Help, God. I’m embarrassing myself. And maybe You, too. I need to get a life...without David Steller.
When she opened her eyes, the phone rang. Meredith reached over to her nightstand and picked up the phone. Her eyes bugged out of her head when she heard the voice on the other end.
“David! What are you doing! Weren’t you just on TV?”
“So, you watched? You’re my best fan, Merrie.”
Meredith blew out an impatient breath, forcing a more formal note into her voice. “What can I do for you?”
“Did you see the story about the blood shortage?”
“No, I turned on the TV just before your segment started—” Meredith stared up at the ceiling in disbelief and wanted to bite her tongue. Do I have to sound so obvious?
“Well, I’m flattered. Anyway, I only have a minute. The station is having a blood drive next Saturday.”
“Really.” Meredith wondered if he knew she was a volunteer with the Red Cross. Holding the cordless phone to her ear, she got up and went to the kitchen to look at her schedule of blood collections. She usually just glanced at it the day or so before to find out where the drive was to be located. There it was in black and white. KVL building, nine A.M. Saturday.
“Would you be available to help with the blood drive at KVL? You know, be one of the vampires, er, nurses that draw blood?”
Meredith smiled wryly. “Sure, I can be there.”
“Just like that? You can just show up and start sticking needles into people’s arms? I went ahead and got the number for you to call and volunteer.”
“I already am a volunteer, David.”
“You’re kidding! That’s great!” He paused. “And here’s an added bonus. Since the employees at KVL will be donating blood, it’ll be taped for airing on the evening news. You’ll get to be on TV. Your big show biz break.”
“You forget, I’ve already been on TV. Without consent.”
He was quiet for a moment. “Oh, yeah, I forgot about that.”
He didn’t sound at all repentant. Meredith bit back a smile.
“Um, just think about all the exposure you’re getting. Soon you’ll be a celebrity.”
She laughed. “Like you?”
“That hurts, Merrie.”
She smiled at the teasing in his voice. “I’ll be there.”
“Just think about your chance to stab me in the arm with something really sharp. It could be therapeutic for you.”
“There’s no guarantee I’ll get you, you know. There will be several other nurses there.”
“Don’t worry. I won’t deprive you a chance at causing me some pain. See you Saturday.”
Meredith smiled as she hung up the phone. Was this just another coincidence or could God have a hand in the way their lives continued to intersect? She drummed her fingers on the kitchen counter. Nah. This was just David, being friendly and gregarious as usual. She might as well enjoy it while it lasted.
Besides, he could use a good poke in the arm.
***
David entered the station cafeteria area, which had been rearranged to accommodate the Red Cross equipment. He spotted Meredith over by one of the cots, setting up her area and checking her supplies. He went over and plopped onto the cot next to her.
“Good morning, Merrie. I’m ready for you. Did lots of extra push-ups this morning to get those veins to stand out.” He shoved up his shirtsleeve and flexed his muscles for her, showing her the network of bulging veins in his tanned arm. “Impressed?”
Meredith peered at his arm, a placid expression on her face. “They might do. If it doesn’t work out, don’t worry. We’ll give you a nice sticker to wear that says ‘I tried’.”
He grinned when he saw the twitch of her lips. “No sticker for me today, unless it says something like ‘They hit a gusher and I broke a record’.”
“Just a pint or so,” she said. “But first you’ll need to go through registration and the health check to see if you’re even eligible to donate today.”
“Huh?” David’s face fell as he looked to where she pointed at some tables across the room. Several of his co-workers were already in line. “Oh, of course. I’ll see you in a few.” He leaned over. “By the way, that soup I brought over must’ve worked wonders for your cold. You are looking very pretty today.”
Meredith blushed. “Does that mean you’re saying I didn’t look so good the other day?”
David made a face but quickly recovered. “My point is that you look to be in excellent health.”
“Well, I do want to thank you for the soup and flowers. I’m sure they were responsible for my improvement. You better get in line.”
