It Happened in Vegas

The ER was quiet for the moment, though she was sure that could change on a moment’s notice, like so many trauma departments.

She was eager to get this walk-through over and done with so she could throw on some scrubs, a yellow isolation gown and get her hands dirty. Figuratively, of course.

Until then, she had to play nice with the chief of surgery.

“Come, I’ll introduce you to the staff on duty before we head back upstairs to finish your paperwork.” Dr. Ramsgate motioned to the charge desk, where a surgeon stood with his back to them. Jennifer’s brow furrowed, because the surgeon leaning over the desk charting tugged at the foggy corners of her mind.

There was something familiar about his stance.

“Dr. Rousseau, this is Dr. Mills, the new head of trauma.”

The surgeon standing at the desk turned to greet her and when she came face to face with him, the foggy memory that had been eluding her came rushing back, like a tsunami of the senses. It was an overload in her brain, the way it had happened.

Lake Tahoe, a brilliant moon, starry sky and a whispered request brushing against her ear that still made her body zing with anticipation even years later.

“A kiss, in the moonlight.”

It had been three years and she wondered if he remembered her. He’d changed and so had she. His buzz cut had grown out, but his ebony hair was trimmed and well kept. There was stubble on his face, but it suited him. Even more than the clean-shaven face.

And a scar ran down his left cheek and she couldn’t help but wonder if it came from his time overseas. There was no wedding ring on his finger, but that didn’t mean anything. He might’ve come from surgery and taken it off.

His hazel eyes widened for just a moment, then he held out his hand. “It’s a pleasure to meet you, Dr. Mills.”

“The pleasure is all mine, Dr. Rousseau.”

Dr. Ramsgate nodded, pleased. “Well, we’ll let you get back to work, Dr. Rousseau. I have much more to show you, Dr. Mills.”

Jennifer found it harder to breathe, her pulse was thundering in her ears like an out-of-control high-speed train and it was like she was going to derail right here in the emergency room.

Dr. Rousseau nodded, but didn’t tear his gaze from hers until Dr. Ramsgate stepped between them, breaking the connection. If there even was one. Maybe she was losing her mind a bit.

What had happened between them had only been a fleeting moment.

“Dr. Mills, are you ready? I’d like to introduce you to some of the other staff members you’ll be in charge of.” Confusion was etched across Dr. Ramsgate’s face at her absentmindedness.

“Yes, of course.” She fell into step beside Dr. Ramsgate, though not without stealing a quick look over her shoulder at the charge desk, but Dr. Rousseau had disappeared; evaporated like he’d been nothing more than a figment of her imagination.

Only he wasn’t.

He wasn’t a foggy piece of a memory. One that she only allowed herself to think of from time to time. The one perfect romantic moment she’d had in her life. That soldier hadn’t left her standing at an altar, hadn’t stolen her work, and the kiss he’d given her still made her blood heat. Even after all this time.

This was going to be bad.

She had no inclination to allow her heart to open again, especially to another surgeon.

Jennifer knew she’d have to avoid Dr. Nick Rousseau and that wasn’t going to be an easy thing. Especially now she was in charge of his department.

She was in serious trouble.

Nick put the chart back in the filing cabinet. He’d moved away from the charge desk when Dr. Ramsgate had stepped between them, breaking the connection between him and Jennifer. It had been the escape he’d needed.

He wasn’t sure if Jennifer remembered him, from the look on her face. Maybe he just looked familiar to her, someone she couldn’t place. Which was fine. It was good she didn’t remember him, but he certainly remembered her.

There was no way he could forget that night.

Not when it was burned into his brain.

Not when every time he’d closed his eyes for the last three years he’d been able to feel the silky softness of her skin under his fingertips, inhale the fruity scent of her hair and taste the sweetness of her lips.

Though that’s all that had happened.

Just a kiss.

Well, several kisses, but it had been all he’d needed to carry him through his long tour of duty. When he’d been working at the front line, patching up soldiers, saving lives and, yes, even when one thoughtless act of bravery had cost his own brother dearly.

Nick clenched his fist and shook those thoughts away.

