Cheating to Survive (Fix It or Get Out) (16 page)

He snatched a chart from the rack and Catherine thought his eyes penetrated hers. She wished they did, but he spent all his free time with prettier nurses, ones with more personality. What did she have to offer him?

All the doctors ignored Catherine.

Why couldn’t someone like Dr. Mangle see her, was she that revolting? Sure three children changed the way she dressed, her hairstyle dull yet practical, but inside she wanted to be noticed. She wanted to be one of the women he spoke to, one he would sit next to and ask questions. She even had one of Colton’s jokes ready for him, if he ever did.

“And how are you today?” He placed his hand on her shoulder.

Did he just touch her? Catherine absorbed Dr. Mangle’s warmth into her skin, arousing her. Feeling a man’s touch on her body again caused her to melt into the chair. The last time she had sex was two years ago. It couldn’t be the end of her sex life, could it?

Initially, Heather’s infidelity angered Catherine. Her hero was a tramp, a sinner. The perfect wife and mother cheating on her husband.

But lately, Heather’s sex stories made her jealous. Even with the infidelity, Heather still had the perfect life. She had it all. The detailed accounts of her sex with Silvatri reminded Catherine of all the things Peter asked her to do over the years. Things she refused because of her inhibited nature. Is that why he acted so cold to her lately?

She scurried to the bathroom, leaving Dr. Mangle, never speaking a word. What a loser. Was it so hard to say hello?

Her pathetic image in the mirror glared back. Her skirt practically grazed the tile floor, her blouse, buttoned all the way to the top revealed only her pale, dry neck. The thick, heavy lab coat concealed any shred of clothing anyway.

Catherine tucked the strands of hair back under her ponytail. Her pale lips craved some color, or, perhaps the taste of another’s lips. What was she thinking!

She left the bathroom and found Dr. Mangle had left. She knew he wouldn’t be interested in her. Heather nailed it on the head. Who was Catherine anyway? A fake.

“I thought I scared you away,” Dr. Mangle asked.

Catherine jerked her head around. His hand rested on the back of her chair.

“No, I just needed to pop on over to the ladies room.” She tried to act cool.

“I’m glad you returned.” He grasped her hand, kissing the top. Lightheaded, Catherine looked away. She had seen him do that to others but only dreamed that one day it could be her.

“I’m not offending you, am I?”

“No, not at all.” Offending her? Who would be offended? Heat rose up her thighs. She no longer knew what to say.

“You’re very quiet, I’m not sure how to read you.”

She smoothed down her white skirt and broke eye contact. She was blowing it. Her parched throat tightened. What was Colton’s joke again? “I’m sorry, I suppose I was deep in thought.”

“Oh? I’d like to hear those thoughts…Catherine.”

He knew her name? What did he know about her? “I was thinking about my patients.”

Dr. Mangle let out a hoot. “Your patients? You’re so innocent, aren’t you now?”

“No, not at all. I mean, I’m not so innocent.”

“Really? What do you do that’s not so...innocent, Catherine?” He bent to the side, rested his elbow on the counter, thumb under his chin, and leered at her.

What was she doing? This was wrong. She looked away and shuffled the papers in front of her.

“I’m sorry,” he said. “Let me start over. I believe the other day I heard you talking about your daughter, something about a dance recital coming up I believe?”

Catherine relaxed and spoke about Emily. The conversation moved effortlessly to her boys and he shared details about his two sons, both married now. Obviously, he had been joking, teasing her, and she took it personally. She needed to calm down and stop being so prudish.

“You’re really amusing Catherine. When you’re not too busy being shy.” He threw a wink at her and then grazed her fingers with his. His touch, slow and reassuring, shot tiny waves up her hand and throughout her body.

She pretended to scratch the back of her neck and casually removed her beaded crystal hairpin from her hair, releasing her dirty blonde tresses.

“Beautiful. Simply beautiful, Catherine.”

Catherine soared home. Disorientation, mixed with euphoria, whirled in a blender. He spoke to her. Actually had a conversation with her for over fifteen minutes. Was she dreaming? No. She played it over in her mind countless times today. He touched her too. Her shoulder, her fingers, even kissed her hand.

