Kate James - When The Right One Comes Along

Jessica exhaled. The dog must not have perceived her as an imminent threat to the cop, or he wouldn’t have listened to her. Still, she was relieved that she hadn’t been attacked by him in the process. He was a beautiful dog, but large and she had no doubt those shiny white teeth could mean business if he was provoked.

Turning her attention back to Cal, she saw astonishment on his face, and something else. Could it be respect from the cantankerous cop?

He eyed his dog. The dog angled his head and waited. “Down,” he ordered, then looked back at Jessica. “I can’t believe he responded to you. How did you do that?”

She couldn’t resist the small smile that tugged at the corners of her lips. “He’s your dog. You tell me.”

The dog was lying down with his head between his outstretched paws, shifting his gaze back and forth between the two of them. “Obviously he didn’t think you intended to hurt me,” he murmured.

“I’d appreciate it if you could assure him of that. I’m going to continue to clean your wound, and I wouldn’t want him to get the wrong idea.”

“Scout, stay. Friend,” he added.

“Now can we get back to this, if... Scout, is it?”

He nodded.

“If Scout doesn’t object?”

Jessica worked quickly and efficiently to clean the wound and apply a temporary dressing. She tried not to be distracted by the large dog. She could see from her peripheral vision that he was watching her every move. She’d shown him who was alpha, but he was the cop’s dog, and based on his earlier reaction, she supposed he’d protect his handler if he thought she was hurting him. She was glad the cop was taking her ministrations stoically, and was thankful he handled the pain as well as could be expected. She didn’t want to test her mettle against his dog again. She knew he must have been in excruciating pain while she cleaned the wound, but after the initial outcry, the only sounds he made were deep hissing breaths during the worst of it. She didn’t take the time to look up at him, but she could see his white-knuckled grip on the edge of the table.

“We’re done here,” Jessica said as she applied a bandage to Cal’s leg, tossed the blood-stained cloths into the waste receptacle and took off her gloves.

“Great. Thanks,” Cal said through gritted teeth as he slid off the table to balance on his left leg.

Jessica placed her palm lightly on his chest. “Not so fast.” She shouldn’t have been surprised at how firm his chest felt under her fingers. She was tempted to keep her hand there, but pulled it back quickly.

“Why?” Cal asked, testing to see if he could put weight on his right leg, only to wince and nearly collapse.

Jessica gave him a humorless smile. “Well, that, for one. I doubt you’ll be able to put weight on that leg for the foreseeable future. It’s not just a surface wound. It’s a fairly deep soft-tissue injury. I wouldn’t rule out that you might have chipped some bone, too. Worst-case scenario, you might have fractured your femur. In any case, you’ll need crutches, and you’ll have to stay off the leg for at least a couple of weeks.”

Cal threw her an annoyed look but she continued. “Secondly, you need to go to the hospital. Not just for an X-ray to determine if there is a fracture. The rebar that gouged you was dirty and rusty. I cleaned your wound as well as I could here, but it’ll have to be cleaned more thoroughly and there’s no telling whether some of the rust and dirt might have gotten into your bloodstream. That would mean you’ll—”

“Yeah. I know. Have to watch for sepsis.”

Jessica nodded. “Correct. So, you’ll be making a trip to the hospital.”

She could feel him watching her as she made notations on the chart.

“I don’t have time to go to the hospital.”

She raised her eyes and gave him her best authoritative look. “Before you argue that point, tell me when you had your last tetanus shot?”

“Cops have to get regular shots. You should know that.”

“I do, but that doesn’t answer my question.” Since there was no reply, Jessica glanced up again.

“I don’t know. A few years back.”

Having completed the charting, she put down the clipboard. “Would a few be more or less than five years?”

Cal threw his hands skyward in annoyance. Scout immediately sat up, ears pricked. Cal sent him a hand signal and calmed himself. “I don’t have time for this. I have work to do.”

“Unless you want serious complications, you will make the time.” Cal’s brows drew together in a menacing V. Before he could say anything, she raised a hand. “I wouldn’t send you to the hospital if it wasn’t absolutely necessary. We’re going to be swamped, and I want to make sure we provide care to those who need it most. You understand the triage process, correct?”

The V deepened, but he nodded.

“I triaged you as ‘urgent.’ You know that means you need medical attention at Ocean Crest, for treatment, stiches and—if you can’t be more specific about when you had your last one—a tetanus shot, as well. Finally, I want X-rays. As deep as that wound is and based on how it occurred, as I said I can’t discount a possible hairline fracture of your femur.”

“Okay. I get it.” He reached into his pocket and pulled out his keys.

“You can’t be serious!”

“What?”

“You’re planning to drive yourself to the hospital?” She was incredulous.

“Yeah,” he responded, hesitancy in his voice. “I can drive.” He sounded a bit like a petulant child.

“Right. Try again to put some weight on that leg. Your right leg, I might add.”

Cal’s brows remained furrowed and he kept his eyes on hers—the green even brighter now than when she’d first locked eyes with him. She knew the instant he put some weight on the right leg, because he squeezed his eyes closed and his mouth formed a hard, straight line.

She reached out to steady him as he wobbled. “You were saying?” A hint of humor crept into her voice. She couldn’t help being a little smug. She was tired, cranky—and she was only human. “I know you’re a tough guy, but even you have your limits. Here’s an ambulance now. They’ll take you.” She signaled to the paramedic.

“Wait. What about Scout? They won’t let me take him in the ambulance, will they?”

Jessica frowned. She hadn’t thought of that. “No. That’s not possible.”

“I can’t leave him in my vehicle. It’s going to heat up again. It’s got a temperature-activated cooling system, but during the time I’ll be in the hospital, the truck will likely run out of gas and power.” He reached for the holster on his belt and found it empty. He looked around, apparently searching for someone. Police department personnel and other first responders at the site were still rushing around, all of them occupied in dealing with the aftermath of the earthquake.

He looked back at Jessica. “I need help.”

“You just had it. The hospital needs to take over now.”

“No. That’s not what I mean. Not medical aid. I need your help with Scout.”

She bent down, let Scout sniff her hand. “May I?” she asked. When Cal nodded, she rubbed his head. “In what way?”

“Well, I can’t take him to the hospital with me. I can’t leave him in my truck here in this heat. I lost my radio in the building and, as you can see, everyone from the department is busy.” He made a sweeping motion toward where the frenetic activity still continued. “I can’t impose on them.”

Jessica continued to stroke Scout but looked up at Cal. “What about someone else? A volunteer, maybe? Someone who lives close by? A friend?” She broke eye contact and turned her attention back to Scout. “Aren’t you a handsome boy,” she murmured. “So smart and handsome.”