Compromised, page 24
part #1 of MetroGen Forbidden Love Duets Series
“You want to touch it?” Haskell asked, and Michael realized he’d been rubbing his fingers together.
Nora shook her head. “Sorry, sir, it’s not you. My husband is at the fire academy, and I can’t.”
“It’s a learning experience because who else will tell you what it’s like? How it feels? Who if not me?”
Michael reached out a hand and gently touched the skin on James’ back. It was uneven, as he’d expected, though long healed. Each graft had a different grain and texture. “Steadman did a great job.”
“He did, and he’s one of the best. I was luckier than some, though it takes a long time to let go of what was and learn to love what is.”
“Does it feel?” Nora scanned the skin carefully. “I mean—does the skin have sensation?”
“Believe it or not, yes. I, can tell hot from cold, sharp from dull, pain from… well, you met my wife.”
Raj turned to Nora. “You met his wife?”
“She delivered my second baby on New Years on the fifth floor,” Haskell said. “Baby Haskell 2.0.”
“You slippery, sly gunner. No wonder you knew where everything was on OB,” Raj marveled.
The nurse knocked on the door. “Dr. Steadman is almost finished.”
“Why don’t you go ahead, and I’ll stay out of sight for now?” Haskell suggested. “Remember, he used to be happier.”
The medical students filed out and awaited their fate.
Steadman came out. “I want hourly updates on his fluid status. Can one you locate Dr. Kandal for me?”
The charge nurse, who sometimes worked in the ER, smiled serenely. “As it so happens, she’s in Dr. Varma’s office right now.”
Michael wondered if this was an astonishing coincidence or if the nursing staff had called Kandal. It was nearing lunchtime, which made it plausible for Kandal to visit her sister Dr. Kayla Varma in her office. Angela had described her regular lunch bunch.
They marched into Varma’s well-appointed office like heading to the gallows.
When they opened the doors, Michael was sure none of this was by chance. Kandal and Varma were there. So was the very pregnant Dr. Stella Magi.
And his own lovely Angela.
Chapter 42
Daniel Steadman stormed into the office, ready to spit nails, and stopped short.
“Oh, hey, Danny? You and the med students joining us for lunch?” Stella balanced her cafeteria tray on her growing baby bump.
“You’re having lunch here?” he asked.
“Yeah, Kayla’s on service this week, so we brought lunch up here,” Stella said and munched loudly on a piece of grilled chicken.
This was partially true.
Angela had been in the lunch line with Eliza and Stella when Eliza’s BAT phone rang. They suddenly left for Kayla’s office in quite a hurry.
“Welcome!” Eliza grinned, and Angela recognized it as the one she used before she was about to lie her ass off. “Kayla, you didn’t have to call him to eat here. You two could have taken time to yourselves.”
“She didn’t call me.” Daniel stared, “The medical students—”
“We might have enough food to feed them. They were always hungry last month. Especially Harper, but he was good enough that I fed him the best muffins from the coffee cart.”
“Harper got the morning muffins? I don’t even get the morning muffins,” Steadman scoffed.
“Well, he is one of my favorites. Not that Borenstein and Patel here aren’t equally talented,” Eliza continued. “Don’t you agree, Kayla?”
Kayla seemed to be wishing she could disappear out of the office, trapped between her sister and her ill-tempered boyfriend. “Agree?”
“Agree about these three being stellar students?” Eliza laid it down thickly.
“They were on my pulmonary service last summer. Mr. Harper has been tapped twice to be medical student team leader,” Kayla said briefly.
“See, most impressive. Stella?” Elizabeth prompted.
“I don’t know him, though it must mean he didn’t drop any equipment in a body cavity or set fire to the OR by mistake with a bovie,” Stella chimed in. “Angie?”
Angela made a quick decision on how familiar with Michael she could pretend to be. “He was an excellent patient advocate in OB. We shared a patient. And Borenstein single-handedly did a perimortem C-section.”
