Mine at Last (7 page)

“Nah, nothing,” he shook his head. “Just like you said, words of wisdom.”

Dominik knew his brother held secrets pertaining to his job and he never pressed him, but they both knew they could count on each other no matter what. He turned off his desktop and stored his laptop in his briefcase, then placed it in a locked drawer. “You ready to go?”

Mikhail nodded. “Yeah, let’s do it,” he said, then stood and headed to the door. “I’ll drive, then drop you off back here. Everybody’s showing up, so parking is going to be a pain.”

“All right,” Dominik said as he nodded and waved to several E.R. staff as they passed. He stopped to speak with one of the nurses and then a doctor afterward as they continued out through the security doors.

“What time are you coming in tomorrow morning?”

“I’m not. I’m off tomorrow and Sunday.”

“Wow, that’s a first. The whole weekend. Any plans?”

“Yeah, but I’ll be at the clinic all day tomorrow, and Sunday I’m gonna sleep.”

Mikhail chuckled knowing his brother would more than likely be at the clinic all day both days. “Yeah, we’ll see how that works out for you. So, what’s she like?”

Dominik glanced at Mikhail, then understood. “Opinionated, callous, arrogant,” Dominik said.

“Is she attractive?” Mikhail asked. Dominik nodded. “Very attractive?” Mikhail asked again.

“Yes, very attractive.”

“Perhaps I’d better check her out for you.”

“Nah, you sit this one out,” Dominik said.

Mikhail chuckled. “All right. So, what’s her name?”

“Shauna Banks.”

“Does she live in Key West?”

“The Cura Group is out of D.C., so I presume she’s from that area, or maybe Maryland or Virginia,” Dominik said as he and his brother walked through the parking lot to Mikhail’s car.

Twenty minutes later, the front door opened as they walked up the path. Mia Morales, their cousin’s very pregnant wife, stood waiting. “Hey, you made it,” she said, smiling happily.

“Yeah, sorry we’re late,” Dominik said. “How are you feeling?”

“I feel fat and happy,” Mia said, hugging and kissing him.

“Ah, but you look gorgeous,” Mikhail said, kissing her cheek while giving her a hug.

“I totally agree,” Dominik said.

“You guys are so sweet. And thank you so much for helping out. We really appreciate it. Tonight is the only time we could get everyone together. Spencer is about to go in the studio, Chase and Nikita are headed to Alaska in a few days, and David’s got to make the junket rounds for his new movie. Natalia and the boys are going with him this time.”

“Hey, it’s our pleasure,” Mikhail said. “So, where is everybody, upstairs already?”

“No, we decided to eat first,” Mia said, tucking herself between her two cousins and escorting them down the hall to the back of the house. “Everyone’s out on the deck.”

“Great, I’m starved,” Mikhail said, smelling the aroma of grilled meat.

“Mmm, something smells fantastic,” Dominik said as they neared the kitchen. “Who cooked?”

“Everybody,” Mia said. “Nikita and I prepped the food, then Spencer and Chase manned the grill. Natalia and David did the vegetables, and Tatiana supervised. Then of course we all changed places fifteen minutes later.”

Dominik and Mikhail laughed. “Yep, that sounds about right,” Mikhail said as they stepped out onto the deck. There was a loud, resounding “Hey!” from the family. Hugs, kisses and handshakes were exchanged. Three hours later, the once-empty room beside Mia and Stephen’s bedroom was painted, wallpapered, polished, furnished and decorated. It was the picture-perfect
nursery.

After his brother dropped him off, Dominik went back to the hospital. The first person he saw in the E.R. waiting room was a woman in jeans and a baseball cap with her head lowered reading a book. He walked over. “Good evening.” She looked up. “I’m sorry. I thought you were someone else.”

He walked away and went to his office. He sat down thinking about the evening with his family. His sisters and his cousin looked so happy that he couldn’t help but think about his own life and his future happiness. He’d always wanted a family and children, but his profession required his steadfast dedication to his field. The rewards were heartwarming when he saw a child’s sparkling smile or a patient overjoyed with good news, but the solitude it entailed was lonely. He knew he wanted more. He needed more.

He stood, grabbed his briefcase from the drawer and checked in with the night-shift medical team quickly, then headed back out to the front. As he passed through the waiting room, he looked around once more, this time seeing a sight that made him smile. Shauna was standing at the security desk and speaking with one of the guards. Perfect.

