Читать книгу Winter Solstice - Michelle Garren Flye - Страница 5

Chapter 1

Becky wished she could stay right there in her roommate Ellen’s car, but her new job at the hospital waited. “Why the hell would I be scared? It’s just a job, and not even my dream job or anything. Just a stopgap.”

Ellen shrugged and patted her shoulder. “It’s who you are, kid. You put your heart and soul into things when you do them.”

“Give me a break.” Becky sighed and drew a breath. “I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to–”

“Bite my head off?” Ellen’s eyes sparkled with amusement. “Don’t sweat it. You’re just sexually frustrated.” Then she grinned. “Kidding.”

“Right.” Becky picked up her purse. “Are you sure you can’t come back for lunch?”

“I wish I could, Becks, you know I do–for you and the handsome docs. If it weren’t for the county commissioners meeting, I’d be happy to.” She gave Becky a little push. “Now go on. Knock their socks off. You look fantastic, by the way. Do you think you can get a ride home? I’d come back as soon as the meeting’s over, but those guys get pretty long-winded when they get the chance, and this is an election year, so I doubt I’ll be done by that time.”

“Yeah, I know.” Becky knew Ellen probably had plans for after the meeting, and if she didn’t actually have plans, she could probably make some. Ellen was like that. People loved being around her, and they didn’t care if she called them on the spur of the moment. “Thanks for the ride. Hopefully my car will be out of the shop tomorrow.”

She got out and waved as Ellen drove away in her little red convertible. For a moment, Becky wondered how she got to be the new public relations guru to a small community hospital in Asheville, North Carolina when at one time she’d imagined herself in Ellen’s shoes–speeding off to cover city politics for a newspaper.

Instead, she stood on the curb outside the hospital on her first day, and she didn’t even have a guaranteed ride home since her car was in the shop. Fucking wonderful.

Not that her new job was a bad one. In fact Becky had fallen in love with the hospital the moment she saw it sitting on top of its mountain like a fortress. With nine hundred and six beds, one hundred doctors on staff and a full range of services from emergency medicine to medical and surgical, Buncombe County Hospital had provided medical care to the residents of Buncombe and several surrounding counties for more than fifty years. During that time it had expanded, taking over much of the surrounding area with wings, outlying buildings and even a separate children’s hospital. More than just a small community hospital, it was a haven for those in need, Becky reminded herself as she walked into her new place of employment with a little more confidence.

She found Adam Greeley, head of marketing for the hospital and her direct supervisor, waiting in her new office. Becky had liked Adam from the moment she’d met him. Within half an hour of her first interview, she’d heard that he was gay. Of course, in almost any work environment a good-looking, single man was likely to be classified as gay, but Becky was pretty sure the rumor was true in Adam’s case. None of the rumors were petty or sounded like gossip. Everybody really seemed to like and respect Adam.

“Good morning, beautiful.” Adam greeted her with a warm handshake and a smile. The friendliness of the welcome helped alleviate some of her anxiety, and when he offered to take her on a tour of the hospital, she accepted, grateful for an opportunity to get to know more about her new place of employment.

Adam’s knowledge, as it turned out, was not limited to work matters. As he introduced her to the who’s who of the hospital, he muttered colorful and informative asides. “Dr. Radin’s wife slept with a male nurse… Everybody knows Dr. Knowles had plastic surgery last year. She came back from ‘Hawaii’ with no tan and huge boobs… Watch out for that nurse. She’s the gossip at the hospital… Dr. Finder’s wife slept with a female intern.”

Throughout Adam’s both official and unofficial introductions, Becky found it difficult to keep a straight face and refrain from looking over her shoulder at his most recent target. By lunchtime she felt more confused than ever as she tried to figure out which department heads she still needed to meet.

“How about lunch?” Adam asked suddenly. “The cafeteria’s not half bad. I’ll buy.”

“Sure.” Her head whirling with too much information, Becky could find no excuse to refuse, especially since she was stuck on the hospital campus without a car.

