Unexpected Gift(55)

He sighs. “Alexander, Dr. Jackson. For the hundredth time,” he says frustrated. He has every right to be, I ask him every time.

“Well, since you want to give me attitude. You.” I point to the other guy. “What’s your name?”

“Dr. Inkling, sir.”

Right. He has the weird last name. I can remember that. “Close up for me, will you?”

His eyes light up like I just gave him keys to a brand new Porsche. “Are you serious? By myself?”

“Can you handle that? I have somewhere I need to be.” I whip off my gloves and toss them in the trash.

“Yes, sir. Right away, sir.”

“Inkling? Relax.”

“Yes, sir.” Even from behind the mask I can see him smiling. His joy is infectious. I love interns just for that reason.

“When I see this patient again, I want to be impressed with the suture line. Don’t scar him to filth.”

“Not a problem, Dr. Jackson.”

“Excellent. And Dr. Alexander? You’re off my service.” I rush through the O.R. door and sigh and lean my back against the wall opposite of the surgery. I take my scrub cap off, well Brandon’s cap. It was his very first cap. It is bright pink with little red hearts all over it. He said Amelia got it for him for Valentine’s Day the first year they were doctors.

I rub my finger over the heart that has Amelia’s initials on it. He did that. He was such a sap for her, and he wanted everyone to know it.

“Dr. Jackson? Are you okay?”

I shove the cap in my pocket and look up to see Nancy, an older nurse with white hair and kind, blue eyes. She has a mother’s expression on her face. The corner of her eyes wrinkle with concern. “Hi, Nancy. I’m fine, just missing an old friend is all.”

She places her aged hand on my arm and pats my hand with the other. “If you ever want to talk about it, I’ll lend an ear. I was with my Henry for thirty years. God rest his soul, he died two years back.”

“Oh, I’m so sorry, Nancy. I know what that’s like. I just lost my best friend. About a month ago.”

She gasps. “Oh, dear. Still so new and fresh. You poor thing. Well, if you ever want to talk, you know where to find me.”

“Yes, ma’am.” I take the first step down the hall, but before I leave, I kiss her hand. “Thank you.”

She squeezes my hand one last time before walking away, disappearing down the hall. I don’t bother showering or any of that because I am ready to get the hell out of the hospital and go home to see my girls.

My shoes slide against the floor when I try to stop so suddenly. Holy shit. I called them my girls. Do I really feel that way? My phone buzzes and I reach into my pocket to see a message from Molly saying Kenna is coming over. I want to ask about her parents, but we haven’t heard from them since Brandon’s funeral. It pisses me off, but I can’t force them to want to see their grandkid.

Twenty-minutes later, I park the car in the driveway and notice a teal car parked next to Molly’s. “Great.” Kenna is already here. I like Kenna, kind of. Alright, I tolerate her at best. She is loud and curses more than a sailor. Oh, and she smokes. No matter how many times we tell her it is bad for her and can kill her, she doesn’t seem to care. You know who will care?

Molly.

And Molly can’t lose someone else.

Kenna opens the door, and her loud boots clank against the porch. She has on a bright yellow, leather jacket, red pants, and a black T-shirt. Her arms are crossed. And she has a real pissed off look about her. Awesome.

I step out of the car and greet her. “Kenna. So great to see you.”

“Aw, don’t lie Caden. You hate that I’m here.”

“Honesty isn’t always the best policy, Kenna.” We are going to fight while she is here. I feel that. It is inevitable when great minds think alike. I’ll never tell her that, about the great mind part.

I try to get by her, but she blocks my way. I pinch the bridge of my nose, not in the mood for this dance. “Kenna, I haven’t taken a shower in my own house in two weeks. I’ve cut tumors, found cancer, lost three patients, and clipped like twenty aneurysms. I have slept on a lumpy cot in the on-call room, and I haven’t seen them yet. I want to see Posie and Molly. When I say, I’m not in the mood for this, you should really believe me.”

She kicks the heel of her boot on the porch and chuffs, hiding a chuckle. “She told me you know.”

That makes me snap my eyes from my feet.

“You didn’t expect that, did you? She talks to me you know. I know you think our friendship is stupid and pointless, because she is so much better than someone like me—”

“Woah, I do not think that at all.”

“Anyway, she told me. I had to beat it out of her, but know this, Caden. If you hurt her,” she takes a step forward to invade my space. I’ve never felt fear when it came to a woman, but Kenna is different. She knows people that can make my body disappear, so yeah, there is a part of me that is a little nervous. She whispers in my ear. “I will make sure you will never operate again.” She takes a step back and puts her hands in her back pocket.

I never knew a woman could pack a punch as hard as Kenna. “I don’t want to hurt her. I never want to hurt her. It’s supposed to be her and me. It’s just going to take a while to break through to her. She pushes me away. Right when I think I’m getting close, she pushes.”