Rescue Me

by Anne, Melody

  She could try to transfer, but that would be nearly impossible without hurting her career. Yes, she could go to Ryan and ask for help, but she wanted to do things on her own, and she wasn’t letting some cheap sex alter her entire plans.

  She would get over her feelings toward that pompous doctor. She hated allowing him to affect her as much as he had. It was foolish. He obviously didn’t give a damn, so why in the world did she give him power over her?

  One thing she knew for sure: she wasn’t going to ever have sex with another co-worker again, let alone get in a relationship with one. No way. Not a chance.

  The worst that had occurred during the miserable week was running into him twice in the hallway. He hadn’t tried to turn away. Why should he? He didn’t think he’d done anything wrong. In all honestly, he hadn’t lied to her. He’d never told her they were exclusive. She knew who he was, but knowing that didn’t change how she felt. It sucked.

  Seeing him made her burn. When he looked at her, coldness in those dark eyes, she fought tears. It was foolish. Life would be much easier if she didn’t care. She’d feel that way soon. She needed time.

  “Earth to Patsy,” Nurse Sammy said with a laugh.

  Patsy snapped out of her thoughts and turned toward the young, perky nurse who had a way with kids.

  “I’m sorry, Sammy. I’m not getting enough sleep,” she told the woman.

  “I hear ya. When I decided to go into the medical field I didn’t realize that meant regular twelve hour shifts,” Sammy said. “And you work more than that. I don’t know how any of you do it.”

  “I think it’s because we don’t have a choice. When you love medicine there’s nothing else that will satisfy you,” Patsy said.

  “I know. My mother can’t understand how puss pockets and gashes fascinate me. I go home and talk about a really cool boil I got to drain and my family turns green and looks at me like I’m insane. I don’t get it. It doesn’t get better than that for me,” Sammy said, a gleam in her eyes that had Patsy chuckling a bit. It felt good.

  “Well, you have plenty of co-workers who are more than glad to hear about your creepiest cases,” Patsy assured her.

  “Yeah, but then someone here always has a better story, and I’m jealous,” Sammy said with her own laugh.

  “True. Maybe we can all have a competition to see who gets the creepiest case in a thirty day period,” Patsy told her.

  Sammy’s eyes lit up. “Oh, that’s brilliant! But no doctors are allowed in the contest because you will, of course, get all the best stuff. But I’m so proposing that to the rest of the nurses.” It looked as if Sammy wanted to run off right then and there and start the contest. Patsy might’ve started a war.

  “Have fun and let me know the winner,” Patsy told her.

  “I will for sure. Now, before I forget, you’ve been traded to Dr. Armistead’s service tonight and tomorrow. Dr. Kelly complained he wasn’t getting any ER time; you were hogging it all.”

  Patsy’s skin went cold. She was supposed to work in the ER the rest of the week with Dr. Forbes. That was her safe place.

  “I don’t hog the ER,” Patsy said.

  “Sorry, take it up with Dr. Armistead. He’s the boss,” Sammy told her with a shrug. “I gotta run. Dr. Armistead’s in OR two and waiting for you.”

  With that the girl turned and power-walked down the hallway. She’d done her task and was now on to better things. Patsy felt a cold sweat break out on her skin at the thought of spending any time with Kyle. Besides the two incidences in the hallway, she’d done a damn fine job of avoiding the man for nearly a week.

  But if he could be cold and professional, she assured herself she could be the same. That was her job, and she’d already decided not to let anything interfere with her work. She could act her age and behave like the doctor she was.

  Stepping into the cold operating room, Patsy felt more than the chill of the temperature. She tried not to look to where Kyle was standing, but she couldn’t help herself. He could’ve had her go to another surgeon, but he wasn’t letting their lack of a relationship affect their working environment. He was obviously being more professional than she was.

  But as her eyes made contact with his piercing brown gaze, she felt as if she’d been scorched to the soles of her feet. For the briefest of moments the look was so hot, so intent, so full of passion, she felt her knees grow weak.

