One Night with the Army Doc

by Traci Douglass

  He didn’t deserve her. Probably never had.

  Worst of all, Jake had known what they had was fleeting, and he should have treasured it even more because of it. Instead he’d thrown it all away, because he was too damned scared of trusting and getting his heart shattered again.

  And in the end, that was exactly what had happened anyway.

  Cursing his own stupidity, Jake switched on his computer to check his emails.

  His web browser loaded. To one side of the screen was a scrolling list of top news stories—the state of the economy, the latest forest fires in California, some celebrity’s mega-million-dollar birthday bash in Dubai.

  Near the bottom of the feed, one headline caught his eye: Sparks fly between reality TV doc and ex–war hero over star hockey player’s treatment.

  Curiosity got the better of him and Jake clicked on the link. It took him to one of those tabloid websites that wrote the most salacious articles possible. This one suggested that there was more to his and Molly’s working relationship than medicine. Not a lie, but not their business either.

  He scrolled farther down the page. The article went on to question Bobby’s notorious dating past and his puck-bunny groupies. Near the bottom were several screen shots—Jake and Molly outside Bobby’s room, staring each other down like a Mexican stand-off, both of them caring for Bobby during his seizure, both of them after Dr. Dave’s dinner party, discovering the yohimbe tea.

  His heart ached and his chest squeezed—and that was when he knew the truth. The truth was he’d fallen hard for Molly Flynn, despite all the reasons why he shouldn’t. Despite all his well-crafted barriers and walls. She’d crushed them all with just a smile, an awkward ramble, a kiss.

  His phone rang and Jake answered, distracted. “Ryder.”

  “We found it,” Molly said, her tone triumphant.

  “What? Where?”

  “A bolt, about one point four millimeters, near his right iliac crest. Tiny, and deeply embedded in scar tissue. Easily missed. I’d like to schedule Bobby for surgery as soon as we get him stabilized.”

  “Uh...yes. Yes!”

  Jake squeezed his eyes shut, trying to take it all in. Bobby would be okay. His vow was fulfilled, his debt repaid—all thanks to Molly. “Have them call Dr. Minor. He’s the best ortho guy in Anchorage.”

  “Okay. Bobby’s going to be fine!”

  Molly’s optimism had bolstered Jake’s listless spirits. He wanted to reach through the phone line and hug her tight. He wanted to kiss her silly. He wanted to drop to his knees and beg her to take him back.

  Instead, he managed a gruff, “Have the staff call me once he’s in Recovery.”

  “Of course.”

  Jake stood there for several seconds after the call ended. Bobby would be okay. Bobby would be okay, and Molly would leave, and life would get back to normal.

  He should be happy. “Normal” was what he’d worked so hard to achieve.

  So why, then, did normal suddenly seem like the most awful thing in the world?

  CHAPTER FIFTEEN

  “SURPRISE!” A GAGGLE of enormous hockey players barreled into Bobby Templeton’s room, some carrying balloons or gifts, all wearing the Anoraks’s trademark yellow and black jerseys.

  Molly and her crew stepped aside. They’d just wrapped the final shots for the episode and Neal wanted to get some last candid footage of her patient making a full recovery.

  It had been a week since the surgery to remove the bolt, and Bobby’s condition had improved dramatically. So much so that he could be released in a day or two.

  One of Bobby’s teammates—a huge man with a shaggy black beard and a gold tooth—leaned over and gave Bobby a bear hug, slapping him so hard on the shoulder it made Molly wince.

  “Dude! You had me worried.”

  “Me too,” Bobby said, accepting another bruising hug from yet another teammate. “You guys won’t believe the sh—” He glanced over at Rob and his camera. “The stuff they did to me. Put me in isolation, probed me, gave me enough isotopes to make me radioactive.”

  “Whoa!” the team said collectively.

  “I know, right?” Bobby said, clearly loving the spotlight. “It was so bad.”

  He looked over at Molly and winked, and she couldn’t hide a smile.

  “Do you need anything?” the team’s coach asked his most valuable player.

