A Man for Megan
Page 19
When the door opened a minute later, Megan turned toward it with relief. “Gi…” The name died on her lips.
“Miss Kelly, I understand you’re feeling better?” the doctor said louder than necessary as if to fill the room with his competent bearing. The nurse was behind him.
Megan sank down onto the bed.
“Still a little weak?” the doctor observed, setting down her chart. “Let’s have a look, shall we?”
He listened to her heart, her lungs, pressed on her abdomen, tested her reflexes, even his professionally hearty expression unable to hide his astonishment.
“It’s impossible, isn’t it?” the nurse asked.
Megan spoke for the first time. “Nothing’s impossible.”
The doctor studied her from over the edge of the chart. “I’m going to order a few tests, but if those show nothing—”
“Tests?” Megan protested. “I feel fine. I want to go home.”
“If the tests show nothing, you will,” the doctor promised, turning on his heel and leaving before further argument.
Less than two minutes later, a gurney was wheeled into Megan’s room. “I’m not going,” she declared.
“Megan?” Gino pulled down the surgeon’s mask covering the lower half of his face.
“Thank goodness, it’s you.” She rushed to him, hugging him with relief. “I thought you were here to take me to the tests my doctor ordered. I think he wants to make me a medical guinea pig for miracle cures.”
“We better move fast. I already heard some orderlies talking about the miracle patient. If the newspeople get wind of this, we’ll never get out of here. Here, slip this on.” He handed her a hospital gown and robe. “Kitty is going to help us.”
“Kitty?”
“Remember, I told you she was with me in the waiting room. She’s agreed to create a diversion at the main entrance, giving us enough time to sneak out one of the other exits, but, first, she wants to see you. Hop on.” He indicated the gurney. “She’s waiting in the visitors’ bathroom right down the hall.”
She lay down on the stretcher, and he covered her with a sheet and wheeled her down the hall without incident.
“Okay,” he bent down and whispered when they were outside the visitors’ bathroom. “I’ll wait out here.”
Megan knocked lightly on the bathroom door, then went in. Kitty clasped her in a warm hug.
“Megan!” She held her out at arm’s length, inspecting her. “You’re really okay, just like Gino said.”
“Yes, I’m more than fine. How are you?” Megan’s gaze dropped to Kitty’s stomach.
Kitty placed a hand on her belly. “Still somewhere between shock and rapture.”
Megan laughed softly. “Believe me, I know the feeling.”
There were two sharp raps on the door, then Gino’s urgent voice. “An orderly asking ‘Where’s the Kelly patient?’ just left the nurses’ station. It’s time we headed home.”
“Are you going to help us, Kitty?” Megan asked.
“You bet I will.”
The two friends hugged each other hard.
“Megan,” Kitty said as Megan reached for the door. “He is a genie, isn’t he?”
Megan smiled. “He’s something far more magical than that…he’s the man I love.” She opened the door, revealing Gino.
Megan squeezed Kitty’s hand.
“Good luck!” Kitty wished.
“Thanks,” Megan mouthed as Gino ushered her toward the exit at the end of the hall.
Once in the safety of the empty stairwell, Gino stopped, looked up the stairs, then down, finally meeting Megan’s expectant gaze.
“You were expecting a magic carpet maybe?” he asked her.
She laughed like a happy child, then wrapped her arms around his middle and closed her eyes, knowing only the warmth of his flesh. “I suppose this isn’t the right time to get romantic?”
He tucked a finger under her chin, tipping her head back, his eyes loving as his head descended toward her. “There could never be a wrong time, Megan.”
As their lips were about to meet, they heard the footsteps coming down the stairs.
He kissed her once, twice, then with their arms still wrapped around each other, they hurried down the stairs. Three flights down, they heard voices coming up the stairs. They ducked out into the hall. Signs and arrows painted on the wall directed the way to the hospital’s services: Outpatient, Ob/Gyn, Internal Medicine, Pediatrics. In bold red letters at the bottom was printed Emergency Room. A bright red arrow pointed right.
“Of course,” Gino said, following the direction of the arrow. “We’ll just leave the same way we came in.”
“I thought you told me you flew here from the Upper Realm?”
“Okay, we’ll leave the way you came in.” Gino led her across the emergency room waiting area and through the automatic doors to outside the hospital. Parked in the discharge area were several ambulances. Gino started toward the one parked farthest away from the hospital entrance.
He looked around, then crouched down behind its back door, motioning Megan to do the same.
“There’s got to be a law against this somewhere,” she whispered.
He slowly opened the back door enough for Megan to climb in. He followed, shutting the door securely after him.
“We can fit under there,” he suggested, indicating a lengthy crawl space beneath a wheeled cot.
Megan wriggled into the narrow space, turning so her back was against the wall. Gino eased in beside her. Facing each other, their bodies pressed together, their mouths mere millimeters from each other, they smiled.
“Hi,” Gino whispered softly.
“Hi,” Megan returned just as reverently. It wasn’t until his fingertip touched her cheek, and she saw the look of concern on Gino’s features, did she realize she was crying.
“What’s wrong?” he asked worriedly.
She shook her head, smiling through her own tears. “That’s the last word I ever expected to hear from you.”
Understanding smoothed his features. “You were always expecting me to say goodbye?”
She nodded mutely.
“But I never did, did I?”
“No.” It was no more than a breath.
His hands cradled her face. “And I never will, Megan.” He kissed away her tears.
Yet, they continued to fall, her happiness now so great it had to take on physical form. As if her joy had grown wings and taken flight, the ambulance’s siren sounded and lights began to flash.
She snuggled closer to the man who had brought her so much magic. “So,” she asked, as the ambulance began to carry them away. “What do you think of being human?”
The flashing lights were now in his eyes, illuminating emotion so strong, so deep, older than the gods above. He answered her question just before their mouths met:
“It’s more than I ever wished for.”
ISBN : 978-1-4592-5005-5
A MAN FOR MEGAN
Copyright © 1999 by Darlene Scalera.
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