My Only - Alex & Jamie (3 page)

Jamie had always prided herself in the fact that she never let anyone see her sweat. No matter how nervous, uncomfortable, stressed, or scared a situation made her; Jamie always remained calm and steady. Nerves of steel, baby!

She had learned that particular skill at a very young age. It was a lesson taught to her by her visits to the emergency room, which were frequent because she had suffered from acute asthma attacks.

If the respiratory therapists or nurses thought that she was upset (which, HELLO...she couldn’t breathe, OF COURSE she was upset!) then they would not give her the nebulizer treatment until she, “calmed down.” So, no matter how scared she was - even if she felt like she was going to
die
- she would calmly sit and try to answer their questions, patiently waiting for them to give her the medication she needed to
stay
alive
. GOOD TIMES!

Now, she put those hard-earned skills to use. She stood facing the crowd of (very good-looking) people, all of whom seemed extremely upset about the patient who was lying, unconscious, in the bed a few feet away. The patient that, incidentally, she hadn't even managed
to lay eyes on yet due to said crowd of (gorgeous) people, who were now all eagerly looking in her direction. Because his life would shortly be left in her hands. But no pressure!

She felt, more than at almost any other time in her adult life, that the “nerves of steel” ability she had always been so proud of was about to be put to the test. Vickey had not exaggerated when she had said that she was throwing Jamie into the lion's den.

Jamie did her best just to slow her pulse and focus on one thing at a time. Right now, the task at hand was listening to Vickey's introductions.

“So, this is Mike and Grace Hunter. Mike is the fire captain and Grace is an R.N who works on the second floor. Alex is a fireman, he works for Mike.”

“Hi,” Jamie awkwardly waved. They smiled warmly in acknowledgment.

“Next to them is their daughter Sophie with her husband Bobby. Bobby is Alex’s youngest brother.”

“Hi,” Jamie repeated to the striking young couple.

“Then we have Jason, Alex’s middle brother, and his wife, Katie.”

“Hi,” Jamie directed this repeat of the greeting to the beautiful couple Vickey had just indicated.

Katie smiled encouragingly as she motioned around the room. “I know we’re a lot to take in, but don’t worry - you’ll get to know who everybody is in no time.”

The statement had what Jamie assumed was the desired effect, putting her immediately at ease. She smiled gratefully and said, “Thanks.”

“Moving on,” Vickey sighed, apparently not pleased with the momentary interruption. “We have another of Alex’s brothers. This is Riley, and his wife, Chelle. Chelle works in labor and delivery, and – as you can see – is about to become a patient herself when she has her own little bundle in about a month.”

“Rachelle Thomas?” Jamie asked, recognizing the pretty brunette from nursing school.

“Rachelle Sloan now,” her husband clarified, smiling down at his wife.

Chelle beamed up at him and then turned to Jamie, still glowing with the happiness that had suffused her face at her husband's proud words. “But, yes, you're right. Thomas was my maiden name.” Jamie could tell that Chelle was trying to do a mental Google search of the places she and Jamie's paths might have crossed.

“You were just leaving the nursing program when I started at UIC. I remember at orientation, you spoke to our class about what the program would be like, and gave us tips for the best way to navigate through it successfully. That speech helped me so many times. I still have the notes. You were amazing,” Jamie explained.

Riley leaned down and kissed his wife on the forehead, proudly stating, “That’s my Chelle.”

Chelle smiled at Jamie, “I’m so glad it helped. It’s great to see you again. UIC has a great program.”

“It does,” Jamie agreed.

Vickey cleared her throat, clearly all business. “Then we have Bob Sloan, Alex’s dad. And over here is Bob's brother Pete, and Pete's wife, Sandy.”

“Hello,” Jamie greeted them.

“Sitting against the far wall are Pete and Sandy’s daughters: Haley, Becca, Krista, and Jessie.”

“Hi, Hi, Hi, Hi.” Jamie smiled as she greeted the stunning foursome.

“And last, but
certainly
not least, we have The Colonel, who is Mike’s dad.”

The older gentleman stood from the chair and made his way over to Jamie, “Now,
you
, young lady. You can just call me Grandpa J. And you let me know if anyone gets out of line and needs a bop on the head.” He said in a very serious tone to her as he pantomimed a thumping motion with the ring he wore on his left hand.

Jamie instantly loved him. “I will, sir,” she smiled.

He pointed at her, “Grandpa J.”

She smiled again, “I will, Grandpa J.”

He returned to his seat as Vickey continued her announcements to the room, “Okay, folks, here's the deal. I have special visiting badges for each of you. No one will be admitted into Alex’s room without one of these,” she said as she passed them around. “We’re maintaining tight security to try and keep the girls, as well-meaning as they may be, at bay. Also, you are each allowed to bring in guests of your choosing, but you must arrive with them and stay with them during your visit.”

Vickey turned to Jamie, “That way, when girls try and come in and say that one of these lovely people 'said they could visit Alex' you’ll be able to tell them that they need to have whoever 'said' that escort them.”

Jamie nodded, but internally she was still trying to wrap her head around the fact that this wasn’t even a ‘real’ famous person. She just couldn’t come to terms with it. It was too surreal!

“Alright, now that introductions are over, you can get to work. He should be resting comfortably for the next hour or so, but make sure he doesn’t sleep past then.”

Jamie nodded and set the alarm on her watch. Considering this was her
only
patient she thought it wasn’t really necessary, but she didn’t want to take any chances. That wasn't the kind of person she was, and it certainly wasn't the kind of nurse she was! Nope, whether she was dealing with patients or sticking to The Plan, Jamie left nothing to chance.

