by Laura Burton
Not that it had made much difference to his marriage. His wife had apparently enjoyed the company and body of a younger man more than she’d enjoyed his. He’d stumbled upon them one day when he’d come home early. By the time they’d heard him, it was too late to hide, and the whole sorry story came tumbling out. He’d been too shocked to say a lot at the time; it had all come out months later in a torrent of grief and rage that frightened even him.
But that was almost two years ago. The memories still hurt, but Pat was ready to look on the lighter side of life again. He wanted to slow down and enjoy living in a smaller town, away from the hustle and stress of life in New York. He’d always wanted to move to a regional area and take life at a slower pace, but Virginia loved the city and hadn’t wanted to move. Now, with his divorce finalized and no reason to stay in New York, he was free to go wherever he wanted. This offer had been the perfect opportunity to start a new life; he was looking forward to it more than he’d thought. He wondered what the day would bring, and found himself eager to face new challenges and meet new people.
Jennifer ducked her head as the new surgeon walked in the door. She could feel the heat rising in her face as the humiliating memories of the day before flooded into her mind.
“Good morning, Jennifer!” Pat greeted her cheerfully.
“Good morning,” she replied cautiously, trying not to notice how his muscles filled out the sleeves of his blue shirt. Stay professional, she reminded herself.
“So, what do you have for me to do today?” Pat asked, coming around to stand beside her as she sat at her computer.
She could feel the heat radiating off his body as he stood close. Or was that her own face on fire? “These are the appointments,” she said, handing him a piece of paper. “You’ll be able to log onto the computer in your office using these credentials. Then you can look at the files.”
“That sounds good to me,” he said. “Which office will I be using?”
Jennifer rose to her feet and led him to Annette’s office. A pang went through her as she thought of Annette, about to leave for California for treatment. Would they ever see her again?
“This is your office,” Jennifer told him. “There’s an examination room that leads off it. Everything you need should be there, but if you can’t find something, let one of us know and we’ll point you in the right direction.”
“Thank you, Jennifer,” Pat said. “That should keep me busy. I won’t be wandering around the streets causing trouble, after all.”
Jennifer laughed. “The streets should be safe for today,” she agreed. “You’ll have a nurse to help with the procedure that’s booked in at 11. We lost a nurse a few weeks ago, and haven’t found a replacement yet, so we’ve been using temps. Sometimes they don’t turn up, so if that happens, you’ll be stuck with me.”
“Worse things have happened to me,” he grinned, his blue eyes alight with good humor. “Hey, what do you get from a dwarf cow?”
Jennifer looked puzzled. “I don’t know. You tell me.”
“Condensed milk!”
She groaned. “That was terrible!”
“I know,” he said cheerfully. “I can’t help myself.”
As she went back to her computer, Jennifer couldn’t help smiling to herself. Pat hadn’t said a thing about their awkward start yesterday or her humiliating meltdown in front of him. And now he was cracking silly jokes!
But even though she found herself liking him, she still had the problem of the other Pat, who hadn’t yet arrived. Despite a sleepless night, she’d been unable to figure out a way to make it work for both of them to have a full workload, at least in the short-term. The practice was getting busier with an aging population but it would take time and effort to build up the patient numbers enough to support two extra doctors instead of one.
As she mentally wrestled with the problem, the phone rang.
“Oh, hi, Annette,” she said in surprise. “I’ve been trying to contact you.”
“I know. I saw all the missed calls. I accidentally left my phone on silent, which is why you couldn’t get me. I’m about to board my flight so I can’t talk for long.”
“All right. What did you need to talk to me about?”
“I just got a call from Pat. She said you’ve tried to call her several times.”
“Yes. I couldn’t get her.”
Annette sighed. “You’ll never believe what’s happened,” she said. “Pat was all ready to come here a couple of days ago when her elderly father had a stroke. She’s been by his bedside ever since. She won’t be coming to work for you, Jennifer. I’m so sorry. She says she feels terrible about leaving you stranded at the last minute, but she needs to stay with her parents.”