  Maybe he wasn’t as unaffected as she’d assumed he was. Or maybe she was seeing what she wanted to see. Maybe she wanted him to feel something. If that helped her heal, helped her to move on, she’d take it.

  Kyle kept the talk completely professional as the two of them performed a mastectomy together. It was a fairly simple surgery, but whenever they were dealing with a person’s body, they needed to stay focused, especially when cancer was involved.

  Patsy grew nervous as they neared the end of the surgery because the two of them hadn’t been alone in over a week, and she wasn’t sure if they’d step into the scrub room together, or if he’d try to talk to her.

  She wasn’t sure if she wanted that or not. She hated being unsure about anything. But as she finished the final sutures his pager went off, and he told her to finish up and then he left the room.

  Patsy wasn’t pleased to feel disappointment at his departure. She had to focus on her work. A month earlier that had been simple. Why was it that one person could affect another so much? Why did fate have to be so petty?

  If she’d gone to another hospital, or Kyle had never returned home, she wouldn’t be feeling this way now. So why couldn’t she pretend there was no connection between the two of them and get on with her life?

  If only human emotions weren’t so damn overpowering. Wouldn’t life be easier as a sociopath? It was a somewhat pleasant thought. It should scare her that she was wishing to feel nothing at all.

  She finished her surgery, and her body hurt because she was so tired. She was on-call the rest of the night and couldn’t leave the hospital. That made things worse. She cleaned up, called and checked on her dog, then stumbled toward one of the on-call rooms. Maybe she could grab a few hours sleep and save her sanity.

  Instead, Patsy walked in with her head down, turned a corner, and ran straight into a brick wall—or what felt like one at least.

  Chapter Thirty

  Patsy knew the wall she’d run into wasn’t a wall at all. She knew every inch of that hard body that had pressed against hers naked, damp, hard, and hot. She stumbled backward, hit something less hard behind her, and felt her feet twist.

  Kyle reached out for her, making her flail her arms to keep him away. She had to look like a complete klutz, but she didn’t care. All her thoughts were of getting away. She couldn’t handle touching this man.

  She went flying backward with too much momentum and felt as if everything was moving in slow motion as she crashed hard to the ground, her breath taken away as pain shot up her spinal cord. She couldn’t keep the yelp from escaping as tears popped into her eyes.

  Not again, dammit! This was how they’d met the first time, which wasn’t how she wanted their last meeting to go.

  She wasn’t sure if it was because she was so tired, or if it was that she’d touched him, or if it was the utter humiliation of that moment. It all added up to a mess, and she wanted a Looney Toons moment of a black hole opening up and swallowing her whole.

  But that didn’t happen.

  When the ringing in her ears lessened and the blurriness of her eyes disappeared, Patsy was very aware Kyle had knelt down in front of her, his face mere inches from her own. Her heart pounded as she attempted to scramble backward.

  It seemed she wasn’t in control of herself anymore, or her actions.

  “Come on black hole,” she muttered.

  Kyle stopped what he’d been saying and looked at her as if she had a concussion. She didn’t think she�
��d hit her head, but she could be wrong. Maybe it had happened so fast she hadn’t noticed. Her whole body ached and was buzzing.

  “Are you okay, Patsy? That was a hard fall.” His words finally came through loud and clear.

  “I’m fine. Go away,” she said through clenched teeth.

  She felt his hands on her, and everywhere he touched burned. She pushed at him, but he wasn’t relenting.

  “Dammit! Stop!” he thundered, surprising her. He rarely raised his voice. As a matter of fact, she couldn’t remember it ever happening. “I’m trying to see if anything’s broken.” The tone changed by the end of his sentence.

  “I’m fine. Please go away,” she said, hating how close she was to falling completely apart.

  “Not gonna happen,” he said, his own voice irritated.