In the cafeteria, they were joined by Dr. Radin, who sat at their table with an air of familiarity. He and Adam chatted about business, and Dr. Radin asked if they’d made it through the whole hospital yet.

“Still have the emergency room to go.” Adam plucked a wilted lettuce leaf off his chicken salad sandwich. “What do you think our reception will be like down there?”

Dr. Radin shrugged and grimaced. “You know John.”

In spite of the enigmatic answer, Adam nodded, a grim expression on his face.

“I don’t,” Becky said, and both men laughed.

“You will.” Adam’s voice sounded ominous with prophecy. “He’s a publicity nightmare.”

“He’s the head of emergency medicine.” Dr. Radin frowned at Adam. “A very gifted physician.”

Adam rolled his eyes. “He’s caused me more headaches than any other employee of the hospital from the janitors on up.”

“Sorry to hear that, Adam.” Becky had a brief impression of a giant shadow descending on the table, then the air cleared and she realized an enormous man had taken the last empty chair. He had a hard, chiseled face with incredibly blue eyes. His hair was a thick curly auburn that pulled back from his forehead just enough to give him an air of maturity. Becky couldn’t help noticing his muscular build, even under the freshly starched white shirt and khaki pants he wore.

The man’s gaze flicked toward her, then back to Adam. “To be fair, janitors don’t attract nearly as much attention as doctors, though.”

“John.” Adam nodded as if the other man hadn’t just caught him mid-insult. “I hope you’re staying busy and out of trouble.”

“Busy and out of trouble don’t always go together, but yes, I am.” The man smiled with thin lips that could be considered sensual and shifted his attention to Becky. “You must be Ms. Gray.” He stretched a brawny arm past Adam to grasp her hand, startling her out of her bemused reverie. “I’m Dr. John Grant. I’ve heard you’re the greatest thing since sliced bread, and you’re here to make me look good.”

“Surely you don’t need me for that.” She spoke without thinking, but as Adam and Dr. Radin roared with laughter at her words, she shrugged. “Nice to meet you, Dr. Grant.”

Unlike the others, John hadn’t laughed at Becky’s gaff, but he did give her a measuring look, still holding her hand. Becky had the impression she’d surprised him. He nodded after a moment, releasing her. “You might be just what this hospital needs.” With a mock salute, he rose and headed for the cafeteria line.

Feeling as if she’d been placed under a microscope for an exhaustive period of intense scrutiny, Becky sat back in her seat, content to let the conversation ebb and flow around her. She attempted to pay attention to the conversation Adam had with Dr. Radin, but instead she watched the line at the cashier, hoping for another glimpse of John Grant. When he did appear, he paid his tab, then glanced at their table. He raised his eyebrows when he noticed her watching him.

Becky smiled and returned her attention to Adam and Dr. Radin. She’d noticed a slight approval in his look, and though she wondered why his opinion mattered at all to her, she had to admit it did. She resolved to get more details from Adam about John Grant being a “publicity nightmare.”

* * * *

At the end of the day, Becky had heard nothing from Ellen about the possibility of a ride home. She felt uncomfortable about asking anyone, even Adam, for a favor, so she walked resolutely out the door at six o’clock only to find herself in the parking lot with no immediate way to get home. Just as she pulled her cellphone from her purse to call a cab, John Grant appeared at her elbow.

“Still here?” He raised his eyebrows. “I can’t imagine you’re any more eager than any of us are to hang around this place when you’re off the clock. So to speak, of course. I’ve found I’m never really off the clock at this hospital.”

Becky hesitated. “I’m not exactly… I mean, I was sort of waiting for my ride, but I think she’s gotten hung up. I was just going to call a cab.” She felt herself blushing again and knew by his half smile he’d noticed too.

He opened his mouth to say something, and she realized he would surely offer her a ride home, and she would feel extraordinarily awkward about it.

Then Adam came out the door nearest to them. “What’s up?” He gave them a curious look.

