Reed nodded as if she’d expected Terri to decline.

  “Can I let you know?”

  “I should make you tell Carly that.”

  Terri sighed. “You know how crazy work is right now.”

  “I know. And I also know you can’t be at work every day. It’s not good for you.” Reed glanced at the flowers. “Were those delivered? It’s a wonder they got past the front desk.”

  Terri didn’t say she knew whoever had brought them had snuck them in. A delivery person wouldn’t have access to the sixth floor in the first place. “What can I bring?”

  “To the barbeque?”

  “Don’t act so surprised. Yes, to the barbeque.” Terri stuck the kidney picture to her file cabinet. “It’s been too long since I’ve seen Carly and Bryn. I miss your kids.”

  Reed’s smile stretched across her face. “They’re gonna be so happy. Maybe you can come over early and help chop stuff? Oh, if you have an extra stethoscope, bring that. Not your favorite one. The girls made up a new variation on the telephone game. It’s hilarious.”

  “I can’t wait.” Now that she’d made the decision she already was looking forward to it. Reed was right. She shouldn’t be at work every day. She could take a Sunday off.

  Reed closed the door on her way out and Terri leaned back in her seat. She eyed the flowers again. What was Sam thinking giving her flowers? Samuels, not Sam, she reminded herself. She’d been censoring herself since the ballroom dance class but now that they were working together, she couldn’t allow any slips.

  It was impossible to deny the attraction she felt to Sam. She noticed her as soon as she walked into a room. The scent of Sam’s cologne wasn’t strong, but it was distinctly her, with a hint of leather and vanilla. And something earthy that Terri couldn’t put her finger on. Whatever it was, Sam smelled delicious and had caught Terri off-guard more than once. She also managed to look sexy every damn day. Even at the end of a long shift. Her messy haircut only got more disheveled, her eyes a little heavy-lidded, and her scrubs wrinkled. For better or worse, that only made Terri think of what she’d look like after a night together.

  But so far Sam had done nothing to make her worry about the chemistry between them. She conducted herself like all the other residents—always respectful and carefully distant. And she couldn’t deny that Sam was one of the best residents she’d come across in years.

  Being smart got a resident points but with Sam that was only the beginning. She instinctively knew how to talk to patients, quickly winning over their trust, and she always did her homework on her cases. Even in stressful situations, she remained calm. And not once had Terri heard her complain about putting in the hours. She charmed the staff, including some of the tougher nurses, and the other residents clearly liked her.

  Dammit, why had she brought flowers?

  Terri brushed her fingertip along the silky smooth edge of a calla lily. She could pretend she hadn’t gotten the flowers or she could casually say thank you. Maybe Sam would get the hint without a big conversation about it? There was a slim chance the flowers had come from someone else and Sam had only delivered them to her door, but Terri couldn’t think of who.

  A knock sounded and Terri felt the heat rise to her cheeks. Would Sam drop by uninvited? “Come in.”

  David Weiss smiled over his coffee cup. “Morning, Terri. I was on my way to the break room for a donut, but I saw Reed pop out of your office and thought I’d bother you as well.”

  “It’s not a bother at all.” Terri stood up. As head of the hospital, Weiss was technically her boss. She couldn’t exactly tell him to buzz off even if her thoughts were completely distracted from work. She motioned to the chair opposite her desk, and Weiss sank heavily into it.

  “I don’t need the calories, but have you tried those vending machine donuts?”

  “Yes. They’re addictive.” Terri sat back down, wondering what Weiss could possibly want. She respected Weiss and had, more than once, sought out his advice. But he rarely came looking for her.

  After they’d exhausted the subject of the weather and updates on his grandchildren, Weiss cleared his throat and said, “So, how’s Elizabeth doing?”

  It took Terri a moment to realize Weiss was talking about Sam. Samuels. “She’s doing well. Why do you ask?”

  Sam had mentioned a connection with Weiss, but she couldn’t recall the details now. It certainly wasn’t standard for Weiss to ask about a resident. Weiss rubbed his gray-whiskered chin.

