Page 54 of Deprivation

Why am I here? I’m not on call. I have no pending patients. It’s close to five, so I’ll use that as my excuse for coming to the ER. ‘Just checking in before I leave.’ Hell, if Jake’s there, I’ll say I’m there to arrange another soccer practice with his kids.

I haven’t been able to get the thought of the encounter with Kat in the ER off my mind. I’ve replayed that unprofessional dalliance over and over.And of course, she found her way back into the shower.I’ve never behaved in such a manner. Hell, I don’t even act like that in a bar. I completely lost control. That exact scenario underlines why this would be a bad idea. A phenomenally bad idea. But, here I am.Ah, Jake. The gods are shining on me.

“Hey, man. Thought I’d stop by on my way out to see if you and the kids had anything planned this weekend.”

“Don’t think so, but I need to check with Mel. I wish I could call her while you’re here, but we’ve been slammed today. I haven’t had time to even stop for a cup of coffee. I think they’re running a two for one sale,” he utters, appearing exhausted.

“What time do you get off? You look wiped.”

“Two hours ago,” he replies, dabbing his brow.

Before I can ask him if there’s anything ortho-related in the department I can assist with, I notice one Katarina Kelly standing at the nurses’ station farther down from me with none other than Sebastian Lee. He’s smiling down at her, laughing while trailing his pen up her left arm.What the ever-loving fuck?

“Hi, Dr. Barnes,” a female’s voice chirps. “It’s nice to see you again.”

I look over to see clingy nurse Bobbi who assisted me the other morning, mimicking Dr. Lee’s smooth moves along my upper arm with her fingernail.

“Hey, I’ll catch you later, Nick.” Jake waves and walks the opposite direction.

Trying to think quickly on my feet, I decide to use Bobbi for some intel. I’m a little worried how this might go, given she’s an overly flirtatious woman and her prior assistance was sloth like at best. I decide to dive in, anyway. “Hey, Bobbi. Nice to seeyouagain.” I flash her a quick smile. “Do you happen to know why Dr. Lee’s here?” I ask coyly.

“Oh. I think Kat called him,” she responds quicker than expected. “I think I heard Meghan say she had a guy with a complicated shoulder injury or something.”

I can literally feel my face turning scarlet and pray the overhead sprinklers won’t go off once the smoke from my ears reaches higher altitude. What. The. Hell?I’m the shoulder guy. He does hands. She has my number and just used it the other day. I rapidly stop my thoughts to consider if this could be related to my inappropriate actions during that procedure. Is that why she called him? Have I put her off?Shit. Now, I’m more worried about what she thinks of me than losing a patient to Sebastian. “Thanks, Bobbi.” I utter, hoping she can’t tell I’m about to lose my shit.

I head for the back of the emergency room, where I can leave, get in my car, and head home before I lose complete control. This is ridiculous.You have no business being here right now. None. You’re letting your pride get in the way.Fuck Sebastian.This is another reason this wouldneverwork with this woman. I don’t need this aggravation.

“Hi,” a voice dreams are made of stops me in my tracks. As I rotate to look at the object of my insanity, I feel my temper flare.

“Hi,” I practically spit out. I notice she takes a step back, appearing a bit anxious by my retort. This only angers me more. She didn’t have any problem with personal space when Sebastian was with her.

“Is everything okay?”

Looking around to ensure this conversation is private, at least for the moment, I lean in. “As a matter of fact, it isn’t.”

“Is there something I can-”

“Ha!” I bark, interrupting her question. “Now you ask? Let’s see. You didn’t have any trouble texting me at the crack of dawn about a case the other day, but today when you have a patient with a shoulder injury, you call Dr. Lee,the hand surgeon. Was I not clear that shoulders are my jam?”

“Dr. Barnes. I-”

“Save it, Kat. If you’re upset about what happened the other day, you should’ve said something,” I continue, getting a little too in her face. “I admit it, I crossed the line. But I thought you were right there with me. If you’re having an about face and want to distance yourself from me, fine. But I’d appreciate if you wouldn’t pull my career away with you.”

“Dr. Barnes,” she snaps. “That wasn’t my patient. I just happened to be standing there when Dr. Lee walked up. He said Dr. Silver paged him about a clavicle fracture. He’s on call today,” her tone carries a little bite.

Great. Now, I’m pissed offandembarrassed.God. Why on Earth had I come down here? Everything about this woman is a mistake. Everything.

“Well, I appreciate the dressing down, Ms. Kelly. Why is it I have a difficult time imagining you ever correcting the illustrious Dr. Lee?” I practically growl.

“Dr. Barnes, I-”

Cutting off any further discussion, I turn toward the exit to find an audience. Nurse Jessica and a similarly clad nurse with brown curly hair stand and stare at me and Kat like they’ve witnessed a hit and run. I’m expecting the cute brunette to run and hug Kat any minute by the look on her face. To their left, Bobbi stands with a menacing grin on her face. I don’t have the time or patience to try and figure that one out. Jake is glaring at me.Holy shit, I’ll hear about this later. I start to retreat until I notice Sebastian giving me one of the smuggest looks I’ve ever encountered. He knows. He heard it all.Fuck. That’s it. I’m staying away from this department.This department and everyone connected to it.

Chapter Twenty-Three

Present Day

Kat

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