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ONCE BACK IN ATLANTA, Charity tried to focus on work. She had a ton of things to organize and take care of. She planned a massive Christmas Extravaganza for Forever Hope Hospital. Already into November, there were now less than two weeks before the event. She had to remind herself to focus on work, not Elijah.
The Extravaganza would only be one day, but it would focus on kids during the day session and adults in the evening. Speaking of focussing... she wouldn’t mind putting some attention on one particular adult.
She caught herself daydreaming again and wondered if Elijah might be thinking of her as well. He called her the night she had flown back. She had said hello and asked how he was doing. He started to reply and then had to let her go because of an emergency somewhere in the hospital he needed to rush to. They hadn’t talked since. That was four days ago. They had exchanged the odd text but it wasn’t the same as hearing that sexy accent of his.
The muffled ring of her cell phone caught her attention. She sat at her desk behind the computer and checked if the phone was hidden under the messy mounds of papers piling on both sides of the keyboard. She finally figured out, from the barely audible ring, that it lay in her purse. The ringing stopped by the time she pulled it out.
She checked the caller ID. Her father.
Did she need to call him back? She tapped the side of her phone with her thumb and tried to come up with a reasonable excuse to avoid him. The man had x-ray vision. As a teen she couldn’t get away with anything and he was hardly ever around. She rolled her eyes. He probably took one look at Elijah on Sunday or Monday and knew he’d been fooling around with his daughter. Elijah’s head was probably mounted on some lamppost outside the hospital as a warning.
Her eyes rolled toward the ceiling. She needed to quit watching HBO. Plus her father would never blame his doctors. The phone buzzed to show she now had a message. She hit the speed-dial number to check it. Would Elijah have mentioned something to Simon or someone else at the hospital? And, if so, had word gotten around to her father? She could just imagine the judgement he’d pass down on her. She knew exactly what would happen. He’d be furious and accuse her of taking advantage of his staff. Like she was purposely trying to sabotage his hospital.
Phone on speaker, she had to enter her password and go through the automated voice telling her what buttons to press. She finally got to new messages and hit the play button.
Click!
Her bloomin’ father called, listened to her voice answer and then hung up! She hit redial and counted slowly to ten. Not really sure why she was annoyed, she focused on letting it go before he picked up.
“Dr. Thompson.”
“It’s me, Dad. I missed your call.”
“Charity!” Rustling paper sounded through the phone.
She realized he had her on speaker.
“Was there something you needed?”
She rested her forehead against the heel of her palm. He’d called her and she returned his call. “I missed your call. I thought I’d check if you needed something.” Their conversations for the past few years were always similar. Awkward and always somehow accusing.
“A bunch of packages arrived here yesterday addressed to you in care of me. I didn’t know if I should get my office assistant to mail them to you.”
“It’s okay. They are samples of linens, napkins, and et cetera. Colors and material.”
“There are like five packages! Where do you want me to put them?”
She thought of one place but didn’t dare say it aloud, not even jokingly. “Do you have a storage or supply closet? I’ll be back next week so I can take care of it then.”
He sighed. “Fine.”
There was a long, awkward pause. Charity finally gave in and broke it. “If there isn’t anything else, I should get going...”
“Have a good weekend and I’ll see you next week.”
“You, too.” She waited for him to hang up, knowing he wouldn’t say goodbye. Her phone vibrated again a moment later. She tucked it against her ear and shoulder as she flipped through emails on her computer. “What did you forget?”
“Pardon?”
Crap. It was Elijah, not her dad. “Sorry. I thought you were somebody else.”
“A boyfriend leave his wallet at your place?”
She was pretty sure he was joking, but thought she heard a hint of jealousy in his voice. She laughed. “I just got off the phone with my father. I highly doubt that man would leave his wallet at anyone’s place. How are you doing?”
“I’m good. Tired, actually. It’s been beyond busy. Chief of surgery doesn’t seem to give me a load of free time. I’ll have to start scheduling days off or I’ll find myself living here.”
“Ah, but you’re saving lives.”
“You’re saving Forever Hope Hospital. That’s basically the same thing. Do you get time off?”
“I do. In my spare time, I jet off to New York to plan parties for a control-freak father and try to sneak in a little secret time for me.”
“Secret time? I could use some of that now.” He yawned.
She smiled. “It sounds like you could use some more sleep.”
“That’s the problem. I’m working and I start thinking of you. I try and catch some Zs and I start dreaming about you. I do believe you’re starting to drive me crazy.”
“I haven’t done anything!”
“Neither have I!” He chuckled. “I think that’s the problem. There’s a little too much of nothing going on. My body and brain don’t function very well this way.”
Did that possibly mean Mr. Playboy was currently staying on the straight and narrow because of her? A life of celibacy... more like a week. She decided playing blonde was the best option here. “Lack of sleep will do that to you.”
“Guess I need to book a day or two off and just sleep. Would you care to join me?”
Her body tingled at the thought. “You’d be getting no sleep if I did.”
He didn’t reply. She imagined the same images running through her head were going through his.
“Why don’t you come up here now?”
She laughed. “My job has a lot of freedom to work when and where but I need to be here. I’ve got this massive Christmas thing going on in two weeks that needs to be organized. I’m coming up next weekend, but it’s going to be like a dine-and-dash.”
“What do you mean?”
“There were no flights available next Friday so I’m heading up Saturday morning and then have to head back Sunday morning. It’s Thanksgiving weekend.”
“Oh crap. Already? You Americans and your Thanksgiving.”
“Hey.” She laughed. “What’s that supposed to mean?”
“The craziest surgeries always happen Thanksgiving weekend. Some dumb-ass drunk decides he’s superman and tries to fly or something or some tiny, skinny lady goes to a Black Friday sale and gets in a fight with a four-hundred pound woman.”
She laughed. “I take it you’ll be working all weekend then?”
“And then some.” He groaned. “So I won’t be seeing you next weekend?”
“To be honest, I’m having second thoughts about flying up now. It might tick my father off a bit but the idea of travelling with holidayers... nothing needs to be done so badly that it can’t wait a week.”
“Don’t you have some Christmas thing the next week?”
“Oh shoot, I forgot!”
“Charity Thompson!” he said with mock horror.
“Maybe it’s your fault,” she teased. “You’re too much of a distraction.”
“A good distraction, I hope?”
“A very good one.”
“That’s what I like to hear.”
She knew she had a super goofy smile on her face. At least he couldn’t see her right now. “So I guess I’ll see you in almost three weeks then?”
“It seems that way.” The phone went muffled for a moment. “I have to go. Duty calls again.”
“I should get some work done too. I’ll speak to you later?”
“Definitely.”
