by Robin Gianna
“I admit I’m still nervous. I know you’re good at what you do. If you think you need to start it now, then let’s do it.” Cameron’s smile disappeared, and Gabby’s frustration with her patient evaporated when she saw the tension etched on her face. Probably her wanting to wait and watch the movie, all smiles, was some coping mechanism, telling herself everything was fine now that she was here at the clinic. Deluding oneself was all too easy to do, as Gabby knew firsthand.
She patted Cameron’s arm, then gave it a gentle squeeze. “I’ll get it started right now. And I bet the doctor will be here any moment.” As though her words had willed it, a brisk knock on the door sounded, and she turned as it opened.
To reveal the most physically beautiful man she’d ever seen.
His dark hair was cut fairly short and impeccably groomed, and his olive skin was tanned a golden brown which looked even more swarthy in contrast to his white doctor’s coat. The blue dress shirt he wore was crisply starched but left open at the collar without a tie, and it was obvious that beneath it lay a very well-built physique. But the most riveting thing about him was the startling color of his eyes, nearly the same hue as springtime in Seattle after rains had turned the landscape a vivid green.
She felt a little as though all the oxygen had been sucked from the room as those eyes met hers. Though the contact was brief, his gaze seemed to both assess her and dismiss her at the same time. Then his attention moved around the room in a careful scan of the space before finally focusing on their patient.
A smile transformed the aloof expression on his handsome face. “Buenos días.” He stepped to the bed, reached for their patient’s hand and, to Gabby’s astonishment, lifted it to his lips. Since when did doctors kiss their patients, even if it was just on the hand? “I do not have to ask if you are the famous Cameron Fontaine. I would recognize your stunning face anywhere. I am Dr. Rafael Moreno.”
“It’s wonderful to meet you, Doctor,” Cameron practically cooed.
“I understand your very special baby is demanding some unexpectedly early attention. I’m told your little one is a girl—what a lucky child. She’ll no doubt be as beautiful as you are.” Lord. Gabby had to wonder if he’d intentionally ratcheted up the charm, or if it just oozed naturally from the man. “Let us see what she has in mind, shall we?”
“Yes. I’m so anxious to hear what you think is going on and what to do about it.”
Cameron’s expression could only be described as coy and flirtatious, and Gabby caught herself about to shake her head at the whole scene. Dr. Moreno had instantly sized the woman up, that was for sure, and Gabby was torn between admiration and disgust at how quickly and easily he’d had her eating out of his hand. While not even bothering to introduce himself to Gabby or ask who she was. The man was royal, all right. Royally rude.
“Tell me what’s been happening.” He sat and directed his attention solely to Cameron, as though Gabby wasn’t even there, and the actress told him all about her symptoms as he looked at the vital signs Gabby had recorded. He took his time speaking with her, acting more like they were at a cocktail party than in a hospital room. But of course Cameron, who was always more than happy to talk at length about herself, basked in the attention as he asked all kinds of questions about her life and career in addition to the ones related to her health.
As the minutes stretched on, Gabby fidgeted, wondering when in the world he was going to get on with what needed to be done and have her administer the meds Cameron needed. At the same time, she had to grudgingly give him credit for completely relaxing their patient.
Then that credit evaporated when he reached for gloves, obviously planning to give her an internal exam.
“Excuse me, Dr. Moreno, but did you see in the chart that I just gave her an exam about thirty minutes ago? That she was already dilated to two centimeters?” Gabby asked.
He turned to her with one eyebrow quirked. “And you are...?”
“I’m Gabriella Cain, head midwife here at The Hollywood Hills Clinic.”
“Now that I am here to care for Ms. Fontaine, I will take care of future internal exams. I’m sure you know they need to be limited in cases of early onset labor.”
What the...? Anger began to burn in Gabby’s chest. “Yes, I am aware of that, Dr. Moreno. Which is why I feel you should wait to do another. I was about to get the mag sulfate drip started, followed by the steroids, then do an ultrasound.”