No, he wouldn’t think about Marc and he wouldn’t think about his brother hating him right now, because he couldn’t let those emotions out to air. When he thought of that moment, he hated himself. He’d let his anger get the better of him.

There was already talk circulating around the hospital about him, about his rages and about how he’d put his fist through a window once.

He was doing better. Or he thought he was.

Maybe it was seeing her again—whatever it was, it shook him. He’d been surprised to learn she was a surgeon.

That night they’d spent on the beach, talking to each other, she’d never told him that she was a physician, in particular a trauma surgeon.

Then again, he’d never opened up about why he was going overseas on his tour of duty. He hadn’t told her that he was an army medic.

She’d changed, but not so much that he hadn’t recognized her. The long blond hair was gone. She sported a pixie cut, which still suited her. It gave him a better view of her long, slender neck and he knew that if he kissed that spot under her ear she sighed with pleasure.

Don’t think about that.

Nick stifled a groan and left the charting area and headed toward the doctors’ lounge to get a cup of coffee.

He didn’t have time to date and had no interest in it.

After all, he was too irresponsible for any kind of settled life.

At least, that’s what Marc had always said. And, frankly, Nick didn’t deserve to be happy. Solitude was his penance for what he’d done.

After the accident that had paralyzed his brother and left him unscathed, he’d finished his tour of duty with an honorable discharge. Though there was nothing honorable in his mind.

If he hadn’t tried to run out when the medic unit had been under fire to save his buddy, Marc never would’ve followed him.

And though he’d saved his friend and was deemed a hero, the IED had exploded, paralyzing Marc, leaving Nick without a brother.

Not that Marc had died, but he’d cut Nick out of his life. It was like Marc was dead. Nick was definitely dead to Marc.

He was a ghost.

So Nick had left him alone, like Marc wanted. He hadn’t returned home to Chicago. He’d settled in Nevada. In the place he’d last remembered being happy. With the vast, open desert plains and the mountains and foothills to the north, a man could get lost.

And he was lost. His parents didn’t speak with him and neither did his sister. Marc needed them more anyway.

Here in Las Vegas, a man could be forgotten and maybe he’d be able to shake the ghosts of his past.

He just hadn’t expected he’d run into one of them.

Jennifer had never told him she was a surgeon and he’d thought she was in Carson City, which was on the other side of the state, six hours away.

Then her name rang more bells.

Jennifer Mills.

She’d been at that state dinner thrown by Senator Mills. Was she his daughter? The one who’d been jilted? He didn’t know much about it because he didn’t really care about gossip columns. Heck, he didn’t even have cable. Jennifer had her own cross to bear and he wouldn’t pry.

Nick scrubbed his hand over his face. Dammit. She was off-limits for sure. Senator Mills had been the one to present him with his Medal of Honor for bravery. One that he kept hidden away under his socks because he didn’t deserve it; especially after what had happened to Marc.

He was no hero.

He was irresponsible. Always getting into scrapes, and Marc had always been there to bail him out.

Now Marc wasn’t there for him anymore.

Even though Nick’s wanderlust and sense of adventure still ate away at him, he didn’t feed the beast.

He just wanted to work. To be the best damn surgeon he could be. Maybe to show his brother he wasn’t reckless and irresponsible.

Jennifer’s appearance complicated things.

Nick poured himself a cup of coffee. The thought that she’d been involved with someone else made him feel a bit jealous.

Though he had no claim on her.

They’d only exchanged first names. They’d only shared a few passionate kisses under the stars.

He could work with her. Not that he had a choice, because in Las Vegas he was a nobody.

He wasn’t a hero, he wasn’t a soldier. He was just a face in the crowd and that’s the way he liked it.

Nick slouched down in a chair, leaning his head against the low back to close his eyes for just a moment.

The door slammed and he sat up. Jennifer had entered, and pink tinged her cheeks when she saw him sitting there. He liked the way she blushed; she’d blushed like that against the sand when he’d kissed her.

“Sorry, Dr. Rousseau. I hope I didn’t wake you.”

“I wasn’t asleep, Dr. Mills. I thought you were with Dr. Ramsgate?”

