Mine at Last Read Free

himself wasn’t his style. He chose this. He could have refused the post, but doing that would have certainly closed the E.R. and eventually the medical center. He wasn’t about to let that happen. The community needed Key West Medical and he intended to keep it open as long as possible.
    This morning he needed to take it one step at a time, which meant focusing on the day ahead. His job entailed maintaining a clean working environment and to ensure high-quality patient care. He also reviewed scheduling of his primary-care directors; checked the supply room to make sure the stock was adequately shelved, organized and up-to-date. These were his responsibilities between meetings.
    He walked into the E.R. There was a confrontation going on between a man taking pictures and two security guards. It was getting out of hand. “What’s going on?” he asked.
    Everyone stopped and looked at him. The man with the camera pushed away from the security guard and stepped up to Dominik. “Dr. Coles, I have a few questions for you. Is it true that you knew Dr. Bowman was too old and making sometimes fatal medical mistakes? Were you covering for him, and if so, how long has this been going on?”
    “Sir, do you require medical attention?” Dominik asked.
    “What? No. I want to know...”
    “Then you have no business here. You’re gonna have to leave.”
    “Hey, you can’t throw me out. Haven’t you ever heard of freedom of the press? I’m within my rights to be here.”
    “Yes, as a matter of fact, I have heard of the First Amendment. Have you ever heard of trespassing, loitering and illegal entry? Have a nice day,” he said, nodding to the guards to continue. The man shouted the whole time. Dominik waited a few seconds as the man continued yelling and then angrily walked across the parking lot.
    When the guards returned, he asked if everything was okay. He got a quick report from the nurse at the check-in desk. Satisfied that everything was back to normal, he turned to go to his office. He stopped when he heard his name called.
    Dominik turned, recognizing the voice and, of course, the shortened pronunciation of his name. Few called him Dom, usually just his family. But there was also Lindy.
    “Dr. Dom, good morning.”
    He turned, smiling. “Good morning, Lindy. How are you today?”
    “Not so good. I’ve had this pain in my side all night. I came in a few hours ago, but they couldn’t find anything, so I thought I had better wait around here and see if it comes back. Also, there’s a woman over there writing about you.”
    “Excuse me?”
    “I think she’s a reporter,” she whispered.
    Dominik looked around the waiting room and instantly spotted a woman sitting alone in the back of the large open area. She was focused on writing something on her computer tab. He took a deep breath, then exhaled in exasperation. Her head was down, focused on what she was doing. She wore jeans, T-shirt and a cap pulled low to obscure her face. “Excuse me, Lindy.”
    He walked over to the woman. She didn’t look up. She was still too engrossed in what she was writing on the tablet. She hit one last key, then seemed startled to see him standing there in front of her. She looked up quickly and gasped as her jaw dropped.
    He half smiled. He certainly didn’t expect to find this stunning beauty beneath the ridiculous disguise. She had no makeup on and still her honey-toasted face shone with brilliant radiance. Her almond-shaped eyes and high cheekbones gave her a decidedly exotic look that always attracted him. Her hair was long and pulled back in a thick ponytail and shoved beneath a cap that had three letters imprinted on the front— CMG. But it was her mouth and full lips that drew his immediate attention. Open in the perfect O shape, instantly giving him all kinds of ideas. His body twitched and his pants pulled tight across the front. His physical attraction to her was strong, immediate and unprecedented.
    He’d known a few