First Impressions: A Modern Retelling of Jane Austen's Pride and Prejudice (Meryton Medical Romances Book 1)

by Ruby Cruz

  “There’s no thing. We’ve talked. That’s all.”

  “When? He’s been working here all of two weeks.”

  “During my last shift. That’s part of the reason why my shift went so long. Things were sort of slow at that time and we just spent some time talking.”

  “You never mentioned anything.”

  “I didn’t think it meant anything, I mean, he’s just so nice to everyone.”

  “Well, it’s obvious to me the only reason he showed up tonight was because he hoped you would be here.”

  “How do you know that?”

  “Well, I doubt he’s here to be ambushed by Lydia or interrogated by Mary.”

  Jane’s eyes met mine in the mirror. “We just talked. It’s not like he asked me on a date or anything.”

  “He showed up tonight, didn’t he?” She didn’t comment but I could see the glimmer of hope in her eyes. “We’d better get back before Lydia devours him or Mary bores him to death.”

  As we left the restroom, Luke approached. “Thank God. I think Bingley’s had enough of Dumb, Dumber and Dullest. I know I have.” Luke, one of my best friends, had never cared for Lydia, Kate or Mary.

  Jane’s eyebrow twitched with concern. As we approached the booth, we could see Bingley, Darcy and Caroline had made their way back to the bar and Darcy was shouting into his phone again. Lydia was flirting heavily with Dr. Forster, who had managed to squeeze into the booth next to her. “So, tell me, Mark, what’s the deal with Dr. Darcy and what’s-her-face? She’s sort of standoff-ish and Dr. Doomsday is pretty much a douchebag.”

  Forster seemed surprised at the criticism. “He’s a little serious, I’ll give you that, but he’s a good doctor.”

  “He treats the nurses like crap, right, Lizzy?”

  Forster turned towards me for explanation. Instead of clarifying, I made a noncommittal sound and followed Jane’s eyes to the bar. “I need a drink. Jane?” She shook her head at me. “I’ll go with you,” Luke offered. We approached the bar where the trio seemed engrossed in conversation. Interested to see what they were discussing so heatedly in the absence of my companions, I edged more closely after placing my order.

  “…so different than the others,” I heard Bingley finish.

  “But Charles, really?” Caroline drawled. “She’s a nurse. Don’t you know any sweet doctor friends from medical school you haven’t already dated? And doesn’t she have a kid?”

  “I’m telling you, it’s like a breath of fresh air talking to her. She’s not jaded like all the others. She genuinely cares about people.”

  Darcy had ended his call but was keying something into his phone. “So stop philosophizing and go ask her out already. You don’t need my permission.”

  At the look Bingley flashed him, I could tell he wasn’t looking for permission but approval. “What about you, Will? Jane’s friends aren’t bad to look at.”

  “Even if she weren’t up for sainthood, Jane is by far the most attractive one.”

  “What about her sister Lizzy? She’s quite pretty and fairly smart from what I gather.”

  “She’s tolerable enough, though I think she and that male nurse are an item.”

  Caroline scoffed, “Luke? Please. My gay-dar was beginning to give me a headache it was clanging so loud.”

  Luke elbowed me and winked. “And I thought I was so discreet,” he whispered to me with mock concern.

  Darcy continued, “I have no interest in dating her.”

  Bingley’s eyebrows knitted together. “Because of her friendship with Luke? When did you become a homophobe?”

  “I didn’t. Besides the fact that she’s too plain-faced and bony for my taste, I’m just not interested in dating acerbic and abrasive women who think they know everything.” He keyed in another phone number and started barking into his phone again. “Who’s taking care of Mr. Kline in Bed 3?” He walked away from the bar and weaved his way outdoors.

  Luke raised his eyebrows at my incensed expression and leaned towards me. “He’s lucky looks don’t kill.”

  “What an arrogant bastard,” I hissed. “As if I wanted to date him. Who does he think he is? He’s said barely two words all evening and when he finally does speak he insults me.”

  He sighed. “Don’t take it personally.”

