CHAPTER 6 #3
Claire placed a cheeseburger on her tray. She reached for what looked to be a decent slice of chocolate cake. At least dessert wouldn’t be bad.
Out of her peripheral vision, she saw Jake stiffen and shake his head slightly.
“What?” she asked.
“Not good for you.”
“Ah.” Her stomach clenched in irritation. “Then, I guess you’ll have to close your eyes and look the other way when I add mayonnaise to this cheeseburger before I eat it.”
He groaned, albeit with a grin. “I’m a bit anal about food.”
“Are you? I hadn’t noticed.” She didn’t bother hiding her sarcasm.
He watched as she selected a bowl of fries, grabbing two fistfuls of ketchup packets and some of mayonnaise.
“You can never have enough ketchup,” she said in answer to his raised eyebrow.
They reached the cash register, and Claire fished in her handbag and extracted her wallet.
“No, no.” Jake shook his head. “Put that away. I’ve got this.”
“Thank you, but—”
“I’ve got it. You can pay next time.”
She hoped there wouldn’t be a next time. Her mother was due to be discharged tomorrow, and Claire would be happy if she never saw the hospital cafeteria again.
Jake made his way to a table on the far side, waiting until she was seated before he sat across from her. His hazel eyes on hers, he tore open the salad dressing packet with his teeth, the way she had seen men do with condom wrappers.
Trying not to read anything into it, she averted her gaze and pulled the tab on her Coke.
“So.” She stuck a straw in, took a sip, then set about putting mayo on her burger. “What’s going on with Mom?”
Frowning slightly, he watched her replace the bun, then drizzled a bit of dressing on his salad. “Well, the good news is that it’s not breast cancer.”
Relief made her close her eyes briefly, but her stomach clenched. If he phrased it that way, there was bad news too. “I hear a ‘but’ coming.”
He speared a slice of hard-boiled egg. “All the scans came back clear. We’re running a number of additional tests. But, as I said, the breast cancer hasn’t returned.”
Thank God. Claire exhaled a harsh breath. She tore open several ketchup packets at once, drenching her fries, then did it again.
He watched in bemusement. “Maybe you should have just gotten the tomato soup.”
“As a physician, you should know that ketchup is one of the most concentrated sources of lycopene.” She picked up a nicely coated fry and pointed it at him. “Yes, I’m aware of the sugar and the salt content. This is comfort food. I need the comfort. Now, what about this additional testing?”
“She can go home tomorrow,” he said.
Oh. If they were discharging her, it couldn’t be that bad. She picked up her burger.
“There’s one more thing.”
His tone made her put down the burger and search his face, and what she saw there made her nervous.
His eyes were intense, and he slid his hand toward hers, stopping just short of touching. “I’ve transferred all her files to Dr. Joseph Dawson. He is far better suited to her needs.”
Her eyes widened. What needs did her mother have that Jake couldn’t address? “Why?”
“Because I’m just a surgeon.”
“Just.” She almost snorted at what she could tell was false humility.
His cocky grin confirmed it. “I was on call when she came to the ER, and I ordered all the tests, but it isn’t me she needs. She’ll be in good hands, I promise. Dawson is the best at what he does.” He pointed to her cheeseburger. “Your food is getting cold.”
“And just what does Dr. Dawson do?” She had a feeling Jake was holding back.
He was silent for a beat.
“Please, tell me.”
“He’s a medical oncologist.” Jake looked away. “As I said, she doesn’t need a surgeon. Dr. Dawson will get to the bottom of what’s going on. But …”
“But?”
“There is another reason I decided it was best to give her case to another doctor.”
Again, Jake hesitated, but the look in his eyes and his knee suddenly touching hers under the table told her what he didn’t say out loud.
He wanted her.
And that was something she couldn’t deal with right now.
Suddenly, Claire wasn’t hungry anymore. She took a few gulps of Coke to ease her sudden queasiness and pushed back her chair, wincing at the loud scraping noise it made.
Jake raised his brows.
She desperately needed air, to get away from him and the way he was devouring her with his eyes. She slung her bag over her shoulder and snatched up her tray. “Excuse me, please. I just remembered I need to put a call in to work.”
“OK.” His slight frown and concerned expression said he didn’t believe her. She saw his gaze flick to something over her shoulder. His frown deepened. “Someone you know?”
Claire swung around.
Too quickly. The Coke slid, the tray dipped, and she tried to right it, but as she did, the Coke flew off the side, and she slammed into someone, tray first.
The clatter of dishes and silverware hitting the floor was mortifying. “Oh! I am so—”
Claire’s apology froze on a gasp.
Standing in front of her, his white shirt covered in ketchup and smeared with grease from the burger, was someone she thought she’d never lay eyes on again.