Waves of Passion

“Ah, playtime,” Cameron remarked. “You’ll get enough hours off for that.”

* * *

Gabrielle took a thorough inventory of two of three good-size treatment rooms. She mentally charted the lay of each one and wrote lots of notes on a pad she’d picked up off her desk. Locked metal cabinets appeared to be chock-full of supplies. Large pieces of sterilized medical equipment had been stored away for easy access. Everything appeared pristine. There was a sterile scent in the treatment cubicles and lab areas, but it wasn’t anything out of the ordinary.

She turned around when she heard a noise behind her. Seeing Cameron and three relatively young women, she smiled. “Are these lovely ladies a part of your staff?”

“Our staff,” Cameron corrected. “They arrived the same day as you.” He then introduced her to the three nurses scheduled for duty five days out of the seven.

“Once all employees are in house, I plan to have a short staff meeting with each new nurse. You’re welcome to sit in if you’d like.”

Gabrielle glanced at the large wall clock. “Shouldn’t everyone be here by now?”

Cameron shrugged, raising an eyebrow. “Recall my earlier comment?”

Just as the words left Cameron’s mouth, a man appeared in the doorway. “Morning. Sorry I’m late. That darn alarm clock in my cabin gives me fits.”

“Maybe you should consider getting a new one,” Gabrielle said in a no-nonsense tone. She stepped forward and extended her hand. “I’m Dr. Gabrielle Grinage. Nice to meet you. Since I feel at a disadvantage here, what’s your name?”

He shook Gabrielle’s hand. “I’m Joseph Clark, a nurse and senior member of the crew.”

Coffee mugs in hand, nurses Morris and Dean walked into the treatment cubicle.

Cameron moved to the center of the room. “Now that we’re all here, we can welcome our new staff members. I present Dr. Gabrielle Grinage, second in command, and our three newly assigned registered nurses, Joanie Caldwell, Candi Simmons and Carolyn Jackson.”

The group acknowledged each other politely. Gabrielle made a mental note to get to know the individual work ethics of the nurses.

Cameron gestured toward the three men. “Nurses Morris and Dean have been with us well over a year. Joseph is a two-and-a-half-year veteran staff member. Everyone will get to meet during our regular staff meeting at the end of the week.”

Gabrielle walked around and shook everyone’s hand. “I’m happy to be assigned to this ship and its clinic, and I’m looking forward to working with each of you. I’ll probably ask questions of the veterans every now and then, so I’d appreciate your help.”

“No problem,” Joseph said. The other two male nurses nodded.

The front-desk buzzer interrupted the informal gathering.

“I’ll take care of it,” said Joseph, hurrying from the room.

To see how the front desk was run, Gabrielle excused herself. She made her way out to the front, where she quietly observed a middle-aged woman writing her name on the patient intake sheet. She listened closely to Joseph as he asked her reason for coming into the clinic.

The woman’s hand went to her stomach. “I have nausea like you wouldn’t believe. I can’t keep anything down.”

“How long have you been nauseated?” Joseph queried.

“It started right after lunch yesterday, even before we sailed. It may’ve been caused by a slice of cheesecake I ate for dessert. As soon as I finished it, I got sick.”

Joseph had the patient sit down in one of several chairs lined against the wall opposite the front desk. He walked over and took her temperature and blood pressure. Nausea was a normal occurrence among passengers and the number one problem the clinic dealt with.

Gabrielle continued to watch Joseph work in an expedient manner. She liked his warm, professional demeanor. She’d noticed the concerned look on his face when the cheesecake had been mentioned. Nausea was a relatively simple problem unless it was related to food poisoning, then it could impact a large number of guests.

Joseph went over to Dr. Grinage to consult with her in private.

“Give her antinausea medicine and recommend she consume only clear liquids for the next twenty-four hours. She should also take it easy and report back to the clinic if the symptoms continue.”

No sooner had the first patient of the morning left the clinic than several more passengers came in with a variety of ailments. Traffic continued to flow into the treatment center, and the staff found themselves running from one cubicle to another. For the next few hours, there wasn’t an opportunity for anyone to take even a short break, let alone take time for Cameron to speak with the new personnel.

At 2:15 p.m. the clinic finally closed for lunch, which was a good bit of time after the normal closing at one o’clock. The clinic doors would reopen at 3:00 p.m. regardless, and Cameron and Joseph would be the on-call staff.

* * *

Seated at the dining table in her suite later that night, Gabrielle dined on a delicious bowl of vegetable soup and a chicken salad sandwich. Instead of calling room service before leaving the clinic for the day, she had prepared her own meal from the groceries and deli items she had stocked. It had become a very busy shift at the clinic, and passengers had come in up until the last few minutes before closing time.

Glad that the workday was over, she planned to lie down for a while after finishing her meal. If she hadn’t gotten up so early and had slept properly last night, she probably wouldn’t have been so drowsy. Clinic visits had gotten hectic, with one person after another trooping in for medical care. The fast-paced day had her feeling slightly fatigued. No matter how busy the clinic had gotten, Gabrielle was thankful that no life-threatening situations had occurred.

Despite how busy the staff had become, Gabrielle had gotten an opportunity to learn quite a bit about the job throughout the shift. Cameron had been very clear in explaining to her proper patient-care procedures and had been very specific about the proper way to store and secure narcotics and other controlled substances.

After washing the few dishes she’d used, Gabrielle went into the bedroom and slipped out of her uniform. She removed from her belt the new cell phone Cameron had handed to her, informing her that she was required to have it turned on whenever the clinic was closed, even if she wasn’t on call. If extra manpower was needed, she’d be alerted.