“He had a quick cardio consult and he told me I could get a cup of coffee in here.” She nervously brushed at her hair, tucking the short strands behind her delicate ear, like she’d done when they’d first met. Only there were no more long strands.

She moved over to the coffeemaker and poured herself a cup, then proceeded to stand there, staring at the bulletin board, which was full of ads of stuff for sale and take-out menus. Just junk. She fidgeted with her hair again.

Nick could sense she felt uncomfortable. The tension was thick in the air. He knew the feeling of a standoff. The calm before the storm.

“You can have a seat. I don’t bite and you should know that.”

Jennifer spun around and frowned. “You do remember me, you dingbat.”

Nick couldn’t help but chuckle. “Dingbat?”

“I don’t curse much. I try not to …”

“Dingbat isn’t cursing. Now, the F word, that’s cursing.”

She winced. “Why did you act like you hadn’t met me?”

Nick cocked an eyebrow. “You did the same thing!”

“I thought you were a soldier.” She sat down in the chair across from him.

“I was. I was an army medic.”

“You never told me that.” A smile played around her kissable lips.

“Ah, we’re going to play that game, eh? Well, you never exactly told me that you were a surgeon, or a senator’s daughter, for that matter.”

She blushed again. “Fine. You have me, but I would really appreciate it if you wouldn’t spread around the fact I’m a senator’s daughter.”

“Is your father crooked?” he teased.

Jennifer’s eyes narrowed. “Hardly. I just don’t want the notoriety to follow me. I’m a damn good trauma surgeon. I don’t want that to cloud my team’s judgment of me. I earned my reputation.”

Nick nodded. “Of course.”

“Good.” She bit her bottom lip. “Well, I’d better see if Dr. Ramsgate is through. It’s good to see you again, Dr. Rousseau. I’m glad no harm came to you overseas.”

Nick didn’t respond as she got up and left the doctors’ lounge.

“I’m glad no harm came to you overseas.”

Even though she’d truly meant it, it still stung.

He touched the scar on his face. The only injury he’d sustained when the IED had blown.

Could his brother say the same? His brother had been sent home a year early, had had to leave the service.

Nick got to finish out his tour of duty.

Nick could still walk, run and keep up with the fast pace of trauma.

Marc couldn’t.

So, no, he hadn’t come back home unharmed.

Nick crushed the empty coffee cup in his hand and tossed it into the trash. Crushing the cup in his hand sated his ire, but only just. There was only one thing he could do to control this—he was going to bury himself in his work.

He was going to forget that stolen moment on Lake Tahoe with Jennifer, because he didn’t deserve that kind of happiness.

Nick was going to be the best surgeon he could be and maybe then his brother would think better of him and nothing, not even a woman, was going to distract him.

He couldn’t let it.

CHAPTER TWO

JENNIFER WAS GLAD to get all the paperwork and HR stuff done in enough time to head down to the ER and actually practice some medicine. She hadn’t had a chance to do any in a month, what with trying to find another job and moving across the country after her ex-fiancé had published the research they’d shared and been given a promotion at her old hospital in Boston.

She’d planned to stick it out. After all, he’d jilted her the previous year. She’d held her own and had faced him every day because she’d refused to be bullied out of the career she’d built, but then, when she’d let her guard down, he’d betrayed her.

The hospital board had backed him. After all, he’d been a surgical rock star, a god in their eyes, and he’d bring in lots of money.

Jennifer had been a nobody, as far as they were concerned. Just an easy, replaceable trauma surgeon.

So she’d given them the proverbial finger and left, leaving their trauma department to be run by a moron.

All Saints Hospital in Las Vegas had offered her everything to come and run their trauma department. And they were building a state-of-the-art facility better than that at Boston Mercy. So that was a plus. Even though it felt like she was returning home with her tail between her legs, she wasn’t. No, she was going to make All Saints Hospital shine like a star, like a supernova.

She smiled to herself as she slipped on the disposable yellow isolation gown over her dark green scrubs. The dark green scrubs marked her as an attending, while the interns and residents ran around in orange.

Jennifer shuddered. It wasn’t even a nice orange. Maybe she could have a talk with the chief about changing the color scheme of scrubs at the hospital.

