His door was open for everyone to come in and out. He hardly ever closed it. He wanted his employees to feel welcome. "Hey, Dr. Stone, here are the papers for rooms five, seven, and nine." The man, Jake spared a glance at his credentials hanging around his neck, Jim, handed him several papers on a clipboard. "Nurse Woods signed off on them and has them settled in."
"Thanks."
"Next round is coming in about fifteen minutes."
Jake nodded at Jim, dismissing him, and he left his office. His phone rang, and he nearly tripped over a box trying to get to his desk before it stopped. Hopefully, it was the IT guys. He had called them three hours ago.
He let out a huge sigh. They would be up there in fifteen minutes. He sat on the edge of his desk and ran his hands through his hair.
"Here are the next papers."
He nearly jumped at Elizabeth's voice. She always knocked, but this time she barged on in, stepping over a box or two, and handed him the clipboard. She turned to leave without saying anything else. "Elizabeth?" She tensed and turned at the door. "What's going on?" He hadn't spoken to her since Tuesday. She’d had the last two days off to try to find some place to stay for the extra week. "Elizabeth?" Jake stood and walked toward her. They’d met in college when he had been reeling from his father's accident. The need to be a doctor had been so strong that it propelled him out of all his friends' orbits. His roommate was Elizabeth's boyfriend, and even after they’d broken up a short time later, she and Jake had remained friends.
"I don't want to talk about this. I have work to do." She looked like she was on the verge of tears.
"At least tell me you're okay."
"I'm fine, Jake." She never called him that at work; she always called him boss.
Jim took that moment to enter with more transfers, and Jake saw her take a deep breath before turning and walking out the door while he signed the papers.
********
Stephanie had refused to ride in an ambulance, a decision she was now regretting. Sitting up in a car for that long was idiotic. Her right leg was now numb, and her left was hurting so badly she was crying. Her mom held her hand, not bothering to hide her tears, and her dad had to leave the room. There was only so much someone could stand to watch while their baby was in pain.
"Sorry," Stephanie croaked.
"Don't you dare apologize," her mom responded. "I hope that button works. Someone will come and give you something for pain, or I will go find someone."
"Hey guys." A nurse entered and shot everyone a sympathetic glance. "Let me hook up your IV, Dr. Waterford, and we can get some meds pushed in you."
Her jaw was clenched so tight she couldn't even tell the girl to call her by her given name.
After what seemed like hours but was probably fifteen minutes, an IV was in, and Stephanie would be on her way to being unconscious soon. Thank goodness.
The last thing she remembered was her mom's fingers combing through her hair as she drifted off to sleep.
********
Jake made his way down the hallway, the soft glow of the lights lighting his way even though they were dimmed because it was after midnight. He checked and double-checked off patients' names—until the last one. He was saving the best for last. He heard her whimper through the half-closed door. "Damn it," he hissed under his breath as he opened the door fully and went to her hospital bed.
Stephanie was lying on her side, and she was sweating profusely. "Shit, Annie." He must have said it too loud because her eyes flew open.
"Jacob," she whispered. Her eyes held pain, and another emotion went through her irises. Anger.
His hand touched her forehead, wiping the sweat off. "I'm going to see if you have a fever." He checked all her vitals while she stared at him.
Her jaw clenched shut as her legs drew up in the bed. "Cramp," she pushed out.
"Which leg? Where?"
"Right hamstring," she breathed out past the pain.
He moved the blanket covering her, and his hand found the knot and began to knead the balled-up muscle. "Better?" he asked when her breathing slowed down and wasn't so erratic.
No, it wasn't. This was not the way she dreamed about having his hands on her. "Yeah. You can stop touching me now," her voice was strained.
He removed his hands, covered her back up with the blanket, and took a step back. Her eyes had drifted shut again. "You don't have a fever. Blood pressure and heart rate are high.At the moment, I can see why, but we'll keep an eye on it."
"Thank you, Doctor," she hissed through gritted teeth. "Doctor" was spat out with such vehemence that Jake almost took another step back. "I don't see your white coat."
"It's in my office," he muttered. Why was she so angry?
