Rachel had given him one pass. One chance. One mistake and she'd leave.
Mac accepted her boundary. Of course he did. It was fair and it was reasonable.
But driving to practice afterward, his hands tight on the wheel, he couldn't shake a creeping unease.
Was that trust? Or was that keeping one foot out the door?
41
Ellie
Ellie sat at her desk, staring at her phone like it was a loaded weapon.
Twenty-three patients on her schedule for this week. Twenty-three people who trusted her, who needed her, who'd made progress under her care.
And she had to call every single one of them and cancel, indefinitely.
Her license, the credential she'd worked years to earn, was suspended pending investigation.
Cole sat in the chair across from her. "I can make the calls. You don't have to do this yourself."
"No. They deserve to hear it from me."
She dialed the first number. Mrs. Ryder. Seventy-two years old, recovering from hip replacement surgery.
"Mrs. Ryder, it's Ellie Hansen. I'm calling about your appointment this afternoon—"
"Oh good! I wanted to ask about adding balance exercises—"
"Cindy, I have to cancel. All future appointments. I’m so sorry." Ellie felt her throat closing. "There's been a complaint filed against my license. I can't treat patients right now."
"That's ridiculous! Ellie, you're the only physical therapist who's helped my hip in three years! Who filed this complaint?"
"Dr. Matthews—"
"I've heard about him. My neighbor showed me that article." Mrs. Ryder made a disgusted sound. "Ellie, that man is a bully. You fight this. You hear me?"
After hanging up, Ellie put her head in her hands and cried.
She made thirteen more calls that morning.
Some patients were supportive, angry on her behalf, promising to speak at the town hall.
Others were uncomfortable."My parents saw Dr. Matthews' article. They're... concerned. Maybe I should see someone else."
And a few, the ones that hurt worst, questioned whether Derek might be right."Licensing boards don't just suspend people for no reason, right?"
By noon, the breakdown was clear: fourteen patients supportive, six uncomfortable, three openly doubting her.
Five years of work. Destroyed in one morning.
Sophie
Sophie wiped down the espresso machine for the third time, her hands needing something to do while she listened to the lunch crowd gossip.
"Did you hear about Ellie Hansen?" Mr. Teller was saying, loud enough for half the café to hear. "Her license got suspended. That doctor from Boston filed a complaint."
"Well, Cole's shoulder seems fine now," someone else observed. "He's playing hockey again."
