The next day, Jake was feeling much better. He was able to sit up in bed.
I walked in that morning.
He smiled, "Good morning."
"Good morning," I smiled, giving him a kiss.
He smiled against my lips. "Oh, a hot doctor just walked into my room."
I smiled, "I'm not your doctor."
"Why not?"
"It's very...traumatizing."
He looked surprised. "Really?" he sadly asked.
"Jake, I took out your gallbladder. I had my hands in one of your body cavities. It's weird and it scared me when I realized it was you."
He took my hand and gave it a squeeze. "You've operated on me before."
"I know, but now I'm your wife. Jake, I don't want to lose you and I almost did."
"You're not going to lose me. I promise, okay?"
I sighed.
"Now, give me a kiss."
I leaned in and gave him a sweet kiss.
He pulled back. "Okay. I love you. Go save a life."
I nodded. "I love you. I'll come check on you in a bit."
He nodded.
I left the room.
Dr. Walker was my attending. He turned to me. "Ready to do rounds?"
"You bet," I smiled.
We began our rounds.
When we got to Jake's room, Dr. Walker looked at me and nodded. "Dr. Hamilton, state the case."
"James Hamilton. Had a fight with a flight of stairs. The stairs won. His rod in his leg was pulled out of place with its securing screws."
He nodded.
"Prognosis?"
"Mr. Hamilton-"
Jake cleared his throat.
I sighed. "I'm sorry. Sgt. Major Hamilton underwent a surgery to correct the rod and screws. He's going to be here until tomorrow or the day after for observation and to begin physical therapy."
He nodded. "Great. You can handle the case then?"
A couple other residents snickered.
"Dr. Walker, I'm not so sure I should be on his case. I-"
"You know the case better than anyone and it's just observations. It'll be an easy day or two."
I nodded.
"Moving on."
He and the group stepped out.
Jake looked at me. "You don't want to work on me?"
"It's not that. I just shouldn't be. It's ethically wrong."
"Why do you think he wants you to have an easy day?"
"He found out about the pregnancy yesterday," I sighed.
"Oh."
I nodded.
He took my hand. "Bridget-"
I pulled back. "No, no. You're my patient now."
He sighed.
I got his chart out and took his blood pressure and temperature.
There was a knock on the door.
"Hey, big brother!" Melanie squealed.
I looked up.
Melanie, Drew, Kelly, and Hawk were at the door.
They all came in and hugged Jake.
Melanie put her carrier in a chair.
"How's Charlie?" I asked.
"He's good. He slept the whole way here," Melanie smiled.
"You guys didn't have to come."
"You injured your fake knee. Of course we did," Drew spoke.
"Speaking of which, I need to check his incision," I spoke, writing in his chart.
I pulled a curtain around us. "My hands are a tad bit cold," I warned.
He nodded.
I put gloves on. Then, I lifted his gown and blanket and looked at his scar, his stitches.
"How do I look?"
"Fine. Is it sore?"
He shrugged, "A little bit."
I nodded. I covered him and opened the curtain. I removed my gloves and threw them away. "Okay. What's your pain like today? 10 being the worst, 1 being the best?"
"Maybe an 8."
"I can get you something for the pain, if you'd like," I spoke.
He nodded. "That would be nice."
I made a note of his condition. "Okay. I'll get you something for the pain."
"So are you his doctor?" Melanie asked.
I nodded. "Excuse me a minute."
They nodded.
I stepped out and got Jake his pain medicine. I got him a pitcher of water and a glass and took it to him. I scanned his medical bracelet's barcode and gave him his medicine.
He took it quickly. "Thanks, Britt."
I nodded. "No problem. It might make you drowsy."
He nodded.
Charlie whimpered.
Melanie picked him up. "Hey, maybe Uncle Jake wants to hold you."
Jake reached his arms out.
Mel handed him to Jake.
He held him carefully. "Hey, Charlie."
Charlie snuggled up to Jake.
Jake rubbed his back. He looked at his sister. "Where's William?"
"He had to work, you know, to make time up since Charlie was born."
Jake nodded.
"You're good with babies, James. You two ever talk about having kids?" Drew asked.
"Once or twice," I answered.
Jake looked at me in confusion.