"Your girlfriend filled me in, Dr. Stone."
Jake's brow furrowed. "What girlfriend? I don't have one."
Stephanie's eyes opened. "Elizabeth Woods isn't your girlfriend?"
"No! Her boyfriend might have something to say about that, even though I don't like the dude," he tacked on. The guy was a jerk.
He couldn't read all the emotions flickering across her beautiful face. Even with a scar across one cheek, she was prettier than she'd been in high school, and he thought she was gorgeous then. Damn, she had aged well.
"She said that while she was here, you were her boss. I just assumed."
"Oh. Well, I can assure you, Elizabeth didn't mean it that way. We have been friends for years, though." Which reminded him; he needed to find out what had been bothering her earlier.
Something through the window caught his eye, and he abandoned the foot of Stephanie's bed and walked to peer out. Big fat fluffy snowflakes began to fall. He could see them through the parking lot lights. He huffed. The weatherman had gotten something right. They had unloaded the last patient an hour ago.
He was so tired. He rubbed his hand over his face and through his hair. He turned abruptly and caught Stephanie staring at him through wary eyes. She had never looked at him that way. He didn't like it.
He cleared his throat. "I'll make sure someone brings you something else for pain. Are you hungry? I can see if the cafeteria at the hospital has anything edible. Not that they ever do. I'm not too fond of how the construction team did the kitchen here, so I fired them this morning. I'm looking for someone new," he rambled. He needed to leave. He was tired and talking nonsense to the prettiest girl he had ever seen. "I'll bring you some food." He raced out the door, not waiting on a response.
*******
Stephanie was asleep when Jake returned with some snacks. The medicine one of the night nurses hooked her up with must have kicked in.
He placed the chips and Coke on the tray table and took in her features. That scar. Landon's girlfriend had an almost matching one. What was that about? It hit him that he didn't know the specifics of her injury.
He quickly left her room, nodding at the nurses seated around monitors at the nurses' station. He reached his office in no time. His boxes were still thrown everywhere. It had been so busy today, and he hadn't had the chance to unpack.
Jake pulled up her medical records, got the accident's date, and then searched news reports for the same day. His eyes scanned the article. His head was pounding by the time he finished reading it. Anger exploded out of his chest, and he slammed his fist down on his desk, rattling the computer monitor.
"Sorry."
His head snapped up. His scheduling/HR manager was standing at the door with a beanie still on his head. Jake cleared his throat. "I'm sorry. What do you need, and why are you here so early?"
"I came in before the roads get too bad. I wanted to be here when people start to show up or call out."
Jake let out a sigh. The snow. He had forgotten about the weather. He needed sleep. His eyes drifted to the couch along one wall of his office. He was about to lock his door, lie down, and try to get some rest. "Thank you. Listen. I'm going to take a nap and lock my door. You're in charge now."
"Dr. Stone?"
&nbs
p; He held up a hand. "It's Jake right now, boss. I'm seriously about to fall over. I don't know when I slept last."
"Okay, I'm going to my office."
"Thanks," he answered and moved some boxes off his couch before sitting down. He looked at his watch. One in the morning. "I'm setting my alarm for six, but make sure I'm awake, okay?"
"Yep. See you later." His employees rocked.
Jake laid back on the couch and stared at the ceiling, willing his mind to stop going over scenarios in which he climbed the prison's wall and killed someone.
Chapter 3
Stephanie's arms shook with exhaustion from holding herself up between the two parallel bars. Sweat ran down her face and burned her eyes. Her shirt was soaked through where sweat was running down her back.
Why was she putting herself through this? If she had surgery on Friday like they wanted her to and something went wrong, the progress she made in therapy would be for naught.
"Just one more step, Steph," Matt encouraged her. Her therapist was excellent, but if she could let go of these bars, she'd strangle him. She took the final step as the door to the physical therapy room opened.
Her eyes landed on Jake Stone in a white doctor's coat, and her legs gave out. Matt rushed to catch her before she went down in a heap. He pulled her up straight. "I think we're done here," he said near her ear and helped her into her wheelchair. "You did good, Steph."
