Dr. Fake It: A Possessive Doctor Romance

by Hamel, B. B.

  Fiona turned off the machines. The room went quiet as I slowly removed the breathing tube and the mouth brace. I wiped Linda’s mouth and we waited as she lay there, unmoving, not breathing.

  “This is normal,” I said softly, more for Erica’s benefit than anything else. “Sometimes it takes a second. Just wait.” I took Linda’s hand and squeezed it.

  Fiona gave me a look. I wasn’t supposed to touch a patient like that, but I couldn’t help myself. The woman was my mother-in-law, even if she didn’t know it yet, and this was perhaps the most important moment of my life. What happened here would determine so much of what came next.

  Nothing happened. No gasps, no groans, nothing. Fiona watched the clock. “Gavin,” she said. “We might need to do CPR.”

  “No. Wait. Give her a second.” I squeezed her hand tighter. “Come on, Linda, damn it. Take a breath. You know how.”

  Fiona fidgeted. “Gavin—”

  “Wait.” I leaned down, staring into Linda’s face. “Please, if you’re in there, Erica needs this. Take a breath. Come on, take a breath. Breathe!”

  She gasped, raspy and harsh, and sucked air into her lungs.

  Fiona cursed with surprise and a laugh jolted from my chest. Linda took another breath, and another, and then Erica was there, kneeling next to her mother and crying, fat tears rolling down her face and staining the white sheets dark gray. Linda breathed on her own, raspy and difficult at first, but slowly falling into a normal rhythm.

  “Come on,” I said softly, leading Fiona to the door. “Let’s give them a minute.”

  We stepped into the hall and Fiona leaned up against the wall, looking exhausted. “That was lucky,” she said.

  “I know.”

  “Chances weren’t good.”

  “I know, but we didn’t have a choice.”

  She looked at me, concern in her eyes. “What happened? You two seem… stressed, a little off, I don’t know.”

  I managed a tight smile. “You’re perceptive.”

  “Come on, tell me.”

  “I can’t go into detail, but we need to leave the city.”

  She sighed. “What the fuck, Gavin?” she asked softly.

  “I know. It’s not what I wanted, but it’s the only way Erica and her mom can be safe.”

  “This is crazy.”

  “I know, trust me, I know.”

  “Where will you go?”

  “As far as we can.” I shrugged and gestured vaguely in the air. “California, maybe. I’m not sure.”

  “California.” She let out a sigh. “At least the weather’s good.”

  “Mild winters.”

  “No humidity.”

  “I’ll find a job at a hospital somewhere. We’ll bring Linda with us and take care of her.”

  Fiona nodded. “Now that she’s breathing on her own, it’ll be easier. Lots of home care options out there.”

  “We’ll make it work.”

  She let out a laugh. “You really care about her, don’t you?”

  “I love her,” I said softly, for the third time that day. It felt strange, saying the words out loud, but I’d been thinking them for so long already. I realized it days ago, how much I cared about her, and I thought she felt the same—but wasn’t sure, at least until she said it back.

  We were making the right choice. It was the hard choice, but it was the right one. We’d leave the city, leave behind a dead mafia capo and a lot of cash, and hope they didn’t come after us all the way out across the county.

  I didn’t think they would, not after Dr. Martin rezoned for them. I had a feeling that would go a long way to appeasing their anger, and maybe Dr. Chen would step up and put in a good word for me on top of that.

  She nodded once to herself. “I’ve grown pretty fond of her too. Even though she makes stupid choices.”

  I laughed. “Like getting involved with me?”

  She gave me a sharp look then softened. “Nah, you’re not so bad.”

  “Why, thank you, you’re okay yourself.”

  She rolled her eyes. “I don’t have to give you the whole don’t hurt her speech, right?”

  “Right, you definitely don’t have to do that.”

  “Good.” She smiled a little. “Take care of her out there. I might even miss you guys a little bit.”

  “I’m sure you will.”

  She laughed and pushed off the wall. “I’m exhausted and heading home. What’s your plan for moving Linda?”

  “Hired an ambulance service already.”

  “Good, good. And you’ll clear all the paperwork with admin?”

  “Started it already.”

  “Then you’re all set.” She took a deep breath. “All right, let me go say goodbye.”

  She walked into the room and I stayed out in the hall. I heard a murmured conversation through the glass, and shut my eyes as I thought about what would come next—the questions from colleagues, the constant fear and worry, all that money down the drain—and realized none of it mattered.

