Randall turned to leave, but not before he leveled a lethal stare at her. He wasn’t done with her yet. His stare promised retribution.
Then a bizarre expression crossed Randall’s face.
“I’ll give your regards to Sam and Rebecca,” he said to Logan. Ava didn’t understand the statement, but she felt Logan’s grip tighten on her arm. Obviously, the message was significant to Logan.
Logan was dangerously close to losing his temper, and his bid for chief surgeon. What was Randall trying to do with Ava? Was he fixated on her, or was something else going on? He needed answers from her. But first, he had to calm down or he would find Randall and make him regret he ever knew a woman named Ava Walters.
Slowly, the hum of the cafeteria broke into his senses. The aroma of high fat beef and cooking oil drifted across his nose. Good, now that he was calm, he would get some answers from Ava about Randall’s advances.
“Ava, is everything all right?”
Logan recognized the voice without looking over his shoulder. Spencer was the only male pediatric nurse Logan had ever met. The man approached at speed if the rattling food tray was any indication. Logan turned to see Spencer rushing towards them precariously balancing recycled cardboard food carriers and what appeared to be two fountain drinks and three bottles of water.
“No, but it will be.” Logan responded to Spencer’s question. Ava had been mute since the incident with Randall.
“Did something go wrong between you and the Operations Director?” Spencer spoke to him, but his eyes were trained on Ava. When neither of them responded, Spencer looked from her face to settle a frown at him before glancing in the direction Randall had gone. No doubt he was trying to piece all the players and the visual into a workable diagnosis. Logan recognized the moment Spencer knew something bad had happened to Ava and Randall was involved.
“Ava tell me what’s going on?” Spencer’s voice had gone soothing. His tone was too informal from Logan’s perspective. Another man comforting Ava. Encroaching on his territory. Had Ava been in a relationship with Spencer? He held her closer.
“You were with Randall at the party. I saw you two together.” Spencer thought to question his woman. Not in this lifetime.
Logan growled in response. “She was not with him.”
Ava shook her head, as if clearing away a web. The shock of starring as the female lead, in a workplace drama appeared to be wearing off. She was at least responding, though non-verbally.
“He won’t leave me alone.”
“But, at the party, I saw … wait, has he been harassing you? I don’t know what to say. I saw you with him, I assumed. Sorry, baby girl, I messed up.”
Spencer placed the tray on a small rectangle table, taking a step toward Ava with outstretched arms.
“Thanks Logan for getting that jerk away from her. I didn’t realize he’s been bothering her.”
Logan stepped in front of Ava, blocking his path.
“There is no need to thank me. Ava is mine to protect.”
Spencer’s narrowed stare zoned in on him then Ava.
“Ava?” Spencer’s tone reeked of doubt. He wanted confirmation that Ava was his? Logan had staked his claim with her family. He’d stake his claim with her friend and anyone else that dare challenge that she was his.
Logan turned slightly moving Ava to his side. Cradling her face in both his hands, he placed a kiss on her forehead. “Are you okay, sweetheart?” Spencer’s expression registered comprehension.
Logan watched as Ava scanned the nearby tables. The way she tensed, she must have recognized a nosy onlooker. She offered a slight nod in answer to his question as she removed his hands and lowered them to his side as inconspicuously as possible.
“I need to hear the words, Ava.” He should have been the one practicing discretion, but it wasn’t possible two men wanting something from Ava. Granted Spencer’s actions were noble compared to Randall’s. No one would ever take another woman from him, Logan vowed.
“I’m okay because you saved me, again. I wish he would leave me alone,” Ava said to Logan.
Spencer’s mouth rounded into a big “O” before he turned away leaving the two of them standing in the cafe.
“Why did you leave for lunch without me?”
“You said your morning was booked solid with cases and the clinic. I didn’t expect to see you today.”
