peers. That would affect how he saw the age difference. Matt took pride in never interfering in his daughter’s choices, but Jason knew a relationship with her would damage their friendship. Not worth it, especially now.
He rubbed a hand down his face, not quite believing his thoughts. He should be planning. Trying to get into Isaac’s head. Figuring out his next move, so he could both keep Lark safe and stop the man from achieving his goal.
Not lusting after his best friend’s daughter.
Chapter Five
Certificate of Achievement awarded to Abigail Berwell, M.D., for outstanding contribution to the advancement of medical science .
The framed certificate hung at eye level over Gabby’s desk, but even as her eyes traced over the familiar words, her mind dismissed them. Matt had given it to her when it became clear Jason was not only going to survive, but excel, and her work might never be recognized due to the issues surrounding what they’d done. She’d been practically giddy with pleasure then. Now, she was afraid she was sinking into a deep depression.
“Dr. Berwell, we have the samples prepared for storage.”
Gabby forced a smile for the assistant who hovered in her office doorway. “Thanks, Mel. You guys can go home. I’ll put them in the locker.”
“Are you sure? I don’t mind helping. There are a lot.”
Gabby stood. “No, it’s okay, it’s getting late and I’m sure you have plans. I don’t.” She winced at how pathetic that sounded. “Go ahead, it’s okay. I’ll follow protocol and you can double-check me on Monday.”
Mel laughed. No one would ever doubt Gabby’s dedication to procedure, documentation, and evidence of integrity.
“On second thought, take next week off. You’ve all earned a break. Let the others know.” She wasn’t going to be able to stand floating around here with nothing to do and a staff at loose ends.
“All right, Dr. B, thank you. Have a good weekend.”
“You, too.”
Mel was apparently the last one out, because when Gabby went into the lab—she hated calling it that, but face it, that’s what it was, no matter how hard she tried to humanize their work—no one else was there. The trays of tissue, blood and other samples from Jason’s treatment and recovery were on a cart by the center counter running the length of the room. Gabby spot-checked the labels, all written in a fine, meticulous hand, and nodded in satisfaction. With Jason’s treatment complete, they had to move these from the smaller refrigerator here in the lab down the hall to the larger, more secure unit.
She hated to do it.
Her footsteps echoed on the tile floor, combining with the rattle of the cart’s wheels to make her feel lonelier than ever. What the hell was she going to do now? They’d immorally, if not illegally, used untested medical treatments and technology on a live human being. There was no way their work could go forward, save for periodic checkups and tests they could do on Jason. Unless another agent got shot and knocked over a railing. Which she didn’t want to happen, of course.
An image of Matthew tumbling down the middle of a stairwell flashed into her head, and she gasped.
“Don’t think about it,” she muttered furiously, shoving the cart faster and yanking it to a halt outside the refrigeration unit. It didn’t matter that Matthew couldn’t see past her white coat and status reports. If anything happened to him, she’d be as crushed as if they were married. She keyed open the unit and pushed the cart inside, locking the hinge so the door wouldn’t close, then started transferring the trays to an empty case in the corner.
“Get over it,” she told herself. “You won’t even be seeing him anymore, now that Jason’s gone.” She grunted under the weight of a laden tray and slid it onto the shelf with a rattle. “You’ll probably be fired within a week, anyway.”
“Fired? What are you talking about?”
Gabby shrieked and jumped a foot in the air, smacking an
He rubbed a hand down his face, not quite believing his thoughts. He should be planning. Trying to get into Isaac’s head. Figuring out his next move, so he could both keep Lark safe and stop the man from achieving his goal.
Not lusting after his best friend’s daughter.
Chapter Five
Certificate of Achievement awarded to Abigail Berwell, M.D., for outstanding contribution to the advancement of medical science .
The framed certificate hung at eye level over Gabby’s desk, but even as her eyes traced over the familiar words, her mind dismissed them. Matt had given it to her when it became clear Jason was not only going to survive, but excel, and her work might never be recognized due to the issues surrounding what they’d done. She’d been practically giddy with pleasure then. Now, she was afraid she was sinking into a deep depression.
“Dr. Berwell, we have the samples prepared for storage.”
Gabby forced a smile for the assistant who hovered in her office doorway. “Thanks, Mel. You guys can go home. I’ll put them in the locker.”
“Are you sure? I don’t mind helping. There are a lot.”
Gabby stood. “No, it’s okay, it’s getting late and I’m sure you have plans. I don’t.” She winced at how pathetic that sounded. “Go ahead, it’s okay. I’ll follow protocol and you can double-check me on Monday.”
Mel laughed. No one would ever doubt Gabby’s dedication to procedure, documentation, and evidence of integrity.
“On second thought, take next week off. You’ve all earned a break. Let the others know.” She wasn’t going to be able to stand floating around here with nothing to do and a staff at loose ends.
“All right, Dr. B, thank you. Have a good weekend.”
“You, too.”
Mel was apparently the last one out, because when Gabby went into the lab—she hated calling it that, but face it, that’s what it was, no matter how hard she tried to humanize their work—no one else was there. The trays of tissue, blood and other samples from Jason’s treatment and recovery were on a cart by the center counter running the length of the room. Gabby spot-checked the labels, all written in a fine, meticulous hand, and nodded in satisfaction. With Jason’s treatment complete, they had to move these from the smaller refrigerator here in the lab down the hall to the larger, more secure unit.
She hated to do it.
Her footsteps echoed on the tile floor, combining with the rattle of the cart’s wheels to make her feel lonelier than ever. What the hell was she going to do now? They’d immorally, if not illegally, used untested medical treatments and technology on a live human being. There was no way their work could go forward, save for periodic checkups and tests they could do on Jason. Unless another agent got shot and knocked over a railing. Which she didn’t want to happen, of course.
An image of Matthew tumbling down the middle of a stairwell flashed into her head, and she gasped.
“Don’t think about it,” she muttered furiously, shoving the cart faster and yanking it to a halt outside the refrigeration unit. It didn’t matter that Matthew couldn’t see past her white coat and status reports. If anything happened to him, she’d be as crushed as if they were married. She keyed open the unit and pushed the cart inside, locking the hinge so the door wouldn’t close, then started transferring the trays to an empty case in the corner.
“Get over it,” she told herself. “You won’t even be seeing him anymore, now that Jason’s gone.” She grunted under the weight of a laden tray and slid it onto the shelf with a rattle. “You’ll probably be fired within a week, anyway.”
“Fired? What are you talking about?”
Gabby shrieked and jumped a foot in the air, smacking an
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