by Durano, Liz
Doctor’s Orders
A Standalone Romance
Liz Durano
Doctor’s Orders Copyright © 2019 by Liz Durano
Published by Velvet Madrid
All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, distributed, or scanned in any printed or electronic form without permission. Please do not participate in or encourage piracy of copyrighted materials in violation of the author's rights. This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, businesses, places, events, and incidents are either the products of the author's imagination or used in a fictitious manner. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, events or establishments is purely coincidental.
v. 2019_05_25
v. 2020_03_14
Contents
Eight Months Earlier
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Chapter 6
Chapter 7
Chapter 8
Chapter 9
Chapter 10
Chapter 11
Chapter 12
Chapter 13
Chapter 14
Six Months Later
Other Books by Liz Durano
About Liz
Eight Months Earlier
Ava
I shouldn’t have answered the call. I should have let it go to voicemail and enjoy my time with my mother in Auburn Springs. But I did, and after listening to my panicked boss begging me to go to the Las Vegas conference in his place, here I am two days later (the job done, by the way) but needing something to do before I get on my flight for New York in the morning.
I should head back to Auburn Springs and resume my vacation—or what’s left of it—but after securing the account in Las Vegas, I also want to get the project started back in New York. It’s my biggest account so far and I want my name on it even though I have a suspicion that Ryan will take all the credit like he does everything else.
But I can’t think about that right now. I need to figure out what to do now that I just found out my favorite band’s opening night is sold out. Sure, I could buy a ticket from the many scalpers selling them right outside the hotel but with tickets going for ten times their original price, I’d rather do something else.
I could wander along the Strip and check out the sights. I’ve yet to see the fountains of Bellagio. Maybe I could ride on a gondola at the Venetian. But I don’t want to venture out of my hotel tonight. I don’t want to get stuck in another crowd of period after spending the day inside the convention center with a different crowd.
Instead, I want something low-key for the evening. Maybe I could check out that adult show someone was talking about at the convention today, something about a near-naked version of a popular Vegas show. Considering it’s been a long time since I’ve seen a perfect set of abs, it’s actually not a terrible idea. Probably the only negative thing about my plan is that I’ll be alone, but it still beats staying in my hotel room all night in Sin City.
I down the last of my drink and swivel out of my stool without thinking. By the time I see the server walking behind me carrying a tray filled with drinks, it’s too late.
Glasses fall from the tray, a highball, a lowball, and a cocktail glass, their respective contents spilling all over a man standing to her right. A blue Hawaiian (judging by the color of the drink and the mini umbrella) splashes on his shirt and trousers.
Amid apologies, I somehow manage to grab a stack of napkins from the bar and I start patting the poor man’s shirt dry all the way down to his trousers. I would have kept going until he grabs my wrist, my hand inches from his crotch.
“Um, excuse me…” He loosens his grip but I get the message loud and clear.
I drop the napkins on the floor, my face burning with embarrassment. “Oh, shit. I’m so sorry. I didn’t mean to… to feel you up or anything. Honest!”
He laughs. “It’s okay. Really, it’s fine. Accidents happen.”
“Still, I’m really sorry. I don’t want you to think I’m a…” I pause, the words sex-hungry-single-professional-woman forgotten as I stare at the man’s deep blue eyes. They’re gorgeous. No, I take another step back. He’s gorgeous. In fact, the whole package is gorgeous. The smile, the abs, the slim hips and muscled thighs evident from the soaked fabric of his pants clinging to his skin. I don’t even notice the server who’s now joined by another hotel employee picking up the glasses from the floor.
“Why don’t you two step to the side so we can get this area cleaned up?” The server says as a her co-worker sets up two-sided yellow signs that say “Caution Wet Floor.”
“Oh, God. I feel so bad,” I mutter under my breath as my unfortunate bystander dabs his shirt and the front of his trousers with dry napkins. “I hope this isn’t going to make you late for anything.”
He shakes his head. “Nah, considering how my day’s going, this is probably the most excitement I’ve had.”
I laugh. “You’re in Vegas. How can you not have fun?”
“When you’ve been stuck in meetings all day,” he replies, handing the napkins to the server. “And when you see your ex-girlfriend kissing your best friend in the lobby.”
“I’m sorry to hear that. That’s not cool… at all.”
He shrugs. “Yeah, but what can you do, right? We did break up a month ago so she can see whoever she wants. But my best buddy? No wonder he’d been avoiding me during this whole conference.”
Suddenly I don’t want to talk about ex-girlfriends or traitorous best friends. I hold out my hand. “I’m Ava, by the way.”
“Parker.” He grips my hand in a firm handshake. “What about you? Were you going somewhere? You seemed like you were in a hurry.”
“In a hurry to go nowhere, to be honest. I was just going to walk around, kill time before my flight in the morning,” I say, chuckling. “What about you?”