  “Maybe before I tell you, I should say Elizabeth received no special favors. In fact I didn’t know she’d matched here until all was said and done. That said, I was good friends with Elizabeth’s grandfather. Al and I were in med school together back in the age of the dinosaurs.”

  Weiss clasped his hands over his belly. “After we graduated, Al started a family practice down in San Jose, and well, you know what happened to me. Probably would have lost touch, but our wives were friends and soon we both had kids. Before you know it, the kids were grown and grandkids were on the way.

  “When I heard Elizabeth matched here, I gave her a call. Told her how much I admired her grandfather and how I missed him.” Weiss paused. “He passed away a few years before she started med school. I know he was a big reason she went into this…but she’s told me she’s had second thoughts along the way. She took several years off after college, and even after she started the residency, she said she wasn’t certain medicine was a fit.”

  “I’m surprised to hear that.” Blown away was more like it. “She said she wanted to do family practice. She seems perfect for it.”

  “I agree.” Weiss sighed. “And I thought she’d finally gotten past her hesitations. Then last week she came to talk to me. Said she didn’t want to disappoint anyone, but she wasn’t sure she should finish the residency. We had a long talk and I thought I’d changed her mind. But I got an email from her last night.”

  “She’s quitting?”

  “Effective January first.” Weiss cleared his throat. “Now I’m not asking you to make any allowances. You’ve got a well-earned reputation for expecting your residents to be top-notch. We both know how much they learn because of that. And I know she respects you. She said as much in the email. Which is why I was thinking maybe you could talk to her.”

  Respect? Well, Terri would take that over other things that Sam could have told Weiss. But it didn’t make sense that Sam could be considering leaving the residency. In fact, the thought of it made her sick. Had she been pushing too hard? Certainly she’d held Sam to a higher standard, but that was only because she was clearly a rock star.

  “But she already gave you notice.”

  “Yes…and I think someone could still change her mind.”

  Someone. But should it be her? She couldn’t exactly explain to Weiss the possible conflict of interest if she directly asked Sam to stay.

  “She keeps surprising me by how good she is.” Terri shook her head. “But I will say, she works longer hours than almost everyone else. And she never gives less than a hundred percent. It could be burnout.” It wasn’t unheard of. Residents worked longer hours than anyone else in the hospital; more often than not it was sheer exhaustion that broke them.

  Weiss nodded. “I suggested she take some time off. She wasn’t interested. Said she didn’t want to let anyone down.”

  “Quitting the residency would let more people down.”

  “And I’d be letting her grandfather down. Carol and I had her over to the house for dinner when she first started here. She’s a lovely young woman and would make an excellent physician. I know her grandfather’s practice is holding a position for her.”

  “If she leaves the residency, she throws away her whole career.” And for what reason?

  “So you’ll talk to her?”

  Terri had looked over her file. There was nothing to suggest Sam hadn’t earned her spot in a competitive residency through her own merit and she was nearly halfway done with perfect reviews so far. It didn’t make sense. Personal issues aside, she couldn’t live with herself if she didn’t at least try to convince Sam not to quit.

  “I’ll talk to her. I’m not saying I can convince her, but I’ll try.”

  “Maybe remind her there’s life after she finishes here.”

  Not that the pressure would be any less once she had her own practice, but at least the hours were more manageable. Terri had a clear memory only of the sheer exhaustion of her residency years. Yes, she clocked more hours in bed now, but the responsibilities had only grown.

  “And if there’s anything you need from me, schedule changes or whatever, let me know.” Weiss reached for his coffee and stood, signaling the end of their meeting. “Turns out I still want those sinful powdery donuts.”

  “Take the stairs to run off the sugar.”

  Weiss chuckled. “Thanks for the advice, doc.”

