Travel nurses. He just didn’t get that. Uprooting their lives every three months to go somewhere else and do it all over again. Having come from a family firmly entrenched in Virginia, wanderlust wasn’t in his genes. Travelers fulfilled staffing needs, and they certainly had one now. Returning to his charting, he forced himself not to watch Gina walk away, though looking at the back of her was just as attractive as looking at the front. With a sigh of disgust at the surge of hormones racing through his system, he reached for the phone and jerked it off the hook. Now was not the time for him to be falling for a coworker, especially one he’d just met.

Gina approached Mr Jones’s cubicle. “Knock, knock. Can I come in?” She peeked through the curtain.

“Yes, ma’am,” Mr Jones responded. He lay with his eyes closed, his fingers laced and resting on his abdomen.

“The doctor’s ordered some bloodwork and other tests,” she said, and took his arm to look for a vein. “As soon as I get an IV started, I’ll give you some pain medicine, too. You look like you could use a touch of it right now.” In minutes she had the IV fluids going and injected the pain medicine. “Here comes the morphine. Just breathe slowly and let it go to work.” Easing a patient’s pain was the most important thing to her as a nurse. Sometimes the pain was physical, sometimes it was emotional. But she did whatever she could to help those in need. That’s why she’d become a nurse. She focused on helping others and found a place where she fit in.

Within minutes Mr Jones started to relax and his heart rate decreased by twenty points. “That’s better, isn’t it?” Gina asked, and patted his arm in a soothing manner. “Now that you’re a little more comfortable, I’m going to get you to Radiology for those other tests. Why don’t you tell me a little about yourself while I take you over there?”

Several hours later, after all the tests were over, Gina brought Mr Jones back to the cubicle and searched for Thomas. She knocked on his office door. “Dr Ferguson? Um, Thomas? Mr Jones’s tests are complete and ready for you to review.”

Thomas set down the chart he had been reading. “I’m sure they’re not good, but I’ll be happy to look at them.” He stood with a sigh, disturbed by the task ahead, knowing already what the results would be. Gina hesitated by the door, looking up at him, chewing on her lower lip as worry crept into her eyes. He wanted to put her at ease. He knew he could be demanding sometimes, but he just wanted what was in the patient’s best interests. Not that she knew that, being so new to working here. “Something else on your mind?” he asked, and approached her, wanting to see if his reaction to her was any different than it had been this morning.

“I know it’s not my place to tell you how to do your job, but…” Some doctors didn’t appreciate interference, especially from someone they didn’t know. But she wouldn’t be acting in her patient’s best interests if she didn’t say something.

“But what?” Thomas raised a brow and nodded, realizing he was standing very close to her. He took a step back, adding just a little distance between them. “If you have something to say, say it. I appreciate the honesty.” Especially after the games his ex had played. Honesty was a refreshing change.

“You have doom and gloom written all over you even before you go in there. He deserves your best face, even if it’s not how you feel.” Gina tensed, watching Thomas, waiting for him to tear into her. A moment passed, and he said nothing. Surprised that he didn’t, Gina waited for him to answer.

“I’m not going to give him false hope if that’s what you’re asking,” Thomas said, and met her gaze squarely. “That’s not appropriate.”

“If there’s any hope at all, it’s not false,” she said, as they moved away from his office toward the cubicle. “Sometimes people need to have something to believe in, even if they know it’s only temporary.” Thomas walked along with her, contemplating her words.

“You sound pretty certain of that,” he said, and stopped outside the cubicle.

“Unfortunately, I am. Comes from personal experience.” Without elaborating further, she pushed aside the curtain. “We’re back, Mr Jones.”

“What’s the word, Doctor?” he asked.

“Mr Jones, I believe it would be prudent to have you stay in the hospital for a day or two to undergo further evaluation.” He leaned against the counter in the room and gave a mental sigh. “After the exam and looking at your preliminary test results, I’m thinking that you have cancer in your groin. It wasn’t the fall that caused your injuries, but it certainly may have aggravated them.”

“Cancer, eh?” Mr Jones said, and blinked several times as he digested the information. “That’s a tough one.” He rubbed his jaw with his work-callused hand.

“It certainly is. So if there are any treatment options, the oncologist will be able to give you a better prognosis than I can right now.” Thomas hated bearing bad news, but it was part of the job. And Gina was right. If there was any hope at all, it wasn’t false. He’d do well to remember that.

“OK. If you say so.” Mr Jones closed his eyes. “I don’t know what I’m going to tell Elizabeth. She’s always leaned on me.” The long sigh he emitted said it all.

“I’ll call Admitting, then,” Gina said quietly.

“Go ahead.” Thomas watched as she carried out his orders. Calm, efficient, firm in her beliefs, and not afraid to express her opinion. Interesting combination.

“Got a room on the fourth floor.” As Gina leaned over the counter to write, Thomas hesitated. There was something about her that made him want to stop and look. She was certainly attractive and obviously dedicated to her job, but that wasn’t enough for him to really notice her. Was it the fiery red hair that was now half out of its clip, or the impish grin that had flitted over her face momentarily? Or was it the glimpse of unmasked vulnerability he had seen in her sparkling blue eyes when they had discussed Mr Jones’s case? Maybe that was why she was a traveler, running away from something painful in her life. She’d alluded to it just moments ago. In any case, it wasn’t any of his business, and he left the cubicle.

Gina finished writing up her chart and approached Mr Jones. “Hey, handsome. After I take you upstairs, I’ll call your wife. She’s probably worried about you by now.” She knew he was probably trying to protect his wife, but now was not the time to keep this kind of information a secret. Sharing often brought people closer. Except in the case of her parents. But that was a whole different problem. “I’ll just grab the paperwork on the way,” she said, and stopped with him at the desk. “Are you through with that, Doctor?” she asked. “I’m about to take Mr Jones upstairs.”

“Thomas, remember?”

“Sorry.” She wrinkled her nose at the slip. “I’m not used to calling doctors by their first names. I’ll try,” she said, and colored lightly under his amused regard. She schooled herself not to react to that intense stare of his. She’d learned the lesson the hard way years ago that a nice pair of eyes didn’t mean anything, and she wasn’t about to step over the line again. Once was enough.

“Here you go.” He handed her the bundle of mismatched paperwork that served as a chart. “I’ve added a few new orders for tomorrow.”

“Thanks. I’ll make sure to pass it along.” Gina nodded and gave a quick glance back at Thomas, wondering what he was doing in this town. She knew about his family, and they were the kind that didn’t just attend universities, they built them. No great university or research hospitals in Hidden Valley. Just a little town with a whole lot of nobodys in it. She gave a mental shrug. His life was none of her business. Getting curious about him would only bring trouble she didn’t need. The phone rang, pulling her away from her thoughts. Thomas picked up the phone, and Gina moved off with the gurney toward the back hallway and the staff elevators.