didn’t give her one? What if, because of her stupid involvement with Landon, they didn’t give her one? Or worse, gave her a poor one. What if . . .
“Now you’re frowning. You’d rather I took you to my house?” he asked her. “I can, but there’s no one out there and I won’t leave you anywhere to fend for yourself.” She saw his fingers flex and fist on the steering wheel. His voice was lower, deeper, when he said, “Never again.”
She sighed. “Actually, I was thinking about how I need a job and I don’t know if the hospital will give me a reference, let alone a good one and—”
“They’ll be sending glowing references wherever you need them to,” he said on a growl.
She tilted her head and watched him as he weaved in and out of traffic, as if he had no worry about them getting wherever he wanted them to go.
“Jock, Landon’s a respected surgeon at Sinai, I’m just a nurse. I doubt I’ll get glowing recommendations.”
They were on the outskirts of D.C. and had to stop at a red light.
“You’ll have a gushing reference from the chief of staff, and your boss in the ER.”
She shifted so she could turn to face him a bit. “What did you do?”
He didn’t say a word.
“Jock, where did you go this morning after we talked to the police?”
He sighed. “I took care of something.”
“That something would be what?”
He tapped his fingers on the wheel, easing up as the traffic started to move. “I met with the chief of staff and the board this morning and impressed upon them that they might need a new wing, program, or equipment more than keeping Dr. Dick on their payroll.”
“Jock.”
“And that they should better screen their new hires or at least pay attention to highly negative rumors when they arise and are backed up by other staff members.”
• • •
He might as well tell her all. “They saw around to my way of thinking rather quickly. Even offered to keep you on as long as you preferred to work there, references to wherever you’d like to go. I might have mentioned someone sabotaging Johns Hopkins.” He took another deep breath. “So technically, you can still work there, though they want you to wait until all this blows over.” He shrugged. “As I agreed on that point, I didn’t argue. Basically, you’ll be safe for now, have your job back once the bastard is behind bars, or references if you choose to move.”
Now he looked at her.
She stared at him, a slight frown on her brow. “You did what?”
He ran his tongue around his teeth and stopped at the next light. “Kaitie, what he did was wrong on every level. I just made certain he doesn’t get to enjoy things as he is accustomed to.” He wondered if he should mention he’d also found out the bastard owed quite a bit on his house. Jock bought the note from the bank, having gone to school with the bank’s CEO. Matter of a few phone calls.
Jock owned the bastard’s house, made certain he wouldn’t work in any Baltimore hospital, and he was just getting started.
“Jock,” she said softly.
He looked back at her. “I know, it was overstepping. I know that. But I had to do something. Some damned thing to pay the bastard back for what he did to you. For the way he made you run away from things you loved, from a life you enjoyed.”
“But I ran to the lake. Found you,” she tried.
He reached over and cupped her jaw. “You did and that’s a bright point, but the fact is, you ran there because you were scared. Of a man. Who put his hands on you. A man whom you had to defend yourself against.” A horn blared behind him. He turned onto the street their hotel was on. “Be glad I didn’t find him. Otherwise, I’d have had to get a friend or my brother to drive you down here. I don’t know that I could talk my way out of a murder rap if I’d seen him.”
He heard her sigh, saw her cross her arms over her chest as they crossed the Potomac.
“I guess I should be thankful you only want to
“Now you’re frowning. You’d rather I took you to my house?” he asked her. “I can, but there’s no one out there and I won’t leave you anywhere to fend for yourself.” She saw his fingers flex and fist on the steering wheel. His voice was lower, deeper, when he said, “Never again.”
She sighed. “Actually, I was thinking about how I need a job and I don’t know if the hospital will give me a reference, let alone a good one and—”
“They’ll be sending glowing references wherever you need them to,” he said on a growl.
She tilted her head and watched him as he weaved in and out of traffic, as if he had no worry about them getting wherever he wanted them to go.
“Jock, Landon’s a respected surgeon at Sinai, I’m just a nurse. I doubt I’ll get glowing recommendations.”
They were on the outskirts of D.C. and had to stop at a red light.
“You’ll have a gushing reference from the chief of staff, and your boss in the ER.”
She shifted so she could turn to face him a bit. “What did you do?”
He didn’t say a word.
“Jock, where did you go this morning after we talked to the police?”
He sighed. “I took care of something.”
“That something would be what?”
He tapped his fingers on the wheel, easing up as the traffic started to move. “I met with the chief of staff and the board this morning and impressed upon them that they might need a new wing, program, or equipment more than keeping Dr. Dick on their payroll.”
“Jock.”
“And that they should better screen their new hires or at least pay attention to highly negative rumors when they arise and are backed up by other staff members.”
• • •
He might as well tell her all. “They saw around to my way of thinking rather quickly. Even offered to keep you on as long as you preferred to work there, references to wherever you’d like to go. I might have mentioned someone sabotaging Johns Hopkins.” He took another deep breath. “So technically, you can still work there, though they want you to wait until all this blows over.” He shrugged. “As I agreed on that point, I didn’t argue. Basically, you’ll be safe for now, have your job back once the bastard is behind bars, or references if you choose to move.”
Now he looked at her.
She stared at him, a slight frown on her brow. “You did what?”
He ran his tongue around his teeth and stopped at the next light. “Kaitie, what he did was wrong on every level. I just made certain he doesn’t get to enjoy things as he is accustomed to.” He wondered if he should mention he’d also found out the bastard owed quite a bit on his house. Jock bought the note from the bank, having gone to school with the bank’s CEO. Matter of a few phone calls.
Jock owned the bastard’s house, made certain he wouldn’t work in any Baltimore hospital, and he was just getting started.
“Jock,” she said softly.
He looked back at her. “I know, it was overstepping. I know that. But I had to do something. Some damned thing to pay the bastard back for what he did to you. For the way he made you run away from things you loved, from a life you enjoyed.”
“But I ran to the lake. Found you,” she tried.
He reached over and cupped her jaw. “You did and that’s a bright point, but the fact is, you ran there because you were scared. Of a man. Who put his hands on you. A man whom you had to defend yourself against.” A horn blared behind him. He turned onto the street their hotel was on. “Be glad I didn’t find him. Otherwise, I’d have had to get a friend or my brother to drive you down here. I don’t know that I could talk my way out of a murder rap if I’d seen him.”
He heard her sigh, saw her cross her arms over her chest as they crossed the Potomac.
“I guess I should be thankful you only want to
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