  I was free, and I was free with Erica.

  For the first time in my life, I was in love and it felt right. I had a future and a plan, and it didn’t revolve around my own wants and needs. For the first time in my entire life, I was putting someone else first—someone aside from a patient, of course.

  Erica was my world now. I’d take care of her no matter what happened, and from here on out, I’d cherish every second we get together.

  Fiona came back out a minute later, wiping her eyes, and grinned at me. “You’ve got a winner there.”

  “Don’t I know it.”

  She walked down the hall and waved. “Good luck, asshole.”

  “You too.”

  She disappeared around the corner, and I had the feeling I might never see her again.

  I turned and headed back into the room. Erica smiled up at me as her mother breathed steadily, in and out, the machines quiet.

  “You okay?” I asked.

  “I’m good. I was a little scared there for a second.”

  “Don’t worry.” I crouched next to her and kissed her cheek. “I’m going to take care of both of you.”

  “What do we do now?”

  “I have an ambulance service coming for your mom.”

  “Really?” She frowned at me. “You know where we’re going?”

  “Colorado.”

  “Fiona said California.”

  I shrugged. “I might be laying out a false trail, just in case the mafia decides to follow.”

  She laughed and shook her head. “Smart. Devious and smart.”

  “I’ll drop more money off for Dante, a lot more, and then we’ll hit the road.”

  “Today?”

  “Today.”

  She sucked in a breath and nodded. “And then what?”

  “We’ll lay low for a while then—” I shrugged. “We’ll start a life.”

  “Yeah, we will.” She smiled at me then leaned against my chest.

  I held her there, next to her mother’s bed, and even though our world felt so unsettled, none of it mattered. I had her, I had her, I had her. And I didn’t need anything else.

  30

  Erica

  Two Years Later

  I stood at the top of the stairs and listened for sounds down in the kitchen. I put a hand on the small swell of my belly, and marveled at how the last five months felt like no time at all, even though it was also sort of forever.

  The gurgle of the coffee maker made my mouth water. I hadn’t had caffeine since I’d gotten pregnant, and I desperately craved some—but I was following the rules, even if the rules sucked.

  I walked down the steps, turned the corner, and found my mother standing at the kitchen counter. She smiled at me, tilted her head, and nodded at the stove. “You hungry?” she asked.

  “Starving.” I sat down on a stool and leaned on my elbows. Mom walked over, kissed my cheek, then got to work making pancakes.

  She went slow. She didn’t move li
ke she used to, and had some partial paralysis on her left side. Her fingers on that hand didn’t work well, and she needed a cane to get around—but she was alive, very alive, and she was all there.

  After we left Philadelphia, we went straight to Boulder, Colorado, in the shadow of the mountains. They loomed in the distance, a horrible and impossible reminder of the grand majesty of our great Earth, and it took me a while to get used to them. Gavin found a house that would take cash, and we moved in a few days later—it was unconventional, but the sellers were motivated, and not all that interested in following the rules. It was small, at the end of a gravel driveway, tucked in the back of a tiny cul-de-sac, and I loved the hell out of it. Gavin got into woodworking and spruced the place up, even renovated a bathroom, although that took way longer and cost way more than we’d ever anticipated.

  Mom woke up six weeks after we got settled. One day, she was completely out, and the home nurse Gavin had hired was busy taking care of her—and suddenly her eyes flittered open, she let out a groan, and the nurse started screaming.

  It was a miracle. Gavin said that sort of thing really does happen, but still—it felt like a miracle. And the strangest part was—she no longer wanted to smoke. It was like she went into that coma addicted to nicotine, and woke up without any cravings.

  She took a while to heal and acclimate to her injuries, but soon enough she was back to her old self. She lived with us, of course, though she constantly talked about getting her own place. Gavin would never let her do that though.

  “Here you go,” she said, sliding a plate of pancakes across from me.

  “Thank you kindly.” I dug in, wolfing it down in seconds. Mom leaned back against the counter, sipped some coffee, and laughed at me.

  “Easy there, hon. You’ll choke.”

  “Mom, I’m not going to choke. I’m really, really good at eating pancakes.”

  She laughed and shook her head. “Don’t I know it.”

  I glared at her. “Is that a comment about my weight?”

  “Now, hon, you know I’d never talk about a pregnant woman’s weight. I have more class and tact than that.”

  I rolled my eyes and pushed the plate toward her. “Another, please.”