David saluted her and did as he was bid. After giving his name and other information to a woman at the first desk, he moved on to the second. He was asked several health-related questions that made him look askance at the interviewer. There was nothing quite like having a sweet, blue-haired grandma calmly ask about sexual relationships. Yikes! From there, he had his blood pressure and temperature checked. Next, the lady pricked his finger.
“Ow!” he said through clenched teeth.
The lady gave him a broad smile and squeezed his finger. When she checked his iron, he failed the test.
“What!” David’s plan of talking to Meredith without the chance for her to leave was going up in smoke.
“We’ll check it in the hematocrit,” the lady soothed. Finally fifteen minutes later, while he fidgeted and tapped his foot, his iron level was pronounced acceptable—barely. He joined the line to give blood and found to his dismay that Meredith was busy with another donor, which was his producer. One of the other nurses waved him over.
David felt himself turn red. What could he say without sounding rude? Meredith came to his rescue.
“That one’s mine, Amy.”
The other nurse shrugged and waved over the next person in line. David saw Meredith fix him with an unwavering gaze. He resisted the urge to shudder. Maybe she really does have it in for me.
While he waited for her to finish, his co-workers edged past him to donate, ribbing him about being a chicken.
“What’s the matter, Steller, still trying to get your nerve up?”
“You aren’t going to faint, are you Steller?”
“Ha ha, very funny,” he said in a humorless voice. At length, his producer rose up from the cot and was escorted to the canteen for juice and cookies.
David hurried to Meredith’s cot. He sat down and leaned back. “Alone at last,” he said, kicking up his feet.
Meredith didn’t say anything. She just gave him a Mona Lisa smile while she stripped the gloves from her hands. He rolled up his sleeve and submitted his arm to her care.
“Let’s have a look at those veins now.” She took a piece of rubber and tied it around his bicep with a half-loop, and handed him what felt like a balloon filled with sand. “Squeeze, please.”
David watched her face unabashedly while she worked. Her expression was composed, though he thought he detected a glimmer of humor in her periwinkle eyes. With her finger, she pressed lightly on the largest vein in the center of the inside of his arm and seemed satisfied by what she saw.
“Nice median cubital, Mr. Steller.”
“I aim to please. I think.”
Ah, that got a smile. She put on a fresh pair of gloves and cleaned the site on his arm with Betadine and a swab. David swallowed when she opened a packet, producing a sterile needle.
“Man, that thing’s huge!” He eyed what looked to him like a sharp, steel harpoon.
“Are you doing all right, David? You look a little pale.”
Never taking his eyes from the needle, he swallowed. “I’m fine!”
“Maybe you’d be more comfortable if I explained the procedure.” Without waiting for his consent, she continued. “I’m re-palpitating the vein. Next, I’m stabilizing the vein by holding it between my index finger and thumb.”
David licked his lips and glanced at her. Meredit
h had a decidedly wicked gleam in her eyes.
“Squeeze the ball a few times. Good. Now I’m entering the site, with the needle bevel up, directly above the median cubital and in the same direction at a fifteen-degree angle relative to your skin. There, we have a smooth entry.” She looked at David’s face. “That didn’t hurt, did it?” she asked in a sugary voice.
David blew out a ragged breath. “Just like a mosquito bite. A big hairy gorilla mosquito!”
Watching the flow of blood into the unit bag, she grinned. “A big, strong man like yourself? I bet you barely felt a thing.” After a moment, she released the tourniquet and took the ball from his hand. Massaging the unit bag, she cocked her head. “Just think, this one unit of blood has the potential to save up to three people’s lives. It can be used whole or broken down into components of red blood cells, plasma, platelets, and factor concentrates.”
“Oh, goody.”
Meredith gave a soft laugh. “You’re doing great, David.”
