Page 14 of Guarding the Doctor
My boss disconnected the call without another word.
“Is she always like that?” Kathryn asked.
“No, sometimes she’s in a bad mood,” Martha said dryly.
We drove in silence for a few minutes, but when traffic came to a stop, I turned around to meet my mate’s gaze.
“Are you okay?”
She nodded. “It’s just stuff. I can always get new stuff. But if they were hoping to scare me, they failed. This just makes me want to find out what’s going on even more. I owe it to Seth to try to bring these people to justice.”
“Just be careful,” I responded. “Don’t do anything without one of us nearby. I mean it, don’t even grab a coffee or go to the bathroom unless a team member is with you, do you understand?”
“Yeah.”
She made a strange face.
“What’s the matter?” I asked.
“I’m even more pissed now that you made me eat that toast. I feel like I’m going to puke.”
“It’s good to start your morning with healthy carbs and protein,” I said. “Didn’t they teach you that in med school?”
She stared at me for a long moment before shaking her head ruefully. “You’re something else, Darla.”
“Just try to not throw up,” I called as I returned my attention to the road. “Lois hates it when she has to pay to get the cars detailed.”
The Emergency Department was buzzing when we got there. Martha went right over to the desk in the area they called The Fishbowl while Kathryn and I headed for the locker room, quickly changing into scrubs. Taking the locker right next to her, I did my best not to watch Kathryn while she changed, not wanting to be some kind of a weirdo. But I couldn’t help getting a glimpse of one long, muscular leg, all silky and white. It made my fangs hurt and my nipples harden.
When we were finished putting on our scrubs I looked around to double check that we were alone, then touched her shoulder. I’d been careful not to touch her before now, not wanting to torture myself. My hands buzzed where we connected, even through the fabric of her scrubs. Judging by the way her heart was pounding, Kathryn felt it too.
“Everything will be okay,” I promised.
She nodded, her face turning vulnerable for the blink of an eye before her professional mask came back.
“I know.”
We had a busy morning, then we had a strange lull during which several of us went together to the cafeteria to grab lunch. Kathryn explained that whenever there was a quiet period, people popped out to take a break, unsure when they’d get another one. As we settled at a table in the center of the cafeteria, I let the conversation roll over me while I scanned the space looking for anything suspicious.
“So what’s your story, Darla?” a pretty nurse named Stacy asked.
I’d noticed that she and my mate had a good rapport. Yesterday they’d referenced a shared happy hour they’d attended with the male who’d gotten murdered, Seth.
“Story?” I asked, reminding myself to look friendly.
“Yeah, where were you before this?”
“I was a medic in the military,” I said, knowing that the best cover stories mirrored the truth. “When I retired I decided to use my qualifications to get a job as a medical assistant.”
She paused waiting for me to add more and when I didn’t she asked, “What about your personal life?”
I didn’t get the sense she was flirting with me, so much as being nosy.
“I live alone,” I said shortly.
Before Stacy could ask another question we heard a crash. I leapt to my feet, hands clenching into fists and senses heightening before I realized that the crash was the sound of a cleaning cart overturning. It was quickly followed by a low growl.
Yuri – one of the Belarusian bears – stood by the overturned cart, staring at Stacy with an intense look I recognized well. Like his brothers, he was giant – tall and broad and ridiculously handsome. And as a bear shifter, he’d recognize his fated mate the instant he saw her. Or smelled her. Another bear hit the dust.