"Thanks," she mumbled.
He handed her a towel to wipe the sweat off her face.
"I'll take her back," Jake announced from across the room. He had to see her at her worst. Why couldn't he leave her alone today? And why did he look so damn good in a doctor's coat?
"You okay with that?" Matt asked her.
"It's fine. Thanks, Matt."
"I'll see ya Saturday." He walked to the back room, leaving Jake and Stephanie alone.
He walked over to her, grabbed the handles of the wheelchair, and headed toward the door that opened automatically when they neared. Everyone nodded at Jake, greeting him with "Dr. Stone" as he passed.
"Doctor," she mumbled.
"What did you say?"
"Nothing." She heard him sigh behind her.
"Here we are." He rolled her into her room. "Elizabeth is coming to help you get cleaned up. Do you need anything before I go?"
Stephanie just stared at him. Why was he so formal? "No, I don't need anything."
He ran a hand through his hair and placed the other one in his pocket. "Okay. Well, she'll be in here in a minute." He spun on his heel and walked toward the door.
"Look, I'm sorry, Dr. Stone, if my being in a wheelchair is bothering you or making you uncomfortable, but ..."
"That's not it, Annie," he said while turning around.
The use of the nickname he’d given her in high school had her biting her lip. "Then what is it, Jacob?" she asked softly.
"I..."
"DR. STONE, YOU ARE NEEDED IN ROOM FIFTEEN." The intercom repeated the order, and Jake's chin dropped to his chest.
"I have to go, Stephanie. I'll talk to you later."
"Bye, Doctor."
He met Elizabeth at the door. "We need to talk," he told her as he walked out the doorway. "But help her first." He pointed his head toward Stephanie's room and then continued down the hallway to room fifteen.
"Hey, Stephanie. See? I'm getting better," she joked as she closed the door behind her. "You ready to get cleaned up?"
"Yes. I guess. I'm starting to hurt as well."
"I bet. Matt can be challenging, but at least he's good to look at while you're stuck in there doing hard labor." Elizabeth waved her hand in front of her face in a "he's so hot" kind of way. She grabbed Stephanie's wheelchair handles and pushed her toward the bathroom. "Plus, he has to touch you and stuff. Must be nice."
"Didn't he just graduate college?"
"Doesn't mean I can't look."
"Don't you have a boyfriend?"
Elizabeth's steps faltered. "Um. No."
"But Jacob said..."
Elizabeth smirked, "Jacob did, did he?"
"Jake, sorry. Dr. Stone. Old habits die hard, I guess."
Elizabeth didn't say anything as she helped Stephanie get bathed and then settled in bed.
"I always hate doing all that because I'm clean, but I'm usually hurting so bad that I'm sweating again by the time I get finished," Stephanie told her.
"I'm sorry. Here's the remote. The boss is buying pizza for dinner. He hates the cafeteria, and due to the snow, he has to work some rounds because of call-outs and whatnots. He found a delivery up the street and paid someone to walk it over."
"Nice of him."
"He's looking for someone to fix up the kitchen as he wants. I told him to hire the guys fixing up my house. They aren't bad to look at either, but they're all married. I don't go for married men. But that didn't seem to stop my ex from going after married women."
Stephanie grimaced. "Sorry."
"Yeah, that's why we broke up two days ago. I was worried about moving away from him, but he'd been cheating on me for months."
"Ouch."
"Yeah. I hadn't told anyone, and Jake knows I was upset a few days ago, but I'd been avoiding him. He's always hated my boyfriend, and I ignored his warnings. I'm really not ready for an 'I told you so.'"
"I hadn't seen him in years." Stephanie tried to keep the hurt out of her voice, but Elizabeth frowned at her.
"I don't know why he locked himself away from all his friends. He's focused, gets tunnel vision, and ignores the outside world." Elizabeth looked around the room, and her eyes settled on the tiny fridge, reminding her that she'd brought drinks that were still in her car. "I have Cokes for you in my car that Jake made me get. Has he dropped off your box of Tootsie Rolls yet?"