“Single-handedly?” Steadman turned a strange shade of green, and Angela belatedly remembered his whole C-section history.
“I heard this story. It wasn’t alone, but, yes, Borenstein was and is a rockstar,” Eliza went on, “So, how can we help you and your medical students?”
Steadman hesitated, totally unprepared for the reception he’d received here.
“You see, these medical students think…” Steadman started.
“Yes, tell me what you think about working with our Dr. Steadman,” Eliza encouraged. “I heard such good things about you three from the other plastic surgeons. Kayla can’t wait to hear.”
Steadman clamped his jaws shut.
Michael spoke instead. “I remain in awe of Dr. Steadman’s skills. No one is more intent on ushering in the next generation of doctors.”
“Yes, I also feel very lucky to be on his service,” Raj said. “Right, Nora?”
“It is a privilege,” Nora agreed.
Eliza had a shrewd look on her face, so Angela guessed this wasn’t the first time Steadman had tried to reprimand his medical students in front of Eliza. It might have been the first time they had outmaneuvered him on both sides.
“Kandal, you see—” Steadman struggled to resume his previous demeanor against Hurricane Eliza.
“I love it when the attendings come to tell me these things in person rather than by email,” Eliza said. “How do you feel about it, Stella?”
“Certain things only work in person. On that, Kayla, why don’t you and Steadman go enjoy lunch by your lonesome?”
“Lunch?” Now Kayla was the confused one. While Kayla hadn’t broken up with Steadman, she hadn’t mentioned any changes to their status quo.
Then again, Angela had been pretty busy in her Michael sex-reunion bubble this month.
Eliza did some eyeball signaling, which Angela guessed she had to act on. She randomly grabbed a tray of food and handed it to Steadman. “Yes, enjoy lunch.”
“If it’s alright, I’ll keep the med students. They can practice for their exams next week. In fact, they shouldn’t go back to your service and can spend this weekend without call cramming.” Eliza opened the door and ushered the couple out of Kayla’s own office before either of them mounted a protest.
The second they were out of the room, Eliza’s face became serious. She sat on the desk, facing the medical students. “Tell me what really happened.”
“I can leave. If this is a clerkship discipline thing…” Angela barely prevented her voice from cracking on ‘discipline.’ She was supposed to have a passing professional acquaintance with Michael. Which meant she should not be blushing as she imagined how ‘discipline’ would play out in her bed.
“Nonsense. This is way more fun than eating with my dad rotation,” Stella said, since her suitors had drawn up a lunch schedule to ensure equal (and tangible) access to her.
“Again, tell me what happened,” Eliza said.
Michael answered her. “Nothing happened.”
“Nothing at all?” Eliza questioned. “Daniel Steadman brought you here to praise your skills?”
“Seems so,” Michael said.
Stella popped a piece of lettuce in her mouth. “He’s not gonna break. Ask the one with the hickey.”
Raj shook himself. “Me?”
“You are the one with the hickey. Did a nurse give it to you?” Stella asked. “She should get better at hiding them. The rich vascularity of the neck is a problem.”
“Oh.” Raj was a loss for words, which was rare for him per Michael. “What was the question?”
Eliza rolled her eyes. “Steadman. Is there a problem?”
“No problem. Couldn’t ask for a better teacher. Most professional attending I’ve ever had.” Raj did not have nearly the poker face Michael possessed.
“Our work must have impressed Dr. Steadman,” Nora volunteered lamely.
“So you would like me to send you back to him after lunch, instead of giving you the weekend off?” Eliza said.
Two of the faces fell, but not Michael’s. It was quite a sight to behold, because he didn’t change his expression the slightest. “We are always happy for every learning opportunity we receive, clerkship director.”
“Undoubtably. I’m also sure you’re going to tell me he’s never bullied or badgered any of you over minor imagined slights?” Eliza said.