  She glared at him before ripping her eyes away and glancing at the mess she’d made. She’d run into a medical cart and all sorts of supplies were scattered around her. She sat up and began gathering the items that would now have to be thrown away because of her clumsiness. No wonder medical costs were so high.

  He didn’t say anything as he started helping, picking things up and placing them on the cart. It didn’t take long, and when they finished she had no choice but to stand. She was slightly frightened to do so, afraid she had injured herself.

  It was slow going, and she pushed away his hand when he tried helping again, but she did manage to get to her feet, all while doing a mental assessment. She’d have a hell of a bruised tailbone, but nothing was broken—well, nothing except her pride.

  “Thanks for the help,” she said, not meeting his gaze. She turned to leave when he grabbed her elbow.

  This time she managed to keep herself from ripping away from him and ending up in another heap on the floor. She’d have to get used to having his touch at times. They worked in tight spaces and that happened. It hadn’t ever been a problem for her before, and she wasn’t going to let it be a problem now.

  “We need to talk,” he told her. Finally she met his eyes and was confused with the anger and a tinge of concern in his expression. Those tears she tried so desperately to keep away were close to the surface.

  “No, we don’t. We’re both professionals. We had a thing, it didn’t work, now we need to work together without being teenagers about it,” she said. That was the extent of the talk she was willing to have with him.

  She was fascinated by the flare of rage flashing in his eyes before he managed to bank it down. The man had impressive self-control. She had to give him that. But it’s also what made him so damn cold.

  “I guess you did act like a teenager when you ran off, leaving me at a party we’d come to together,” he said.

  She glared at him, offended he dared to bring up the party after the humiliation he’d put her through there. She took in several deep breaths before she said anything to him.

  “You were perfectly entertained at the party and I got tired of watching it,” she said. She had to widen her eyes to keep the tears from coming. Damn him.

  “What are you talking about?” The anger drained from his face, confusion taking its place.

  “I heard you and Darcy,” she told him. Her humiliation was now complete.

  “What?” His genuine confusion confused her.

  “I heard you and Darcy talking about all the surgery I needed.” The last word was spoken barely above a whisper as those damn tears sprung to her eyes. She’d hate him forever if one dared to fall right then. She didn’t want him to know what his words had done to her. She’d been humiliated enough.

  His pager went off, and he glanced down and let out a sigh before looking at her again. He seemed to be searching for his own words, and she wondered what he was going to say to lessen what he’d already said and done. It didn’t matter. He was probably looking to have one more night together. That’s the kind of man he obviously was.

  Before he could say anything, his pager beeped again and he swore, hitting a button before giving her his full attention.

  “That’s why you left? You saw me with Darcy?” he questioned. There was no expression on his face, so she had no idea what he was thinking.

  “I saw and heard,” she told him. “It’s fine. You and I didn’t commit to anything. We were having a good time. But I had no clue you thought there was so much wrong with me. I’d much rather sleep with a man who isn’t so picky. Maybe I should stay away from plastic surgeons whose idea of perfection is ninety percent plastic,” she said. Tears were choking her, but she held them back pretty dang well.

  He suddenly reached out and grabbed her, surprising her too much to resist.

  “Did you hear the whole conversation?” he questioned.

  “I didn’t need to. I heard enough.”

  His lips turned up, making her tears fade away to nothing as burning rage took their place. How dare he laugh at her when she was hurting so badly?

  “We’re fools,” he told her as his beeper went off again. “Dammit! We’ll finish this later.” Without giving her a chance to do a single thing about it, he yanked her hard against him, his head lowering, and his lips taking hers in a kiss so hot she wasn’t sure how they didn’t melt together.

  He pulled away, his eyes on fire, his lips turned up the slightest bit as if a weight had been lifted from his shoulders. She was completely lost. Without saying another word, he turned and walked away, leaving Patsy standing there unsure of what the heck had just happened.

