The Surgeon's Favorite Nurse

by Teresa Southwick

  Susan looked impressed. “You mean I could do online banking while being laid up?”

  “Yes.” Hope smiled. “While someone is trying to get well, they shouldn’t have to feel trapped and worry about the bills getting paid. The hospital looks at healing from a three-pronged approach—mind, body, spirit.”

  “This is pretty amazing.”

  When there was nothing left to see in the main building, Hope offered to accompany the woman to the health fair outside under the tent.

  “That’s not necessary. I’ve already taken up too much of your time.”

  Hope told herself that looking after Jake’s mom was nothing more than politeness to a nice woman who happened to be related to her boss. It was all about doing a good job because the job was all she had.

  “I don’t mind,” she said.

  “You’re a sweetie, but I think shepherding an old lady is above and beyond the call of duty.”

  “No, it’s not. And you’re not old. I’ve enjoyed showing off what we’re doing.”

  “It’s certainly impressive. And I’d like to thank you for taking me under your wing.” She tapped her lip thoughtfully. “Jake tells me you’re staying at the Residence Inn, practically living out of a suitcase.”

  “Well, I—”

  The woman continued, “Eating out all the time isn’t good for you,” she warned. “Too much salt is bad for your blood pressure. I’d like to fix you a home-cooked meal.”

  “That’s too much. I don’t want you to go to any trouble,” Hope protested.

  “Jake can barbecue. It relaxes him. Or so he says. Please say yes, Hope.”

  This woman’s genuine warmth melted the ice inside her and opened up a chasm of emptiness that Hope had only begun to realize was there. Jake had tapped into it first. Just the mention of his name intensified the loneliness until she didn’t have the emotional reserves to say no.

  Surely two years of soul-deep aloneness atoned for her sin. Just once in the light wasn’t a punishable offense, was it? The price for protecting herself was to be by herself and right this minute, that price was too high.

  Before she could talk herself out of it, Hope said, “Thank you, Susan. I’d love to join you for dinner.”

  Chapter Ten

  At Mercy Medical Center, Jake walked into the E.R. doctor’s lounge and poured himself a cup of coffee from the pot. This small room tucked away from the bustle of the trauma bays was an oasis of serenity with gray-brown Formica countertops and generic linoleum floors. A rectangular table stood in the center of the room with four metal folding chairs around it. Along with the never-ending coffee, there were stale cinnamon rolls on a paper plate. When you were too busy to grab a meal, that rock-hard pastry could taste like the best steak at Delmonico’s.

  Just as he took a sip from his mug, the cell phone clipped to his scrubs vibrated. He leaned back against the counter and looked at the display before answering.

  “Hi, Mom.”

  “I hope I’m not interrupting you.”

  “Nope. I just got out of surgery. Repairing a lacerated liver.”

  “That sounds bad. How did it go?” she asked.

  “The patient is young and in exceptional shape so the prognosis is good. He should do fine. And he’ll be more careful the next time he rides his skateboard off the curb and pretends it’s a half pipe.”

  “I’m glad it went well,” his mother said. “And that I’m not catching you at a bad time.”

  “I’m between traumas. Paramedics are on the way.”

  “So you are busy. I should let you go,” she protested.

  “I’ve got a few minutes. Mitch will do the initial eval. He’ll holler if he needs me. What’s up?”

  Something was, because when he was on call Susan Andrews didn’t bother him unless there was a good reason.

  He straightened away from the counter. “Is everything okay, Mom?”

  “Hopefully.” She laughed a little nervously. “And speaking of Hope, she’s like a breath of fresh air, a ray of sunshine. Don’t you think?”

  “Yeah.”

  Hearing Hope’s name produced an image in his head of her sparkling eyes and the amused, yet mysterious, smile that curved up the corners of her full mouth. That put a hitch in his breathing.

