by Nora Stone
Unexpected Encounters
Nora Stone
Contents
Copyright
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Chapter 6
Chapter 7
Copyright © 2015 by Nora Stone
All rights reserved.
No part of this book may be reproduced in any form or by any electronic or mechanical means, including information storage and retrieval systems, without written permission from the author, except for the use of brief quotations in a book review.
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Chapter 1
Blah, blah, blah. I wanted to scream at Jarrod.
How did the man ever make it through schooling to become an Occupational Therapist? He couldn’t stop rattling on about baseball, hot chicks, or himself. I’d tried to talk about a patient in dialysis that was getting worse, but Jarrod had rerouted the conversation back to himself.
Give up! I told myself, there’s nothing in his mind but ‘me, me, look at me’.
“Susan? Susan! Have you heard a word I said,” he accused.
“Um…yeah. You were talking about how one of your patients gets you baseball tickets.”
I watched him lift his glass of wine and throw the rest of it down his throat. When the server stopped by our table to ask if we wanted another bottle, I wanted so much to say ‘No. I think we’ve had enough. Thank you.’ I didn’t want to be rude, though.
Jarrod must have seen impatience in my expression because he said, “You need to let your hair down and live a little. You always look so serious. Everything doesn’t need to be by the book, Susan.”
I almost rolled my eyes at him. I had only agreed to this ‘date’ after much of Jarrod’s badgering, and now, I regretted it with every fiber of my being. I had thought we would surely talk about something besides the life and times of Mr. Oh-So-Important. After all, everyone around him at the hospital heard about him all day, every day, and I was one of them.
He must think that his life is soooo interesting. I took a sip of wine and almost choked from surprise when he asked, “Speaking of which, why didn’t you wear your hair down tonight?”
I looked around to make sure the apocalypse hadn’t just come. After all, Mr. Oh-So-Important had graced the air with a question about someone else. As my shoulders lifted in a shrug, my mind leapt to fantasies that the world was really on fire. I would get to run screaming away from him and Portland, Oregon…the land of few decent dates.
“It’s getting pretty long. I like long hair. Once, I let my hair grow to my shoulders.” He laughed as though he’d just told the funniest joke, and added, “Can you imagine ME with long hair?”
Oh God…do I have to? What do I have to do to cause a meteor to crash into the bar?
I forced a smile and shook my head. The powers that be must have been listening to my thoughts because he suddenly reached into his pocket and pulled out his pack of cigarettes.
“Pardon me. I’m going to step outside.”
I nodded and watched him rise from his seat. I started to pull my phone out, but Jarrod stopped and loudly asked some friend of his, “Hey, you’re coming to the game with me next week…right?”
I waited through the testosterone festival and even smiled when he pointed to me. His friend’s eyebrows quickly jumped up and down in a knowing way, making me wish I could slap those furry twin caterpillars right off his face. There was no way I was going to continue this Jarrod-fueled purgatory by jumping into the man’s bed.
Talk about Hell…ugh! I’d probably get a lecture on how succulent his golden baby gravy was.
I snorted a laugh and then sobered quickly when he headed back to the table. Hiding my phone, I kindly asked, “Did your craving pass?”
No cancer stick for you today? Damn! Maybe I should order another bottle of wine…to break over his head.
“Oh, no way. I just wanted to know what was so funny. That’s the first time I’ve seen you laugh all night,” Jarrod informed me.
“Oh, I was just remembering something about a patient. Go have your smoke and then maybe we can discuss it.”
He nodded. “I have a few stories too. Last week, one of my patients said he might be able to get me on with a hitting league. How awesome is that?”
My cheeks hurt from holding the smile in place when all I wanted to do was beat my head against the table. “Oh, that’s just…I have no words.”
“Yeah, right? Okay, I’ll be right back.”
“Please…take your time.” My mouth snapped shut to keep from voicing my thought: Smoke one for every person in the bar.
Don’t get me wrong, as the charge nurse of a diabetic medical ward, I normally have an excellent bedside manner. I wouldn’t wish anyone harm. But, Jarrod was plucking my last nerve as if it were a violin. I mean, we had numerous things in common since both of us worked at St. Vincent’s Hospital. Why couldn’t he talk about medical stuff? Or relate funny stories about patients? Funny stories that were actually funny, that is.
I had heard about his life, like most of the employees working at St. Vincent’s, numerous times. I knew that his mother had paid for his schooling and that he loved her dearly. And he was nice. Don’t get me wrong. He was also just…boring.
Who wants to constantly hear about the same things?
I watched him walk straight to the door this time. The craving must have been fierce because a cigarette dangled from his lips before he even stepped over the threshold. He was bringing the lighter up before the door was closed.
I pulled my phone out and found Zoe’s phone number. She was my best friend, and the one besides Jarrod that had urged me to go on this awful date. She answered on the second ring.
I didn’t bother with a hello, but told her right away: “Oh, girl, now I’m sure there are zero decent male conversationalists left in Portland. I swear, Jarrod’s ego never shuts down. If I hear one more story or gripe about baseball, I’m going to hit him upside the head with a baseball bat! And he told me about his mother’s house again. The one that he bought for her. Again.”