Jennifer opened her mouth to speak but Annette rushed on.
“They’ve just started boarding my plane, so I have to go,” she said.
“Please don’t worry about the clinic,” Jennifer said. “There’s been a surprising turn of events. I’ll tell you about it later. But for now, we’re fine, so just concentrate on getting well.”
As Annette ended the call, Jennifer felt a burden slide from her shoulders. She wouldn’t have to find work for two Pats. Or get her head around working with both of them. All of a sudden, she was deeply grateful for the error that had led Pat the man here. She felt sorry for Pat the woman, of course. It was terrible news that her father was unwell. But just when everything seemed to be falling into chaos, it had worked out better than she could have planned it.
But that still didn’t solve the problem of yet another agency nurse that hadn’t turned up. Jennifer sighed as she got ready to help Pat with the minor procedure that was scheduled for 11. She found herself hoping that they would be able to find another nurse soon. Trying to fill two roles at the clinic was fast wearing thin.
Pat came out to claim his 11.00 patient as Jennifer rose to prepare for the procedure. “Well, good morning, Mrs. Whitby,” he said jovially to the little elderly lady who looked completely terrified over what was about to happen to her.
“Good morning,” she replied in a scared little voice. “Where’s Dr Thomas?”
“Dr Thomas has taken leave,” Pat said smoothly. “I’ll be filling in for her for a while.” He ushered Mrs. Whitby into his office.
Jennifer went to the examination room, waiting to help him with the procedure. She could hear him chatting to Mrs. Whitby, trying to put her at ease.
“Well, now, Mrs. Whitby, you sound like you come from the good land, like me,” he said.
Jennifer could hear the smile in her reply. “I’m from Birmingham,” she said. “But if I’m not mistaken, I think you’re Irish.”
“That I am,” he said good-naturedly. “But you won’t hold that against me, will you? We Brits need to stick together, living here amongst all these Americans!”
Mrs. Whitby laughed, a little tinkling laugh that reminded Jennifer of water drops falling into a stream. “You’re right, young man,” she said. “I’ve been living here for forty years but I’m still British at heart. I always enjoy meeting someone else from our part of the world.”
Jennifer marveled at the way he’d so quickly established a rapport with the old lady.
“Guess what!” she heard him say.
“What?” asked Mrs. Whitby eagerly.
“Yesterday, a woman knocked on my door. She said she was fundraising for the local swimming pool and asked for a donation. So, I gave her a glass of water.”
The old lady laughed out loud, her merriment making Jennifer smile despite another bad joke. It seemed that Pat had a collection of them.
After the procedure, Pat asked Jennifer to go to his desk and retrieve some notes that he’d handwritten. She stepped into the office and was taken aback. The pristine space looked … lived in. Pat’s coat was flung over the back of a chair. Papers were strewn across the desk. A textbook lay face-down next to half a mug of cold coffee and a briefcase stood near the door, along with a pair of running shoes. It
seemed that Pat wasn’t too concerned about tidiness. Or perhaps it was just because he hadn’t had time to settle in yet. Jennifer spent several minutes hunting through the papers on the desk to find the ones that Pat wanted.
“It took longer than I thought,” she said as she handed them to him. “There was a bit of a mess on the desk and I couldn’t find them.”
“Oh, it’s alright,” he assured her. “A little bit of mess is nothing. I’ll clean it up later.”
His blue eyes smiled at her and Jennifer felt her breath catch in her throat. Did he have to be so good-looking? It would’ve been easier to be annoyed with him if he wasn’t.
By the end of the day, Jennifer had to concede that Pat had a talent for creating messes. It seemed that every time he walked through the office, she had to clean up after him. He left notes on the desk and a coffee mug beside the printer. Chaos erupted when he plonked his water bottle on the countertop then swept it off with his elbow, hitting a potted plant in the corner. A paper file somehow found its way into the drugs cabinet and they wasted precious time searching for it. Jennifer was starting to wonder if she would spend the rest of her life dealing with the trail of destruction that he left wherever he went.