  “How can I not? How would you feel if he called you ‘plain-faced and bony?’” Even though I knew his blunt words were essentially true, the slight on my appearance didn’t hurt my pride any less. “And he should be one to talk. It’s not like he’s ripped under that stupid polo shirt he’s wearing.”

  “Lizzy, you and I both know that he’s pretty nice on the eyes, even though tall, dark and brooding isn’t exactly my thing. And, honey, I love you, but you have to admit you tend to be on the negative and abrasive side when you disagree with someone.” Luke’s eyes twinkled as mine narrowed at him. “You’re not plain-faced and bony. You just don’t feel the need to doll it up like other girls. You go for the natural look, which works for you.”

  I still fumed. “Well, if he wants to date women who slather makeup on with a trowel and wear a D-cup, then he should stick to dating the Barracuda.”

  He snorted. “Barracuda? You mean Caroline?”

  “Of course. Isn’t it obvious she’s into him? He’s the only other person she’s deigned to speak with all night.”

  “When you were in the bathroom, they pretty much intimated that none of them were attached.”

  When Luke and I returned to the booth, the trio in question had already made their way back. Mary was expounding on the evils of hospital readmissions. This was apparently a hot button topic for Darcy because he began opining that readmissions were often the cause of patient non-compliance and not hospital or physician neglect, misdiagnosis, or ineffective prescribed treatment.

  “There is a reason why they call this hospital the Meryton Marriott,” Darcy quipped. “Upper middle class, many self-entitled, over-privileged. Take one of the patients I treated today. She’s morbidly obese yet refuses to adhere to any diet or exercise program prescribed to her. Every time she’s admitted to the hospital she’s gained over 50 pounds in water weight and is so grossly overweight she can’t tell the difference save for her shortness of breath on exertion. When I suggested lifestyle changes were in order, she told me she wasn’t paying me to tell her to diet and exercise and any doctor worth anything would find a medication to make her better, as if there’s a magic pill that will prevent her from going into heart failure despite her lifestyle.” He took a deep drink of his water then continued, “When I worked in the city, many of my patients were grateful they were even being seen by a doctor, let alone getting medication.”

  “So how did you proceed in your course of treatment for such a noncompliant patient?” Mary asked with genuine interest.

  “I adjusted her medication dosages and reiterated my suggestions she change her diet and begin an exercise regimen, otherwise she may find herself unable to attend her son’s wedding next year due to hospitalization or death, at which point she reluctantly acquiesced to my recommendations.”

  “So you scared her into compliance,” I clarified.

  “Crude, yet effective,” he agreed.

  “I think it’s unfortunate you had to resort to scare tactics in order to garner her agreement.”

  “What would you suggest that I have done instead?”

  “I don’t know what you should have done but I probably would’ve shoved my plain and bony face into hers and been my usual acerbic and abrasive self and badgered her into complying,” I replied, not even attempting to hide the acid in my tone. I threw him a saccharin smile before sipping my drink.

  Darcy’s eyes glinted as an uncomfortable silence settled over the group. Luke coughed and Charlie avoided eye contact with me.

  Unaware of the undercurrent to the conversation, Lydia challenged, “If you don’t like the patient population then why did you decide to p
ractice in this area? Why didn’t you just stay in the city and help take care of the poor and needy?”

  Darcy clenched his jaw at the additional challenge and merely answered, “Personal reasons.” The atmosphere chilled even more considerably. “Charles, it’s getting late and I have early appointments tomorrow as do you. We should go.”

  Lydia offered to let Dr. Forster join Kate and her in Mary’s car so he settled himself further into the booth and drank more deeply of his beer. Meanwhile, Charlie opened his mouth as if in protest, then closed it. Almost regretfully, he said, “Yes, you’re right. Good night, all.” His eyes lingered briefly on Jane before he turned to Darcy and Caroline. Darcy inclined his head slightly in farewell while Caroline just turned and left.