“I prefer to not rely on others’ examinations and opinions, as that normally isn’t in the best interests of my patient. However, if you’ve done an internal exam, I won’t do another at the moment.” He turned away from Gabby again, and she stared at the back of his silky dark head, hardly able to believe his arrogantly dismissive attitude. His patient? She’d worked with some doctors with domineering attitudes before, but this guy got first place for jerk of the year.
“It’s good that you’re dilated to no more than two centimeters,” he said to Cameron as he looked at Gabby’s notes. “Although that is clearly an indication of pre-term labor, there are things we can do to try to make that cease, and at the same time give baby a chance to grow more.”
“So it is preterm labor. I was so hoping it wasn’t.” Cameron’s white teeth worried her lip, her eyes wide. “Do you think whatever you do to try to stop it will work?”
“It often does, so we will hope for the best.” He lifted his tall frame from the stool he’d been perched on, moving to stand beside the bed and hold Cameron’s hand between both of his, a smile on his face some people might think was charming. “And if baby says, Oh, no, Mama, I’m coming anyway, we will at least have time to give you steroids to help her little lungs function better when she arrives. So we will do that without delay. Okay?”
“All right. Whatever you think,” Cameron said, all grateful smiles. “Thank you so, so much, Doctor.”
“Please, call me Rafael.”
Whatever you think. Thank you so, so much... Gabby gritted her teeth and told herself she couldn’t feel bothered by Cameron’s immediate agreement to the same treatment she’d initially refused to agree to when Gabby had told her exactly the same thing. It was no secret doctors got more respect than midwives from many patients, and an über-handsome doctor who, by the way, happened to be a prince too? Jerk or not, it was no surprise that status-conscious Cameron was all too happy to go along with whatever he suggested.
“Bien.” He stood and turned to Gabby, and his warm expression cooled to one of professionalism. “I’d assume you have the mag sulfate and steroid ready?” Those startling green eyes slowly scanned the area again before pinning hers again with one dark eyebrow raised. “Except perhaps I should not assume that. When I first walked in I was shocked to see the state of this room, which is, well, I must say, terribly disorganized. I’m frankly very surprised by this, considering the stellar reputation of The Hollywood Hills Clinic and knowing James Rothsberg’s perfectionism.”
The irritation that had been simmering in her chest burst into a full conflagration of anger that surged through her blood and made her brain burn. Who did this guy think he was? Friend or no friend of James, prince or no prince, he had no right to waltz in like he owned the place, give it his version of the white-glove test, then criticize her without knowing a thing about the patients and medical situations she’d been taking care of for the past ten hours.
“I was in the process of cleaning and reorganizing it from an earlier, lengthy delivery when Cameron arrived in what might have been an emergency situation. I deemed taking care of her and her baby was a lot more important than tidying and prepping a room that could be tidied and prepped later. And the meds are ready.”
She stalked to the counter, gathering the items together and wishing she could throw them at his arrogant, judgmental face. He reached for them, his hand briefly touching hers, and it ticked her off even more that the fee
l of his skin brushing hers sent some kind of weird electric shimmer up her arm. The sensation could have been mistaken for attraction, if there had been anything attractive about the man.
Well, there were all those superficially attractive things, but she wasn’t a woman interested in slick, glossy men. Or any kind of man anymore, really.
With grudging respect, though, Gabby did have to admire how quickly and efficiently his long fingers administered the drugs, all the while keeping up a smoothly distracting conversation with their patient.
“All set,” he said to Cameron, giving her a warm and reassuring smile. “Now we wait, keep you comfortable, and check baby periodically through ultrasound and monitoring.”
“Thank you, Rafael. I’m so glad you and Gabby are the ones taking care of me.”
And Gabby was glad the next shift midwife would be arriving soon to deal with Cameron and Dr. Moreno. Not to mention that she was way overdue for a major nap.