Before he could ask anything, Charlie gripped onto Jake's hospital gown, which distracted him.
There was a knock on the door.
We looked up.
The Chief stood in the doorway. He walked over and handed me an envelope. "This came for you."
I opened it and looked at it.
It was a letter from the the American Cancer Society. They wanted me to come talk to them about my treatments and possible future treatments. They wanted it to be a three day event.
"What is it?" Jake asked.
"Uh, the American Cancer Society wants me to go to their headquarters for a few days and speak about my treatments."
"That's great!" Kelly smiled.
"I'd be gone for a few days, at least three."
"So? I'd go. It sounds like an awesome opportunity," Drew spoke.
I nodded. "I can't just drop everything and go. I have the trial."
"I've got it under control," Kelly spoke. "And you don't need to worry about the company, because your grandfather is working with it for now."
I nodded.
Jake took my hand. "You should go."
"The headquarters is in Atlanta."
"So? It sounds amazing."
I nodded. "I'll call them. Maybe I can wait a couple weeks."
The Chief nodded. "That's probably a good idea."
"Yeah, I'm gonna go call them. Excuse me," I spoke, stepping out of the room.
I went to an on call room and called them. I explained the situation and that I'd need a few weeks to get out of the first trimester to make flying safer for my pregnancy, which they were actually really okay with.
When I got off the phone, I went back to Jake's room. "Still feeling okay?"
"Yeah, I'm fine."
"Good. Can I get you anything?"
He shook his head. "What did they say?"
"They said I can come speak in a few weeks when more of my research is more developed."
"Good," he smiled.
I nodded.
Melanie smiled, "James, you should go with her."
He looked at me. "Would you want me to go?"
"If you're feeling up to it, you can."
He nodded. "When are you going?"
"About nine weeks. Two months will give me time to check my patients' progress, which I can use during my speech."
He nodded and took my hand. He tugged me to him and hugged me. "I'm so proud of you."
"Jake," I smiled, rolling my eyes.
"No, Britt. This is amazing. You're curing cancer and people are noticing your work."
"It is kind of cool, huh?"
He nodded.
I smiled and pulled back. "I should really get back to work. I'll come check on you in a bit, okay?"
He nodded.
"And if you need anything, call or page me."
He nodded.
I left the room.
I spent the rest of the days getting my mind together. I spent a great deal of time in the lab and rounding on patients. Then, I went to the pit and stitched people up. It was a pretty busy day.
When I finally finished everything for the day, I went to the cafeteria and got a couple pieces of cake. Then, I went to Jake's room.
He was alone, doing something on his phone.
"Hey. You busy?" I asked, closing the door.
He looked up and smiled, "Not too busy for you."
I smiled and walked over. I put the cakes on the table and gave him a kiss.
He smiled against my lips. "There's a sexy doctor kissing me."
"Want sexy doctor to stop?" I whispered.
"Never," he breathed, tugging on my top.
I smirked and kissed him again.
He deepened the kiss, pulling me closer. He lifted me up and put me on his lap, holding me closer than he had in a long time. His hands went up my shirt, rubbing me, massaging me.
I moaned.
He smiled against my lips.
I kissed him sweetly, but pulled back. I removed his hands from my chest.
He pouted. "What are you doing?"
"We should stop before we go too far."
"Bridget."
"Your nurse will be in to take your vitals soon."
"Bridget."
"When you get discharged, I'll take the day off and we can do whatever you want for however long you want, okay?"
He shifted his weight underneath me and groaned.
"Do I need to move?" I smirked.
"Bridget," he warned.
Then, I felt why he was so upset.
I couldn't hide my smile. I tried to bite it back, but I couldn't. "My husband's a fifteen year old."
He scrunched his brows. "My very sexy doctor wife just came in here and kissed the hell out of me. Excuse my body if it reacts to her."
I kissed his lips and whispered, "Don't get so upset."
"Bridget-"
"I can leave you to take care of it."
"I'm not fifteen!" he quietly gasped.
"Well, I'm not handling it, not here," I spoke, slowing gliding myself down his legs.
He moaned, throwing his head back.
My pager buzzed. Emergency room.
"Seriously?" he gasped.
"I'll be back," I smirked, getting up. I gave him a kiss and whispered, "Think of me."
