Every Glance (Every Life #3)

by Tasha Ivey

  “No!” His frail arm lashes out, sending the IV pole rolling across the room before it crashes against a chair. “I was just at home! What happened to me? Why can’t I see? I need to call Margaret to let her know what happened. She’ll be worried about me.”

  I rush over to him to steady his flailing arms. “Tell me who Margaret is, and I’ll call her.”

  “She’s my wife. She and my kids are probably worried sick.”

  Knowing that his wife died several years ago and that she left him long before that, I now have a new level of concern.

  “Mr. Lincoln, I’ll take care of everything,” I explain softly while pressing the call button at the side of the bed. “You just lie down and rest, and we’ll have you home in no time. Okay?”

  He only nods, but he does as instructed.

  A nurse appears in the door. “Oh, it’s you, Dr. Hoover. Did you need help with something?”

  “Yeah,” I say, looking back at William one last time before walking out into the hall. “I’m going to give Mr. Lincoln something to help him sleep, and I think we’re going to need to strap him down. He’s known for being a little physical, but he’s really confused right now, asking for his deceased ex-wife. I’m afraid he’s going to hurt himself. Will you also call the lab and get them to rush the test results for me?”

  “Sure, Dr. Hoover, I’ll make the call right now,” she says, turning on her heel to speed walk back down the hall.

  Lucky for me, William has already worn himself out, so he falls asleep easily, and I feel a lot better knowing he can’t get out of bed. We’re really going to have to monitor him because, once he realizes he’s bound to the bed, he’s going to be pissed. It’ll be better for all of us if he sleeps.

  I punch the glowing green button on my phone to dial the last call I made. “Hey, Sawyer. Sorry to wake you up again, but—”

  “Not asleep,” he interrupts. “I’m actually almost there. Any news?”

  “Not yet, but we have a new problem.”

  Sawyer arrives within a few minutes, dark circles already shadowing his eyes. I give him the full rundown of what’s happened, and after leaving orders for the nurses, I head home, feeling a little better with Sawyer there to keep a constant eye on him. I should have all the test results by the time I come back in a few hours, so I’m hoping to be able to confirm some suspicions.

  Hmmm. And to think tonight was my night off.

  TWO.

  That’s how many hours of sleep I’m fortunate to get before I’m back at the hospital with a whole new set of patients to see, in addition to the ones already admitted. My phone hasn’t stopped ringing all morning, and I haven’t had time to eat anything other than a cup of gelatin that I pilfered from the nurses’ station.

  But you won’t hear any complaints from me. This is one of my favorite parts of my job. The fast pace. The different faces. The puzzles that need solving. Even on so little sleep, I’m practically giddy. And quite possibly a little psychotic.

  “Sepsis,” I tell Sawyer while thumbing through the test results. “And there’s a little bit of fluid in his left lung.”

  Sawyer runs a hand through his already unruly hair. “So antibiotics should clear it all up, right?”

  “It should. I went ahead and started them last night when I admitted him, so we should be seeing some improvement soon. And now that I have the results, I’ll probably switch him over to something a little stronger, just in case. With the combination of that and really pushing the fluids, he should be a new old man by tomorrow. We’re really lucky Maribeth decided to call me last night. Another day and he may not have been able to bounce back very well.”

  He lets out a long sigh and his shoulders relax. “Yeah, I need to call to thank her.” He looks up at me. “And thank you for taking action so quickly. I know a lot of doctors that would’ve handed it off to the on-call doc, and it’s a lot harder for them to drop everything for one patient.”

  “He’s a close friend. There’s no way in hell I wouldn’t have gone over there to check on him. Besides, I know he was just dying to see me. He told me so.”

  “Yeah.” A weak laugh huffs from his throat. “I’ll bet he did.”

  After the initial craziness of the morning, I spend half of my day on the phone and the other half making my rounds at the hospital, but all things considered, it’s a fairly easy day. Nothing too pressing. Nothing too serious. Just a calm steady. My favorite kind of day.