“How about deciding what you’d like to have for dinner?” Gabby said as she brought her another sparkling water, along with a menu of options for her meal. The onsite Michelin-starred chef was amazing, and even the pickiest patients loved the elegant and trendy foods he prepared. “The midwife on the next shift will be checking on you throughout the night to make sure you’re comfortable. Then tomorrow morning I’ll be back to take care of you. In the afternoon it’ll be time to administer another steroid dose.”
“But I don’t want another midwife,” Cameron said, a twisting pout on her lips that had Gabby wondering how in the world she managed to still look so pretty doing it. “I want you to stay here with me tonight, Gabby.”
The fatigue Gabby had felt earlier was back in spades. She had a feeling if she closed her eyes she might fall asleep on her feet like a horse, and the vision of curling up in her own comfy bed and getting a solid night’s sleep nearly had her moaning, but she knew Cameron. And Cameron’s expectations. The Hollywood Hills Clinic was known for its exceptional medical care, and that included going above and beyond in every way.
Which meant she’d be spending the night here again.
“I appreciate you wanting me with you, Cameron. I—”
“Your staying here is important, since you are familiar with our special patient and her physical condition and worries,” Rafael interrupted smoothly. “Here is my contact information. Please don’t hesitate to get in touch with me for any reason.”
Did the man think he was boss of the world? Gabby felt like smacking that seemingly sincere smile from his handsome face as he handed her an elegantly embossed card, then turned to give one to their patient. When Cameron reached for hers, she clasped his hand along with it for a lingering moment, practically batting her long lashes at him as she smiled back.
“Thank you so much, Rafael. I can’t tell you how much I appreciate your help and expertise during this terrifying time.”
“It’s beyond my pleasure. It is my calling to help mamas and their babies, whether a pregnancy is smooth and uneventful or high risk and worrying. I promise to take care of you and bebé to the best of my ability.”
Whereas Gabby and most other nurses and doctors didn’t? The guy was pure egotistical arrogance in a white coat, absolutely no doubt about that. And Gabby intended to tell him so, though somehow she’d have to tone down the strength of the language she’d really like to use when she did.
“As I started to say a moment ago, Cameron, I’m more than happy to stay,” she said, giving Dr. Moreno a pointed look she hoped he interpreted correctly—which was to tell him to keep his guest-in-this-hospital nose in his own business. “I’ll sleep better knowing I can check regularly on how you’re doing, and hopefully me being here will help you sleep better too.”
“Thank you, Gabby. I will sleep better.”
“Why don’t you rest now and watch a little TV? I’ll be back in a few minutes to find out what you’ve decided to order for dinner.” She turned to Dr. Full-of-Himself and somehow kept her voice cordial. “May I speak to you privately in my office, Dr. Moreno?”
He inclined his head again, and she sensed him following her from the room and down the marble-tiled hallway, past large windows with beautiful views Gabby normally enjoyed, but not at that moment. Right then, she had only one thing on her mind, which was giving Rafael Moreno a piece of it.
She stopped in front of the open door of her office and gestured for him to go inside but he stopped with her.
“Ladies first,” he said as he mirrored her gesture.
A man with good manners was usually appealing, but this didn’t feel like good manners. It felt more like he was just being controlling again, wanting things to be the way he wanted them and not giving her respect for the fact that it was her office. Which meant she should be calling the shots at that moment, even if it was something as simple as who entered the room first.
The smile she stuck on her face was stiff and fake and she didn’t care if he saw through it. While part of her knew it wasn’t something worth arguing about, he’d irritated her so much already she found herself digging in her heels. “No, I insist. You are a guest here at the clinic, after all.” And if that didn’t give him a strong hint that he’d overstepped his bounds, she was about to tell him so much more directly.
Those silky eyebrows rose at her, and their gazes clashed for several heartbeats until he inclined his head and stepped into the room. She shut the door behind her, not wanting anyone to overhear their conversation, and when she turned to look at him she had that oxygen-sucked-from-the-room feeling again. His height and the breadth of his shoulders made the room seem to shrink, and his erect posture and the utter self-assurance of his demeanor compounded the effect until she felt she couldn’t breathe.
