Chapter 9 The Not Knowing #3
“Three,” she continued, “I’ll let you in on a special secret, this isn’t the first time he’s assaulted me.
Not even close. That’s why the CMO’s involved.
The hospital’s trying to spare itself a scandalous lawsuit and loss of a good surgeon.
I agreed to their settlement because I didn’t want my overprotective father getting himself twenty-five to life.
” And she phrased it that way on purpose.
“Four, just because my hands are busted up doesn’t mean I’m a goddamn criminal, and the fact that that is where you went really makes me want to report you.
No one in your position should be so judgmental. It’s horrifying.”
That was what triggered her. Gayle finally slammed her palms onto the desk, silencing Lynnette’s rant. Her pale demeanor had gone red in the blink of an eye and her chest heaved with hard breaths. “That’s enough, Garver!” She all but shouted the words.
Lynnette clamped her lips shut and obligingly lowered her hand. Mostly because she was worried how much more she might say if she kept going. She’d arguably already said too much.
“Do you hear yourself? I’m not supposed to take the first story that walks through my door, but I’m supposed to take yours?
” She smacked her desk again as if it made her point.
“And look at you! You’re a disgrace. You’re going to make our patients uncomfortable if you waltz into their rooms looking like you’ve been cage-fighting.
How dare you show up to work like this? Do you not know better than to keep your illicit activities relegated to your off-hours? ”
Jesus Christ. Lynnette scowled, not shrinking away from her superior’s glare.
She waited until the woman’s lips pressed together again before opening her own.
“No, I don’t expect you to take my side.
Hell, I don’t expect you to give me the time of day, seeing as everyone over here has hated me from the moment I showed up for my first shift.
But professionally? You should be hearing both sides, comparing notes, reflecting, and bringing the whole situation to the CMO.
Especially when you do hear my side. That’s what I think you should be doing. ”
She raised her hands again, using one to point at the other.
“And cage-fighting, really?” She scoffed.
“I know better than that. Thank you for your concern, Gayle, but actually I was run off the road last night and attacked by a couple of gangsters. Yes, I know that’s wild, and no, I never figured out why.
My truck’s with a mechanic for the next two weeks at best, and this is what happened in the process of me fighting to stay alive.
But I suppose you don’t give a shit. Seeing as you went straight to assuming I’m behaving like a criminal. ”
Gayle frowned at her as she stood to her full height.
The move allowed her to look down her nose at Lynnette, her lips pursed in judgment.
“So, one way or the other, you have an inappropriate incident with a doctor. And that night you just so happen to be run off the road and assaulted by strange men. I’m expected to believe that?
Why shouldn’t I throw you out right this instant? ”
Lynnette stood to properly meet the woman’s glare.
“Protocol states you should be taking this escalated incident to the top, considering the circumstances. You know it. I know it. Fire me today, and I’ll add your name to the specific parties listed on the lawsuit I’ve already promised to bring down if Bishop isn’t kept in line.
” And while her words were true, she would have a hell of a hard time moving forward with that lawsuit if her video had been deleted.
The best she’d be able to prove would be wrongful termination.
“You can’t sue me for doing my job,” Gayle replied, her words so tight she was practically speaking them through her teeth.
Lynnette didn’t blink. “I can sue you for neglecting to do your job, though.”
Gayle’s brows dipped so low her eyes nearly squinted shut.
“One more thing,” she said after a prolonged moment.
“One more thing, however tiny, and I’ll drag you out by the hair, you understand?
” She made a sharp slicing motion with her arm, ending with her entire hand pointing toward the door.
“Now get to work, and don’t you dare mention your violent tendencies to my patients. ”
Lynnette tried not to balk at the possessive wording, considering she’d never once seen Gayle walk the corridor. Instead, she scooped up the tablet she’d brought in and turned to go. “Don’t worry,” she said, “I know how to keep my personal life separate.”
Lance’s smirk flashed through her mind, as if calling her out. Heat flashed through her.
It’s not the same. Maybe she was being friendlier with him than normal, and maybe she couldn’t shake her attraction, but nothing was really happening. He was still her patient. He would still leave eventually and more than likely disappear from her life.
The pang in her chest as she put Gayle’s office behind her forced Lynnette to wonder just how badly that was going to hurt, despite that it shouldn’t. He was just friendly. And she … she was just lonelier than she’d allowed herself to realize.