by Lexy Timms
She ignored his comment and continued up the steps.
He glanced around quickly. “That’s off the record. Dr. Bennet did orthoscopic surgery on my knee. He’s a good guy. I met that bitch-of-a-nurse when I was at the hospital. She’s a nut job.” He hesitated a moment when they reached the top of the stairs. “You can tell Dr. Bennet I said that. On or off the record.” He spun around and jogged back down without glancing back.
Charity turned and watched him go. She closed her mouth, not realizing it had dropped open. Apparently not everyone was believing the lie. Head down again, she made her way inside toward the small office their attorney had designated for them.
She knocked and opened the door, not bothering to wait for someone to answer it. She stepped in and closed the door behind her.
Her father and the attorney sat beside each other going over some file and both of them looked up as she walked in. Elijah sat in a swivel chair off to the side drumming his fingers against the table. He jumped up when the door opened and pulled out the chair next to him. “How was it out there?”
“Not too bad actually. I talked to one reporter—”
“What?” Her father shook his head. “Why in the world would you do that? How many times have I warned you to stay away from them?” He threw his hands in the air and looked at the attorney. “I’m sorry. I don’t know what kind of damage control needs to be done.”
Charity glared at her father. She knew he was under a lot of pressure but it still did not give him the excuse to blame her. “I’m not a dummy!” She tossed his sandwich across the table. It landed perfectly in front of him, wrap still on. “You need to relax.”
“It’s not your hospital’s reputation on the line.”
“No, but it’s my fiancé’s rep that’s taking a beating.” She held her head high, refusing to look away from her father. There were moments they were making a connection and then moments like this that reminded Charity why she had walked away after her mother’s death. “If you had let me finish my sentence you wouldn’t have needed to overreact.”
The ever-calm attorney nodded his head, pen in hand. “Go on.”
“It’s not a big deal.” Charity shrugged and leaned back against her chair. “I was coming up the steps with the subs, when a media guy came up and took a picture.” She turned to Elijah, as the conversation had originally been meant for him. “Craig was his name. He said you did surgery on his knee.”
“Craig?” Elijah’s eyes squinted slightly as he stared at the wall a moment, trying to remember who he was. He snapped his fingers when something connected. “He works for the Associated Press – AP. Good guy…” He tilted his head at Charity. “I think. What did he say?”
“He just wanted me to tell you he was on your side. He said he met Laura and that she was a nut-job.”
Her father smiled. “I like Craig.”
Elijah chuckled. “Me, too.”
Charity laughed and handed him his sandwich. “Figures.” She snapped her fingers. “He’s a good-looking guy, she probably hit on him as well. I should have asked.”
“Wouldn’t surprise me.” Elijah began unwrapping his lunch.
The attorney leaned forward, resting his elbows on the table. “Do you think he would be willing to testify?”
Elijah shrugged. “Maybe. But I’m not sure how Craig telling the court that Laura’s a nut-job would make a good argument.”
Charity glanced back and forth between the two men. “He did mention his comment was on or off the record. If she did hit on him or make a comment toward Elijah while in the room, it could be useful. Another hot guy might show the judge she’s the unstable one.”
The attorney began scrolling through his phone. “AP, right? I’ll see if I can get in contact with him.”
“I can just go back outside and look for him.” Charity started to rise out of her chair. “I’m sure I could get him to come inside and talk. He actually seemed like a pretty decent guy.”
Elijah put a gentle hand on her arm. “Stay here and eat. We’ll get a hold of him. I’ll call the hospital and get someone to find his contact information.”
“We’re going to need him to testify. It can’t just be a letter. If he’s good-looking, we need to show that.” The attorney pulled a sheet of paper out of his briefcase. “They can fax him my contact information or I can drop this off personally.” He turned to Dr. Scott Thompson. “I’ve had another lawyer from our firm draw up a work-relationship policy since you don’t have one in place at the hospital. It isn’t required by law but I think if we submit it to the judge, it’ll help show the hospital is taking preventative steps so this doesn’t happen again.”
