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‘—is only when I tell him.’ She was grinning broadly as she rounded the corner.
His brain tried to kick into gear. He closed the door behind him and tried not to inhale the smell. It would be windows open tonight. It didn’t really matter anyway. He never stayed anywhere for too long.
A spark went off. And he smiled. The question. It had been about the Major General. How often has he bitten?
He couldn’t wipe the smile off his face as he went to find the bedroom.
CHAPTER THREE
HE WAS ALREADY there when she arrived for duty the next morning.
And yep. She liked him just as much in his scrubs as she did in his dress uniform. Darn it.
‘How did you get on last night?’ Frank nudged her at the front desk.
‘What do you mean?’
The old rogue’s eyes were twinkling and she felt herself start to bristle. She had a horrible feeling she knew where this would go. Nothing on this base was a secret. ‘I heard you took the new boy out for something to eat, then showed him back to his place. Get back late last night?’ He nudged her again. Twice.
There was a giggle behind her. Seiko. The aerospace medical technician who had seen her with Avery outside the changing rooms.
‘Don’t be ridiculous. Nothing happened.’ She glared at Seiko and turned back to Frank. ‘And if I find out you’re saying anything else...’
Frank held up his hands and laughed as he walked away. ‘He’s a good-looking guy. Got to get in there quick. Who knows who else might decide to get friendly with him?’
Something uncomfortable crept down her spine. She didn’t even want to think about that. And that was even more ridiculous because she hadn’t even thought to ask him last night about his family. Or any attachments. Or any children.
She felt sick. For a few seconds last night she’d thought he might actually kiss her. Even more ridiculous. You couldn’t just meet a guy and let him kiss you. News like that would sweep around the base quicker than a new karaoke song. She’d no intention of being the subject of anyone’s gossip. Her father would flip.
He’d intervened twice that she knew of. And even though she’d joked with Avery last night, she’d never asked him to intervene. One guy had been boasting about dating the General’s daughter—and boasting about a bit more than that. He’d ended up at a different base in Japan. Another guy who’d told her he was single had been mysteriously transferred after a few months of heavy dating. She’d heard later through the grapevine that he’d had a pregnant fiancée back in the US who was also in the service.
Neither guy had ever been mentioned but the General didn’t take kindly to anyone making a fool of her.
Trouble was, Avery was kind of fun. And fun was what she needed right now. She might even have to warn the General off.
She’d heard Blake mention earlier that they weren’t even sure how long his posting would be as he was covering for someone else. Her brain was telling her to back off. But she couldn’t get over how comfortable she’d been around him—or how one look had given her a tiny buzz she’d never experienced before.
Even if it was only for a few weeks or months, what was the harm in seeing Avery Flynn?
She stalked down the corridor and checked the board to see how many patients were in the ER. A little voice drifted down the corridor towards her. ‘You smell funny.’
‘Do I?’
She almost laughed out loud. She peeked around into the cubicle. Avery was talking to a little girl with blonde curly hair. She was sitting on her father’s knee as Avery bent in front of her. The father, First Lieutenant Bruce, caught Katsuko’s eye and cringed.
‘Hi, Abigail. What is it today?’
She walked behind the curtain and knelt down next to Avery. The tidal wave of fresh aftershave swept over her. She tried to keep her face straight as she mumbled under her breath. ‘Wow. You’ve overdone that a bit.’
His eyes darted towards her and she thought he might actually blush, but he kept his cool and his brow furrowed. ‘You’ve met Abigail before?’
Katsuko nodded solemnly. ‘Abigail seems to like us here.’ She counted off on her fingers. ‘We’ve had fingers glued together, an allergic reaction to the permanent marker she tried on her lips, a broken wrist from her trampoline and an X-ray for a dime she swallowed.’
Abigail’s father continued to cringe. He shook his head. ‘I know. I’m sorry. We can’t seem to stay away.’
Avery opened up his hand. ‘Well, today is something different. Today we have beads.’
Katsuko stared at the small multicoloured wooden beads in Avery’s palm. She dreaded to ask.
‘Can I have a set of alligator forceps, a set of bayonet forceps, a curved hook and a cerumen loop?’ Katsuko gave a nod. It was the standard equipment that could be used to try and retrieve the variety of items that kids could stuff up their noses.
He pulled out a small pocket torch and spoke to Abigail. ‘I’m just going to tilt your head back and see if I can see anything up there.’
Abigail gave a giggle. ‘Red and purple,’ she said happily.
