Fuck you, Otis Ford. I don’t need another asshole guy in my life. She went into the shower and scrubbed her body hard, everywhere, trying to rid herself of the stink of the operating theater, the antiseptic smell. Him.
From now on, she vowed, it was professional distance the whole way.
***
Emily Moore was still waiting for Dash to come out of the shower. As he returned to her living room, she waved a newspaper at him. ‘Jason Kline is still trying to insert himself into the story,’ she almost spat the words in disgust. ‘How do we know it’s not the woman working with Otis who’s feeding this crap to him? Look…’
She held out the paper.
Dash took it and read. ‘Bay Tambe is in all of our thoughts, said the superstar country singer. I’m just glad that my wife is there to take care of…Jesus, this guy. But Ems, I don’t know. Bay likes Shae Groves, trusts her.’
‘Hmmph,’ Emily shrugged. ‘Before or after her relapse though? Otis says Bay may have pushed herself too hard – and Shae was the one with her when she did.’
‘Well,’ Dash sighed. ‘I don’t know. What do you want me to do? Hire someone to look into it?’
Emily chewed on her lip. ‘No. Look, this stuff is annoying but not damaging, What is a problem is that all the momentum that the band built is gone. Because they’re not doing press, or appearances, after the initial interest in Bay’s attempted murder, the press is moving on. I’ve asked Pete but he’s reluctant to go it alone, especially when we don’t know what’s happened to Kym.’
‘I know. He figures he’ll just get questions about the shooting and he’s right. Maybe we should think about doing some activist work around domestic violence. Maybe set up a new foundation in the band’s name. That way we can actually do something of value as well as keeping the band in the news.’
Emily hissed out a long breath between her teeth. ‘I do like that…let’s take it to Roman.’
***
Roman Ford sat back in his chair. ‘I’m in. When Bay recovers and we either find Kym or get a replacement for her, their first gig can be a benefit. Yeah, it could work. Be careful not to exploit Bay’s injuries, though. She still deserves privacy while she recovers.’
‘Any news on Kym?’
Roman shook his head. ‘None. Really, at this point, she’s either dead or they’ve gone so far underground that she must be staying with him through choice.’
Emily raised her eyebrows. ‘You’re really pissed at her, huh?’
Roman didn’t answer and Emily and Dash exchanged a look.
‘Tom’s gone to Portland,’ Roman said eventually, ‘He’ll be there full time now until Bay is released. Dash…I need you to come and cover some of his work which means, Emily, a lot of this will come down on you to handle.’
Emily shrugged. ‘I’m good.’
Roman smiled briefly then sighed. ‘What a fucking mess.’
***
Shae wasn’t concentrating when she walked into the main reception area of the hospital so when the pack of journalists descended on her, it was a shock. She was butted and barracked as they shouted questions at her and she panicked, casting around desperately for help. Just as she thought about actually screaming, the crowd parted. Relieved, she failed to notice why they had suddenly fallen silent until she looked up.
Jason. With a wide smile, he came toward her, sliding his arm around her shoulders. ‘Come on, guys,’ he said, placating them, ‘Give her some room. I know she’s a superstar but let her be for a second. Darling.’ He pressed his lips to hers and the cameras went crazy, flashes going off. Shaw came to her sense and pushed Jason away.
‘What the fuck do you think you are doing?’ She hissed at him. Jason’s eyes narrowed just the slightest but the smile, the perfect smile, was back in an instant. Shae wanted to vomit. Instead, she pushed her way through the crowd. It was only when Jason started to speak to the journalists that she turned, anger rising in her chest.
‘I’ve come here to see my friend, Bay Tambe,’ Jason said. ‘I’m hoping that when she’s better, she’ll agree to perform on my new album with me.’
Shae gritted her teeth, wanting to shout that he was a fraud, a liar but she didn’t want to make a scene in the hospital. She opened her mouth to ask them to leave but then, from behind her, a voice, dripping with ice.
‘What the fuck is going on here?’ Otis, his mouth a hard line, was watching the melee. Jason strode forward and held out his hand. Otis looked at it but didn’t take it and Jason, embarrassed, dropped it.
