Emergency: Christmas

He was still staring at her with those oddly pale eyes. Penelope’s eyes weren’t pale. What was it Jeremy had said? It hadn’t been long after she’d met him for the first time. She had been doing the cricoid pressure on an intubation that Jeremy had been called in for. A very obese woman who’d suffered a major stroke. That had been a difficult case to intubate as well and their heads had been very close together at one stage during the procedure. Successfully completed, Penelope had been assisting in tying the endotracheal tube firmly into place and Jeremy had caught her eye. His voice had been low enough not to be overheard by the other staff members nearby.

‘Do you realise,’ he’d murmured, ‘that your eyes are exactly the colour of the delphiniums my mother used to grow in her garden?’ Jeremy had smiled at her, holding the eye contact for another split second. His final comment had been almost inaudible. ‘My favourite flowers.’

Penelope recorded the baseline heart and respiration rate she had now completed on Aaron Jacobs. She had the feeling her own rates had just increased significantly thanks to the direction of her straying thoughts. She turned her attention firmly back to the task in hand.

‘Do you have any other medical conditions you’re being treated for, Aaron?’

‘Asthma,’ he responded. ‘I’ve got a Ventolin inhaler but I don’t need it very often.’

‘Anything else?’

‘No.’

‘Are you allergic to any medications?’

‘No.’

‘How bad is the pain in your wrist at the moment?’

‘Pretty bad.’

‘On a scale of zero to ten, with zero being no pain and ten being the worst you could imagine, what score would you give it?’

‘About an eight.’

‘OK. I’ll see about getting you something to help with that. You’re going to need your wrist X-rayed to make sure you haven’t broken anything and then a doctor will come and see you.’ Penelope pulled back the cubicle curtain. ‘You might have a bit of a wait, I’m afraid. We’re quite busy today.’

‘That’s cool. I don’t mind waiting. Will you come back to look after me?’

‘I’ll be back as soon as I’ve organised some pain relief for you. There’s a buzzer beside the bed if you need it and I won’t be too far away. I’ve got other patients I need to take care of as well.’

Aaron settled back onto his pillow. ‘Leave the curtain open, won’t you?’ he requested. ‘That way I’ll be able to see you when you go past.’

Penelope complied, although she didn’t much like the thought of Aaron Jacobs watching out for her. She would try and make sure she didn’t need to go past cubicle 10 too often. Penelope almost smiled wryly at the thought. If it had been Jeremy in cubicle 10 she would have been walking past as often as possible—like she did when he was in the emergency department and she hadn’t been lucky enough to be involved in whatever case he had been called in for. She enjoyed providing a distraction almost as much as working with the man. Funny how you knew when someone was watching you even when you were being deliberately casual and not looking in their direction.

Penelope headed for cubicle 2. Perhaps Mrs Jennings was back from her ultrasound now and the provisional diagnosis of fibroids had been confirmed, which would explain the profuse intermenstrual bleeding the middle-aged woman was experiencing. Mrs Jennings was probably going to need admission in any case due to her severe anaemia. Cubicle 2 was still empty but Penelope took a minute to tidy up. Packaging and used IV supplies had been discarded on top of the locker after IV fluid replacement had been initiated. It was easy to let her attention wander again from such an automatic task.

Penelope’s thoughts had come full circle now. On balance, she did believe that Jeremy found her attractive. Maybe even beautiful. She hadn’t believed it at first. A lot of new doctors were inclined to flirt and it took time to decide whether that was simply the way they treated all the women in their orbit. Jeremy had never made any personal comments to other nurses that Penelope had overheard, however, and Belinda had told her he’d never shown the slightest interest in her. Surely if Jeremy was that way inclined then Penelope’s flatmate would have been a prime target. Belinda was gorgeous—tall and slim, with the combination of a long mane of red-gold hair and bright green eyes that were enough to send most male newcomers into a spin.

Yes. Penelope had every reason to believe that, for some obscure reason, Jeremy had singled her out to feel special...and she did. For the first time in longer than Penelope cared to remember she felt special, attractive. Desirable, even... And it felt so good. Greg’s blatant rejection in favour of what’s-her-name had been the last of a long run of romantic disasters. Penelope’s self-esteem and any belief in her desirability had hit rock bottom with a resounding clunk. It was no wonder she had fallen in love with Jeremy.

Penelope stopped with a lurch, halfway to the rubbish bin, her hands full of empty packaging. The inside of a used-up roll of tape fell and bounced on the linoleum. Was she actually in love with Jeremy Lane? In love with a man she hadn’t even kissed? Penelope thought about that tingle she got every time she heard his voice. The way her skin could feel when he was watching her. That feeling that was a bit more than a tingle—the one that always started low down in her abdomen when their eyes made contact. She could feel it now, just thinking about it, and it was strong enough to be unmistakable. Sheer physical desire. Penelope knew herself well enough to know she didn’t feel that way unless she was seriously in love.

