Page 6 of Her Heart's Desire

"Yes, you do. I can see the wheels turning in your head. You're wondering why I got so drunk."

"Yeah, but I think I might know the reason."

I narrow my eyes at her, "Oh, really? Then why?"

"Because Silas Cabot bought the hospital. I know you didn't go in depth about what happened, but you were hurt." Her body stays relaxed, and she makes sure she doesn't look at me as if she wants to make sure she I don't feel her scrutiny too much.

Letting out a big breath, I spill my secrets. "We didn't even get that far. His son freaked out when he saw the way I looked at his dad. I couldn't come between them, so I left."

We both stay silent for the rest of the drive, neither knowing what to say. When we pull into the parking lot of the bar, Colleen pulls in next to my black Toyota Corolla. It's nothing fancy, but was the first car I ever bought after getting the job at Rose Valley Hospital.

"You know we're here for you, Kimmy. Instead of getting drunk, just talk to me or any of us," she says softly into the cab of the car. Not wanting to be any more vulnerable than I already have, I give her a slight nod. "I know. Thanks."

With that, I close the door to her car and hurry over into mine. When I turn it on, I take a deep breath and let it out. My whole body is aching from the need to be closer to Silas Cabot. I've been resisting this feeling for so long, shoving it down into a neat little box. Since he's made his reappearance in my life, the pain is back, this time in full force.

Grabbing my phone, I check the internet for the location of his office. Maybe if I just get a small glimpse, this feeling will go away. Then I'll return to pushing down my feelings once more. The entire drive to his office, I chant in my head just one more time knowing I'm lying to myself.

Silas' main office is thirty minutes away in the larger town next to Rose Valley. Parking my car in the lot across from his building, my eyes zero in on the front doors. "This is stupid, Kimberly. Why are you doing this?" I mutter to myself.

And since I don't like to take advice from others, I really don't take advice from myself. Grabbing my keys, I slowly get out of my car and head to the building. But just as I'm about to go in I see Silas walk out the main door.

My chest aches as I freeze, holding in a breath. Fuck, he's just as beautiful as he was seven years ago. Holding himself with such a confidence that everyone around him seems to know he's important. My hands twitch with the need to go over there, grab him by the lapels and kiss him.

Standing in place, I watch as he makes his way to a waiting black town car on the curb. My mind races as I try to imagine where he's headed to, watching as his car leaves.

When I can't see the taillights of his car anymore, I gulp in a large amount of air and hold it. My lungs inflating once again as they burn with the need for more oxygen. My phone buzzes in my hand. I check it and see that it's my mother.

Mom: Hey Kimmy. Just wanted to check in on you. I know it's your day off.

Quickly, I text her back. If I don't text back in a certain amount of time, she'll send out the bat signal and I don't need that right now.

Me: I'm doing good. About to hit up the grocery store.

Seeing Silas sends a wave of calm over me. My body isn't trembling with need anymore. Nor does my chest feel as if it's going to close in on itself. But I know this relief is just temporary.

Chapter 5

Silas

"Hey, Luna. Can you bring me financial statements for each department of the hospital from the year before?" Releasing the button to the intercom. I breathe out deep and loudly. Shit, if what I saw last night happened the year before, this is going to be a bigger project than I realized. Randall had warned me that things were not great for the hospital. I just didn't expect this.

My head is already pounding.

The door to my office clicks open, and I hear my secretary's heels on the tile as she gets closer, I don't look up, keeping my eyes closed as I lean back in my chair, trying to plan the best way to give the news to the board. Better yet, how are we going to solve this problem?

"Here you go, boss." I hear her throw down a thick file on my desk. I can tell by the humph sound it makes. "Do you need anything else?" she asks.

Over the years, Luna has been my saving grace for my businesses. She makes sure I'm on track, and is professional as always. Not sure I would be as wealthy as I am if it wasn't for her keeping me organized.

"I already have those and some discrepancies I found are what have me wanting to look at the year before. But stay close by in case I need more." She nods as she makes her way back out to her desk, right outside my door.

"Thanks Luna," I mumble as her heels disappear.

Once I get an idea of what is going on and the best way to fix it, I'll need to set a board meeting. Then I'll pass all the information on to my accounting department. Finding out how deep this goes is a priority. You can't accuse people unless you have proof.

It feels as if I've been staring at these numbers for years. Glancing over at the clock, I mutter under my breath, "Shit. How is it only ten in the morning?"

It's going to be a long day. It already feels like it's been longer than it has. Time to get this over with. Taking a deep breath, I slowly open the file that Luna left me, preparing to spend the next few hours going over the spreadsheets and comparing them.

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