“Or bitched you out,” Stella added. “Or bludgeoned? Sorry, she was on a ‘b’ roll, and pregnancy hormones do weird things to me.”
“Yes, ma’am. We’re fine and intact,” Michael bowed politely.
Angela had been on call twice in this week so she hadn’t heard much from Michael about his time on burns. She had gotten the distinct impression Michael disapproved of Steadman’s heavy-handed teaching style. It was on her list of stuff to talk with him about, though not in this type of situation.
“Very well, the three of you. I have decided that it would be best to stick with my original plan and the three of you NOT return to burn service for the rest of the weekend. See you at exams on Monday,” Eliza decreed.
“Thank you, Dr. Kandal,” Michael acknowledged politely. He opened and held the door for his team, who were practically dancing with joy. “Nice seeing you, ladies.”
Only then did he allow his eyes to hold Angela’s for a second, a brief second of heat reminding her of what they’d do the next time they met. Otherwise, he kept the polite professional mask on, preventing any familiarity from draining through.
“Good to see you too!” Stella waved goodbye. “Offer him a dance lesson next time, Bachelor Eleven. Steadman will love it.”
When the door was closed, Eliza massaged her temples. “Thank you, Stella. I hate having to do this over and over again. Good job on your improv, Angela.”
“So this wasn’t a surprise?” Angela asked. The whole meeting would have never floated in internal medicine. Steadman was being unprofessional, and then Stella had egged him on more, undermining him in front of Eliza.
“No, I’ve been counting the days till it happened again. Daniel Steadman goes on the warpath a few times a year,” Eliza said. “We can’t tell the medical students about his pattern, sadly.”
“His pattern?” Angela asked.
“He’ll march in with a medical student or resident who has displeased him. Rarely is there anything technically wrong with the student. However, I think I’ve pinpointed his particular MO,” Eliza said.
“He hates everyone who reminds him of Jacob Carver,” Stella said. “If he links you to the C-section incident, he goes full judge, jury, and executioner.”
“Unfortunately, true. I believe subconsciously Steadman identifies students who are too independent for him or who may be struggling academically and goads them into an argument with him under pressure. Occasionally, he’s done it to an ER resident who is unlucky enough to rotate through his service. I don’t have to see those, usually, and Dr. Gupta-Carver handles them.”
“Which is where I come in. Steadman dislikes me enough, he has to split his rage between the students and me,” Stella said.
“This is the best it’s ever worked out. Ambushing him in Kayla’s office was a brilliant strategy. Kayla recently told me some bullshit that she and Steadman are working on revitalizing their ‘couplehood.’”
“How’s it working?” Angela asked, noting Kayla must have skipped mentioning the near cheating.
“My best guess is not well. I’d hoped it would sweeten his temper and make these events happen less often. Yet, here we are, back to rearranging the deck chairs on the Titanic. This is also the first time he’s ever brought the entire slate of medical students to me, though.”
“So it’s baseless?” Angela asked, not wanting to show too much interest.
“Those three were on general surgery last month. Borenstein wants OB and has such an excellent memory. I can’t imagine that she’s struggling academically. Patel, hickey notwithstanding, isn’t interested in surgery. Not a crime, since he had no major weaknesses. I suspect Harper is the one who earned most of Steadman’s ire, and the other two got dragged into it.”
“How so?” Angela couldn’t help asking. This was exactly one of the reasons she wasn’t supposed to date a medical student or be present for these discussions.
“He’s older than the residents and some of the attendings. Even more, he has no fear of calling out his ‘elders’ on their dysfunctional bullshit behavior. I can’t imagine he and Steadman had an easy relationship this week, which is a pity.”
“Why?” Angela needed to hear this.
“Harper has better than average patient skills, thinks on his feet, and could be an excellent surgeon. The Daniel Steadman of three years ago could have been his mentor and his friend.”
“Was Steadman of three years ago that different?” Angela questioned. She rarely interacted with him and mostly got second and third-hand reports by what she observed through Kayla.