Then, I left the room. I went to the emergency room.
Dr. Thomas looked pained. "Hey. I need your help."
All of the male doctors looked pained. They looked ghostly white.
"What's up?"
He handed me a scan.
I looked at it. What was I looking at? Then, I got it. I smirked at him.
"Don't."
"You're a physician. Most of you are. You can't handle this?"
He shook his head, blowing out the breath he'd been holding in.
"Why was I paged?"
"You're the only female physician on call tonight."
I sighed, "Where's the patient?"
He pointed to a room.
I nodded and went in.
A male nurse was hanging fluids.
I looked at the name on the chart and looked at the man, lying on the bed. He was in a gown already. His brown hair stood upright on his head. He was probably a real catch.
"Hi, Mr. Johnson. I'm going to be taking care of you tonight."
His eyes flashed open. They widened. "Oh, God. Hot doctor. Oh..." He moaned.
"Let's up his morphine," I spoke to the nurse.
He nodded and immediately did as I said.
I looked at the chart. "Mr. Johnson, I'm afraid you have a penile fracture."
He groaned.
"I'm going to get an attending and take you to the OR to fix it, okay?"
"Will I be able to use it again?"
"Yes, of course. In a few weeks."
He groaned.
"Mind if I take a look?"
He shook his head.
I put gloves on and lifted the sheet to examine him. I felt bad for the guy. I mean, I didn't even have a penis and I could feel his pain. My mind thought about Jake getting busy in his room.
"Want the bad news or the good news?" Dr. Thomas asked, walking in.
"Bad first," Mr. Johnson puffed.
"You're probably going to lose an inch."
The guy's eyes widened.
"But the good news is that Dr. Hamilton here is going to be operating on you, so you're in good hands."
I nudged him.
He smiled, "Let's get him upstairs."
We took him to the operating room and put him under.
I looked at Dr. Thomas as I got to work. "How did he do this? Did he tell you?"
"No, but I don't think he was with anyone when it happened. He brought himself in and he seemed even more embarrassed."
I nodded. "Well, flying solo is normal."
The room got quiet.
I looked up.
Dr. Thomas was raising a brow. "Have you ever flown solo?"
"Bit personal, don't you think?"
He shrugged.
"No, I haven't. I haven't needed to. I haven't been out of a relationship in a long time and when I wasn't, I had no need for it."
"No need for sex?"
I nodded. "I was in med school. I was busy." I fixed the patient's urethra. "I was pregnant for the first year, but after that, I was so mad at my ex that I had no need for it."
"Then, your husband?"
I nodded. "Yeah."
"What about when he was away?"
"I made myself busy with work."
"But weren't you pregnant? I mean, shouldn't you have been really hormonal?"
"Now that I think about it, I was, but I would just bury myself in more work or call my husband."
"Over the phone?" he whispered. "Dr. Hamilton!"
I shrugged. "I never said I did anything."
He rolled his eyes. "Of course not."
I knew the procedure, but I took a different route. Our patients urethra was extraordinarily small, so I put something in it to widen it.
"Widening the urethra? That's bold."
"Yeah, well, I researched and wrote a paper about the procedure a while back. It kind of stuck with me."
He nodded.
When we finished, I took our patient to recovery.
"What about you? Do you fly solo?"
He shrugged. "On occasion, but I have to be careful."
"Right. You have a kid. How is she?"
"She's good."
I nodded.
When our patient came to, he sighed. "How'd it go?"
"Great. Dr. Hamilton handled everything perfectly. It'll work even better than before."
"Yeah? Really?"
I looked at him. "Probably. I inserted a device to give your urethra, which is what you use to urinate and-"
"Do your thang," Dr. Thomas added.
I hit him and turned to the patient. I drew a diagram.
"So I have a bionic dick?" the guy gasped.
"I guess."
"That's fucking awesome!"
"Yeah, come back here in a week or so to get the stitches removed. We'll keep you overnight to monitor the swelling. No sex for a few weeks, okay?"
He nodded.
"Um, Dr. Thomas can cover the rest of your post-op care. Best of luck."
"Hey, wait. Can I get your number?"
"Sorry, bud. She's taken," Dr. Thomas smirked.
I smiled and left.
I went to Jake's room.
He was on his phone. He looked up.
