"We need you to come in early asap. Getting slammed."
"I cannot believe that you aren't scheduled to work again till January second!" Susan complained as she dug through the clothes in her drawer. She unfolded a shirt and looked it over.
"I don't work in the trauma center, hon," Scott said as he shifted himself on top of the quilt that covered her bed. "I'm just on call for my highly trained, very independent med students and interns and residents."
"Well, don't get too comfortable there, bucko," she said as she slipped a navy polo shirt over her red cami top and bra and tucked it into her dark slacks. "Its still my bed and I get to decide who stays in it." Scott grinned slyly.
"Is it okay with you if I take Cosmo sledding today?" he asked. "There's a great hill over by my house. I can check the mail box while we are there."
"Yeah, sure," Susan sighed as she drew a brush through her hair and studied her reflection. "Why not take Susie and Brett too? You can show them how the other half lives and give them all something to aspire too." Scott jumped off the bed and caught her in his arms.
"Why do you do that?" he asked as she struggled playfully in his grasp. He pinned her arms between them and she looked up at him with narrowed eyes and a sultry half smile. "Why do you always put yourself and your house and your life down?" He looked around the comfortable bedroom and sighed.
"You're beautiful. It's homey and happy and I'd much rather be here than there." Susan stilled in his arms and then looped hers around his neck.
"You would, would you?" she asked as her green eyes searched his blue ones.
"I would," he whispered huskily. He pulled her closer and they kissed. His hands slipped from her back and gently tugged at the polo shirt until it was free from her slacks again. Susan tried to pull away.
"Scott," she said against his lips as his hands traced against the silken cloth of her cami. "Cosmo…."
"He's at the table concentrating on that pirate ship Lego thing again," he said as his lips traveled over her jaw to her neck.
"Susie…." she said as she laughed weakly as his hands slipped inside her slacks to the lacy edges of her panties.
"…is engrossed in a hotly contested wii game with her boyfriend," he said as he nibbled at the nape of her neck.
"Oh…god…." she sighed shakily. "We can't. People are…dying….in the er…" He stopped and tipped his head back to look at her face. He reached up to tuck her hair behind her ears as his hips pressed into hers.
"Okay," he sighed reluctantly and drew his brows together in a disappointed frown. "I can't argue with that one." Susan laughed and put her hands on each of his cheeks and kissed him.
"I promise I'll make it up to you," she said as she kissed him.
"Yes…. you will," he growled. She laughed and then grimaced as he tucked the polo shirt back in to her slacks and grabbed her behind.
"Did you just cop a feel?" she gasped.
"Damn straight," he grinned. "And I loved it." His smile changed to a worried frown.
"Didn't you?" Susan snorted and straightened her shirt as she glanced back at him and rolled her eyes.
"Enjoy your day," she groused. "I'm on till 10 which means I should be home around….midnight." Her shoulders sagged and he followed her into the hall and down the stairs.
"Okay," she said as she lifted her coat off the back of the couch. "I shall see you later, guys."
"Bye Mom." Cosmo didn't look up from his building project and the scattered Legos on the table.
"See you, Aunt Susan…" Susie jabbed Brett in the chest with her elbow on the couch and hooted with delight as…something….good happened for her on the television screen.
"Aw….man…." Brett groaned as he worked the buttons on the controller in his hands. "See you later, Dr. Lewis." Susan glanced from one to the other in dismay.
"Yeah….after all, all I do is go to work and fund all the fun in this house," she sighed. Scott laughed as he reached down and fastened the zipper of her jacket and pulled the toggle up. He kissed her again and opened the door for her. Susan looked out at the grey skies and the wet snow on the ground. She shivered.
"Maybe I should just call in sick," she said. "You'd vouch for me, right?" Scott laughed again and pushed her onto the porch.
"Brrr…you're letting all the cold air in," he shivered and closed the door behind them. "Go on. We'll see you later." Susan frowned and headed down the steps to her car. Scott watched and waved from the porch as she started the car and backed it out.
Several hours later Abby glanced over at Susan and shook her head.
"You are really beginning to creep me out now," she said. Susan looked up from the file she was writing in.
"Why?" she asked. Abby dropped her pen and folded her arms in front of her.
"It's been crazy around here and all you can do is smile!" Abby cried. "You haven't made one snarky remark about….anything." Chuny dropped a file onto the desk.