  She grinned and got to work making me a third. “Do you know how late Gavin’s working today?”

  “I’m not sure. I think he should be home soon.” I glanced at the clock. “He had the graveyard shift.”

  “Poor guy.”

  “I think that’s how it goes when you join a new hospital.”

  “I’m happy he’s practicing again though. He’s been a little lost, you know, drifting around out here.”

  “I’m happy too.” I touched my belly, right where my baby was growing, and smiled at the ring on my finger. We were still married and didn’t plan on changing that anytime soon.

  By the time I finished my third pancake, and mom finished talking about our weird neighbor that liked to shoot beer cans in his back yard with a BB gun, Gavin’s car came crunching down the gravel driveway. He came in a few minutes later, wearing his scrubs, looking exhausted, but his face lit up when he saw me.

  “Hey, you,” he said, coming over. I kissed him and hugged him.

  “How was your shift?”

  “Boring,” he said. “But good. Hey, Linda.”

  “Hey, yourself. Hungry?”

  “I’m good.” He squeezed me tight. “How’s my baby?”

  “Still growing.”

  He knelt down and kissed my belly. “I’m going to love the shit out of you,” he said.

  I laughed and pulled him up. “You gotta stop doing that.”

  “Not until he’s born.”

  “Or she.”

  “He, she, I don’t care.” He hugged me tight. “Now, I have to go shower the hospital off me, then get some sleep.”

  “Sounds good. Want me to wake you up?”

  “Around three, if that’s cool. Let me get a few hours.”

  “Enjoy.”

  He grinned, kissed me one more time, then headed upstairs.

  I watched him go with a smile on my face then sat back down.

  “I have to say, hon, your little family’s looking pretty good.”

  “Yeah? I don’t know. The baby’s not here yet.”

  “It’s here. Maybe it’s not born, but it’s here.”

  I smiled a little. “That’s true.” I put my hand on my belly again, and for the first time in a while, I thought about everything we’d left behind, about Fiona, the hospital, and the mafia.

  We hadn’t heard anything from them since we left. Not a peep, not a comment. I knew Gavin called Dr. Chen at last once to press him for information, but apparently Chen said the family had their own problems, and didn’t plan on bothering us anytime soon. And besides, we’d left them a large sum of money—more than enough to buy off anyone that was pissed about Cosimo’s death.

  Sometimes in the middle of the night, I’d wake up from a nightmare about Cosimo, and I’d still be able to taste the blood in the air, I’d still be able to see his dead eyes staring out from his disgusting face—but then I’d roll over, press myself against Gavin’s warm body, and let the memory fade.

  We were safe and we were happy. I’d never let those bastards take that away from me, not if I could help it.

  Mom gave me a look and tilted her head. “How about me and you go for a walk? I’ve been feeling cooped up.”

  “You sure you’re up for it?”

  She nodded. “I swear, some of my mobility’s been coming back.”

  “Okay then. We’ll take it easy though.”

  “Sounds good.” She shuffled off toward the front door. “Let me get my coat on.”

  I watched her go and stood in my little kitchen then surveyed my living room. This was my cozy house, the home I shared with my mother, with my husband, the doctor, the man that saved my life, that took me from a world I never thought I’d escapee and gave me this, so much more than I ever dreamed of.

  Things were perfect. I hated myself a little for having that thought, because I was afraid that if I acknowledged how good I had it, then somehow it would all go away.

  But it wasn’t going away.

  I had my man, my love, and a baby on the way.

  I was happy. God, I was so happy.

  “Ready to go?” Mom called out.

  “Coming,” I said, and walked toward the front door with a big smile on my face.

  * * *

  Read the mafia books that started it all! Obsessed with His Bride begins the story of the Leone Crime Family. Dante meets his match in Aida, though she resists his intense charms at first. But when a war breaks out, Aida must give in to her desire or end up dead. I’ll kill to keep her. I’ll do much worse to make her my bride. >> Click Here to read it!

  Want more from Gavin and Erica? Sign up for my newsletter and read a fun little bonus scene! >> Click here

  Also by BB Hamel

  All my books are steamy standalones and have a guaranteed HEA!

  Click Here for the whole catalogue on Amazon.

  Series include the Lofthouse Family, Leone Crime Family, Steamy Daddies, SEAL Team Hotties, Love to Hate, Baby Daddy, Miracle Babies, and more.

  Thanks so much for reading! As an indie author, your support means absolutely everything to me.

  XO, BB