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“Honey, you believe that there’s good in everybody,” Jerome said. “You didn’t know that ol’ boy was abusing drugs—no one really did until he started flying over the cuckoo’s nest. He had it so bad that he was stealing the patients’ medicine. I heard that he was switching out the meds for placebos.”
Camille met Jerome’s gaze. “Why do you listen to the rumor mill? Half of what you hear isn’t true. I don’t believe he was stealing his patients’ medicine.”
“Girl, you need to take off those rose-colored glasses.”
Camille chuckled. “Jerome, you are so wrong.” She clicked open her email in-box to check her email.
He shrugged. “Hey, it’s true. You know that I’m right.”
“Hey, I have an email from Mr. Wade,” she announced. “He wants to meet with me today at some point.”
Jerome surveyed her face. “You sound like this is a meeting you want to avoid. What’s up with that?”
Camille had forgotten how well Jerome knew her. She had been at odds with Maxwell Wade since he was retained to represent Hopewell General. His arrogance had come through his email correspondence, irritating her. She had to deal with the arrogance of some of the male doctors on a daily basis and having Maxwell Wade around was just going to add one more sexist alpha male to the mix.
“Camille …” Jerome prompted.
“It’s nothing,” she said. “He just rubbed me the wrong way in a couple of his emails.”
“If anybody can handle Maxwell Wade, it’s you, Camille.” Jerome checked his watch. “Well, it’s time for me to start my day. I’ll catch you later.”
“Stay out of trouble, Jerome.”
He laughed. “Not hardly. Especially if ‘Miss Thang’ has anything to do with it.”
“You’d better not let Kayla hear you call her that,” Camille warned. Kayla Tsang was the head nurse in Hopewell General’s emergency room. Everyone called her Miss Thang behind her back. She was the one who kept a list of everyone’s wrongs and reported them to the chief of staff.
Her words didn’t faze Jerome. “Miss Thang knows when to back off me. Call me if you want to have a late lunch together.”
“I will,” she promised.
Camille checked her calendar. She then sent a quick email to Maxwell to let him know that she had some time before eleven to meet with him.
He responded quickly to confirm that he would come to her office at 10:00 a.m.
“Great,” she whispered. Camille hoped the meeting would go smoothly. She had always been very easy to work with, but she was not about to let Maxwell order her around like some second-rate employee. Camille could tell by his emails that he was used to issuing orders. However, she would stand her ground if necessary.
Camille was able to respond to emails and send out a few of her own before her assistant announced, “Mr. Maxwell Wade is here to see you.”
“Please give me a few minutes before you send him in, Lori.” Camille wanted some time to mentally prepare for her meeting with the attorney.
Lori nodded and walked out of the office.
Five minutes later, she returned with Maxwell in tow.
Camille rose to her feet and walked around the desk. Maxwell Wade was as devilishly handsome as his photographs suggested, perhaps even more so in person.
She released a soft, cleansing breath and said, “It’s nice to finally meet you in person.”
Camille took in his powerful presence and drank in the sensuality of his physique. The man was fine. And those sexy warm brown eyes of his …they could make a woman melt just from the heat of his gaze.
She affected an ease she did not feel, but Camille was not about to give Maxwell any hint of how much he affected her.
Maxwell smiled as he shook her hand. “It is a pleasure to meet you, Camille.” Her natural beauty had taken him by surprise.
Smiling, Camille gestured toward one of the visitor chairs in her office and said, “Please have a seat.”
Maxwell sat down in the leather chair. He could not resist admiring her slender frame and soft curves. Although he preferred women with long hair, he liked the way her light brown, naturally wavy hair framed her face. Camille wore it in a cute short cut that complimented her café-au-lait skin color and green eyes.
Unaware that he was observing her, Camille strolled around her desk and sat down. “I didn’t expect you here so soon, Mr. Wade. I was told that you wouldn’t be settling in until Monday.”
“I decided to come in a few days earlier so I can be here for Thomas’s wedding reception,” he responded. “Please call me Maxwell.”
She had forgotten that Maxwell, Ray and Thomas had all been friends since college. Camille felt the heat of his gaze on her and shifted uncomfortably in her chair.
“I wanted to meet with you to discuss Dr. Matthews and his lawsuit,” Maxwell announced.
“Because of the hospital’s relationship with the Matthews family, we had hoped the matter with Terrence could be handled in a discreet manner,” she responded. “We never expected a lawsuit to come out of the situation.”
“No one ever expects a lawsuit, Camille,” Maxwell stated bluntly. “In this case, I would have been more surprised if Dr. Matthews had gone away quietly.”
His tone rubbed her the wrong way. “What I meant is that Terrence was caught red-handed with the drugs. How can he defend himself against the truth?”
“He can’t,” Maxwell responded. “An employee who wishes to sue for wrongful termination must either show that his employment contract expressly or implicitly stated that he would not be fired without cause or that the employer fired him for a reason that violates a fundamental policy expressed in Virginia’s statutes. He could also sue if the employer committed some type of tort, like defamation, invasion of privacy or intentional infliction of emotional distress. But Dr. Matthews can’t prove any of these things.”
“Yet he’s filed anyway,” Camille commented.
Maxwell smiled. “Well, this is where I come in. From this point forward, all queries will be directed to me. No one here at the hospital is to talk to the media or anybody else.”
“I’ll forward a couple emails from reporters to you,” Camille said.
“Great. I want you to know that I really appreciate your assistance, Camille.”
His words warmed her. “Thank you.”
“I will let you get back to work.” Maxwell rose to his feet and headed to the door.