Zoe’s tinkling laughter sounded in my ear. “I’m sorry, Susan. You should know better than to date men from work. You have to admit that you needed a break, though. Just get yourself hammered so he has to take you home.”
“Are you crazy? I can barely feel my nose after one glass of wine. He drank the rest and then ordered another bottle. I’ll have to hear about his childhood…for the third damn time.” My shoulders slumped before I asked, “How’s Mr. Kummings?”
“He’s not doing any better, Susan. Do you want me to create an emergency so you have to end the date?”
I hated when women did that and then acted as though they didn’t know why their life had so much drama. Besides, I was just superstitious enough to find horror at the thought of what might just happen. Karma could be a cold-hearted bitch.
“No way, Zoe. I’m not going to lie to get out of a date. You know it will backfire. It always does.”
I almost chewed on a fingernail about Mr. Kummings, but caught myself and sipped at water instead. The man had touched my heart since he’d been coming in for dialysis. He’d turned his life around over the last few years. Zoe had just seen him in the ER last week. They didn’t know if he’d make it, and I’d been worried about him all night.
The door opened again and Jarrod headed my way.
“Here he comes. I have to go,” I told her.
I quickly hit end and stuffed my phone in my purse. Jarrod sat back down and asked, “Who was that on the phone?”
“Zoe P
ierce. She works in the Emergency Room. A patient of mine, Mr. Kummings, was seen there last week. He’s not doing so good. I’m kind of worried about him.”
“I don’t get down there very often. They just set up my appointments. I guess you could say that I have a bunch of secretaries.” With a carefree shrug, he tossed my worries aside. “So, tell me the funny story about the patient. I need a laugh after that bit of somberness.”
What a dick! Oh, and by the way, the ER personnel are not your fucking secretaries.
That very attitude was a sore spot amongst Zoe’s peers. The departments were always bickering over who was responsible for the paperwork. I could see their point very well. They didn’t have time to make appointments for Occupational Therapists who were just too damn lazy to do it for their own patients.
I shoved these thoughts out of my mind and tried to remember a humorous story. To give myself time, I took a sip of the dregs of my lukewarm wine and stifled a wince. The bad taste brought back a memory so I told him a story from my earlier days of nursing.
It wasn’t really funny in a humorous way, but more in an odd way. I gave it a shot. “One of the residents when I was doing my teaching rounds thought it would be funny if a patient acted like a vampire. The guy acted as though he were drinking another patient’s blood. One of the other residents lost her lunch.”
Jarrod laughed, but I could tell it was fake. Like I said, the story really wasn’t humorous. Our food finally arrived. For the next hour, I endured his slow consumption of fried chicken while talking with his mouth full.
I tried not to look while forcing myself to just make it through this night. I ignored the grease surrounding his mouth as best I could, too. When he offered me a chunk of fried chicken between two greasy fingers, I shook my head and quickly stuffed a bite of my shrimp scampi into my mouth. It was cold but I didn’t care. At that point, I’d do anything to avoid those greasy fingers coming anywhere near my face.
If he would only shut up and eat.
After we finished our meal, he spotted a group of guys at the bar and said, “Hold on a minute. There’s a couple of my buddies. I have to say hi to these guys.”
I nodded and sipped my water. Ten minutes later, he was loudly debating the top one-hundred hottest chicks from the latest copy of For Him Magazine. I’d had enough.
I slipped out of the bar and called a cab. When I glanced through the window, he was slapping a guy on the back and laughing. Then, he made an hourglass shape in the air and cupped his hands in front of his chest. I wanted to smack that ooooh, yeah! look right off his face.
I swear…there are no decent men left in Portland, Oregon. I jumped into the back of the cab and rattled off my address. What a night!
Chapter 2
The following morning after my horrible date, I smoothed my curly red hair into a tight bun and put on my red lipstick. Making sure not to wrinkle my uniform, I slowly dressed. I had already texted Zoe and told her to meet me in the cafeteria.
The first thing I did when I arrived at St. Vincent’s was to check on Mr. Kummings. He seemed to be resting peacefully, but they said there was no change.
Meanwhile, I was looking forward to a cup of gourmet coffee. Even more so now that it would be served by a handsome barista. We had rallied like crazy last year to get the hospital to replace that decrepit and awful hunk of metal they’d called a coffee machine. Of course, we’d picked out one that looked as though it came from the International Space Station. The damn thing had so many bells and whistles that we’d insisted no one would ever be able to operate it. Therefore, a barista was required because, of course, the hospital’s insurance agency would just have a fit if we let the general public loose on this high-tech thing.
Oh, yeah, they balked like crazy. But did I mention that a competing hospital had just installed a brand spanking new dessert bar in their cafeteria? When I told them that the chosen machine was discounted, though, and we handed them the patient/employee poll showing that the newfangled space-agency coffee machine was favored, the board caved right away.
Our administration was thrilled when we won a coveted service award…all thanks to our handsome and intelligent barista.
