by Rowe, Julie
Even she knew she wasn’t fooling anyone.
The rest of the dinner passed too quickly for Calla. She missed laughing with her brother and parents. Missed chatting and celebrating the small things. Missed the palpable love strong families generate like power plants with a surplus.
It almost hurt worse to leave, but she couldn’t stay, couldn’t pretend his family was hers, because it wasn’t. She was a guest, a visitor, and one who wouldn’t be back this way again. Unfortunately, she had to pretend everything was hunky-dory. Pain seeped from every pore until she thought she’d drown the world in it.
“Thanks,” she said to him as they walked back to his car. “That was fun.”
“I should be thanking you. That was the best dinner with my family in a very long time.”
“You did almost laugh yourself out of your chair.” They got in his car. “It’s like your family hadn’t met a nice person in a long time.”
“They haven’t. You’ve got to understand, it’s hard to find genuine friends when you’re a celebrity.”
“Like I said before, that’s sad, and there’s nothing wrong with being Canadian.”
He grinned and said, “You sound like you know something about being Canadian.”
He was going to laugh all the way back to her house, she just knew it. “Okay, fine. My grandmother was Canadian, but she died when I was twelve, so…” She glanced at him and added, “I think your grandmother is really cool.”
“I think she is, too.”
“Your mom and aunt need some lessons in tact, however.”
“They couldn’t spell tact if their lives depended on it,” he said.
“Look,” she began, turning in her seat to face him. “I’m really sorry about kissing you without any advance warning.”
He grinned. “All warnings are in advance.”
She narrowed her eyes at him. “You’re going to make this difficult, aren’t you?”
“Make what difficult?” His face was a portrait of innocence.
She crossed her arms over her chest. “Never mind.”
“What about the second kiss? Are you sorry about that one, too?”
“No. I kissed you then because I had to be sure.”
“Sure? About what?”
“How good it was,” she said in a very small voice.
Alex was silent as he pulled up in her driveway and put his car in park. “Wait here while I check for photographers.” He got out and did a slow turn, then he walked to the passenger door and opened it for her. He didn’t let her out, but instead crouched down in front of her and said, “I’ll pick you up tomorrow since your car is still at my place.”
“I get up early.”
“So do I. What time?”
“Six thirty?”
He nodded, stood, and backed up a step.
She got out, but he didn’t move out of the way. Rather, he crowded her against the car and cupped the back of her head with one hand. He lowered his head to kiss her, but stopped short. “Want to give it one more go now that we’re alo—”
She cut him off by stretching up to kiss him. She wanted…oh boy, did she want.
A light flashed. Alex tore himself away from her and moved toward it, but there was a crash and a man sprinted down the drive and out of sight. “Damn reporters.”
She should have been annoyed, but snorted with laughter. “Ten bucks says we’re in the paper tomorrow.”
Alex treated her to a gambler’s grin. “A kiss says we’re on the front page.”
Her stomach dove off a cliff, but she couldn’t stop herself from saying, “You’re on.”
Chapter Eight
Monday mornings were never Calla’s favorite, but today was turning out to be the worst one ever.
She’d gotten up at six, like usual. She showered, ate breakfast, and went out to meet Alex.
Alex wasn’t the only person waiting for her in the driveway. Two idiots with cameras were there taking a bazillion pictures of her with coffee in her hand.
“How long have you been sleeping with your lawyer?” one of them shouted at her.
“Are you using sex as a weapon?” the other yelled.
“Are you using stupidity as a weapon?” she asked in return, rolling her eyes and getting into Alex’s car.
He kept the conversation on current events, like he was afraid to talk about anything else.
By the time she’d gotten inside the spa, she’d used up a full day’s worth of patience in five minutes. Not even the fancy cappuccino machine in the lobby could cheer her up.
Helen was waiting for her outside her office. Calla’s heart sunk. Helen’s expression was completely blank, which told Calla her boss was very upset about something.
“I’m so sorry about the circus outside. They were waiting for me to come out of my house this morning,” she explained.
Helen’s face remained impassive.
“What’s wrong?”
“Someone from the American Medical Association called this morning. They’ve requested you voluntarily stop practicing until they investigate the charges against you.”
“Charges? What charges? The AMA…” Doctors were sued all the time, but she’d never heard of a physician slapped with a cease practicing order, even a voluntary one, unless the situation was dire or an emergency. “Really?”
“Let’s sit down and I’ll walk you through it.” Helen preceded Calla into her office. “Oh.” Her breath caught in a way that sounded surprised and dismayed. “How lovely.”
“Lovely?” Calla closed the door behind her and stepped around Helen. What could cause Helen to sound so ambivalent?
On her desk was a beautiful arrangement of exotic flowers. A small card tucked almost in the vase at the front caught her eye.
“A new romance or an old one?” Helen asked with a frosty tone.
“Neither, I think.” Calla plucked the card out and opened it. The verse inside delighted her despite all the nasty stuff going on outside and inside her office.
Happy Monday. No matter what crap gets thrown your way today, imagine yourself on a beach far away with the scent of these flowers in your nose. A vacation or an adventure doesn’t have to take more than a moment.
