“Lucky for me you didn’t.”
“You’re damn right,” she teases.
“But I don’t see how you and Dad have anything to do with my love life.”
“So, there is a love life, then?” I can picture her rubbing her hands together as if she’s gearing up for some juicy details.
“Goodbye, Mother.”
“Have fun. When you know she’s the one, you just know. I love you. Oh, and don’t make me a grandma until you put a ring on it.”
I sigh and shake my head. The woman is insane and incredible and exhausting all at the same time.
Right when I pull my cell away from my ear, it rings again.
Jesus Christ, it’s like Grand Central Station right now. When I glance at the screen, my stomach drops.
Shit.
I take a deep breath and prepare to face the consequences of my actions. “Dr. Schultz,” I say in greeting.
“Hi, Slade. How have you been holding up?”
It’s a loaded question asked by the man who holds the fate of my medical career at Memorial General in his hands. I say I’m fine, and I’m not remorseful. I say I’m miserable, and I don’t know what it tells him. My lawyer said to tread lightly since the hospital is in a tricky position in this case, so I muddle through a canned response. “I’m anxious to do what’s asked of me, sir, so I can get back to work.”
“That’s good to hear. Good to hear.” He sighs. “It’s come to my attention that you’ve been following up on your patient. The one you’ve been expressly asked to not inquire about.”
I pinch the bridge of my nose and struggle with a response, unsure of the trap I’ll be walking in to. Fuck it. I might as well be honest. “In med school, we were told that there were going to be those cases that tested us. Ones that touched us so deeply we think about them years later. Ones we can’t let go of until we know the outcome. Ivy is mine, sir. If you would have seen how battered and broken she was when she came in, how she held on to my hand and wouldn’t let go.” How I promised her no one would ever hurt her again as she slipped into the coma. “I’m not calling for anything other than to see if she’s shown any sign of improvement.”
“You put our nurses in a predicament, considering her file says you’re strictly prohibited from requesting information.”
“I’m sorry for that, but I’m not sorry for caring about how she’s doing.”
His pregnant pause feels like a knife against my throat—biting and teetering on the edge of either ending this all or letting me live.
“You’re only the doctor in this case, Mr. Henderson. Not the judge, jury, or executioner, and that is why we are where we are today.”
“Yes, sir.”
“I have my own opinions on the matter. Personal ones that I can’t express while your case is being reviewed, but maybe, in time, I’ll share them with you.”
“I would like to hear them, sir.”
“With that said the board met yesterday, and we’d like you to come in this morning to discuss some things, if that suits you?”
Fuck.
I look at my clothes laid out, the duffle bag next to them, and the clock again, but I already know the answer before I ask the question. “At what time?”
“We can meet as soon as you get here so long as it’s before rounds start. If you’re unavailable, we can meet this afternoon. It won’t be more than an hour or so of your time. We have a few more questions before we make our final decision.”
I’m not sure if that’s a good thing or a bad thing, but fuck, if it isn’t one step closer to getting me out of this limbo I’ve been sitting in.
I do a quick mental calculation of how much time this will take and if I can still meet up with Blakely to drive together like we’d planned. It doesn’t matter, I have to go in. “I’m on my way.”
After I end the call, I give myself a minute to send a silent plea up to the powers that be that I can weather whatever they throw at me and finally get back to work.
And then I dial her number.
“You’re bailing on me, aren’t you?” she teases when she answers. Her seductive rasp doing more to me this morning now that I know what her kiss tastes like.
“Good morning.” I chuckle and then sigh. “You still in bed?”
“Mm-hmm.” The sound conjures images of her mile-long legs wrapped around her comforter. Thoughts of other things they could wrap around fill my head. “I couldn’t sleep when I got home, so I stayed up late and packed for the trip.”
“I’m packing right now.”
“You aren’t bailing?”
“No, but I do have a slight change of plans.”
“Oh.” Worry threads through that simple sound, and I wince.
“I’ve been called into work for a quick meeting that I can’t say no to. It has to do with a case I’m working on, and . . . it’s complicated.”
“Okay.”
“But it should only take about an hour, so why don’t you head up there, and I’ll be right behind you. I’d say for you to wait for me, but if things run a bit longer and we end up getting on the road late, it’ll just give Horrible Heather another reason to ding you.”
“Okay.”
Two okays in a row from a woman is never okay.
“I know we were supposed to go over our story on the way up . . . but I think we’ll be fine. And we’ll make sure to steal away tonight and sort everything out.”
“Okay.”
That’s three.
“We’ll be