Why the heck are you thinking about color schemes at a time like this?

She sighed. She didn’t need to be having this weird internal dialogue with herself. Ever since David had jilted her, people hadn’t treated her the same. They’d pitied her and she’d retreated a bit into her head.

That was another reason she’d had to get away. Though she knew the people at All Saints knew about her past. She could see it in their eyes, but she didn’t care. She was going to hold her head high.

She was not some screwball, crazy, jilted-bride-type person. She was a surgeon. A fine one.

No. A damn good one.

A neutron star.

Okay, your obsession with astronomy really needs to stop now.

“Dr. Mills, the ambulance is seven minutes out!” a nurse shouted as Jennifer walked into the triage area.

“Thanks.” She headed outside to the tarmac to await the arrival of the ambulance, craning her head, listening for the distant wail. It was a quirk of hers to know exactly how far away an ambulance was by the siren. Only with All Saints being right near the strip, Jennifer couldn’t drown out the rest of the noise to hear anything.

“What do we have coming in?”

She spun around to see Dr. Rousseau in an isolation gown standing next to her.

Damn.

“I thought you were on a break, as in napping in the on-call room?”

“Disappointed that I’m not?”

Jennifer rolled her eyes. “Hardly, but I heard it’s something minor. Something coming from one of the casinos. It’s probably just a myocardial infarction. You know, too much excitement at the slots.”

Nick cocked an eyebrow. “Oh, I think it’s something a bit more than a minor myocardial infarction. Though I doubt you could call any myocardial infarction minor.”

“You know something. Don’t you?” she asked, scrutinizing him. “What do you know?”

“If you don’t know, I’m not going to tell you. I want to see the look of surprise on your face when the ambulance comes in.”

“That’s unprofessional.”

Nick grinned. “Hey, it’s Vegas and what happens in Vegas …”

“Stays in Vegas. I know. I’m from Nevada.” She crossed her arms and stared up at the sky. The buildings from the strip loomed from behind the back of a casino. You could see the top of the Eiffel Tower if you craned your head a certain way.

“It’s priceless. Trust me. It’s a great initiation.”

“I’m the head of trauma. We’re not supposed to be initiated or hazed.”

Nick shrugged. “Come on. It’s fun. Think of it as a morale booster.”

Jennifer was going to say a few more choice words when the ambulance came roaring up. The paramedic jumped out and opened the back door.

“Jack Palmer, a twelve-year-old male who has a three-inch laceration to his forehead.”

As the paramedics were bringing down the stretcher, Jennifer leaned over to Nick. “How is a three-inch lac supposed to be an initiation?”

Nick just grinned. “You’ll see.”

The little boy groaned as the stretcher was placed on the ground. His head was bandaged, there was blood coming through the gauze and the boy was hiccuping between groans. Jennifer stepped beside it and heard a tinny hum of “Happy Birthday.”

“What’s that noise?”

Jack hiccuped. “It’s my birthday card.”

“Where is it? I can hold your birthday card for you.” Jennifer looked on the gurney, while a paramedic was stifling a chuckle and Nick was grinning from ear to ear like a Cheshire cat.

“No, you can’t.” Jack hiccuped again.

“Why not?”

Jack shook his head and his face flushed. Jennifer looked at the female paramedic. “What’s going on?”

“The card is the reason he got the head injury. He swallowed the music player from the card.”

Jennifer’s eyes widened and she looked down at the patient. “What?”

Nick signed off on the patient and the paramedics mumbled “Good luck” before leaving. Jennifer and Nick wheeled the boy inside.

When they got Jack in a triage room with the door shut, he hiccuped again, playing that annoying tune. Jennifer turned away residents because it was just a simple head lac and as Jack was obviously embarrassed about his situation, she wanted to give him some privacy. For the time being, anyway. The news would get around the hospital and she would need to take a couple of residents in when she surgically removed it.

What happens in Vegas stays in Vegas.

“Jack, please tell me the paramedics are joking.”

“Would I be here if they were?” Jack winced again, hiccuped another verse of “Happy Birthday.” “Darn.”