“Someone is taking the time to show their support,” Calla said, handing the card to Helen.
She read it. “Clever. Is this the first bouquet?”
“The second. I’ll have to ask Selena where it came from, but I suspect Dr. Lazarus. Is it okay to send a thank you card for a thank you bouquet?”
“If the sender wanted your thanks, he would have signed his name.”
“Maybe.” She was going to send him a card anyway to show him how much she appreciated his thoughtfulness. She put the card back and moved the flowers so they weren’t in the middle of her desk. “So,” she asked Helen. “Who’s made these charges against me?”
“The lawyers for Jeff MacKay.”
Anger had her clenching her fists. “That self-important jackass? How could he charge me with anything, I’ve never so much as spoken to him as a patient.”
“It’s all a bunch of legal mumbo jumbo, but the short version is he’s brought ethics violations charges against you.”
“He’s never been my patient.”
“I think he’s trying to discredit you in advance of your deposition this afternoon. That’s not all,” Helen added in a tone that said this was the other shoe about to fall. “There’s a picture of you and Alex kissing in the morning paper.” She handed it to Calla.
“Damn,” she said, reading the front-page headline. Lawyer and Doctor Getting It On or Getting Off? “I can’t decide if I should be angry or happy about this.”
“I think that would be obvious. A conflict of interest between my lawyer and one of my surgeons will only complicate things.”
“That’s not what I meant,” Calla said as she held up the paper. “Alex owes me ten bucks.” And I owe him a kiss.
“I beg your pardon?”
&nb
sp; “We’re not really seeing each other. We saw the photographers last night and I bet him ten bucks we’d end up in the paper today. Looks like I won.” Oh boy, did she ever. Calla dropped the paper onto her desk and changed the subject. “Will this investigation damage Seacliffe or Helen’s House?”
“I don’t know. I hope not, but it will depend on our clients and how they respond to the publicity.”
“What does Alex say?”
“I haven’t talked to him yet today.” Helen shifted her weight back and forth from one foot to the other and pinched her lips together.
“What else is wrong?”
“What’s really going on between you and Alex?”
“I…” Calla let her voice trail off since she really didn’t have an answer. Unfortunately, Helen appeared to be willing to wait for one. She sighed. “I told everyone at his family dinner we were together so they’d stop trying to set him up. And we kissed a couple…a few times.”
“You’d better get your stories straight.”
“I’m the only one who needs to do that. Alex doesn’t lie, remember?”
Helen watched her with a frown. “How are your finances?”
Calla laughed without humor. “I’ll get by.”
Ha. She owed hundreds of thousands of dollars for her brother’s medical care.
Her boss shook her head. “Perhaps you should consider Alex’s practice of radical honesty because you’re a horrible liar.”
“I’ll find a way to make it work,” Calla told her “I will. Please don’t worry about me.”
“You’re right, I’m supposed to be reducing my stress level. So, you’ll be receiving a paycheck from Seacliffe per usual.”
Helen turned to leave, but Calla stopped her with, “Thanks, Helen. I appreciate everything you’re doing for me.”
“You’re welcome.” She pointed a finger at Calla. “Stay out of trouble.” Helen walked to the door, paused, and then said, “If you can,” before opening it and leaving.
Calla stared after her. “There’s some advice I wish I could take.” She could do one thing right now though, and that was send Dr. Lazarus a note to tell him how much she appreciated his support.
She chose a card from a small supply she kept in her desk in case she forgot a birthday or other event, wrote a short thank you to Dr. Lazarus, and slid it into its envelope. She’d drop it off before she went home at the end of the day.
At least someone was supporting without her having to do them a favor, like this weird arrangement she had with Alex.
…
Alex straightened from his semi-relaxed position against the wall outside of Calla’s office and nodded at Helen as she left.
Helen waved at him to follow.
He smiled and strode after her, entering her office and shutting the door.
“Hello, Helen.”
She took a seat behind her desk. “How much did you hear?” She looked about as thrilled as the captain of the Titanic after the ship hit the iceberg.
“Most of it, I think,” Alex said “MacKay’s charges and her rebuttal.”
Helen arched an eyebrow. “You and her need to talk about how you’re going to handle the press.”
“I’ll do that.” He turned to leave.
“Thank you, and Alex?”
He stopped and said over his shoulder, “Yes?”
Helen’s mouth pulled down. “What’s going on between you? Personally?”
“We kissed.” The truth.
“And?”
“And…” Keep telling the truth and only the truth or protect himself and Calla from something that might be nothing? “Nothing. She’s a smart, beautiful woman who doesn’t belong here and certainly won’t be staying long term, and I’m me. With all my baggage, how long do you think it would really last in this town?”
“I don’t think she’s all that concerned about what other people think.”
“In this city it’s about who you know, not what you know. I’m the wrong guy for her.” Unfortunately. Whoever the right guy turned out to be, he was one lucky bastard.
“So, you’ve spoken?” Helen asked carefully.
“Yes.” Decision made. Court dismissed.
