Total pages in book: 85
Estimated words: 80651 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 403(@200wpm)___ 323(@250wpm)___ 269(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 80651 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 403(@200wpm)___ 323(@250wpm)___ 269(@300wpm)
I didn’t know if I was angrier at Beau for putting me in this position or myself for actually liking Sutton. I’d even messaged her on Sunday and been hoping to see her again. There was no way that could happen now.
I took a breath. Beau was annoying and selfish sometimes, but I should have checked which hospital she was starting at and taken my shot of tequila. This mess wasn’t Beau’s fault.
“Look, I’m sorry,” Beau said. “I wasn’t trying to fuck up any weird rules you have about work.”
“They’re not weird rules. They’re professional boundaries. But it’s not your fault. It’s mine. I should have been more careful.”
“You’re literally the only doctor I know who hasn’t fucked someone at the hospital they work at.”
“Doesn’t mean it’s right. You know what Dad says.”
“Dad’s a hypocrite. He met Mum at work.”
“I know, but his advice isn’t wrong.”
“Relax, Jacob. You always give yourself such a hard time. Like I said, if I’d known, I would have told you. Didn’t she tell you where she was doing her two years of foundation? Didn’t you mention where you worked and then she said—‘Surprise! Me too’?”
I sighed. If only. It was a perfectly reasonable question and on any normal night, what Beau was describing was exactly what would have happened. “It didn’t come up.”
Instead we’d spent the night not talking about medicine or where we worked. And that had been refreshing and fun and something I wanted to do again with Sutton. But there was no way it could happen now.
“Has she done something to make it embarrassing or something?”
“No, nothing.” The shock I’d seen when I’d caught her eye told me as much. There was no way she could have known. “I’ve gotta go. I’m in a supplies cupboard and I’ve got things to do. This isn’t your mess. Sorry for losing it.”
“It’s not as bad as you think it is.”
It never was for Beau.
I had to find Sutton and ask her to keep things that had happened between us strictly private if she hadn’t already said something to someone. Wanda had them still in the lecture theatre filling out three gazillion forms. I’d have to be casually passing when they filed out.
Eight
Sutton
Wanda dismissed us for the day. Despite the fact it had been hours since Jacob was introduced as one of the five leads of the foundation program, my heart was still beating like I was two miles into a marathon. How could this be happening? How on earth could Jacob Cove be the man I kicked out of bed on Sunday morning? That he was a consultant at the Free was bad enough, but he was a Cove. That family had real power. One word from him and I was sure that my participation on the foundation program would be over.
“I can’t believe we get to work with a real live Cove,” Veronica said as we shoved our notebooks into our bags.
“You know he’s practically off-the-charts clever. I heard he had an IQ of one hundred and seventy,” Gilly said from where she was sitting behind us.
One hundred seventy? That was insane. “No way.” I’d spent the evening with him. He was funny and confident and normal. He wasn’t so clever I couldn’t comprehend our conversation.
“Apparently his mother is even brighter,” Gilly said. “Such an incredible family.”
The guy sitting next to Gilly grinned like he was imagining Jacob naked. My stomach churned at the memories of Saturday night. He was just as good as everyone was imagining. “And he’s totally hot.” He obviously knew instantly who we were talking about.
We all filed out and a group of us gathered just outside the lecture room. A couple of other women joined us. “Did I hear you all talking about Jacob Cove? He’s definitely the McDreamy of the hospital.”
“Except Patrick Dempsey has nothing on our McDreamy,” Veronica added, practically salivating.
I bristled with irritation at the way they were talking. Jacob wasn’t a piece of meat. He was a normal person who used to lay in rowboats for hours to de-stress. He was a man who knew his way around my body like he’d made me. And if I heard another word about him from any of these women, I might blow a fuse.
“He’s not Dr. McDreamy,” I said and five pairs of eyes turned and focused on me.
“You have a better nickname?” Gilly asked. “McSteamy?”
“What about Off Limits?” I suggested. “In real life, Meredith Grey would have probably been slut-shamed. In real life, a foundation doctor doesn’t end up with the hot, rockstar consultant. In real life, doing the boss is a good way to lose your job.”
“Wow, Sutton. Way to kill our buzz,” Veronica said.
“I’m just trying to be practical. We need to think of him as unavailable. Doesn’t do any good to be mentally undressing our boss. As women, we want to be judged on our capabilities and merits, don’t we? And like it or not, it’s the woman who always gets judged if they have an affair with their boss.”