I’m ready to get this day over and soak in the tub for an hour. I’m used to being on my feet, but that’s not the issue. A certain Dr. Asshole has been fueling my agitation all damn day.

When I return to my locker, I finally check my phone for the first time in hours and see I have a few from Kiera.

I groan, wishing I had looked at my phone earlier to see her messages. However, it probably wouldn’t have helped much, considering Evan loathes my very existence and plans to make my life a living hell.

I hang up my lab coat and grab my bag before heading out. Avoiding Evan at all costs, I double-check the hallway before leaving. Swinging my purse over my shoulder, I focus on my phone, and just as I’m about to text Kiera back, I walk straight into a wall.

“Shit,” I mutter as soon as strong hands land on my shoulders, and by the way his nails dig into my arms and the musky scent that fills my senses, I know who it is before I even look.

“I know you’re eager to get out of here and all, but you should still watch where you’re going so you don’t end up being the patient, and I’m forced to admit you.” I hear the amusement in his tone, but when I look up, his expression is stone.

“Yeah, well, that won’t be necessary, Dr. Bishop.” His hands are still on my shoulders, and when he notices my eyes glancing over at the contact, he removes them.

Without a response, he shifts out of the way and starts walking away. I finally exhale, trying to get my bearings together when I hear him call out my name.

“Dr. Bell.”

Turning around, I study him for a moment as he speaks over his shoulder. “See you tomorrow.”

Licking my lips, remembering how his mouth felt on me, I push those thoughts back and stand straighter.

“Good night, Dr. Bishop.” I walk away before I can say or do anything stupid. The man infuriates me, but that doesn’t mean the attraction to him isn’t there. Which I fucking hate.

Once I’m in my car, I pull up Kiera’s number and call her.

“Oh, for fuck’s sake, I’ve been waitin’ all day.” Her voice is breathy when she answers. “So I’m guessing you didn’t get my messages in time?”

“Nope.” I sigh. “Was a real nice surprise on my first day.”

“God. I’m sorry, Em. Had I thought Evan was really a possibility, I would’ve warned ya sooner, but honestly, I never suspected him to be the hook up kind.”

“Well, I’m not either,” I remind her. “We were drunk and stupid. I’m sure he’s thinking the same thing, or rather… I’m certain that’s what he’s thinking.”

“So I take it things didn’t go well?” I can hear the cringing in her tone, and I replay moments of our day together.

“You could say that. He was pissed, to say the least, wouldn’t let me explain, and basically treated me like I had the Ebola virus. And what’s worse is that River was there, too, and witnessed the whole thing.”

“Oh fuck. I forgot she works there now too.”

I roll my eyes. “Yeah. She heard all about it too. She called me his ‘mystery woman’ and then laughed when Evan gave her the stink eye.”

Kiera releases a small chuckle of her own, and I groan again. “I’m sorry, Em. I know it’s not funny, but considering the circumstances of how it all went down, and then him being the same doctor you work with, it’s a little comical.”

“He’s my boss until the supervisor returns,” I inform her with bitterness to my tone. “And he’s training me on all their protocols, so I’m literally stuck with him until they think I’m fine on my own.”

“Seriously? This just keeps getting better and better.” She’s full-on laughing now, and I want to reach through the phone and smack her.

“You’re the worst best friend ever,” I deadpan. “How am I supposed to prove myself in a brand-new town and job while my one-night stand works at the same hospital as me?”

“Well I’d say small town perks, but…”

I roll my eyes again, hating that I got myself into this mess.

“Maybe it’s not as bad as you’re thinking. Once the shock has worn off, you can both work together like nothing happened. Or… you could just take advantage of the situation and make out in the on-call rooms instead.” Her voice is light, but I know she’s serious right now.

“He hates me,” I explain. “He’s not going to forget that I stole his clothes anytime soon or that I lied about my name.”

“You lied about your name?” she asks, remembering I forgot to tell her that part.

