, anger rolling through me, my mind a mess of confused feelings.
I don’t know what I’m going to do. Being a doctor is all I’ve ever known, and I’ll be nothing without it. I can save so many more lives if I just break things off with Ruby.
But what about myself? What about her? I told Dot I wouldn’t do this.
I told myself I’d finally try to be happy for once.
Sometimes, I’m a liar. I just never thought I’d lie to someone I really give a shit about.19RubyI’m smiling the next night as I head into the hospital.
I’ve been smiling all day. I keep thinking about what Aiden said to Grandmom, about taking care of me, about never hurting me.
I can’t stop smiling. I feel like such an idiot, walking around with a grin on my face.
Work drags so slowly it almost hurts. All I want to do is hurry into the hospital to see Aiden, to kiss him, to let him pick me up in a tight hug.
I haven’t heard from him at all this afternoon but that’s not unusual. He’s busy all day long, and I don’t want to bug him. I know what he’s doing is important, and he’ll message me if he has time.
That’s the thing about being with a doctor. You never fully control their time. Other people need them, too.
That’s okay. I can handle that. I can share him, so long as he’s saving lives.
I stroll through the lobby and head to the elevator. I think about my grandmother, how good she’s doing, and my smile gets bigger.
We’re leaving tonight.
As I get closer, I notice a security guard walking straight for me. I step back, assuming he’s heading for the elevator, but he stops and turns to stare into my eyes.
“Ruby White?” he asks.
I nod, frowning. “Is my grandmother okay?”
“Come with me, please.”
I hesitate. “Why?”
“Please, Miss White. Just come with me.”
I stand there, not sure what to do. Fear spikes through me.
Did Grandmom have another seizure? Did something worse happen?
I don’t know why they’d send a security guard, but I decide to go with him. I figure I have no other choice, anyway.
He leads me over to his desk. “Wait there,” he says, gesturing at a little couch against the wall.
I sit down on the fake leather. It creaks almost inaudibly.
He gets behind the desk and picks up a phone. I watch him make a call, his face deadly serious. He talks to someone, although I can’t tell what he’s saying. After a minute, he comes over to me.