Vickey nodded approvingly and said, with a small pat on Jamie's shoulder, “Well, I’ll leave you to it, then. Dr. Corbin should be in soon to speak to you folks, as well.”

With that, Vickey was out the door, and Jamie was on her own.

As soon as the door clicked shut behind Vickey, the volume in the room grew tenfold, as everyone seemed to take Vickey's exit as a cue to start talking to one another at once. Jamie took advantage of their distraction and made her way to the corner of the room to start studying Alex’s chart. She still hadn’t had a chance to get a look at the VIP patient himself, but that would happen soon enough. After all, the clock was
literally
ticking.

The alarm on Jamie’s watch beeped and she was glad that she had taken the extra precaution of setting it. She had been so wrapped up in reading the patient’s chart that she hadn’t even noticed that the hour had flown by. Alex Sloan’s history was fascinating. Between his mother’s illness, his four brothers, his time in the service, and his father’s ailing health – wow. She concluded that this man must have quite the life story! Making things even more intriguing, he was only twenty-six - just two years older than her.

The crowd parted as Jamie made her way toward the bed. She smiled at Alex's family and friends as she passed them. She had inadvertently eavesdropped a bit over course of the last hour (hey, they were in a small confined space) and...well, to say that these people were colorful and amusing was the understatement of the century! After listening to them, she knew two things to be absolutely true: these people loved each other and moreover they would do absolutely anything for one another.

She had never had that kind of support system in her life. As a kid, it had always been her and her mom...well, along with whatever boyfriend her mom happened to have at the time. She had never had a group of people that she could
depend
on. In fact, the one certainty that had never changed in her life, no matter the circumstances, was that Jamie could depend on one person and one person only…Jamie.

The couple she thought she remembered being Jason and Katie were standing beside Alex’s bed, and they were the last barrier that stood between her and the patient. They moved out of her way, and Jamie saw Alex Sloan for the first time. She stood, momentarily paralyzed, completely breathless at what she saw. She was unable to move, unable to think.

He was…beautiful.

He was lying perfectly still, and his eyes were closed. She stared (she couldn't help it), drinking in his long dark lashes, laying against his perfectly sculpted cheek. She let her eyes travel down, then, along his strong jawline that was peppered with stubble.

His skin was probably a bit pale due to circumstance, but was still a lovely olive tone. His lips...God, she didn’t even know where to begin with his lips. They were full, strong...perfect. His chestnut-brown hair looked so lush and inviting that she had to check the desire to run her fingers through it. And, even though he had a cast on one arm and an awful hospital gown on, she could see that he had a broad strong chest. He had shoulders that looked made for someone to lean on.

Her knees went weak.

Her watch beeped once again, and it served to snap her out of her massive lust-induced trance. She forced herself to move into action, checking his vital signs almost on auto-pilot. She was so embarrassed by her reaction to him that she didn’t dare glance around the room at her captive audience. She knew they must think she was ridiculous. What is worse, they wouldn’t be wrong, not to put too fine a point on it, because right now she was
being
ridiculous.

Never had she experienced a physical reaction to someone's mere appearance, no matter how heavenly. And she most
definitely
had never been rendered speechless, motionless,
thoughtless
at the simple sight of another human being – again, no matter how heavenly!

After checking some of his vitals, she knew it was time to wa
ke him up. She spoke loudly, “Okay, Alex, time to wake up.”

He didn’t move, so she spoke again, a little louder this time, “Alex, can you open your eyes for me?”

He stirred and opened his eyes. The moment they locked with hers, she felt like she couldn’t catch her breath. They were gorgeous, a light emerald shade in the center, rimmed with a darker hue of green. Whoa, nelly! She felt the hairs on the back of her neck stand up.

Work, she reminded herself, she had to work. She got her mini flashlight out of her pocket and leaned over him to check his pupils.

“Hi,” he said, smiling at her as she examined his eyes.

His voice caused a flutter in her belly...and lower, if she were being strictly honest. “Hi,” she repeated as an unintentional smile spread across her face. Good God, she was having a hard time concentrating on her job!

He stared at her, making her feel things that she hadn’t felt…ever. But she had to focus!

“Do you know where you are?” she asked, trying to judge his mental awareness.

“Yes,” he replied.

“Where are you?” she asked with a smile, realizing that apparently she was going to need to be more specific.

He smiled even though she could tell by his countenance that he was in a significant amount of pain. Even with the medication he was on, he had to be seriously uncomfortable. “Lying down, in bed, looking at the most beautiful girl in the world.” He winked at her.

Laughter spread throughout the room and she heard several people comment on his answer.

“He’s going to be fine,” his dad said.

“Well, at least we know the head trauma didn’t do too much damage,” one of his brothers chimed in.

“Yep, that’s Alex!” another brother added.

“Not even a beam can knock sense into that boy,” she heard Grandpa J
say.

She laughed a little and shook her head. “Do you know what year it is?”

“Yes.” He continued smiling, either unaware or just completely ignoring his family's comments.

“What year is it?” She asked again, more specifically this time.

“2013,” he answered correctly.

“Do you know your name?”

“Yes.”

“What’s your name?” she asked as she pressed the stethoscope to his chest.

“I’ll tell you mine if you tell me yours.” He smiled again, staring directly into her eyes as she listened to his heart.

Tremors spread through her like a wild fire. She was glad no one had a stethoscope on
her
chest right now because he had just made her heart jump and her pulse race. Even her palms were getting a little sweaty! Wow, how this guy was pulling off cheesy lines like that after what he had just been through, she had no idea. But, it was impressive!

“Jamie.” She felt the corners of her mouth turn up as she stared at his strong chest, trying to hide the twinkle she felt sparkling in her eyes.