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Flirting with Dr Off-Limits
Robin Gianna
Flirting with the forbidden…For intern Dr. Katy Pappas, seeing delectable surgeon Alec Armstrong again is sweet torture! He might have rejected her after their sinfully delicious kiss years before, but he still sets her pulse racing!Alec is captivated by gorgeous, grown-up Katy. But as his best friend's sister, a colleague and his student, Katy is definitely off-limits! He's made the mistake of mixing business with pleasure before, and he won't risk Katy's career. Yet can he resist the oh-so-wrong when it feels oh-so-right…?
Praise for Robin Gianna: (#ulink_450628e0-a195-5396-bad7-231a924e61a2)
‘If you’re looking for a story sweet but exciting, characters loving but cautious, a fan of Medicals or looking for a story to try to see if you like the medical genre, CHANGED BY HIS SON’S SMILE is the story for you! I would never have guessed Robin is a debut author: the story flowed brilliantly, the dialogue was believable and I was thoroughly engaged in the medical dramas.’
—Contemporary Romance Reviews
After completing a degree in journalism, working in the advertising industry, then becoming a stay-at-home mum, ROBIN GIANNA had what she calls her mid-life awakening. She decided she wanted to write the romance novels she’d loved since her teens, and embarked on that quest by joining RWA, Central Ohio Fiction Writers, and working hard at learning the craft.
She loves sharing the journey with her characters, helping them through obstacles and problems to find their own happily-ever-afters. When not writing, Robin likes to create in her kitchen, dig in the dirt, and enjoy life with her tolerant husband, three great kids, drooling bulldog and grouchy Siamese cat.
To learn more about her work visit her website: www.robingianna.com (http://www.robingianna.com)
Flirting With Dr Off-Limits
Robin Gianna
www.millsandboon.co.uk (http://www.millsandboon.co.uk)
Dear Reader (#ulink_9f8b5f84-ac9e-5eeb-ad8b-2d16b2a6fc44)
Have you ever been tempted by something you know might not be the wisest choice for you? That second piece of chocolate cake, or a few extra Lottery tickets for that big jackpot, or maybe an item you want to buy but can’t afford?
My heroine in this book, Katy Pappas, hero-worshipped her older brother’s best friend Alec Armstrong. Until he disappointed her—twice—and she wrote him off. Now that she’s graduated from medical school Katy has taken a job as a student intern at a hospital in beautiful San Diego, California. The same hospital where her brother and Alec both work as surgeons. As she begins to see the Alec she once believed him to be Katy finds herself drawn to him again. Except he’s her teacher, and a relationship between them is strictly forbidden. Should she give in to temptation, risking her heart to a man with a past? A man who also happens to be completely off-limits?
Alec Armstrong made a mistake in his life he’s determined not to repeat. Until Katy shows up and turns that conviction upside down. Risking his heart isn’t the problem for Alec—but risking both their careers most definitely is!
I hope you enjoy Alec and Katy’s story. Drop me a line through my website, www.robingianna.com (http://www.robingianna.com), or on my Robin Gianna Facebook page. I’d love to hear from you!
Robin
This one’s for you, Meta, as you well know!
Whether I just need your great advice or I’m seriously panicking, you’re always there for me. I can’t thank you enough for that. You’re the best! xoxo
Acknowledgements (#ulink_8f7ce5b8-6eff-5d4f-8afc-19f20f34b5d2)
A huge thank you to my agent, Cori Deyoe of Three Seas Literary Agency, for pulling me from the fires with this one. I so appreciate your tremendous help and steadfast encouragement.
Another big thank you to my editor, Laurie Johnson, for the wonderful suggestions to pull this book together, and for your patience and support. I truly appreciate it.
Table of Contents
Cover (#ud5eac5ce-9594-51cd-893f-1ca13b6a0fb9)
Praise for Robin Gianna: (#u0efc6c00-4f72-50c4-aa59-36faff91a6fe)
About the Author (#uad0ba47e-4cf5-5369-8296-fa646d7c9ffe)
Title Page (#ud0d2f927-c183-5bf0-a72d-11ede626d892)
Dear Reader (#u182a7772-9bb4-53ec-869a-7b51c2b51f9f)
Dedication (#ua059df49-276c-549a-84e5-f83203482dee)
Acknowledgements (#u160e53f5-62f0-5aa1-9b9f-5e5acf2487f0)
CHAPTER ONE (#u4bfad400-1629-5a9c-88d0-5f61895ab5b0)
CHAPTER TWO (#u41c6e49e-e7fe-54f2-82e3-b131956fe35f)
CHAPTER THREE (#u526461a8-be64-5847-8aa4-eae944233a39)
CHAPTER FOUR (#litres_trial_promo)
CHAPTER FIVE (#litres_trial_promo)
CHAPTER SIX (#litres_trial_promo)
CHAPTER SEVEN (#litres_trial_promo)
CHAPTER EIGHT (#litres_trial_promo)
CHAPTER NINE (#litres_trial_promo)
CHAPTER TEN (#litres_trial_promo)
CHAPTER ELEVEN (#litres_trial_promo)
CHAPTER TWELVE (#litres_trial_promo)
CHAPTER THIRTEEN (#litres_trial_promo)
CHAPTER FOURTEEN (#litres_trial_promo)
CHAPTER FIFTEEN (#litres_trial_promo)
CHAPTER SIXTEEN (#litres_trial_promo)
Copyright (#litres_trial_promo)
CHAPTER ONE (#ulink_8b96581f-69ef-59cd-854d-c033674c86c1)
KATHERINE PAPPAS HOPED with all her heart that she’d been abducted by aliens. And that an extraterrestrial scientific experiment had sucked her brain dry.
