Flaming Desire - Part 2 (An Alpha Billionaire Romance) (5 page)

I had just turned to open the door to my Jeep when I heard my name called. I glanced back over my shoulder at Matt's truck, but it was still dark and silent. Besides, that hadn’t sounded like his voice. I glanced back toward the hospital and saw a figure with a white lab coat walking toward me. I frowned, stiffened a little, not sure who it was.

Moments later the figure stepped into the outside edge of the glow of one of the parking lamps. Doctor Linder. I wasn't exactly surprised to see him, because he worked different shifts, and he might've been running late due to a patient in the emergency room. Still, I didn't know why he was approaching me.

“Good evening, Doctor Linder,” I said after unlocking the door with my remote. The flashing of my tail lights cast an eerie glow against his jacket.

“Wait a minute, Jessica,” he said.

I wondered why Matt hadn't started his truck to drive off. I saw his shadow behind the steering wheel. He appeared to be looking my way and probably didn't see Doctor Linder approaching. I was just about to gesture to Matt, a wave goodbye, when Linder stopped in front of me.

“I heard about the incident this morning.”

His gaze passed up and down my soot-smudged scrubs, not that he could see that much in the warm light cast by the lamppost. I stood pretty much in shadow between my Jeep and Matt’s truck. “Everything’s okay.” I just wanted him to go away. I wanted to go home, take a shower, to climb between my sheets and enjoy nothing but a deep and dreamless sleep for the remainder of the night.

“It must have been terribly frightening for you—”

I turned to him and spoke rather impatiently. “Doctor Linder—”

“Frank,” he corrected.

I ignored the suggestion and turned back to my door with every intention of reaching for my door handle, opening the door and jumping inside and getting the hell out of there. To my surprise, his hands suddenly covered mine. I shot him a glance, frowning.

“Here, let me help you with that,” he said, pulling a small penlight out of his breast pocket and shining it on the door handle.

His other hand remained on mine. I tried to pull my hand away but instead of lightening his grip, it only tightened.

“After an incident like that, I can imagine you were quite frightened,” he continued. “Would you like to go out and have a drink, talk about it?”

My eyes widened. “No, I wouldn't,” I said. “All I want to do is go home, take a shower and go to bed—”

“I can help you with that,” he suggested.

I took a step back, pulling my hand from his grasp. “Doctor Linder, I've told you that I'm not interested—”

He glanced around. “What are you doing here so late anyway?”

“With all due respect, Doctor Linder, that's none of your business.” Once again, I tried to open my door. “If you'll excuse me, I'd like to go home now.” Imagine my incredible surprise when instead of moving away, Doctor Linder actually stepped closer to me, draping one arm around my shoulder and pulling me close against his body. I reacted. Nobody touched me if I didn't want them to, and I certainly didn't want him to.

I shrugged his arm from my shoulder and took two steps back, my hands balled into fists. I knew Taekwondo, and I would use it if I had to. The doctor grinned and took another step toward me.

“Jessica, I'm only offering you a drink, some time to unwind, and if you need any extra attention, I just want you to know—”

“The lady said no."

I knew that voice. I glanced past Doctor Linder’s shoulder and saw Matt’s shadow looming over the doctor. Matt had somehow gotten out of his truck without making a sound and moved around the truck bed, up behind the annoying Linder.

Doctor Linder spun around in surprise, his mouth open, and his eyes wide. “What—who are you—?”

Matt took a step closer. “It's Matt Drake, Doctor Linder,” he said. He glanced pointedly at me. “And she said she wasn't interested. I suggest you leave her alone. Now. You're frightening her.”

Doctor Linder glanced from me to Matt and then back at me. Then he turned on Matt.

“Who do you think you're talking to, young man?” the doctor demanded. He puffed out his chest, hands on his hips, trying to appear threatening. “I am the head of the emergency department, and nobody talks to me like that!”

Matt didn't seem at all intimidated. I watched him offer a slight shrug.

“I think I just did,” he said quietly.

“You'd better back away right now, Drake, or you're going to find yourself in trouble. I can write you up for—”

Matt shook his head. “You can’t write me up for anything, Doctor Linder. I'm off-duty.”

Doctor Linder sputtered and then turned toward me, his expression anything but pleasant. “What's going on here?” he demanded. “Jessica, I was just coming to check on your welfare after I heard about the incident with the burning house this morning.” He gestured over his shoulder toward Matt. “I know you're his mentor for the next few days, but let me just warn you, that if I have to write him up for insubordination—”

“Doctor Linder, nothing’s happened and there's no reason for anyone to be written up for anything,” I said firmly. I tried to maintain my calm. “I appreciate your concern for my welfare, but I'm just fine. Now if you don't mind, I'm going home.”