“Of course, I did! I didn’t know who he was and wasn’t planning on letting him know much about me.”

“Except your body.” She chuckles. “Evan is a hardass most days, but I’m sure he’ll warm up to you in no time. He’s probably just pissed about the tux and that he was embarrassed in front of his brothers, but I’m sure he’ll get over it sooner than later.” I know she’s trying to reassure me, but I’m still not so sure.

“His brothers gave him shit, huh?” I should’ve suspected.

“Oh yeah.” She laughs. “Apparently, he called John for some clothes, but Jackson’s the one who delivered them, which were all ranch work clothes he would never wear, then when he tried to leave, the entire family was downstairs of the B&B.”

“Oh my God.” My cheeks redden. Now I feel worse than before. “No wonder he fucking hates me!” I groan, trying to inhale a deep breath.

“I texted Jackson this morning once I figured out it was Evan, and he told me the story. He was cracking up the whole time, and by the sound of it, I’m pretty sure Evan wanted to put him in his place for it.”

“That’s it. I’m going to make him hear me out, so I can at least apologize and tell him it was a misunderstanding. It’s the only way he’ll stop treating me like shit.” Even though he asked me about it before I left, I was too busy being upset with him to say anything.

“Just explain what happened with Justin and why you took his clothes when you thought he was a cheating bastard.”

“I am not telling him about my ex or anything personal.”

“Why not? You’re going to be working with him almost every day. It’s not like personal things aren’t going to come up.”

I scoff. “They won’t if we don’t talk.”

“There are lots of things you guys can do that don’t require talking.”

I try to hold in my laughter but fail miserably. “Damn you.”

She chuckles, and the sound brings a smile to my face.

“Evan isn’t an easy egg to crack, but he’s a good guy. He works long hours at the hospital, volunteers for charity and helps host fundraisers, and on his rare days off, he’s at the ranch helping anywhere he can. Probably why he doesn’t have much of a social life, but I’m willing to bet there’s a deeper side to him. He’s witnessed a lot of shit in that ER I’m sure. Mama Bishop has told me some here and there, but I have a feeling it’s just the tip of the iceberg of what he’s been through.”

“Well maybe if he wasn’t such an ass, I’d want to get to know him, but right now, he’s dead set on pissing me off and being a jerk.”

“Sounds like sexual tension to me,” she teases.

“Okay, I’m done talking to you now.”

Laughing, she ignores me. “You’re the one who has to work with him every day, so you might as well make the most of it.”

“I would if he wouldn’t treat me like I’m an idiot.”

“Guess you’ll just have to show him instead.”

“He knows about my father,” I murmur sadly. “I didn’t want anyone to know, or at least not right away, so they wouldn’t assume I only got to where I am because of him.”

“They’d be stupid to think that because you’re brilliant.” Her kind words make me smile for a moment.

“Evan had no problem rubbing it in my face the first chance he got. Said he got where he is because of working his ass off and not because of someone else’s hard work. That really struck a nerve.” I grind my teeth just thinking about it.

“Oh my God!” she shrieks, taking me off guard. “That’s a dick move. Wow.”

“Told you! He hates me.” I groan.

“Well, fuck him then.”

I chuckle at her change of heart.

“Oh wait, you already did that!” She laughs so loud I have to pull the phone away from my ear.

“I’m seriously done with you,” I retort dryly.

“No, you’re not.”

“Wait. You gotta tell me about your lunch date with Trent,” I say, remembering her text from early this morning.

“Oohhh…” She releases a dreamy sigh, and I take that as a good sign. “I think I’m in love.”

“Really?” My brow arches surprised to hear her talk about another guy like that. “That’s all it took to get over the infamous Jackson Bishop?” I tease.

She groans in response. “Shut up. Trent is so sweet. And hot. We have a lot in common, too, which makes for easy conversation. We talked all through lunch, and he made me laugh and smile the whole time.”

“That’s awesome, Kiera.” I smile wide.