  “Yeah?” his mother echoed, uncertainty in her voice. “I was going for a more enthusiastic reaction. You’re going to be really upset with me. Don’t worry. I can get you out of it. You’re on call. I can just say that you got hung up at the hospital. I’m sorry I bothered you—”

  “Whoa, Mom.” What the heck was she talking about? “Did something happen with you and Hope after I left?”

  “Not in a bad way. She was so charming and gracious that I invited her to dinner. And volunteered you to do the grilling,” she added. “But it’s all right if you don’t want to. I wasn’t matchmaking. Honestly. I just had a spontaneous thought and the words came out of my mouth. And I—”

  “Take a breath, Mom.”

  “Okay.”

  There was silence on the other end of the phone and he assumed she was breathing. He needed to take his own advice because this unexpected good news made him want to pump his arm and holler from the top of the hospital’s bell tower. The reaction would seem out of proportion to his mother and he didn’t have time for the long, sad, frustrating story. Along with giving him life and unwavering support, she’d just given him the gift of time with Hope. He needed to reassure her that this couldn’t be more okay with him.

  “Not a problem, Mom. You know I like to grill.”

  “That’s what I told Hope. That it relaxes you.”

  With Hope in close proximity relaxation was a challenge, unless he had her in his arms.

  “What time?” he asked casually.

  “She’s coming about six-thirty. But you do what you have to at the hospital.”

  “I’ll be there, Mom. Or I’ll call,” he added, not wanting to sound too eager. Nothing short of a disaster could keep him away.

  “Okay. Bye, sweetheart.”

  Hot damn! If he’d known his mother was the secret weapon to hanging out with Hope, he’d have used her sooner. Before he could take that thought further, the door opened and Mitch walked in.

  His partner looked at him, then did a double take. “Good news?”

  “What makes you say that?”

  “You look—” Mitch’s eyes narrowed suspiciously. “I don’t know. Happy?”

  “What makes you think that?”

  “You’re smiling.”

  “I’m always happy.”

  “And politicians always tell it like it is.” Mitch, the world’s greatest skeptic, settled his hands on his hips.

  “Is there some reason I shouldn’t smile?”

  A frown darkened Mitch’s already-intense blue eyes. “As a matter of fact—”

  Jake’s trauma-sense started tingling. “What’s wrong?”

  “Ashley says you dumped Blair Havens.”

  “Take that out of the rumor column and put it under fact,” Jake confirmed. “So what?”

  “That’s not actually the rumor I meant. All the way home from your party last night Sam couldn’t stop talking about you and Hope. There wouldn’t be a you and Hope if Blair was still in the picture.”

  “Thanks for the vote of confidence. But how does Sam know there’s a me and Hope?” Besides the fact that she was a mind reader.

  “Damned if I know,” Mitch answered, shaking his head. “Maybe because she’s a woman. Maybe it’s her job and she’s good at it. Whatever. She’s convinced that the last bachelor standing won’t be standing very much longer.”

  “That’s a pretty big leap.”

  “I said the same thing. But my wife was willing to put money on it,” Mitch commented.

  “A bet on my love life?”

  “It’s Vegas.” Mitch shrugged. “Don’t get me wrong. I like Hope. If she makes you happy, I’m happy.” But he didn’t look it.

  Jake’s bad fe
eling went viral. “Quit stalling. What’s up?”

  “No point in sugarcoating this. There’s talk around the hospital that the board of directors is rethinking your appointment to trauma medical director.”

  “Where did that come from?” Jake demanded.

  “Your guess is as good as mine. No one ever knows where the talk starts, but I’ve got a hunch it’s leaked from Havens’s office.”

  Jake felt himself start to do a slow burn. “Ed Havens gave me a contract.”

  “Signed?”

  “It’s going through legal now. But there’s a verbal agreement. And he announced it publicly.” The same night Jake had kissed Hope for the first time. The same night he’d realized that not breaking things off with Blair would be a mistake.

  Mitch sighed. “Any lawyer will tell you there’s a world of difference between verbal and signed.”

  “I’m the best candidate for the job. No one wants it more or has worked harder.”