  And by the time Sunday rolls around, things have gotten even calmer. I’ve discharged several of my patients, and even William is doing a little better, so I actually have a little time to hang out with him and have lunch in the cafeteria with Sawyer and Makenna. It’s a good day when I can squeeze a meal in.

  “We’re having Callie and Wes over for dinner Wednesday night. You should come, too, since you won’t be working.” Makenna takes another bite of her spinach salad and wrinkles her nose. I know she doesn’t care much for salad, but with her wedding quickly approaching, that’s all I’ve seen her eating lately.

  “Sure, I should be able to . . . umm . . . no I won’t. I have a dinner date.”

  Sawyer drops his fork, launching a piece of pasta across the table. “You didn’t.”

  “Didn’t what?” I play dumb, but know exactly what he means.

  “What are you talking about?” Makenna pushes her salad away with a little too much relief.

  “You asked out the kid’s mom, didn’t you? She has a kid. You’ve never wanted to date someone with kids before. And she must’ve had him when she was ten because she barely looks eighteen.”

  I straighten in my seat, glad to be able to prove him wrong. “As a matter of fact, Simon is her nephew. She was only babysitting. And I’m not completely opposed to dating someone with children. But they do tend to complicate things, so I just haven’t. A woman without kids is enough work.” I pause to cross my arms over my chest and raise an eyebrow. “And I didn’t ask her out. She asked me out.”

  “Well,” Sawyer begins, “that makes me feel a little better, but you never told me how old she is.”

  “Twenty-one. And before you say a word, Makenna, my parents were seven years apart in age, so it’s not that big of a deal. Besides, she’s different. Witty. Laid back. Flirty. I think she could be a lot of fun.”

  Makenna smirks, poking at the dark leaves in her bowl with a spork. “Yeah, I think I know what kind of fun you’re planning on having with her.”

  “You should. I do seem to remember some very telling evidence of the same kind of fun when Sawyer was in the hospital after all the bullshit with Drew.”

  Makenna’s cheeks blush crimson.

  My laughter echoes around the hospital-blue cafeteria, gaining the attention of the table of cardiologists across the room. “And you gave me that very same reaction. I swear, between what I’ve seen and heard from Sawyer and Wes, none of you can fault me for it.” I lower my voice to almost a whisper since there are children nearby. “You’re a bunch of dirty whores.”

  “Nothing wrong with that,” Sawyer interjects, waggling his eyebrows at Makenna. “And since I was here all night and I have to work the next few days, I think we need to go home to make up for some lost time and get a nap.”

  She clears her throat and stands, taking all of our trash and piling it on the plastic tray. The tips of her ears are turning blood red, and she won’t make eye contact with me. “Let me just get this stuff cleaned up, and we’ll go check on William one last time before we go.”

  As soon as she walks away, I lean in closer to Sawyer. “Did I make her mad?”

  “No, she just thinks I told you about something that happened last weekend, and she’s still a little embarrassed about it.”

  “Well, now you have to tell me.” I glance over my shoulder and see Makenna coming this way. “And fast.”

  Sawyer leans in closer, his eyes darting over my shoulder. “The short story is that we got caught in the act. In the living room window. You know how
infamous her parents are for surprise visits.”

  “Oh shit. I guess that was more of a surprise than they bargained for.”

  “Uh, yeah,” Sawyer stutters, pausing to clear his throat. “Well, I guess we’re out of here, and you should probably do the same. I don’t know how you’re still awake.”

  Makenna slings her purse over her shoulder and slips her hair out from under the strap, smiling broadly at Sawyer when their eyes meet. I don’t think there’s anyone in the world more perfect for him. I can see it in everything she does. Every touch. Every glance. She loves him with more than her heart; she loves him with everything she is.

  That’s what I want for myself.

  Someday.

  “I plan on leaving soon. If for some reason my plans change for Wednesday, I’ll let you know. Otherwise, let’s plan on trying to do dinner next weekend.”

  “You got it.” Sawyer slaps his hand over my shoulder. “Let me know how the date goes.”

  I chuckle. “You got it.”