Her hand floated in front of the steering wheel and she could almost see his kiss on it. Why the sudden interest in her? Her fault, of course. Her shy nature, stiff and unapproachable. But he said she was amusing. Was she? What had she said? The conversation blurred and swelled repeatedly.

Wait. This was immoral. No, unethical. She should not be thinking this way about another man. What came over her? She would go to confession after work tomorrow, clear her conscience, purge this foolishness from her system.

Catherine said good-bye to her babysitter Arie, but as the door inched toward closure, Arie pushed back in. “I’m sorry, I forgot to tell you, Peter called.” She giggled like the teenager she was. “He’s eating dinner with, I think the guys from work. Said not to cook for him. Oh, and not to wait up either, he’d probably be late. Good-bye again.”

Chapter 24
Victoria

Over the course of two weeks, Victoria spent a large part of her time speaking to Aiden on the phone. They never ran out of things to discuss and his intelligence sent a needed jolt to her brain, more than her work at the Cancer Foundation ever had.

She hung up the phone after another striking conversation and sauntered out of the doctor’s dictation room into the hallway. She floated on air, right into Jean’s path.

“Do you have a problem answering my page?” she demanded.

“I’m sorry, I didn’t hear it.”

“Obviously not. What were you doing in there anyway?” Jean yanked open the door to the deserted four-by-eight quarters and then reeled back to Victoria, perplexed.

There was no reason for Victoria to be in there and she froze, unable to formulate an answer.

“Well? Do I have to shake it out of you?”

A doctor approached and slid beside Victoria. “I’m sorry to interrupt, Victoria, but I just wanted to thank you for that advice you gave for Mrs. Randazzo. It worked like a charm. Her mouth sores from the radiation are remarkably better.”

Jean flung her head back and smiled like an old withered actress whose fans had long forgotten her. The doctor squinted at her foolishness and marched away.

Victoria remembered everything Aiden taught her about Jean’s insolence and felt his strength within her. She stood tall and folded her arms in front of her. “Is there something you wanted, Jean? You said you paged me several times, it must be rather important.”

Jean scowled, not prepared to handle Victoria’s direct nature. Victoria widened her eyes, pressuring Jean further.

Jean cleared her throat and glanced down at Victoria’s tightly folded arms. “Never mind, I’ll ask Catherine. She’ll be more accommodating.”

****

Victoria woke the following morning to an empty bed. She had posted flyers around the hospital advertising Ed as a handy man. It lured a few bites. A hot, leisurely shower in a deserted house relaxed her and set the tone for her peaceful Saturday. She read a few articles in the
New York Times
while eating her warm oatmeal with juicy, succulent raspberries, brilliantly crimson, dripping with their sweet flavor.

And stared at her phone, contemplating the call.

With Ed at work and her children on their way to the beach, the emptiness in the house persuaded her to dial his number. Would she wake him?

“Hello?” Aiden answered.

“Good morning.”

“Now this is a pleasant surprise.”

“I didn’t wake you, did I?”

“Wake me? I’ve been in the office since seven.”

“I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to disturb you.”

“You, Victoria, are the highlight of my day so far, and will probably continue to be.

Victoria closed her eyes and raised her fist to her forehead, biting down hard on her lip.

“Hello? Are you still there?” he asked.

“Yes, sorry, I…was just taking a sip of my tea.”

“I’m having some tea myself. It’d be nice if we were drinking it together.”

“If I was a scientist maybe we could be.”

“Nonsense, you could come here. My staff is off and I’m just finishing up a project.”

“No one else is in the lab?”

“There’s a few around. Many experiments are conducted around the clock and it wouldn’t be unheard of for someone to be here at 2 a.m. on a Saturday. It’s never deserted.”

“Too bad.” Victoria snapped her mouth shut as soon as the words flew out. She paced back and forth in the kitchen and then ran out the back door. Silence overtook both ends of the phone. Idiot.

“Victoria,” he paused. “Would you like a tour of the laboratory, personally led by me?”

“A tour? Well, yes, I’d love to see where you work, it sounds exciting.” And completely wrong. What was she doing? She glanced back at Ed’s seat cushion in the old couch. Cavernous and sunken from his never departing rear-end.