‘Well, hey, Dr. Ford. I just thought I’d come along, visit with my friend Bay, see my wife.’
‘Soon to be ex-wife, I’m informed. As for visiting with Bay Tambe…she tells me she’s never even met you. So, friend, if you’ll take your pack of dogs and leave, that would be just about perfect.’
Otis turned on his heel, shouting over to the reception desk ‘If they’re not out of here in two minutes, call security.’ He stalked off back into the hospital. Shae tried not to grin, just nodded at Jason and followed Otis. She caught up with him in his office.
‘Thank you for that.’
He turned on her. ‘Don’t thank me, Dr. Groves. What the hell was that? We cannot have that sort of sideshow in my hospital! What the hell was your husband thinking?’
Shae held her hands up. ‘I don’t know, Otis, I didn’t have any clue he was coming.’
‘Perhaps if you kept your private life away from your work…’
Shae lost it then. ‘Are you freaking kidding me? No, really, do you not remember the time we fucked? Did I coerce you into that? Because it sure seemed like you were a willing partner, you damned hypocrite.’
‘Dr. Groves, I think, before either of us says anything else…’
‘Screw you,’ Shae whispered, her eyes filled with tears. ‘I thought you were different to Jason but you’re both the same - arrogant assholes who are quick to blame your mistakes on everyone else but yourself.’
‘And you, Dr. Groves, think the world revolves around you – ‘
A knock at the door silenced them both. ‘What is it?’ Otis snapped, his face drawn and thin.
His secretary put her head in the door. ‘Sorry to interrupt. It’s Sue-Lin Morita. She’s coding.’
***
Otis peeled off his gloves and washed his hands. No-one in the operating theater spoke. Shae was like a statue. Otis slammed his hand against the door to the theater, leaving it to close behind him as he strode out to the relatives room.
Pat Morita sat upright in his chair. He looked up hopefully as Otis entered the room, not reading the expression on the doctor’s face at all.
Otis pulled a chair up opposite him. ‘Pat…I’m afraid I have some bad news.’
Pat drew in a deep breath. ‘Has the cancer spread?’
Otis couldn’t speak for a moment. Terrible memories crowded his mind; the police gently pulling him and Roman away from their father’s body; their mom screaming when the police told her what had happened. Otis looked into Pat Morita’s old, wise eyes and knew that he was about to hand him the worst day of his life.
‘Pat…as you know, Sue-Lin coded and we took her straight to surgery. When I operated, we found the cancer had spread to her liver, her kidneys and her stomach. She was very, very sick, Pat and despite our best efforts,’ – god, he sounded like a robot – ‘Sue-Lin didn’t make it through the surgery. I’m so very sorry, Pat.’
Pat Morita blinked. ‘What?’
Otis felt a fist clenching his heart. ‘Sue-Lin died, Pat. I’m so sorry.’
Pat shook his head. ‘No…no, she was…she was talking last night, saying that we should go on vacation rather than wait for the cancer to…Doctor Ford…I thought you said…the tests?’
Otis swallowed hard. ‘Pat, we were doing every test we could think of. We didn’t want to risk an exploratory operation at Sue-Lin’s age so we missed it. I cannot express how sorry – ‘
Pat cut him off with a gesture.
‘Sorry won’t bring my Sue-Lin back. You promised us, Dr. Ford, you promised us however bad the cancer was, we would still be able to say a proper goodbye. We would be prepared. I was not prepared for this, Doctor. You robbed us of our goodbye.’
The elderly man got unsteadily to his feet and walked to the door. ‘I want to see my wife.’
Otis nodded. ‘Of course.’
He couldn’t bear to see the moment the old man saw his beloved wife. Otis went back to his office, stripping off his scrubs and pulling a t-shirt over his head.
Then he went to see the Chief of Surgery.
***
Tomas Meir sat on Bay’s bed, her head resting on his shoulder. He tried not to stare at the multitude of tubes that had made their reappearance in her arms since the relapse. Bay stirred and opened her eyes.
‘Hey beautiful,’ Tom pressed his lips against her temple. ‘Welcome back.’
Bay blinked a couple of times, coughed. ‘What happened?’