David averted his eyes from the warm, red plastic tube looped over his arm. “I can just imagine what it would be like being married to you. I come home early from work and find something from the hospital lab sitting on the dining room table. You say brightly, ‘Look, honey! We’re having a science lesson!’ And I say, ‘That’s wonderful. Where will we eat dinner?’”
She lowered her gaze. David studied her face, wishing he could read her mind. He was curious what she thought about him in regard to marriage—even if it was just in a joking manner.
Meredith leaned over. “Let me check to make sure that vein is stabilized.” She gave the needle a light tap. The pain it caused was anything but slight. Well, I have my answer.
“Did that hurt? I’m so sorry.” She gave him a patently false smile and rechecked the unit bag. “Almost done!”
David wracked his brain for something else to say. He had imagined having a good ten or fifteen minutes to flirt with her and thaw her out with his witty banter. So far all he’d done was look like a wimp and tick her off.
Meredith took a gauze pad and put it over the needle. Then she withdrew the needle. “Hold here, please.” She placed his other hand over the gauze and pushed his arm up into the air before disposing of the needle. After stripping the blood in the tube into the bag, she capped it off and handed it to a waiting volunteer. She reached up and pulled down his arm, checking under the gauze to make sure the bleeding had stopped. Replacing the old gauze with a fresh one, she taped it securely in place.
“That might hurt a little when you take it off.”
David scowled. “Gee, thanks.”
“Marty,” she called to a canteen volunteer. “This one is ready.” When an older man began to escort him to a table of cookies, Meredith smiled. “The Red Cross thanks you, Mr. Steller. Have a nice day!”
David grunted. After being seated at a table with his co-workers, all lighter by a unit of blood, he moodily bit into a sugar cookie.
His producer leaned over. “That nurse you had, she was my nurse, too. I’ve donated blood before and I can tell you I’ve never had anyone with a lighter touch. I never even felt the puncture!”
Another of other employees standing nearby nodded his head. “She was fabulous! And to think I thought giving blood would hurt. Boy, was I wrong!”
“Like a butterfly she was,” someone else chimed in.
David tossed back his lemonade like it was a shot of whiskey. He got up from the table and stalked from the room, only to clutch at a table in the next room from the light-headedness. Perhaps he needed to rethink his strategy about Meredith—again. And his next plan wouldn’t include sharp weapons.
Fifteen
Meredith experienced a few spasms of guilt, however brief, over her treatment of David during his blood donation last week. She hoped it didn’t color his attitude toward the Red Cross. They needed repeat donors. She herself had given several gallons cumulative over the years.
As David had promised, she’d seen herself on TV during the following broadcast. She wasn’t thrilled with the fact, but had to admit most of her discomfort came from the way David had been looking at her during the taping—with an intimate smile and caressing gaze. Or maybe that’s what I wanted to see.
She reported off her last shift of the week, looking forward to the weekend. She frowned as she headed toward her car. Her new position had brought with it normal hours and plenty of rest. She’d hoped it would also help straighten out her feelings about David—much of which she’d blamed on fatigue. If anything, she felt more confused.
She’d thought, mulled, and ruminated over what David might’ve meant when he mentioned marriage to her that day. Men were notorious for being clueless to the fact single women hated jokes about such a sensitive subject. Surely that’s all it had been, just a joke. Infuriating man.
What infuriated her even more was the fact she’d missed him this past week. Watching his broadcasts just didn’t cut it any more. She wanted to experience the three-dimensional David. She only had herself to blame if he didn’t approach her again. She’d been responsible for a certain amount of pain in his life recently. A smile tugged at her lips while she got into her car and drove away from the hospital.
So much for all the socializing I thought I’d do after switching to days. Rosa was always with Gino, and Clay…well, Clay was apparently with Erin. Scuttlebutt from the hospital had it that Erin was in grief counseling and becoming easier to work with. She was happy for them. Really.
