Page 7 of Consequences
I bite my lip to prevent myself from saying somethingtoosnarky. My already stinging ass won’t forgive me if I end up owing Daddy more marks.
“You need to learn a little humility, Baby,” he says as he tapes the collection bag to my leg.
“I wasn’t wrong, Daddy,” I protest. “You know we could have handled it. He wasn’t stable enough to be moved. They got lucky. What if he died on the way to the hospital? Who would have been blamed? Me! They would have accused me of preventinghim from getting the help he needed for too long. Which would have been bullshit, if she fuckinglistenedand didn’t let her emotions get in the way.”
“Enough.” Daddy’s voice is firm, and I clamp my lips together. He pulls my pants back up and removes his gloves, before leading us both to the sink to wash our hands.
I’d say something snarky about not having done anything so my hands aren’t dirty, but I know when to push, and this is not the time.
“You’re going to apologize to Dr. Ranlen, and you’re going to make it an actual apology, Baby. I won’t be with you, but James will, and don’t think he won’t tell me if you try to get around apologizing.”
When Daddy turns away to grab the hand towel, I roll my eyes. I know how to apologize when I’m wrong, I just wasn’t in this instance.
Daddy dries my hands, then reaches up and grabs me by the back of the neck, dragging me down so he can kiss me. “You’re amazing, Baby, and I love you, but sometimes your ego gets in your way. I know you have a problem because other doctors look down on you, but use that and put yourself in Dr. Ranlen’s shoes.”
Sighing, I lean against my Daddy, soaking up his comfort, and accepting that he’s right. I might not like it, and hate that she didn’t trust me, but…I also can’t say I’d react any differently in the same position.
Daddy hugs me tightly, before pulling back and kissing me again. “Come on, you don’t want to keep Dr. Ranlen waiting. Especially since you only have a small window to get Emilio moved.”
Following Daddy out of the bathroom, we go back into my office, where Kail and James are waiting for us.
“About time,” James says sarcastically from where he’s sitting at my desk.
“Sorry,” Daddy replies. “We had some things to discuss. He’s all yours now.”
“I’m not an object to be passed around,” I grumble.
“Yes, you are,” James replies.
Ignoring him, I turn to Kail. “How’s Ten doing?”
“Fine. The same. Have you decided when we’re going to bring him around yet?”
“Probably not until after we get Emilio moved and settled. I want to be here for when Tennant wakes up fully, and there’s going to be enough commotion, so it’s probably a good idea to keep him under for a bit longer. Plus, the longer his incision has to heal, the better. I will kill him if he hurts himself more than necessary.”
James laughs. “Might as well keep him sedated until he’s completely healed then, Doc. You know how Ten is.”
If I thought Cristian and Hollis would let me get away with it, I would. There are some things I’d rather not deal with. And an irritated, injured Tennant is one of those things.
“Are you two ready to go? I’d like to get this over with.”
“Sure are, we were just waiting on you.” James stands and heads to the door, while Kail catches Soren up to speed on Tennant as they trade off.
I’d rather not leave my Daddy, but Kail is my first assistant for a reason, and he's more than capable of helping to smooth out my rough edges.
The small office Sarah leads us to is boring and uninspired, and if I had to spend any time in here on a daily basis,I’d probably ask James to shoot me. Prestigious position as hospital administrator or not, nothing is worth such shabby accommodations.
“I didn’t realize you didn’t tell your Boss anything,” I say mildly as I sit across from her. “Rather uncomfortable position to be in.”
She has the decency to wince. “I’m sorry. Things have been a little…stressful here, as you could imagine. I know Allesandro well enough to know if he understood just how dire things were with Lio, he would have compromised his own health to be here. I couldn’t allow that.”
I understand that, as I’d do the same if I was in her position.
“Yes, well, you can explain that to him, because I’m pretty sure he already hates me. I’d rather not add fuel to that fire.”
“Shall we discuss how we’re going to move Lio?” she asks. “It’s a…delicate situation.”
Swallowing my pride, I shift in my seat, barely holding back my discomfort as the bag taped to my leg suddenly feels heavy and noticeable. I know it’s all in my head, but the reminder of my predicament makes this next part easier.