"I've noticed the same thing," she said. Chuny leaned in to look at Susan's earrings. "Are those new?"
"Scott gave them to me for Christmas," Susan said. Chuny's eyes widened.
"They're zircon….." Susan sighed. Chuny leaned in to study the studs a little closer.
"I don't think so," she said slowly. "You might want to have those things insured. Especially if you're going to wear them around this place." Susan's hands went up to her ears as she twisted the diamonds with her fingers. She shook her head in disbelief.
"No," she said as she shook her head. "You're just teasing me." Chuny's eyes met Abby's and the two of them shrugged.
"They're not real!" Susan insisted. "They're not." She glanced toward the waiting room doors and her smiled broadened. Scott lifted a coffee carrier to the window and Susan pushed the button that opened the sliding glass door and he came toward her and set the carrier with four cups on the counter.
"Its low fat," he grinned and nodded toward Abby. "And I remembered you this time…..both of you." Abby and Chuny both reached for a cup from the carrier.
"Thank you!" Abby exclaimed.
"You need to keep this guy around, Susan," Chuny said as she took a sip and moved around Scott.
"They're real," she mouthed to Susan as she passed behind him and laughed, heading for the lounge.
"Do you have a minute?" Scott asked. "Cosmo and Cameron are in the waiting room with hot chocolate. He wants to ask you something." Susan glanced around and Abby nodded.
"Go ahead,' she laughed as she took a sip of her coffee. 'No one is watching." Susan circled the desk and wrapped an arm around his waist as they headed for the waiting room. Cosmo and his friend Cameron were sitting side by side in their snowsuits holding cups of hot chocolate.
"Mom!" Cosmo jumped up from his chair and hurried toward her. Scott grabbed the cup of cocoa from him before he spilled it. Susan sat in an empty seat as Cosmo rummaged through the pockets of his jacket.
"Look what came in Dr. Porter's mailbox!" he exclaimed as he pulled . "It's a Christmas present for me, only it didn't come soon enough. I'm going to hang it on our tree with the rest of them!" Susan took the ornament swinging from his finger in her hand. It was the missing piece from Chuck's collection. An Obi Wan Kenobi ornament. Her throat tightened and it was a moment before she could look up at him again. Cosmo was grinning from ear to ear.
"Isn't it cool, Mom?" he asked. Susan nodded slowly and then looked up at Scott. He grinned and winked.
"It's very, very special, honey," she said as she handed the ornament back to the little boy. "Take good care of it." Cosmo nodded and slipped it back into his pocket.
"Can I spend the night at Cameron's house?" he asked. "Cameron's mom asked me when we picked him up to go sledding at Dr. Porter's house. It was so cool, Mom. He has this really long hill across the street and there were lots of other kids and we went so fast and….."
"Okay, okay!" Susan interrupted him. She smiled and pulled him closer and kissed his red cheeks. Cosmo struggled in her arms.
"Mom!" he protested. Susan laughed and hugged him tighter.
"Have fun," she said as she let him go. "And behave yourself at Cameron's house." Susan looked up at the little boy who had moved next to Cosmo.
"Did you have a nice Christmas, Cameron?" The little boy grinned and nodded, the tassel on the top of his bright knit cap bobbing.
"I got rock band for my wii," he said, his eyes disappearing in his round face as he grinned. "We're going to battle!" Susan laughed. They had been very best friends since Cosmo started at the same school the year before. She had been so surprised to find out the infamous Cameron was Korean. And adopted. It hadn't dawned on Cosmo to tell her either fact and she loved that.
An elderly man slipped into the seat next to her.
"Are you a doctor here?" he asked and held out his hand. It was wrapped in a bloodied dish towel.
"Okay, guys," Scott said brightly and took each boy by the shoulder. "I think we need to go home now and let your mother get back to work," Susan stood up and pressed close to him.
"You are so going to be happy tonight," she whispered in his ear.
"I'm counting on it," he grinned and whispered back. He kissed her lightly and winked again as he guided the two little boys back to the door. Susan watched them for a moment and then turned her attention to the patient's bloody hand.
"Come on," she said gently. "Let's get you back to an exam room. How did this happen anyway?' The man stood up and started talking but she wasn't really hearing him. Her thoughts were with the man taking her son and his friend away.