Vital Signs (11 page)

“Are you kidding? I was blown away by what you've done. I like working with wood, but I haven't
been doing it. You have, and it's pushed me into getting back into it.”

“I'm glad.” She was surprised and pleased by the compliment. “That house boggles me sometimes, though,” she admitted with a sigh. “There's so much to do and so many things I don't know how to fix.” And today she felt as if she'd never have the energy to tackle anything again.

“You could let me help.” Before she could refuse, he quickly added, “Please. It would be relaxing and fun and different. Granted, I don't have a lot of free time, so if you're concerned about me being underfoot all the time, don't be. But I do have a few hours here and there that I'd like to spend helping you. Those doors you were working on the other day, for instance. I'm a pro at sanding. And the bathroom—I could help you redo the bathroom, put in a new subflooring, new drywall. Then you could have the tub refinished.”

The bathroom.
It was petty to be seduced by a bathroom, but the automatic refusal that had been on her lips died. Hailey could hear Gran whispering in her ear about cutting off noses again. What the heck, if he wanted to help her, why not let him? Her back and bottom were raw from that darned tub.

“Okay.” Had
okay
become her new favorite word? “Yes, please.”

“When can I start?”

“Whenever you want.” She offered him a fortune cookie before taking one for herself.

“How about now?”

This guy didn't waste time. And the universe was
on her side, because the paper inside her cookie said,
Much good change is heading your way.

He read his fortune, grinned, and handed it to her.

New endeavors will bring great pleasure.

“Okay.” She was doing it again, the
okay
thing. Being around Roy turned her brain to pabulum. She'd turn into a mindless blob with a one-word vocabulary that could get her into real trouble.

But this was free labor. She just had to keep thinking about the bathroom and stop wondering what he'd be like in bed.

B
Y SEVEN THAT EVENING
the ceiling and walls in the downstairs bathroom were stripped to the rafters. That was the good news.

The bad news was, Roy had taken off his shirt at some point, and his chest wasn't what you'd expect from a guy whose work was mainly head stuff. Roy's chest was broad and matted with enticing dark curls, and he had muscles that Hailey hadn't had a chance to fully appreciate when he was wearing clothes.

“We could do the drywall and the subflooring next weekend if you want,” he suggested, wolfing down the vegetable omelet and hot biscuits she'd put together for their supper. He'd washed his face and hands, but there was still plaster dust in his thick dark hair. He was going to have females attacking him on the streets when he started turning naturally gray. She had to control the urge to reach across the table and brush the dust away. She could smell honest male sweat, and she'd worked closely enough with him for the past three hours to know that he used lemon-scented shampoo.

“Only problem is, I may have to drop everything
and go to work if an emergency comes up. It's one of the hazards of my job.”

“Well, count yourself lucky. I may not have a job to go to after this week,” she blurted. She'd actually forgotten about Margaret and the association until right now.

He looked at her and frowned. “Cross carried through on her threat?”

Hailey explained about the letter, cursing herself for bringing it up. Guys didn't want to know about your problems.

But Roy listened closely. “What's this woman's name again, the nurse consultant they're sending?”

“Louise Cornell.”

He reached across the table and took her hand. “It's a stupid thing to say, I know, but try not to worry too much about it. I guarantee it's not going to affect your job.”

He couldn't possibly know that, but just having him say it made her feel better. And to her immense relief, he didn't dwell on the issue.

Instead, he reached for another biscuit, bit into it and sighed with pleasure. “These are the best I've tasted since I left home. I didn't think anyone could make biscuits the way my mom did.”

She felt ridiculously pleased. “I'm glad you like them.” She couldn't help but wonder if all his appetites were as large, but she put the thought hastily out of her head.
Don't go there, Bergstrom. Here there be dragons.

The one thing she knew for sure was that her dratted bathroom was way too small for the two of them
to be in there at the same time. She'd been clearing away debris from the floor when he'd turned quickly and nearly knocked her over. His arms had come around her and she'd stopped breathing.

Their eyes had locked and for a prayerful instant she'd thought he was going to kiss her. His body tensed, her pulse raced, her breath came back short and shallow.

And then she'd come to her senses, taken one defensive step back, and he'd dropped his arms. She felt as if she'd been teetering on the edge of a ravine.

And now she could kick herself for taking that one fatal step.

Was she going to grow old regretting the things she didn't do?

