Free Beginning with Forever by Lan LLP

with irritation. I assume he’s unfamiliar with women being this forthright and challenging with him. He’s probably accustomed to them giving in to his every whim and commands. In other words, kiss his egotistical ass. I’m not that type of woman; I don’t kiss anyone’s ass.
    “ Miss Ly, I didn’t mean to sound ungrateful. I hope I didn’t offend you,” he tells me with a hint of remorse in his tone, but I’m beyond caring at this point and blatantly ignore his apology. Hastily, I march out of the room, leaving him speechless. As soon as I’m far enough away from him and out of his view, I blow out a seething sigh. What a stuck-up and ungrateful asshole. I lean my shaking body against the supportive wall behind me in hope of regaining my balance. I can’t believe I was attracted to him. This is why I’ve purposely kept my life free of men. They’re just too complicated. I’m disappointed in myself for letting him affect my professionalism. I vow that I will never let this happen again. After settling my temper, I continue with the rest of my hospital rounds.
     
Carson Bradley
    D amn, no woman has ever dared to confront me like that or leave before I dismiss her. I was already taken by her beauty and intelligence, but her fire and strong will makes her even more irresistible to me. How can I possibly think clearly with that sexy, ruffled expression on her stunning face? She’s even hotter when she’s crossed. I wanted to pull her back and detain her in my arms as she made her way for the exit. I’m forcing every fiber in my body to fight my attraction for her. It’s driving me fucking insane that I’m unable to control my own emotions around her.
    I’m bored of willing women telling me what I want to hear. I never know what’s really going through their minds because they’re in constant fear of how I might react to their honesty. I crave sincere conversations with real opinions and sentiments. I love that she respects herself enough not to take any shit from me. She has a lot of fire in her, and man, does that make me want to get to know her even more. Wait a minute; what the hell am I saying? I can’t expect her to give me, a cold, heartless asshole, a chance. I’d only end up breaking her heart because I’m incapable of loving anyone. Don’t be cruel. Leave her alone! You won’t be able to make her happy. But why am I so affected by her? Why? Why? Why? I want to know why. I’m more alive than I’ve ever been in years. What should I do? Nothing! I can’t offer her anything, but emptiness. I need to distance myself from her, the sooner the better. The tough challenge is to stop thinking about her until Owen picks me up. This might not be possible for me since she’s all I want to think about the minute she walked into my room.
     
Lillian Ly
    I t’s mid-day, and I’m ready to sit down to eat a quick lunch until an unexplained epidemic of local sick children pours into the hospital, causing chaotic panic among the staff. The rooms quickly fill up, but the number of ill children continues to grow. They’re vomiting and dry heaving unremittingly without any relief. The awful smells and sounds are foul enough to make me gag, but there’s no time for weak stomachs. The entire staff and I run around frantically attending to the ones who are helplessly waiting for assistance. It brings tears to my eyes, seeing so many young babies and children crying in discomfort. The agonizing expressions on their faces are unbearable to witness. It pains me to see anyone hurt, especially children. I want to gather each and every one of them into my arms to heal them and take their suffering away. An infant boy feebly whimpering grabs my immediate attention. I lift him out of his sobbing parents’ arms and embrace him tightly in mine, trying to hold back my own tears and begin my assessment of his condition. His breathing is steady, but weak. I need to give him some oxygen and fluids STAT. I carry him down a