Page 22 of Ellie 1

He led me to the nearest stairwell where we would have a bit of privacy, checking up to make sure there wasn’t anyone on the other landings. “What can I do for you, Dr. Clark?”

“You can pull your head from your ass and keep your hands off other people’s asses before Ms. Reed rearranges your organs,” I answered. “Do you have a death wish cheating on her or is this some sort of insanity because of the day?”

He blinked at me as if I’d grown another head and couldn’t get his mouth to work for a couple of minutes at least. “Look, I don’t know what Ellie told you, but we’re not—”

“She didn’t tell me anything. I scented you on her the other night.”

Something dark immediately filled his eyes and he changed on a dime to hostile and amused. “Oh really, so you saw her Saturday night after me? Now I get what this is.”

“No, you don’t and I’m—”

“Look, hotshot, Ellie and I have an understanding and it doesn’t involve you.” He smirked when I froze. “Yeah, she knows. And clearly,youdon’t remotely know her well enough to stick your nose into her business.” He eyed me over and snorted. “I’m seriously fucking floored at your balls though. I’m with her and you’re not going to push me out.”

I wasn’t actually trying to do that, so I wasn’t going to respond to just his anger, but the rest of what he said pissed me off. “My balls? You have a woman like that in your bed and you dare to have the reputation of a hospital slut? Are you kidding me?” I growled and got in his face when he opened his mouth. “Actually, your balls and dick are tiny to be so pathetic.”

“Pathetic?” he sputtered.

“Yeah, you’re a cliché, git,” I seethed. “Chasing nurses and PAs all around here is cliché. Fucking conquests and moving on. I’ve been here only a handful of days and I’ve heard all about you already.”

He snorted at me, something dark in his eyes. Fitz leaned in and narrowed his eyes at me. “Notallabout me or you would know Ellie’s been in my bed foryears.” He smirked at my reaction. “Yeah, hotshot. So you’re just in passing, but Ellie’s mine and always has been. We’ve got history and a foundation that will be around long after you’re—”

“Cliché,” I practically spat. “You act like some of those old money assholes who have fiancées waiting for them after they sow their oats and…” Horror filled me as something else filled Fitz’s eyes.

That I’d hit the nail on the head.

This piece of shit was holding onto Ellie until he was ready to commit and then planned to settle down with her. He saw her as mating material and wanted to keep her close for whenhewas done with his bedhopping.

“Disgusting. You’re fucking disgusting,” I snarled and shoved past him before I lost my temper and let the adrenaline rushing me again win.

“Maybe, but she definitely likes all of the disgusting things I do to her in bed, and you won’t ever figure her out like I have, hotshot,” he called after me.

I was shaking with rage when I went to the attending’s lounge to change my scrubs since blood was all over them. I quickly cleaned up and threw new ones on before getting back to my position. I replayed the scene in my head over and over again and realized something big now that I’d taken a step back and calmed down.

Fitz thought I’d been with Ellie. That was what pissed him off. He didn’t think I wanted her… He thought I’dhad her. That I’d smelled him on her because we’d been together. Right, she’d been in her condo’s elevator. Why else would I have been there in his mind besides to see her?

She’s going to kill you and then fire you. In that order, you git.

Except she didn’t and her reaction shocked me even more. She really did put up with Fitz’s bullshit. She was seriously waiting around for that asshole to want to settle down and get mated instead of knowing she deserved more.

Over and over again I played that through my mind. Chugging coffee and doing everything I could to stay awake, and the moment I was back to waiting for more patients to arrive, that was all in my head.

“I have to take this,” I told someone after glancing at my phone. “I’ll be quick.”

“I can take over and rest out here, Dr. Clark,” Dr. Carpenter said as he plopped down in a chair. “Whatever soldier is in charge out here—I’m just closing my eyes. Let me know when others arrive.”

“Yes, sir,” someone called over.

I jogged off to the side and swiped to take Mum’s call. “I’m fine. I should have texted with updates.”

“Good, we worried,” she replied. “We didn’t even know if you were on site when they said ASH was involved.”

“No, no, Mum, sorry,” I sighed. “I would have immediately told you I was fine if I knew the news wasn’t more specific. None of the hospital personnel wentthere. Only our military. Ellie didn’t allow it.”

She was quiet a moment. “Ellie?”

I winced. “I’m too damn tired to be professional, Mum. I’ve barely eaten and not slept. I’ve been holding the need to wee for an hour.”

She chuckled but probably saw through my deflection. “That is a very special woman with too much on her plate, my youngest. She is a broken woman who had to put herself back together and become the woman she is now all on her own.”

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