  CHAPTER FOUR

  Fine Eyes in a Pretty Face

  Despite Charlie’s admission of interest in Jane, he certainly took his time in making a move. Jane, ever so stoic, merely shrugged her shoulders when I finally asked her about her feelings. “If he really were interested in me, he’d ask me out. We’ve worked together a couple times since we were out at Riley’s but he’s kept things strictly professional.”

  Remembering Charlie’s assertion that he would be delighted to come to Sunday dinner again, Mom invited him over the following weekend but he had to decline due to his work schedule.

  I could sense Jane’s disappointment, but didn’t broach the subject further. I knew what my sister feared: that the idea of dating a single mother had scared Charlie away. In my opinion, if he was that easily intimidated, then she was better off without him.

  It turned out Jane needn’t have worried. A week after we’d gone out to Riley’s, she came home from her night shift practically glowing. “He asked for my number and friended me on Facebook. You should see his Facebook profile. He’s been to so many places, volunteered in Haiti, the Philippines, Indonesia. And he’s one of the few doctors I’ve met who actually cares about the patient as a person rather than just a diagnosis.”

  “Does he cook and clean, too?” I quipped as I fed Chloe a banana she was promptly mashing onto her feeding tray.

  “Stop. I just wish I could’ve done what he’s done, gone to all those places.” She gave Chloe a kiss on the head.

  “Well, coming from a rich family certainly helps, I’m sure.”

  “I just think it’s so admirable he used his money and time to give back somehow, instead of all those ultra-rich celebrities you read about who just party all the time.”

  I merely smiled at her. It had been so long since she’d been interested in dating anyone and I loved seeing her so excited. “Did he ask you out yet?”

  “No. But he hasn’t asked for anyone else’s number as far as I know.”

  As Jane went to clean up the mess Chloe had made, her cell phone began to ring. She checked the readout and flushed. “It’s him. I can’t believe he’s calling.” Her voice was calm but her knuckles were white as she clutched the phone.

  “Well, answer it. I’ll finish hosing the little munchkin off.”

  Jane was on the phone so long with Bingley that I decided to take Chloe on our routine jog to the coffee shop. The weather was warm and humid but Chloe loved the fresh air and sunshine. I was dripping with sweat by the time I jogged the mile to the coffee shop, so I decided an iced latte was in order.

  “Hey, Lizzy, hey, Chloe.” Marco, the owner of The Hot Spot, manned the counter. “The usual?”

  “Make mine iced.”

  “You got it.”

  My niece leaned forward in the stroller and started pointing at the display case.

  “Yes, I know, you see the yummy cookies. Can you count them?” I crouched down and counted five chocolate chip cookies with her as Marco prepared my order.

  I straightened as he set my drink on the counter. “Anything else?” he asked me. He glanced down at Chloe who was still pointing at the treats. “Cookie for the road?”

  “Oh, no. Jane would kill me.”

  Marco reached under the counter and picked out a cookie which he wrapped in paper. “I won’t tell, if you won’t. On the house.”

  “Fine.” I took the offering but just broke a small piece off. “You get the rest later, if you’re a good girl for your auntie.” Chloe beamed as she dug into it.

  I paid for my latte, thanked Marco and added, “Say hi to Marilyn for me.” I was attempting to push the stroller out of the door when someone held it open for me.

  “Thanks.” I gave the stroller a shove to push it over the threshold. My coffee, which had been set into the cup holder in the back of the stroller, tipped. Cold coffee splashed my sneakers and I cursed under my breath. “Shit.”

  Sighing, I pushed the stroller onto the sidewalk and bent to retrieve the now-empty cup.

  Marco came out and surveyed the damage. “Hey, Lizzy, don’t sweat it. I’ll make you a new one. You just wait right there.” He gestured to one of the outdoor tables where I took a seat. Chloe, chocolate smeared on her face, grinned at me and gestured for more cookie. “Oh, no,” I told her, retrieving a baby wipe from her bag. “Only a little bit now. You know Mommy doesn’t like you to have sweets before lunch.”

  She fussed as I wiped off her face and hands and then mollified her with a bottle of milk. She was greedily sucking it down when a voice said, “Milk and cookies. Breakfast of champions.”