  * * *

  There was no opportunity to pull Sam aside after rounds. A patient in the ER had pulled a gun on a nurse and the whole hospital went on lockdown. Even after the cops had settled everything, excess adrenaline seemed to waft through the air. The staff teetered on edge, and Terri had to step in on more than one argument.

  That on top of a full caseload meant no one left early. Terri tried to keep her crew focused, but she wasn’t exactly on it herself. She couldn’t wrap her mind around why Sam wanted to quit. Sure, it wasn’t unheard of for residents to make that decision, but red flags were usually easy to see. She’d been paying plenty of attention and hadn’t noticed anything to suggest that Sam wasn’t happy. The more she tried to rationalize what might be going on, the more she wanted a chance to talk privately with Sam.

  It wasn’t until evening that she found Sam alone. Terri had sent everyone to grab food before evening rounds, and she spotted Sam in the cafeteria waiting in line to pay for a sandwich. As soon as she noticed Sam, she headed right toward her, practicing the lines she’d thought of earlier: We need to talk. Can you come to my office later?

  Terri was nearly to the sandwich line when she saw Megan Gresham walk up to Sam. Gresham was another resident and had been on Terri’s team up until a few weeks ago. Terri didn’t usually have a problem with residents getting friendly, but she felt a sting when Gresham not-so-subtly caressed the low of Sam’s back.

  Terri immediately turned toward the line for the grill. Suddenly she needed fries and a burger more than a sandwich. It was ridiculous to be jealous and yet the feeling was there all the same. Gresham was practically a kid. Maybe twenty-seven at most. If Megan Gresham was her type, no way was Sam into her. Not that her attraction mattered since nothing could happen. But still. She placed her order, deliberately avoiding any look back at the sandwich line, and then checked her phone while she waited.

  “Dr. Anderson?”

  Terri looked up from the screen. Probably Sam had seen her approach earlier and was wondering why she’d abruptly changed direction. “Yes?”

  “I dropped off some flowers at your office this morning, but I forgot all about the card.” She held out an envelope.

  Terri wondered at the fancy handwriting on the envelope. Swirly cursive wasn’t what she’d expected from Sam. “The flowers were beautiful. Are beautiful. McReynolds mentioned you’d left them, but I didn’t say anything because…well…I wasn’t exactly sure why you’d give me flowers.”

  “Oh, they aren’t from me. You remember the Cortez family? Roberto left yesterday. His parents were so happy they wanted to thank you in person, but by the time we got discharge papers ready, you’d already left for the night. When they said they had flowers for you, I didn’t have the heart to tell them flowers weren’t allowed. I snuck them into my locker last night and then slipped them up to your office this morning.”

  “That’s sweet of Roberto’s folks.” Terri knew her face was flushed. She felt like an idiot for thinking the flowers were from Sam. “But you deserved the flowers. You spent way more time with them than I did.”

  “I was happy with hugs. I’m not really a flower person.” Sam scrunched up her face.

  If Sam was going to let her off the hook about thinking the flowers were from her, she had to roll with it. “You know, taking flowers from a patient’s family wouldn’t mean you lose your butch card.”

  “I think that depends on who you ask.” Sam smiled.

  Since Sam had joined her team, Terri had successfully guarded against any interactions that might be perceived as flirtatious. She knew she was walking a fine line now, but the whole situation was already weird.

  “I should probably go get my dinner before they give it away,” Sam said, nodding at the sandwich counter.

  “Enjoy your meal.” Terri thought of the conversation she’d had with Weiss and added, “Oh, can you stop by my office before you leave tonight?”

  “Uh, sure.” Sam paused. “Did I do something wrong?”

  Behind Terri, a cook called out: “Turkey burger and fries?”

  Terri glanced at the counter and then back at Sam. “That’s mine. You didn’t do anything wrong.”

  “You use that same tone with the interns when they screw something up.”

  Terri met Sam’s gaze. The stirring in her body reminded her she had to tread carefully. “We’ll talk about it.”

  Sam didn’t seem satisfied with Terri’s answer but said, “Okay, I’ll wait for you after rounds then. In your office?”