“Then he started texting me, and we’ve been texting all afternoon and night.”

“Wow, sounds like things are moving fast then.”

“Well, we’re just getting to know each other on a more personal level. He’s been our vet for a while, but I never gave him a second thought until he asked me to have a drink with him at the wedding. Then it was like sparks just flew.”

“I’m so happy for you, babe. Truly. You deserve it.”

She releases a short sigh. “I just hope it’s not one-sided, ya know? I’ve been on that side for way too long, and it’s no fun.” She’s talking about Jackson, and it makes me sad to think about how she’s been waiting for him to open his damn eyes and see what’s been right in front of him this whole time.

“Well, I can’t say for sure, but from the sound of what you’re telling me, it absolutely isn’t one-sided. Most guys don’t want to text for hours with chicks they aren’t into.”

“That’s true. Jackson sucks at texting.”

“Well, Jackson is an idiot.” I chuckle.

“Don’t I know it? Ha!”

“Okay, well I’m pulling into my driveway now. Text me tomorrow?”

“I will! I want updates.”

“Yeah, we’ll see.” I snort, thinking of how I plan to kick ass tomorrow.

After hanging up, I enter my condo and immediately get into the bath. The hot water soaks my sore muscles from wearing heels all day, but I’ll be in scrubs tomorrow and plan to show Evan Bishop just who he’s messing with.

“Good morning.” Veronica greets me with a warm smile as soon as I walk in. She’s a nurse I’d guess to be in her mid-thirties. Her blonde hair is pulled back into a French braid, and her green eyes sparkle in the light.

“Morning.” I smile back sweetly. “How are things?”

“They’re crazy as always.” She shrugs, holding a cluster of charts in her arm. “Dr. Bishop wanted me to tell you to meet him in trauma room two.”

The corner of my lips tilts up in amusement. “Well you can tell Dr. Bishop I’ll be at my locker, and he can come find me when he’s ready.”

“Oh, um, okay.” She looks flustered, and I feel bad for putting her in this position, but I will not let Evan boss me around and relay messages to me from a nurse. If he wants me to meet him somewhere, he should’ve paged me and told me himself.

Once I’m at my locker, I change my shoes and adjust my hair. I unpack the items in my duffel and start shoving them all inside. I grab my bag of black licorice and tear it open, taking a piece before I set the rest on top.

“Dr. Bell.” I hear Evan’s clipped voice behind me. His tone is deep and unfriendly. I decide I can handle him in two ways: give attitude right back so he has a taste of his own medicine or I can be super sweet and pretend his brooding demeanor doesn’t faze me.

I go for the latter, and if that doesn’t work, I’ll try plan B.

“Well, good morning, Dr. Bishop. It’s a lovely day, isn’t it?” I turn around and flash a bright smile at him as I wrap my stethoscope around my neck. When his expression softens, I can tell he’s taken aback by my kindness. When he realizes he broke character and showed some real emotion, Evan purses his lips and continues toward me in long strides.

“Another day in paradise,” he grunts, looking down at me and my bag of licorice. “What the fuck are you eating?”

I hold up the bag and offer it to him. “Black licorice. Want one?”

The face he gives me makes me burst out laughing. “I’ll take that as a no.”

“You should know that shit is no good for you. Not to mention it smells and looks awful.”

“Well, not everything we put in our mouths is good for us, yet many people do anyway.” I flash him a smug grin, and when he groans, I know he gets exactly what I’m talking about.

He clears his throat and shoves his hands in the pocket of his lab coat. “You were supposed to meet me this morning.”

“Yet here you are.”

He releases a frustrated breath. “You need to learn to follow the rules, Dr. Bell. When I tell you to meet me somewhere, I expect your ass to be there.”

“Relaying a message to me through a nurse is not the same as telling me. You can page or text me yourself if you need me to meet you somewhere. I’m not going to relay messages to you through someone else. This isn’t first grade.”