  When I looked up, a guy I’d never seen before handed me my iced latte. “Here you go.”

  “Thanks.” I reached into my pocket, extracted some bills and handed them to him.

  He took the money but looked at the bills with a confused expression. “What’s this for?”

  “To pay?” Immediately, I realized he wasn’t wearing a Hot Spot uniform and was holding a coffee cup of his own. “Oh my God. You don’t work here. I’m so sorry.”

  He handed the money back to me. “No problem. I must have one of those faces.”

  As I looked more closely at him, I decided that, no, he did not have “one of those faces.” He was much too good-looking to have just “one of those faces.”

  Now that I was paying attention, I noticed he was very attractive: light, sun-kissed brown hair a bit long with a slight curl, medium build but fit, tall but not too tall. His best feature was his smile – it lit up his eyes which were a muddy shade of grey, and revealed a set of straight, white teeth and a slight dimple at the corner of his right cheek. I had a weakness for dimples.

  “I should probably go inside and pay for this.” I gestured to my coffee cup.

  “Taken care of. It was the least I could do for making you spill your coffee.”

  “You didn’t have to do that. It wasn’t your fault. The wheel got caught in the doorway. But, thanks.”

  “You’re welcome.” He watched me stuff the bills back into my pocket. “Must be tough being a single mom.”

  “Me? Oh, no, she’s not mine. She’s my niece, Chloe. I’m just watching her today.”

  “Ah.” He appeared slightly relieved. He smiled and held out his hand. “I’m George. George Wickham.”

  His grasp was firm and lingered a second before releasing mine. “Elizabeth Bennett, but people call me Lizzy, but then again, you probably already figured that out.”

  George regarded me for a second, then said, “You look a little familiar.”

  “Do I?”

  “Do you work at the hospital? A nurse?”

  “Yes, how did you know?”

  He flashed me that smile again and my stomach did a flip. “I knew I recognized you from somewhere. I work with Sunset Ambulance. I’m good with faces.”

  “Usually I am, too, but I don’t recall ever seeing yours.” Because if I had seen it, I definitely would have remembered.

  “You’re the smiley nurse. Whenever we come to pick up a patient, doesn’t matter how busy you are, you’re always smiling.”

  I flushed. “Really?”

  “I may be exaggerating just a little.” He gave m
e a little wink and grinned.

  God, I had a weakness for dimples. “You’ve probably taken some of my patients to Morristown.”

  “Yes. I was the one who absconded with your telemetry box when we transferred your patient last month.”

  “That was you? Argh, you don’t know the type of hassle you caused me. It took us two weeks to get that box back.”

  “Yes, I know. Every time you or one of your colleagues called to check on it, I got an earful from my supervisor.”

  “Serves you right. I got an earful from my manager every day that box was missing. She blamed me for letting you make off with it, like we were in cahoots to sell it off on the black market.”

  “I hear there’s a huge demand for used telemetry boxes. They say you should have a spare available at all times on the off chance you have unstable chest pain or palpitations and need to be monitored right away.”

  “Right. I guess I’ll have to alert security the next time you come around to transport one of my patients and abscond with a fifteen-hundred dollar piece of medical equipment.”

  Chloe began to cry when she realized she’d finished her milk and tearfully held her bottle out to me. I was attempting to calm her when George said, “Well, I’ve got to get going. It was nice to meet you, Lizzy Bennett.”

  “Sure. Of course. Same here. Thanks again for the coffee.”

  George nodded his head and continued walking down the street and I caught myself feeling a tad disappointed.

  ~

  By the time Chloe and I returned from our outing, Jane was already asleep. I was dying to know what she and Bingley had talked about but she rarely got more than five hours of sleep at a time so I waited. I’d been playing with Chloe in the living room when Jane emerged from the bedroom, tired but happier than I’d seen her in a long time. Seeing her mom, she crawled over to her and gestured to be picked up. Still in her pajamas, Jane settled herself on the floor with her daughter in her lap.

  “So? Please tell me Charlie spent some of that time on the phone asking you on a date.”