Matt didn't move, but stood near the rear wheel well of his truck, his feet slightly spread, arms crossed over his chest as he glowered down at the doctor. This wasn't good. While Doctor Linder could be a big jerk, he did have pull with the administration. After all, good emergency room doctors could be hard to find and keep. Perhaps that's why some of the administrative staff, mainly the administrator—an old friend of Doctor Linder's from medical school, from what I heard—tended to ignore the complaints about some of his behaviors with the nurses in the hospital. He could have Matt written up, or generally make his life miserable. I didn't want to see that happen.

I glanced over the doctor’s shoulder toward Matt, gesturing slightly with my head for him to return to his truck. He remained where he stood. I sighed in frustration and turned back to Doctor Linder. “We have another ride-along with the paramedic crew tomorrow afternoon. After that, I'm cutting Matt—Drake—loose. But as far as I'm concerned, he has performed more than adequately, has done nothing that would require him to be written up—”

“And you should be careful of what you say, young lady,” he interrupted. The doctor stared at me for several moments, his gaze once again passing from top to toe and back again. His lips turned downward. He didn't like to be crossed, I knew that, but I’d be damned if I was going to kowtow to someone like him. I certainly didn't want to lose my job, but at the same time I wasn't going to let a bully like Doctor Linder intimidate me.

“I haven’t done anything wrong, and neither has Mister Drake—“

“We'll see about that,” he said. He turned and abruptly walked away, roughly brushing past Matt and bumping into him as he made his way back toward the hospital emergency room doors.

Matt watched him go and then turned to me.

“You okay?”

I nodded and sighed. “Yes,” I said, finally succeeding in opening my door. “Unfortunately, Doctor Linder fancies himself a ladies’ man, and when he sets his sights on a nurse, he doesn't seem to always understand the word no.”

To my surprise, Matt took a step closer to me. “He's been bothering you?”

I didn't want to get Matt into trouble with Doctor Linder, at least more than he already was, and I certainly didn't need any more drama in the workplace. I glanced up at him and smiled, as if I didn't have a care in the world. “Don't you worry about me, Matt. I can take care of myself, and I can certainly handle Doctor Linder.”

He finally nodded. “Okay then, I'll see you here tomorrow afternoon at three.”

I nodded, opened my car door and slid inside. The confrontation between Matt and the doctor could certainly have been worse, but any kind of confrontation with a doctor, let alone this one, was not good. Linder could be vindictive, and he had driven more than one nurse and more than a doctor or two out of his emergency department for the slightest infractions, most of which had to do with clashes in personality.

With a tired sigh, I started my car, offered a brief wave to Matt, and then pulled away. It had been a dramatic, trying, and surprising day. I felt exhausted, mentally and physically. My emotions continued to ride a roller coaster. All I wanted to do—all I forced myself to think about—was going home, taking a nice warm shower, and then climbing into bed. Tomorrow would bring what it would.

***

The next afternoon when I got to the hospital, before I was to meet Matt for this afternoon's ride-along, I was told by one of the ER nurses that Diane wanted to see me in her office. I didn't see Serena or Melody, which wasn't surprising, considering that Melody had pulled a double shift last night and Serena was off today. I nodded at the nurse, not thinking anything about the request to see Diane. As the DON of the emergency room department, we frequently had discussions, and today was no different.

I approached Diane's door, knocked gently, and received her reply to enter. As I did, I smiled. “Hi, Diane, how are things going this morning?”

She put down the papers she held, leaned back in her chair and shrugged. “You know how it goes; paperwork, paperwork, and more paperwork.” She shook her head. “I was stupid enough to think going to electronic medical records would cut down on our paperwork, but upper management, and of course the state, and of course the federal government, always wants more proof—on paper—that we’re doing things correctly. Do more with less. Accomplish more with fewer nurses…”

I sat down in the chair in front of Diane’s desk and commiserated with her. Her job wasn't easy. It was hard enough running an ER department without having to deal with the politics involved in any hospital environment. Boards of directors, state regulations and inspectors, federal demands for proof that we were following regulations—it never ended. In fact, every year it just got worse. Several of the nurses upstairs increasingly complained that they spent way too much of my time dealing with documentation ad nauseum than they did with actual hands-on patient care. I believed it. I said nothing, because we’d had this discussion before and there was nothing more that I could add that would be productive.

“I heard about what happened yesterday morning—”

I smiled. “Apparently gossip is alive and well at Santa Fe General,” I commented. “I'm fine, Diane.”

She glanced down at her desk, shuffled some papers around and pulled out two sheets of paper. “I know you are Jessica, but the problem is, Matt Drake got written up last night and so did you.”

I stared at her in amazement then shook my head in disbelief. “Doctor Linder?”

She nodded. “Care to explain?”

“He has no right to write either one of us up,” I protested. “We were both off duty—”

“Are you seeing Matt Drake?” Diane interrupted, leaning forward in her chair.

