From time to time, Paige went out with doctors from the hospital, but she refused to get romantically involved with any of them. Alfred Turner had hurt her too deeply, and she was determined never to go through that again.
Most of her days and nights were spent at the hospital. The schedule was grueling, but Paige was doing general surgery and she enjoyed it.
One morning, George Englund, the chief of surgery, sent for her.
“You’re starting your specialty this year. Cardiovascular surgery.”
She nodded. “That’s right.”
“Well, I have a treat for you. Have you heard of Dr. Barker?”
Paige looked at him in surprise. “Dr. Lawrence Barker?”
“Yes.”
“Of course.”
Everyone had heard of Lawrence Barker. He was one of the most famous cardiovascular surgeons in the world.
“Well, he returned last week from Saudi Arabia, where he operated on the king. Dr. Barker’s an old friend of mine, and he’s agreed to give us three days a week here. Pro bono.”
“That’s fantastic!” Paige exclaimed.
“I’m putting you on his team.”
For a moment, Paige was speechless. “I…I don’t know what to say. I’m very grateful.”
“It’s a wonderful opportunity for you. You can learn a lot from him.”
“I’m sure I can. Thank you, George. I really appreciate this.”
“You’ll start your rounds with him tomorrow morning at six o’clock.”
“I’m looking forward to it.”
“Looking forward to it” was an understatement. It had been Paige’s dream to work with someone like Dr. Lawrence Barker. What do I mean, “someone like Dr. Lawrence Barker”? There’s only one Dr. Lawrence Barker.
She had never seen a photograph of him, but she could visualize what he looked like. He would be tall and handsome, with silver-gray hair, and slender, sensitive hands. A warm and gentle man. We’ll be working closely together, Paige thought, and I’m going to make myself absolutely indispensable. I wonder if he’s married?
That night, Paige had an erotic dream about Dr. Barker. They were performing an operation in the nude. In the middle of it, Dr. Barker said, “I want you.” A nurse moved the patient off the operating table and Dr. Barker picked Paige up and put her on the table, and made love to her.
When Paige woke up, she was falling off the bed.
At six o’clock the following morning, Paige was nervously waiting in the second-floor corridor with Joel Philips, the senior resident, and five other residents, when a short, sour-faced man stormed toward them. He leaned forward as he walked, as though battling a stiff wind.
He approached the group. “What the hell are you all standing around for? Let’s go!”
It took Paige a moment to regain her composure. She hurried along to catch up with the rest of the group. As they moved along the corridor, Dr. Barker snapped, “You’ll have between thirty and thirty-five patients to care for every day. Ill expect you to make detailed notes on each one of them. Clear?”
There were murmurs of “Yes, sir.”
They had reached the first ward. Dr. Barker walked over to the bed of a patient, a man in his forties. Barker’s gruff and forbidding manner went through an instant change. He touched the patient gently on the shoulder and smiled. “Good morning. I’m Dr. Barker.”
“Good morning, doctor.”
“How are you feeling this morning?”
“My chest hurts.”
Dr. Barker studied the chart at the foot of the bed, then turned to Dr. Philips. “What do his X-rays show?”
“No change. He’s healing nicely.”
“Let’s do another CBC.”
Dr. Philips made a note.
Dr. Barker patted the young man on the arm and smiled. “It’s looking good. We’ll have you out of here in a week.” He turned to the residents and snapped, “Move it! We have a lot of patients to see.”
My God! Paige thought. Talk about Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde!
The next patient was an obese woman who had had a pacemaker put in. Dr. Barker studied her chart. “Good morning, Mrs. Shelby.” His voice was soothing. “I’m Dr. Barker.”
“How long are you going to keep me in this place?”
“Well, you’re so charming, I’d like to keep you here forever, but I have a wife.”