Saving Forever - Part 5 (Saving Forever #5) (2 page)

Charity blew her hair away from her forehead and tried not to roll her eyes heavenward. The heat in the room seemed to have gone up ten degrees even though she knew the wall thermostat controlled the temperature and kept it below slightly cool.

The warmness came from the little belly dancer inside of her. Her hand came protectively around the tiny swell growing in her stomach. She had finally begun popping out about two weeks ago. Not that you could really see much. She still had no problem hiding it. However, there now was a slight bump which hadn’t been noticeable. The little peanut had decided he –or she– needed more room.

“Thompson-Bennet? Are you with us, or did we leave you lagging behind in the battlefield?”

Charity blinked and wiped her forehead with the back of her hand. Four white coats trailed behind the stethoscope leader with the impeccably small eyeglasses.
How does he even see out of them?
She hurried around the steel table, grabbing her clipboard and slipping into the back of the line.

Five months pregnant and back at the hospital working. Except, not raising money for it anymore. Now she was working in a ward. No wards. Somehow Elijah, her father, Julie, and Simon had convinced her to finish her internship. The final step for a medical graduate to become a fully qualified doctor after obtaining a medical degree. So here she stood again, a first-year resident who was way older than the other first years in her group, working alongside Dr. Grouchy-pants today on rounds.

Dr. Fulton was his real name, but the interns referred to him as Dr. Grouchy-pants behind his back. The other interns knew Charity was Dr. Scott Thompson’s daughter, married to the hot Dr. Elijah Bennet. They didn’t know she had a teeny tiny bump growing inside of her.

“… You are interns, working alongside fully qualified doctors and medical staff, in a working environment, where you have the opportunity to practice and train under direct supervision,” Dr. Fulton droned on as they headed down the hall from the morgue room to the elevator. “This is your most crucial step to becoming a qualified doctor. Some of you may not make it through this. It is not easy. You are expected to apply everything you’ve learned and save lives in the blink of an eye. You think and react at the same moment. There is no time to consider or second-guess when you are in the operating room. Today’s surgery is not a leisurely stroll in the park. This patient’s heart needs to be saved and one wrong cut or stitch could kill him.”

Mandy, the girl in front of Charity, let out a shaking breath. Charity tapped her on the shoulder and whispered so Dr. Fulton wouldn’t hear. “He’s just trying to scare us. He still thinks he’s on the battlefield trying to separate the soldiers from the boys. You’re not a boy. Step up and show him you’re a man. A Woman. Doctor Woman.”

“Excuse me, Thompson-Bennet.” Dr. Fulton held his finger over the elevator button and stared down his nose at her. He refused to use the word doctor in front of any of the intern’s names. Stubborn and grouchy. “Do you have something to share with all of us before we scrub in?”

She debated half a second but knew he would love to try and squash her like a bug. Elijah had warned her to keep her comments to a minimum or she would never get any hands-on time in the operating room with Dr. Fulton. “I was just telling Maddy that it’s time to separate the soldiers from the boys.”

Dr. Fulton’s busy, gray eyebrows rose. “Do you believe you’re a soldier, Thompson-Bennet?” He was baiting her.

She saluted him. She knew she shouldn’t do it, but couldn’t stop herself. “Yes, sir.” How she managed to keep a straight face was beyond her.

“Fine.” Dr. Fulton pressed his lips into a thin line as the elevator door opened. “You’re the veteran, you can lead us today.”

She had just set herself up. It could be the best day of her internship or her worst. She was the veteran because of age and because she had already done time as an intern years ago. She had her USMLE. Her father hadn’t known that, when he found out, he pushed her to take the Comprehensive Osteopathic Medical Licensing Examination. He said it would refresh her brain and get in good with the medical staff of Thompson Hospital. Then her residency would be a breeze and she could be working as a doctor and taking over his patients.

He was crazy.