“Sweetheart, there’s not a day that will go by without me seeing you.” He placed another gentle kiss on her forehead. And as pitiful as it looked, a kiss from him made her feel safe. Protected.
“Did you eat your lunch?”
“No. I was waiting on Spencer when Randall ambushed me.” An involuntary shudder racked her body when she said his name. “Maybe I should look for another job.”
Logan’s hands fisted at his side. If he ground his teeth any harder he would need dentures.
“You are not quitting your job. You’ll remain on staff, with me. I’ll take care of this.” His voice was unwavering.
“Logan, what are you talking about? I don’t want you to get tangled up in my drama. I found this job. I can find another.” Unlike his kiss, her words did nothing to ease Logan’s stiff posture. “He’s gone Logan, relax.”
“He wants you and I don’t think he will stop without an incentive. He’s dangerous.” Logan’s jaw was clenched. He looked at her briefly before he darted another look behind and around her. Like he expected an enemy to attack at any moment.
Ava’s eyes fell on the table to her right. It was empty. She raised her hand caressing the tension from his neck hoping to dispel his anger. When that didn’t work she pressed her lips into his. At his surprise, she pushed into his mouth and slowly stroked his tongue. She quickly pulled away when he tugged at the bun pinned neatly at her nape. They both were panting. “I love your hair loose and flowing.”
“I’ll remember that for Friday. Now that I have you attention,” she said, “Eat with me. Spencer left food for two.”
“You are a minx.” Amusement hinted in his voice. “Sit,” he commanded. “I’ll stay while you eat.”
“Spencer won’t come back. I think he feels bad because he saw me cornered by Randall at the party. I’ll reassure him when I return to the unit.”
He raised an eyebrow, “Reassure him how?”
“Don’t get cheeky, Logan.” She was slowly catching and releasing her lip between her teeth again. She’d done the same worried mannerism twice before in his presence. He realized that wasn’t a good thing. “Spencer is my friend. Nothing more. Please don’t give me a hard time.”
“There’s nothing hard about it. We all need our friends, but Spencer can get his own woman to reassure his pride. You are mine.”
Having escorted Ava back to the unit, Logan didn’t second guess his next action. The urge to protect her burned with the intensity of a wild fire. He identified himself at the security box discretely located to the left of the privacy etched glass door. He stepped into the well-appointed river view office as familiar with these surroundings as he was with his own. He felt the weight of eyes watching him before the man spoke.
“What is this about Logan?” The voice was refined and seasoned by age and experience.
“I need your help with something. I don’t have all the details, but even if I did I would not disclose them.” Logan saw an eyebrow raise with concern.
“You know you only have to ask, but I don’t understand the need for secrecy on the details.” Logan remained quiet calculating the best path to revealing his true intent. He would start with direct.
“A friend has been targeted by Randall Lester.” It only took a moment for Logan’s meaning to register on the other man’s face.
“Randall is a formidable adversary. At this juncture in your career, establishing and maintaining alliances are critical to your selection. You sure you want to cross paths with him? He is a shrewd businessman and an influential foundation board member. How invested is your friend with the medical center?”
“Whatever instrument of power he has over her I want it eliminated.”
With that statement, the other man came to his feet.
“Her. Who is this woman to you?” Logan’s skin heated with the laser dissection aimed at him from across the large mahogany desk separating him from his soon to be accomplice.
“That business is my own,” he said in an unquestioning tone.
The other man either missed the hint or didn’t care because his next statement had the lines around Logan’s mouth tightening.
“Not if you are asking me for help.”
“Ava is a pediatric staff nurse. We are involved.” Neither man spoke as the gravity of his confession compressed the vast space.
“Your mother will not be pleased.”
That was an understatement. The truth was she would be furious, but his family would have to adjust. He was keeping Ava. He mentally spoke the words as much to himself as the universe conspiring against him.
“I know, but Ava stays with me.” He ran his finger through his hair, frustrated that he was trapped between his family responsibilities, the career he wanted, and the woman he needed more than all of them.
