“You doing okay?” Joe asked as he pulled Lois closer to his side.
“I–I feel kind of strange.”
“It’s the gorgeous view. It takes your breath away, doesn’t it?”
She pressed her lips together and stood there like a statue.
“Come on! Let’s go to the railing and see what we can see.”
Before Lois could respond, Joe grabbed her hand and pulled her away from the wall where she’d been hovering. A few seconds later they were standing on the edge of the world. At least that’s how it felt to Lois. Joe was right. The roller coaster at the fair had been child’s play compared to this. Even though the rails were enclosed, Lois felt as if she might tumble over the edge to her death. No way could she stay up here long enough to eat lunch in the revolving restaurant!
“Can we go back down now?”
Joe didn’t seem to hear what Lois was saying, as he whistled some silly tune and studied the panorama below.
Lois stood slightly behind him, leaning into his back, and praying she wouldn’t pass out. She closed her eyes, hoping it would make her feel better, but the knowledge of where she stood was enough to make her head spin.
After what seemed like an eternity, Joe turned to face her. “Have you seen enough?”
Lois had seen more than she cared to see. She headed toward the nearest elevator and was thankful they didn’t have to wait as long as they had when they went up. She breathed a sigh of relief when the elevator door opened.
“That was awesome!” Joe announced as they stepped inside. “We were up so high I think I saw some of the passengers’ faces looking out of the window in a jet that whizzed by.”
Lois moaned. How could Joe make a joke at a time like this? Didn’t he realize she’d nearly died of fright up there?
“Hey, you know what I think?”
She glared at him. “I can’t imagine.”
“Maybe we should go up in a plane for our next date.”
“You have to be kidding!”
“I love being in the air. The only thing I don’t like about plane travel is the waiting and, of course, having some airline personnel go through my belongings.” Joe chuckled. “Airport security has been really tight lately. In fact, the last time I boarded a plane, they confiscated my most important possession.”
“Really—what was that?” Lois asked, feeling a little better now that they were heading for solid ground again.
Joe’s lips curved into a dopey little smile. “My sharp wit!”
Twelve
The rest of the day in Seattle passed swiftly. Joe bought Lois a souvenir replica of the Space Needle, to remind her she’d actually gone up in it, and they ate lunch at the food court, sharing a Mexican dish large enough for two. After walking around the entire Seattle Center and enjoying the sights and sounds, Joe suggested they go to the waterfront.
Lois loved the salty smell of the bay and eagerly agreed. The next several hours were spent browsing the various gift shops, touring the aquarium, and finally having fish and chips at Ivar’s Fish Bar. Now they were on their way home, and Lois dreaded having to tell Joe good-bye. She enjoyed being with him and wondered if she could love him. It amazed her sometimes that he could see the humor in almost any situation.
Leaning her head against the window, Lois closed her eyes and relived the memory of Joe mimicking the seals they’d seen at the aquarium. He’d done everything but stand on his head to get them to bark and slap their fins against the wooden deck when they begged for food.
“What’s that little smile about?” Joe asked, breaking into Lois’s thoughts.
She opened her eyes and glanced over at him. “I was thinking about how much fun I had today.”
Joe grinned like a Cheshire cat. “You mean you’re not mad at me for dragging you into the Space Needle?”
Her lower lip protruded. “Well, maybe a little. . . .”
“But I kept you well entertained the rest of the day, and you’ve decided to forgive me, right?”
She nodded and smiled.
“Maybe we can go to Snoqualmie Falls for our next date,” he suggested. “We’d better do it soon, though, ’cause it’s almost October, and the weather will be turning cold and damp soon.”
Lois’s heartbeat quickened. Joe wanted to see her again, and he was already talking about where they might go. “I haven’t been up to the falls in ages. It’s beautiful there, and we could take a picnic lunch.”
His forehead wrinkled. “Since the weather is turning colder, and rain is a likely possibility, I’m not sure the picnic idea would fly, unless we eat in my truck.”
She agreed. “A picnic lunch inside your truck sounds like a great idea.”
“When would you like to go?” Joe asked.
“I’m pretty flexible. It’s your hectic schedule we’ll need to plan around. When will you have another free Saturday?”
He shrugged. “I’d better check my appointment book after I get home. I’ll give you a call as soon as I know which day will work best.”
“Sounds good to me,” she said.
❧
Joe was glad they’d made it through the day without Lois’s asking too many personal questions. Maybe she had given up on the idea of digging into his past and decided they could simply have a good time whenever they were together. That was all he wanted, wasn’t it—just to enjoy Lois’s company? No strings attached and no in-depth conversations about confidential things. It was too painful to talk about the past. Joe had managed fine all these years by clowning around, and he wasn’t about to let his guard down now.
“Would you like to come in for a cup of coffee before you head back on the road?” Lois asked as they stopped in front of her apartment complex.
He smiled. “Sure, that would be great.” Joe hopped out of the truck and sprinted around to the other side to help Lois down.
As they strolled up the front sidewalk, Joe noticed a broken beer bottle lying in the grass. “Looks like folks choose to litter no matter where they live,” he muttered.
