Clementine (3 page)

Alicia’s question sna
pped Addison out of her trailing thoughts. “I think so, I’ll have to be here Wednesday night to volunteer, and my final isn’t until Friday.  Yoga might actually be exactly what I need right now,” Addison was trying hard to glance toward Dr. Taylor as casually as possible so Alicia wouldn’t notice her obvious intent. She knew Dr. Taylor was in another league, probably composed of just him and a bevy of Victoria Secret Supermodels.  She wanted just a few moments of staring at him in bliss without Alicia’s judgment that she shouldn’t be infatuated with a guy
like that
.

A few moments later Addison surreptitiously
surveilled Dr. Taylor depart from the group of doctors and head for a table of guests sitting and chatting loudly. The group looked to be made up of twenty-somethings, mainly female.
I wonder if they’re fellow doctors, or maybe nurses,
Addison wondered to herself as she saw Dr. Taylor accept a seat between two of the women. They both wore black dresses that looked better suited for a nightclub rather than a hospital fundraiser, but they were pretty nonetheless. One of the women placed her hand on the back of his chair as they both leaned in and laughed heartily at whatever charming thing he’d said. Addison quickly pushed away the pang of envy.

“Well you two shouldn’t be sitting by yourselves. With all of the men at this silly fundraiser, you’d think they would have crowded your table already,” Addison heard a voice speak behind her. She turned her head and took in the pleasant sight of the man who stood behind them. He was handsome in a simple way. He wore his hair in a short crew cut that he managed to pull off
fairly well.

Alicia laughed as the man gestured to an open seat at their table. “I know right? How many doctors does it take to c
hat with two harmless ladies?” she jokingly added.

Addison smiled coyly, arching a brow in Alicia’s direction. She remained quiet, a little taken aback at their guest’s forwardness.

“Well, I guess my charming personality is owed to the fact that I’m a researcher at this hospital, not a doctor,” he continued, “I’m Jack, sorry for my abrupt introduction, but you two seemed infinitely more interesting than the dozens of old cronies at this party.”

Addison and Alicia both laughed before introducing themselves. He was easy to speak with, and Addison guessed he couldn’t have been beyond his mid-twenties. He kept the girls laughing and explained what a hospital researcher did, sparing them the boring details.

While Jack and Alicia chatted, Addison only allowed her eyes to stray to Dr. Taylor’s table twice. The first time she saw the same adoring girls sitting around him.
Typical.
However, the second time she slid her gaze to where he was sitting, they locked eyes for a moment... He was still nodding, pretending to listen to the two women next to him, and all the while examining Addison and her new friend, Jack. She flushed slightly at having been caught staring at him and promised herself she would try to focus on the conversation at her own table.

“Jack have you tried any of the food yet?” Addison said, turning her attention back to
her own table.

“I haven’t had the
chance; do you want to grab something with me?” Jack asked, clearly glad that Addison had finally directed a question toward him.

“Sure, I think I could handle a bit more
ceviche,” Addison replied as she stood to accompany him.

“You guys go ahead, I’ll meet back up with you in a bit,” Alicia said, as she retrieved her phone from her purse and walked toward the doors.

“Do you want me to get you anything, Alicia?” Addison hollered before her friend made it too far.

“Nah, I’m good for now!” h
er friend hollered back. Addison assumed she was heading toward the restroom, but when her phone vibrated a moment later, Addison learned her true agenda.

Addison smiled at her friend’s text. If only Alicia knew the real thoughts colliding in Addison’s head. Jack barely distracted her from the intense brown eyed man sitting across the room.

“Looks like Alicia had to run home on second thought.”

“Oh what a shame,
she was really nice,” Jack replied as he finished adding various foods to his plate, “Guess I’ll just have to keep you company.”

Addison nodded her head, unsure of how to respond.

After they picked their way through the food, Jack politely placed his hand on the small of Addison’s back directing her to a standing cocktail table.

“So are you from Austin
, Jack?”

“Not originally, I lived in Los Angeles and ended up moving here to get my Master’s from the University of Texas. I fell in love with city and luckily there was an openin
g in the research department of-

“Addison!” a voice called just as Jack finished his sentence.

“...Hyde Park Hospital,” Jack spoke.

Addison angled her head to find Stacy bounding toward her.

“I didn’t know you’d be here,” Stacy said as she reached their table.

“Yeah, Dr. Fischer invited a couple of us from the office.”

“Ohh, that’s fun,” Stacy responded with a tone that seemed to say the opposite. She scanned the room, pausing when her gaze fell on the exact spot where Addison knew Dr. Taylor was sitting.

“Oh, I think I found where a few of the other nurses are sit
ting. Dr. Taylor’s with them,” she said, finally looking back toward Addison, “He’s the guy from the coffee shop the other day,” Stacy spoke excitedly.

Addison nodded, not wanting to turn around.
Yup, he’s over there with his harem.

“Feel free to head over there, I’ve just been chatting with Jack,” Addison gestured toward her new friend, allowing Stacy to introduce herself.

“It’s a pleasure to meet you Jack,” Stacy said, “Why don’t we all go over there? It looks like there’s a few spots open at their table.”