Victoria parked in the spot closest to the north end of the lab and strolled passed the gardens. The impatiens that had grown significantly over the past month. She hiked up the sixteen stairs, counting as she climbed and when her foot reached the last one, an image blocked her way. Green eyes, matching the immaculate lawn surrounding the buildings, gazed down at her.

Aiden’s silver-blue button down shirt hung out of his pants and several buttons avoided their holes. His dark blue jeans wrapped his legs perfectly. He held out his hand and helped her up the last step. His touch, warm and welcoming.

“Good morning, Miss Victoria. Welcome back to SandCrest Laboratories, may I begin your tour? I want to make sure you receive every penny’s worth.”

Aiden launched the tour by guiding Victoria around the various research rooms, laboratories and even the Genome center. He pointed to several areas of importance while Victoria absorbed his words.

“We try to determine the best methods to fight certain cancers based on its genomic profile,” he began. “Even now it’s altering cancer treatment.”

He led her past the Double Helix Gift Shop, explained the history of the artwork covering the walls and provided a brief description on the statues gracing the hallways.

They turned the corner and landed in front of the auditorium where they first met. “Your presentation that day…woke me up,” he said.

She dispensed a blank look and considered his words. Then he gave a wink, and her blood pumped hard through her veins. Victoria’s focus skipped around the room pretending to observe the wood beams that encompassed the ceiling, but he noticed her unease.

“You know, nutrition truly is a vital part of genetics,” Aiden said. “Environmental factors like nutrition imprint on our genes. This is important because it extends even prior to conception, back several generations.” He stepped toward the back of the building. “Come, have you seen the grounds in the back of the lab?”

“No, I didn’t realize there were any.”

Aidan pushed open the wooden doors to reveal lush gardens and flourishing trees enveloped by the shimmering Long Island Sound. Sailboats floated by and birds soared overhead. The water sparkled and twinkled with its cobalt blue reflection but as she continued to stare, it changed to the color of gloom.

Victoria’s spirit abandoned her each time she inched near happiness, as if forbidden to attain it. She looked away from the lake and toward an isolated bench.

Was her father wrong? Was it impossible to be that perfect, for everything to align and never have any flawed moments? She tried. Day after day. Made herself the best person she could be. Well rounded, intelligent, successful. Then what was missing? Why the despair? Where was the incentive and where was her reward?

“Are you okay, Victoria? You always look so sad when I see you. I feel it’s me. Am I upsetting you in any way?”

“No, not at all, I’m sorry.”
Don’t let him see. Walk away.

Even Heather had turned into a fiery ball of cheerfulness. A little too happy now. Giggling like a toddler, skipping down the hospital’s hallways, dancing in the middle of cafeteria last week. Victoria even caught her hiding a smirk under a strand of hair during Jean’s tirade in their meeting on Monday. Why couldn’t she have that?

Victoria achieved more in her career than she did, yet Heather’s optimism and downright exuberance far exceeded Victoria’s. Still a kid at heart, perhaps. Maybe that’s what was missing. Stop with the perfection and start having fun? Live a little, take some chances, abandon your fears?

Her eyes filled with tears but she staggered to her right to avoid Aiden. His hand locked on her shoulder and twirled her around. She kept her head down but he lifted her chin with his finger. A lone tear escaped and struck her cheek.

“I don’t like to see you like this, Victoria. I wish I could take your sadness away. What is it? Please.”

She could not speak, for the tears would only tumble faster. She could not show her weakness. A complete failure. What was wrong with her?

His gaze became one of concern and he drew her into his chest. His embrace, the closeness, feeling his hard chest upon hers plugged the flow of tears instantly. Her eyes fluttered as if fainting and she tipped her head the slightest degree. Aiden’s lips glided onto hers and lay there, motionless, but she could feel their warmth.

Their lips blended and mixed, swirling and rolling. Aiden glided his finger over her eyelid and down her cheekbone as if to wipe the tear, and all her problems away. A breeze elevated wisps of hair onto her face, tickling her skin, arousing, encouraging, fueling. Invigorated, she was recharged.

Chapter 25
Heather

Gia decided to celebrate her birthday during the summer this year so she could invite her camp friends and because she was fed up with the cold weather that lingered on her April birthday. Leave it to Gia to change the date of her birthday.