Chapter 1
“Are you kidding me?” Cheyenne King whisper-hissed into the phone. “I have worked every day this week so you can go out of town again. Both our kids are sick now. I could really use your help.”
Her ex-husband, Brant, spouted nonsense on the other end of the line about his new wife needing a break, and Cheyenne drowned him out completely before eventually hanging up. It didn’t matter anyway. Brant always got his way. The ass.
She sighed and rubbed her eyes. She needed a vacation. She didn’t care if it was on a beach, a cabin in the mountains, or a hotel room down the street.
It had been two days since being locked in an elevator. Her claustrophobia had ramped up, and she’d been taking the stairs since. She was also avoiding Colton Sharpe, which she couldn’t afford to do. If she didn’t get her act together, she would be jobless.
He had been nice to her while they were thrown together for a few hours. Although she knew he was furious at her for her involvement in getting his sister, Jane, over to the states. She even fell asleep on his shoulder, no less. She woke up slobbering on his crisp white shirt. Embarrassment flooded her at the memory, and she blushed.
She frowned and stood when a small voice cried for their mommy down the hall. She made her way to her room. Her babies had been sleeping with her; truth be told, they slept with her a lot, even when they weren’t sick.
Corey was asleep, but Casey was red-eyed. She had tears on her face, and Cheyenne’s heart broke. “How do you feel, baby?” Cheyenne asked as she grabbed a tissue and wiped her daughter’s face.
“Feel bad.”
Cheyenne felt her forehead with the back of her hand, flipped it around, and felt it with her palm. She was burning up. “I’m so sorry, sweetheart.” Cheyenne touched Corey’s cheek. He didn’t seem as hot as his sister but did have a slight gurgling snore. “Is Daddy coming?” Casey asked right as Cheyenne ran a thermometer over her forehead. Still feverish.
Cheyenne never talked badly about their father to them, no matter how much she wanted to. “He can’t make it, baby.” Casey’s face fell. “But I’m not working today, so I get to stay home with you.”
She brightened a little and then rubbed at her eyes. “I’m thirsty.”
“Okay.” Cheyenne leaned forward and kissed her forehead before getting her a drink from the kitchen. She took her to the bathroom and settled back into bed before turning on some cartoons. She gave the next dosage of medication and left when her cell phone rang in the next room.
“Hi, boss man.”
“How are the kiddos?” Jake asked. He was a great boss. She’d miss him. She’d miss everyone.
“Still sick. Corey is asleep, and I haven’t checked his temperature yet this morning.”
“Do you need Annie and me to bring you anything?”
“I don’t think so.”
“Take your time, Cheyenne. Call me if you need anything. And don’t worry about work. It will still be here.”
“Okay.”
“Later.” Jake hung up, and Cheyenne slumped onto the couch. How long could she keep this up? Her nose began to burn, and she tried not to cry.
Her fingers hovered over Sam Anderson’s name in her contacts. She had avoided her since getting her assignment. And Sam, bless her heart, took everything in stride, even going so far as to ignore her at the Halloween party last year.
She needed to reach out to her. She’d just had a baby, and Cheyenne had only seen Alexandria once, when Cheyenne’s mom, Meridith, insisted she return Sam’s mother’s pie plate from a night of poker at her parents’ house. The baby was asleep, and she hadn’t even gotten to hold her.
Before she could call her, Corey cried out to her, and once again, she was dragging herself down the hall.
*******
Colton Sharpe took off his glasses and pinched the bridge of his nose between his thumb and forefinger. Sigh. Could this day get any worse? He had never quit anything in his life, but he felt like it now. He wanted to throw in the towel and wash his hands of this place. Too many patients reminded him of his sister. The one who was still here, just staying down the road in a hotel. He thought she would have left already since she’d said her piece and had made him look like a fool in the process.
He loosened his tie as Jake’s voice carried through his open door. “Take your time, Cheyenne. Call me if you need anything. And don’t worry about work. It will still be here. Later—You’re late, again.”
Laughter came from the hall. “Sorry,” Elizabeth Woods—no, Adams—laughed before he heard the door close, cutting it off.
He really couldn’t believe she’d married Matt Adams. It was Matt’s fault his sister had almost died and now couldn’t walk, and no one would convince him otherwise. His cell rang, and he snatched it off his desk before it rang again. “Sharpe.”
“The money was transferred this morning.”
“Thanks.”
“Do you want the money to go to the same places?” The guy had a slight English accent, and Colton wondered why Jane hadn’t picked one up while she was stashed away there.
“I’ll have to get back to you.” Colton hung up without saying goodbye. The door opened next door, and once again, Cheyenne seemed to be a hot topic. “Cheyenne’s kids are sick, so she won’t be in today. I think she needs to take some time off. She shouldn’t even have been here that late. She’s a workaholic like you.”
“I think you mean like you.”
“Maybe.” Jake chuckled. “Talk to ya later.”
Colton replaced the glasses on his face and returned to his computer screen as he reviewed the MRI of the newest patient. A rapping on the door had him looking up.
“Dr. Sharpe.”
Colton acknowledged Jake’s existence with a quick head nod.
“The elevator is up and running again and the phone is in working order. I’m sorry that happened. The report about the defective phone was misplaced, and I didn’t see it.”
“That’s good, I suppose. If we had been injured, I would have thought about suing.” He clenched his fist on his thigh under the desk.
Jake’s jaw locked shut before he unhinged it. “Again, I apologize. It’s all I can do at this point.”
“Apologies mean shit.”
Jake studied him for a beat. “Well, it’s all I have. If you need me, call me direct. Cheyenne is out.”
“She told me her kid was sick.” At Jake’s silence, he continued. “In the elevator, while we were trapped there because of your incompetence.” And she’d told him about her claustrophobia. Did Dr. Stone know about that?
“Well, both are sick now.”
“Has she taken them to their pediatrician?”
“Are you questioning her parenting skills? I’m sure she’s got it under control.”
“Fine. Anything else?”
“No. Have a nice day.” Jake turned on his heel and went into his office, closing the door behind him.
Colton sighed. He wanted to know if her kids were all right. He had distanced himself from his chosen field of pediatrics. He should quit this job, move away, and open his own practice. He would need a receptionist. A certain someone entered his mind, and he shook his head to clear it. No good would come from thinking of Cheyenne King as anything other than his boss’s secretary.
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