“No, but I am your superior, so you will listen to my orders,” he barks.

“So give me your phone then.” I hold my palm out, and when he eyes it like it’s going to bite him, I continue. “So I can give you my number. That way there’s no more miscommunication.” I give him a reassuring grin, knowing I have him backed into a corner to give it to me.

“Fine.” He hands it over, and I add my contact information, then text myself, so I have his.

“There.” I hand it back. “That wasn’t so hard, now was it?” I smirk, lowering my eyes to his crotch before gazing back up at him with a shit-eating grin.

“Now hurry up so we can get this day over with.” He turns around and walks away before I can respond to his snide comment.

What an ass.

Now I don’t even feel bad for texting myself “I love cock” from his phone number.

I take my sweet time, finishing another piece of licorice and rinsing my mouth with mouthwash before I make my way out of the locker room.

“We have a lot to do today, so it’d be in your best interest to pay attention,” he tells me without looking in my direction. I walk next to him, and he’s walking faster than necessary, which seems to be a common occurrence. He’s much taller than I am, which means I have to walk twice as fast just to keep up.

“Can you let me explain about last weekend, please?” I push, needing to get it out in the open, so we can move past it and be civilized since we have to work together.

“We aren’t discussing this, Dr. Bell. I already told you that. Perhaps you need a hearing aid since you lack listening skills.”

Gah! I want to throat punch him. He’s making it real hard to take the high road and be nice to him. Really hard.

“For your information, I just had a full physical before my transfer, and my hearing is impeccable. My tolerance for assholes, on the other hand, is low.”

He grunts in response, avoiding eye contact at every opportunity.

“A trauma hospital is different than the ER you’re used to working in.” And, apparently, we’ve moved on to the next topic. “We get paged when a trauma is coming in—usually from an accident—and then everyone gets prepped and ready, so we aren’t wasting any time once they arrive. We’re the closest trauma hospital in a fifty-mile radius, which means we often get helicopters and ambulances rushing in at the same time. That means when you’re given a position, you stick with it and do your job.”

He walks us into one of the trauma rooms that I’d already familiarized myself with yesterday. “Everything we need is in each of these trauma rooms, and it’s important they stay stocked. We’re fully staffed with trauma surgeons, respiratory specialists, radiologists, and technicians, so we don’t ever have to wait for someone to get here. That means the room fills up quick, and it’s our job to make sure everything runs smoothly.”

“So you’re the one in charge, I take it?” Flashes of our night together and how he took charge plagues me, and before I can push the thoughts out of my head, I become flushed.

He quirks a brow at my reaction but doesn’t mention it.

“For now, yes. When Dr. Umbridge is here, he’s the lead point person and will be the one to direct the scene.”

“Sounds straightforward.”

“It gets crazy usually, so our job is to stabilize the patient and prep them for surgery if it’s needed. Stop any bleeding or administer any pain medications.”

“Yes, I went to med school too.” I snort, annoyed he’s treating me like an intern who has never practiced medicine before.

“This isn’t an easy job, Dr. Bell, so I’ll need you to be on your A game at all times.”

“Well give me the chance to show you before you criticize me then.”

I start to walk out, tired of hearing his bullshit, but I don’t get far before he yanks my arm and pulls me back. “This hospital is my whole life, and I don’t do well with change.”

Looking up at him, I notice his pained expression. “Well, that almost sounded like an apology.”

Before he can respond, our pagers go off. We both look down and reach for them.

“Trauma coming in. Showtime.”

He walks out, and I follow him into the triage where a bunch of nurses are already running around to get beds ready.

“What’s the ETA?” Evan asks.

“Six minutes,” Veronica answers.

“What’s the situation?” I ask.

“Four-car collision with five people being brought in. Three are stable as of right now, but two are unconscious,” she explains as she reads her notes. “One is a child.”

My heart sinks every time I hear about a child being in an accident, and this time is no different.

