Chapter 115
“Pardon me, miss?” Jamie said stopping beside her. She turned, wide-eyed, and he could see the worry in her eyes as she waited for him to continue. “Are you the one who brought in Petty Officer Whitfield?”
“How is he?” she asked, a clear indicator that he had the right person. “Is he going to be okay?”
Jamie smiled in assurance. “He’s going to be just fine. It was an appendicitis, which is a fairly routine surgery. I was able to get it out without any problems, and he’s recovering now.”
“Oh, thank God!” she exclaimed, reaching out and grabbing Jamie’s arm. “I was so worried. It seemed like he was just fine yesterday, and then today, he calls, and he’s so sick. And Mom and Dad were out of town. I didn’t know what to do….”
“Mom and Dad?” Jamie asked, not understanding.
She nodded. “I thought I should drive him to the hospital, but I wasn’t sure, and then, when he started throwing up, well, I was just terrified so, I decided I should bring him here.”
“You did the right thing,” Jamie assured her placing his hand on her shoulder. She seemed comforted by the gesture as she looked suspiciously at her own hand and then an embarrassed smile formed on her ruby red lips as she withdrew her hand from his arm. “We’ll keep him under close observation for a while, but he should be just fine in a day or two.”
“That’s such a relief. I can’t thank you enough, Doctor…?”
“Joplin,” Jamie supplied. “Dr. Jamie Joplin.”
She smiled and then shyly offered her hand. “Nice to meet you. I’m Eleanor Whitfield, but my friends all call me Ellie.”
Still confused about the nature of Ms. Whitfield’s relationship with Tommy, Jamie tentatively took her hand. “It’s very nice to meet you. If you want to wait here, I can make sure someone comes to get you as soon as Petty Officer Whitfield is awake.”
Exhaling loudly, Ellie shook her head, “Yes, thank you. I’ll wait as long as I need to. If I left my big brother at the hospital all alone, my parents would kill me.” Her eyes widened and she sort of giggled, like it was a joke that she would even think of such a thing.
At first, Jamie was so happy to hear that she was Tommy’s little sister, he almost missed the fact that the polite thing to do would be to also laugh, but he caught on just in the nick of time. “Right. You certainly wouldn’t want your parents to think you’d abandoned him, especially after you were sweet enough to drive him in to begin with.”
“For certain,” Ellie agreed, settling into an awkward silence that Jamie allowed to linger for a moment before she cleared her throat and peeked up at him beneath her long eyelashes.
“Well, I’ll go let the nurses know. If you have any questions, you can have them call for me.”
“Thank you. I appreciate that,” Ellie said, smiling, and for a moment Jamie thought he saw a hint of interest in her eyes, though he couldn’t be sure. She was certainly a beautiful girl, and it was hard for him to imagine she wasn’t already in a relationship. Asking just now seemed ridiculous, though, so he nodded at her and turned to go.
He’d taken about four steps before she called, “Dr. Joplin!”
Jamie turned, his eyebrows raised, and stared at her for a moment as Ellie seemed to ponder what it was she’d wanted. “Yes?”
“Uh, I’m not sure I said thank you. So… thank you. For fixing my brother.”
“That’s what I do,” he replied, smiling and thinking about how adorable she was. When she seemed content with his response, he turned and left again, but something told him he wouldn’t soon forget Miss Eleanor Whitfield.
A few days later, Jamie was in the middle of his rounds when he was called to the nurses’ station. He approached cautiously, as he could see from Hildy’s face that she was displeased, and getting on her wrong side was still something he was trying to avoid. “Is everything all right?” he asked her, his eyes glued to her ruddy face.
“Yes, Doctor. Everything is perfectly fine. That is, except for the fact that this young lady insists on seeing you, and even though I’ve told her a hundred and ten times that this is a hospital and you are very busy, she told me to go ahead and call the MPs if I wanted to.” She nodded her head sharply in the direction of the waiting room, and Jamie turned to see Ellie standing there. Part of him thought he should address Hildy’s ridiculous statement, but he was lost in the eyes of the gorgeous blonde.
Taking a step forward, he asked, “Ellie? What are you doing here? Is your brother okay?” Since he’d been discharged already and should’ve been well on the road to recovery, Jamie was a little concerned.
“Oh, yeah. Tommy’s fine,” she assured him, the nervous look she’d held dissolving a bit as he approached. “I just… I made you this.” She held out what appeared to be a covered baking dish.
With eyebrows arched, Jamie took it. “What is it?” he asked.
“It’s a pie,” she explained. “I work at the diner down the street part-time while I’m going to school.” Sort-of rolling her eyes and exhaling, she said, “My dad thought it would be a good idea for me to get a taste of what it’s like not to have a college degree,” before she got back on track. “Anyway, it’s my specialty. Coconut cream. I hope you like it.”
“Wow, Ellie. That’s so nice,” Jamie said, staring from the package to her face and then back again. “Yes, I’m sure I will. Thank you so much.”
“Sure,” she said with a shy smile. “It’s the least I could do after how well you’ve taken care of my brother.” Once again, she was batting those long eyelashes at him, peeking between them, and Jamie felt his heart catch in his throat. Stepping forward, she practically whispered, “I’m sorry I made the nurse so angry.”
“Oh, no it’s fine,” he assured her. “She’s always that way.”
“Really?” Ellie asked, leaning back away from him just a bit. “Because… I get the impression that she hates me.”
He chuckled, but he wasn’t sure he could disagree. “She hates everyone.” He winked at her, and she turned slightly pink in the cheeks.
“Well, I don’t want to take you away from your patients,” Ellie said, lightly brushing her arm down his sleeve before she took a few steps backward. “I just wanted to say thank you.”
“I really appreciate it.” He wanted to say more, but the words were stuck in his enclosed throat.
“And if you ever stop by the diner, maybe I’ll see you there. If I’m working. At the time when you come in.” She took a deep breath and rolled her eyes again, and Jamie got the impression she was having a little bit of trouble forming sentences as well.
“Something tells me I will be visiting the diner soon,” he said. “When’s the best time—you know—to visit?”
“Uh, well, personally, I think the early morning is the best time. Maybe between six and ten. Every day but Wednesday and Sunday.”
Jamie was sure his smile was so broad his back teeth were showing. “Well, I will have to check it out for myself sometime very soon.”
“Great,” Ellie said, returning the smile. “See you soon, Dr. Joplin.”
“Goodbye, Ellie.”
She turned and walked toward the door, and he didn’t move until she was outside, and just before she stepped away, she turned and smiled at him, giving a slight wave. There was a pretty good chance the coconut cream had just melted.