Internships were notoriously hard work. Everyone knew that. She was already working long hours, like sixteen-hour shifts, over sixty hours a week. She had no time to study for the COMPLEX and try to jump the gun, or get in anyone’s good books. She knew a residency would up the hours, like over eighty hours a week. She didn’t want that – yet.

The interns followed Dr. Fulton into the patient’s room. His bedside manner sucked but he was a good surgeon, and as much as she didn’t want to admit it, he knew how to teach. He questioned them on the surgery, went over everything with the patient and then asked them again for the procedure as they walked down the hall to the operating room.

Charity shoved her hand into her white coat pocket so no one would notice it shaking. She knew the procedure and had actually been practicing sewing on a grape last night. Confident, and nervous. What had she gotten herself into?

“Charity!”

She paused as she passed an open door. Elijah stepped out into the hall, stethoscope around his neck and blue hospital scrubs on. The color made his beautiful eyes even brighter. He grinned as he stared at her, hands on his hips and his runner squeaking on the polished tile floor as he twisted his foot. “How’s it going?”

How could he be this delicious? He was oozing with sex appeal. Maybe it was the pregnancy hormones coursing through her, but he looked and smelled... She had to physically take a step back so her brain could focus and let her mouth speak. “I’m okay. How about you?” He had been on call last night so she hadn’t seen him since before dinner.

“I’m good. Did you sleep alright?”

Seriously? He wanted to talk about their bed? Her cheeks flushed and a flutter in her lower belly hinted at the possibilities. “F-Fine. You on call tonight?”

He gave her a single shake of his head.

“Dr. Bennet, do you want us to wait for you to finish chatting with your wife, or do you mind if we get ready to save a man’s life?” Dr. Fulton called out clearly from down the hall.

Elijah waved his hand. “She’s all yours, Dr. Fulton. Don’t go easy on her.” He brushed the tips of his long fingers against his lips and then reached out to trail them lightly across her belly. “Mornin’ peanut.”

His touch sent a shiver that was not unwelcomed down her back. “Text me later?” she murmured.

“Definitely. Let’s try and do lunch. I’ll make sure my schedule’s open. I’ll order us some subs? Have it in my office?” He blinked and Charity couldn’t tell if he had winked at her and was trying to imply something else or if he had just blinked. It happened so fast and subtly.

“Lunch it is. I’ll let you know when we’re finished in surgery.” She nodded then hurried to catch up with the others when Dr. Fulton cleared his throat loudly. She tried to stop the smile arching its way up on her lips but couldn’t.

If half a minute with Elijah could do that, what would a lifetime do?

Ten minutes later they stood just outside the surgery room. “Again, Thompson-Bennet. What are you going to do?” Dr. Fulton barked.

Charity stood behind the sink trough scrubbing in. She had gone over the order of the procedure, making plenty of room for variations should any issues arrive. Even the other residents were watching her with a kind of deer-in-the-headlights expression. She wasn’t trying to show off. Not at all. Dr. Fulton kept asking her if she knew what she had to do.

All the med-school classes, the first half year of her intern residence prior to her mother getting sick came flooding back like it had never left. Being in the hospital doing it again, holding a scalpel, operating – it was all an adrenal rush. She didn’t want to get off the crazy train.

Slipping her mask on, she shoved the swinging metal door to the operating room open with her butt and moved across from Dr. Fulton.

“Again.”

She picked up the sharp metal cutter and held it in the air as she began repeating what she would be doing.

Dr. Fulton cut her off. “This time, say it in your head and let your hands show me.”

She hesitated only a millisecond before letting her hands get to work. The only time she spoke was to ask for a surgical tool or suction or help with closing.

The surgery was over in less than an hour.

“Well done, Dr. Charity.” Fulton nodded when Charity stepped back. “All four of you, grab some food and some sleep. You look like crap. Except one. You’ve all got seventy-five minutes before we head to the ER.” He moved to let a nurse in. He glanced up and looked Charity in the eye. “I’ll tell you this right now, I’m not calling you Dr. Thompson or Dr. Bennet. And there is no way in hell I’m going to use Dr. Thompson-Bennet. I’ll be gasping for air by the time I finish saying it. Find a name that’ll work, and that sticks.” He pulled his gloves off and tossed them in the correct bin before disappearing out the door.