“What about Rebecca?” He had all but forgotten about Rebecca Holbrook. Even now the mention of her name invoked little emotion.
“Rebecca is your choice, not mine. Ava is the woman I want.” His father released a sigh, then bent his long frame so similar to Logan’s back to his top grain leather seat.
“Son, think about what you maybe sacrificing. Sam Holbrook will not forgive a slight to his only daughter. The Masters and the Holbrook family have an established mutually beneficial business relationship. Your securing the board position is an integral part of that business agreement. You don’t know this Ava.”
Logan was getting pissed off.
“I know her well enough.”
“A lot of unknown variables can hide behind the word enough. Maybe, she has some history with Randall. His oversight extends to staff hiring and promotion.” Logan’s jaw clenched and unclenched at the insinuation that Ava had some shady involvement with Randall.
“My time is wasted here.” Logan turned on his heel.
“Wait. Your decision to become involved with this Ava person has far-reaching negative implications to your career and the entire family.” Logan halted his departure, but he did not turn to face his father. “Consider this before you lay claim to this woman and toss aside a perfectly acceptable match with Rebecca. There could be more to the story than you are privy to.” His father’s would be wisdom echoed through his mind. Could all this be a deal gone wrong between Ava and Randall?
“No,” he replied to his father and himself. “Ava is mine and no one else’s.”
“I’ll look into it.”
“This isn’t about fact finding on Ava and her family tree, Dad. I want the problem fixed. No one threatens Ava.”
Ava was numb. She robotically logged into the closest electronic documentation station, reviewing each patient’s status updates during her absence. She should end this “thing” with Logan. Ava had no doubt that Randall would act on his threat. She knew Logan wanted the foundation board position though he rarely spoke of it with her.
“Ava.”
The pediatric nurse manager, approached from the nurse’s station situated at the center of the unit. Each patient care pod consisted of three rooms and each suite held two single motorized beds. The pediatric unit had eight total pods.
“Hey, Kathryn. Thanks for covering my lunch break. I was just about finished up with my chart review. Can you give me a brief report on each patient before I resume care?” Ava offered a smile she didn’t feel.
“No problem. Everything was quiet while you were away. Your favorite patient,” the short, curvy, dark skinned woman pointed in the direction of the corner room Monique occupied. “She rang the call bell twice asking for you.”
“Thanks, I’ll check on her first.” A barely perceptible frown formed on Kathryn’s face.
“What?” Ava asked curiously. Kathryn had never made a negative comment about how she interacted with her patients.
“Ava, she’s getting attached to you. What is she going to do when you’re selected for commissioning?” Ava raised a stiff index finger to her lips looking directly at Kathryn as she mimicked a downward motion with her left hand. Kathryn was one of two people that knew she had completed the commissioning packet. The last thing Ava needed was for word to spread that she was pursuing a military career.
“I appreciate the vote of confidence but the election process is competitive. I really need to keep my submission packet under the radar. If I’m not selected this year there’s no harm or foul to my employment at SCMC.”
“Sorry Ava, I’ll be more careful.”
“About Monique, she’s a sixteen year old girl with a multi-break arm fracture, pins and wires holding it together, compliments of her ex-boyfriend. She needs a friend on the inside, right now.”
Ava identified with this girl more than she could ever tell anyone. She had trusted a man once. A man that asked for everything, and when she didn’t give it he tried to destroy her. Physically and emotionally. She’d fought back, and yet she was the one left broken and bleeding on the floor. Stepped over with the disregarded trash. Her courage, self-esteem, and self-worth, all left in shambles.
Maybe, Ava would have healed if she had more visible signs of the damage her relationship with Marcus Grant had wrought on her psyche. The scar to her right upper lip tingled at the thought of him. Her biggest fear was that Marcus had been right. That she was naive and worthless. A pretty burden that everyone had to make accommodations for because she was too weak to make her own decisions. She would never be of use to anyone for the long-term. Always measuring up short and never being enough.
