Annie’s sad eyes followed him as he took his plate and brought it to the sink. He was disappointing her, and he hated that, but he could just imagine what his dad would say if he mentioned he’d gone to a sign language class.There’s no need for that. Modern medicine is amazing. They can fix everything nowadays. Don’t let me down, Harrison.
No, these implants needed to work. He couldn’t live with his father’s disapproval much longer.
Carli tapped in the last number on the insurance form, did a quick check, and pressed enter. That finished off yesterday’s claims. It was still early, but already they had over a dozen new ones. Scanning the office she shared with three other staff members, she noticed Blake through the sliding window into the waiting room. What was he doing here?
After peering through the glass, he took a few steps into the office area. Carli stood up, but Joy, one of her co-workers, blocked her way.
“I’ll get this,” she said, speaking louder than needed, her hands moving in what she always thought was some form of sign language. “He’s a doctor and probably needs important information.”
And giving doctors information was part of Carli’s job, too, but no way she wanted to have it out in front of Blake. Sitting back at her desk, which faced the door so she could see what was going on in the office, she watched the interaction.
“Hi. Dr. Wentworth, right?” Joy simpered. “What can I do for you?” Leave it to Joy to know who all the young, single doctors in the hospital were.
The way Joy pushed out her massive chest and cocked her hip, it was apparent what she wanted to do for him. To Blake’s credit, his eyes stayed on her face.
“Just checking on some x-rays one of my patients had done last night. Dr. Khatri already sent me her notes, but I wanted to get a look at them myself. The digital files haven’t been forwarded to me yet.”
“Carli usually does that,” Joy said, her hand waving back in her direction. Yup. Billing, insurance, files, she did it all if it had to go through the computer. Barbara was in her late fifties and still didn’t feel comfortable with technology, and Joy did as little real work as possible. On the other hand, she had the right personality to deal with the public, which Carli didn’t like to do.
“She must be behind in her work. I can help you, though. Why don’t you come to my desk, and I’ll get that right to you?”
Behind in her work? The nerve of her. She did more of Joy’s work than Joy did. Her fingers tapped away, did a search for any of Blake’s patients, pulled up the file, and sent it to his e-mail.
“I just sent that, Joy. Dr. Wentworth should be all set.”
“Oh.” Joy’s shoulders slumped for a second, then she straightened them again. “Anything else you need? I could pull it up for you on my computer if you want to see it right now.”
Blake turned toward her and smiled. “Do you still have that file right there, Carli?”
She nodded, noticing the confusion and disappointment on Joy’s face at Blake’s use of her first name.
“Do you mind if I just take a look on your computer? Checking for something specific, and I don’t have the time to go back to my office.”
After clicking on the open tab, Carli rolled her chair back and allowed Blake to sit. As he scanned the document, she brushed the skirt of her white dress, wondering if the red polka dots were too bright for the office. Mercedes had talked her into buying it, saying it suited her figure and made her look very retro.
When Blake finished with the file, he rolled back in her chair but made no move to get up. Seriously? Did he think she had all day to stand around waiting for him so she could use her desk? Still, Joy primping at her own desk stirred something in her that made her want to prolong the time with him.
“Have you talked to Harrison and Annie? How was the Baby Sign class the other day?”
Frowning, Blake said, “I guess Annie went by herself. Harrison seemed a bit irritable when I asked him about it.”
“Does he think the sign class is a bad idea?” She’d seen a number of parents who didn’t want to accept their child’s deafness.
“I don’t really know what my brother is thinking. I know he’s stressed about it. That’s one of the reasons I’m trying to help in any way I can.”
He got to his feet and waved toward her chair. “Sorry, you can have your seat back.”
“Well, let Annie and Harrison know I’m here if they have any questions.”
“I will. Annie can’t say enough great things about you. You definitely made an impression on her.”
But had she made an impression on Blake? And why was she asking herself that question? It was ridiculous to even consider he’d be interested in her.
Yet he lingered in front of her, ignoring Joy who had skimmed past him a few times to get to the printer.
“I, uh, stopped by also to see if, um, you were planning to come by the Halloween party on the Children’s Unit? It’s this afternoon at four.”
Did he want to see her again, or was he merely trying to drum up participation?
