CH 13
Mindy opened her eyes, still breathing heavily and pulled her face back from Danny's. She stared, trying to focus. It took a moment for his words to sink in. When understanding finally settled over her she frowned and narrowed her eyes, looking up at him through her lashes. "Uh huh. Nothing at all."
The words came out quietly. She released her hands fisted in his collar and slipped them to his shoulders, squeezing slightly, kneading at the muscles. She felt the tenseness there. "You are such a terrible liar."
Danny's heartbeat picked up its pace. The pounding sent the blood rushing through his body to the surface of his skin. The flush that crept up to his ears didn't escape her notice. She leaned into him more, pushing him back until he had no choice but to go from kneeling to sitting, throwing a free arm out behind him to prop himself up.
Mindy, still on her knees, hovered over him. "Nothing? Like this?" She scooted closer, straddling one of his legs between her knees. She moved her hands from his shoulders and placed one at the nape of his neck. A small sigh of satisfaction slipping through her lips as her fingers threaded through his hair. Her other hand rested gently on his chest.
She was going to kiss him senseless. She was going to kiss him until he no longer had the power to even pretend disinterest. She glanced down at his lips one last time, a hot dart of desire darted through her and the breath caught in her throat.
Before she could lean down, the look in Danny's eyes changed, a glowing ember sparked in their depths. If he stared at her like that much longer, she would burst into flames. She swallowed and caught her breath. "Danny—"
Danny sat forward again, invading her space further. He slipped his hand around the back of her neck and drew her to him, crushing his lips against hers and pulling her to the floor. He kissed her fervently, devouring her and probing for more. Pressed flush against him, Mindy could feel Danny's heart beating along with hers.
Suddenly she was conscious of the fact that she was lying completely on top of him. She tried to shift to the side, but he grunted in displeasure and his hands traveled to her waist, holding her captive. She pulled away from his kiss. "Danny, I'm crushing you."
He frowned up at her. "Min, I'm a man, not some delicate little flower. You could never crush me." His hands traveled downward from her waist and rested on her backside. He gave her a gentle squeeze. "I like you right where you are."
Her moment of insecurity embarrassed her. She searched her mind for some snappy comment to lighten the mood. She couldn't find one. She laid her head on his shoulder for a moment before lifting it again and kissing him gently. This wasn't what she expected. She'd wanted an acknowledgement of whatever physical attraction there was between them, but now there was a little ache in her chest. For a man who continually said the wrong thing, he sure was an overachiever when he finally said the right thing.
It only took a few seconds for the intense pace from earlier to return. The gently kissing quickly led to the overwhelming desire to consume the other person. Mindy mindlessly pulled at the buttons on Danny's shirt while he pushed the straps of her tight blue dress down her shoulders.
They were both panting from their exertions when the music on Mindy's phone suddenly stopped and it began ringing. Before she could react, Danny's pocket started vibrating and trilling too. She pulled back from him. "What the hell? It's almost three a.m. Are you on call tonight?"
The confusion on Danny's face told her he wasn't. "Are you?"
She shook her head and reluctantly propped herself up on her hands, slowly standing up. She plucked her phone off the dock, looking at the screen. "It's the hospital."
Danny reached in his pocket and retrieved his phone. "It's Mr. Allen."
Their eyes locked. "Damn." They both answered their phones at the same time. She listened intently for a minute. "Yes, I'm at the office right now. I'll be there soon."
Danny was standing by her desk, one hand on his hip, a concerned look on his face. "Calm down. I know it's early, but twins usually come early….No, I'll be there in a minute. I'm close by." He ended the call and looked back up at Mindy. "Mrs. Allen is in labor and progressing fast."
Mindy ran over to her wardrobe and flung it open. "She's only at 32 weeks. One of the babies was in breech position the last time she was here. We'll have to do a c-section probably immediately." There was an urgency in her voice. She grabbed her sneakers and set them on the floor, turning back to him as she wiggled into her shoes.
Danny bent down and shuffled through Mindy's files until he found Mrs. Allen's. He turned around to ask her something, but Mindy had already flown through the door of her office and was running toward the elevator. He snapped the file shut and chased after her.
Once they were in the elevator, Danny opened the file again. "You have her on blood pressure medication? Does she have preeclampsia?" He flipped through the file searching.
Mindy didn't need to look at the file. Mrs. Allen was her patient, she knew that file backwards and forwards, just like she knew all of her files. "Borderline preeclampsia. Her levels were worrisome, so I ordered bed rest, but I have a feeling she was going a bit stir crazy." She was tapping her foot. "God, we should have taken the stairs."
Something occurred to Danny. "How did Mr. Allen get my number?" He closed the file again and stared at her. She looked at the ceiling, avoiding his gaze. "Mindy?"
She sighed and looked back at him. "Ok, so maybe I give my patients your number, just in case they can't get in contact with me. You know, if there's an emergency or something." She was biting the inside of her cheek. She mumbled something.
Danny leaned closer. "What was that, Lahiri?" He'd heard the words, but he wanted to hear them again.