"What are you doing now?"
"You've been gone for two hours."
"I was fixing a man's penis."
He put his phone down. "What?"
"Some guy broke his junk and none of the male doctor could handle the case, so I took him to surgery and fixed him up."
"So you wouldn't touch mine, but you'll touch some dumb ass's?"
"Want me to break yours?"
His eyes widened. "It wasn't."
"It was."
"Ouch." The blood drained from his face.
I closed the door and walked to him. "Yep. He asked for my number. I gotta tell you, it was fun going in and watching his body react when it couldn't."
"That's mean."
I shrugged. "I'm hot and I know it."
"Mine."
"Damn straight," I smiled, giving him a kiss. I pulled back and sat with him. "What did I miss?"
"Not much. I was looking through emails. Did you bring this cake?"
I nodded.
He got a piece of German chocolate and sliced a fork into it. He held it. "Open up."
I opened my mouth.
He fed it to me.
I hummed in appreciation.
"Good?"
I nodded. "Baby needed something sweet."
"How is our little baby?"
"Fine. The morning sickness stopped, so that's nice."
He nodded.
"No one knows, really, and it's weird."
"I bet it is. Are you doing okay? Are you feeling okay?"
I nodded. "I'm okay. My appointment is the day after tomorrow. You'll be there, right?"
"I wouldn't miss that for the world," he smiled, giving me a kiss.
We sat together and ate cake well into the night.
When I began to get tired, I went to an on call room and laid down. I really needed sleep.
***
The next day was crazy.
I spent the majority of the day in the lab and researching. I rounded on my trial patients.
They were all doing extraordinarily well. It was time to work on a new cancer.
I began studying, researching.
Every so often, my lab team would bring me something to eat or a cup of coffee. They were so good to me. Bless them.
I was working on the stomach. Stomach cancer was in the same tract as the others. It was the logical next step.
Late in the afternoon, the Chief came in. "Hey, Dr. Hamilton. I need your brain."
I looked up. "Yes, sir?"
He handed me a chart and gave me a rundown.
The woman, in her mid-twenties, was severely bloated. Severe nausea. She had claimed to be not the pill. CT was clean. Blood work was clean. I looked at her symptoms.
"Do an ultrasound."
"But-"
"Trust me."
He left.
I sighed and got back to work. I didn't want to waste any time.
A while later, the Chief returned. He handed me a coffee and a cupcake. "My patient was pregnant."
"Told you," I smiled, dropping my work for the tasty treat in front of me.
"Speaking of which, how are you doing?"
"I'm okay. I have an appointment in the morning, which I'm excited about. I'm insanely nervous."
"I'm sure it'll be fine. Is the Sgt. Major excited?"
I nodded. "He's been reading baby books."
"I'd love to see that," he chuckled.
"It freaks me out," I admitted, taking a drink of coffee.
"Have you thought about taking a leave of absence? After the birth?"
"I can't. My research is too big a part of my life and I'm in the middle of my residency. I can't stop."
He nodded.
"Jake works from home and I have an assistant and I'll probably have to pay a fortune for a nanny, but I'm a surgeon, you know? And I'm curing cancer. In twenty years, he or she will understand."
He nodded. "You're going to be a better mom than you think."
"Think so?"
"I know so. You're good with kids. I mean, I've seen you rip a whole emergency room a new one, but you're never like that with kids. You'll be a great mom."
"Thank you, sir."
"You're welcome . . . What are all these books?"
"Stomach cancer."
His eyes widened. "Already?"
"I wanted a head start. The liver patients are doing better than I anticipated."
"And your grandmother?"
"Two more treatments and I predict she'll be in remission."
"That's wonderful."
I nodded. "I'm just glad I could help her. It all was so perfect timing, you know?"
He nodded.
Kelly came in. "Hey. You should go home. I've got the research for tonight."
"Kelly-"
"I insist. You need your rest."
"I'm not tired."
"Bridget, you're making me tired. Go home."
"I-"
"Adam is already waiting for you out front."
I sighed and looked at the Chief.
"Go. You've been working hard all day. You need a break."
With everyone but me in agreement, I left the lab and clocked out. Then, I went to Jake's room.
He was sitting up.
Drew and Melanie sat beside him.
