Page 22 of Drake Eternal

“You’re finished your first article?”

“Just about,” I said and started up the stairs to the building. “I’m doing revisions and should be handing it in this week. Then, it’s off to Africa.”

“Africa?” He raised his eyebrows. “Holidays already? You just started working for the paper.”

We went inside the building, which was cool and dark compared to the brightness outside. “My husband’s working in Nairobi temporarily because of the floods. Sophie and I will be flying there as soon as I’m done. We’ll eventually meet up with our son Liam, too.”

I liked to mention Drake, Liam and Sophie as often as I could when I was with Carlton, because he seemed a little too attentive and I wanted to reinforce that I was a married woman with children.

“Oh, yeah. I heard about the floods. Kenya’s nice. We went on safari there once when I was a kid. But you’ll be at the party on Friday, right?”

“I’ll be there,” I said and smiled, taking out my key and opening the door to my tiny office in the corner of the building. His was huge and just down the hallway from mine and so he kept walking, but turned and waved at me before I went inside.

He was just being nice.

Before I could get inside, he called out. “Come and have coffee with me.” He stopped at his office. “You need coffee before you can edit, right?”

“Already had mine,” I said. “But thanks anyway.”

I went inside, closing the door behind me. Carlton was nice, but a little too friendly. He was like that with everyone, so I told myself it wasn’t anything about me.

Just in case, I did everything I could to remind him I was taken. The last thing I needed or wanted was for Carlton to think I was available.

I sighed and went over to my desk, placing my backpack on the floor beside my chair.

I had some serious work to do if I wanted to finish revising my article so I could go to the party, then Sophie and I could pack up and leave for Nairobi.

CHAPTER 8

Igot a lot of angry stares from Sam over the next couple of days.

Obviously, Michael had spoken with her about Paul and the allegations she made about me. I heard through the grapevine in the break room that Paul was now with a different supervisor.

“I guess he and Sam didn’t work out,” I heard one of the other residents say.

“Maybe they worked out too well, if you know what I mean,” the other resident replied and the two smiled knowingly. Then one glanced over at me and jerked his head to the side to indicate I was present. The other resident made a quick face of alarm and turned away.

So, it was already common knowledge that Sam and Paul were a thing…

I didn’t say anything, figuring that the problem had been dealt with. I was just as happy that it was, because we didn’t need any drama while we worked our butts off trying to get the surgeries caught up and replacements hired.

Of course, my relief was short lived…

“Of all the nerve,” Sam said when she caught up with me in the hallway alone later that day. “You have no right to judge, considering your lifestyle.”

“You mean the lifestyle of a happily married man with two children and a woman I love?”

“You know exactly what I mean,” she said, her hands on her hips.

“It’s for the best, Sam. You know it’s against the code of ethics for supervisors and residents to have a sexual relationship. And it’s even more against the code of ethics to lodge a false complain of sexual harassment.”

“That didn’t stop you,” she said with a sneer.

I stopped outside my office, gritting my teeth. “We weren’t supervisor and resident at the time, Sam.”

“But we had been. You’d been flirting with me the entire time, if I recall.”

“You recall incorrectly. You flirted with me the entire time. I resisted until you were finished, because I care about the code of ethics.”

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