“What the hell do you mean you need more time up north? Graeme, I need to get home.”
“So you’ve said repeatedly. What was that again? You need to work on your book? I think it’s to see your new girlfriend?”
“She’s my decorator, not my girlfriend.”
“Not yet, but I know you when you set your sights. There isn’t a warm-blooded female human out there who could resist.”
“The female’s name is Remi, as you well know. And yes, I need to start my book, and yes, I want to see her also. We’ve been Skyping each other every night and she’s really nice.”
“Here we go with the ‘nice’ word again. Mums are nice. Girlfriends are gorgeous or hot. What’s with this ‘nice’ adjective?”
“Have it your way then. She is gorgeous and… nice and hot.”
“Oh, boy, you have it bad. How has it got this far? You’ve hardly had any time together.”
“We’ve been talking every day for the last few weeks–sometimes for hours. I like that, but it would be far more fun and less frustrating if we were doing it face to face.”
“Frustrating?” Graeme’s voice held the distinct sound of humor that Eadan wished he was able to extinguish. When they were kids and Graeme pushed him too far, he’d wiped the ground with the tease until he’d yell—teach him respect. “I thought Skyping was face to face.”
“Don’t be daft, man. You know full well what I mean.”
“You mean you want to sleep with her. I get it.”
“No! You don’t get it. She’s perfect. I like her. She makes me laugh and she likes it when I talk about work. I can tell she’s interested, not faking it like Simone used to do until she couldn’t hide the yawns.”
A loudspeaker sounded in the background, calling for Doctor Graeme Fleming. “I’m sorry, bro.” There was genuine remorse now. “They’re calling for me. I wish I could, but it’s impossible for me to leave this lad. He’s barely hanging on and if he has to change doctors at this point, I’m not sure he’ll make it. You know how attached the kids can get to us physicians.”
Eadan understood. He also knew that Graeme had a magic way with the kids who latched onto him. In fact, he himself had had it happen to him a time or two. Heart-heavy, he agreed. “No, you can’t leave him. How much longer do ye think it’ll be before he can be taken off the respirator?”
“It could be anytime. Certainly within the next couple of weeks. Look, man, go across and see the lass on your day off. Goodness, it’s just a hop, skip and a jump.”
“I’d be doing that, if Dad wasn’t suffering from that flu bug he picked up. We’re shorthanded and I haven’t had a day off since you left. Don’t worry! I’ll just hang in here, and hope to hell your boy has a miraculous recovery.”