The man never failed to flirt me into a damned good mood every morning. And then there’s the coffee. There are simply no words to describe it. Zoe and I love gourmet coffee so we always direct the barista on what to purchase. It’s a damn good thing he knows how to operate the machine or else we’d be chewing on coffee beans all day.
As soon as I arrived in the cafeteria, I spotted her talking to him. After placing my order and rolling my eyes at the ever-charming barista, I told Zoe, “You need to quit flirting with him so heavily. You’re practically leaving a trail of smoke behind you. Close your legs before you set the sprinklers off.”
She giggled and shot back, “You need to flirt more and get those juices flowing. Why don’t you ask him for a date?”
“Okay, now I know you’ve lost your mind. I tried that. It was a freakshow. Let me enjoy my first cup before my stomach curls over the memories.”
She laughed so hard that she almost spilled her coffee. The thought of losing a drop of the precious liquid sobered us right away. In this busy hospital, gourmet caffeine was gold. No kidding, the name of the coffee bean was Golden Columbian.
And it is Divine.
Zoe’s mood suddenly shifted to a more somber zone, and I got my own humor under control to match what I guessed was coming. She told me about her latest negative pregnancy test. I winced and squeezed her hand. She’d been trying to get pregnant for the last year.
“I don’t know, Susan. I think I waited too long,” she moaned.
“Zoe, you’re only thirty-five. Lots of women have children at your age and older. Maybe you should take a break from trying to conceive. Doctors always say, once you stop trying, then you’ll get pregnant. Stressing over it isn’t going to help.”
“I can’t stop thinking about it. I want a baby before I’m too old to enjoy life after they’ve graduated college.”
I nodded and squeezed her hand again. After our first cup, the barista materialized and refilled them. Zoe blushed like crazy. I had told her in the past that Mr. Barista had the hots for her. He didn’t give two shits if she was married and trying to have a baby. Hell, the man could barely keep his eyes off her long legs. Rumor said that he liked married women.
After he left, Zoe said, “Okay, now tell me. Was your date with Jarrod really that bad?”
“Worse! I will never go out with another co-worker again. I don’t care if he does work on a different floor. Christ, I may just go lesbian!”
“Oh, come on. What did he do that was so bad?”
I glanced out at the Willamette River. The view from the tenth floor cafeteria was gorgeous. Today, I didn’t see the beauty of it. Deep down, I was tired of being alone. I was glad that Zoe was happy, but sometimes her happy marriage made me sad over being single.
“Well?” Her impatient tone brought me back to the present.
I raised an eyebrow and began to explain my horrible date.
Zoe cringed and I tried to keep from dry heaving at the memory. She took a deep breath and asked, “Did he try to kiss you…?”
“Oh, don’t go there.” I shuddered visibly and added, “I fled when he started gushing over the top 100 women in FHM. He didn’t even see me get in the cab. I haven’t heard from him since.”
“Maybe that’s a good thing,” she sighed.
I playfully looked sultry while I practically purred, “When I laughed at his joke, he looked like he wanted to kiss me. Zoe, can you imagine getting kissed by those lips?”
She cracked up. I thought she might fall out of her chair before she suddenly sobered. As her hand flew to her mouth, she gasped. Anxiety rolled into a tight sour ball in my stomach.
“He’s sitting over there, Susan.”
“What?” I already knew by her response and tone that he had to have appeared as though he’d heard u
s. I just didn’t know how much he’d heard.
“Oh, shit. He’s coming over here!”
Talk about worst nightmares. I knew my face was red as I glanced up expectantly. He looked extremely hung over and not in a very good mood. As a head charge nurse, I shouldn’t have talked about him like that. As a human, I was ashamed of myself.
I normally disapproved of stepping outside of policy. This whole date with Jarrod had proved all over again that going by the book was the best and safest bet. Now I had dated someone employed by the same medical group, which was frowned upon, and had been caught complaining about him. I braced myself and welcomed Jarrod’s wrath.
“You could have just told me that you weren’t having fun in a nice way, Susan,” Jarrod chastised me.
I nodded. “You’re right. I’m so sorry.”
“I normally don’t date people I know because of what you just did. I had a funny feeling about this. I should have listened to my instincts,” he told me.
“Jarrod, I…”
He interrupted me, “Don’t bother, Susan. I was surprised that you went out with me. Did you agree just so that you could make fun of me?”
“NO. I would never do that, Jarrod. I’m so sorry.”
Without another word, he turned away and left. Zoe lifted her head. She’d shielded her face with her hand and stared at her lap the whole time. I didn’t blame her, though I would have done the same thing. I was rather embarrassed.
“Damn! I’m never dating again.”
“Bullshit. I knew you were going to say that. You need to sign up with love-match-dot-com,” she told me.
I winced. She’d been bugging me lately to join that dumb dating sight.
“How many guys did you go through before you landed Brian?” I asked her.
“A few, but that doesn’t matter, right? What matters is the end result.”
I nodded. “Yeah, okay. I guess it’s that time.”