  When Sam restated it, the request sounded almost inappropriate. But Terri nodded, reminding herself that nothing inappropriate was going to happen. The fact that she was asking a resident up to her office for a private meeting might be an issue for her, but Weiss had asked for her help and she had an obligation to him.

  “If tonight’s a problem for you, we can set up a different time.”

  “No. Tonight’s fine. I’ll be there.”

  Terri didn’t let herself watch Sam return to the table where Megan Gresham was waiting. She picked up her food and made a beeline out of the cafeteria. Under most circumstances she didn’t have a problem with PDA. The fact that she didn’t want to see it now was proof that she cared if Sam had a girlfriend.

  Chapter Four

  Sam picked at her sandwich. Normally the cafeteria food tasted decent, but she had no appetite for it now. Instead of eating, she wanted to curl up in a ball and close her eyes.

  Sleep sounded so tempting. Lately every night she’d hit her mattress with her shoes still on, only to wake up in the same position with the alarm ringing. She couldn’t remember the last time she’d slept for more than five hours. But exhaustion had nothing to do with why she wanted the escape of sleep now. For once she longed to simply be tired.

  Weiss hadn’t replied to her. After she’d sent the email, she’d tried to push her decision out of her mind along with all the ramifications that came with it. Everything had hit her like a rock when the Cortez family had all hugged her. They were too generous with their praise. She wasn’t as good as they thought, but she stopped herself from saying that. Already the guilt was threatening to make her change her mind.

  And now Terri Anderson wanted to talk to her. Sam racked her mind for what she could have done wrong—or what else Terri could have heard. But she knew it had to be about the email. Weiss must have passed on the news.

  The question now was how much to tell Terri. Admittedly, there were parts of being a doctor that she liked. But her reasons for going to med school in the first place had been suspect at best, and she couldn’t follow through on a career that felt like a life sentence. Not now. Not after all the things she’d learned about her grandfather. She wasn’t ready to talk about that, however, and Terri didn’t need to know details. She’d keep it simple. Anyway, none of it would affect Terri. She’d committed to staying another four months and she’d be off Terri’s schedule in two weeks.

  “I heard Jerry finally had to do an enema. Got totally sprayed and then had a breakdown about it.” Megan popped a chip in her mouth and crunched. “He acts like an entitled toddler sometimes. I don’t know what Ellie sees in him.”

  Sam hadn’t told Megan about her decision. She hadn’t told anyone except Weiss. “It’s a little messed up that we joke about enemas over dinner. You know that, right?”

  Megan grinned. “We could talk about other things that involve lube.”

  “Do you ever not think about sex?”

  “Hmm. Let me think. No.” Megan held two curved potato chips together. “What does this look like to you?”

  “A duck bill?”

  “It’s a vulva. Can’t you see it?” Megan turned it to show off a different angle. “I figured you’d be all over that considering how much you like to eat out.”

  Sam pushed away the chips, shaking her head as Megan held them up closer. “You act like a sixteen-year-old boy sometimes.”

  “Lucky for you, I’m twenty-six. Otherwise you’d have a lot of explaining to do.” Megan crunched the chips. “Speaking of, I think you need to get laid more often.”

  “More often than every other night?” Sam reached over and snagged a chip off Megan’s plate. “Sex doesn’t fix everything.”

  “But have you ever had sex with someone and felt worse after?”

  “Yes.”

  Megan gave an exaggerated sigh. “I don’t know what’s up with you lately. You’ve been acting like someone took your dog to the pound.”

  “Which would suck—if I had a dog.” And since when was Megan perceptive? Maybe Sam hadn’t been pretending everything was fine quite as well as she’d thought. “I’m tired. That’s all.”

  “Well, I know where you could sleep. Wanna drop by tonight?”

  Sam shook her head. “I need sleep more than sex. I’ve finally reached that turning point.”

  “That may be the saddest thing I’ve heard all day. So this is what happens in your thirties, huh?”