Up until recently, he and Camille had only exchanged a couple of pointed emails. He never expected to meet such a beautiful woman with a sinful voice and cute laugh. In her office, Maxwell had to concentrate hard just to keep his mind on business. Camille had made his temperature rise more than a little.
When Maxwell left her office, Camille leaned back in her chair and released a short sigh.
Maxwell Wade was gorgeous up close. She had to agree with Isabelle and the others. He did look even better in person. When he was in her office, Camille could barely concentrate and struggled to keep from staring at him.
There was a soft knock on her door, taking her attention off her thoughts of Maxwell Wade.
It was Jaclyn Campbell, the intern who had blown the whistle on Dr. Terrence Matthews.
“I just saw Maxwell Wade leaving your office,” she said.
“Are you okay?” Camille inquired, noting that her friend looked upset about something.
“I still can’t believe that Terrence and his family are suing the hospital,” Jaclyn said as she sat down in one of the visitor chairs. “How can he claim he was wrongfully terminated?”
“I know how you feel,” Camille responded. “I can’t believe it either, Jaclyn.”
“I just wish we could find a way to lay this lawsuit to rest. I overheard a couple of patients discussing it.”
Camille shook her head. “I’ve been doing everything I can to keep the hospital out of the news, but Terrence and his parents calling that press conference didn’t help matters at all.”
“I feel terrible that it’s come to this,” Jaclyn murmured.
“It’s not your fault,” Camille stated. “Terrence did this. And his claim that his termination was extreme is certainly not true.”
“His family is one of the richest families in all of Virginia.”
“And the hospital’s most generous benefactor,” Camille interjected. “The fact remains that there was sufficient grounds to terminate Terrence, and with Maxwell Wade representing the hospital, I’m sure he’ll sort out the whole mess.”
Camille got up to walk Jaclyn out of her office.
“So what do you think of Maxwell Wade?” Jaclyn inquired.
Camille met her friend’s gaze. “I think he’s arrogant, but maybe this is why he’s so good at his job.”
“He’s nice-looking, don’t you think?”
“Jaclyn, why are you asking me about him? The one you should be talking to is your former roommate. She’s already put her claim on him.”
“He’s not Isabelle’s type,” Jaclyn responded.
“I’m pretty sure she’d disagree with you,” Camille stated. “Anyway, your focus should be on Dr. Lucien De Winter.”
Jaclyn smiled. “He has all of my attention, I assure you.”
Camille was happy that her friend had found a wonderful man who loved her as much as she loved him. As for herself, she enjoyed her life as a single woman, but she was willing to settle down if and when the right man came along.
Chapter 2
Dr. Thomas Bradshaw and his new wife, Lia, mingled with their guests during the reception held in their honor. The couple had eloped, surprising everyone, including Camille. Lia radiated happiness as her husband embraced her lovingly.
Camille moved around the room, pausing to chat with friends and coworkers.
She walked over to where Lucien and his fiancée Jaclyn stood. “How come you two aren’t out there dancing?”
“Every time we head out there, Lucien gets sidetracked by one of the board members,” Jaclyn stated.
Lucien embraced her. “I’m sorry, sweetheart. When the next song plays, I’m all yours.”
“What about you, Camille?” Jaclyn asked. “Why aren’t you out there dancing?”
“My imaginary date is shy,” she responded with a laugh.
They were soon joined by Tamara St. John and her fiancé, Victor Aguilar; both were interns at Hopewell General. Camille talked with them for a moment before moving on.
She caught sight of Maxwell standing with Ray a few feet away. Her breath caught in her throat at the sight of him in the black suit that looked as if it had been designed just for him. It was obvious why he had so many women fawning over him. Camille couldn’t deny that Maxwell was a very handsome man.
Her eyes traveled across the room to where Isabelle stood with a couple of her friends. Camille noted that she had been watching Maxwell along with half of the other women at the reception.
“Camille, why are you over here in this corner?” Jerome asked, approaching her. “Wallflower definitely does not look good on you.”
His words cut into her thoughts of Maxwell.
She laughed. “Jerome, I’m not trying to be a wallflower.”
He set his drink on a nearby table and grabbed her by the hand. “C’mon, let’s dance then.”
“What about your date?” Camille inquired. “You know that I don’t do drama.”
“She’ll be all right. I told Julie that you were like a little sister to me. Besides, she’s not the jealous type.”
Camille loved to dance, so as soon as she heard the music, her body began to sway.
She and Jerome danced to two songs before his date joined them. Camille stayed on the floor for one more song, and then said, “Okay, I need to get something to drink.”
“You’re leaving?” Jerome asked. “I was about to drop it like it’s hot.”
She laughed. “I’ll leave that to you and Julie.”
Camille made her way over to the bar.
Someone walked up behind her.
“Hello, Camille.”
She turned around. “Maxwell, it’s nice to see you,” she managed casually. Camille could hear her heart pounding loudly over the music. His nearness had an arousing effect on her. “I hope you’re having a good time.”
“I am,” he responded in a deep baritone voice.
A new and unexpected warmth surged through her as he looked at her. The richness of his tone made Camille weak at the knees. She supported her weight by placing a hand on the edge of the bar.
She could feel Maxwell’s eyes still observing her. His gaze was intense and penetrating, almost as if he could see right through her. Camille chewed nervously on her bottom lip.
Jerome walked by and uttered, “Stop biting your lip.”
Embarrassed, Camille gave him a playful jab in the ribs. She prayed that Maxwell hadn’t heard him.
Her prayer went unanswered when Maxwell smiled at her, and then asked, “Do I make you nervous, Camille?”
“No,” she responded quickly. “Why would you think that?”
