Kim had always thought of patients as the enemies. They took her father away from her. But now she was realizing how immature and selfish she had been. She had never given the patients names or faces, nor had she imagined them as husbands, wives, sons, and daughters whose only chance at life might be held in the hands of their doctor--her father. She felt as though she should say something, in some way atone for some of her immature thoughts, but the best she could do was to say, "I guess you guys have a pretty stressful job."
Tony nodded. "It can be."
"I mean, in most jobs when something goes wrong, or when you make a mistake you can say, 'Well, at least it's not life or death.' I guess you can't really say that, can you?"
He laughed. "Not really." He paused, looking at her. "What kind of work do you do?" "Me? I'm an artist."
"Really," he said, leaning forward slightly as if fascinated by her response. "What kind of an artist?"
"A painter. An oil painter. Basically abstract, although I do some portraits."
"Are you commissioned to do them?"
"Some of them. And some I just paint and hope that I'll sell them. As a matter of fact, I've got a show coming up in a couple of weeks at an art gallery in Miami."
"Congratulations." He nodded, impressed. "So you must be good," he said.
"Well, I support myself, but not in style. I just stopped waitressing a couple of years ago."
"I like to think I appreciate art. A beautiful painting always seems to remind me that there's more to this life than work--and I definitely need to be reminded of that sometimes."
"So you're a collector?"
"I wouldn't go that far. I just know what I like. I can't tell if a painting's any good or not."
"If you like it then the artist succeeded."
He nodded. "Are you working on anything right now?"
"Actually, I brought a piece with me. I've been having trouble finishing it. And a bunch of supplies. I always have to have my supplies with me."
"I'd love to see your work sometime."
Kim nodded, feeling a slight blush creep over her face. "Sure," she said as casually as she could.
"Hi, Tony." A bubbly blonde in blue scrubs appeared at the table. An attractive tall brunette, also in scrubs, stood beside her. "We waited for you last night. How come you never showed?" the brunette asked.
"I had to work," Tony said, shrugging his shoulders.
"You missed a lot of fun, Teddy," the blonde said, winking at Tony as she called him by what was obviously a nickname. "Well, we've got to run. We're due in surgery in two minutes. Call me later?"
Kim felt a pang of jealousy tug at her heart. She forced herself to sip her coffee, avoiding Tony's eyes.
"Those two are doctors here," Tony said self- consciously. "More surgeons."
"I should have known by the way they were rushing out of here," she said calmly. "Is Teddy your nickname?"
"No," he said. "She calls me that. She thinks it's funny."
Kim put down her coffee. You have nothing to feel jealous about, she reassured herself. You have no claim on this man. He's simply your father's doctor. "She's cute," she said, nodding toward the blonde. "Do all your girlfriends give you nicknames?"
He shook his head. "Whoa. She's not my girlfriend. We're just friends."
"Oh?" Kim said hopefully.
Tony just smiled. He was intrigued by the woman sitting across from him. From the first night he had seen her he had been aware of the intense personal strength that seemed to radiate from within her. He knew that it couldn't have been easy to come back to Michigan to help care for a father whom she hadn't spoken with in years. Yet the minute her father had needed her she had flown to his side, not sure of where she would stay or if she would even succeed in arriving in Michigan before he died.
Kim raised her hand as she sneezed.
"God bless you," he said.
"Excuse me," she said, blinking her eyes. "Allergies."
"It's this hospital air. You should get outside. Get some fresh air. You've been spending all your time in that stuffy waiting room."
"I don't know. I just can't get used to this weather. I'll freeze to death in about a minute."
"Only if you stand still. You have to keep active to stay warm." He paused. "Hey, I have an idea," he said, leaning back slightly as he stared into Kim's eyes. "I like to skate... it's my exercise. I do it whenever I have a chance. Why don't you come with me tomorrow?"
"Ice skate?" she asked incredibly.
He nodded.
She emitted a small laugh as she shook her head. "No," she said. "No thanks."
"Are you sure? I leave from the hospital, and I'm only gone for about an hour or so. Then I come right back."
Kim hesitated. "I haven't skated in years."
"C'mon, it's like riding a bike."
"I don't have ice skates."
"You can rent them."
She shrugged. He seemed to have an answer for everything. "All right" It might be worth a few frozen toes just to see him twirl around. "Thanks."
"Okay," he said, standing. "I'll meet you in the lobby at three."
"See you then," Kim said, holding back a smile. At nine o'clock Kim left the hospital and walked back out to her father's car. Tony's motorcycle was gone, and a red Mercedes was parked in its place. Kim held her breath as she scooted through the tight space left between the two cars.