Read Online To Begin Anew (Blue Jay Romance) by Eliza Gerard - Free Book Online Page A
Authors: Eliza Gerard
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alarm.
Eric waited a full minute before he turned off the man’s monitor and looked at the E.R. clock. In a voice summoned robotically from the pit of his stomach, he said, “Time of death, seven seventeen p.m.” A nurse in a corner wrote it down.
~*~*~
Eric sat in the front seat of his car and stared at the steering wheel for a moment before he brought his hand to the ignition. After talking to his patient’s family, after seeing their faces contort with the looks of first shock and grief, he felt wiped out, blank. It was as if a giant eraser had swept through him.
As the car whirred to life, he noted the time on the dashboard’s clock and sighed deeply - it was all he needed to handle after everything else. It was late, much later than he said he’d be. He hoped Debra would be forgiving of him, but she’d have to understand to a point that there would be certain times when being late would be unavoidable. He pulled out of his parking space and drove off down the street that led away from the hospital. The moon, if he could have stopped to pay attention to it, was beautiful in the inky black sky that surrounded it.
Pulling into her driveway made him nervous and when he got out of his car, the door clicking behind him, he felt the first wisps of dread hit him. He didn’t think she’d yell at him - well, maybe she would - but she might be put out enough to where she wouldn’t watch David and Danny for him again.
Before he could knock on her door, it opened and she greeted him half a step from the porch. She asked, her tone placid, “What kept you?” As her words slipped past her lips, her arms folded to her chest.
Be honest or lie? Eric shook his head inwardly. He replied, “It was a last minute thing - I forgot to tell you that things like this might happen.”
Debra had planned a nice session of a talking to, but when she caught the haggard look Dr. Nelson wore over his entire person, she thought better of it. Instead, she said, “I’ve got dinner on the stove. It’s still quite hot. Come on in and get something to eat.” She turned to walk through the frame of her front door when she added over her shoulder, “And be quiet. The boys passed out about half an hour ago.”
The meal that Debra sat out in front of him looked too good to eat and even before he could get it to his mouth his brain had already started to devour it. Somehow, Debra’s cooking could make a man feel as if he’d never before eaten real food. You hadn’t lived until you’d eaten her food.
“This tastes like heaven,” he said simply as he stuffed a bite of the World’s Best Meatloaf into his mouth.
“I wouldn’t go that far,” Debra said as she leaned against her kitchen counter. There was a table, set for people to eat at, but the counter had bar stools and it was just as comfortable to sit at one of those.
Eric took a drink of iced tea, another treat he hadn’t had in a long time, and when he swallowed, he said, “Don’t sell yourself short. I can’t believe that I’m lucky enough to eat this well twice in one day.”
Debra smirked as she put a hand underneath her chin. “David and Danny certainly appreciated it. I thought it was getting kinda late, and when their stomachs started growling, I put something together for them. I figured it was something at work that was keeping you.” In a moment of intuition, she asked, “Was it bad?”
Eric halted midway to putting another bite of food in his mouth. He set his fork down, frowning at the meal in front of him. For a little while at least, he’d been able to forget about the latter part of his day, which turned out to be worse than the first part of his day. The events with Julia and then her appearance on television had been a cakewalk to endure compared to being called down to the emergency room triage. He found that he couldn’t say anything.
Debra took Dr. Nelson’s silence for what it was.
Eric waited a full minute before he turned off the man’s monitor and looked at the E.R. clock. In a voice summoned robotically from the pit of his stomach, he said, “Time of death, seven seventeen p.m.” A nurse in a corner wrote it down.
~*~*~
Eric sat in the front seat of his car and stared at the steering wheel for a moment before he brought his hand to the ignition. After talking to his patient’s family, after seeing their faces contort with the looks of first shock and grief, he felt wiped out, blank. It was as if a giant eraser had swept through him.
As the car whirred to life, he noted the time on the dashboard’s clock and sighed deeply - it was all he needed to handle after everything else. It was late, much later than he said he’d be. He hoped Debra would be forgiving of him, but she’d have to understand to a point that there would be certain times when being late would be unavoidable. He pulled out of his parking space and drove off down the street that led away from the hospital. The moon, if he could have stopped to pay attention to it, was beautiful in the inky black sky that surrounded it.
Pulling into her driveway made him nervous and when he got out of his car, the door clicking behind him, he felt the first wisps of dread hit him. He didn’t think she’d yell at him - well, maybe she would - but she might be put out enough to where she wouldn’t watch David and Danny for him again.
Before he could knock on her door, it opened and she greeted him half a step from the porch. She asked, her tone placid, “What kept you?” As her words slipped past her lips, her arms folded to her chest.
Be honest or lie? Eric shook his head inwardly. He replied, “It was a last minute thing - I forgot to tell you that things like this might happen.”
Debra had planned a nice session of a talking to, but when she caught the haggard look Dr. Nelson wore over his entire person, she thought better of it. Instead, she said, “I’ve got dinner on the stove. It’s still quite hot. Come on in and get something to eat.” She turned to walk through the frame of her front door when she added over her shoulder, “And be quiet. The boys passed out about half an hour ago.”
The meal that Debra sat out in front of him looked too good to eat and even before he could get it to his mouth his brain had already started to devour it. Somehow, Debra’s cooking could make a man feel as if he’d never before eaten real food. You hadn’t lived until you’d eaten her food.
“This tastes like heaven,” he said simply as he stuffed a bite of the World’s Best Meatloaf into his mouth.
“I wouldn’t go that far,” Debra said as she leaned against her kitchen counter. There was a table, set for people to eat at, but the counter had bar stools and it was just as comfortable to sit at one of those.
Eric took a drink of iced tea, another treat he hadn’t had in a long time, and when he swallowed, he said, “Don’t sell yourself short. I can’t believe that I’m lucky enough to eat this well twice in one day.”
Debra smirked as she put a hand underneath her chin. “David and Danny certainly appreciated it. I thought it was getting kinda late, and when their stomachs started growling, I put something together for them. I figured it was something at work that was keeping you.” In a moment of intuition, she asked, “Was it bad?”
Eric halted midway to putting another bite of food in his mouth. He set his fork down, frowning at the meal in front of him. For a little while at least, he’d been able to forget about the latter part of his day, which turned out to be worse than the first part of his day. The events with Julia and then her appearance on television had been a cakewalk to endure compared to being called down to the emergency room triage. He found that he couldn’t say anything.
Debra took Dr. Nelson’s silence for what it was.
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