The Surgeon's Favorite Nurse by Teresa Southwick

the trick. This morning each section of the hospital was tested.”
    “I heard.” The alarms had gone on for hours. “There were a lot of areas to check.”
    “The good news is you just passed your employeehearing test.” Val grinned. “And the building passed the fire inspection. We got a gold star.”
    “Good for you.”
    “I know more about fire alarms than I ever wanted to.” Val took a deep breath. “So how’s E.D.?”
    “The emergency department is coming along fine.”
    Val checked her notes. “Good. I wanted to clarify with you the protocols for O.R. availability.”
    “Okay.”
    “As I’m sure you’re aware, surgeons have a problem when an operating room stands empty. But it’s standard trauma procedure to always have one open in the event an E.R. patient needs emergency surgery.”
    Hope nodded. “Right. If it becomes an issue for the surgeons, I’ll remind them of the administration directive.”
    “Another way to say refer them to me. That works. Next on my agenda—reasons to go on trauma divert.”
    Hope glanced at her notes. “Equipment. CT scan down. Shortage of personnel in the event of trauma saturation.”
    “Right.” Val met her gaze. “Everyone needs to be on the same page as far as evaluating which trauma room to put a patient in. Some are set up specifically for head or belly trauma, others for less serious cases.”
    “Right.” Hope jotted things down on the notepad she’d brought in with her.
    “Now E.D. staffing,” Val said.
    “I imagine it’s going to be slow at first,” Hope said. “We might have to flex off some of the staff if there’s not enough work to support the load. I’ll make them aware of that.”
    “Good. I talked to Dr. Edwards.”
    Hope remembered the radiology specialist raising his issues at her meeting. “He was upset about paying hisdoctors for round-the-clock staffing whether or not there were cases.”
    Val nodded. “I set him straight on that and administration will not be kicking in anything. He signed the contract. Doctors need to be here so that this hospital can maintain its trauma-level designation. I’ve gotten the hospital legal department in the loop in case that becomes an issue.”
    “Good.” Hope tapped her lip. “Speaking of staff…”
    Val looked up quickly. “Yes?”
    “It’s come to my attention that Dr. Andrews…” How could she phrase this delicately? “I have a concern about his appointment to chief trauma surgeon.”
    “In what way?”
    “It has to do with who he knows being a factor in why he got the job. That makes me wonder about his qualifications for the position.”
    And that one word sent her thoughts straight to his bedroom and him hovering over her.
    “You’re new in town,” Val pointed out. “Have you talked to some of the veteran staff members who’ve been around a while?”
    “Yes. But I thought it best to ask you. To separate real from rumor.”
    She hoped that her behavior wasn’t making its way through the Mercy Medical gossip mill. If she could erase what happened that night, she’d do it in a heartbeat.
    “Okay. This is off the record.” Val leaned back, shaking her head.
    “What?”
    “I’m aware that Jake is dating Blair Havens.”
    “The daughter of the hospital’s board of directors,” Hope confirmed.
    “Yes. But you shouldn’t hold that against him.”
    Personally? Or professionally? Because either way shewas doing her level best to constructively use the information and put up barriers.
    “Why?” she asked.
    “Jake Andrews is a good doctor. And a smart businessman. Most important, he’s a brilliant surgeon. Regardless of who he shows the bad judgment to see when he’s not on duty, the man’s hands are pure magic.”
    That’s something Hope was well aware of. It had nothing to do with surgery, scalpels or sutures, and everything to do with seduction, satisfaction and seeing stars. His hands and mouth had taken her to places she’d never been before. Not ever. And