Jake looked up. "Hey, Britt."
"Hey. I was just about to head home for the night. I thought I'd come see how you were doing."
"I'm fine."
"His blood pressure was kind of high earlier, but it stabilized not long after," Melanie spoke.
I nodded and looked at him. "Were you stressed?"
"What do I have to be stressed about?"
"I can think of a couple things," Kelly spoke, walking in.
"I'm fine," Jake insisted.
"Okay. Well, I'm headed home. Do you need me to bring you anything?"
He shook his head. "No, Hawk will be in sometime tomorrow with some work for me to do."
"Okay. Then, I'll be by in the morning."
He nodded. "Drive safe."
I nodded and left the room. I made my way to Adam's SUV and got in.
When we got home, I went inside and made my way upstairs. I showered and slipped on a nightgown before crawling into bed.
I drifted.
***
The next morning, I woke early and dressed in my usual scrubs. I tied my hair in a bun and put on socks and tennis shoes. I did my makeup and went downstairs.
Diane and Adam were waiting by the door.
Diane handed me coffee and my vitamins.
I took them and sighed, "Let's go."
The three of us went to the hospital.
I went in and went to Jake's room.
He was alone, sitting up. He smiled, "Hey."
"Hi."
"When's your appointment?"
I looked at my watch. "A few minutes. You still want to come?"
He nodded, "Yeah, of course."
I nodded and stepped out.
Dr. Walker was at the nurses' station. "Hey, Dr. Hamilton."
"Hey. Can I take Jake for about half an hour?"
"You both need to be here for rounds."
"Then, put me on his case today."
"Dr. Hamilton-"
"Dr. Walker, I have an . . . appointment. He really wants to be there. Please?"
It took him a minute, but he spoke, "Oh." He thought a moment and looked at me. "Oh, yeah, get a wheelchair and take him up. When you're finished, you can scrub in on my discectomy."
"Okay."
He smiled, "Keep me updated."
I nodded. I got a wheelchair and went to Jake's room.
Kelly was helping him change into sweatpants and a shirt.
"Okay. Dr. Walker gave his blessing."
Jake sat on the edge of his bed. "Good, because I'd hate to go rogue."
Kelly shook her head. She looked at me. "Are you excited?"
"Nervous."
"Why? Does everything feel okay?" she asked.
"As much as I can feel, yeah, but my luck with these kinds of things is a bit unlucky."
She nodded and put Jake's fluids on the wheelchair.
We helped him into the wheelchair.
Then, I took him to the OB/GYN's office. I signed in and filled out a few papers.
When they called me back, the nurse looked a little caught off guard. She was so judgmental.
Feeling the need to explain, I spoke, "We were married and pregnant before he became a patient. I highly recommend you get yourself in check or I will have a lovely chat with your superior."
"Yes, Doctor," she spoke, taking us to a room.
I put Jake beside the bed.
The nurse took my vitals and stepped out of the room.
Dr. Willis came in. "I heard there was a problem with a nurse."
"Jake's a patient, I'm a physician. She was judging."
"Well, I apologize for that."
"It's fine," Jake spoke, standing up.
"Hey, no standing," I spoke.
"I'm fine."
Dr. Willis turned to me. "You know the drill. Lift your shirt."
I lifted my shirt and lowered my pants a bit.
"The gel is a little cool." She squirted some on me. Then, she began the ultrasound. She was insanely quiet for a few minutes.
I took Jake's hand. I didn't say anything.
"Is something wrong?" Jake asked, rubbing his thumb across my hand.
"No, sorry. Just being thorough. Bridget is one of us. I just want to make sure we get a good frame as well as checking everything else. I know Bridget has worries about the pregnancy."
Jake nodded.
She turned the screen to us and showed us the screen. "See? All is well. That's your baby."
I looked at it and looked at Jake.
He looked at Dr. Willis. "How far along is she? Do you know exactly?"
Dr. Willis looked a moment. "I'd say 11 weeks. I think my first exam was a little off."
He nodded and looked at me.
"So have you made a decision regarding what you want to do?" she asked me.
Jake looked at her. "I don't understand. What do you mean?"
She looked at me, ignoring him. "I took the liberty of extending your appointment today in case you decided to terminate."
He looked at me. "Britt?"