  “Does that hard work include going out with the guy’s daughter to tilt the scales in your favor?”

  Jake felt a burst of anger roll through him. “Let’s be clear. I didn’t date Blair to get the appointment from her father.”

  “I believe you. I’m just repeating the talk. Forewarned is forearmed.” Mitch held up his hands to signal peace. “A word of warning… Ed Havens isn’t just a powerful man. He’s also vindictive. He won’t take his daughter’s public breakup well and we both know it.”

  Jake started to protest when Mitch looked at the pager on his scrubs’ waistband. “Paramedics just rolled in. One of the vics has belly trauma. I’ll order an MRI.”

  “I’m right behind you.”

  When he was alone, Jake took several deep breaths to clear out the anger and frustration. He hadn’t asked Blair out to stack the career deck in his favor. She was beautiful and fun. It had seemed like a good idea at the time. And if he was being honest with himself, he’d known the relationship had a short shelf life, although he’d kept hoping he was wrong.

  There’d been a part of him reluctant to let go, but he realized now that a lot of it was about the poor boy getting the prom queen. He’d let things go on too long because there was no reason to alter the status quo. He’d had everything to gain, nothing to lose.

  Until Hope.

  One look at her had changed his life and he was still trying to figure out if that was a good thing.

  Susan Andrews lived in a beautiful condominium community in Summerlin, not far from her son. After being buzzed through the gate, Hope followed verbal commands from the rental car’s GPS to find her way. The houses in this development were actually duplexes, she realized. They shared a common wall.

  The properties she passed were all beautifully landscaped and well-lighted. It made her think of Jake’s house, the time she’d ended up in his bed. She couldn’t say that was the worst night of her life, but there was no doubt in her mind it had been a mistake.

  That unexpected passion had ignited without warning and reminded her of what she was missing. Remembering simply made her regret what she couldn’t have, so it was best to forget about it.

  She’d come here tonight for two reasons. She hadn’t been able to make herself say no and it would be rude not to show up.

  Hope parked at the curb when the GPS announced the destination on her right. The stucco was painted chocolate brown, with a cream-colored trim. In front of the house, smooth rocks formed a dry riverbed and flat stone steps created a path from the street to the sidewalk leading to the entrance. Within a few artistically displayed mounds of rocks, lantana bushes protruded.

  Right now they were nothing but sticks. She’d been told that these plants looked lifeless in the winter, but spring revived them in brilliant and vivid shades of gold, yellow and purple. Again she was sad that she wouldn’t be there to see spring in Las Vegas. It occurred to her that she was the opposite of winter lantana—outwardly alive but dead inside. The difference was that she had no wish to be revived. She didn’t want to come back to life and risk hurting so badly that she would die inside again.

  Blowing out a deep breath, she walked past two cars in the driveway. One of them she recognized. Apparently repairs had been made to it since the night she’d given Jake a ride home. A night she would take back if she could. The other was a hybrid compact.

  She stopped on the covered porch and knocked. Seconds later she heard footsteps inside, just before the door opened.

  “Hope,” Susan said, smiling. “Welcome. Come in.”

  “Thank you.” She saw Jake, leaning against a railing in the entryway where stairs went up to the second story. He looked casual and handsome in worn jeans and a long-sleeved navy cotton shirt. Her pulse raced as she said, “Hi.”

  “Did you have any trouble finding the place?” One of his dark eyebrows lifted, probably because he knew she knew he didn’t live far and she’d found her way to his place. Twice.

  “Olga got me here without a hitch.”

  “Who?” he asked.

  “The GPS. It’s voice-directed. Female voice. Sometimes she sounds sort of Ukrainian, so I named her Olga.”

  He straightened and folded his arms over his chest. “You know, I have some influence at the hospital. A psych evaluation could be arranged.”

  “Don’t pay any attention to him, Hope. He calls his GPS Tiffani with an i.” Susan was looking slim and fit in tailored gray slacks and a black cashmere sweater that highlighted her blond hair. “Don’t you have steaks to cook?” she asked her son.