She cleared her throat. "I said you're the only doctor I would trust to take care of my patients." The confession was spoken rapidly. "But I should have known Mr. Allen wouldn't wait to see if the hospital contacted me. He's been so neurotic throughout this entire pregnancy. It drives his wife crazy."
There was a wide grin on Danny's face as the elevator doors slid open. Mindy rushed out and exited the lobby in a flash. Danny tucked the file under his arm and ran after her.
Danny stood in front of the large glass window, looking out across the NICU. Exhaustion wrapped around him like a heavy blanket. He let out a loud yawn.
The twins' birth had been a nightmare. When Mindy and Danny had arrived at the hospital the labor had progressed too far. Her cervix was completely dilated, and baby A was crowning. The urge to push was overwhelming the mother.
Mindy and Danny had rushed to their lockers and quickly changed into their scrubs in silence. Standing at the scrub sinks, Danny glanced over to Mindy. She had an expression of complete focus on her face. He could see the gears turning. He knew she was mentally reviewing Mrs. Allen's file while lathering the soap on her hands, radiating her usual confidence.
Without looking at him she'd began a rundown of what they were going to do. "I'm taking the lead on this. She is my patient, but I want you to monitor the heart-rates of the twins and Mrs. Allen. I'm worried about her blood pressure." She rinsed her and dried her hands and held them in front of her as she walked to the delivery room. Danny had closely followed.
Standing at the window, looking down at the twins, Danny felt tired yet satisfied. The two tiny infants were curled up together in one incubator. They were so incredibly small. No matter how many times he delivered preemies, their size never failed to leave him in awe.
Mindy also left him in awe. After she'd examined Mrs. Allen, she'd decided to deliver both babies, no c-section. Danny had pulled her to the side and quietly asked, "Are you sure about this?"
She looked up at him. "We're too far along to wait for the anesthesia on a c-section. Especially for the baby that's crowning. Breech births aren't impossible. If the second baby is turned sideways, they're so small, I should be able to reposition it before delivery." And that's exactly what she'd done.
He felt a hand on his shoulder and turned to see a tired Mindy standing slightly behind him. Her hair was pulled back in a now scraggly pony tail, her scrubs completely rumpled. She looked like she was about to pass out. "Mrs. Allen is finally resting. She lost some blood, but not enough to cause worry." She sighed and propped her chin on Danny's shoulder, looking out across the NICU. "Where are they?"
He gestured to the left side. "Right there. We decided to co-bed them. Baby A, Emma, was showing signs of distress. They both weigh under four pounds. Emma had an erratic heart-rate and uneven breathing, but when we put them together she immediately stabilized." She was pressed up against his back. He could feel the steady rise and fall of her chest against him. He crossed his arms and widened his stance.
She yawned at his ear. "She just missed her sister. It's the first time they've ever been separated." She glanced across the room at the other babies. "Can you believe we all used to be this small?"
He chuckled to himself. "Castellano babies are never this small. I weighed in at almost ten pounds." He heard the tinkle of her laughter in his ear and a warmth spread through his limbs. He turned toward her. "What about you? Were you a fat little Indian baby?"
She snorted. "You have no idea." She yawned again. "Oh, I'm so tired." She stretched and leaned back against the window, now facing Danny. "I think I'm gonna head home."
He looked at her. It wasn't the time to bring up what happened at the office, but it was all he could think about. "I'm gonna head out too. If you wait a minute we can walk out together."
She nodded in acquiescence and followed him to the locker room. She stood in the doorway watching him as he rifled through the things in his locker looking for his keys. After a few minutes of fruitless searching he sighed and looked at her. "I must have left them at the office."
She rolled her eyes. "Danny, I am going home, and you look like you're about to fall asleep standing up." She reached into the pocket on the front of her scrub top. "I have my keys, unlike you. How about you walk me home, and take a nap on my couch?" She leaned against the doorjamb, the question still in her features.
Go home with her? Just to sleep on her couch. His eyes were heavy and his arms felt leaden. The thought of going back to the office to get his keys made him want to bang his head on the wall. He could just stay here and sleep in the lounge for a couple hours. He cleared his throat. "Uh, yeah, I guess that could work."
She smiled. "Ok, let's go." She headed out, clearly expecting him to follow. He slammed the locker shut and caught up with her at the exit. He pushed though the large glass doors and followed her out onto the sidewalk. She had stopped and was staring out at the horizon. The sun was rising, an orange glow cast along the city skyline. She smiled, looking back at Danny. "You coming, Castellano?"
He walked up next to her and she slipped his arm though his. She looked him up and down briefly. "We're twinkies."
He frowned. "What?" He looked at himself then her, confusion on his face.
"We're dressed exactly the same." She started walking, pulling him along. "What a weird sight we must make. Two bedraggled doctors, looking half dead, dragging themselves along the sidewalk in the early light of dawn."
He smiled. "Don't worry, Mindy. None of your hot dates will see you. They're probably not even awake right now." He looked back at her face. "Besides, you look nice in scrubs."