Northfield Chapter 7
Appropriate Ties and Missing Buttons
"Are you staring at me, Nurse Mannion? Is it the tie? It took me forever to choose this one. Is it too gaudy?"
Shelagh had indeed been examining Doctor Turner. They were standing together in the Clinic room inspecting some x-rays on the light table.
She had acquired a habit lately of reading the craggy face, the slightly rumpled dress and the mouth that could look sarcastic or gentle.
"No, Doctor. I think that tie is… totally appropriate."
He was capable of embarrassing her. She didn't want to give him the satisfaction of knowing it. "One of the buttons of your white coat is missing though. "
Doctor Turner started fiddling with the coat in question. "Blast. You're right. Hardly reassuring to my patients. I will have to find another coat."
"All the other coats were sent to the laundry this morning." She offered her hand. "Give it to me, I will sew the button."
"Oh no, no slave workforce, that was prohibited in 1833," he mocked, looking at her and enjoying the situation. "It would be a chore nothing free-born would submit to, even for a salary."
This gentle teasing delighted her. "Don't fuss. What is it you always say? No silly rules of propriety. Hand it over."
He laughed and started to take the coat off. "Hanged by my own words."
"I hope I will never have a reason to hang you by anything more damaging." She left to find thread and a needle.
He stared after her. "What sorcery is this," he muttered to himself. His face had turned serious. Desperate, serious and yearning. "Bloody hell. Damn. Damn, damn, damn."