Tom moved so she didn’t have to crane to see him, but kept hold of her hand, careful not to pull the wires. He explained what had happened and Bay sighed, her eyes filling with tears.
‘God, I’m so sick of this, Tom. Lying about, feeling sorry for myself, the freaking pain that won’t go away. It’s not like on t.v., is it? All pretty bandages and coughing delicately into lace hankies.’ Her face was grumpy but Tom still laughed.
‘That’s better, that’s my girl. Look, yeah, it sucks but pushing too hard is what caused this.’
‘I miss you,’ Bay whispered then, a tear dropping down her face. ‘I hate that I can’t feel your skin next to mine, your big body on top of me, inside me…’
Tom touched the back of his hand to her cheek. ‘Me too, sweetheart, but look, get better, I mean really take care this time, and we have all the time in the world. Miss Tambe, the day you get out of here, we’re going straight to city hall – I don’t care if you’re still in your pajamas – and I’m going to marry the heck out of you. Then when you’re fully recovered, you and I will go to Otis’ private island and I’m going to make love to you like I never have before.’
Bay grinned. ‘That sounds perfect…like you never have before, huh? That’s difficult to picture.’
Tom laughed. ‘Oh, I have tricks you’ve never seen, Bay.’ He leaned over and kissed her. ‘I love your sweet face.’
Bay savored his kiss. ‘I love your huge cock.’
Tom burst out laughing. ‘That’s my girl.’
‘Hey.’
Otis was standing at the door, his face drawn. Tom grinned at him. ‘Hey yourself, my girl’s looking better, don’t you think?’
Otis half-smiled. ‘You do, I’m glad.’
‘All down to you, Doc, and Shae. I haven’t seen her for a couple of days.’
Otis face went blank. ‘Dr. Groves isn’t on your case, anymore, Bay.’
Bay and Tom exchanged glances. ‘Why not?’ Tom narrowed his eyes at his old friend, trying to figure his mood.
Otis shrugged. ‘She felt she wasn’t being helpful.’
‘Oh god, look,’ Bay tried to sit up further in the bed; both men rushed to help her. ‘It is my fault, what happened. I hope you two aren’t fighting.’
Otis pulled up a chair beside them. ‘Listen…I’m handing your case over to our neuro team. They’ll take it from here.’
Bay and Tom stared at him in disbelief. ‘Why?’ Bay said at the same time as Tom replied ‘What the hell, man?’
Otis blew out his cheeks and looked down for a long moment. ‘I don’t feel us being friends has worked in your best interest as far as your care goes. You should have been out of hospital by now, Bay.’
Bay looked confused and upset and Tom took her hand, before turning back to his friend. ‘Dude, we have complete trust in you. I never had any doubt you’d save my girl.’
Otis looked away. ‘Anyway, Dr. Roiz will be along to see you shortly…I’m taking a leave of absence for a while but I’ll call you, check in. I’ll be just a phone call away if you need me.’
He turned to go but Bay reached out, grabbed his arm. ‘Otis…what is it? What’s wrong?’
Otis hesitated then gently pulled away. ‘Nothing, it’s nothing. I’ll see you soon.’
***
Shae walked to work the next morning, needing the air before she faced Otis. When she got to work, however, she was surprised to see his office locked and in darkness. She was debating whether to call him when she heard her name.
‘Dr. Groves?’
She turned to see Dr. Roiz, the tall, handsome Head of Neurosurgery, smiling at her. ‘Yes?’
‘You’re with me as from today. We’ll be covering both specialties and I’ll need you to follow up on Dr. Ford’s patients whilst he’s away.’
Shae was stunned. ‘Away? He’s been called away on another case?’
Dr. Roiz, already reading something else, shrugged. ‘Personal leave, I think. Anyway, come, we have a lot of patients to deal with.’
***
Jason Kline, for once without his entourage and in low key dress, stood as she entered the restaurant. She returned his smile with a nod and sat down opposite him.
‘Would you like a drink?’
She quickly scanned the wine list. ‘House red is fine. What do you want, Jason?’
‘To talk. To apologize for that mess the other day.’