“I know,” Lois said. “My apartment manager does his best to keep the yard free of debris, but it’s almost a full-time job.”
Joe bent down to pick up the shattered glass. “I’ll carry this in and drop it in your garbage can, if that’s all right.”
“Sure. It will be one less thing for poor Mr. Richards to face in the morning.”
In Joe’s hurry to retrieve what was left of the bottle, he didn’t notice the jagged edge and cut his hand. “Ouch!” He cringed and dropped the piece of glass as a sharp pain shot through his hand then continued up his arm. “Guess I should be more careful when I’m playing with glass.”
Lois frowned. “Here—let me take a look at that.” She reached for Joe’s hand, and a stream of dark blood oozed between his fingers and landed on her palm. “Oh, my! That looks like a nasty cut. I think you may need stitches.”
Joe shrugged it off as though it were no more than a pinprick. “Naw, it’ll be fine once we get inside and I can wash my hand and slap on a bandage.”
She gave him a dubious look, then handed over a clean handkerchief she’d taken from her purse. “Wrap this around the wound until we get indoors.”
“What about the broken glass?”
“You’d better leave it for now. At the moment we have more pressing things to worry about.”
Joe followed Lois to her apartment door. She unlocked the door and opened it for him to enter.
“I have antiseptic and bandages in the bathroom.” Lois motioned to the kitchen table. “Have a seat and I’ll get my first-aid kit.”
“I can manage,” Joe mumbled. “Just point the way to the bathroom.”
“Are you sure you don’t want my help? It’s going to be difficult to work with only one hand.”
He shook his head, although his hand was throbbing like crazy.
“The bathroom’s the first door on the left,” she said, nodding in that direction.
A few seconds
later, Joe stepped into the bathroom, held his hand under the faucet, and turned on the cold water. A river of red poured from the wound. The room seemed to spin around him, and a wave of nausea rushed through his stomach. He leaned against the sink and moaned. “Guess I might need a couple of stitches after all.”
“What was that?” Lois called from the other room.
“Could you come here a minute?”
She was at his side in a flash, concern etched on her face. “You look terrible, Joe. Maybe you should put your head between your legs, before you pass out.”
“I can’t stop the bleeding. I think you were right about my needing stitches.” He smiled, but it took effort. “Guess we’ll have to postpone our plans to go up to Snoqualmie Falls for awhile.”
She looked at his hand and shuddered. “It’s bleeding badly. I’d better get a towel.” Lois opened a small cabinet and withdrew a bath towel. She wrapped it tightly around his hand and led him toward the door. “I’m driving you to the hospital, and you’d better not argue.”
“I wouldn’t dream of it,” he mumbled. Funny, he’d never felt this woozy when he’d seen blood before. Maybe he was getting soft in the head.
Lois slipped one arm around Joe’s waist, and they headed outside. “Mind if we take your truck?” she asked. “My car’s in the parking garage, and I don’t want to take the time to get it.”
“Sure—that’s fine. The keys are in my left pocket,” he said as she helped him into the passenger’s seat.
Lois pulled out the keys, hooked Joe’s seat belt in place, closed the door, and ran around to the driver’s side.
“St. Joseph’s Hospital is only a few miles from here,” she told him.
“That’s good.” Joe leaned his head back and tried to conjure up some pleasant thoughts so he wouldn’t have to think about the throbbing in his hand or the blood already soaking through the towel.
When Lois parked the truck in front of the emergency room, Joe breathed a sigh of relief. At last he would get some help.
❧
After they checked in at the emergency room desk and filled out forms, Joe and Lois took seats and waited. Apparently, an accident involving three vehicles had occurred across town, and those people were receiving treatment now. The woman at the desk had told Joe he would be examined as soon as possible.
Lois recognized one of the nurses on duty as her neighbor Bonnie McKenzie. She knew from the few conversations she’d had with Bonnie that she worked at St. Joseph’s, was single, and dated often. Lois had seen more than a few men come to the apartment building to take out the vibrant redhead.
In a short time, Bonnie called Joe’s name.
“I’ll wait here, Joe,” Lois told him. “You go on back.”
“Oh, Lois—won’t you come too?” Joe asked. “I’d really like it if you would.”
Before she knew it, Lois was sitting beside the table on which Joe was lying, wishing she could be anywhere else but there. Hospitals made her nervous. They smelled funny, and most of the people who came to the ER were in pain—including Joe. She could see by the pinched expression on his face that he was hurting, although he kept telling jokes while the nurse administered a local anesthetic and cleaned the wound.
“I still can’t get over the fact that Tacoma would name one of their hospitals after me,” Joe said with a wink.
“What do you mean?” asked Bonnie.
“St. Joseph.” Joe chuckled. “You know, if hospitals are places to get well, then tell me this—why do they serve such awful food?”
Before the nurse could respond, a tall man with gray hair entered the room and introduced himself as Dr. Bradshaw. Lois could see by the stern expression on his face that he was strictly business.
The doctor examined Joe’s hand and gave the nurse some instructions. “Now lie back and relax, Mr. Richey. This won’t hurt.”
Joe’s head fell back onto the small pillow. “That’s because Nurse Bonnie has numbed my hand.”