Chapter 6

After the fiasco in Dr. Gilman’s office, Shauna drove to her old neighborhood and down her old street. Here, the tropical laissez-faire lifestyle was at its best. She parked in Pearl’s driveway behind her car. She got out, grabbed the wine and dessert box, and headed up the brick path to the front door. She looked up at the grand old Victorian home with its wraparound veranda and lush, verdant gardens. As soon as she stepped up onto the open porch, Pearl opened the door smiling with a huge hug for her. “Oh, my God, look at you. I don’t care what they say, that Skype is nothing compared to real life. You look sensational. Come on in,” Pearl said, overjoyed to see her.

Shauna couldn’t stop smiling as she walked in. Pearl always knew how to make her feel great even if she didn’t know she was doing it. “Thank you, Pearl, and you look sensational. You lost weight and look great. I love your hair like that.”

“Me, too,” Pearl said, reaching up and pressing down the short, curly hair cut Afro-style in the back. “I got so tired of washing that longer hair, so I had it all cut off. Then I decided to just let the gray come in. Dyeing it and rinsing it every other week is nonsense. So, I’ve gone natural and it feels fabulous.” She shook her head and flipped pretend hair over her shoulder.

They laughed. “I know I’m a little bit early, but I couldn’t wait to see you.” They hugged again. “Hmm, something smells incredible. I stopped and grabbed wine and dessert.”

“Perfect and perfect,” Pearl said, smiling. “Come on into the kitchen. I’m just finishing up dinner.”

“What are we having?” Shauna asked.

“All your favorites,” Pearl said.

Shauna hugged her again. “Thank you, Pearl. I really needed to see a friendly face right now.”

Pearl looked at her and nodded. “You’ve got that and all the love you can hold in your heart. Now, never mind about your day right now. We’ll talk about what’s troubling you in a minute. Right now, go upstairs and wash your hands and get ready to eat.”

Shauna nodded and did exactly as she was told. When she returned to the kitchen, everything was ready, but Pearl wasn’t there. Shauna heard her humming out on the back deck. She walked over and stood at the screened door. Candle lanterns hung from the deck’s wooden beams and the joyous sound of wind chimes played music as the summer breeze blew.

“It’s so beautiful here,” she said softly. She stepped outside and glanced at the house next door, her house. It was where she’d grown up. It was still very large but it looked different now. The trees were cut and trimmed shorter, the white siding she remembered was now tan, matching the new roof. The playhouse she’d helped build with her mother and father was gone and a gazebo was in its place. She sighed thinking,
If only
...

Pearl stepped up and placed her hand on her shoulder. “They’re nice people with two sons and a daughter. They love the home very much.”

Shauna nodded. “I’m glad.” She looked out at the well-lit backyard garden with its fragrant, colorful flowers, large swimming pool, tall palm tree and privacy shrubs. “I always loved it here. When you took me in after mom died, I...” she began but stopped and took a deep breath.

“You know I have plenty of room here still. There’s no one but me. Why don’t you go back to the hotel, get your things and then come stay with me? I’d love the company, and think of the money you’ll save.”

“Thank you, Pearl. The Cura Group is putting me up, but I’ll tell you what, after I finish this job I’ll hang around the city a few more days. We can catch up.”

Pearl smiled happily. “Yes, that sounds wonderful. I can think of a dozen things we can do. It’ll be like a mini vacation.”

Shauna nodded. “I could use a mini vacation.”

“Good. Now come on. Let’s eat before the food gets cold.”

Shauna nodded and followed Pearl back inside. Lids came off pots and pans. Pearl had prepared a feast. They made their plates and went back outside on the screened-in deck to eat. By the time they finished eating, it was sunset and everything had been perfect. They each drank a glass of wine with dinner and sipped on sweetened sassafras tea with dessert.

“God, I forgot how wonderful it is to just sit and watch the sunset over the bay.”

“You need to slow down. Life isn’t a sprint—it’s a journey. Forget about chasing the hare, and take it easy and follow the tortoise. Too fast and you miss the best parts. To tell you the truth, I wish I had taken my own advice years ago. I wanted to be at the top of my field and I was for a very long time. I gave up family, surrendered relationships and passed on the love of my life just to be on top. Now retired, I look around and see my past mistake was traveling this journey by myself. Being alone is no fun.”

