glanced at the large wall clock. “Shouldn’t everyone be here by now?”
Cameron shrugged, raising an eyebrow. “Recall my earlier comment?”
Just as the words left Cameron’s mouth, a man appeared in the doorway. “Morning. Sorry I’m late. That darn alarm clock in my cabin gives me fits.”
“Maybe you should consider getting a new one,” Gabrielle said in a no-nonsense tone. She stepped forward and extended her hand. “I’m Dr. Gabrielle Grinage. Nice to meet you. Since I feel at a disadvantage here, what’s your name?”
He shook Gabrielle’s hand. “I’m Joseph Clark, a nurse and senior member of the crew.”
Coffee mugs in hand, nurses Morris and Dean walked into the treatment cubicle.
Cameron moved to the center of the room. “Now that we’re all here, we can welcome our new staff members. I present Dr. Gabrielle Grinage, second in command, and our three newly assigned registered nurses, Joanie Caldwell, Candi Simmons and Carolyn Jackson.”
The group acknowledged each other politely. Gabrielle made a mental note to get to know the individual work ethics of the nurses.
Cameron gestured toward the three men. “Nurses Morris and Dean have been with us well over a year. Joseph is a two-and-a-half-year veteran staff member. Everyone will get to meet during our regular staff meeting at the end of the week.”
Gabrielle walked around and shook everyone’s hand. “I’m happy to be assigned to this ship and its clinic, and I’m looking forward to working with each of you. I’ll probably ask questions of the veterans every now and then, so I’d appreciate your help.”
“No problem,” Joseph said. The other two male nurses nodded.
The front-desk buzzer interrupted the informal gathering.
“I’ll take care of it,” said Joseph, hurrying from the room.
To see how the front desk was run, Gabrielle excused herself. She made her way out to the front, where she quietly observed a middle-aged woman writing her name on the patient intake sheet. She listened closely to Joseph as he asked her reason for coming into the clinic.
The woman’s hand went to her stomach. “I have nausea like you wouldn’t believe. I can’t keep anything down.”
“How long have you been nauseated?” Joseph queried.
“It started right after lunch yesterday, even before we sailed. It may’ve been caused by a slice of cheesecake I ate for dessert. As soon as I finished it, I got sick.”
Joseph had the patient sit down in one of several chairs lined against the wall opposite the front desk. He walked over and took her temperature and blood pressure. Nausea was a normal occurrence among passengers and the number one problem the clinic dealt with.
Gabrielle continued to watch Joseph work in an expedient manner. She liked his warm, professional demeanor. She’d noticed the concerned look on his face when the cheesecake had been mentioned. Nausea was a relatively simple problem unless it was related to food poisoning, then it could impact a large number of guests.
Joseph went over to Dr. Grinage to consult with her in private.
“Give her antinausea medicine and recommend she consume only clear liquids for the next twenty-four hours. She should also take it easy and report back to the clinic if the symptoms continue.”
No sooner had the first patient of the morning left the clinic than several more passengers came in with a variety of ailments. Traffic continued to flow into the treatment center, and the staff found themselves running from one cubicle to another. For the next few hours, there wasn’t an opportunity for anyone to take even a short break, let alone take time for Cameron to speak with the new personnel.
At 2:15 p.m. the clinic finally closed for lunch, which was a good bit of time after the normal closing at one o’clock. The clinic doors would reopen at 3:00 p.m. regardless, and Cameron and Joseph would be the on-call staff.
* * *
Seated at the dining table in her suite later that night, Gabrielle dined on a delicious bowl of vegetable soup and a chicken salad sandwich. Instead of calling room service before leaving the clinic for the day, she had prepared her own meal from the groceries and deli items she had stocked. It had become a very busy shift at the clinic, and passengers had come in up until the last few minutes before closing time.
Glad that the workday was over, she planned to lie down for a while after finishing her meal. If she hadn’t gotten up so early and had slept properly last night, she probably wouldn’t have been so drowsy. Clinic visits had gotten hectic, with one person after another trooping in for medical care. The fast-paced day had her feeling slightly fatigued. No matter how busy the clinic had gotten, Gabrielle was thankful that no life-threatening situations had occurred.
Despite how busy the staff had become, Gabrielle had gotten an opportunity to learn quite a bit about the job throughout the shift. Cameron had been very clear in explaining to her proper patient-care procedures and had been very specific about the proper way to store and secure narcotics and other controlled substances.
After washing the few dishes she’d used, Gabrielle went into the bedroom and slipped out of her uniform. She removed from her belt the new cell phone Cameron had handed to her, informing her that she was required to have it turned on whenever the clinic was closed, even if she wasn’t on call. If extra manpower was needed, she’d be alerted.
Gabrielle hastily slipped on an attractive one-piece navy blue bathing suit she’d pulled from a drawer and went out onto the balcony. She positioned her body comfortably on the chaise and tilted her face toward the sun for a few moments. Once she had gotten into a comfortable resting position place, she set the alarm on her watch.
The moment she closed her eyes, a vision of Cameron appeared. Dressed only in dark swim trunks, he looked as good as any professional athlete she’d ever seen. To have those hard, muscled arms wrapped around her would be a fantasy fulfilled. Unknowingly, Cameron was pulling Gabrielle into his white-hot web of desire, making her want him despite all the consequences.
* * *
Seated in the leather chair behind his desk, Cameron was alone in the clinic. He hadn’t eaten a full breakfast, yet it had completely satisfied him. He actually fasted one day a week, drinking only liquids. The ritual had nothing to do with religion but had just started in college, when he’d pledged a fraternity, and he carried it on during his U.S. Navy duty.
Hearing a noise out front, Cameron stood. He quietly listened for more movement. It was a little early for the staff to report for duty, but it wasn’t overly unusual.
With a bright smile on her face, Gabrielle popped into Cameron’s office and presented him with a colorful Thank you balloon.
“Hi, Cameron. How’s it going?”
“Great. Everything has been quiet. I wasn’t called a single time last night. I came in early to work on a special report. How was your evening?”
“It was good. I ate first then stretched out on the balcony chaise and caught a few rays.” Her hand went up to her face. “Did I get any darker?”
Cameron
