Monkeys and Mayhem

Anna's always done what's expected of her and when her grandfather passes away and she no longer has to be his caretaker, she applies to the local university and gets accepted.

To celebrate, she and her best friend head out to their favorite bar to celebrate. There she meets Hayden who takes her home for one unforgettable night before he heads to Thailand on a doctor exchange.

Hayden loves his work as a plastic surgeon but hates the lifestyle that accompanies it. He didn't really want to practice in a clinic again, but going thousands of miles away to escape reminders of the damage he causes those he loves seems fitting.

What he didn't expect was for Anna, who he'd only spent one night with, to show up on his porch asking for a place to stay. He can't turn her away in a foreign country, especially after she confides that instead of going to school, she spent her entire savings on a plane ticket to come see him.

With Hayden running from the past and Anna running from the future--will they allow themselves to embrace the present?

Hayden flicked off his gloves, washed his hands,
and rubbed his forehead. The surgery had taken
longer than he had anticipated, but at least the patient
wouldn’t have permanent disfiguration of her face. Car and
other major accidents were the worst because they messed
up the bone structure.
He glanced at the chart one more time and went out into
the waiting room. He found the parents in the corner with
their hands clasped together.
He sat in the chair beside the father. “I just finished with
your daughter. She’s going to be fine. She’ll probably have
some swelling for the next several weeks, but she’ll look like
her old self.”
The mother looked up, tear streaks staining her face.
“Thank you so much, Dr. Jorgensen. We were so worried.”
“A nurse will come get you when you can see her.”
Hayden got up and trudged to his office. He never wanted
sleep more than he did today. He enjoyed working the
trauma side of plastic surgery, but it was exhausting.

He stopped dead in the doorway. “Faith, what are you
doing here?”
She stood, revealing her mile-long legs. He was sure she
wore the miniskirt to drive him crazy. She slid off her jacket,
and her breasts nearly fell out of her dress. He rolled his eyes
and sat down at his desk. He knew exactly what she was
trying to do.
“I was visiting a friend and thought I’d check on you.” She
sat on the edge of his desk and leaned toward him.
He scooted his chair away. Faith didn’t know how to take
a hint. They’d broken things off years ago, but she tried to
win him back from time to time. Maybe if he had a girlfriend
or something, she’d back off, but he couldn’t bring himself to
have a serious relationship after what happened with her.
“It’s nice to see you, but I’ve got a lot of paperwork to do.”
She placed her hand on his file. Her inch-long nails were
painted a bright red. “Surely you can unwind a little. This
won’t take long.”
He touched the rock on her left ring finger. “You’re
engaged. I thought I made it very clear that I wasn’t
interested.”
She pouted. “Just say the word, sweetie, and your ring can
replace this one.”
“You and I are through. We’ve been over for a long time.
Why don’t you go home to Neal?” Three years ago, her
little show might’ve worked, but he no longer wanted
anything to do with her. Every once in a while the girl he
knew peeked through, and if Faith remembered anything
about their past, she’d know that would be the way to get
to him.
She let out a sigh. “He’s at a conference in Boston. I was
thinking how much fun we used to have. Plus, you haven’t
seen the girls yet.” She jiggled her brand new breasts.
“Faith, get out of my office.”
“When did you become such a bore?” she asked, sliding
off his desk.
“I’ve always been. You’re the one who changed.”
He opened his file and refused to look up again. She made
a lot of racket stomping out, and as soon as she cleared the
door, he shut and locked it.
He sat down and pulled out his phone, searching for the
picture he knew was there. The one of Faith before his
colleagues’ wives got their claws into her. The picture
revealed the bright, blue-eyed gorgeous woman from five
years ago, the woman he’d wanted to marry someday.
Before he knew what was happening, she was botoxing
and getting lip fillers, and she got liposuction to change her
from a size four to a size two.
He broke it off when she requested that he do her breast
augmentation. She’d gone through at least three since that
time. He remembered that argument well. She ambushed
him one night at dinner, invited two of her new friends, and
all three women spent an hour explaining why Faith would
be better with a C-cup instead of her natural B.
His phone buzzed, and he picked it up. Three days. You
ready?
Hell yeah, he answered.

He wasn’t really. In three days he was leaving for a six-
month stint at a clinic in Phuket, Thailand. Part of the reason he was going was Faith. Neal transferred his practice to a
building at the hospital complex where Hayden worked, and
Hayden didn’t want to see Faith parading all over the place.
He didn’t love her anymore. He lost that feeling a long
time ago, and he detested what she stood for. She was a stark
reminder that he could never be in a serious relationship.
Faith was perfect in every way before they began dating. She
was sweet, giving, kind, beautiful, and down to earth. Now
she was vain and looked nothing like she had then. The
plastic surgery wives were the ultimate mean girls, and as
long as he remained a plastic surgeon, he’d have to deal with
their type.
It wasn’t just Faith. He’d seen it happen to his buddy’s
wife as well. She was sweet and cute until she started
hanging out with the wives. Now he couldn’t stand the
woman.

He’d trained too long to get to this point. He was well-
respected in his field. Plus, he got an enormous amount of

satisfaction out of the work he did. He especially loved it
when he could make a child with a cleft lip smile or allow a
burn victim to step outside their doors without stares. He’d
thought about switching to family practice, but couldn’t
picture himself diagnosing strep throat. He was an expert at
those tough surgeries, and to stop doing them wouldn’t be
right.
As soon as he had finished his residency, he moved home
to Michigan and started at the hospital in Grand Rapids. He
wanted to do necessary surgery, not the fake crap they did in
the clinics.
Now the one girl he never wanted to see again would be
flouncing all over his hospital.
So in spite of the fact that he loved doing necessary
reconstructions instead of elective, he was going to go sell
his soul in Phuket. He supposed it wouldn’t be that bad. He
expected he’d learn a lot. All the new procedures were in the
clinics since that was where the money was. He could take
the things he learned and use them in the hospital when he
returned. His buddy who hooked him up with the clinic also
helped him find a local hospital he could moonlight at, which
he was looking forward to.
His phone buzzed again. He smiled when he saw that it
was his mother. They were very close even though she didn’t
agree with his career choice.
Do you really have to go?
Yes, Mom. I really have to go.
You know, if you come up here to work, that would solve your
problem as well. Also, the Olsen’s daughter moved home. She’s still
gorgeous as ever.
He chuckled. His mother wanted grandkids bad, but he
figured she’d have to wait until his brother got married,
because that would not be his life. She also wanted him to
take over her family practice on Mackinac Island. Part of
him wanted to. It would get him out of the vanity of plastic
surgery, but he wasn’t ready to put all of his training to bed.
Also, the money wasn’t as great, and he enjoyed his lifestyle.
I’ll keep that in mind. Got work to do. Talk to you later.
Hayden finished up his paperwork and filed it away. He’d
clean out his office tomorrow. He plucked his keys out of the
drawer and made his way to his Porsche. He didn’t drive it
much, but since it was going into storage for six months, he
wanted to give her one more spin.
He couldn’t stop thinking about Faith. He carried the
guilt of what she became. If he’d seen the signs earlier, or if
he’d never introduced her to the wives, she’d still be normal.
If they’d never dated, she would’ve settled down to a simpler
life, had a couple of kids, and been happier than she
was now.
He passed The Night Owl and stopped at the last minute
for a drink. He needed to forget about Faith and all that she
represented.