Total pages in book: 41
Estimated words: 38284 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 191(@200wpm)___ 153(@250wpm)___ 128(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 38284 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 191(@200wpm)___ 153(@250wpm)___ 128(@300wpm)
Feeling a little more at ease about it, I said, “He’s not here. He’s at my home. We treated him there.”
“Who is this ‘we’?” Cocked brows and crossed arms added a bit of menace to the simple question.
“My father and me. My father was rec diving when he saw Ricardo in the water. He quickly brought him to his boat, which was hidden from view of the cartel, and drove him straight to our home.”
“How the hell did you treat him without anyone noticing?” They were both cautious, looking for any potential danger.
“We have a small clinic we run out of our home, so we were able to get the medicine needed without drawing attention to ourselves.”
“How is he?” Boomer asked, taking a seat in the nearest pew.
I tried to find my words. Thinking about his injuries nearly brought tears to my eyes as I thought about the man who accidentally stole a part of me when he called me his angel.
Finally, I broke it down. “Ricardo was unconscious for four weeks. Most of his injuries weren’t fatal immediately. They wanted him to suffer, so they tossed him in the ocean, bloody and broken. I don’t know what he remembers because he messaged you almost immediately before he ate a bit and we all went back to bed.” I left out his interest in me because they didn’t need to know that.
“Thank you, Dr. Holden, for everything you’ve done for him.”
“Grace, please.” I pulled out one of my cards and added my home address to it. “Here is my address. You can see him there. He’s probably trying to walk right now because the man is insanely stubborn.”
“Pinned him on that one. Is there anything else we need to know?”
My phone went off just as I shook my head. “I’m needed in the ER. Be careful. The cartels are dangerous, and if they sniff that he’s alive, then we’re all in trouble.” I patted their knees and then left. My day wasn’t nearly done, but I was already exhausted. Running a clinic, working as an EM physician, and caring for a man who was supposed to be dead was tiring.
For the next three hours I worked nonstop. It seemed everything that could go wrong did. We had a serious car accident with two fatalities and three who were moved to ICU after surgery. I loved what I did, but it was hard on my heart and soul.
By the end of my shift, I sat in the locker room and cried. It sucked losing patients. You knew that some people coming in had no chance of survival, but you hoped that you could just be that miracle they needed. I closed my eyes and then finished dressing.
“Grace, are you okay?” the head nurse asked as she sat next to me.
“Yes, Delia. I am fine.”
She wrapped her arm around my shoulder and gave me a squeeze. “You don’t look it. I think you need to take some time off.”
I turned to face her, feeling defeated. How easily my day had turned to shit and my humor had gone. “I don’t think I’m cut out to be a doctor. Is that bad?”
“Oh, honey, you’re a phenomenal doctor, but you have a heart of gold. Perhaps you could move to being a doctor to less vulnerable patients. I know you want to be like your dad, but I’m sure he’d be proud of any direction you take.”
“Thank you. I will definitely be considering it.” She left, and I finished changing to head home and to Ricardo who I needed to see. Somehow, I knew he’d make me feel better. Even in his coma, I sensed the change in my mood as I entered the house.
“Oh my goodness,” I sighed as I turned on my car. What if they took him away from here? Would I ever be able to go home again if he wasn’t there?
Chapter 6
Ghost
The second I woke up, my body throbbed, pain every damn where, but all I gave a fuck about was finding my woman and kissing her senseless. Grunting, I worked myself into a seated position.
Sweat built up on the back of my neck and on my forehead. Standing went smoothly until the room started spinning. I gripped the wall until everything settled and my equilibrium righted itself. Each step I took, my legs shook like a newborn foal. I got this. I’d been walking for over thirty years; a month shouldn’t bring me down.
“Fuck.” Stumbling down the hall, I banged my shoulder on the wall. Overcompensating, I nailed my hip against the sofa. “Son of a bitch. Get your act together, Rico. You’re a grown-ass man with two working legs.”
Finally, I straightened up and moved around the house without slamming into anything else, hoping to see Grace.
When I reached the kitchen, I saw her father sipping coffee so I straightened up. “Good morning, Mr. Holden.”