  “Nah.” Bobby pushed himself up straighter in the bed. “I’ll be better once I get out of here and back home again.”

  Back home. The words were bittersweet for Molly. Usually at the end of a case she couldn’t wait to get back to Chicago, but not this time. There was no one waiting for her and nothing but chaos at the network.

  At least she’d come to find some clarity about her situation. In the wee hours of the morning, unable to sleep, Molly had taken a hard look at her life. She’d begun Diagnosis Critical because she’d wanted to make a name for herself outside the glare of her father’s spotlight, to escape his bullying and prove she was strong and capable. She’d done all those things and it was time to move on. She’d had enough.

  As the sun had risen over the snowcapped Chugach mountains Molly had realized something else too. She’d come here to cure Bobby, but she’d ended up curing herself. It was time to stand up to her bully of a father and put an end to his control over her life. She was who she was and it was time to stop apologizing for it and start embracing it.

  Here in Anchorage, for the first time, she’d found people who respected her, patients who needed her, and the most gorgeous scenery she’d ever beheld. But, more than anything, she’d found Jake. He’d taught her to embrace her differences, to open up and experience things she’d only ever dreamed of prior to this trip.

  For that, and for so many other reasons, she loved him. Even if he would never feel the same or forgive her for breaking his trust.

  She glanced over and saw him leaning against the doorframe of Bobby’s room, his gaze guarded. He hiked his chin toward her and gestured at the hall.

  “Be right back,” she said to Rob.

  “Go get ’em, Mol.” Her cameraman grinned.

  Molly followed Jake down to the door of the meditation chapel, attempting to fill the awkward silence by stating the obvious. “Bobby’s doing well.”

  “Yeah,” Jake said, facing her once they were alone in the hall. “About what happened—”

  “It’s fine.”

  “It’s not fine.” Jake watched her from across the span of a few feet, but it might as well have been a few miles, given the distance between them emotionally. “I owe you an apology.”

  “No, you don’t. You had every right to be furious about that footage. And the things Kellie repeated from my father weren’t anything I haven’t heard before.”

  By tonight Molly would be on a flight home to Chicago. Anchorage would be nothing but a dot on a map. And this man she loved with all her heart would move on with his life and she’d move on with hers.

  The words hurt, but Molly forced them out anyway. “You trusted me and I betrayed that trust. And I’m so, so sorry.” Blinking hard, she took a step away. “Now, if you’ll excuse me, I have some paperwork to finish.”

  “Wait.” Jake handed her an oblong white object. “Here.”

  “What’s this?” Molly frowned. “Is that a smiley face?”

  “It’s an Inupiat piece—a carved walrus tooth.”

  “Oh.” She held the precious treasure, still warm from his body. “I can’t take this, Jake. I’m sure it means a lot to you.”

  “It does.” He reached out and tucked a stray lock of hair behind her ear. “You do too.”

  Molly tried her hardest, but nothing would hold back the tears. “Jake—”

  “C’mon. I want to show you something.”

  He ushered her into the chapel, where Neal
was setting up one of the monitors they used in the production room. Jake guided Molly into a seat before the screen then took the chair beside her.

  “I can’t go any longer without telling you I’m sorry too. Sorry for overreacting and sorry for not standing up for you at the restaurant. You’ve changed since coming to Anchorage Mercy, Molly. But I’ve changed too. Because of you.”

  Sniffling, Molly chuckled. “Yeah, I’ve changed into a blubbering wreck.”

  “No, you’ve discovered the loving, caring woman lurking inside you.” He cupped her face, his thumb stroking her cheek gently. “I always knew she was in there, waiting to emerge.”

  Her heart pinched at his sweet words and more tears flowed. “The problem is, since I’ve started crying I don’t know how to stop it.”

  “I’ve got an idea how to fix that, Bolt.”

  Jake leaned in to kiss her. Before their lips could meet, however, a quick knock sounded on the door, followed by Dr. Dave and Rob shouldering their way inside.