The rubbish fitted neatly into the bin and Penelope stooped to retrieve the cardboard ring left over from the roll of adhesive tape. Yes. She was definitely in love with Jeremy and it was time things moved ahead. It shouldn’t be difficult if his attraction to her was genuine. Maybe Belinda was right. Or sort of right. There was no way Penelope could take the initiative by asking him out. That would be risking a rejection that could possibly be even more painful than Greg’s defection. There had to be a way of setting up an opportunity that Jeremy couldn’t miss—not just one that he wouldn’t want to miss. Not if he felt the same way she did. Belinda was bound to have some good ideas.

Penelope’s quick scan confirmed that cubicle 2 was acceptably tidy. She would see about some medication for Aaron Jacobs and if Mrs Jennings still wasn’t back from her ultrasound she’d grab a few minutes for a coffee. With a bit of luck, Belinda might be having a quiet spell and they could talk. That way Penelope wouldn’t have to wait until she got home that night to hatch a plan. She didn’t want to wait. Buoyed by her analysis of Jeremy’s genuine interest, Penelope felt a new confidence blooming. The time was right. The man was right. All that was needed was a way of pulling it all together.

Disappointingly, Belinda was heading away from the staffroom when Penelope arrived ten minutes later.

‘I was hoping to catch you. Have you finished your break?’

‘Nope. Just starting.’ Belinda held up a polystyrene cup full of coffee. ‘I’ve got ten minutes. I’m heading outside for a spot of fresh air. My last patient was a rectal bleed.’

‘Yuck.’ Penelope grimaced sympathetically. The smell that accompanied such a patient was as distinctive as it was unpleasant. ‘I’ll get my water out of the fridge and join you. I could do with some fresh air myself.’

The view of an overcrowded car park was not attractive and the breeze was chilly, but it was always good to escape completely if only briefly during a busy shift. It gave them a chance to forget professional matters for a few minutes. It was also a chance for Penelope to pay attention to her more personal preoccupation.

‘I think you’re right, Bindy,’ she announced.

‘Of course I am.’ Belinda grinned. ‘What about, in particular?’

‘Jeremy. It’s time to do something.’

Belinda raised an eyebrow. ‘You’re going to ask him out?’

‘No way.’ Penelope shook her head decisively. ‘He’s going to ask me out. I just need to set it up.’ Her smile was hopeful. ‘I’m sure he will. If he wasn’t interested he wouldn’t say the things he does. And he wouldn’t keep giving me those looks.’

‘Hmm.’ Belinda didn’t sound convinced. ‘He could be toying with you, you know. He might just be playing the game of getting you interested to prove to himself that he still has what it takes. He’s no spring chicken.’

‘He’s not exactly old. Thirty-eight maybe. Or forty.’

‘Probably forty-five,’ Belinda decided. ‘Grey hairs are less obvious on blonds.’ She sipped her coffee thoughtfully. ‘I suppose he’s not bad-looking but he’s not the only one. That new registrar of ours isn’t bad either. What’s his name?’

‘Mark Wallace.’ Penelope shrugged. She hadn’t taken much notice of Mark in the few days he’d been in the department. He had certainly performed impressively this morning, however, with the emergency procedure on the young paraglider. Penelope was easily diverted. ‘How’s Richard doing? Have you heard?’

‘He’s in Intensive Care. Apparently the CT scan didn’t show up any major brain damage or injury to the trachea and the swelling is going down with the ice packs and anti-inflammatory treatment. They’re going to set the fractures later today and they’ll take him off ventilation as soon as they’re sure the swelling is under control. I think he’s going to be fine.’

‘That’s fantastic.’ Penelope’s smile was very satisfied. ‘He could have died. Great case, wasn’t it?’

‘Yeah.’ Belinda drained her coffee-cup, checked her watch and sighed. ‘Two more minutes. I’m ready to go home.’

Penelope sighed as well. Belinda hadn’t been as supportive as she’d hoped so far. ‘What am I going to do, Bindy? About Jeremy, I mean?’

‘Let him think you haven’t got the slightest interest in him,’ Belinda advised. ‘Find someone else. There’s a new rotation of house-surgeons in there. Some of them are quite tasty.’

‘Bindy!’ Penelope would have been genuinely shocked if she hadn’t known her friend so well. She still shook her head in mild disapproval. ‘You can’t go round eyeing up every man that comes into the emergency department as a potential plaything.’

‘Why not? You can bet your boots that’s exactly what they’re doing to us.’ Belinda crumpled the polystyrene cup. ‘Come on. Back to the salt mines.’

‘I don’t want to just play.’ Penelope followed Belinda reluctantly. ‘I want something real.’

‘And you really think that Jeremy is the real thing?’

Penelope’s nod was solemn.

‘In that case, you need to spend some time away from work with him. Have a few drinks somewhere. Meet up at a party.’

Penelope nodded again, more happily this time, as the nurses skirted the car park. This sounded like a plan, though not an easily implemented one.