17. Chapter 17
Chapter 17
Joy
“W ho the hell is planning a date for Monday night, anyway?” Rayna asks as I glance at my watch for what feels like the hundredth time.
I’ve been on edge ever since I walked in and glanced at the schedule of patients. The afternoon is booked solid, which almost always means we won’t be getting out on time. But that’s not the point. Even if I didn’t have plans, there’s literally nothing worse than getting out of work late. As a rule, we aren’t supposed to have the schedule that full.
“That’s not the point,” I argue, cutting my eyes at my friend. “I’d want to get out on time even if I didn’t have anything to do after work.”
She laughs to herself as she types away on the computer. “Calm yourself, it’ll be fine. We’ll make sure you get out of here on time. What do you have planned for tonight?”
I shrug. “I don’t know. The point is, I don’t want to be stuck here.”
Now, she’s laughing, and as much as I want to be pissed at her, I can’t help but laugh along. I’m being dramatic, but I haven’t seen Tate since I stayed the night at his house. Our schedules didn’t match up, and then he was out of town. This is his first day back. I know it’s stupid and clingy, but I miss him.
“It looks like after Mr. Crawley’s appointment there’s a break until that madness after lunch. You want to order pizza?” I suggest.
Rayna looks surprised by my suggestion but recovers quickly. “No, I brought a salad, but you can see if Dr. Robinson wants something. You didn’t bring a lunch?”
“I did, but I’m not hungry for a sandwich. If I have to deal with all of Cole County after lunch, I need my strength.”
Rayna laughs and shakes her head. Before she can say anything, the bells chime as the door opens, and Mr. Crawley walks in. Pasting on a smile, I pick up my tablet and make my way around the desk. By the time I make it around, I become aware of the dog standing beside him.
“Mr. Crawley, you can’t bring a dog in here.” I point at the sign on the door.
“Patches isn’t botherin’ anybody. Now, come on. I have a twelve-thirty tee time, and you’re gonna make me late.”
I open my mouth to argue, but snap it shut without saying anything. I’d be surprised to find out Old Man Wilber golfs. Even if he did have a tee time, there would be no way he could make it all the way to the other side of the county by twelve-thirty. Not even if he left right this second.
“Follow me,” I say with a sigh and a raised eyebrow directed at the dog.
I take him into the last exam room. That way, if the dog makes a mess, it’ll be easier to avoid the room until it’s cleaned. The nurse is off, so I ask the regular intake questions as I take his vitals.
“So, what brings you in today?” I ask as I take his wrist and measure his pulse.
“The missus said I had to come in because I was sick last week,” he answers in a gruff voice.
“Oh, okay. What seems to be bothering you today?” I ask as I enter his pulse rate into the chart.
“Nothing. I said I was sick last week.”
My brow is furrowed as I wrap the blood pressure cuff around his arm and use the stethoscope to listen. I enter the perfect numbers into the chart. His vital signs are better than mine.
“So, nothing is bothering you?” I confirm.
“No. Like I said. Last week.”
“Okay then,” I say, doing everything I can to keep from laughing as I walk to the door. “The doctor will be with you in a minute.”
As soon as I have the door open, Patches slips past me and takes off down the hallway. I curse under my breath as I take off after him. It’s no use. The dog has to be as old as Old Man Wilber, but he moves like a damn puppy. He ran toward the reception desk, so I’m crossing my fingers that he’s headed to Rayna.
I get to the desk and find Rayna leaning back in her chair scrolling on her phone. “Is Patches with you?”
She sits up in her seat and looks at me with wide eyes. “What do you mean, is he with me? You let the dog run loose? Dr. Robinson is going to be pissed.”
“Why am I going to be pissed?”
“Oh, Rayna’s just joking,” I answer quickly. “Mr. Crawley is in room six.”
Dr. Robinson pulls her reading glasses from the top of her head as she picks up her tablet and heads to the room. I hold my breath and cross everything as I watch her walk down the hallway toward the exam room. Where the hell could that dog disappear to? As soon as she closes the door of the exam room, I start checking every room, looking for a trace of Patches, but I see nothing. I don’t even hear anything.
As soon as I finish checking the exam room closest to room six, I hear a crash followed by scrambling coming from the supply closet. I could have sworn the door was closed when I walked by, but low and behold, Patches comes tearing out of the barely open door with a mouth full of…
“Patches?” I whisper-shout. “Patches, what the hell do you have?”
