He sat across the table from her finishing off his third scotch and noticing that as the last swallow burned its way down his throat the nonstop buzzing sound that was coming from the other side of the table became less annoying. At one point in the evening he wondered if the bubbly blonde ever shut up and it wasn't that she was an idiot or even uninteresting, it was the way she continued to drone on and on and about what he wasn't even sure any longer, he just wanted the noise to stop. When he motioned for the waiter to bring him another drink the woman finally spoke directly to him instead of at him.
"One more of those and you're not going to be able to walk out of here." She said.
"Trust me, it would take much more. I'm fine." He said.
"I'm having a really good time Jack." She said.
"Yeah, me too." He lied and glanced across the room toward the brunette behind the bar, making eye contact and biting back a smile when she nodded at him.
The pretty blonde began yammering on again about her career and how it didn't allow her the opportunity to enjoy a personal life and he didn't have the heart to suggest that her inability to shut up for five minutes was what was possibly hindering any possible love connections. He saw her approaching the table and wanted to breathe a sigh of relief, but decided that might be too obvious so he pretended not to notice her until she was standing beside the table looking for an opportunity to jump in. Jack had just spent the last two hours with this woman and knew that such an opportunity would never present itself so he put his hand up and politely shut the woman up.
"Is there something you need?" Jack asked the woman standing beside the table.
"You're Dr. Shephard right?" The woman asked.
"Yes I am, why?" Jack asked.
"You have a phone call. It's the hospital. They say they've been trying to page you, but you're not responding." The woman said.
"Yeah, I left my pager and my cell phone at home. I'm supposed to be off tonight. I guess I should stop eating at the same restaurant every day if I really don't want to be found. Can you excuse me for a moment Shelly?" Jack asked and followed the brunette to the bar.
"So who set you up with this one Jack?" The brunette asked.
"She's the sister of the wife of a colleague. I made the mistake of showing up to a dinner party at their house alone." Jack answered and laughed lightly.
"Do I have to start going places with you to protect you from all the women who want to make it their mission to marry you off?" The brunette teased.
"Maybe because I don't think I can endure many more well intentioned blind dates." He laughed and reached for the phone, pretending to dial and have a conversation and then hanging it up.
"Did you really leave your pager and cell phone at home?" She asked.
"Kate, have you ever known me to be without my hospital lifelines?" He asked and winked at her.
"I'll have the waiter bring you your bill." Kate said and smiled at him.
"Thanks, I owe you for this." He said and walked back to the table where his date was now talking on her cell phone. She had not stopped talking since he picked her up.
Jack sat back down at the table, followed immediately by the waiter with a check. Jack handed him a credit card and looked toward the woman he'd just spent two brutal hours with. She quickly ended her phone call and looked hopefully toward him.
"Please tell me you don't have to go." She said.
"I'm sorry, but I do. One of my patients is really having a difficult time so I need to get over there." He lied.
"You've been drinking Jack. They allow you treat patients when you've been drinking?" She asked.
"No they don't, but this patient has already been treated. I just need to take a look at his chart and his vitals and see if we can't come up with a better solution for his pain." Jack answered.
"And you can't do that over the phone?" She pushed.
"Look Shelly, I'm sorry. I'm a doctor and my patients have to come first. Let me get you a cab." He said doing his best to remain polite and patient.
"You know Jack if you were having such a bad time all you had to do was say so. You don't have to make up some pathetic story about a patient needing you so you can get rid of me and spare my feelings." Shelly spat angrily, stood and walked out of the restaurant before he could stop her.
Jack looked over at Kate who made an "oops" face at him and he chuckled lightly. He signed the check for his dinner and strolled over to the bar and sat down.
"Another scotch?" Kate asked.
"No, just give me a coke. I need to sober up." Jack said.
"Do you think your colleague is going to be mad at you?" She asked and sat the coke in front of him.
"No, he'll sympathize. Tell me Kate, do I come off as so lonely and pathetic that women can smell it and feel the need to fix me up with just about anything?" Jack asked.
"Personally, I don't find you to be lonely or pathetic, but I think some women, especially married women, think that if a man isn't tied down with a wife and four kids he must be miserable." Kate told him.
"I could see myself tied down some day and be happy with that, but I can also see myself happy just the way I am. One thing I do know for sure is that was the last blind date for me. If you hadn't rescued me I was afraid I was going to have to kiss her just to get her to shut up." He groaned.
"Like kissing her would've been some huge sacrifice. She was a very beautiful and sexy woman Jack." Kate teased.
"That's what I thought when I picked her up, but I have to be honest, after the first hour I could no longer see beautiful or sexy, just annoying." Jack said.
"I'm getting off in 20 minutes. Want me to give you a ride home and you can pick your car up tomorrow?" Kate asked.
"Thanks, but I think I'm just going to walk. Goodnight Kate." Jack said, leaving a ten dollar bill on the bar and walking away.