But the patients invariably came out of his office happy. Jennifer watched in amazement as they arrived, tense and quiet at the thought of what might be awaiting them. As they emerged from Pat’s office, nearly all were smiling or even laughing. It was a magical transformation that was hard to fathom.
“I like the new surgeon,” Mr. Lang declared. “I never thought I’d enjoy a visit to a bottom doctor so much!”
“Yes, he’s good fun,” Jennifer agreed, feeling bewildered.
As Mr. Lang said goodbye, Pat came out of his office. “That was the last one for the day, wasn’t it?” he asked.
“Yes, no more until 9 am tomorrow.”
“That’s a relief!” he exclaimed. “I thought my supply of jokes was about to run dry.”
Jennifer made a face. “They all came out happy,” she said. “In spite of the jokes.”
“Now, now,” he remonstrated, “my jokes can’t have been that bad. The patients laughed.”
“I guess they thought they’d better laugh considering what you might do to them.”
“I wouldn’t hurt a fly,” he protested.
“No, but you might hurt their little tushes,” she said with a grin. “They know they have to behave and laugh at your jokes so you’ll be good to them.”
“I’m always good,” he said, but there was a wicked twinkle in his eyes.
Jennifer arched her eyebrows. “Always?” she asked.
“Just ask my mother,” he said. “She’ll tell you I only got into trouble every hour or two.”
“That sounds more like it,” she replied. “Did she teach you to clean up after yourself?”
He looked crestfallen for a moment. “Ah, you’ve discovered my secret weakness,” he said.
“I didn’t have to try hard,” Jennifer told him with a smirk. “I’ve been falling over your stuff all day.”
He waved a dismissive arm over the office. “Oh that,” he said breezily. “That’s nothing. You should’ve seen my last office.”
She shuddered. “No thank you,” she said primly.
He grinned. “Gotcha! I can tell you’re a bit of a neat freak.”
“Guilty as charged,” she said, with the hint of a smile.
“I’m glad we’ve got that sorted out,” he said. “You’re tidy and I’m tidy too, just not as much as you.”
She groaned. How could he make his dreadful habits sound so innocent? She suspected that working with him might be a whole lot more than she’d bargained for.
Chapter 4
The week flew by in a whirlwind of what Jennifer described as “Pat-ness.” His presence seemed to fill the clinic with some kind of happy, chaotic magic. The patients left smiling, and Jennifer didn’t know whether to laugh or tear her hair out over his bad jokes and the constant trail of mess. He’d turned the clinic upside down in a few short days, and she was sure it would never be the same again. When he took a few hours off to let the removalists into his new place, it felt like something was missing. Everyone was quiet and there was an air of expectancy; it was as if they were waiting for something. Upon his return, the energy in the clinic increased, and the patients were again smiling and happy.
That Friday, he brought a homemade bar cake for the staff to share.
“What’s this?” asked Tanya, peering at the flat cake with the gooey white frosting.
“It’s a lemon drizzle slice,” Pat explained. “I made it myself. We’ll have a nice morning tea.”
“Morning tea?” queried Tanya.
“A slice?” asked Janet.
“I am from the British Isles,” he said. “We like our morning tea over there. And we call this style of dessert a slice. It’s perfect with a nice cup of tea.”
“And you made it yourself?” asked Janet incredulously.
“I surely did,” he said. “I like cooking. Although I try not to cook too many sweet things. Not good for the waistline.”
He patted his trim waist, and Jennifer thought that he didn’t need to worry about getting fat. He was probably one of those lucky people who could eat whatever they wanted. Or spent half his life at the gym.
“Come on, then,” he said. “Let’s take a break, and have a coffee and some cake. I want to see how it turned out. We deserve a little treat to celebrate surviving the week.”