Her father nodded. “Whatever it takes. I want this damn thing over.”
“I agree. This obsessed woman tried to take your daughter and now your hospital away from you. She’s trying to ruin your future son-in-law’s reputation as well. There doesn’t seem to be anyone backing up her side of the story. This is going to blow over soon.”
“Not fast enough for me,” Dr. Thompson muttered. “That damage’s already been done.”
The attorney opened his notebook computer and flicked through a few screens. “The hospital has not been affected because of the case. I’ve had your accounts department send our firm daily cost and billing, in-patient and out-patient attendance for the hospital and also had the other two local hospitals’ input. You have actually had a slight increase.” Gerritt pointed to several spots on the computer screen.
Elijah and Charity could not see it clearly from where they sat. Elijah went over to check and nodded his head. “I believe Dr. Thompson was referring to the fact that the woman almost killed his daughter.”
“Have you checked any of her previous employers?” Charity couldn’t believe this woman could be that unstable and there be no record of it. Someone didn’t just wake up one morning and decide to do this. Somewhere, back in this poor woman’s history, something had happened.”
Gerritt sighed. “We’ve checked. She worked at a retirement home for several years and they say she left. I’ve checked with staff and there was talk that the home was going to fire her but they came to a mutual agreement. There is nothing in writing as to why because she gave notice.”
“So something happened and nobody remembers what?” Elijah snorted. “Seems a bit fishy to me.”
Charity giggled, despite the seriousness of the situation. “Fishy? Really? Like a guppy or more like a shark-size kind of fishy?”
Her father rolled his eyes.
Elijah didn’t notice her father’s reaction. “Probably more like a dolphin-size kind of fishy.”
“Dolphins aren’t fish! They’re mammals,” Charity shot back, trying not to smile.
The two of them looked at the annoyed Dr. Thompson and their serious attorney. “Sorry,” they both said at the same time and sat down.
The attorney cleared his throat. “I’ve got one of my assistants looking into her college. We’re trying to find if there were issues with professors or anything. She did her nursing in the Rochester area and changed schools twice. It’s tough. Like looking for a needle in a haystack.”
Her father crumpled the paper from his sub and stood. “Find the needle. I want this over. It’s ridiculous.” He checked his watch. “I need to call the hospital.” He drilled the paper ball into the garbage as he walked by and slipped into the small cubical room attached to their assigned room, away from the media and from them.
Elijah tossed his empty wrapper in the garbage from where he sat. “I have a surgery scheduled and will need to be at the hospital in about an hour. Should I stay till then or would the judge consider it rude if I walk out during the hearing?”
The attorney tapped his pen against the table. “Can you have your pager go off? Then get up and leave? Let’s show the judge the hospital’s focus is its patients, not each doctor’s personal reputation. You’re not faking that you have to go. Just letting everyone else know – sorry, be reminded
– what your job is.”
Charity understood Gerritt’s tactic. “He’s saving lives. Our lives.”
Gerritt nodded. “Exactly.”
Elijah shrugged. “One of the staff was going to page me to let me know when they were prepping the patient. I can wait.”
“Good. I’m going to head into the courtroom and check on a few things. I’ll see you inside shortly.” Gerritt left, leaving Charity and Elijah to wait for Dr. Thompson.
She finished a bit more of her lunch and then offered the rest to Elijah. “I can’t eat anymore. Do you want it?”
Elijah grinned and slid the food over to him. “You know true love is when someone will eat an already slobbered on sandwich.” He took a bite.
“I didn’t slobber on it. Gross!”
He covered his mouth and laughed. “True love.”
“What am I going to do with you?”
“Love me forever?”
Why did he have to be so stinkin’ cute and so damn sexy at the same time? “I think that can be arranged.” When did they become so corny together? Were other couples like that? She hoped so.