Shae sighed, knowing exactly what he was up to. Jason was doing damage control. After being called out by Otis in front of the press, he had to do some spectacular back-tracking about his non-friendship with Bay. This wasn’t about his behaviour….once again; Jason was protecting the only person he’d ever loved: Jason.
The waiter brought the wine over and she drained half the glass as soon as he set it in front of her.
‘Jason, I haven’t got time for your games. What do you want from me?’
He smiled and Shae wondered when it had happened that her first reaction to that smile was to punch it. ‘I just need your guarantee that you won’t go to the press with anything that might have happened during our marriage – or afterward.’
Shae gritted her teeth. ‘And you’ll have that as soon as you sign the divorce papers.’
Jason rocked his head from side to side. ‘See, I only have your word, I can really take that to the bank, can I?’
‘Yeah, well, I only had your word that you wouldn’t cheat on me, so…’
Jason sighed dramatically. ‘Shae, that again? Haven’t we moved past this?’
‘You really are a jerk, you know that? I ask myself time and time again why the fuck I married you, and I still can’t figure it out. I’ll ask for the last time. What do you want?’
Jason pulled a folder out his bag. ‘A non-disclosure agreement. You sign this and I’ll sign the divorce papers.’
Shae took the agreement and read through it. ‘Not to disclose all and any extra-marital affairs of either partner,’ – she made a disgusted noise – ‘blah, blah, blah.’ She stopped. ‘Not to confirm or deny Mr. Kline’s friendship with Miss Bay Tambe. Jason, you do not have a friendship with Bay, you’ve never met her. Leave her out of it.’
Jason smiled coldly. ‘Sign the document, Shae and this all goes away.’
‘And suppose Bay wants my support when she nails your ass to the wall for involving her in your repugnant thirst for publicity?’
‘You’ll just say you don’t know anything about it. How hard is that?’
Shae drew in a deep breath, trying to calm down. ‘Firstly, the idea that I would ever refuse to back up my friend is ridiculous. Unlike you, Jason, I know what loyalty means.’
‘No NDA, no divorce.’
He really doesn’t get it, does he? Suddenly Shae smiled. ‘Fine. Well, in two years I’ll file for adultery and release the photos of you and that skank plus I’ll trash you in the press. You seem to forget, I hold all the cards here, Jason. You have nothing I want.’
Finally, there was anger in his face. ‘You fucking bitc
h. What the hell was I thinking hooking up with a stuck-up, snooty A-type like you?’
Shae was enjoying herself now. ‘Snooty and stuck up mean the same thing.’
Jason slammed his fist down on the table. ‘Signed the fucking NDA, Shae, or I’ll make your life hell.’
Shae put her head on one side. ‘Oh, Jason, you will never learn, will you? Can’t believe you fell for the same trick.’
Jason looked confused. ‘What the hell are you talking about?
Shae grinned widely and brought her hand up from under the table. Her phone was recording everything they were saying. Shae pulled it out of Jason’s reach and slid her finger over the ‘Save’ button.
‘Annnnd it’s in the Cloud,’ she crowed and stood up to leave. Jason lunged for her but as soon as he moved, two men at the next table got up. Motioning at them that she was fine, Shae merely stepped out of Jason’s way. ‘Goodbye, Jason. I don’t expect we’ll talk again.’
She walked out into the evening air and finally felt free.
***
‘You look like shit.’
Otis gave his brother a half-smile. ‘I’m so glad I opened the door to you. You want to come in?’
He stepped aside to let Roman into his apartment. Roman took in the football game on the t.v., the two empty beer bottles, and the unopened bag of potato chips. He looked at his brother, his mouth hitching up at the corner.
‘Quite the party.’
Otis shoved some magazines aside on the couch to make room for his brother. ‘To what do I owe this pleasure…you wanna a beer, by the way?’
‘Sure.’ Roman waited until Otis came back from the kitchen and handed him a bottle. ‘Thanks. So…Tom called.’
Otis rolled his eyes. ‘I figured. Look, I just needed to get away. I had a bad case, a death that I should have prevented. What with Bay…’
Quartet Complete Series: Billionaire Romance Box Set (An Alpha Billionaire Romance) Page 19