“Okay, Claire and Landen, you’ll take the first unconscious patient to trauma room one with Dr. Moody. Veronica and Heather, you’re with me in trauma room two. Grant, Brooklyn, and Fiona—you’ll take the other three and assess their injuries first, then give Dr. Bell or me an update if you need a consult.” Evan gives instructions flawlessly and without missing a beat. He directs the nurses to their stations, and they scramble to prepare.

Evan and I suit up in our surgical gowns, gloves, and masks, but before I can ask for help to tie me up, he’s behind me, knotting the ties around my neck and waist.

“Thanks.”

He only nods in response without making eye contact. I see Veronica is already tying him up, and that’s when I get the impression she’s his right-hand man. She always has his files ready for him, relays his messages, and I’m pretty sure she handed him a coffee yesterday afternoon.

She’s his work wife.

I giggle a little to myself at the term I’ve heard my dad use about one of his assistants. When you work in the hospital as much as we do, you’re married to the people you work with more than the actual people you’re married to.

“Something funny?” He shoots daggers at me.

“Are you seriously going to scold me for laughing to myself?”

“This isn’t a laughing matter. We have a job to do.”

I roll my eyes, but he walks off before he can see me. You’d think the guy didn’t just get laid last weekend or something by his bad attitude.

The paramedics rush in just moments later, and the whole scene unfolds. Three stretchers are brought in with patients with minor injuries, and Evan directs them to the three nurses to assess them. An unconscious patient is brought into trauma room one, and when the last patient is rolled in, I follow Evan into trauma room two.

“Transfer on three,” Evan orders before counting, and the nurses and I help him move the patient off the stretcher and onto the hospital bed.

“Patient is a twenty-nine-year-old female and was the passenger when she got T-boned on her side. The driver said she smacked her head and couldn’t get her to wake up. BP was at ninety over seventy,” one of the paramedics tells us. Veronica is already hooking her up to the blood pressure cuff and heart rate tracker.

“That blood pressure is too low,” Evan mutters, unwrapping his stethoscope from his neck and listening to her heart. “Her heartbeat is slow, and her breathing is unsteady. Bag her.”

Moments later, Veronica hands me the equipment to manually ventilate her, and Evan watches as I push the tube down her throat and into her lungs. I’ve done this hundreds of times, but with his piercing eyes on me, I get nervous.

“Dr. Bell…” His warning tone has my nerves on fire.

“I’ve got it,” I say, attaching the bag to the mask and pumping.

Once he checks for himself, I roll my eyes when his expression doesn’t change. He orders Veronica to check the head wound where blood is pooling, and Heather places an IV in the woman’s arm so she can administer medication.

“She has a deep incision near her right temple. Going to clean it up and will probably need some stitches,” she tells Evan.

“She might have some internal bleeding, so let’s get radiology in here to do some scans while her breathing is stable.”

Evan gets radiology within minutes since they’re in the next room. Once the X-rays are done and processed, we see she has a bleed in her spleen.

“Ruptured spleen,” Evan confirms what I already knew.

“Her abdomen must’ve been hit pretty hard,” I say, handing off the ventilator bag to Heather so I can look closer at the X-rays.

“Or she wasn’t wearing a seat belt.” Evan’s body tenses, and his eyes go dark. His mood shifts, and I wonder what the hell just happened. “Veronica, she needs to be prepped for surgery. Page me when she’s in recovery,” he orders before facing me. “Stay with Veronica and help her prep the patient, then find me.”

He walks off before I can respond.

I do as he says and help Veronica while the trauma surgeon comes in all ready to go. We roll her down to the OR, and once she’s securely inside, Veronica and I walk out.

“Good job, Dr. Bell,” she praises me, which takes me off guard a bit. I don’t even feel like I did that much, but I smile at her compliment.

“Thanks. You too. You’re the superhero of nurses.” I smile.

She blushes, a small smile gracing her lips. “Thanks, I love my job. Dr. Bishop makes it easy to do my job well.”

