“Isabelle was right,” she whispered. “She said he wouldn’t be alone for long.”
She really liked Isabelle, but for some reason, Camille did not like the idea of her friend getting involved with Maxwell. After all, Maxwell seemed to enjoy his life as a bachelor. He was often linked with actresses or socialites when he and Kendra weren’t involved. Camille didn’t want to see Isabelle get her heart broken.
She didn’t want to consider that there could be another reason why she didn’t want to see Isabelle with Maxwell.
Chapter 4
Maxwell found his little exchange with Camille humorous.
He was delighted at the thought of her being jealous. He wasn’t sure why the thought pleased him, but it did. It thrilled him that Camille wasn’t immune to him like he had originally assumed.
He spotted his friend Thomas and another doctor, Lucien De Winter, talking in an office. Thomas gestured for Maxwell to join them.
“Lucien was just telling me about Dudley and how he’s trying to make life difficult for him and Jaclyn since their engagement.”
“He’s also harassing Victor Aguilar and Tamara St. John,” Lucien stated. “They just recently got engaged.”
“I’m not a fan of non-fraternization policies,” Maxwell interjected. “I think the workplace is one of the logical locations for people to meet and fall in love, as long as the employees engaged in the relationship follow common-sense guidelines.”
“I agree,” Lucien said. “The employees have asked him to remove the ban on fraternization for years, but Dudley refuses. He and his watchdog, Nurse Tsang, are making everyone miserable.”
“The only thing I’ve agreed with Dudley on is how he handled Terrence,” Thomas confessed. “Although I appreciate all he did for me and Lia.”
“Lucien, I’d like to speak with you about Dr. Matthews,” Maxwell said. “If you have another minute, I want to ask you some questions.”
“Sure.”
Thomas made his way to the door. “I need to make my rounds, so I’ll call you later, Maxwell.”
“What can you tell me about Dr. Matthews, Lucien?”
“He was a promising doctor with a bedside manner that all of his patients appreciated.” Lucien shook his head sadly. “If only we could have found a way to help him.”
“Did you notice anything?”
Lucien nodded. “He was no longer as reliable. For example, he used to be the first one to arrive at staff meetings, but then he was either late or a no-show. He was also the doctor who gave that patient the wrong medication. Because of his family, Dudley made sure that was never made public.”
“What steps did you take at that point?” Maxwell questioned.
“We had Terrence take a drug test, although we had a witness to him stealing the drugs. His test came back positive. Terrence maintains that we faked the results, however. He has had some independent tests done and the results show that he’s clean.”
“Do you think he paid someone to change the results?”
“Or take the test for him,” Lucien offered. “When I asked Terrence about the charges, he never denied them. He didn’t feel the need to deny them as his family was the hospital’s biggest benefactor.”
“He was offered the chance to go into rehab?”
Lucien nodded. “He flat-out refused. He would probably still have his job if he had taken a medical leave and gone into rehab. When he didn’t, we had no choice but to let him go.”
Maxwell opened his mouth to speak, but before he could get the words out, Lucien’s pager went off.
“I’m sorry but I have to leave.”
Maxwell opened the door to the office. “Thanks for your time.”
He walked out after Lucien and returned to his own office. For a split second, Maxwell considered going back to Camille’s office.
She was right.
Although he and Isabelle were innocent of any wrongdoing, had someone walked by his office, they could have easily drawn the wrong conclusions. Worse, Isabelle could accuse him of sexual harassment, although he doubted she would make such a claim.
Seated at his desk, Maxwell went through his list of witnesses. There were still several he wanted to speak with. He preferred doing his own interviews and not just relying on statements. Body language often presented the real story.
He tried to keep his mind on his work, but an image of Camille kept popping up in his head.
She was jealous.
It surprised and pleased him that she was attracted to him. However, Maxwell felt like he had been doused with a bucket of ice water when he realized that the attraction was mutual.
Camille tried to concentrate on her work, but couldn’t. She was furious with herself for allowing Maxwell Wade to get under her skin.
She picked up the apple on her desk and bit into it.
“Hey, there you are,” a woman’s voice called. “I came by here earlier and you were gone. I wanted to see if you had time to have lunch with me.”
Camille looked up and saw Tamara St. John walking into her office. “I didn’t know you were working today, Tamara,” she said. She tossed the apple into the trash. “Sure. This apple really wasn’t doing it for me.”
“What’s wrong?”
“Nothing,” Camille responded. “Why do you ask?”
“Something’s bothering you,” Tamara said. “You look upset.”
“I’m fine. I just need to get away from this place for a little while.” Camille rose to her feet and grabbed her purse.
They left the hospital.
Camille and Tamara walked across the street to the restaurant frequented by most of the hospital staff.
“So, you’re still not going to tell me what’s got you so preoccupied?” Tamara asked after they were seated.
Camille smiled at her friend. “I’m fine, really.”
“I hear we have the renowned Maxwell Wade helping the legal department. Have you met him?”
She nodded.
“So what do you think of him?” Tamara inquired.
“I don’t really have an opinion of Mr. Wade,” Camille lied. “I guess we’ll really have to wait and see if he’s as good as everyone says he is.”
“He’s very handsome from what I understand.”
“That seems to be the consensus,” Camille muttered. The last thing she wanted to do was spend her lunch hour discussing the arrogant Maxwell Wade. Changing the subject, she asked, “So have you and Victor decided on a wedding date?”
“We’re still narrowing down dates.”
Camille picked up her menu. “Just so you know …I don’t do pastels.”
Tamara laughed.
While waiting for their food, Camille scanned the dining area. The restaurant was a favorite of hospital employees and as usual it was filled with interns, doctors, nurses and other hospital staff. There were only a few people that she did not recognize.
The restaurant was not only convenient, it was warm and inviting. The soft lighting and beautiful artwork in vivid hues added