Page 15

Chapter Fifteen

Chelsea

"I trust you can attend a training session without supervision." Skinner appeared from his office the moment Atlas stepped out the door. "I have two more patients to see this afternoon." He looked weary, like he didn't want to bother with me.

I managed to keep myself from bristling in irritation. I'd completed my exams and passed everything. Graduation was just a formality at this point. As was receiving my degree to frame and hang on my wall.

"I can deal with whatever arises," I said with a confident nod.

"Arrogance won't get you far here," he remarked.

I blinked at him a couple of times. "Excuse me?" Now I was bristling. I forced myself to be calm, reminding myself how dangerous he really was.

"Your certainty that you're equipped to handle any injury or emergency that may take place during a rugby training session," he clarified. "When you have no true idea of the complexity of cases we'll be faced with."

"I have a reasonable idea," I said. Where did he get off being a dick? "I did my practical training here, and I've been following the code all my life." I stuck to a respectful tone, colleague to colleague, but wished I knew what Atlas was going to say about him. I should have insisted he tell us, regardless of the chance of being overheard.

Skinner gave me a look down his nose like I was saying I'd graduated to pencil, having previously only been allowed to write with crayons. Maybe he was right, I didn't have the experience he had, but I wasn't clueless either.

"I see," he said slowly. "Well, that makes all the difference."

What did he want me to say? Would he have preferred it if I said I wasn't ready, or was incompetent? Because I sure as hell wasn't going to say either of those things. I was mindful of Atlas' warning, but he seemed determined to make me feel like shit.

"I realise I'm new at this," I conceded, "but I am a fully qualified medical doctor. If an injury occurs, I'm confident I can manage it. If I can't, I'll be sure to ask for your assistance. Assuming you're not too busy to give it."

His eyes narrowed. "If you're going to be difficult, I might have to have a word with the GM about your employment."

Was he threatening me? If he thought I'd be intimidated, he was wrong. Even if it got me fired, I wasn't going to let him walk all over me.

"I'm not trying to be difficult," I said, aware how tight my voice was. "You're the one who called my credentials into question. Frankly, I find that unprofessional. I have a great deal of respect for Doctor Stuart, and for you and your experience." I was toeing a line here, but I wasn't going to roll over for him, or anyone.

"As you should," he said. "Between us, we have a great deal of it. I would have hoped to have more of it on the team." In other words, he would have chosen one of the other candidates for the position. One Bruce might have preferred.

"I guess you're one of those people who expect someone to have experience without being given a chance to do the job," I said dryly. Apparently my last fuck of the day was gone now. I made a note to stock a few extra for next time. Or not, because I didn't owe him anything.

"Experience is great, but it's not everything," I said. "That's why Doctor Stuart hired me. Dominic King agrees with him. They're both willing to give me a chance to prove myself." Let him think that by dropping King's name, maybe I was working with him too, outside of the team. He might back off a bit then.

A girl could hope.

"As am I," Skinner said. "I asked if you were capable of observing training, did I not?"

"You did," I agreed. "And I agreed I am." I glanced at my watch. "Which I'm going to be late for if I don't get going."

I had six or seven minutes to get downstairs and out onto the field. Coach Stanley might wait, not wanting the guys to train without a medic present, but I didn't want to put him in that position. Especially not when I barely started working here. Keeping him waiting would definitely not be a good look.

"Turning up for training late would be unprofessional," he said, as if he wasn't the one holding me up. "But better you turn up late with humility, than on time with an overly large ego."

I bit back an angry response and forced a couple of breaths in and out. "I don't have a large ego, Doctor Skinner. I have confidence in my abilities, that's all. And like I said, if I get stuck, I'll call you to help me."

"You did say that," he said. "Right before you accused me of indifference."

What was this guy's deal? Everything I said, he twisted around backward. If I suggested the sky was blue, he'd find a way to prove me wrong. Or try to make me feel bad about being right.

I quickly counted to ten in my head, trying to regain some semblance of calm before I lost my shit with him.

"I didn't mean to accuse you of anything," I said. "I know you care about the players. I know you're passionate about developing new methods to help them regain and maintain their fitness. I'm passionate about that too. I got angry and I spoke without thinking. I'll do my best to make sure that doesn't happen too often."

I wasn't going to promise it wouldn't happen ever again. If he kept pushing me like this, chances were it would.

"You have to be here long enough for it to happen again," he said.

Was he threatening me again?

"I plan on being here for a long time," I said firmly. "Maybe even longer than you."

I was tempted to suggest he'd retire long before I even thought about working somewhere else, but he'd most likely take offence at the implied dig at his age. It seemed like I managed to give him enough ammunition as it was. I didn't want to give him any more.

"We'll see," he said. He didn't look convinced. His mouth was set in a firm line and his eyes were cold. A vein in the side of his forehead visibly throbbed, a sign of his annoyance.