I saw the concern in her face and was quick to put everything into perspective. “We just went out for dinner,” I said simply. That wasn't really a lie, as the night before last night, we
had
gone out for dinner. She simply stared at me, gesturing for me to continue. “We went in Matt’s truck. When he drove me back to the hospital, he parked next to my Jeep. I said goodbye and then I got out and was in the process of getting in my car when Doctor Linder approached me.”

She frowned. “Why?”

I sighed. “Doctor Linder has expressed interest in me,” I replied bluntly. “Several times, but he doesn't seem to be taking
not interested
for an answer very well.”

Diane leaned back in her chair, gently shaking her head as she stared out the side window of her office. I knew then that she was very well aware of Doctor Linder's reputation. I didn't need to say any more about that.

“So what happened?”

“Doctor Linder invaded my personal space. Matt… Drake saw him and suggested that he leave me alone.” I paused. “Matt didn’t touch Doctor Linder,” I insisted. “He just told him to leave me alone. It was the doctor who grew angry, who purposely bumped into Matt as he left.” I gestured to the papers Diane held. “I don’t know what he put in there, but I’d like to see it and read every word of what he claimed happened before I even think of signing it. I’ll suggest that Matt do the same as well.”

As nurses, we had a right to read any write-ups or disciplinary notices we received. While I was aware that signing one was not necessarily an admission of guilt, it was often perceived that way. Diane's sighed, shaking her head again as she closed her eyes and leaned back in her chair. I continued.

“Diane, Matt’s a great nurse. He knows his stuff, and he'll be a great asset to this hospital, whether he works in the emergency room, the ICU, or any other department that's open to him. He's got a good head on his shoulders, he's practically unflappable, and to be quite honest, Doctor Linder was out of line. Matt was just behaving like a gentleman, and Doctor Linder didn't like being confronted.”

Diane glanced down at the pieces of paper she held, looked at me for a moment, and then spoke. “The next time Doctor Linder makes inappropriate advances or sexually harasses you, I expect to see a complaint on my desk. Is that clear?”

“But that's just it, Diane,” I said. “Doctor Linder is very careful in what he says, to me at least. That's the reason I haven't reported anything before. He's never come right out and made an outright sexual advance, to
me
anyway, in so many words. You know how it is.”

“I’ve heard the rumors,” she nodded. “But what about proof? Have you seen the doctor behaving inappropriately with any of the female staff?”

Here it was. I instantly recalled the image of Doctor Linder and Vanessa in the supply closet. But I was fairly sure that Vanessa had invited the doctor’s attentions, so that didn’t apply here. I hedged. “Not exactly…”

“And what do you mean by that?”

Diane was serious. “I mean, I—I have seen him with some female staff… but it seemed consensual, at least as far as I know,” I admitted. “You know how it is in the hospital, Diane, and I’m sure you’ve seen your share of liaisons through your career.” She said nothing. “Like I said, you know how difficult it would be to make a formal complaint about Doctor Linder with just a single complaint.”

Diane did. She had worked in the industry much longer than I. Not long ago, nurses had even less power than we had today. I also knew that Diane always did whatever she could to back up her nurses. I eyed the papers in her hand and frowned.

“Okay,” she sighed. “Just between you and me, these write-ups are going in the round file.”

The round file. The trashcan. I glanced at Diane in dismay. She was breaking the rules. She saw my expression and lifted a hand.

“Just this once,” she said. “I'm going to talk to Drake and get his side of the story, but as far as I'm concerned, this is a frivolous complaint, especially since you two were off duty. However, it did occur on hospital property.” She said nothing for several moments before speaking. “I'm not getting involved in your private life, Jessica, but if you want to see Matt Drake on a personal level, you'd better make sure that you do it outside of this hospital and off hospital property from this moment forward.”

I nodded in understanding. I didn't want to put Diane in the middle of this. Hospital employees dating one another was generally frowned upon, but as long as those relationships didn’t disrupt the working of the facility, the hospital had little to say what when on outside of the workplace. I knew that some hospitals had strict rules and regulations in their policy and procedures manuals regarding dating, but this hospital didn’t. It was generally considered a given.

“I've heard rumors about Doctor Linder's behavior, and while I certainly don't condone it, but unless formal complaints are lodged, there's little I can do,” Diane muttered. “And we both know that those complaints better be solid or they’re just going to disappear as they make their way up the chain of command.”

I nodded. I knew how hospital politics worked. Unfortunately, doctors often got away with bloody murder, and I wasn't saying that lightly. In some ways, the medical profession still operated under the “old boy’s club” mentality, and while policies had improved greatly over the past decade, claims of sexual harassment in the workplace were still frowned upon—off the record of course. Proving that comments made by some doctors against female nurses could be incredibly difficult to prove, unless of course you walked around with a tape recorder in your pocket all day, which I wasn't about to do.

“I can handle Doctor Linder,” I said, standing. “I’ve been careful and usually manage to leave before I say something I might regret.” I gestured toward the papers Diane held. “Most of the time, anyway.” Diane nodded.