It’s the romance of others that’s taking a toll on my social life. Maybe that explains these intense feelings for David. I’m just jealous. Meredith sighed as she turned onto her street. Nearing her house, she spied another vehicle in her driveway.
A black Jeep.
With her heart in her throat, she pulled up alongside the curb. David, leaning on the side of the Jeep, straightened when he saw her. He walked toward her with a smile on his face. He wore a brown pullover that matched his eyes, with a pair of chinos. Meredith slowly emerged from her car and gave a hesitant smile. “How’s the arm?”
David laughed. “Not even a bruise. Or should I say hematoma? Are you disappointed?”
She shook her head, suddenly unable to think of anything else to say when he was close enough to touch.
He gazed at her with an amused expression. “I suppose you’re wondering why I’m at your house.”
She nodded her head like a marionette.
“I’m on my way to a hot air balloon event and wondered if you wanted to tag along. Rosa told me what time you usually get off work. There will be a Night Glow when it gets dark. They light up the balloons in the dark. You have to see it.”
Meredith found her voice. Here was David—in the flesh. She’d regret not spending at least a little time with him. Besides, he was on official business. It wasn’t like a date. “Sounds fun. But I need to get cleaned up first.”
“No problem.”
She tucked a lock of hair behind her ear and led the way to her door. Inside, Bitsy raced around her legs, barking excitedly. David scooped him up and scratched him behind the ears. Meredith hurried to her bedroom and shut the door.
After stripping off her work clothes and tossing them into a hamper, she jumped in the shower. Fifteen minutes later, she emerged from the bathroom and dressed, putting on a violet chenille sweater and black cotton pants. Quickly braiding her hair into a French braid, she tied the end with a purple ribbon. After a light touch of makeup, she took a deep breath and opened her bedroom door.
Meredith found David on his back on the floor, roughhousing with Bitsy, who was loving every minute of it. When he saw her, David got to his feet and glanced to his watch.
“That was quick.”
“I didn’t want to make you late. I know you have a deadline.”
He brushed off the front of his pants. “Actually, we’re a bit ahead of schedule. But that’s good. There’ll be more to see that way.”
“Where’s your cameraman? Is he meet
ing us at the event?”
David gave her a quizzical look. Does she think I’m working? Uh oh. Moral dilemma. Should he tell her this was a purely social occasion? A carefully planned event with a maximum of romance potential? He decided to avoid answering her all together, reluctant to risk her changing her mind. He was surprised she’d agreed to come in the first place.
“Should we bring Bitsy?” he said, changing the subject. David bent over and picked up the dog. “You want to see the hot air balloons, huh, pooch?”
Bitsy barked. Meredith shook her head, smiling. “I don’t think so.”
“Well, then. Are you ready?” At her nod, he deposited Bitsy onto the floor and led the way out the door, waiting while she locked up.
They rode in his Jeep. David had purchased deli sandwiches and bottled water for a light meal on the road. While they ate, he asked how Meredith liked her new job, hoping to maintain this fragile, if unexpected, peace—and to keep her mind off his lack of a cameraman.
“I’m really enjoying it. Of course, some of the medical conditions the kids are dealing with break my heart. But they’re amazingly tough and resilient. The kids don’t complain nearly as much as the adults did in the Med-Surg unit.”
“Was I a whiner? I barely remember much of my stay there.”
She smiled. “No, you were a good patient when I had you.”
David suddenly wanted to ask her about her Yuppie ex-boyfriend and find out if she was over him, but didn’t dare. She might demand he take her back home.
Instead, he told her stories of behind-the-scene shenanigans and snafus at the station, watching with satisfaction when she visibly relaxed. They arrived at a huge field a short time later. Dozens of pickups and sport utility vehicles towing small trailers parked in one area. In the middle of the field, people worked with balloons in various stages of readiness.
David parked and together, he and Meredith walked over to watch. They joined a group of spectators. He explained about hot air balloons, enjoying the way her gaze rested on his face.
Dearly Loved Page 14