Frankly, I didn't give a shit. If this was his attitude toward his co-workers, that was his problem. I'd do my best to be polite and keep the peace around here. I'd definitely do my best not to let him provoke me. If Atlas was wary of him, then who knew what he was capable of?

"If you'll excuse me, I better get down to training," I said.

"Miss Miller," he said after I took a couple of steps away.

I stopped but barely glanced over my shoulder.

"If I was you, I'd watch myself," he said. "You must know our jobs are very sought after. Competition is fierce. Even with the positions filled, people will be after them. Some would take great steps to take the place of one of us. Perhaps all of us. They'd want to prove their experience does, in fact, matter more than your enthusiasm."

I turned around slowly, well and truly done with him, and this conversation.

"That's Doctor Miller." Heels clicking on the floor, I walked out of the infirmary before I said something I'd really regret.

My irritation must have been obvious, because the moment I stepped out onto the side of the field, Frost trotted over to me.

"You okay?" he asked. "Did Atlas—" He looked over to where the inside centre was warming up with the rest.

"He didn't do anything," I said quickly. "I will be fine. When I get a chance to cool down."

Briefly, I told him about the conversation with Otis Skinner. Quietly I added, "Don't kill him. It's nothing I can't deal with."

I was starting to sound like a broken record having to continuously remind the guys not to kill whoever I was talking about. They probably didn't need the constant reminder.

Or, maybe they did. They all seemed very ready to act on my behalf, whether I liked it or not.

I corrected my previous thought that I'd gone from dating rugby players to mafia spies. More accurately, I'd gone from dating football players to dating hitmen.

Some women would kill to be in my position. It wasn't that I didn't appreciate it, it just put me on edge much of the time.

I'd seen a lot of things in Dusk Bay, things they wouldn't have dreamt of. They might think life here was glamorous, but the reality was dark and covered in blood. And when it had you, it gripped you, unwilling to let you go.

Should I have looked for a job somewhere else? I could have hidden out in a club in Ireland or Scotland. Somewhere further from the violence.

Could I have done that? No, I wouldn't have. When it came down to it, this was home. As hard as I tried to deny the darkness, I was the one who pulled a gun on Belinda Simmons. I was the one who gave her the death sentence, even if I didn't slide the blade in.

Whether I wanted it or not, I was part of this life. More and more, it sucked me back in.

"Now you sound like Storm," he said with a smile. He nodded over to where the fullback was doing warm up stretches. "Usually when he's dealing with Atlas."

I snorted softly. "Trust me, Otis Skinner is nothing like Atlas. He's more prickly than an echidna, but he keeps it covered with his mask of professional distance." And he had the nerve to accuse me of being arrogant.

"You're right, that doesn't sound anything like Atlas," Frost agreed. "He's definitely not distant. If anything, he's more the in-your-face type."

"It's one of the things I like about him," I said.

"Me too," Frost agreed. "Remind me not to get injured when Skinner is around. He doesn't sound like the kind of doctor I want to treat me."

"He's a good doctor," I said reluctantly. "He's just not a nice person."

"He could learn a thing or two from you and your brother," Frost said.

"My brother would be only too happy to teach him," I said wryly.

I shouldn't imagine Otis Skinner chained up in Ice's workroom, but the mental image was in my brain before I could stop it. I wish I could say I didn't like it, but I was so annoyed right now, it fit in perfectly with my mood.

"So would I," Frost said, after glancing around to make sure no one was listening. A few of the coaching staff stood several metres away, each engaged in conversation, discussing plays and training tactics. They weren't paying us any attention.

"Don't," I warned. "Atlas said to keep an eye out for him. Let's not provoke him." Like I had. I'd have to watch my back around him.

"Who's provoking?" he asked. "I think of it as dealing with someone who has you upset." He put an arm around my waist and pulled me to him.

I resisted for a moment, but then let him draw me closer. Anyone who looked at us would see I was ruffled. He was a friend comforting me, that was all. And if people wanted to see anything more, they would anyway just by watching us talk quietly together. If people were good at anything, it was jumping to conclusions. Myself included.

"If you dealt with everyone who upset me, you'd spend all your time doing that," I said. I leaned against him, trying to absorb his warm confidence. I couldn't deny he was sweet for making the offer, because he was, but his desire to turn to violence so quickly was still a little chilling.

"Retirement doesn't seem so bad." He chuckled.

"How about you go and warm up with the rest of the guys?" I suggested. "Otherwise you might be forced to retire from an injury caused by not warming up properly. Also, Coach Stanley is looking at you like you better get your ass out there." The last thing I needed was to get in trouble for sidetracking him.

"Only because I don't want to get in trouble with my doctor." He kissed my forehead and dropped his arm from me. "I'll see you soon."

I nodded and watched him trot away, quietly wishing this day was over already.