Page 12 of No Mistake

She walked away; surprised Ricardo didn’t follow her. Whoever this new man was, Ricardo seemed wary of him.

Inside the bathroom, she scrubbed the blood from her hands and tried to wipe it off her clothes. As the rush of doing surgery began to fade, the reality of her situation sank in. She leaned against the sink and looked at herself in the mirror. She had a bruise on the side of her face. Lifting her t-shirt, she found another large bruise was forming on her stomach. She dropped the t-shirt and stared at her reflection. Blood splatters covered her face and neck. She grabbed the washcloth, frantically scrubbing at them. She wanted the blood gone, all of it.

God, she’d just stitched up a man on a dining table, after being brought here at gunpoint. What were these men going to do to her? They were never going to let her go. Not now. She’d seen their faces. Knew their names. The tears she fought to hold back rolled down her cheeks. Dropping the washcloth, her legs crumbled, and she slid to the floor, hugging her knees. Absently, she rocked herself back and forth as she lost the fight to keep her sobs at bay.

Chapter 4

Four hours into a twelve-hour shift, it felt like she’d never been away. The Westside emergency room was swamped and had been non-stop since she arrived. Sophie was in her element; this was her happy place, and she would never tire of it. Based on Coronado, Westside was a military hospital where no one asked questions. You might be a sailor, a SEAL, a pilot, or a rescued hostage. At Westside everything was kept private, the safety of the military the priority.

Standing at the reception desk finishing off a chart, her pocket buzzed with a text message. Hopefully it was Chloe. She’d called her and sent a text half hour ago but had not heard back. She was probably just busy at the hospital and exhausted. She remembered her resident days. But she’d feel better once she heard back from her. Sophie’s heart skipped a beat seeing Ryan’s name.

Welcome back.

That’s it? Welcome back. After that steaming hot kiss, not a word from him in a week, and all he says is welcome back.

“Dr. Summers, incoming. Treatment two.”

“Be right there.” Hesitating just a moment, she texted back.

Thanks.

Shoving the phone back in her pocket she rushed to treatment two, pushing Ryan out of her mind. God damn Navy men and their egos, thinking women would come running when they clicked their fingers, everything on their terms. Not happening, sunshine.

Four hours later, the emergency room slowed down a little and the residents and nurses had it under control. Sophie headed to the cafeteria to grab a coffee when someone called her name.

“Dr. Summers? Dr. Sophie Summers?”

Sophie turned to see a man holding a bouquet of roses.

“Yes, I’m Dr. Summers.”

“Then these are for you.” He handed the bouquet to her, smiled and left. Sophie stared in amazement at the flowers as several of her colleagues gave her quizzical looks. Changing direction, she headed to her office.

Safely inside with the door closed, she set down the bouquet and pulled out the card.

I missed you. Have dinner with me tonight. Meet you outside Westside at seven. I’ll be the one with the big smile on his face. Ryan.

Oh boy. Twelve beautiful long stem red roses. No one had ever bought her roses before. God, what was the man playing at? How can you say you miss someone when he didn’t text or call once? What exactly did he want? Glancing at her watch, it was four o’clock. She was working until eight; there was no way she could meet him for dinner.

And you shouldn’t. He’s a Navy man, remember? Nothing’s changed. He’ll break your heart.

She couldn’t just ignore the flowers. The man made her feel excited, nervous, scared, and horny as hell all at once. Sighing, she decided to send him a text. Her fingers hesitated, unsure what to type. The roses were beautiful, and she was attracted to him, but damn it, he was Navy, and she just wasn’t ready to have her heart broken again.

Thank you for the roses, they’re beautiful, but you shouldn’t have. As I said before, my work has a crazy schedule. My answer is still no to dinner.

Sophie’s phone buzzed with another text indicating she was needed. So much for getting a coffee. Pausing at the door, she looked back at the roses and couldn’t help but smile.

RYAN PARKED OUTSIDE the hospital. It was just after seven and he had no idea what time Sophie’s shift ended tonight, but her car still here was a good sign.

He grabbed the take-out bag from the front seat and strode confidently into the hospital. Ryan scanned the room but couldn’t see Sophie.

“Can you tell me where I can find Dr. Summers please?” he asked the pretty receptionist.

“Dr. Summers is in her office. Can I page her for you?”

“That’s OK. If you can tell me where it is, I’ll go there.”

“Sorry, can’t do that. I’ll call her. Who shall I say is here?” The young woman reached for the phone, looking at him expectantly.

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