Dr. Bradshaw made no reply but quickly set to work.
Lois turned her head away and studied the wall. She had no desire to watch the doctor put stitches in Joe’s hand, even if she was fairly sure he wouldn’t feel any pain.
“This is like an operation, isn’t it, Nurse Bonnie?” Joe asked.
“I suppose it could be categorized as such,” she replied with a chuckle.
“From what I hear, the definition of a minor operation is one that someone else has, so I guess mine falls into the major operation category,” Joe said with a loud guffaw.
Why is he doing this? Can’t the man be serious about anything? Lois peeked at Joe, who was grinning from ear to ear. Nurse Bonnie was also smiling, but the doctor’s face was a mask of austerity. At least someone besides me sees the seriousness of all this.
“We’re nearly finished,” the doctor said at last.
Lois breathed a sigh of relief, but Joe told another joke. “Does anyone here know what a specialist is?”
“Certainly,” the nurse replied. “It’s a doctor who devotes himself to some special branch of medicine.”
“Not even close,” Joe said. “A specialist is a doctor who has all his patients trained so they only get sick during his regular office hours.”
Dr. Bradshaw groaned and shook his head, Bonnie chuckled, and Lois just sat there. Maybe I’m too serious for my own good, she thought, feeling her cheeks grow warm. Bonnie obviously thinks Joe’s funny, and maybe he’s clowning around because it’s the only way he knows how to deal with the pain. He could dislike hospitals as much as I do, but he sure does show it in a different way.
The doctor cleared his throat. “Bandage this fellow’s hand then give him a tetanus shot, Miss McKenzie. When I looked at Mr. Richey’s chart, I noticed he’s overdue for one.” He turned and strode out of the room.
Lois noticed that Joe’s face had turned white. He pressed his lips into a tight line as the nurse stuck the needle in his arm. Afterward, he plastered another silly grin on his face. “Say, did you hear about the guy who was always getting sick with a cold or the flu?”
Bonnie shrugged her shoulders. “That could be just about anyone.”
He nodded. “True, but this guy was shot so full of antibiotics that every time he sneezed he cured half a dozen people.”
Bonnie laughed and gave Joe’s good hand a little pat. “Be sure to keep that wound clean and watch for infection. If you see anything suspicious, get right back in here.”
Joe hopped down from the table. “Sure thing, but I live in Olympia. So if I have any problems the hospital there will probably get my business.” He glanced over at Lois and winked. It was the first time he’d looked her way since they’d come into the examining room.
“Ready to go?” Lois asked.
“Ready as I’ll ever be. Sure am glad you’re driving, though. My left hand feels like it’s ten sizes too big with this huge roll of bandage Nurse Bonnie has slapped on me.”
“It’s for your own good, Mr. Richey,” the nurse said as she led them out of the room. “Take care now, and, Lois, I’ll probably see you around our apartment complex.”
Lois waved to Bonnie and hurried out the door. She was anxious to get outside and breathe some fresh air.
A short time later Lois drove away from the hospital and headed for the freeway. “Hey—where are we going?” Joe asked. “Your place is that way.” He pointed with his right hand.
“I’m taking you to Olympia.”
His eyebrows shot up. “You’re driving my truck—remember?”
“I know that.”
“How will you get back to Tacoma? And where will you stay tonight?”
“My dad can pick me up at your house, as soon as I make sure you’re okay, and then drive me back tomorrow. I’ll stay at their house tonight.”
“Why didn’t I think of that?” Joe laughed.
Lois smiled. “You just had stitches—remember?”
Thirteen
Lois woke up feeling groggy
and disoriented. It took her a few minutes to realize she was in her old bedroom at her parents’ home in Olympia. She yawned, sat up, and glanced at the clock on the table by her bed. It was almost eight o’clock. There was no way she and Dad could drive to Tacoma for her to shower, change, and still make it in time for Sunday school. She would have to call the superintendent and ask him to find a substitute for her class. If she left right away, she might make it for the morning worship service.
Maybe I should call Joe and see if he’d like me to go with him to his church this morning. Then Lois remembered she didn’t have a change of clothes since she hadn’t planned to stay all night at her parents’ home. The least I can do is give him a call and see how he’s doing this morning.
Lois reached for the telephone and dialed Joe’s number.
“Joe Richey here.” Joe’s deep voice sounded sleepy, and Lois figured she had probably awakened him.
“Hi, it’s Lois. I was wondering how your hand is this morning.”
“It’s still pretty sore, though I think I’ll live.” He laughed, but it sounded forced. “Thanks for coming to my rescue last night.”
“You’d have done the same for me.”
“You have that right.”
There was a long pause. “Well, I should let you go. I need to spend a few minutes with my parents then hurry back to Tacoma if I’m going to make it in time for church.”
“I’d invite you to visit my church with me, but I think it might be best if I lie low today. The doctor said I should ice my hand if there’s swelling and try to rest it for the next twenty-four hours.”
“That makes sense to me,” Lois said. “Is there anything I can do for you before I head home?”
“No, I think I can manage. Thanks for offering though.”
“Guess I’ll be seeing you then.”
“Have a safe trip back to Tacoma.”
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