After all, she’d much rather believe that the blankness of her mind throughout the night had been due to interplanetary interference and not because she’d just plain forgotten everything she’d ever learned in medical school. Exactly three weeks after she’d graduated. With a new job as a first-year intern at the same well-respected hospital as her hotshot surgeon brother.
Katy sucked in a calming breath. You know this stuff. Just quit with the nerves and do the job you’ve been dreaming of doing forever. She moved into a corner so no one, hopefully, would notice her until she felt ready to head to the first patient’s room for morning rounds. After wiping her sweaty hands on her scrubs, she began to organize cards on each patient she’d be seeing that morning,
The shrill sound of her phone made her nearly jump out of her skin, and her stomach somehow both sank and knotted as she answered. The words that had been so wonderful to say just a week ago seemed to stick in her throat and choke her. “Dr. Pappas.”
“Paging Dr. Katherine Pappas, world’s best surgical intern on her way to becoming world’s best family practice physician. Is she available?”
Hearing the voice of her closest friend in med school, Rachel Egan, made Katy relax and even conjure a small grin. “Dr. Pappas is available, except more likely she’s on her way to becoming the first intern booted out of Oceancrest Community Hospital only hours after arriving.”
“Uh-oh,” Rachel said. “Bad night on call?”
“The nurses are probably referring to me as Dr. Dolittle. As in do very little.” She sighed. “All night when they asked me questions, the right answer seemed to take a minute to percolate in my brain. I was sure I could do this, but now I’m worried.”
“You’re being ridiculous. Who had a straight four-point GPA in both undergrad and med school, like any human can do that? Who got the Alpha Omega Alpha award when we graduated? You’re brilliant, Katy, and you’re the only one who doesn’t realize it.”
“Then why doesn’t the perfect answer pop instantly into my ‘brilliant’ brain?”
“Because we’re nervous newbies, that’s why. We crossed that med-school finish line, and all of a sudden we have the word ‘Doctor’ in front of our names and have to answer to it. Who wouldn’t be scared? I know I am.”
“Really? You are?” Rachel had always been the calm and confident student, the one who’d earned smiles and praise from professors and attending physicians for her cool and collected demeanor. In stark contrast to Katy’s often ruffled one.
“Heck, yes, I am! I wish we’d ended up training at the same hospital. Maybe we’d both feel less freaked out if we had each other to lean on.”
“I know. But you’re happy to be back in your hometown, and I’m thrilled to be in San Diego. Plus I think it’s good that I moved in with Nick. He’s going through a hard time right now.”
“Still pretty depressed about his divorce, huh?”
“Actually, the divorce isn’t final yet. But, yeah, he’s very glum compared to his usual self.” Katy didn’t know what had gone wrong in her brother’s marriage, but it was sad that, after just a year, it hadn’t worked out. She wished she could blame his wife, Meredith, except Katy had always liked her a lot—and, as the saying went, it took two to tango. Whatever their problems, both of them had probably contributed to them.
“It’ll be good for him to have you there, I’m sure, though I hope nobody gossips about favoritism since you’re his sister.”
Favoritism? Katy hadn’t even thought about that, and hopefully no one else would either.
“So, tell me—”
Katy’s hospital call system buzzed and her belly tightened. “Gotta go, Rachel.” She punched the button and swallowed hard before she tried to talk. “Dr. Pappas.”
“Mrs. Patterson’s potassium is at three point zero, and I need to know what you want me to do.”
Okay, so that was low. She should order a potassium IV—probably four mil. No, wait. Maybe she should give it orally? A nervous laugh bubbled up in her throat as she wondered how the nurse would react if she prescribed a banana to bring up the patient’s potassium.
She swallowed. “You know, I’ll have to call you right back.”
“Are you serious?” the nurse said in an annoyed and condescending tone. “Fine. I’ll be waiting.”
“Okay.” Katy’s face burned as she turned off her phone and wiped her hands, which were somehow sweaty and icy cold at the same time, on her scrubs again. She fumbled in her pocket for her Scut Monkey book. Rachel made fun of her that she infinitely preferred using it over trying to look things up on the internet. But her little book had helped her more than once, and she was determined to get this right.