My stomach twists at her words, wondering if that means what I’m thinking. Does Veronica have a thing for Evan? I mean, I wouldn’t blame her in the least, but this is only my second shift, so who the hell knows.

“It’s obvious you two make a great team. I envy that.”

“We do. It’s nice.” She smiles wide, and that’s all the confirmation I need that she definitely has feelings for him.

Once we’re back to the ER, I find Evan and wait for his next order. The other three patients are in beds and all stabilized with minor injuries. The other unconscious patient is a child, and I rush in to help once Evan calls for my assistance.

“She’s crashing,” one of the nurses shouts, announcing the code.

Evan grabs the crash cart, and I add the gel to the paddles before I charge it to three hundred, and he shouts, “Clear!”

He shocks her chest, and her heart begins beating again. She’s so little; I’m relieved that we don’t have to do it again.

“Bag her,” Dr. Moody orders.

Veronica hands me the tube and supplies, but the tube is too big. “Her throat is too swollen.”

“Here,” she says, handing me a smaller sized one.

I’m quick to grab it and attempt it once again with no luck.

“Veronica, take over for Dr. Bell.” Evan’s tone is cold and harsh.

“I can do it,” I bite out, trying again, but the way he’s scolding me with his eyes has my nerves all over the place. I can do this in my sleep, so my frustration grows the longer it takes.

“Veronica, now.”

“I said I got it!” I shout, but it doesn’t matter because Veronica grabs the tube from me and pushes me out of her way. She manages to ease the tube down her throat and quickly attaches everything together.

“Compress the bag.” Evan directs his order at me, keeping his eyes down as he assesses her other injuries that have already been checked. Veronica steps aside so I can take over ventilating. My blood is boiling, but I know I need to remain calm and indifferent right now.

Six hours later, the ER is calm again, but that doesn’t mean my annoyance has died down. Evan continues his bossy demeanor, and I’m so irritated with myself that I let him get to me. I’ve done that procedure so many times in my career and have never had issues, but him watching me and shouting caused my nerves to get the best of me.

I’m sitting in front of my locker, taking angry bites of my licorice when I hear the door behind me open. I immediately know it’s him when the hair on the back of my neck stands up, and I prepare myself for an ass chewing.

“That’s a gross habit,” he starts, walking to his locker that I realize is next to mine.

I snort at his first choice of words. “Eating?”

He scoffs, digging around his bag. “That isn’t eating. It’s high in sodium and carbs and filled with corn syrup.”

“Well, I could be a smoker. Or drinker.” I smirk. “Or I could—”

“Or you could eat food that’ll help sustain your energy levels instead of falling asleep on the job.”

“I did not fall asleep on the job!” I stand, appalled at his accusations.

“Could’ve fooled me.”

“Your screaming and shouting at me while I’m trying to do something isn’t how I work!”

“You want to be an ER doctor at a trauma hospital?” he taunts, stepping right into my space. “Then act like it. There’s no time for emotions or your feelings to get hurt. You focus on the patient, and you get your shit done. Bagging is med school 101, so forgive me if I have my doubts about you, Dr. Bell.”

We’re both breathing hard, and my heart races at an intense speed. Knowing what he looks like under those scrubs has my brain malfunctioning on a witty response. I want to grab his face and kiss the attitude right out of him, but I won’t let him win.

“Though considering your last name, I expected more from you.”

His words sting, and I know he said them to get under my skin, but I won’t give him the satisfaction that it hurt. I ignore him and pretend it doesn’t faze me at all.

“Good night, Dr. Bishop. Hope you sleep well,” I say smugly, widening my smile before taking another bite of my licorice.

I see the corner of his lips twitch, and the thought of driving him crazy the same way he does me makes me do a little victory dance in my head.

“Sweet dreams, Dr. Bell.” He reaches for his bag, and before he turns, he grabs the half-eaten piece of licorice out of my hand and walks out.

Bastard.