Chapter 30

30

She was looking at him differently now. It had only been a few days since the Hanans’ accident and Chad spending the night with her. But when he went looking for her now, she didn’t hide.

Not that he’d had much time to find her lately.

The ED had been hopping in those two days. Everyone was kept busy. But he’d checked the posted schedule.

Genny was about to clock out for the night at any minute. Chad had timed things so that he would be there to catch her before she could escape. All he wanted in the world was dinner alone with the woman he adored. He was going to make that happen tonight.

He just had to catch her first.

Chad was enjoying the chase.

He was a hunter at heart—his woman was his prey now.

Caine Alvaro caught him first, though. The man wanted to run a study on a new antibiotic by him, before Caine approved it for use in the pediatrics department. And it was a viable excuse for Chad to stay nearby.

Genny had two more patients to finish up with before she clocked out. He’d seen her from the other end of the hall.

His woman was near. He was going to catch her.

The sounds of a man’s yells cut into the conversation he was having with Caine. Both men paused. Chad turned, seeing familiar pink scrubs. He lost his train of thought immediately.

Plans for what he was going to do to her cut in to what he was saying, and he trailed off. He’d gotten to hold her two nights ago. That was too long ago for his liking.

Caine said his name. Chad turned back—his boss had an amused look on his face. “So that’s the way it is. She reminds me of my wife sometimes. I understand how distracting a woman like that can be.”

“I apologize. She’s finally starting to acknowledge that I’m not a total jackass. I’ve been a bit preoccupied tonight. I’m going to catch her before she leaves.”

“Going to do something about her?”

“As soon as she’ll let me. She’s…skittish, for some reason.”

The patient came running out of exam C, yelling. Chad turned back toward where he had last seen Genny instinctively.

Chad cursed, cutting Caine off and started running. The patient was bellowing at the top of his lungs. The guy was just as big, if not bigger than Chad himself. Chad wasn’t a small man.

The guy jerked around, a wild look on his face. He was obviously in an altered state, on something, or in the midst of a mental break.

The man had one focus now. Genny.

Genny had nowhere to go. She was trapped between the patient and the intake desk. Chad watched in horror as the man kicked out. Genny was trying to pull herself out of his range.

She couldn’t.

The guy’s kick connected. Chad could hear the sound it made. Chad just ran.

Genny went almost through the air. She crashed into the intake desk and slid to the tile floor.

People screamed.

Aubrey was already moving toward Genny—between Genny and the patient. Reaching to pull Genny out of the way. To get to Genny, to help.

But the man was in a rage, and he wasn’t about to stop.

The patient swung out. Aubrey didn’t get out of his way in time; his swing caught her in the chest. She stumbled, landing over Genny’s legs. Both women were down now. And trapped against the front of the desk.

With an enraged bull focused right on them.

Chad just kept going, aware of Caine right behind him.

He and Caine together reached the patient at about the same time, along with some of the other staff members who’d been close enough to help. Within seconds they had the man wrestled to the floor.

It didn’t feel fast enough.

It took everything Chad had not to shove his fist down the guy’s face when the scent of booze almost overwhelmed his senses. The guy wasn’t altered or having some sort of medical emergency—he was flat-out drunk.

“Deal with him before I do what I really want to right now!” Chad snarled at Caine.

Chad went to his knees next to Genny instead.

Hands were there to help Aubrey to her feet first. She pushed aside the hands. “I’m okay. Gen?”

Genny had her hands on her ribs. “The jerk kicked me.”

She was gasping and pale and afraid.

“Stay still, I’m going to get you to an empty exam room.” Chad lifted her as gently as he could. “You seem to draw trouble, Genesis Isabella Hiller. I almost think you need a keeper.”

Her arm slipped around his neck. “I seem to be having some seriously bad luck lately, Chad-wicked Leopold Fields.”

“No kidding. How badly did that jerk hurt you?”

“I think Greer kicks harder, honestly. It was the surprise. But I’ll probably feel it in the morning.” The gasping belied her words. The force behind that kick…fear for what damage they would find filled him.

She felt so damned fragile in his hands.

He carried her into the nearest exam bay and lowered her to the gurney. Not exactly standard procedure, but if Caine didn’t like it…he could kiss Chad’s ass.

Caine came in behind him, anger on his face. It turned to concern immediately when he looked at Genny on the exam table. “I’ll handle this, Chad.”

“What about that guy?” Chad asked as one of Genny’s little nurse friends Chloe came in—seconds in front of that damned Mandy Kirby. “Kirby, you’re not needed.”

He never had liked that woman, and she wasn’t taking responsibility for one minute of Genny’s care. He’d tell her that to her face, if needed, too.

“Guys, I’m okay. He just kicked me. I grew up with seven siblings—I’ve been kicked before.”

“None of them kicked you in the chest,” Chad had to point out.

“I’ve fought with my sisters, you know. Well, before Greer got bigger than me.”

“Like when she was six?”

“Ha-ha.” But she winced.

“You’re heading up to radiology,” Caine said, firmly. “I saw what happened, kid. You went airborne for a minute there.”

“I’ve always wanted to fly.” But she was holding her side, and gasping.

“Genny, humor us. You know the hospital attorney will insist on it, anyway,” Chad said. If she tried to get off that table one more time, he was going to strap her down himself.

She looked down where the bastard had connected. “He ripped my favorite top. Jerk.”

She would be okay, Chad knew that. They were in the damned hospital where she’d get immediate treatment. Still, he wanted to make sure.

Within fifteen minutes they had her on her way up to radiology. Another fifteen minutes after that—being injured on hospital premises got you moved up the list—and it was as they’d suspected.

Small fractures in two different ribs, and she’d have some nasty bruises in the morning. Tissue damage around her lung. She’d be hurting tonight, but it could have been a whole lot worse.

She was going to be just fine eventually.

Chad swung by the small hospital pharmacy, while she was with a few of the nurses. They were helping her change into some clean scrubs and just fussing over her a little. Giving her an update on Aubrey. Aubrey would have some bruises and be a bit sore, too, but she hadn’t taken the worst of it. Genny had. And her friends wanted to take care of her now.

Genny was extremely well-liked at BCGH.

He filled her prescription for a few days’ worth of pain pills and muscle relaxers. And was waiting by the door when Caine wheeled her out. Caine was fussing, too. The man liked to fuss over his people—even though Chad suspected Caine would never admit it.

Caine was a damned good chief of medicine—even if his father-in-law did own the hospital.

“My truck is parked by the side door, Caine,” Chad said. He shot her a look when she would have protested. “I’m going to take care of you tonight. From what I heard, your mother’s at the house right now watching Calvin. Gene was taking Chantal to dinner in Finley Creek tonight. Do you really want your mother to know you were hurt?”

He’d play whatever cards he had to. Genny’s mother was seriously obnoxious when one of her daughters was hurt.

“You are an evil, evil man, Chadwick Leopold.”

“When it comes to you, my thoughts are definitely not angelic. You’re just going to have to get used to that, sweetheart.”

Caine made a small choking sound behind them. Genny shot their boss a glare. “You behave. I suspect you’re just as much a leopard as he is.”

“I’ve been told I’m more of a dragon, actually. Here you go,” Caine said, wheeling her to the truck.

Chad just lifted her in and closed the door. He had her where he wanted her. But this had not been part of his plans.

“Take care of her, Fields. She’s one in a million.”

“I’ll do that.”

“I don’t think you’ll ever regret it,” Caine said, just as his wife called his name from the parking lot, all five of their kids right there with her.

That. That look in Caine’s eyes was exactly what Chad wanted for himself.

He was taking Genny home.

They’d figure out the rest later.