 

A
S HE DROVE HOME
later that evening, Roy was wondering exactly the same thing. Why the hell hadn't he kissed her when the opportunity presented itself? She was right there in his arms, and there were hot sparks in those golden eyes of hers that made him think she wanted to be kissed. But he'd hesitated that one split second and she stepped away, and the moment was lost.

He was an idiot. Well, he amended, he was an intelligent idiot, because he
had
managed to convince her that having him around once in a while wasn't such a bad idea.

That bathroom was going to be an absolute bitch, but it had its advantages. It was a really small space, and she was going to have to be in there giving him a hand. And he might be an idiot, but he was also a
quick learner. There'd be another shot at kissing, and the next time he'd be faster than a speeding bullet.

In the meantime he intended to write that letter he'd been planning, saying just how fantastic a nurse Hailey was, and he'd fax a copy of it to the nurses association, to the attention of this Cornell woman. He'd do it tonight, before time got away from him again.

 

H
AILEY WASN'T DUE BACK
at work until Wednesday, but Tuesday at nine in the morning the phone rang.

“Hailey Bergstrom? This is Louise Cornell, the nurse consultant for the association.”

Hailey's stomach cramped. She tried to get some idea of what Cornell was like from her voice, but all she could sense was professional friendliness and detachment.

“I know you're off, but I wondered if you'd mind coming in this afternoon to talk with me? These matters cause a lot of anxiety, and for that reason I'd like to get this settled as quickly as possible. I've spoken to the others who were involved in the incident, and now I'd very much like to speak to you.”

Hailey swallowed hard and agreed to come in at two.

The only bright spot she could see in the day was that she'd get to spend time with David. Whatever happened, holding him, telling him stories would be solace.

 

L
OUISE
C
ORNELL
was comfortably plump, dressed in a gray business suit with a pink silk blouse. Her
hair was nut-brown, cut short in a style more practical than fashionable. She had kindly brown eyes and a crooked smile that helped quiet the butterflies in Hailey's belly, and she asked to be called Louise.

She invited Hailey to describe exactly what had occurred, and she didn't take notes or seem to do anything other than listen attentively.

Hailey did her best not to sound defensive or to underplay what had happened. She'd gone over the events so many times in her mind that retelling them was easy. When she was done, Louise nodded.

“Our policy is to try as often as possible to see that matters are worked out in a nonconfrontational fashion between the people involved. Now, I'm wondering why this matter couldn't have been discussed and settled between you and your supervisor.”

Hailey swallowed. She had to be very cautious here. “I did attempt that, but Margaret was very, um, upset.”

“I see.” The brown eyes didn't miss much. “Do you have any objections to having her join us now? And also the hospital administrator?”

“Not at all.” Hailey braced herself as Louise paged them both. Rational discussions weren't possible with Margaret, everyone knew that. Melissa Clayton-Burke, the hospital administrator, was noted for being sensible, honest and supportive, but this still could turn into a fiasco.
Watch your temper,
she cautioned herself.

Within five minutes Margaret marched in, back like a ramrod, in what Hailey considered full battle
dress. She was wearing her cap, a dress uniform so white it was blinding, and her perfectly polished white nursing shoes. She was from the Old School, and she was Right. Everything about her trumpeted that conviction. And when she looked at Hailey, her eyes glittered and her small, pinched mouth wore a self-satisfied little smirk.

She sat as far away from Hailey as she could get, which was a relief.

Melissa came in on a wave of energy and a swirl of navy silk shirtdress. Hailey had always liked Melissa, who was noted for being a no-nonsense administrator. She'd been a nurse herself, working at St. Joe's before she went into administration, which endeared her to all the nurses because they knew she understood their job. And on a totally irrational level, Hailey liked her because her hair was almost the same violent shade of red as her own.

“As I've explained to each of you,” Louise began, “I'm wondering why this whole matter couldn't have been discussed and settled without involving the association. Our entire aim is to take away the hierarchy traditionally associated with nursing and replace it with openness and honesty. Now, Margaret, could you maybe explain why it wasn't possible to reconcile this entire thing with Hailey, and if that didn't achieve positive results, why you didn't go to Melissa?”

Margaret looked stunned, and it was a long moment before she found her voice. “Well, as I told you before, there's no point in even
trying
to talk to Hailey.” She sneered. “Goodness knows I've tried
in the past, but
she
has a degree and of course she knows
everything.
”

Hailey could feel her face burning at the personal nature of the insult, and she wanted to hit Margaret across the mouth, but she managed not to say anything in her own defense. It was a wise move, because Margaret wasn't finished. There was outright malice in her tone when she burst out, “She refuses to dress in a professional manner, and she's insubordinate. When she's on shift, the children are out of control, and she encourages them to be cheeky and defiant. They won't obey the rules, and neither will she.”

