Total pages in book: 69
Estimated words: 67492 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 337(@200wpm)___ 270(@250wpm)___ 225(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 67492 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 337(@200wpm)___ 270(@250wpm)___ 225(@300wpm)
CHAPTER
TWO
Oliver
“Good morning, Dr. Thompson.” My nurse, Kathy, waves from her desk as I make my way to my office at Willow River General. I started here as an orthopedic physician, right out of residency three years ago. My parents live in Atlanta, so it’s nice to be close to family, and I’ll admit, I like the slower pace of small-town life.
“Morning,” I mumble as I step inside my office. After sliding out of my coat, I hang it on the hook behind the door before tossing my keys in my desk drawer. I boot up my laptop that I left here last night. Normally, I take it home with me to get caught up on charting and go over patient notes for the next day's appointments, but my best friend from college, Brad, invited me over for dinner for his son, Abe’s, fifth birthday, and I knew I wouldn’t get any work done.
“You have a full day today,” Kathy says from the doorway of my office. “Your four o’clock canceled, so I blocked that time slot. You have a meeting with Blakely Kincaid from marketing at five. I thought that would give you time to finish up your charting for the day.”
“That’s fine. Why am I meeting with Ms. Kincaid?” I ask her. An image of Blakely Kincaid pops into my mind. She’s gorgeous, young, and always smiling. Basically, her personality is the opposite of mine, and I have no idea why I would need to be meeting with the smiling beauty.
“It’s time to start planning the annual Christmas gala.”
Dammit, I knew I should have insisted they switch my committee assignment. “What happened to Hilary?” Hilary and I have worked on the gala since I started my time here at Willow River General. We have an understanding. She handles everything, and I back her up when she asks for it. Otherwise, I stay out of it. I couldn’t care less about the Christmas gala. Hell, I stopped attending my parents' annual Christmas party three years ago, and I can’t see myself changing that anytime soon. Let’s hope Ms. Kincaid is on board with that same plan.
“Hilary delegated to Blakely. She’s a sweet girl.” Kathy smiles. She’s my lead nurse and in her late fifties. I was insistent that I wanted someone who was not going to be hitting on me all day long. I’m here to care for my patients, not flirt. When I interviewed Kathy, I knew she was perfect, and she’s proven over and over again since day one that she’s not only an incredible nurse but manages to keep my ass in line and my schedule on time. I’d be lost without her.
“Fine,” I grumble.
“Donald Yokum is your first patient. He’s in room one and ready for you. I just finished entering all his vitals.” She taps the tablet in her hand.
“Thank you, Kathy.” I glue my eyes to the screen as I review Mr. Yokum’s chart before standing and heading to exam room one. As Kathy said, I have a full schedule up until four o’clock, and then this damn meeting with marketing afterward.
Fucking Christmas gala. I shake my head as I knock on the door and enter the exam room, starting my day.
I’m just wrapping up, charting my last patient of the day, when a knock sounds at my door. Glancing up, I see Blakely Kincaid standing in the doorway. “Dr. Thompson, good to see you.” She smiles.
I ignore the way her eyes light up when she does.
“Come in,” I tell her, motioning to the chair across from my desk. She strolls in as if we meet like this every day and takes a seat.
“I don’t think we’ve been formally introduced.” She thrusts her hand at me over my desk, leaning forward with her momentum. “I’m Blakely Kincaid, the assistant director of marketing.”
I take her hand in mine. Damn, her skin is soft. Shaking out of that thought and pushing it down deep, I release her hand. “You’re taking over Hilary’s responsibilities for the gala.” I nod, letting her know I understand why she’s here.
“Yes. She’s delegated that task to me this year. As the lead physician on the committee, I thought we should meet to go over any ideas you might have.”
“I have no ideas.” I sit back in my chair, crossing my arms over my chest.
“That’s okay, because I have a lot of them.” She laughs. “I’ve made a list.” She reaches into the folder she’s carrying, pulls out a typed list, and tries to hand it to me. She lets it fall to my desk when I don't take it.
“Hilary and I had an understanding. She did whatever she wanted. If she needed me to back her up on anything, I was there to do so. Otherwise, I wasn’t involved. I’d like to keep it that way this year as well.”