  But before we part ways at the cafeteria’s exit, I call back over my shoulder. “Oh, and remember to close the curtains when you get home. You never know who may be watching.”

  I turn away with an ear-to-ear smile, but not before I catch Makenna slapping Sawyer’s shoulder with a little shriek. She’s just too fun to embarrass, so I do it every chance I get.

  I check in one last time at the nurses’ station to make sure nothing new has come up with any of my patients and to let them know I’m headed home, hopefully, for a couple hours of sleep before I come back for tonight’s rounds and paperwork. I have a feeling I’m only going to be getting cat naps this week. I guess it’s a good thing my residency prepared me for functioning on fumes.

  On my way to my car, I pause, craning my neck up to the flawless blue above. It’s a perfectly clear day with a gentle, steady breeze, making me long to soak up the warmth of the sun into my skin and fill my lungs with the fresh, reviving air. Who needs a nap when they have this?

  With a new purpose, I drive home, get out of my stale scrubs, and step into some athletic shorts and shoes. It’s a little cool to go out without a shirt, but I need all the vitamin D I can get, and after a few minutes, I’ll be sweating anyway. I slip my phone into my armband and cram my earbuds into my ears, cranking up the music until it drowns out the world around me.

  I smile.

  My feet begin pounding the pavement, almost in time to the music, and I’m immediately in my happy place. It wasn’t until I went to college that I fell in love with running. My body had just begun transforming into something I hadn’t been before. I had always been extremely thin and boney, even though I ate constantly. But suddenly, I was taller and broader. I had tight cords of muscle running beneath my skin. For once in my life, I didn’t want to be the scrawny, little nerd anymore. I wanted to build my newfound muscles, sculpt them into sinewy mass that would make girls want me. The very same girls who once laughed at me . . . if they even knew I existed.

  So I started running. A lot. Then, I started using the campus weight room five days a week. For a while, I was obsessed, especially once I started seeing changes. If I wasn’t in class or doing homework, I was working out. And I thought I was doing it to make people like me more, but I actually looked forward to it. I became addicted to the endorphin rush when I pushed myself to new limits. It was pretty funny, actually. I went from being scared shitless of going out in public for fear of being picked on to the jock-type who stepped out confidently, daring someone to cross them.

  Well, I tried to come across that way, anyway. I was still scared to death for a long time. I think, in some ways, I’m still that guy. I’m a little more confident with my body image, and I date a lot of gorgeous women. But there’s still that part of me that knows too well what it feels like to be pantsed in front of the whole school at a pep rally.

  Yeah, true story.

  That was before Sawyer and I became friends, though. People didn’t mess with me much after Sawyer came around. He was one scary dude then. To tell the truth, even after high school, he was. He was a genuinely nice guy, but there was always this undercurrent of something dark. Something menacing. But as soon as Makenna came into his life, she brought a lot of light with her. I’ve never seen Sawyer smile so much.

  Rounding my block again, I glance down at my watch. I guess I’ve been lost inside my head for about forty-five minutes now, and damn, I feel better. Any my phone didn’t even ring once.

  Shit. Until now.

  I slow my pace to a walk and reach across to my shoulder, punching at my phone to answer.

  “Dr. Hoover,” I gasp breathlessly.

  “Uh, Dalton?”

  The female voice sounds familiar, but I can’t quite place her.

  “Yeah?”

  “Hey, umm, this is Kyler. Did I call at a bad time?”

  Ah, she sounds just as adorable on the phone. “No, no,” I say, trying to steady my respiration. “Just out for a run, but I’m finishing up. I’m actually just a couple houses away from being home. Is there something wrong with Simon?”

  She chuckles. “Oh, no, I’m calling for personal reasons. Simon is doing great today.”

  “Glad to hear it. What’s up?” I turn up my driveway, stopping to wave back at my ogling neighbor who is walking her dog down the street. There are downsides to running without a shirt. Mrs. Vance makes me feel just plain weird.

  “It’s about Wednesday . . . our date?”

  “Oh, okay. Do you want to cancel?”