Jennifer rolled her eyes but said nothing. It had indeed been the kind of week that had called for her best survival skills.
As they were heading back to work after their break, Pat stopped by Jennifer’s desk.
“I need to go grocery shopping,” he said. “And I want to go to the town library. Can you point me in the right direction after we finish today?”
Jennifer thought for a moment. “I need to go shopping too,” she said. “If you like, I can show you around the town first.”
“That would be perfect,” he said, smiling at her.
She felt her stomach do flip-flops and was grateful that he didn’t seem to notice. “We can leave from here, straight after work, if that suits you,” she said.
“It does,” he said. “I’ll look forward to seeing the sights of the town.”
Jennifer’s heart felt light as she went on with her work. She was looking forward to showing Pat around the town.
“Well, that was a nice glimpse of my new hometown,” Pat said after Jennifer had driven him around to several places of interest and they’d picked up some groceries. “I shall look forward to seeing more of the sights,” he added.
“Concord is a pleasant place to live,” Jennifer agreed. “Each season is different and there’s always something to see.”
“Shall we grab a bite to eat?” Pat asked. “I’m a bit peckish. It’s dinnertime, after all.”
“That suits me,” Jennifer replied.
“Where do you suggest?” he asked.
“It depends what you like to eat,” she replied.
“I’ll eat anything,” he said with a grin. “Except for cucumbers.”
“So, no dainty British sandwiches with cucumbers for you?”
He made a face. “Oh no. Not this boy. Her Majesty can keep them all for herself!”
Jennifer grinned. “OK. So, we need a cucumber-free eating place. How about Italian? I think we could persuade them to keep the cucumbers out of your food.”
“Only if you’re sure about that.”
“I am. Come on, let’s go. I know a quiet little Italian restaurant where it’s nice to unwind after a busy day. The prices are reasonable and the food’s amazing!”
Half an hour later, they were seated at a table for two in the cozy restaurant. There were candles on the table and easy-listening music played quietly in the background. Jennifer felt herself unwinding as the food arrived and she dug into her favorite pasta dish. Pat was serious for once
.
“This is nice,” he said, leaning back and looking around appreciatively. “I like to try new dining experiences.”
“Same here,” Jennifer said. “I don’t often go out alone though.”
He looked at her. “I’m sorry. I never thought to ask if there was someone special in your life before I suggested dinner. I just assumed …”
‘It’s OK,” she said. “I wouldn’t have agreed if I had someone waiting at home for me.”
“That’s what I figured,” Pat said. “I didn’t think you were that kind of girl.”
“What kind of girl did you think I might be?”
He thought for a moment. “Smart. Hard-working. Reliable.”
“And?”
“Someone who wouldn’t cheat on a person they love,” he said quietly.
She sensed his sudden sadness. “Is there a story behind that comment?” she asked lightly.
He sighed. “Unfortunately, there is.”
“You don’t need to talk about it if you don’t want to. I wasn’t prying.”
“No, it’s OK. I believe in being open and honest. So yes, I was married once. I thought we were happy; I sold up my share of my practice and took on locum tenens work so that we could spend more time together. But that wasn’t enough for her; I came home one day to find her with a younger man.”
“Why?” Jennifer asked incredulously.
He shrugged. “He had big muscles and tattoos,” he said. “She obviously got bored with me. And he wasn’t the only one. There were others.” He looked away. “Anyway, enough of the skeletons in my closet,” he said. “Do you have any?”
She pulled a face. “I was married once, too,” she said. “But we drifted apart and then he wanted a divorce. He turned up with a new girlfriend a few days later. I’m pretty sure she was the reason he wanted a divorce.”
“Your story is a lot like mine,” he said.
“Yes and no. It wasn’t a total shock to me when it happened. But it still took a long time to get over it. There hasn’t been anyone since.”
She almost bit her tongue after she’d said it. Why was she telling him all of this stuff? He hadn’t asked for all the gory details.