Page 48 of Worth the Risk

“I know why you’re meeting with the board today. I know you want that director of residency job.”

I wasn’t expecting her to turn vicious, but I probably should have. When we were together, she always buried hurt feelings and lashed out.

“What’s your point?” I asked, but I already knew.

“If I walk out of here right now, I’m going straight to his office. What do you think will happen when he sees how much you’ve upset me?”

It was the last weapon in her arsenal, but it wasn’t going to work.

“If Dr. Hirschi lets personal matters get in the way of making business decisions, there’s really not much I can do about that. I would hope he’d have more integrity than that.”

Letting out a frustrated sound in the back of her throat, she marched to the door and pulled it open. “Good luck in your meeting,” she sneered.

I grinned. “I won’t need it.”

She left, slamming the door behind her, and I felt nothing but relief.

Chapter Nineteen: Zoey

The hospital was just as busy as it always was on a Monday. I hit the ground running, and it was a relief to be back to work. I enjoyed my vacation, but this place gave me purpose.

I got the report from the night shift nurse and jumped right into action, checking on patients, reviewing charts, and picking up lab reports. There was always plenty to do and before I knew it, two hours had passed.

When I checked the time, my stomach twisted. This was when Ford was supposed to be meeting with the board about his promotion.

Despite everything, I hoped he got it. He was a great doctor, and he deserved recognition for that.

Refocusing, I got back to work.

It was twenty minutes later when I walked past Ford’s office, only to stumble to a stop at what I saw inside.

The door was open, and Ford was inside, clearing his knickknacks off the bookshelf and into a box. I told myself to keep going, that it was none of my business. But I walked into the room instead.

He looked up as I entered, and a smile immediately spread across his face. “Hey there, Angel.”

I offered him a small grin in return and gestured to the box on his desk. “So, you’re packing up?”

He nodded as he placed the last item from the shelf into the box. “Yep. I’m done here.”

“So, I guess congratulations are in order.”

His brow furrowed. “What?”

“Well, you got the job, right? You’re packing up to move to a new office?”

The director of residency’s office was on the third floor. I hardly ever had reason to go up there, so I’d rarely see him at the hospital anymore.

“No, Zoey. I turned it down.”

I frowned, moving further into the room. “What do you mean?”

“They offered the job, but I didn’t take it. I quit.”

My jaw dropped. “W-What?” Why would you do that?”

“Several reasons.” He came around from behind his desk and stood in front of me. “I went into the meeting with every intention of taking the job. But as soon as they said it was mine, I realized that I didn’t want it anymore.”

“But it was so important to you.”