Except breathing was necessary to give him a piece of her mind. Her mouth suddenly dry as sandpaper, she hoped he couldn’t sense her discomfiture as she stepped behind her desk instead of having them sit in the two chairs side by side, wanting to send another message that she was in charge of the maternity wing and its midwives and he should treat her accordingly.
“Please sit,” she said as she perched herself in her swivel chair.
But of course he didn’t. He simply stared down at her, and she suddenly felt like a bug-eyed hamster being eyed by a hawk. Rafael Moreno, standing there all confident and imperious, had utterly ruined the message she’d tried to send by sitting behind the desk, so now what was she supposed to do? Sit there craning her neck up at him while giving him a dressing-down? Or bob back up like a jack-in-the-box? Either one would make her look foolish and, worse, completely lacking in power and authority.
Damn the man.
“What is it you wish to discuss with me, Ms. Cain?”
She huffed out a breath, trying hard to regain some semblance of equilibrium, and slowly stood again to look him in the eye. Or as much as that was possible, considering he still had a good six or seven inches in height on her. “I know you are James’s friend, and I’m told you are good at what you do. Also that you are part of a royal family, which is perhaps why you feel you can do as you please.”
“I can do as I please.”
The arrogance of the words wasn’t diminished by the even modulation of his deep voice. Her heartbeat upped its tempo to double time, and that burning sensation prickled her scalp again. “Maybe you can in a lot of places, but not here, Dr. Moreno. I may be a midwife and not a physician, but I assure you that I’m the person in charge of the day-to-day operation of The Hollywood Hills Clinic’s maternity ward. While I am grateful you came quickly to see Cameron when James requested you to, I don’t appreciate you walking in and just taking over. Completely ignoring the notes I made on Ms. Fontaine’s chart and utterly dismissing my medical opinion and recommendation. Even worse, you said and did it all in front of the patient. That was insulting and rude, and frankly could have very well
undermined her confidence in me, my knowledge, and my skills.”
The expression on his smooth, angular features didn’t change, but in the depths of his eyes there was a sudden, dangerous glint. Her breath caught and held in her chest during the long pause that crackled between them before he finally spoke. “Anything else?”
“Yes, actually.”
Gabby slowly walked around from behind the desk, taking that moment to get the air moving in her lungs again, hoping to calm both her tripping heart and her frustration. For the first time in her life she wished she was taller than her five feet six inches, but was so angry she came to stand nearly toe to toe with him anyway.
“I resent you saying that room was a mess, that it was substandard, and by association that I’m substandard. Even worse that you said it in front of our patient as well. I work very hard to keep my ward immaculately clean, organized and running smoothly, to keep these rooms as luxurious and beautiful as James insists they be, and our patients expect. But as an obstetrician you should certainly know that when there’s any kind of medical emergency, like the difficult twin births I was dealing with prior to Cameron arriving, it tends to mess up a hospital room. Is it possible that you never give that a thought, though, since an OB can often run in, catch a baby, play hero, then leave the cleanup to someone else?”
“I assure you,” he said in a silky-soft voice at odds with that glint sparking in his eyes, “I am well versed in hospital room chaos, having worked in all kinds of clinics around the world. I resent your implication that I’m a spoiled and selfish man unwilling to take on any task required of me. That is an unacceptable insult. Who and what I am is a doctor who prides himself on paying attention to every detail, and the fact is that the disarray of that room was obvious evidence that I had to take control of the situation.”
The small gap between them closed, and with his narrowed gaze so close, so intense Gabby found she had to break their eye contact before she got dizzy from it. Which then had her staring at his mouth, at lips that were hard and uncompromising, and somehow at the same time so soft and sensually shaped that her stomach did a strange little flip that didn’t feel at all like the anger pumping through her veins.
