Page 34 of French Kiss
Glancing over to his young nurse, I observe a faint red hue upon her cheeks and grin. Hell, I’m well aware I’m not their usual patient. Young, fit, and covered in ink. “Thank you, doctor. I can’t tell you how much I appreciate all you did for me. It was a shock to find out I had to have surgery. But you made everything so easy.”
You and Jillian.
The thought instantly takes me back to Luigi’s the other night. How I’d yearned to ask her out after finding out her husband was no longer in the picture. But alas, Matteo’s right. There’s no sense pursuing someone with kids. This woman’s not the kind you have a random hookup with.
She’s the type you beg to never leave.
“I appreciate you saying that. If you ever need anything, you know where to find me.”
“Don’t take this personal, doc. But between you and me, I hope I don’t need you to come to my rescue again.” I laugh.
“No offense taken.”
I head for the door and realize the entire visit lasted less than ten minutes. That Dr. Westonisthe best surgeon around. My mind, again, drifts to the pretty nurse who’d uttered those wordsto me in the emergency room, and I feel an unusual tug in my chest.
I start walking in the direction of my SUV when I catch something out of the corner of my eye.
Scratch that, not something…someone.
The very nurse my mind keeps harking back to is pacing in front of the emergency room entrance with her phone to her ear. Her stride appears frantic, walking one direction for a few feet before abruptly turning to retrace her steps. Unable to stop myself, I find my feet propelling me in her direction.
As I get closer, I observe as she drops her arms by her sides and her head falls back. She looks to be in silent prayer with the heavens above.
“Jillian,” I greet cautiously. I don’t want to scare her.
“Oh, Luke. Hi.” She blinks, seeming confused for a few moments. “What are you doing here?”
The use of my alias causes me to internally recoil. I hate lying to someone as genuinely kind as she is. “I was here for a follow up visit with Dr. Weston.” I take a step closer, concerned. “Are you okay? You seem troubled.” She looks visibly upset. Her sweet, rosy disposition is gone and in its place is one of panic.
She looks down at her feet, perhaps contemplating whether she wants to share her personal issues with a mere stranger. “The daycare just called. Truitt has pink eye. I need to go pick him up, and he can’t come back until he’s been on antibiotics for twenty-four hours.”
I stand quietly, allowing her to share her troubles. I’m not sure I understand the issue. “You don’t have transportation?”
“No, no. I do. And he’s just over there.” Jillian points across the parking lot toward a small, free-standing brick building with a child friendly sign placed at the entrance. It’s too far for me to read, but I assume it’s her daycare. “The problem is, I can’t leave. I only have like an hour more to go. But my boss has it out forme. I’ve missed too much time over the last few years, and even just leaving an hour early is more than I’m willing to risk asking for.”
“The daycare can’t wait just one hour?”
“They have. This is the second time they’ve called. I kept hoping I could come up with a solution, but my mother is away, and my brother isn’t picking up the phone.” Her voice is starting to crack, and I worry she might cry. There’s no way in hell I could handle watching this sweet woman cry.
“I can do it.”
“What?”
“Let me go get him.”
Jillian stares at me, appearing almost catatonic. I’m sure she’s considering the very thing I just thought moments ago.I’m a mere stranger.
“Look, I know you barely know me at all. There’s no reason to trust me with your child. But you were so incredibly kind to me when I was here. Stuck your neck out when you didn’t have to. I just want to repay the favor.”
She continues blinking at me wordlessly.
“How about this? I’ll pick him up and bring him back here. We’ll have a nice walk in the hospital. Have a snack in the cafeteria. Stroll over to the pond. Whatever you prefer. You’ll be able to see us the whole time. I’d offer to keep him in the waiting room, but after being there… well, I don’t think it’s a good place for a bambino unless he’s sick.”
The tiniest uplift of the corner of her mouth is reassuring. “Here, give me your phone. I’ll give you my number and then we can FaceTime. Just turn off the volume and keep it on in your pocket so you can keep checking in on us. I will have him close enough you can run to meet us if you get the slightest bit nervous.”
“Luke. It’s nothing against you. I have no reason not to trust you. It just feels crazy letting someone I barely know pick up my son. Besides, they probably won’t let him leave with you.”
I chuckle. “Oh, they’ll let me have him. No worries there.” By her facial expression, this only seems to make her more wary. “I’m very persuasive. But I’ll put you on the phone with them so you can reassure them we’ll be on hospital grounds until you get off work.”