Of course, he doesn’t answer me. He shakes whatever it is, and droplets go flying before he takes off into a run, leaving a wet trail behind. I’m trying not to make a lot of noise, but as I gain on the rogue animal, he kicks into high gear and starts running circles around me. Tail wagging hard enough to shake his entire body, he sits in front of the door and watches me. It’s an IV bag.
“Oh, my god,” Rayna says slowly. Her lips are rolled, but it’s obvious she’s trying not to laugh.
I give Patches my fiercest glare as I reach out my hand and slowly approach. He gives the bag another shake, sending normal saline spraying, but he doesn’t run. As soon as I get close enough, I lunge. Patches takes off right when I make my move, and instead of getting my hands on him, my foot lands in a small puddle and I go flying.
It isn’t a graceful fall. It isn’t a little slip. No, of course not. My feet go up in the air, and next thing I know, I’m flat on my back staring up at the ceiling as my vision returns to normal.
“Are you okay?” Rayna’s footsteps get closer until I finally see her face peering down at me.
Closing my eyes, I take a cautious breath, groaning at how sore I already am. “Yeah. I’m okay. I just need a second.”
Rayna kneels beside me, placing one hand on my shoulder and taking my opposite hand to help me sit up. I take a few more slow breaths and as I nod my head and grip her hand, I hear the bells on the door jingle as someone comes in. Because of course they do.
“Joy? What happened? Are you okay?” I turn my head at the sound of Tate’s voice and scramble to sit up straight. “Hey, easy, now. Are you hurt?”
The concern etched into his features and the compassion in his voice are enough to cause my lip to quiver. I’m so embarrassed, all I want to do is disappear. As if falling flat on my ass isn’t bad enough, Tate has to be present for my humiliation.
“I’m okay. I think I just got the wind knocked out of me.”
Tate lowers himself to the floor and holds me against his chest as he runs his hands over my body. “You sure you aren’t hurt? Maybe have Dr. Robinson take a look before we leave?”
“Before we leave? How long was I out? It’s the end of the day?” My voice rises in panic with each word.
Tate’s arms tighten around me, instantly helping to calm my nerves. “Hey, you’re okay. It’s lunchtime now. That’s why I’m here. Rayna didn’t tell you I was coming to pick you up at lunch?”
I whip my head in the direction of my friend’s surprised giggle. She resembles a deer caught in headlights and slaps her hand over her mouth, muffling her laughter.
“I was going to, I swear. I just didn’t get that far.”
I glance at Tate and find him glaring at Rayna. “What do you mean you didn’t get that far? I called first thing this morning to make sure it was still okay for her to take a half day.”
“Oh, my heavens! What happened out here? Are you okay, Joy?” Dr. Robinson is clutching her chest as she rushes over to me, and I wish once more that I could either go back in time and not fall on my ass or disappear. Either one would work.
Tate helps me to my feet and directly across from me is an incredibly happy dog. Patches sits beside his owner, looking around as if he has no idea what all the commotion is about. Damn dog.
“I was chasing after this escape artist of a dog and slipped and fell. It’s not a big deal, I’m fine. He got hold of an IV bag and made a mess. I’ll get it cleaned up so no one else falls.” I try to remove myself from Tate’s grasp.
“You’ll do no such thing. You have plans this afternoon. We’ll take care of it. But why don’t you let me make sure you’re okay,” Dr. Robinson says.
Clearly, everyone except for me knew about my plans. I want to be annoyed, but I love that Tate planned something for me and even went as far as to call my job and clear some time off. Or tried to clear some time off, anyway.
“I’m sorry, Tate. It’s way too busy. Dr. Robinson, I can’t leave you guys here with all these appointments.”
“Um…” Rayna’s voice is soft. Too soft. “There are only two appointments this afternoon. I was just messing with you. In my defense, I didn’t expect for all hell to break loose before I could tell you it was a joke. You were supposed to come back to the desk, mention lunch again, and I was going to tell you something funny about having Tate for lunch.”
“Okay then!” I say far too loudly just to stop Rayna from saying anything else. “I’m just going to grab my purse.”
“Oh, here you go,” Rayna says, smiling cheerfully. She holds up a sweatshirt, along with a tote bag that I’m sure I didn’t bring with me.
I snatch my items from her and shove Tate out the door, anxious to get started with whatever he has planned. Anything to get out of there. Shrugging into my jacket, I hope it’s long enough to cover the wet mess that must be all over the back of my sweater and pants. Just once, I’d like to spend time with Tate without having to wash my clothes.