“How did this happen?” she asked.

“It was a dare. I swallowed it, choked and hit my head on the table.”

“Order a CT scan. Stat,” Jennifer said to Nick.

“I’m on it,” Nick said, rushing out of the room.

“They’re all going to laugh at me now. Aren’t they?” Jack asked.

“No one is going to laugh at you, Jack. Not on my watch.” Though it was very hard not to laugh just a little, but she kept it together. She peeled off the gauze and began to inspect the head wound, getting it ready to clean and stitch.

Nick had the feeling he was being watched. Intently. He had a sixth sense about when he was being watched. Actually, when he was being studied.

“More suction, please,” Nick said to the intern who was working with him.

“Yes, Dr. Rousseau.”

It was in that brief moment when the intern was suctioning that Nick snuck a glance up at the gallery. There was only one person in the gallery, watching his routine appendectomy, and that was Jennifer.

Not Jennifer. Don’t call her by her first name. She’s your boss.

She was Dr. Mills.

Only he couldn’t think of her as Dr. Mills. She was Jennifer, and he watched her sitting in the gallery, watching his surgery, her arms crossed in a very serious pose.

So different from when they’d been on the beach at Lake Tahoe.

What he wouldn’t give to be back there again. Right now.

Then again, that was a dangerous thought.

One he didn’t particularly want to think about because he couldn’t indulge it, and he so wanted to indulge it, which was bad.

Nick tore his gaze away from her and focused back on the appendectomy. He tried to ignore the fact she was in the gallery. He’d known there was someone in there, watching him. Other surgeons and interns had watched him before. It didn’t faze him, but the moment he’d glanced up into that gallery and seen it was her, it was different.

And it irked him.

Why was she affecting him so much?

Maybe he shouldn’t have flirted with her, but he couldn’t help himself when he was around her. It was like he lost all control.

And control was important.

Control meant that he wouldn’t act before he thought.

That behavior in the past had been disastrous for him. He just had to look at Marc to remind himself of that daily.

“Don’t go out there. Are you crazy?”

“I have to, he’s my friend. I’ll be okay.” Nick ignored his brother’s arguments and ran out into the fray. Bullets whizzed past him, his brother screaming his name behind him.

Nick forced himself to focus as he pulled on the purse strings and inverted the stump into the cecum. He couldn’t think about that right now.

“Your recklessness cost you your brother.” Those had been the last words his father had said to him.

When he thought of that moment, he became angry. He lost control.

So he couldn’t let Jennifer into his head.

When he did, he lost the control that he fought so hard to maintain. He was a respected surgeon. He did his job well.

His anger wouldn’t get the better of him.

No one’s life was in danger and the window-smashing had been a one-off. He rolled his shoulders, tension creeping up his spine. He had to get out of there.

“Why don’t you close, Dr. Murphy?” Nick said to his resident as he stepped away from the patient.

Dr. Murphy handed his clamp to a nurse and moved around to finish off the appendectomy as Nick walked toward the scrub room, with one last look up at the gallery.

Jennifer wasn’t there anymore. She’d left.

He was going to have to try to avoid her. It was for the best.

Of course, he’d said that to himself before, and what had he done? He’d thrown her an interesting case, to watch her reaction. The patient had probably been one of the first of the interesting cases she’d see, working in the trauma department of All Saints Hospital.

He could’ve taken that case instead of surprising her with it.

Once he’d realized how much he’d been enjoying the banter with her, he’d left the room. Left her to deal with the patient on her own and found his own case.

An emergency appendectomy.

He pulled off his soiled gown, tossed it in the laundry bin and threw the gloves in the waste receptacle before heading to the sink.

“Thank you for that.”

Nick glanced over his shoulder and stepped on the bar under the sink, turning on the water so he could scrub.

“For what?” he asked, feigning innocence, though he was anything but. He knew exactly what she was talking about.

“You know very well.”

Nick shook the excess water into the sink and grabbed a towel. “I thought you deserved an interesting case on your first day.”

Jennifer raised an eyebrow. “Swallowing part of a birthday card isn’t very interesting.”

“How can you say that? He serenaded you with every hiccup.”