through the sliding glass doors, breathing in the pungent fumes of ammonia-based cleaning products, listening to the constant buzz of conversation, never failed to calm him.
Not that he’d be dumb enough to go near patients in his condition, but hiding in his office had sufficed. He always had a stack of paperwork waiting for him, so he’d stared at the computer screen for hours, reading through reports and journals until his eyes blurred from the blue light. He hadn’t absorbed a lot of it, but by the time dawn broke he’d made it through the night without picking up the phone or hightailing it back to Harper’s like he wanted to.
He had to get past this. Move on. He’d hurt her badly, and he had to live with that. Whatever that entailed: feeling like crap, constantly clamping down on great memories, taking extra shifts, submerging himself in work.
But first, he had to see Izzy.
However, as he cracked open his door just after seven, Arun stood on the other side, his fist raised to knock.
“First day back on the job, boss, so I’m checking in.”
“You know what to do, Arun. You don’t need to see me.”
His retort came out harsher than intended, and his friend reared back, hands raised.
“Hey, what’s biting your ass? Thought I’d pop in and see if you wanted to grab a coffee.”
“Sorry, haven’t slept.”
Manny swiped a hand over his face; like that would erase his fatigue.
“Were you called in for an emergency last night? Because you weren’t rostered on, and no man should have to deal with gore the night of his engagement party.”
Manny’s declaration to Harper about how much he hated lying rang in his ears but he had to do it, because no way in hell did he want to stand here and discuss his broken engagement with Arun before he’d had a chance to talk with Izzy.
“No emergency, but I’m sick of being swamped up to here.” He made a chopping motion at his neck. “Harper and I were both exhausted after the party, but I need to get ahead on my workload so I dropped her home and came here.”
Arun stared at him like he’d lost his mind. “Let me get this straight. You’ve finally taken your head out of your ass and fallen in love with a spectacular woman, you celebrate your uncharacteristic proposal to her, you’re tired, yet you choose to abandon her in favor of work?” Arun shook his head. “Man, you are such a dumbass.”
“Fuck off, Arun.”
Once again, harsher than intended, but he didn’t need one of his few friends reiterating how much of a dumbass he actually was.
“Man, you are shitty when you’re tired.” Arun backed away with exaggerated steps. “I’m off to start my shift now. You really need to get some sleep before Harper dumps your sorry ass.”
Too late for that, Manny thought, as he waited for Arun to traverse the long corridor in the direction of the ER before slipping out the side door for a confrontation with his grandmother.
66
Of all days Harper had to front up to a job and look professional, today wasn’t it. After her mom left last night, she’d taken a long, hot shower, had another two G&Ts, finished the rest of the Tim Tams, and fallen into bed without brushing her teeth. She’d slept fitfully, dozing and tossing, until her alarm went off at seven thirty.
Driving to an inner-city hospital in peak-hour traffic wasn’t fun either, but without the influx of referrals she’d expected from Nishi’s wedding and the Storr job, she needed to grab every scrap of work.
In all the excitement of the engagement, she’d forgotten to ask Manny if he’d had anything to do with her landing this job. What a joke. She’d initially been annoyed, wanting to stand on her own. She’d got her wish and then some.
At least the parking gods were on her side because she found a rare spot, fed the meter coins, grabbed her portfolio, and headed for the hospital, her steps faltering the closer she got. Crazy, because Manny didn’t work here and there was zero chance of running into him, but the sight of two guys in white coats holding takeout coffee cups and striding toward the same door she was made her heart palpitate.
She’d never seen Manny in a white coat, so her visceral reaction didn’t make any sense. And she sure as hell hoped she wouldn’t feel the same when she watched her favorite hospital dramas on TV. She