Avery’s eyes widened. ‘You stuck a red and a purple bead up your nose?’
Her father rolled his eyes. ‘This is what I’m up against.’
Katsuko had collected the equipment on the trolley and added a sterile dressing pack and gloves. She opened a nearby cupboard. ‘Some phenylephrine?’
Avery gave a nod. She prepared the equipment and waited until he’d explained what he was going to do.
‘Okay, Abigail. We can’t leave those nasty beads up your nose. They could cause lots of trouble. So we need to try and get them back out.’ He picked up some tissues. ‘We’ll start easy. I’m going to get you to blow your nose while I hold one side closed. It might feel a bit strange, but just try and blow as best you can.’
Katsuko watched patiently. He had a nice manner with Abigail. Her dad looked exasperated and she couldn’t blame him—their ER was becoming a second home to the little girl.
Avery examined the contents of the tissues and shook his head. ‘Okay, then, no beads. Let me have another look.’
He dropped to his knees again and checked with the torch. ‘I can definitely see one of them. It shouldn’t be too hard to reach. Let’s try a little phenylephrine first—this helps stop any swelling,’ he explained to Abigail’s father.
Katsuko handed over the medicine and waited until he’d applied it. She gave him a little wink and nodded to the father. ‘I expect First Lieutenant Bruce might want you to have a chat with Abigail while the medicine is working.’
Avery picked up on things quickly. ‘You’re absolutely right, Nurse. I’ll do that.’
He knelt back down and held up the bayonet forceps. ‘Abigail, I’m going to have to very gently put these inside your nose to pull out the beads. It won’t hurt. You can stay on your dad’s knee but I’ll need you to stay very still. Can you do that for me?’
Abigail eyed the forceps suspiciously. They could be intimidating for kids, but Avery obviously believed in being straightforward.
Avery sat them back down. ‘You’ve been here a few times now. Everyone can have an accident, but sticking things up your nose isn’t really an accident. Neither is sticking your fingers together or deciding to put pen on your lips. You had an allergic reaction that time. That could have been dangerous.’
‘I like it here,’ Abigail said simply.
Avery straightened a little and glanced over at Katsuko.
He positioned Abigail back against her father’s chest and got him to put one arm across her chest and the other on her forehead. ‘Are you okay holding her?’
He gave a nod. ‘I’ve had to do it before and I’m sure I’ll have to do it again.’
Avery handed the torch to Katsuko, washed
his hands and put on the gloves. ‘I’m going to stick with the bayonet forceps. I think they will be best.’
He positioned himself in front of Abigail and her father and tilted Abigail’s head back gently, letting Katsuko shine the torch. He spoke quietly and calmly. ‘This will be over in a few seconds, just hold still.’
There was barely time to suck in a breath. Avery moved swiftly. The forceps were inserted, he grasped a bead and pulled steadily. There was a tinkle of the purple bead hitting the metal trolley. Abigail’s eyes widened. ‘You got it.’
Avery nodded. ‘I got it. I’ll give you a second then we’ll have a look with the torch to see if I can see the red bead.’
‘He got it, Daddy, he got it.’
Her father sighed and looked relieved. ‘So he did.’ He positioned Abigail back against his chest. ‘Now, hold still and let’s see if he can get the other one.’
Katsuko bent down and shone the torch for him again. Avery didn’t hesitate. He saw the bead and had the forceps in swiftly. The red bead landed on the metal trolley with a satisfactory ping.
Avery set the forceps down, pulled the gloves from his hands and walked back over to the sink.
He signalled to Katsuko and she understood instantly. ‘Lieutenant Bruce, can you come with me to fill in some paperwork?’
‘Oh, okay.’ He lifted Abigail from his knee and sat her up on the ER trolley, following Katsuko from the cubicle. She knew that Avery wanted a chance to talk to Abigail alone. It wasn’t that she had any child protection concerns. She didn’t get that vibe at all. But it was obvious that something was going on in the little girl’s head and if Avery could get to the bottom of it, maybe it would stop the frequent ER visits.
She took him over to the desk. ‘Chari, can Lieutenant Bruce get the paperwork he needs to fill in for his daughter, Abigail? And could you get him a coffee?’
Chari looked up from the desk and stood up, her telepathic powers working instantly. All of the staff in the ER were good at this kind of thing. Chari would know that Katsuko was stalling for time. She shot Katsuko a beaming smile. ‘Absolutely, no problem. Come with me, Lieutenant Bruce.’