  Finally she stumbled into an on-call room, and pure exhaustion was the only blessing for her right then, because as soon as her head hit the pillow, she fell into a deep sleep, and nothing short of a tornado would wake her.

  Chapter Thirty-One

  Kyle was called into surgery all night, and by the time he went to seek Patsy out again, she was gone. There was no way he was hunting her down at home, not when he knew the kind of week she’d had. She needed rest.

  He also knew he’d see her that night.

  Stepping into his apartment, he moved to his counter and looked at the gold embossed invitation inviting him to Katherine Anderson’s birthday party. He had to smile because he’d heard rumors of how Katherine’s husband, Joseph, a giant of a man, liked to meddle in the lives of his family, and those he considered family.

  And it was more than obvious Joseph Anderson loved Patsy. And that meant Kyle loved Joseph. Because after this day, after that kiss with Patsy, there was no longer any doubt how Kyle felt about her.

  He had to do whatever it took to make her forgive him for what she’d misunderstood. If she’d waited long enough to hear the end of his conversation with Darcy, she would’ve heard him laugh at the vain girl, telling her that Patsy was perfection and someone who didn’t need to change a dang thing about herself.

  He shouldn’t have stood there and played the game with Darcy, but he’d hated girls like her when he was a gangly, awkward teen with acne. He hadn’t grown into his large frame and smooth complexion until he was out of high school, and girls like Darcy had made his existence a living hell.

  His pleasure at taunting the snotty girl had ended though. He was done with feeling the need for revenge. He was at peace with himself. Maybe that had to do with Patsy. Maybe she’d change him in more ways than he’d imagined.

  He’d been off balance from the moment he’d met Patsy Lander, and he had no doubt he was in love with her. Now he had to convince her that giving him her heart wouldn’t destroy her life, they could have it all—career, kids, family. They could have the world if they simply opened their hearts to receive it.

  The day dragged on until it was time for the party, and Kyle decided to have a driver take him. He wanted his hands free on the way home because he wanted them all over the woman he was going to take home and tie to his bed. From there on out he was going to ensure she didn’t sneak off in the middle of the night again. He’d d
o whatever it took to keep her at his side.

  If he needed to grovel, he’d do that as well. He was in love enough to realize his pride meant nothing if it caused him to lose the girl.

  The Anderson mansion was unlike anything he’d ever seen before. Kyle had been surrounded by wealth his entire life, but there was wealth, and then there was wealth. From the second the car door was opened and he stepped onto the red carpet and walked up the giant staircase to the Anderson front door he was awed.

  Music could be heard the moment he moved through the enormous hallways to the ballroom where hundreds of people milled about wearing red-carpet-worthy ball gowns and custom tuxedos that cost more than most people’s mortgages.

  The lighting was muted, and the scent of roses hung in the air as an orchestra played lively music at the right volume to allow conversations to continue for those talking, but an intimate moment on the dance floor for those who wanted to be in one another’s arms.

  Kyle searched the crowd for any sign of Patsy and was highly disappointed when he didn’t spot her right away. He knew she’d be there. It was the only reason he’d decided to go. He’d find her, grab her, and force her to listen to him.

  They’d already lost a week due to their stubbornness, and he didn’t plan on losing a single minute more. He needed her, and he had no doubt she needed him just as much.

  “You look pretty intense.”

  The deep baritone behind him made Kyle turn as he smiled at Ryan Titan, who had a stunning woman on his arm.

  “You’re gorgeous,” Kyle said to Nicole who beamed at him. Patsy looked so similar to her, but the common thing that was most apparent was the kindness that shone from each of their eyes. That couldn’t be bought, couldn’t be surgically enhanced. True beauty lay in the eyes of a person, and Patsy and her sister shared the trait.

  “Quit flirting with my wife,” Ryan grumbled, but as he looked at the woman, the love shining in his eyes was apparent for all the world to see. He loved his woman getting a compliment that made her glow.