Jack agreed before Addison could protes
t.
Oh good, we can all audition to become a members of his posse,
she thought bitterly
.
She begrudgingly stood and pulled her long blonde waves forward to frame her face. She grabbed her small clutch and straightened her dress, trying to feel as confident as possible as she crossed the garden in the wake of Jack and Stacy.  As she reached the table full of lively conversation she was met with a wave of nerves.
They all seem like good friends already.

“Hi everyone, this is Jack and Addison. Addison is in one of my CNA pre
-req classes with me,” She announced to the group before taking one of the three open seats at the table. Stacy’s friends paused their conversations to offer Jack and Addison a brief smile before turning back to one another. Addison scanned the other two open seats. One spot was open directly in front of her, between two girls, while the other, of course, lay beside Dr. Taylor.

“Addison, I think the person sitting here had to leave,” Dr. Taylor offered. His intense brown eyes held hers for a moment before quickly scanning down to the scoop neck of her dress, only briefly, before returning to her face. Addison almost didn’t notice because of how smoothly his gaze fell over her, but the smirk on his face confirmed her suspicions. His eyes held a playful expression as if he were aware of some secret she wasn’t privy to.

Addison returned his smile, growing more confident under his intense gaze.

“Well hopefully I can fill her shoes. Was she a friend of yours, Dr. Taylor?” Addison asked as she rounded the table to take the seat he had offered to her. Her tone came out a bit harsher than she had intended.

             
“I see most of these people around the hospital. She’s a nurse on the same floor that I work on,” Dr. Taylor answered, oblivious to her jealous tone.

Jack took the last vacant seat at the table and began making small talk with the guests on either side of him. Addison felt a pang of guilt at having so willingly brushed him aside. He seemed nice enough from their conversation, and if Dr. Taylor weren’t here, he’d be the best looking guest in attendance. However, she didn’t want Dr. Taylor to assume Jack was her date so it was probably best that they split up. Jack looked up from his conversation and gave Addison a shrug and an easy smile, eliciting the same response from her.

In that same moment, Dr. Taylor turned his body toward Addison so that he was almost sitting sideways on his chair. The proximity of their bodies forced Addison to look down at her dress, or lack thereof, now that she was sitting down. She felt a blush creep up her neck as she subtly pulled her dress down to her mid thigh, crossing her legs.

She looked up at Dr. Taylor, surprised to find him a boyish smile on his face.
God, at least act as if you don’t know what I’m trying to do.

Wanting to direct attention anywhere but her short hemline she willed herself to speak, “So you’re a resident here? What’s your
specialty?”

“Neurology and spine.
My dad worked as a biomedical engineer making spinal implants for surgeries, so I sort of grew up knowing what specialty I wanted to go into.” He spoke softly as if his job wasn’t completely intimidating.

“Oh, well my dad is a high school science teacher, sooo I grew up knowing I wanted to specialize in baking soda volcanoes.”

Holden rewarded her playful sarcasm with a rich laugh.

“Okay, I admit that sounds intense,” he feigned cringing, “but I assure you I’m a comp
letely humble spinal surgeon.” He winked lightheartedly.

“Hah…
You’re sort of funny Dr. Taylor.”

“You sound surprised?” he asked lightly.

She clasped her lips shut and shrugged her shoulders, a small grin still managing to escape. His megawatt smile was impossible to miss as she reached for her wine.

“In all seriousness, your specialty is
both awesome and intimidating,” she said, challenging herself to looking directly at him.

His ardent gaze never left her. “What do you want to study
in grad school, Addison?”

“If I end up getting into PA school I’d like
to practice family medicine,” she replied, proud of her decision even though Dr. Taylor might not respect it as much as his specialty.

“That’s a great field. In a state like Texas, the need for general preventative care in most areas is shameful,” Dr. Taylor spoke, surprising Addison with how endearing his tone was.

Addison took a sip of her wine, giving herself a reprieve from meeting Dr. Taylor’s eyes, even if only for a moment.
Hmm, not what I was expecting.

“I couldn’t
agree more,” she nodded.

“I’m guessing you did your undergrad in Austin?”

“Mhm, but I’m originally from Houston.”

“Ah, same here.
I haven’t made it back in some time though,” Dr. Taylor finished with a hint of a frown.

Addison nodded thinking of how l
ong it had been for her as well; school seemed to keep her preoccupied most weekends and she guessed work did the same for Dr. Taylor. Just as she was about to ask, Dr. Taylor looked up toward Jack and changed the subject abruptly.

“So it looks like you’ve made a friend tonight?”

Addison followed his gaze to Jack who was still wrapped up in conversation with the two other guests.
Is he jealous?

“I guess he didn’t have too many options,” Dr. Taylor added
a beat later before she could answer.

Addison flinched slightly at his comment, unsure of how to
take his insult.
What’s that supposed to mean?

“Yeah, well, you seemed to be corralling all the
other young female attention, so someone had to keep him company,” she replied haughtily, dropping her voice to make sure Dr. Taylor was the only guest privy to her accusation. She normally wasn’t so forward but something about Dr. Taylor seemed to peel away all of her usual reserve.

“Ah, pity he had to choose you. I thought you might have come to chat sooner,” Dr. Taylor
admitted with a wolfish grin that hit her like a wrecking ball. His intensity was hard to match as he insulted her one minute, and then seemed to be flirting with her the next. She could hardly keep up with his unpredictable manner.