  “Ah, Molly!” Dr. Dave said, his jolly blue gaze darting between her and Jake. “Gladys said I might find you in here. I’m not interrupting anything, am I?”

  Squeezing Jake’s hand, Molly shook her head. “No, no. Please have a seat.”

  “What I’m about to say may come as a surprise,” Dr. Dave said. “But Anchorage Mercy is starting a new Diagnostic Medicine program soon and I’d like to put in your name for the chief director position.”

  Molly looked from Dr. Dave to Jake, then back again. She hadn’t given much thought to the next step in her career. Hadn’t even mentioned to her crew that she was leaving the network.

  “Wow. I’m flattered.”

  “What about your show?” Jake asked.

  “Yeah, what about the show?” Rob and Neal stood beside the small group. “Something you’d like to tell us, Mol?”

  She cringed. “Sorry, guys, but I decided last night that Bobby’s case is going to be my last episode of Diagnosis Critical. I’ve been wavering about signing on for another season and...” she snuggled closer to Jake and smiled “...I’ve decided not to renew.”

  “Aw...” Rob and Neal hugged her, then each other. “Congrats, you two.”

  “Being here in Alaska has helped me realize a lot of things—not the least of which is that I need to get a life.” Molly smiled. “One of my own choosing this time—not one based on what anyone else thinks I should want or to prove myself to someone.”

  “Right. Well, then...” Dr. Dave headed for the door. “Please give my offer careful consideration, Dr. Flynn. I think Anchorage Mercy would be a great fit for your skills.”

  “I’ll give you an answer by the end of next week, Dr. Dave. Thank you.”

  “Have a safe journey home,” Dr. Dave said on his way out.

  Except Anchorage felt way more like home than Chicago ever had.

  In a rare burst of spontaneity, Molly rushed over and yanked open the chapel door, calling into the hall after Dr. Dave. “Forget waiting. Yes. I want the job. Put my name in, please.”

  “Marvelous! I’ll call the board this afternoon and let them know,” he said from near the elevators. “You can stay with Sara and me until you get settled here. No worries.”

  “Thanks again for everything, Dr. Dave.”

  Molly stepped back into the chapel, where Jake and her crew waited.

  “Well, I guess that’s it, then...”

  “I’m glad you’re sticking around, Bolt.” Jake came up to her, slipping his arm around her shoulders and pulling Molly closer. “But you have other living options too.”

  “I do?”

  “Yeah.” He flashed that sexy half-smile that made her knees go all tingly. “You can move in with me, if you want.”

  A fresh wave of tears flooded her eyes and she didn’t even try to stop them this time. “Yes, I want,” she said, grinning through her sniffles. “I want to so much it hurts.”

  “Good.” He kissed her quickly. “Then we’ve got lots of plans to make, Bolt. But first there’s something you need to see.”

  “Dr. Ryder taped a special ending for the episode and we thought you might like to watch it before it airs in a couple of months,” Neal said.

  “Really?” Molly gave Jake a disbelieving look. “I thought you hated being on camera.”

  “I do.” He cuddled her tight to his side again. “But I’m willing to make sacrifices when it comes to you, Bolt.”

  “We ready to roll?” Rob asked, holding the remote for the flat screen. “Neal and I have a flight to catch tonight.”

  “Let’s do it,” Molly said.

  The screen flickered and Jake appeared, tapping a little microphone pinned to his scrubs. “Is this on?”

  “We’re ready,” Neal prompted on screen. “Can you state your name?”

  “Dr. Jake Ryder.”

  “And what’s your position at Anchorage Mercy?”

  “I’m the Head of Emergency Medicine.”

  “Tell us how it was, working with Dr. Molly Flynn.”

  “At first it was...tricky. At least for me. But we became a great team.”

  “Do you believe in her unorthodox treatment protocols?”

  “No, not always. But I do believe in her. She’s the most brilliant physician I’ve ever met. Molly has a huge heart and a wonderful capacity to see what others can’t. She’s truly special.” Onscreen, Jake’s voice roughened with emotion. “I feel honored to know her and I’m so grateful for all she’s done here.”