He enjoyed her half of the sandwich and crumpled the paper, tossing it perfectly into the bin again. “I need to fuel up. This surgery’s going to be a long one. You alright to head back to my place on your own?” A glint of something appeared in his eyes. “Or would you prefer to stay at your dad’s place?”
The door to the small room opened before Charity could reply. Her father tucked his phone in the breast pocket of his suit. “My place?” His eyebrows rose in query.
Charity kicked Elijah’s shin under the table. “It’s nothing. I’m fine.”
“Do you need a place to stay? Is your side sore?”
“No!” She softened her voice. “I’m fine. Elijah thinks he’ll be late at the hospital tonight.”
Her father straightened his tie. “I will be as well. Seem to be spending our days here and nights at the hospital. The house could probably use some human interaction. You are welcome to stay there if you want.”
A strange longing to stay there filled her. “I might. I’ll let you know later.”
“We need to be back in the courtroom.” Her father sighed. “It’s only Wednesday but it feels like a long week already.”
“Oh! I need to book a flight back to Atlanta.” Charity pulled her iPad out of her bag.
Elijah’s warm hand rested lightly on her wrist. “I was only teasing.”
She looked up at him and saw the worry in his eyes. “There’s a ribbon cutting ceremony on one of the new floors. I told Malcolm I would be there for it. It’s this weekend.” She debated asking Elijah to come but he was so busy with the hospital and this stupid court case she didn’t want him to feel he had to come.
“Are you sure you’re alright to fly?” her father asked as he headed toward the door.
“Dad. You’re the bloody doctor. Is it safe for me to fly?” She didn’t even wait to give him a chance to reply. “You know I’m fine. I have a job too. It’s been almost two months and I can’t keep putting it off.”
“It’s just over six weeks. I think two more weeks would be better.”
She glanced at Elijah for support. From the look on his face, she knew she wouldn’t get it. “My physio cleared me yesterday. He said as long as I continue doing the exercises on my own, I’ll be good to go. I’ll check back with him in three weeks for a few additional exercises but he said with my core strength being as strong as it was before the incident, it’s still there. I’m already weeks ahead of anyone else in my same situation.”
Her father shook his head. “No one else is in your same situation. Nobody else was shot and nearly killed.”
Elijah folded his arms across his chest. “And then had to sit through a court case trying to ruin everything around her.”
Charity inhaled and let out a slow breath. “You two need to stop blaming yourselves. What happened to me is not your fault.” She pointed at the door. “That woman out there is responsible. She’s the one trying to ruin all of us. Don’t let her make you feel guilty, or bad, or even mad. Don’t let her win.”
They all stood, chests heaving and quietly staring at each other.
“It’s exactly what she’s trying to do. Don’t fall for it.” As much as she had the right to hate the woman, Charity only felt pity. She couldn’t help it. She had everything Laura wanted. She needed professional help. However, Laura was extremely smart and could manipulate any situation to her advantage. She’d managed to fool a lawyer and judge into thinking something was off at the hospital. Who knew what else the woman was capable of?
The door opened and their attorney appeared on the other side. “You ready?”
“Yes.” Dr. Thompson moved to follow him.
Elijah reached for Charity’s hand. “I love you,” he whispered before they headed back out into the sea of flashbulbs and reporters again.
Chapter 3
The hearing wrapped up Thursday afternoon and the judge made a final comment before dismissing for tomorrow’s verdict, “I do not believe this case will need to go to trial. I feel I have enough information from both parties to decide a fair and proper outcome.”
Thursday night, Elijah and Charity barely slept. They lay on his bed staring up at the ceiling and talking.
The hospital’s attorney was confident everything would be dismissed. Her father had suggested the day before that if the judge allowed the hearing to go to trial, the hospital might be better off settling to avoid more bad publicity. Their attorney refused saying they had done nothing wrong. It was natural for nurses, patients and other employees to talk. If a good-looking doctor happened to be on staff and they chose to talk about him, it might be considered sexual harassment against them. Elijah had every right to take them, along with Laura, to court then.