Obey the rules? Insubordinate? Hailey had a hysterical urge to giggle, but she quelled it. Margaret sounded like a drill sergeant in the military, instead of a supervising nurse on a pediatric ward.

Melissa and Louise studiously avoided looking at one another, and with a surge of hope, Hailey wondered if, like her, they were feeling that Margaret was voicing complaints that sounded both antiquated and ridiculous. Nursing had changed, and the woman had refused to change with it.

“I've interviewed all the staff on the pediatric ward,” Louise said in a neutral tone. “And everyone seems to agree that Hailey does her job extremely well. I also have a letter from a worker with Social Services, Roy Zedyck, commending her for her cooperation and devotion to a patient in the care of the ministry.”

Hailey's face flamed. Roy had written the letter just as he'd promised. She felt humble and grateful
and indebted to everyone who'd defended her, but knowing
he'd
gone to such trouble for her sent an irrational bubble of happiness shooting through her.

“The staff, including the child's attending pediatrician, agrees unanimously that the incident you reported was not at all serious,” Louise said to Margaret. Her tone was still kind, but noticeably cooler than it had been. “Everyone agrees that the child's care wasn't compromised in the slightest. I think we should just drop this entire matter. Thank you all for your cooperation.”

Margaret's face was vermilion. She was breathing audibly through her nose, and sweat beaded her forehead. Her mouth was tied in a tight little knot, and she didn't say anything or look at anyone. She got to her feet and marched out of the room. The door sighed shut behind her.

Louise and Melissa chatted breezily about a meeting that was coming up soon.

Hailey breathed a sigh of relief that seemed to originate in her toes, then she stood up and extended her hand, first to Louise, then to Melissa. She was still trembling, but it didn't matter now if they knew how scared she'd been.

“Thank you both so much,” she said in a fervent tone. “This is such a relief to me.”

Louise left, and Melissa said, “It's gratifying to have a nurse of your caliber here at St. Joe's, Hailey. Before you go, I wonder if I could have a word with you.”

Now what? “Sure.”

Melissa sat down again and so did Hailey.

“I worked with Margaret years ago, on geriatrics,” Melissa began. “And I had many of the same difficulties with her that you're having. Like you, I felt angry and frustrated.”

Hailey nodded. No point denying that was how she felt about Margaret.

“One of my patients knew her well. She'd been a friend of Margaret's mother, and she gave me some insights into Margaret's life that helped me understand her much better, which I'm going to share with you. I'd like you to keep this strictly confidential, however.”

More mystified than ever, Hailey agreed.

“When she was in her twenties,” Melissa began, “Margaret fell in love with a married doctor. She had a baby with him, a girl she adored. The girl drowned when she was three in a neighbor's backyard pond. The doctor blamed Margaret for not watching their daughter closely enough. He ended the relationship, and Margaret came close to a breakdown. She moved back in with her mother, and my patient intimated that Mrs. Cross was difficult in the extreme. She developed Alzheimer's five years ago, and died just last summer. Margaret nursed her at home right up to the end.”

Hailey knew Margaret had nursed her mother, but she hadn't known any of the other stuff. Grudgingly she said, “I guess she's had a hard life.”

“Yes, she has. Knowing about it helped me understand her, and understanding helped me be more patient with her.” The unspoken assumption was it would also help Hailey. “I felt you should know.”

“Thanks, Melissa.”

The office where they'd met was just one floor down from pediatrics, and as she got on the elevator, Hailey knew that the last thing she wanted to do was run into Margaret. She still had a big load of resentment against her, though what Melissa told her had put a dent in it. She could understand, just a little, why Margaret was the way she was.

But David was up there, and she needed to see him. She'd just do her best to stay out of the head nurse's way.

Karen was at the nurses' station, along with two of the aides, and thank heavens, Margaret was nowhere to be seen. Feeling relieved, Hailey went over to them.

“She's gone for lunch,” Karen said in a hushed voice. “She looked like a volcano about to erupt and didn't say a word to anybody about what went on. We figured that probably meant it hadn't gone her way. Spill the beans—we're all dying to know.”

If Melissa hadn't confided in her, Hailey would have reveled in telling them about Margaret getting what amounted to a reprimand. But now she just couldn't do it.

“Well, I didn't get suspended,” she said.