“You have me,” Shauna said as she leaned forward, reaching across the table and squeezing her hand softly.

“Yes, I do, and I need you to have someone.”

Shauna sat back in her seat and exhaled. “Pearl, I blew the job today.” The words tumbled out of her mouth before she realized she was going to say them. “I messed up big-time,” Shauna said.

“What do you mean? What happened?” Pearl said.

“Truthfully, I have no idea. Talk about unethical. I can’t believe I just completely destroyed all of my credibility. One minute I’m picking papers off the floor and the next I had my tongue in his mouth.”

“Whoa, whoa, whoa, back up. Who are we talking about? You had your tongue in whose mouth? Start from the beginning and talk slowly. What happened exactly?”

Shauna told Pearl about her encounter with Dr. Coles, but she was more interested in the hospital.

“Dr. Dominik Coles thinks the Cura Group is gonna buy the hospital and then sell it off to eventually close down?” Pearl asked.

Shauna looked her friend in the eye. “I don’t know. I hope not, but I can’t guarantee they won’t.”

“So, he may have legitimate concerns.”

“Yes. They sold the last three medical facilities they bought, and within months they began to fail miserably. They resold and eventually the facilities closed.”

“Three hospitals closed down?” Pearl said, astonished.

“No,” Shauna said, “one small hospital and two medical clinics. They all had major problems. I rejected them all, but the new CEO bought them anyway. At first I couldn’t see the sense in it. Then I saw the bottom line. They made more money gutting and then reselling.”

Pearl shook her head. “That’s absolutely unthinkable.”

Shauna nodded. “I agree, but there was nothing I could do. There’s a new executive director. His name is Simon Patterson. The bottom line is all he sees. The Cura Medical Group you knew years ago is gone. It’s all about making money for the shareholders now. The medical element is out of the picture. Their methods are reprehensible.”

“Are you going to stay with them?”

“No. My contract is up and this is my last assignment.”

“What about the other company, Relso Health Care?”

“They’re completely different. They actually care about the companies they buy. They’d be a much better fit to purchase the medical center.”

“Can’t you hook them up together?”

“No, on this I’m still under contract with Cura. If they release me, I’m free to offer my services elsewhere.”

“Okay, getting back to what you were saying before, what happened with Dr. Coles?” Pearl asked.

Shauna nodded. “Years ago we went to high school together. I had a crush on him—every girl in school did. He was the guy most likely to succeed at everything and I was the girl whose father just embezzled money and ran away with another woman, leaving his sick wife and daughter with divorce papers on the dining room table.”

“Shauna, what your father did was heinous. He was greedy and selfish and he lied to everybody, but that was his failing, not yours,” Pearl said adamantly.

“Yes, I know,” Shauna said softly. “I left this place fifteen years ago and never looked back. Now, coming back here brings back so many memories. Most of them aren’t so good. My mom died in Key West Medical. I took her there thinking they’d help her. She never walked out.”

“Shauna, your mother was sick and no one knew it. Ovarian cancer has no real symptoms and is nearly impossible to diagnose. By the time we all found out, it was just too late.”

“I should have paid more attention to her after Dad left us.”

“What happened was nobody’s fault, certainly not yours. No one knew, not even her until it was too late. It was misdiagnosed. Now, what happened today? What makes you think you blew the account?”

“I guess I just didn’t expect to see Dominik. It’s crazy. It feels like being seventeen all over again. It’s like the universe is messing with me again.”

“Okay, now you’re sounding a little paranoid. Tell me what happened after you kissed him. What did he say?”

“Nothing really. He was okay about it. He was understanding and even charming. He said what happened was just a physical impulse—the heat of the discussion—and that we should be able to distance ourselves and move on and continue doing our jobs.”

“He’s right, and you can do that. You do it every time you walk into a hospital or medical office. You leave your emotions outside. It’s your job to be objective and remove the emotional element from the situation, and you’re very good at it, right?”

Shauna nodded. “Yes.”

“Okay, then it’s all good, business as usual. You’ll just pretend like it never happened, right?”

Shauna took a deep breath. “Right,” she said, agreeing with relief.