Lured In (Dark Paradise, #1) Read Free Page B

restructuring.”
    “Restructuring?” Both Lauren and Richard exclaimed together.
    “Yes, restructuring. I—”
    “Sweetie, sit down and let it go. Your dad, stepdad, Uncle Ernie, and sister were managing the practice very well before you joined. Not everything can be as perfect as you have it here,” my mom said sarcastically, waving her hands in the air at my penthouse. She continued her sarcasm. “This is the first job you ever had, so you’re experiencing what it’s like to actually work and just comparing everyday work life to the easy and stress-free life Gabe spoiled you with all these years.”
    Before I could address my mom, my dad got up. “Darling, the practice is doing well,” he said. “Sure, some of the staff don’t take their work seriously enough, and I agree that this is an issue, but they’re getting the job done.”
    “And that is my point, Dad. You allow and think substandard is fine when it’s not. Inferior is inferior, and until you stop camouflaging it with getting the job done, you and the practice will always have negative public reviews.”
    “What negative public reviews are you talking about?” my stepdad asked. “This is the first I ever heard of any.”
    Lauren opened her big mouth yet again to make another smart-assed comment. “Dad, you know the girl blows more smoke than her favorite idol, Willie Nelson. She doesn’t have anything to support her claim of these so-called negative public reviews.”
    “Huh! Willie and I aren’t the only ones blowing a lot of smoke these days. Are we, Lauren?” I arched my brow in her direction.
    I looked at Lauren, frustrated as hell. I grabbed my Dell XPS, logged in, and went online to vitals.com , a website that provided public information about physicians and their practices. It provided the public with patient reviews, both positive and negative. I connected an HDMI cord to the back of the laptop to display the patient reviews on the TV mounted on the wall.
    “Is this enough smoke for you, Lauren?” I asked with just as much attitude as she had given me since starting the discussion. While most of the reviews were bad, only a handful were actually positive. Some of the negative reviews mentioned our abnormally long wait time, inconsistency in patient care from one staff member to the other, unprofessionalism from most of our staff, the lack in following up with the patients following a procedure, and how they honestly felt that they were not getting the best possible care.
    My stepdad, understandably upset, asked, “How the hell did this go unnoticed? How many damn patients are we losing behind these negative reviews?”
    “A lot. We all know very well that this affects the cash flow, which equals less revenue,” I said, looking at everyone’s faces. “I know how we can increase revenue tremendously and undo our negative image.”
    “You lack the degree and experience. I doubt—”
    “Let her talk already, Lauren,” Melissa said. She was my other stepsister from my dad’s marriage to Elizabeth. “Go ahead, Abi. Tell Dad and Richard how you can help revitalize the practice.”
    “I’m far from being inadequate to discuss Capitol Health’s dire need just because I don’t hold an MBA or have the years of experience that you have. You’re proof enough that I don’t need either,” I said, looking directly at Lauren, still fuming at her remarks. “No, I haven’t been with the practice since the doors opened more than four years ago, but I do have a lot to offer, despite this being my ‘first job’ or so you think.” I looked at my mother, referencing her sarcastic comment. “I don’t know why my opinion—that of someone who knows very little about the company—upsets you when I give a little constructive criticism. Now if I may, I would like to introduce Capitol Health’s clean bill of health—the new business plan.”
    I exited vitals.com with its negative reviews and said, “Those reviews are unacceptable