Katy gnawed her lip and studied the little book. Based on the patient’s age, weight, and kidney function, it looked like she was right. Four ml potassium to drink would be the safest, most effective approach. Okay, good. As she tried to call the nurse back she dropped her phone on the hard floor, sending the plastic cover soaring across the room.
She groaned as she grabbed up the phone, relieved to see it was still working. Klutzy Katy. Why had she been plagued with some pitiful clumsiness gene, and why did it get worse when she was nervous? Graceful under fire she was not.
She called the nurses’ station, surprised that a different nurse answered to take the oral potassium order. How many staff worked in this hospital? The number must be mind-boggling.
Right, time to get to rounds!
The patient card on the top of her pile read “Angela Roberts, Room 1073.” She went to knock on the door, pausing to inhale a deep breath. This was it! Seeing her very first patient in person as a real doctor! Yes, she’d inherited all of them from the resident who’d already seen them, but still. The thought was nerve-racking but thrilling, too, and a big, spontaneous smile came on her face.
“Hello, Mrs. Roberts. I’m Dr. Pappas, your intern. How are you feeling?”
“I’m all right, dear. Wishing they could figure out my spells so I can get the gall-bladder surgery over with.”
“We’re working hard to figure that out.” She warmed her stethoscope against her palm before examining the woman. “We’re in the process of ruling out things like seizures or transient ischemic attacks, which are little mini-strokes.”
“Strokes? I’m sure I would know if I’d had a stroke, dear.”
“TIAs are so tiny you might not notice.” Katy smiled, her chest a little buoyant as she thought about this puzzle they were solving.
“Well,” Mrs. Roberts said, waving her hand, “I trust Dr. Armstrong to know what he’s doing. Whatever he figures out is right, I’m sure. He’s a lovely man.”
Katy felt her smile slip and she forced it back up, at the same time avoiding rolling her eyes. “No doubt Dr. Armstrong is an excellent surgeon.”
And excellent at other things, too. Like giving fake excuses for not being with someone—breaking hearts in the process—then turning around and doing exactly that with someone else. Like having inappropriate hospital affairs that got other people fired. Fooling everyone who used to think he was wonderful in every way.
The old embarrassment and anger filled her chest again when she thought of how many years she’d hero-worshipped the man who didn’t deserve it.
“And handsome! So good looking, like a doctor on TV. I’m sure a young thing like you can hardly resist a handsome surgeon like Dr. Armstrong.”
“He’s my superior here at the hospital, Mrs. Roberts.” Long ago, she’d agreed. She’d thought everything about him gorgeous—his football-player physique, his warm amber eyes, his thick dark hair. Funny and smart, with a teasing grin that was irresistible.
But no more. A man had to be beautiful on the inside as well as the outside to appeal to her. Not that she appealed to him anyway, which he’d made abundantly clear.
“I’m feeling a little tired.” The woman snuggled down into her bed as Katy continued her examination. “Can you come back later?”
“I’m almost done for now, Mrs. Roberts. May I pull your sheet down a little? I just want to take a listen to your belly.”
Katy glanced up when she didn’t respond and was startled to see that her head had lolled to one side of the pillow, her mouth slack and her eyes closed. Had she fallen asleep, just like that?
“Mrs. Roberts?” Katy’s heart sped up and she spoke louder, shaking the woman’s shoulder. “Mrs. Roberts?”
The monitor the patient was hooked up to began to screech and Katy looked at the screen. Her oxygen level was dangerously low, but there was no change in her heart rate. That couldn’t be right, could it? Quickly, she rubbed her knuckles against Mrs. Roberts’s sternum.
Nothing. No response. Katy put shaky fingers against the woman’s carotid artery. Her pulse was so slow and faint Katy knew this was beyond serious. Heart pounding in her ears now, she leaped up and smacked the red code button on the wall then ran back to the bedside.
“Okay, Katy, you’ve got this,” she said out loud to herself as her mind spun through the advanced cardiac life support protocol she’d finished during orientation just yesterday. “It’s as easy as ABC, right? Airway, breathing, circulation.”
Her own breath seriously short and choppy, she shoved the pillows from the bed to get Mrs. Roberts lying flat and lifted her chin to open her airway. The woman’s chest still barely moved.
Damn it! Katy knew she had to get a bag valve mask on her immediately, then noticed the EKG wires had been disconnected, probably when she’d gone to the bathroom. Stay calm here, you know what to do, she reminded herself, sucking in a deep breath to keep from fainting along with Mrs. Roberts.
Fumbling with the equipment, she managed to stay focused as two nurses ran into the room. “We need to get her back on the monitor. I need to bag her. Can you get me a bag valve mask? And another IV.” She could practically smell their alarm and forced down her own. Do not panic, Katy. This woman’s life could depend on you.