Gabrielle hastily slipped on an attractive one-piece navy blue bathing suit she’d pulled from a drawer and went out onto the balcony. She positioned her body comfortably on the chaise and tilted her face toward the sun for a few moments. Once she had gotten into a comfortable resting position place, she set the alarm on her watch.

The moment she closed her eyes, a vision of Cameron appeared. Dressed only in dark swim trunks, he looked as good as any professional athlete she’d ever seen. To have those hard, muscled arms wrapped around her would be a fantasy fulfilled. Unknowingly, Cameron was pulling Gabrielle into his white-hot web of desire, making her want him despite all the consequences.

* * *

Seated in the leather chair behind his desk, Cameron was alone in the clinic. He hadn’t eaten a full breakfast, yet it had completely satisfied him. He actually fasted one day a week, drinking only liquids. The ritual had nothing to do with religion but had just started in college, when he’d pledged a fraternity, and he carried it on during his U.S. Navy duty.

Hearing a noise out front, Cameron stood. He quietly listened for more movement. It was a little early for the staff to report for duty, but it wasn’t overly unusual.

With a bright smile on her face, Gabrielle popped into Cameron’s office and presented him with a colorful Thank you balloon.

“Hi, Cameron. How’s it going?”

“Great. Everything has been quiet. I wasn’t called a single time last night. I came in early to work on a special report. How was your evening?”

“It was good. I ate first then stretched out on the balcony chaise and caught a few rays.” Her hand went up to her face. “Did I get any darker?”

Cameron laughed heartily. “No visual changes, sorry. Come on in and have a seat.”

Gabrielle grinned. “I think I will. Thank you.” She sat in a chair facing him.

“I think you did great on your first day, Gabrielle. How do you think it went?”

“Fantastic. I learned quite a lot. I know the sign-in process and where we get the paperwork for the patients to fill out. Learning the entire system may take me a while, but it’ll come with time.”

“The hardest thing for me to get the hang of is the billing system, though it’s not a part of my job description,” said Cameron. “But as the man in charge, I like to know everything there is to know about running the clinic. I do feel bad, though, when passengers have to incur extra expenses for medical reasons, so I’m glad we don’t charge to treat nausea and seasickness.”

“One hundred and fifty dollars to see a physician can really put a damper on vacation money,” Gabrielle said.

Cameron nodded. “I hear you. Running the infirmary is expensive. It just can’t be done for free. There are items we don’t charge for, though.” He began to feel that his remarks may be inappropriate. “I probably shouldn’t be talking about this, but it does get under my skin.”

Cameron thought about the number of patients he’d seen break down and cry when they were handed a large bill to sign, after being told the medical fees would be charged to their credit card.

The conversation was halted between Gabrielle and Cameron when they heard the rest of the staff reporting for duty. The two doctors walked out into the reception area to let the others know they were there. As the crew stood around making small talk and working on their assigned tasks at the same time, patients began to walk through the doors.

The clinic once again became a flurry of activity. Within minutes every staff member available was attending a patient.

After taking the blood pressure of one passenger, Gabrielle frowned. “Have you been diagnosed with high blood pressure or hypertension? If so, how long ago was it?”

“High blood pressure,” the older man responded. “I was diagnosed several years ago.”

Gabrielle perused the name of his medicines from the medical history. “Have you been taking your blood pressure medication?”

“I went off and left it at home,” he confessed with regret.

Gabrielle held up one finger. “Give me a minute. I’ll be right back.”

* * *

She found Cameron in one of the treatment rooms and politely asked him to step out. Once he had followed her into the hall, she handed him the medical record and explained the medication issue.

Cameron glanced over the chart. “It’s a regular stock item. Give him enough doses to last him the duration of the cruise. One of the nurses will issue him an invoice and receipt.” Cameron paused. “If you don’t have plans for dinner, I’d love to have you join me in my cabin.”

Gabrielle managed not to blush. Should she or shouldn’t she?

“I’d really like that.” She smiled softly. “Thanks, Cameron.” She popped her head into the treatment room and made eye contact with his patient. “Sorry for the interruption, ma’am.”

After reaching the front desk, Gabrielle informed Morris and Candi of Cameron’s order. “He’ll need enough meds to last him through disembarkation. I’ll write up the medical chart, sign it and return it for billing.” Without further comment, she went back to her patient.

* * *

Back in her suite, seated on the sofa, Gabrielle couldn’t get her shoes off quickly enough. As comfortable as her sneakers were, her feet still ached. She was used to standing for hours on end, but all the rapid moving about she’d done inside the clinic had aggravated the soles of her feet. It was nothing that a good soak wouldn’t take care of.

She felt extremely good about her first and second workday. Everything had run rather smoothly for her. She hadn’t encountered a single problem that she hadn’t handled easily.

Cameron had paid her a high compliment after closing hours. He had sincerely praised her on a job well done and it had made her smile. The other new crewmembers had also received votes of confidence—he was clearly pleased with their admirable job performances.

Dr. Quinn was a boss who made sure his staff’s morale was up. However, Gabrielle was kind of surprised that he hadn’t already tackled the issue of Joseph’s lateness. Wondering why he’d put it off for so long, she planned to ask him about it.

Gabrielle was delighted that Cameron had invited her to have dinner with him in his cabin. Perhaps he wanted them to become better acquainted as coworkers. To think he had any romantic notions about her was probably a bit premature and even arrogant. She now knew that he was indeed her next-door neighbor. With their balconies side by side, Gabrielle had an idea it could get pretty interesting under certain circumstances. Romantic notions or not, she couldn’t have been more excited about dining with Cameron in his cabin. The evening would be very stimulating any way she looked at it.

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