I looked at Dr. Willis. "We've decided to go through with the pregnancy."
She nodded. "Okay, then I will make you a follow up appointment. Your baby looks good. You're taking your vitamins?"
I nodded.
"Okay. Good. And you also know complications to look out for."
I nodded.
"Okay. Then, I'll see you in a few weeks," she spoke, handing me a cloth to wipe off with. "And congratulations."
"Thank you."
She nodded and left the room.
I wiped off and fixed my clothing. I looked at Jake.
"Why would she even ask about termination?"
"She has to make sure the patient knows all their options. In case I wanted out, she asked me."
He nodded. "Need help up?"
"Can you?"
He helped me sit up and gave me a quick kiss. "This is exciting."
I nodded. "Can you get back in your chair now?"
He sighed and sat in his wheelchair.
The nurse came in and handed me the pictures.
I put one in my pocket and handed one to Jake.
He looked at it and put it in his pocket. "Why didn't you tell my family?"
I shrugged. "It's not their business."
"Bridget, they're family."
"And something could still go wrong."
He sighed and rubbed my back. "Everything will be fine."
I sighed and got up. "Let's get you back to your room."
He sat down.
I wheeled him back to his room.
Melanie and Drew were in there. They looked up.
"Where have you been?" Drew asked.
I helped Jake in bed. "Can I get you anything?"
He shook his head. "No."
"Hey, James, where have you been?" Drew repeated.
Jake looked at me.
"What?" Melanie asked.
Jake looked at the ceiling and spoke, "Britt's pregnant."
"James," I warned.
"She didn't want anyone to know, so we've been keeping it a secret."
"Oh, my God. That's great news," Drew smiled.
"I'm so happy for you!" Melanie smiled.
I looked at Jake.
He looked at me. "They deserved to know."
"And I'm your wife. I told you not to say anything."
"There are two of us in this relationship. I get a say too."
I shook my head. "Yeah, you do talk a lot, don't you?"
"Bridget, you're being a little ridiculous."
"I'm being ridiculous?! Are you serious?" I gasped.
"James," Kelly spoke, coming in.
"You can spend the rest of the pregnancy being scared and freaking out, but I don't want to do that. This is my family and I'm going to be happy about it. You can keep it a secret and not tell your coworkers, but this is something I don't want want to keep a secret."
"So it's all about you? That's wonderful." I nodded.
"Bridget-" he started.
"No, Sgt. Major. That's fine."
"Bridget."
My pager buzzed. Dr. Thomas. 9-1-1.
"I have surgery."
"We're not finished here," Jake spoke.
I looked up. "Yes, we are."
"Bridget-"
"I have a patient."
"Bridget-"
"Hey, it's a 9-1-1 from the ER. Someone could be dying. I'm going."
"Bridget."
"I'd rather go save a life than stay in this room with you for another minute."
"You can't just-"
"James, that's enough!" Kelly snapped.
Melanie, Drew, and Jake's eyes widened.
Kelly stepped over. "Britt, before you go, how was your appointment?"
"Ask Jake. Maybe you can find out before he sends it to the news to be broadcasted."
"I'd like to know from a doctor's perspective."
"I'm fine, everything is fine."
She looked at me. "Okay. There's a trauma. Go."
I nodded and went to the trauma.
Dr. Thomas looked up at me. "Dr. Walker said I could have you."
"Where do you want me?"
"Are you okay? You look flustered."
"My husband's an idiot. Where do you want me?"
"Come with me." He led me to triage.
A man had a branch sticking out of his abdomen.
"I've seen this before, but it was coming out of a rectum. What's it going though this time?"
"Liver and pancreas."
"Ah. Lovely," I spoke, looking sat the scans.
"Your field of expertise."
I nodded.
"What do you think?" he asked.
"Get me Dr. Hamilton. Let's get this man to surgery. Was he awake when he came in?"
"No, he was out."
I nodded. "Can you book an O.R.?"
"Already did."
I nodded. "Then, let's go."
We went upstairs and got the patient ready and as sterile as we could get him.
Kelly came in and scrubbed in with us.
It was going to be a long day. Between the trial and the pregnancy and Jake, I was exhausted. I just had to bury myself in work. That was the only way I was going to get through the day.