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Heading down the hall, he soon entered his office and habitually checked the time. He could complete some paperwork and make a couple of phone calls before he was needed in the OR.
* * *
An hour later, dressed in green scrubs and matching surgical gown with mask in place, he pushed through the OR doors. He had a meniscus repair to perform. It always troubled him that he was intelligent enough to do such delicate surgery but he still hadn’t been able to save Rachael.
His team was waiting for him. The patient was on the table with his left knee surrounded by blue sterile drapes.
Cody looked at Mark, the anesthesiologist.
“All set,” Mark confirmed, without being asked.
“Everyone ready?” Cody glanced around the table.
All eyes focused on him then a feminine voice from across the patient said, “Yes.”
His scrutiny fell on her. Dressed in the same surgical garb as he, all he could see of her was her enthralling green eyes. They were familiar but he didn’t know why. “And you are?”
“Stacey Ryder, your new clinical nurse specialist. I thought I’d stand in today and see your technique. It makes it easier to sound confident in front of the family when I’ve seen the doctor in action.”
Normally Cody would have met his replacement nurse before she started. Instead he had trusted the personnel department to handle it. His regular nurse would be out for a month, taking care of her aging mother after a surgery. He had just vetted this new one on paper, seeing she came with the highest recommendations. However, her straightforward approach hadn’t been noted.
There were suppressed murmurs behind the masks of his team members. Were they as shocked by her boldness as he? As a rule, the people he worked with didn’t use such an imperious tone with him.
Cody caught and held her attention. “You’re welcome to stay but don’t get in the way.”
“Understood, Doctor.”
Giving her a curt nod, he crisply announced, “Let’s get this tennis player back on the court.”
“Yes, sir,” Stacey Ryder quipped with a note of humor in her voice as if she had given him a mental salute. He narrowed his eyes. She didn’t blink.
Dismissing her, Cody looked at the knee, making sure it was the one he’d written his initials on. The patient’s leg already had a tourniquet in place and was secured to the table in a padded leg holder. Cody made a small incision to prepare for the diagnostic camera that would give him a view of the joint. He located the damaged meniscus and probed it with a tiny metal hook.
“This is going to be a pretty extensive repair. I hope no one has early lunch plans. Shaver.”
The surgical nurse handed the instrument to him. He trimmed the edges of the tear. “This isn’t going to be enough.”
“Why not?” his new clinical nurse asked.
“Because I’m not pleased with the blood flow.”
She looked at him. “So, what’re you going to do?”
He glared back at her. “Ms. Ryder, I don’t usually teach procedure during my operations.”
“I’m sure you don’t but I’d like to know enough to help the families understand and also save you time when you talk to them.”
Cody couldn’t fault her logic. “I’m going to make the lining bleed and then suture it together. First I need to make another incision to work through to do that.” As he did so, blood oozed into the field, making his visibility poor. Without him having to ask, Stacey used already prepared gauzes on forceps to wipe it away.
“We need to get that under control before I continue,” he stated. “I’m ready to suture.”
His surgical nurse handed him the equipment required.
“Nurse Ryder, I need you to keep the area clear while I work.”
“Yes, sir.” She replaced the gauze and dabbed the area.
Cody watched. “Good.” He worked the thread into a neat stitch.
“Doctor, since you seem to have improved your tying skills since this morning, I’m going to speak to the family now. They must be anxious.”
Cody frowned at her. Her eyes snapped with humor. That second he realized why he recognized those eyes. She was referring to his inability to tie Lizzy’s bow. They would have a talk about her OR decorum later. His voice tight with disapproval, he said, “Please tell the family I’ll be out to see them in soon.”
“Yes, sir.” She quietly left.
For some reason the room suddenly felt cooler.
* * *
Stacey was still sitting with the family when Dr. Brennan strolled into the waiting room with a smile on his face. She had to admit it was a nice one. For a while there, she hadn’t been sure if he knew how to form one. It was so congenial she was sure if he turned it on her, her stomach would flutter. Stacey wrinkled her nose. Why would she think that?
