in anticipation of more campfire food.” He paused when she looked as if she were going to resist more. “Please don’t make me give you a real doctor’s order.”
“What?”
Startled brown eyes caught his gaze, and he knew he’d surprised her. Good. “When we come back, we can do it together and get it done in half the time. It’s not like it’s an urgent matter, and there’s no one from Medical Records breathing down our necks.”
At that she gave a sideways smile, and her brown eyes lit up for the first time since they’d met. “You’re right. I can deal with all this later.”
“We’ll deal with it. Promise. Let’s just go enjoy ourselves.” This was good. One small step forward.
“Okay. Let me grab a sweatshirt and my special bug spray. They ate me alive last night so I’m not taking any chances tonight.”
“Sounds good.”
She hurried to her room at the opposite end of the hall from his and returned in minutes. She carried a dark blue sweatshirt with an embroidered loon on it and a white spray bottle in the other hand.
Mark waited by the door, then walked with her to the lodge, wondering what could be special about bug spray. But if it worked, who cared?
The evening was pure delight. Kids ran wild through the camp, and he laughed more than he had in years. Tension began to simply unwind out of him with each passing moment. This was a good change for him, and one he hadn’t realized he’d needed. Thank God for good friends who made excellent recommendations. Get out of the hospital for a while. That was the ticket. Oh, what a pleasure it was to be here and simply to be alive.
Tapping his foot to the guitar music, he wasn’t watching as one small camper tried to sneak by, but tripped and landed nearly in Mark’s lap. The little boy with bright red hair squealed, and Mark helped him to stand.
“I gotta use the bathroom,” he said and his blue eyes expressed his urgency.
“Come on, it’s this way,” Mark said and helped the young boy find the restroom. This was something he knew he might never be able to do otherwise. Not necessarily help a kid to the bathroom, but help his own child—get up in the middle of the night with his own children, help them with whatever they needed. For a moment, despair hit Mark; the realization of what he might never have was reflected in the face of each and every camper present. He simply couldn’t allow himself to indulge in a relationship when he might not live through the next few years. It wasn’t fair to the woman or any children that could come of the relationship. Minutes later, the boy emerged from the bathroom and, for a moment, Mark forgot about his own needs that wouldn’t be met so simply.
CHAPTER THREE
ELLIE stirred in her bed the next morning, awakening slowly as the sun crept over the windowsill to invade her room. She hadn’t slept so well in such a long time; she’d almost forgotten what it was like. Events of the past few years had disturbed her wakeful time as well as her sleeping time. Maybe fresh air and the quiet Maine woods had helped. A lovely breeze had stirred the pines surrounding the infirmary most of the night, bringing with it the lonesome call of the loons that she loved. The soothing sounds must have lulled her into a state of bliss.
Living in a large city for so long had numbed her senses to what nature had to offer. Cement and skyscrapers and bright lights, and the never-ending roster of critically ill patients, had taken the place of activities she had once enjoyed, and she mourned that loss. Work, and the lengthy illness of her father, had just about worn her out, the breakup with her fiancé only compounding her exhaustion. Mourning had unfortunately become a way of life and one she was determined to shake off during the summer. She knew she would. She just had to figure out how to get started.
The framed photo on the table beside her bed had been taken when her father had been happy and healthy and that’s how she wanted to remember him. Memories of his illness had finally begun to fade.
After a quick glance at the clock beside the photo, she bolted upright, panicked. She was late! Tearing off her sleep shirt and quickly dragging on shorts and a T-shirt, she raced out the door, then came to a halt.
Mark sat quietly with about ten kids who waited in a semi-organized line for their morning meds.
“Why didn’t you wake me?” she whispered and patted her short, rumpled hair into place, supposing she looked like a porcupine with it sticking out all over.
“No worries. I’ve got things under control.” He gave her a quick assessing glance and his eyes warmed, lingering on her longer than they had yesterday. The flush of heat that rushed through her wasn’t entirely from embarrassment. Though she had said she wasn’t going to be interested in men during the summer, Mark was intriguing her from the get-go.
“I’m supposed to pull the charts, and the meds, and have things ready before clinic. You didn’t need to take clinic this morning. I should have done it.” Her heart raced uncomfortably in her chest. This was her job, and the first day here she was already behind.
“Ellie, calm down.” Mark handed a camper two pills in a paper medicine cup and a small glass of water. “Down the hatch, buddy.” The camper dutifully swallowed the medicine. “Why don’t you wake up and get something to eat? It’s not a crisis that I take the morning clinic. You can have the one after lunch and the evening one if that will make you feel better. There are a few kids with allergy shots that are due, so you can set them up for the lunch clinic.” He gave her a quick glance and adjusted the baseball cap on his head. So far she’d never seen him without it. If he was anything like her brothers, they had to have a favorite team cap on almost before they got out of bed.
“Thank you. I’ll do that.” Face burning, she headed to the bathroom and closed the door. She splashed cold water on her face, combed her hair and glanced in the mirror over the small ceramic sink. Already, on the first day of camp, she’d succeeded in embarrassing herself in front of the physician and a number of the kids. Determined not to let this setback get the better of her, she pulled herself together. One little problem shouldn’t ruin, or set the tone for, the rest of her day. Think positive. Think positive. Wasn’t that what she told her patients all the time? Maybe she ought to listen to her own words of advice. If it worked for her patients, it ought to work for her, right? She’d simply make it up to Mark somehow. She’d find a way. Opening the door to the shared bathroom, she re-entered the front, feeling a little better.
“Bear is the man you want to see at the lodge. He said he’d put a few things back for you if you’re hungry.”
“I can wait. Why don’t I take over here?” she said, but as she looked for more campers, she saw that the line had dwindled down to just a few. Mark had handled the task without her help, and no one looked as if they were distressed, so she relaxed a little more. Positive thoughts. Positive energy. If she kept telling herself that, she’d really believe in it one day, wouldn’t she?
“Seriously, Ellie. Go ahead and get something to eat. I’m good for a while.” He winked at her. “After this I think I might take a run around the camp, get my exercise for the day.”
“Yes, Doctor,” she said and, with a frown, turned to the door, but paused as she felt a hand on her arm. Turning back, she glanced at him. They were going to be working together for the entire summer, so she should make a better attempt to be friends. Making friends with a handsome man was always a good thing.
“Ellie,
