“Attention, everyone,” Arlene said, and raised a hand. “Let’s get started. You all know Dr. Kyriakides, I believe. But I want to introduce our newest staff member, Jeannine Carlyle. Jeannine, would you stand up?”
Reluctantly, Jeannine stood and choked down a bite of bagel that was suddenly lodged in her throat. “Hi, everyone,” was all she could think of to say.
How lame is that? she asked herself, and sat again, wishing she could slide under the chair in front of her. But she soon forgot her embarrassment as the physician began his presentation of a pediatric case from a remote Indian reservation in New Mexico. Watching him, listening to the case history and the problems the patient had experienced during his hospitalization, Jeannine forgot for a short time that she was starting a new job, that her life had been completely uprooted, and simply lost herself in Dr. Kyriakides’ voice and the slide presentation.
At the end of the presentation, staff members grabbed the remainder of the pastries and returned to their patients. Jeannine was the last to leave the room as the doctor packed up his computer. “Thanks for the presentation. It was very informative,” she said.
“You’re welcome. You’re the new nurse, right?” he asked, and shook her hand.
The faint smell of his cologne drifted toward her, and she took a step back. “New at this job, but not a new nurse.” Definitely not new to this game.
“Did you just move here or have you been in Albuquerque a while?” He finished rolling up the cables and stowed them in a black computer case.
“No, I worked across town. I needed a new start.”
“That sounds serious. Starting over isn’t very easy, is it?”
“No. It’s not.” Trying to avoid his piercing gaze was impossible. The dark hair and tawny skin gave him away as being of Mediterranean descent, but there was something else to him. Jeannine shrugged. He was none of her business except in a professional way. Beautifully exotic men were off limits to her. Relationships period were off limits to her, since the last one had almost killed her. “I…had a serious injury that took me out of work for a while, but I’m back in action now. Don’t worry, Doctor, I’m up to it.” Was she being defensive already? She didn’t need to tell her life story to everyone she met today, did she?
“Worrying is wasted energy, as far as I’m concerned. And please call me Miklo. I know they like to toss the medical director title around a lot, but I’m a doctor just like the rest. I simply have more paperwork.”
His engaging smile managed to pull her lips into an answering response.
“I’ll try. I’m not accustomed to addressing physicians by their first names. Usually just the residents.”
Miklo looked down at her and smiled. “Then just think of me as a really old resident.”
Against her will, Jeannine laughed at the small joke. But laughing was something she hadn’t done in some time and to be joyful on her first day at work was an unexpected gift. She’d learned to find those gifts in unusual places. “Thank you, Miklo.” She stepped toward the door. “Guess I’ll be seeing you later.”
“Yes, well, welcome to University Hospital.”
“Thanks,” Jeannine said, and left the conference room.
* * *
Miklo watched the new nurse go. She was a trim, pretty woman with long blonde hair and blue-green eyes that were filled with pain. She’d said she was starting over, and he knew from his own painful experience that starting over was never easy, no matter the reason.
Life as he had known it had been changed by the death of his wife. Pregnant with their child, they had both died in a tragic car accident three years ago. He’d been working instead of taking Darlene to a baby shower. The grief, the guilt, burned within him still at unexpected times. Like now. Clenching his jaw, he shouldered the heavy computer case and left the PICU. With a quick glance down the hall, he saw Jeannine at the nurses’station with her head bent over a chart, a pair of reading glasses perched on her nose.
As he left the hospital and went about his day, the image of Jeannine at the desk stayed with him. She seemed to be a lovely woman, and he hoped that her transition was going to be a good one.
CHAPTER TWO
JEANNINE entered the PICU on her second morning to pure chaos. Eyes wide, she watched as Dr. Kyriakides argued with Arlene at the nurses’ station.
“I need someone now.”
“No one wants to go, and I won’t force anyone,” Arlene said. “You can’t drag an unqualified nurse off to such a critical situation. It’s just not safe.”
“So you’re going to let an injured child lie in an ambulance outside and do nothing about it?” Miklo asked. “Any nurse will do in this situation.”
Arlene gasped. “That’s not fair, Miklo. The ER is on divert. All the hospitals are on divert.”
Jeannine stepped forward, uncomfortable but digging deep within herself, challenging the fear that always seemed to live in her lately. “What’s the situation? I have ER experience.” The lump remained in her throat, but she had to conquer her fear some time.
Miklo turned his blazing amber eyes on her. “Put your stuff down and come with me right now.”
Jeannine handed her backpack to Arlene. “Will you hold this for me?”
“Jeannine, wait! I’m not sure you’re up to this your second day here,” Arlene said. “I know you wanted to get back into it, but it’s too soon.”
Miklo hesitated, looking between the two women. “Is she qualified or not?” he asked Arlene.
“Yes, but—”
He turned from Arlene and placed a gentle hand on Jeannine’s back, propelling her forward with him. “Let’s go. There’s a child that needs us.”
Barreling down the stairs together, they burst into the ER where staff raced back and forth, the intercom paged a physician, and the sound of muffled crying came from behind a curtain. “Where is—?”
“Let’s try the ambulance bay. They were going to try to take him somewhere else, but in between the other hospitals went on divert, too.” Miklo led the way to the ambulance bay.
Jeannine’s attention was completely taken by the small, motionless patient on the gurney beside an ambulance. Miklo reached for the stethoscope that hung from his neck and listened to the little chest with a nod. “Chest seems okay.” He looked at the paramedic, named Charlie, who stood on the other side of the gurney. “What do we have?”
“Male, approximately six years old, involved in an MVA with his mother, who is in the next ambulance.” He looked at Jeannine. “You’re in the wrong hospital, aren’t you?” he asked.
Jeannine swallowed and gave him what she hoped was a confident smile. “Oh, hi, Charlie. Nope. Moved over to the University Hospital just yesterday.” One day on the job and she’d already been caught like a deer in headlights. Nothing used to stop her in her tracks, so this shouldn’t either.
“Well, it’s good to see you again,” he said, and gave a quick grin. “The kid seems stable right now, but there’s no telling what’s under the dressings. There were so many abrasions and lacerations that we just put saline-soaked gauze on him.”
“Good call,” Miklo said.
Jeannine checked the IV bag to ensure the fluids dripped quickly through the line in his small arm. “Unwrapping his face is not going to be good, I’m suspecting,” Jeannine said as she snapped on a pair of gloves