He pulls out a pair of tickets from his jacket pocket and holds them up. “I was on my way to the ticket counter to give one of these up. Figured someone out there would be interested. But with all the people hanging out in the main corridor, I thought I’d take a shortcut through the bar and…” He looks down at his drenched shirt and trousers. “Well, here we are.”
“How can you give those tickets up?” I exclaim. “Aerosmith is the hottest ticket in town. And it’s their opening night!”
“No shit.” Parker laughs. “I bought them a few months ago when my girl and I were still together. I don’t mind seeing the show alone but I’m sure there’s a waiting list of people who’d want this.” He holds up one ticket.
“Hell, I want it and I’m willing to buy it from you.” I reach for my purse but he rests his hand on my wrist.
“Seriously?” He asks and I nod.
“I was just at the ticket counter and they said it’s sold out. I mean, they’re going for so much more so I’ll understand if you’d rather do that.”
Parker shakes his head. “I don’t care about the money, but if you really want to see it, we can see it together. And no, you don’t have to pay me anything.”
“Are you sure?” I stare at him, looking for signs that this guy is pulling my leg but he’s actually serious—so serious he even hands me the ticket.
“Here. It’s yours.”
“At least let me buy you a drink or something,” I say. “Or maybe even a late dinner.”
Parker grins as he looks at the soaked shirt that’s clinging to his unmistakable six-pack abs. “Since the show starts in half an hour, why don’t I go back to my room and change into something dry and meet you down here? You can buy me a drink after the show.”
&nb
sp; “That’ll work.”
He grins. “Although this time, I’d prefer not to wear it.”
* * *
After the show, we find a dark corner at the hotel bar. We haven’t stopped gushing about the show, both of us unable to stop talking about the songs that took our breath away.
Sweet Emotion. Love in an Elevator. I Don’t Want to Miss A Thing. I still can’t believe I got to see the show and that I saw it with someone as wonderful as Parker.
As the server comes back with our drink orders, I realize I’ve never had this much fun in my life. Maybe it’s the thrill that comes with hanging out with a gorgeous stranger. Maybe it’s because it’s happening in Las Vegas, far from home and work.
We’ve also graduated from the hey-let’s-hang-out phase and we’re currently deep in the I-can’t-keep-my-hands-off-you part of the evening. Maybe it was the songs being played, the emotions each one brought out of us, and the fact that tonight is the first night of the band’s Las Vegas residency and so, the energy in the auditorium was just out of this world. Or maybe it’s because Parker had front row seats and we even got to stand right in front of the stage screaming our hearts out.
I’ve never had this much fun in all my thirty years. Add the way Parker looks at me like I’m the sexiest woman he’s ever met, and I’m putty... and horny as hell.
I don’t even care if I’m imagining it all, not when his fingers playfully draw circles along my shoulder as he asks me what I do for a living and I tell him that I’d rather talk about what I’d like to do to him before the night is over. When he leans closer to ask me exactly what it is I want to do to him, I tell him.
“I want to see if those rock hard abs of yours are real,” I murmur. “But first, I want to start with this.”
And that’s when the kiss happens. One minute, we’re sitting in a dark corner at the hotel bar and the next, we’re in his hotel room where I get to see and taste Parker’s rock hard abs (and more).
I don’t even care that I’m totally like a wild woman around him, eager to try everything I never got to try with anyone else before. But it’s not like I’ve got a reputation to protect. Right now, I’m just one of the millions of people in Sin City getting laid.
Besides, as they say in Las Vegas—what happens here stays here—and that’s exactly how this will go.
Chapter One
Ava
Telephone call. Important.
It’s my secretary Bailey Knox mouthing the words and gesturing wildly from behind the glass door. The moment she catches my eye, she brings her phone to her ear, mimicking a phone call.
Telephone call, she mouths again. Important.
I frown. I’d told her not to disturb me during the meeting, not when the President of Pearson Media is going over the year’s most successful campaigns, one of them I’m hoping will lead to that promotion I’ve been waiting for. After all, I’d cut short my vacation to get the big-name client in question who later agreed to take on our mid-sized advertising firm over the big guys on one condition: that I lead the team.
Nine months later and we’re on the home stretch, with the presentation of the final product happening in a week and a half. And from what everyone has been saying so far, the marketing campaign is a slam dunk.
Corner office of my dreams, here I come.
But as hard as I try to focus on what Marcus Pearson is saying, Bailey keeps going, her arms flapping wildly in a desperate attempt to get my attention.
“Will you take care of that before Dad notices?” Ryan Pearson hisses, his foot tapping against mine under the table.
This time I turn my head in time to see Bailey Knox mouthing the words, It’s your mother.
When she finally has my full attention, she holds up her cell phone, pointing to it with her other hand. Check your messages.
I’d switched my phone to Silent for the meeting and the moment I touch the display, I see the notifications appear. My chest tightens when I read the first one and a rush fills my ears.