“Don’t change your mind, Alex. I’ve seen you rush into what you thought was a sure thing and get burned.”
“I can’t afford to rush headlong into anything. Experience has shown me it’s always a mistake.” He had the emotional scars to show for it.
“Thank you.”
Alex left Helen’s office and returned to his own, the happy expression on his face melting away. Calamity seemed to follow Dr. Calla Roberts everywhere she went. Jeff MacKay did, too. Why was a Hollywood A-lister spending so much time and energy harassing a plastic surgeon?
He opened his email and found a message from his investigator.
Calla’s finances where a mess. She owed a lot of money, and most of it seemed to be related to her brother’s care. She really couldn’t be without her income.
He couldn’t wait to deal with this complaint to the AMA.
Alex looked at his calendar and case load. He’d have to have a couple of the junior partners take over a few in order to deal with Calla’s case effectively. It kept snowballing into something larger and more complicated all the time.
He made a few calls so that by the time Calla phoned him, he would be free to talk with her.
She walked into his office looking nothing like the confident doctor he was used to seeing, and that bothered him. He liked her when she was feisty and fighting back, but she looked tired and defeated.
“What’s with the long face?” he asked as she sat down.
“Two words: Jeff MacKay.” Calla leaned forward and rested her face in her hands for a moment. “Now these charges and the AMA asking me to stop practicing until an investigation can be conducted.” She shook her head. “I’m lucky I haven’t had a nervous breakdown.”
Anger and frustration had him shaking with the need to do something, anything to help her, but that was the wrong response. Anything he did, like shove Jeff MacKay into a door, would make things worse. He forced himself to stay seated and remain calm. “Once you’ve testified I think MacKay will leave you alone, but I can talk to the AMA regarding this ethics investigation now. I don’t think they’ve got all the facts.”
“Perhaps we should set up a fee payment schedule…?”
The last thing he wanted from her was money. After the kisses they’d shared, all he wanted was another taste of her. “Now I’m insulted.”
That brought her head up. “Why?”
“We already have an agreement in place, one I’m happy with.”
“But—”
She looked so lost, so alone, he couldn’t stand it anymore. “No.” He got up, went around his desk, drew her to her feet, and enveloped her in a hug.
For a moment, she stood frozen in his arms, then her muscles relaxed one by one until she leaned against him, her head coming to rest on his chest. A hungry, sensual sound came from deep inside her and she wrapped her arms around his back as if afraid he was going to abandon her.
Alex soaked her up, her curves warm and soft against him. Time came to a stop as he rubbed his nose in her hair and discovered a deep desire to become intimately acquainted with all of her.
“I want no money from you,” he whispered into her hair. “Representing you against that moron, Jeff MacKay, is payment enough.”
She sucked in a breath. “But—”
He interrupted her again. “No buts. I talked to Helen earlier this morning and she’s thrown her support behind you. So, let me get the particulars of the charges against you from the AMA. Then we’ll take them apart and present our case.”
She leaned back and stepped away, her face flushed and eyes dilated. Her hands fluttered around at waist height like she wasn’t sure what to do with them.
He had to force himself to let her go.
She gazed at him with her lips pinched together. “I assur
e you, I didn’t do what MacKay says I did. He thought all he’d have to do to get me to do whatever he wanted was smile. When I said no, I thought for a moment that he was going to have a hissy fit. His behavior only got worse after that.”
“Have you ever seen him as a patient?”
“No.”
“Good.” Alex nodded, trying and failing to get his mind back on his job. All he wanted to do was hold her again. The need was like a live thing, coiling round and round inside him until he was hopelessly dizzy. “I can work with that.”
She went to the door, and he noticed her hands shaking. Had she been as affected as he’d been?
“One other thing,” she said. “I got another bouquet with poetry today.”
“Did the sender sign his name?”
“No.”
He searched her face and found her mouth and eyelids drooping with unhappiness. “It’s bothering you?”
“I wish I knew who it was. Both notes have said exactly the right thing at the right time to cheer me up.” She paused for a moment. “Do you think you could find out who it is?”
“No problem.” Especially since it was him. He’d forgotten to sign the first note, and after seeing her reaction to the bouquet and poetry, decided not to sign the second one.
It was odd; he didn’t like how much she liked the horrible poetry his flower-giving-self wrote. How could a man be jealous of himself? But, damn it, having a secret friend shouldn’t be needed to bolster her confidence. He wanted her to turn to him, Alex Hardy, the man she knew, not some minor personality inside his head.
“Thanks.” She turned to leave.
“Calla.”
“What?”
“About that kiss last night…”
“Which one?”
“All of them…they weren’t necessary.” He took in a breath to continue, to tell her no more kisses, but she cut him off.
“Maybe not, but your aunt pissed me off.”
“So, you kissed me to prove a point?”
“The first time, yeah. The second time was for you and the third one was for me.”
His brows went up. “For you?”
A wave of red rolled up her cheeks, and it made him want to slay dragons for her. “You’re a really great kisser.” She whipped around the doorjamb and was gone.