  She sighs deeply, making the phone speaker go fuzzy for a second. “No, I don’t want to cancel. It’s actually the last thing I want to do. But my sister has a meeting in Montgomery that night, so I’m babysitting at her house. Simon has to be in bed by nine, and she probably won’t be home until close to midnight. Can we maybe reschedule? I know your time is limited, so don’t feel obligated.”

  “So she didn’t kill you, after all?”

  “Thankfully, no,” Kyler says. “But if it ever happens again and you never hear from me again, you’ll know what happened to me. Uh, umm . . . not saying that I’ll be with you forever.” She growls softly. “And I’m not saying that I wouldn’t want to. I just . . . I . . . I’m shutting up now.”

  “Kyler?” I allow a devious grin to curl my lips. “Do I make you nervous?”

  “Isn’t it obvious?”

  “A little.”

  She begins to stammer again, but I stop her.

  “But let me tell you a little secret. I kinda like it.” I glance down at my watch again before taking it off and setting it next to the bathroom sink. I’ll need to get back to the hospital soon.

  “Well, that’s a relief since I don’t see it stopping anytime soon.”

  Ah, hell. Who needs sleep? “Good. Because I have an idea. Are you busy tonight?”

  “Umm, no. But I thought you were working today.”

  Kicking off my shoes and stepping out of my shorts, I pull the shower curtain back and turn the water on to heat up. “I’m about to go into the hospital for a while, but if you’re not opposed to a really late dinner, I’d love to see you. As long as there isn’t too much excitement at the hospital, I’d say we could meet around nine. Is that too late for you?”

  “Nine is great. I’m a night owl. Where do you want to meet? Is there someplace still open at that time?”

  I’m going for broke here, so I might as well throw in all my chips. “I was thinking about Chinese takeout at my place.”

  “Okaaaay,” she draws out. “Sounds like we have a date.”

  “We sure do. I’ll text you my address, and I’ll also call you when I’m on my way home. If something comes up at the hospital, and I can’t get away, we may have to move dinner there. Either way, I promise to see you tonight.”

  Her throaty giggle tickles my ear. “Don’t make promises you can’t keep, Dr. Hoover.”

  Well, well. The little vixen is trying to flirt with me.

  “I never do.”<
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  WELL, SO MUCH for nine o’clock.

  Thankfully, I’m finally on my way home, but nearly an hour late. And I smell faintly of whiskey-laced vomit, thanks to the drunk who came in with alcohol poisoning.

  I called Kyler on my way out of the hospital, and she offered to pick up the food on her way, so I’d have time to shower. I don’t typically love the idea of letting the woman buy my food, but tonight, I’m exhausted and willing to make an exception. This one time.

  Leaving the front door open in case Kyler gets here before I’m out of the shower, I make a beeline straight to my bedroom, stepping into the closet to grab some clothes, and get into the shower for the third time today. That’s pretty typical for me when I’m at the hospital most of the day, and especially so when any bodily fluids are involved.

  I make it as quickly as I can, scrubbing fast but thoroughly. After shutting the water off, I listen carefully for any noises in the house, and it appears she still hasn’t made it, which gives me a few minutes to straighten everything up. I only halfway dry off, step into my shorts, and jog around the house to pick up any stray dishes or laundry. I’m typically a fairly neat guy, but I haven’t had a whole lot of time to clean the last couple of days.

  When I’m satisfied that it’s as good as it’s going to get, I heft the trash bag from the container in the kitchen to take it outside, which reminds me that trash pick-up is in the morning. So I also end up rolling the bin out to the road, right as Kyler pulls into my driveway.

  “You know, we could’ve done this another night,” she says, stepping out of her tiny, blue compact car, her arms loaded with takeout bags. “I’m sure you’re exhausted.”

  I notice she isn’t looking directly at me while she speaks. She’s looking right over my shoulder at the empty lot across the street. “I still need to eat, and I’m just fine. Something wrong?”

  “Uh, no.” Her eyes meet mine for about half a second before looking back over my shoulder. “Why?”

  I reach out to place my index finger under her chin and turn her head slightly to me. “You’re not looking at me.”