"No, I haven't seen him much, and we haven't talked."
"Well, he's been busy with all the transfers, and I'm not sure he's been home to rest. I saw a blanket on the couch in his office. I need to go. Do you need anything for pain right now?"
"No."
"Call us if you do. Later." She spun around and left the room, the door closing shut behind her.
Stephanie furled her fist. Red-hot jealousy coursed through her veins. This girl knew her Jacob better than anyone. If they weren't together, they soon would be. The girl was pretty, friendly, and suddenly single. And best of all, could freaking walk. But he wasn't her Jacob anymore.
He never had been.
Her hand touched the scar that ran across her cheekbone. It wasn’t that she was vain. Half the time, she didn't even wear makeup. Throw on a hat, and she was good, but Jake looked like a Greek god in a tie, and she looked, well, like this.
Her hand dropped from her face when the door swung open. An orderly entered with dinner. He placed an entire pizza box and a drink on the tray before smiling at her and leaving the room as quickly as he came.
What was she supposed to do with an entire pizza? Save it for later, she guessed. There was a microwave in the room. She ate a piece and flipped on the TV, looking for something to watch. The pain was gradually getting worse, and she found herself fidgeting in the bed.
"Knock, knock." Leslie rapped on the doorframe before entering. Her scrubs were wrinkled, and there was a stain on one shoulder. Her jacket and purse were dangling from her hand, and she looked exhausted. "We are neighbors!" she exclaimed and dropped down in a chair adjacent to the bed. She looked at the pizza and practically drooled.
Stephanie smiled. "Slice, Les?"
"I mean, if you're not..."
"I'm not eating an entire pizza by myself."
"Thank you!" She snatched up the pizza and ate like she hadn't eaten in a week.
Stephanie watched her, amused. "Hungry?"
"Nope." She took a few more bites, and Stephanie turned her attention back to the TV suspended from the ceiling. "So, Steph. Landon told me that Jake is our neighbor's grandson. Small world, right? Mr. Lance tried to set Courtney up with him once."
&nb
sp; Stephanie's head whipped in Leslie's direction. "What?"
Leslie's mouth quirked up. "I asked Landon if he was still good-looking, and he looked at me like I had asked him a complicated calculus question, but Courtney said he was hot."
"He is," Stephanie mumbled.
"You've seen him?"
"He's." Anger boiled just below the surface. "He's the chief of staff here."
"What?"
"Yeah. Dr. Stone is in the house."
"Wow. That's...wow. Are you okay?" Leslie asked softly.
"No." Stephanie's hand rubbed at her face, and she tried not to burst into tears.
"Why don't you just tell him how you feel? How you've always felt."
"I haven't seen the man in years. YEARS. I tried that once. Epic fail."
"I think you gave up too easily."
"He had his tongue so far in the girl's mouth; I doubt he would have heard me."
"Are you sure you saw what you thought you saw?"
"His hand was on her ass, and if they had been any closer to one another, she would have gotten pregnant. What if she did? What if he has kids?"
Leslie just stared at her.
Stephanie's face flushed, and she rubbed at her thigh. "I'm sorry. Therapy was hard today, and I'm in pain."
"Besides that, seeing Jake must be hard."
"Oh my word, I was in high school. I'm ridiculous."
The door opening stopped Leslie from replying. "Hey, Stephanie." Elizabeth pushed open the door with her backside because her hands were full. "Good, the pizza made it. Oh, hi," she said to Leslie and carried the case of Cokes over to the shelf, sliding them in. She went about putting a few of the drinks in the refrigerator. "Here are the drinks. I finally got a break and went to my car. Looks like the roads are clearing up." She turned and wiped her hands on her scrubs. "Oh, I'll be right back with the candy, too. I have to check on some things with my house. Damon, I think his name is, called. They found another hole or a leak or something. I think I bought a lemon."
"Damon with J.D.'s Construction?" Leslie asked.
"Yeah, that's him."
"He's my husband."
"Good job."
Leslie laughed.
"Seriously. They are all calendar-worthy."
Broken Ties (The Healing Series Book 5) Page 2