“Hey?”
Ava broke loose from her dark memories at the touch to her elbow. Kathryn must have been trying to get her attention to no avail.
“You should probably go see what Monique wants. The next round of medications are due at two o’clock.”
Ava smiled as she turned in the direction of Monique’s room. No more thoughts of Randall or Marcus. Her patient needed her, trusted her judgment, and she wouldn’t let her down. This she was good at.
Ava knocked twice on the door, and then entered the well lived-in room. Greeting cards, a 7-inch tablet in a hot pink case, nail polish bottles, teen girl magazines, and a homemade afghan littered the bed. Monique’s room needed its own personal housekeeping staff.
“Ava!” the girl’s eyes sparkled. How did she manage to stay so cheerful after everything she had endured at the hands of someone she trusted?
“You rang?”
“I want to talk about boys.”
“Don’t know any,” Ava laughed.
“It’s one boy. His name is Jason. I met him during sophomore Science Technology Engineering and Math (STEM) orientation over twelve months ago. Anyway he’s in my calculus class this year and he’s been texting me every day since I got admitted. Today he hinted at wanting to come visit me here. He’s cute and tall. And smart. He reads like five books a week. What do you think I should do?”
Oh my Todd, she can’t be serious. Ava thought it was ten years too soon.
She couldn’t wrap her head around Monique wanting a boy anywhere near her. It had been six years and Ava was still uncomfortable with most men. Fear and insecurity were constant companions. How had this sixteen year-old girl found the strength to move past the trauma and reclaim her life? Monique was seeking the attention of a young man. Ava almost laughed at the irony. Monique had done what Ava had deemed the impossible. Monique had found a way to stay anchored in her life, not allowing the hurt and pain of the past to push her off balance. The textbooks were right. Children were more resilient.
“How
do you feel, considering recent events?” The delivery was awkward, but Ava thought it prudent to avoid the mention of specifics regarding the assault. She leaned forward, curious to hear Monique’s answer. Monique positioned herself more upright, propping her injured limb on one bent knee.
“Nervous. Jason may not be into me the same way. Junior prom is in May. If I get to know him better, I’ll ask him to be my date.” The inner workings of a teenaged girl’s mind had Ava baffled.
“Are you afraid about Jason coming for a visit?” To be alone with someone with the strength to overpower you. Hurt you. But, Ava didn’t say those words aloud.
“The first time I was in the hospital, the day of my accident. I was afraid. I thought what did I do wrong that my friend would hurt me? I told my Dad how I felt. And you know what he said?”
“Tell me.” Anxious to hear the pearl of wisdom from the mouth of babes, Ava sat on the edge of the bed. Eyes glued to Monique’s.
“Dad said to choose not to be afraid. It was my decision. That bad things happen to us, but we choose how to deal with them.”
“Really?”
“Yep and I’m not going to be afraid. So, is it okay to kiss a boy in a hospital?” Ava laughed then.
“This is a conversation for you and your mother.”
“Come on Ava, my mom is deployed. I can’t talk to my Dad about boys. We’re friends and stuff. What did you do when Dr. Masters wanted to come see you? You know, outside of work?”
Ava was dumbfounded. How had she known about Logan? Was Monique fishing for information? Ava narrowed her eyes looking at the girl with suspicion wrapped in a smile.
“Why would you think Dr. Masters and I see each other outside of work?” Ava sincerely hoped the staff wasn’t cognizant of her deliberate avoidance of Logan. Had she inadvertently revealed a detail of her personal life in the presence of a patient?
“If he’s not your boyfriend, he wants to be.”
“Monique Faulkner, Dr. Masters and I have a professional relationship.” No way was she confirming the girl’s suspicions.
Chasing Ava: A Bachelor of Shell Cove Novel (The Bachelors of Shell Cove) Page 11