Elijah joked about that with Charity. “The odd patient has made a comment to me while pretty drugged up but I never heard staff make comments about me.”
“I have.”
“What?” Elijah sat up on the bed, his head tilted slightly and his eyebrows raised. His movie star pose as Charity referred to it in her head now.
She smiled. “It was one of the first times I was at the hospital last year. I think it was Laura making some comment about your tattoo and your body to another nurse. They were fawning over you.” She let out a breathy laugh and raised her voice, “Ohhh that Doctor Bennet. He’s soooo dreamy. Movie star material… and those hands. He could perform surgery on me anytime.”
“Did they seriously say that?”
Charity tossed a pillow at him. “Not quite. I might have exaggerated it a smidgen.” She squeezed her thumb and pointed finger a tiny bit apart. “Just a bit.”
Elijah raised the pillow she’d thrown.
She quickly held her hands up in mock defense. “Okay, a lot. They did go on and on because I remember thinking you were a playboy.”
“I wasn’t. Really. I just hadn’t met the right one yet.”
“You’re lucky you did.” She leaned over, pretending to kiss him but quickly grabbed the pillow instead. She tucked it under her head and laid back down.
“Sneaky.” His face sobered. “Do you think I might have inadvertently sexually harassed them?” He scratched the top of his head. “I don’t think so. The lawyer doesn’t but then… maybe I did.”
Charity sat back up and criss-crossing her legs, looked Elijah in the eyes. She reached for his hands. “No you did not. You are an amazing doctor, with unbelievably good bedside manner skills and co-worker skills. You treat everyone fairly. A friendly, good-looking male doctor who is single, is going to be branded as a flirt. That’s society’s fault. I’m guilty of it. I overheard two people talking and assumed you were a player. Then I got to know you and realized how wrong I had been to label you. The judge will see it too and realize neither you nor the hospital are guilty of anything.”
“What if they don’t?” he whispered. He sighed and dropped back
down on the bed, pulling her with him so he could wrap his arms around her. “I can’t wait for this thing to be over.”
“It will be tomorrow.”
“I hope so.”
Charity rested her chin on his chest and looked up at him. “Then we can start focusing on something positive.”
“Like a party tomorrow night to celebrate our win?”
She pretended to bite him in the neck but instead began sensually rubbing her lips against his skin. In a hot breath, she whispered, “I’m flying to Atlanta tomorrow night. Sorry.” She let her tongue tease his ear. “I was thinking a wedding would be something fun to plan.”
He rolled onto his side and pressed the full length of his body against her. “I forgot about that.” He grinned wickedly. “You still up for marrying me? I apparently come with a lot of baggage.”
“I think I can handle it. You have to work with my father.” Her eyes closed when Elijah captured her nipple with his mouth. She blinked and tried to focus on the conversation. “When do you want to… to get married? F-Fall? Win-Wint-ter?” She stuttered when he caressed her breast before moving to the other one.
When he lifted his head up, Charity felt a moment of disappointment. The air cooled against the wetness of her breasts. She wanted his warm mouth and hands back on them.
“I don’t want to wait. I mean, I don’t care. Whenever you want to do it, I’m available. We could do it tomorrow at the courthouse after the verdict’s in for all I care.”
She laughed, despite the yearning of desire flowing through her veins and distracting her. “Tomorrow? Might be a bit tight squeezing it in between court, my flight and you having to be back at the hospital by lunch.”
Elijah returned to his fascination with her breasts. His hand began to wander down her side and tease her hip. “What do you want? Something big? Extravagant?”
She shook her head, not sure if he noticed. “Nothing big. I liked the hall where my dad’s party was but, now after this hearing and everything, I’m not sure I want any reminder of that she-devil on our wedding day.”