  “Yes. Big, thick filets. I’ll get right on that.”

  He disappeared around the corner and Hope wanted so badly to follow. Instead she smiled at her hostess. “This is a lovely neighborhood.”

  “Thanks. I really like it.” She slid her hands into the pockets of her slacks. “Would you like to see the place?”

  “Very much.”

  “Follow me.”

  They walked straight ahead into a room with floor-to-ceiling windows along the back that looked out on the lights of the Las Vegas Strip. It had a fireplace on one wall with a celery green microfiber corner group arranged in front.

  “Family room,” Susan pointed out. “The kitchen is there.”

  Hope figured it for the kitchen, what with the granite-topped work island, cook top, oven and refrigerator. The bonus was the unobstructed view of Jake’s excellent backside as he bent to retrieve something from inside.

  “Don’t mind me,” he said, without looking at them. “Dinner will be about a half hour. The steaks will take a while, which is good. I have a lot to relax from.”

  “Take your time, sweetheart. The dining room is through that doorway,” Susan said to Hope.

  She peeked inside at the beautiful cherrywood hutch, buffet and matching formal table. Three place settings were arranged with simple platinum-trimmed white china and silver. Cloth napkins. The chairs were covered in a chocolate-colored nubby material.

  “It’s lovely,” Hope said.

  “Wait until you see the upstairs.”

  Her hostess showed her into the master bedroom with a walk-in closet big enough to house a family of four. An oak sleigh bed dominated one wall with a matching dresser and armoire arranged around the perimeter. White shutters complemented the crown molding and gave it a simple, clean look.

  The bathroom was spacious and bright with its marble countertops and tile floor. Gold fixtures added an elegance and charm that reflected Susan Andrews.

  “There are two other bedrooms and my office up here.”

  Susan guided her through the expertly coordinated rooms and they sat on the hunter green and maroon love seat in the last one. Clearly it was a home office with a desk, computer and file cabinet. The stack of papers and folders told her it was a working office and not just for show.

  “May I ask what kind of work do you do?” she said.

  “I own a cleaning service business. Maid to Order. I have ten crews of two people who do commercial buildings and
residences.”

  Hope noticed the abundance of paperwork and said, “It looks like business is thriving.”

  “Yes.” Susan glanced at the desk and nodded. “Thank goodness. I’m grateful to keep my people employed.”

  Hope could tell by the tone that she felt a deep responsibility to her employees. “How did you get into the business?”

  “Necessity is the mother of invention. I married too young and had Jake right away. I had no skills or training for any kind of job outside the home. But when my husband walked out on us, I needed to make money. All I knew how to do was clean.”

  Susan shrugged as if it was that simple, but Hope remembered the look on Jake’s face when he told her about being homeless.

  “That must have been hard on you,” she said. “Jake told me what happened.”

  “If it was just me—” Susan stopped and swallowed hard. “Jake was about twelve or thirteen when we lost the house. I can’t even begin to understand how hard it was on him. But he helped me clean other people’s homes and never once complained.”

  Hope remembered his telling her that when you work to keep a roof over your head it’s hard to make friends. That must have been incredibly lonely for him, she thought as her heart squeezed tight. But all he’d said was that there was more time to study and he earned scholarships.

  “I can’t even imagine what you went through. Jake told me a little about it. He said you went to the high school. To make sure he didn’t miss out on an education. Because of your situation,” she added.

  “It was the lowest point of all. Humiliating to tell strangers that you couldn’t take care of your child,” Susan said, her mouth pulling tight. “But as bad as it was for me, it was a hundred times worse for Jake.”

  “He didn’t talk much about that,” Hope commented.

  “To their credit the teachers and administrators tried to be discreet. Every Friday they sent him home with a backpack filled with snacks for the weekend, to make sure he had enough to eat. A child can’t learn if he’s hungry. But the kids all knew who had money and who didn’t.”