“I was about to offer Ms. Gray a ride home.” John gave Adam a wicked grin.

Adam narrowed his eyes at John. “Back off, Romeo. Like I’m going to let you anywhere near my new star.”

“I was just going to call a cab,” Becky said.

“Nonsense.” A quirk of a smile pulled the corner of John’s mouth up. “You’ll be perfectly safe with Adam here.” He clapped Adam on the back. “See you around, Ms. Gray.”

Adam gave him a hooded glare. “Keep your nose clean, John.”

“Will do.” John saluted, turning on his heel and heading across the nearby doctors’ parking lot. He waved over his shoulder before folding himself into a tiny yellow sports car.

Becky blinked. “Holy cow. What the hell was that all about?”

Adam laughed. “I just like giving him a hard time. You certainly made an impression on him. I’ve seldom seen him so friendly to a new staff member. Of course your little bit of flattery at lunch didn’t hurt anything.”

“I didn’t mean–”

“Don’t sweat it.”Adam waved away her protest. “It worked in your favor. And if you like John and he likes you, your life will be that much easier and so will mine.”

As they got into Adam’s car, Becky decided to broach the subject of John Grant’s previous transgressions. “Um, Adam, you mentioned Dr. Grant had been trouble for you?”

“Trouble?” Adam carefully reversed his little hatchback out of the space. “You could say that. Don’t get me wrong. John’s okay. He’s an awesome doc. He’s well-liked and respected.” He laughed. “He was even sort of voted one of Asheville’s most eligible bachelors a couple years ago.”

“Really?” Becky grinned. “Does he put that on his resume?”

Adam shrugged, pulling the car onto the highway. “Knowing John, he probably does. No, really, it was one of the women’s clubs that held a charity auction–you know, a date with a good-looking single guy. A friend called me up to be in it, but I’m, well, I’m not into that sort of thing, so I suggested they ask John. He loved it. Perfect nourishment for his ego. I’ll hand it to him, though, he actually fetched quite a price.”

“He doesn’t sound so bad.” Becky tapped her chin, thinking. In spite of her words, she had an odd feeling Dr. John Grant was dangerous, though she’d seen nothing to support her doubts about him so far.

“Well, he does have a temper. He’s punched or kicked numerous walls, thrown a telephone out a window and broken I don’t know how many coffee mugs hurling them across the room. And that’s just the stuff that gets reported. Most of it doesn’t.”

“You’re kidding.”

“Not.” His expression turned serious as he merged onto the interstate. “But that’s not so different from any doctor. They all have their moments. Hell, stay out of the radiology department in the middle of the night. But John’s a different breed of monster. He’s popular with the ladies, and he’s been known to be, well, indiscreet about his affairs.”

“Affairs?” Becky frowned at the ambiguous word.

“There was an incident with a nurse in a broom closet. And another one in a call room. And another one–”

“I get the picture.” She shook her head, rejecting the necessity for further details, and tried to banish the unwanted images from her mind. She cringed at the thought that she’d actually found the man attractive for even a millisecond. “How is it nobody’s ever charged him with sexual harassment?”

He shrugged. “He’s either very persuasive, or the women knew he’d have as good a case or better than they did.”

Her eyebrows shot up. “You mean–”

Adam grinned a little. “I don’t speculate. I do know he doesn’t have any problems getting a date, so any partner he’s ever had was most likely willing and possibly the instigator of the relationship. Women like him. Hell, everyone likes him.” He laughed. “I even like him, in spite of everything.”

“You’re probably right.” She thought of her own unexpected response to John’s presence.

“I’m glad you two got along okay,” Adam said, almost as if to himself.

“Why?” She directed a suspicious glare at him.

“Just because.” He flashed her an innocent smile. “Nothing special. It’s just good to get along with the doctors is all, and John’s a tough one.”

“Oh.” Becky had an uncomfortable feeling Adam had more reason than that for making his remark, but she figured she wasn’t going to get anything out of him until he was ready, and she might as well let it drop until then.