Your mom broke her hip. She’s in the hospital.
I get up from my chair, the movement so abrupt that the president of the company stops talking and looks at me.
“Yes, Miss Turner? Do you have something to add?”
“I’m sorry. I… I have a family emergency. I have to leave.” Without waiting for a reply, I gather my phone and my briefcase and hurry toward the door. I don’t even say goodbye to Ryan. He knows where to find me.
Bailey opens the door for me and I step outside, as if in a daze. My heart is pounding and blood is rushing between my ears.
My mother’s in the hospital?
“Who called?” I ask Bailey as we hurry to the elevator.
“Your neighbor Lisa Santos did,” Bailey replies. “She’s been trying to reach you on your cell phone for the last hour before deciding to call the main switchboard and asking for your extension. She said your mom fell off the ladder while cleaning the roof gutters.”
“What the hell was she doing cleaning roof gutters?” But even as I ask the question out loud, I know why. Mom hates being idle and she’s proud of her house. Anything she can do on her own (thanks to Youtube DIY videos), she will do even when she could easily afford to hire someone to do it.
“Lisa said your mom broke her hip.”
“Oh great,” I mutter under my breath as we enter the elevator and she punches the keypad for our floor two levels down. The last thing I need right now is an emergency that will take me away from work, not when I’ve got a deadline to meet in a week and a half, a presentation of our latest marketing campaign that I happen to be leading.
But I’m also not about to let neighbors take care of my mother when she’s got a daughter who can do just that.
“Would you like me to book you a flight?” Bailey asks.
“Yes, please. The first flight you can get,” I say as we step out of the elevator. “I’ll call HR and let them know I’ll be out of the office.”
“Ryan won’t like that,” Bailey says, looking at me knowingly. “He’s counting on you to do this presentation.”
Yeah, and he’ll probably take all the credit, too, like he did with the last account we completed, I almost say out loud but stop myself. The only person responsible for that is me.
That’s what happens when you end up sleeping with your boss, a mistake I fixed when I broke up with him just before I went to see my mother eight months ago. Sure, we weren’t public or anything but I’ve heard the gossip, and I know that every promotion I’ll get from here on will be questioned. Did I earn it outright or is it because I slept with my boss who also happens to be the son of the company president?
Still, as a creative director for Prescott Media, I’ve come a long way. After starting as an intern five years ago, I’ve worked hard to be where I am. Busted my ass, in fact. Missed way too many of my mother’s birthdays and two holidays.
I sit behind my desk and go through my text messages. There are voice messages, too, and when I tap on the latest one, Lisa’s voice shrieks from the speaker before I get the chance to slip on my ear buds.
I was having my coffee in my garden when I heard this crash, she begins. That’s when I saw your mom on the ground. I guess the ladder slid and she went down with it. She broke her hip, Ava. And to think your mom told me at first that it was nothing. I’m glad I called 9-1-1.
I tap her phone number and Lisa picks up on the second ring.
“Ava! Finally! Your mother’s been asking for you.”
“I’m sorry, I was in a meeting,” I say as Bailey steps out of the office. “Is she there? Can I talk to her?”
“She’s getting an MRI or something like that downstairs but I’ll let her know that you called,” Lisa replies. “Are you coming home?”
I hadn’t planned on coming home any time soon, not with the presentation due in a week but this is also my mother we’re talking about here. “Depending on how fast I can book a flight, I should be there by tonight or at the latest, to
morrow.”
“That’s good to hear,” she says, sighing. “I plan on staying with your mom until they kick me out of here, but she’ll feel much better if you’re here. You haven’t been home in almost a year, Ava.”
“Eight months.”
“It’s still a long time since you’ve been home. And the last time you did come home, you left two days later for some last-minute work trip,” she says. “I hate to say this, but your mother was devastated.”
I could tell Lisa to mind her own business but I also know without her and the people I grew up with in our small town, Mom wouldn’t have had anyone.
“I’ll be there as soon as I can,” I mutter before saying goodbye and hanging up.
I don’t know how long I sit at my desk staring at my blank monitor, but I’m grateful for the knock on the door that snaps me out of my thoughts.
“I got you a flight that leaves in three hours,” Bailey says. “It’ll take you to Sacramento and I rented you a car so you can drive home.”
“Thanks.” The sooner I get to my mom, the better I’ll feel, considering I already feel guilty for working on the other side of the country. I’m just glad Bailey knows me so well that she doesn’t need me to tell her what to do next. She’s been my assistant for the last five years and my best friend.
“I hope she gets well soon, Ava,” Bailey says. “Knowing your mother, she’ll bounce right out of the hospital in no time.”
I smile. “I’m sure she will.”
“She’ll be happy to see you home,” Bailey says. “I’ll keep you in the loop as to all the goings-on here.”
“You probably won’t have a choice, not with the presentation happening in a week.”