“I’m Gabriella Cain, head midwife here at The Hollywood Hills Clinic.”
“Now that I am here to care for Ms. Fontaine, I will take care of future internal exams. I’m sure you know they need to be limited in cases of early onset labor.”
What the...? Anger began to burn in Gabby’s chest. “Yes, I am aware of that, Dr. Moreno. Which is why I feel you should wait to do another. I was about to get the mag sulfate drip started, followed by the steroids, then do an ultrasound.”
“I prefer to not rely on others’ examinations and opinions, as that normally isn’t in the best interests of my patient. However, if you’ve done an internal exam, I won’t do another at the moment.” He turned away from Gabby again, and she stared at the back of his silky dark head, hardly able to believe his arrogantly dismissive attitude. His patient? She’d worked with some doctors with domineering attitudes before, but this guy got first place for jerk of the year.
“It’s good that you’re dilated to no more than two centimeters,” he said to Cameron as he looked at Gabby’s notes. “Although that is clearly an indication of pre-term labor, there are things we can do to try to make that cease, and at the same time give baby a chance to grow more.”
“So it is preterm labor. I was so hoping it wasn’t.” Cameron’s white teeth worried her lip, her eyes wide. “Do you think whatever you do to try to stop it will work?”
“It often does, so we will hope for the best.” He lifted his tall frame from the stool he’d been perched on, moving to stand beside the bed and hold Cameron’s hand between both of his, a smile on his face some people might think was charming. “And if baby says, Oh, no, Mama, I’m coming anyway, we will at least have time to give you steroids to help her little lungs function better when she arrives. So we will do that without delay. Okay?”
“All right. Whatever you think,” Cameron said, all grateful smiles. “Thank you so, so much, Doctor.”
“Please, call me Rafael.”
Whatever you think. Thank you so, so much... Gabby gritted her teeth and told herself she couldn’t feel bothered by Cameron’s immediate agreement to the same treatment she’d initially refused to agree to when Gabby had told her exactly the same thing. It was no secret doctors got more respect than midwives from many patients, and an über-handsome doctor who, by the way, happened to be a prince too? Jerk or not, it was no surprise that status-conscious Cameron was all too happy to go along with whatever he suggested.
“Bien.” He stood and turned to Gabby, and his warm expression cooled to one of professionalism. “I’d assume you have the mag sulfate and steroid ready?” Those startling green eyes slowly scanned the area again before pinning hers again with one dark eyebrow raised. “Except perhaps I should not assume that. When I first walked in I was shocked to see the state of this room, which is, well, I must say, terribly disorganized. I’m frankly very surprised by this, considering the stellar reputation of The Hollywood Hills Clinic and knowing James Rothsberg’s perfectionism.”
The irritation that had been simmering in her chest burst into a full conflagration of anger that surged through her blood and made her brain burn. Who did this guy think he was? Friend or no friend of James, prince or no prince, he had no right to waltz in like he owned the place, give it his version of the white-glove test, then criticize her without knowing a thing about the patients and medical situations she’d been taking care of for the past ten hours.
“I was in the process of cleaning and reorganizing it from an earlier, lengthy delivery when Cameron arrived in what might have been an emergency situation. I deemed taking care of her and her baby was a lot more important than tidying and prepping a room that could be tidied and prepped later. And the meds are ready.”
She stalked to the counter, gathering the items together and wishing she could throw them at his arrogant, judgmental face. He reached for them, his hand briefly touching hers, and it ticked her off even more that the feel of his skin brushing hers sent some kind of weird electric shimmer up her arm. The sensation could have been mistaken for attraction, if there had been anything attractive about the man.
Well, there were all those superficially attractive things, but she wasn’t a woman interested in slick, glossy men. Or any kind of man anymore, really.
With grudging respect, though, Gabby did have to admire how quickly and efficiently his long fingers administered the drugs, all the while keeping up a smoothly distracting conversation with their patient.
“All set,” he said to Cameron, giving her a warm and reassuring smile. “Now we wait, keep you comfortable, and check baby periodically through ultrasound and monitoring.”
“Thank you, Rafael. I’m so glad you and Gabby are the ones taking care of me.”
And Gabby was glad the next shift midwife would be arriving soon to deal with Cameron and Dr. Moreno. Not to mention that she was way overdue for a major nap.
“How about deciding what you’d like to have for dinner?” Gabby said as she brought her another sparkling water, along with a menu of options for her meal. The onsite Michelin-starred chef was amazing, and even the pickiest patients loved the elegant and trendy foods he prepared. “The midwife on the next shift will be checking on you throughout the night to make sure you’re comfortable. Then tomorrow morning I’ll be back to take care of you. In the afternoon it’ll be time to administer another steroid dose.”
“But I don’t want another midwife,” Cameron said, a twisting pout on her lips that had Gabby wondering how in the world she managed to still look so pretty doing it. “I want you to stay here with me tonight, Gabby.”
The fatigue Gabby had felt earlier was back in spades. She had a feeling if she closed her eyes she might fall asleep on her feet like a horse, and the vision of curling up in her own comfy bed and getting a solid night’s sleep nearly had her moaning, but she knew Cameron. And Cameron’s expectations. The Hollywood Hills Clinic was known for its exceptional medical care, and that included going above and beyond in every way.
Which meant she’d be spending the night here again.
“I appreciate you wanting me with you, Cameron. I—”
“Your staying here is important, since you are familiar with our special patient and her physical condition and worries,” Rafael interrupted smoothly. “Here is my contact information. Please don’t hesitate to get in touch with me for any reason.”
Did the man think he was boss of the world? Gabby felt like smacking that seemingly sincere smile from his handsome face as he handed her an elegantly embossed card, then turned to give one to their patient. When Cameron reached for hers, she clasped his hand along with it for a lingering moment, practically batting her long lashes at him as she smiled back.
“Thank you so much, Rafael. I can’t tell you how much I appreciate your help and expertise during this terrifying time.”
“It’s beyond my pleasure. It is my calling to help mamas and their babies, whether a pregnancy is smooth and uneventful or high risk and worrying. I promise to take care of you and bebé to the best of my ability.”
Whereas Gabby and most other nurses and doctors didn’t? The guy was pure egotistical arrogance in a white coat, absolutely no doubt about that. And Gabby intended to tell him so, though somehow she’d have to tone down the strength of the language she’d really like to use when she did.
“As I started to say a moment ago, Cameron, I’m more than happy to stay,” she said, giving Dr. Moreno a pointed look she hoped he interpreted correctly—which was to tell him to keep his guest-in-this-hospital nose in his own business. “I’ll sleep better knowing I can check regularly on how you’re doing, and hopefully me being here will help you sleep better too.”
“Thank you, Gabby. I will sleep better.”
“Why don’t you rest now and watch a little TV? I’ll