“He and Scott were best friends. After Scott died, he became more anxious, nearly paranoid about his wife’s health. And then the C-section, and his son dying… he became a different person. Still an excellent surgeon, though his attitude is an issue.”
Stella cleaned her hands off with a napkin. “He’s too well connected to fire. So, instead, we have to run interference in case he tries to beat a med student within an inch of his life.”
“It takes all kinds, and your life might be easier if you didn’t flaunt how little you care about his opinion,” Eliza said.
“He’s never liked me too much, even before I was a big damn slut,” Stella said. “Besides, he might hate my personal life, but it’s still not his business, and as long as I’m kicking ass in the OR, he can’t touch me.”
“And Kayla won’t break up with him, no matter what he does. She can’t do penance for her father forever,” Elizabeth said, “How can I expect her to end things when I can’t convince a single medical student to report him?”
“Oh, and you thought Harper would,” Angela guessed.
“We don’t place enough value on the maturity of students like him. Still, this group did better than most of the medical students. I’ve had several criers after Steadman was done with them. This is why plastic surgery is divided into one week rotations.”
“I like how you rewarded them.” Stella slowly got up. “The prize barely pretending to be punishment.”
“God, yes. Being assigned to Steadman is a punishment enough,” Elizabeth agreed. “I think our work is done here. Time to run before Kayla and Steadman get back.”
Angela grabbed her tray and began to follow, on her way out, nurse flagged her down.
“Hey, someone dropped this off for you.” The nurse gave her an envelope.
Patient Notes for Dr. A Perkins.
Angela recognized the handwriting as Michael’s.
She waited until she was alone in the conference room to open it.
Tonight. My place. Bring an overnight bag and Taussig.
This was a big day. He’d managed not to get in a fight with a jerky attending, and he’d decided to make another relationship move by inviting her over.
A good day after all.
Chapter 43
Michael’s house wasn’t far from Eliza Kandal’s, Angela noticed. It was an unobtrusive, tasteful ranch, and Angela, accompanied by Taussig, knocked on the door.
He opened it, his white dress shirt sleeves rolled up to his elbows. Angela gaped for a second, wondering if she’d come under-dressed in a T-shirt and jeans.
“You came,” he said. “With weekend bag?”
“Of course, I came. It’s your surprise golden weekend. You survived plastic surgery.” She stepped across the threshold and right into his arms.
They held each other for a couple of seconds, Angela marveling at how good it felt. The issues of the hospital retreated somewhere in the background. Nothing else mattered now.
Just them. Just this.
It took them about a minute before they remembered to close the door.
Taussig, not encumbered by any type of emotional revelations, had already flopped down on a brand new dog bed, chewing a new bone and fiddling with a pile of squeaky toys.
Angela laughed, setting her bag by the door, “You’re going to regret those, especially if you expected to study this weekend.”
“Regret what?”
Squeak. Squeak. Squeak.
The dog abandoned her bone and focused her efforts on a blue block with a squeaker inside of it.
“She’ll squeak it till she shreds it to pieces. Which is why I stopped buying squeaky toys and the Kandal’s had to hide her daughter’s stuffed animals after Taussig eviscerated one of them.”
“It’ll keep her busy then. Let me show you around.”
It was a little strange since he’d spent so much time at her place, and now she was finally entering his own personal space. Somehow, it made the relationship more real.
Michael escorted her through the living room, which was neat and clean other than the coffee table and its pile of surgery books. He must have been studying before she’d arrived. They passed the kitchen and went to the dining room, with plates and food on the table.
“Did you cook?” Angela said, wondering if she was a particularly bad girlfriend to subsist on hospital food and Panera when he was over. His last week of plastic surgery sounded hellish, and she hadn’t been around to support him or feed him.
“I did not. You missed the space alien from the North Star Cafe delivering dinner.” He held her hand.