  “Okay, Dr. Ryder. Anything else you’d like to say?”

  “Yes.” Jake looked directly into the camera. “The local Inupiat tribes have a saying: We are forever remembered by the tracks we leave. Molly, your footprints will always stay on the hearts of everyone here at Anchorage Mercy. Especially mine.”

  The screen went black once more.

  “Oh, Jake,” Molly said through more tears. “I love you.”

  “I love you too, Bolt.” He meant the words with every fiber of his being.

  Rob started packing away the gear, grinning from ear to ear. “Just make sure we get invited back for the wedding, okay?”

  Jake snorted. “Like we’d get married without the crew that brought us together!”

  “I thought Bobby brought us together,” Molly said, frowning.

  “Him too, Bolt.” Jake laughed, then pulled his phone from the waistband of his scrubs. “Oops. I need to get back to the ER. Looks like we’re getting slammed again.”

  “Want any help?” She pushed to her feet beside him.

  “Sure.” Jake took Molly’s hand and headed for the door, asking the guys, “When’s your flight?”

  “Ten thirty tonight,” Neal said. “When are you flying back, Mol?”

  “I got my flight changed to tomorrow morning.”

  Jake’s heart stumbled. That meant they could have one more night together.

  They waved to the guys, then headed to his ER. Jake grabbed the first chart from the queue and perused the history and physical before handing the file to Molly.

  “Oh, Bolt. You’ll love this one.”

  “Why? Is it difficult?” she asked, frowning at the notes.

  “No. Just the cutest couple ever.”

  “I thought that was us?”

  “You’re right. It is us.”

  He bent to give Molly a quick kiss, then noticed Wendy watching them. She gave Jake two thumbs-up before rushing off to assist one of the residents.

  “Ready?”

  “Ready,” Molly said, and they walked into Trauma Bay Three together.

  CHAPTER SIXTEEN

  Eight weeks later...

  “DO I LOOK OKAY, Bolt?” Jake asked Molly as they stood in the grand foyer of the Drake Hotel in downtown Chicago.

  Honestly, Molly wanted nothin
g more than to whisk him off to a room upstairs, strip off his tailor-made suit, toss him on the bed and make love to him until they were both senseless with ecstasy. But first they had to face Martha’s dreaded baby shower extraordinaire.

  And Molly’s father.

  Leaving Jake behind in Anchorage had been the hardest thing Molly had ever done, but she’d had things to settle here in Chicago. She’d resigned from the network, sublet her tiny apartment on Lake Shore Drive, gotten all her things packed and had a proper send-off with Rob and Neal.

  All that was left were her farewells to her family.

  Those would come today.

  Later tonight she and Jake were flying back to Alaska on the red-eye to start a new chapter together. Dr. Dave had pushed through the hospital board’s vote and secured her the job of Head of Diagnostic Medicine at Anchorage Mercy, so Molly had been busy telecommuting—signing contracts and hiring staff—and she couldn’t wait to assume her new post and start seeing patients in the new facilities the hospital had revamped for her department.

  It was like a dream come true. All thanks to the support of the man beside her.

  “You look devastatingly handsome,” Molly said, smoothing Jake’s tie and giving him a quick kiss.

  Then, hand in hand, they walked into the hotel’s French Room.

  Molly had done her best with the decorations, given her limited time and her mother’s constant nitpicking, but as she saw the place now she thought the pretty silver and gold streamers complemented the elegant room’s pastel green silk wall coverings and the swirling indigo patterns in the custom carpets.

  Above, crystal basket chandeliers shimmered, and deep blue satin damask draperies covered the windows overlooking Lake Michigan in the distance. Over a hundred of her parents’ colleagues and Martha’s friends milled about in the space, chatting or snacking on obscenely expensive lobster and caviar hors d’oeuvres.

  “Wow,” Jake whispered. “This is quite a spread.”

  Molly snorted. “Only the best for the Flynns.”

  “It’s about time you two got here.” Her mother rushed over.