Mandy moved beside Charity as they headed out of the OR to clean up. “How about Dr. T-B?”

Charity pulled her mask off and smiled. “T-B? Tuberculosis?” She crinkled her nose.

“He called you doctor. He never calls us that. It’s only our last name, and never our first.” Mandy sighed and rubbed her neck. “He gave you Doctor and Charity. That’s huge.”

Charity shrugged, not sure she was ready to make a big deal out of it, but dying to tell Elijah what had happened. “So was that procedure!”

“And you aced it! How many years did you say you were working before you came back to finish?” Mandy yawned. “Sorry. I’m not bored. I’m exhausted.”

“Go sleep.” Charity pointed down the hall to where the beds were in the small room they tried to crash in between shifts. “You’ve got an hour. I’ll grab you some lunch and wake you up before we do the next rounds.”

“What are you going to do? Study how to make a crushed windpipe perfectly whole again?” Mandy teased. She nudged Charity. “Go see your hot doctor husband. Squeeze in a quickie. Tell him I said hi.”

“While I’m having a quickie?” Charity laughed. “Might be kind of awkward.”

Mandy rolled her eyes. “You’re crazy, Dr. C, crazy.” She made circles by her temple with her finger. “But impeccably smart. Cool job in there. I couldn’t have done it.”

“Yes, you could have. You’d have done the same thing I did.”

“No, I wouldn’t have. You are your father’s daughter. I’ve seen Dr. Thompson operate. It’s like watching a concert musician pick up a violin and play. It isn’t a person and an instrument, the violin becomes an extension of the performer. That’s how you are inside an operating room… Just like Dr. Thompson. Senior.”

Charity didn’t know what to say. She knew her mouth had dropped open in surprise but didn’t even try to close it or her wide eyes.

Mandy smiled. “Go. Find Dr. Bennet. Then come back here in an hour and wake me up.” She yawned as she leaned against the closed door to the bunk bed room. “I’d ask for details, but you’re married, not just fooling around with a random doctor.” She ducked behind the door before Charity could throw something at her.

Charity pulled her phone out of her pocket and headed toward the elevator. She texted Elijah:
On my way up. Just finished. I have 1hr.

She glanced out the window from the third floor and stared at the city view. A wing of the hospital shadowed the right side. There were loads of windows on the gray walls to take advantage of as much light as possible. Her father had been instrumental in the design, like a nucleus with rays of building extending from it, but also connected so nothing was truly far away.

She tightened her ponytail and tucked a chunk of blonde hair behind her ear. Her hair had been growing strangely fast the past while. Her bangs had grown too long and needed to be cut, she just hadn’t had the time to get it done.
Maybe this weekend.

The elevator slid open and she waited for a man in a business suit to exit before stepping inside. She grinned when she saw a doctor leaning against the back corner looking at his phone. His dark brown hair sat slightly messed, but only made him appear more ruggedly sexy with the slight shadow already showing against the jaw line. He didn’t look up.

She turned her back to him as she reached for the sixth-floor button already lit. She closed her eyes and silently sighed thinking back to the first time she had met Elijah. Ironically in the same elevator.

She remembered staring too long at his face instead of his badge. At least she didn’t have to wonder what he looked like with his shirt off, she knew that like the back of her hand now. “You a doctor here?” she asked, refusing to turn around and look at him.

“Pardon? Char—” He chuckled as he moved to stand very close beside her, his hand brushing against her derriere before settling close to her fingers. “I am. What about you?”

She tried not to smile and stared at the red elevator digital number increasing from four to five. “I’m working on it.”

“Your office on the sixth floor?”

“My father’s is.”

“Ohhh…” He let out a low whistle. “That kinda sucks.”

She turned to him not missing his sexy smile. “You scared of my father?”