Disclaimers: All characters referenced in this story are mine and mine alone. Any similarities between them and anyone else living, dead, or fictional, is purely accidental/coincidental. Basically, hands off without my permission-pretty please.
If you like them, feel free to let me know about it at Jeaninehemail-public@yahoo.com if you don’t, please don’t be mean.
Warnings: This story will depict relationships between women. If that bothers you, I’m sorry for your narrow-minded approach but please leave now and come back when you come out. If it is illegal for you to view this type of story due to age or location then please come back when you age or move. There will at times be somewhat graphic descriptions of medical events, nothing too graphic but not for those who faint at the mention of an IV. With that said, I hope you enjoy!
I’d like to thank Vic and Trish, the two people that encouraged me to put this out to let others decide its fate.
Also, for Sue, the reason I want to do my best is to be the woman you deserve-I’m always on call for you!
Chapter One
Running lights and sirens, there’s nothing like it on earth. The closest thing I can think of is when you wake up Christmas morning, run down the stairs, and find exactly the present you were hoping for under the tree. Not socks and underwear, but that one cool as shit present that means you will be the center of your peer group for at least a week. That’s the feeling I get every time I hear those tones drop off my pager or in the house, the stationhouse that is for you non-emergency folks. I get to jump in my rig, flip those switches, and fly out to help someone in dire need. Truthfully, as often as not, we simply show up to give some frequent flyer a ride to the ER for what amounts to a regular doctor’s visit, at the expense of the average Joe taxpayer.
By the way, I’m Chloe, but you can call me Donny, like most everyone else does. My last name is Donovan, and people just shortened it to Donny a long time ago. I’m an EMT-P by trade, what civilians would call an Emergency Medical Technician Paramedic level, or just a paramedic or even shorter, medic. You know, like Johnny and Roy on Emergency! That first look we all got at what it was like in a firehouse and trying to save people’s lives. I think my parents knew even back then, that I’d do something like this one day. There are pictures of me with my face pressed up against our front picture window, watching the ambulances and fire trucks going by when I was a little kid. Even back then, my favorite colors were black and blue, the colors of a bruise.
We were on another call, about the twelfth of the day in a sixteen-hour day, with five of those hours still left to go. It had been a busy shift, but we had a couple of sign-offs so it was a little better than it could have been. I don’t mind sign-offs though, it’s the first minutes at a scene that intoxicate me. We jump out of the rig, lights still flashing, sirens muted, pulling on our gloves, and grabbing our gear, going in to a scene where our very first job is to take control.
A basic fact is that people panic. Hey, its human nature when a loved one is injured or sick. We come in and take over, make the assessments, fix the problems as best we can, before scooping, and loading for a run to the ER. People defer to our uniforms, our crackling radios, and our use of medical jargon. They are in awe of what they don’t understand, and that awe allows us the time to figure out what’s going on and how best to fix it so that everyone can live another day, us included.
For all the drama of it, there is a simplistic beauty in what we do for a living. We fight the ultimate battle between life and death every day on behalf of those in our care. We either win or we don’t, they live or they won’t. We don’t always get the call in time to do much, but we make every effort to try, at least to comfort the living left behind.
This time, we pulled up on the scene of a bigger wreck than average. Three cars were involved, one crushed between two others. The Fire Department was already on the scene, as well as another ambulance crew. We were the second crew on this one, which meant we don’t have as much paperwork since we didn’t run medical command. I hopped out and grabbed my turnout coat from the spot behind my seat, tugged on my helmet, and gloved up. I grabbed the trauma bag and headed towards the pile of crushed cars while my partner followed with the backboard and litter.
Oh yeah, my partner, forgot to tell you about him. I was with Tony, a probie finishing his supervised ride time with me. He’s an okay guy, just young and fresh. He’s only twenty-four with one of those almost military haircuts to style his sandy blonde hair, light blue eyes, and he’s a body builder. He doesn’t just a lift weights, he does the heavy weights, the special diets, and the muscle shows all oiled up and stuff. He’s decent sort, but he’s still young, as I said, so his other interests seem to run to fast cars and fast women. His current passion is an old Mustang convertible he’s restoring. He calls it fun. I call it a lot of work and money to pour into an old car. Whatever, it’s his thing.
I ran into the Captain on my way to the wreck. “Hey Cap, what’s the scoop?”
“Got a good one for ya Donny. Take that middle car. We’re about to peel the roof to extricate the vic. I got a guy in there holding C-spine, and we got the collar on already too. Had his seatbelt on, the collision was a good twenty mph per side, and he just got sandwiched in a double T-bone.”
“Gotcha Cap, we’re on it. Who’s the other crew?”
“Spike’s got the rest, one sign-off and one for transport, once we get her out of her car.” I hefted my bag again and jerked my head towards the wreck for Tony to follow me.
What a mess people make when they don’t pay attention. From the looks of things, our patient tried to beat the light and got crunched between two cars going straight through from the other sides at the four-way intersection. Hell, we got lucky! Only three out of four directions were involved. We nodded at the fire crews, and waited while they pulled the roof off the small car, like the lid off a can of soup. Hmm, soup would be good right about now, oh well, maybe after the call we can score some dinner.
Finally, they got the roof off and we looked in the car for the first time. Male patient still gripping his cell phone like a vise, and looking none the worse for wear, if you ignored the air bag burns. Lucky bastard had one of those newer cars with airbags tucked in every damn spot possible, and it looks like they all fired this time. Shouldn’t be too bad, but you just never know, so I always do a full exam, even if it’s a fast one. I climbed on the trunk and lowered myself in the back seat along side the firefighter who had stayed with the patient while the roof was peeled.
“Hey, can you hear me? What’s your name buddy?”
The patient opened his eyes and looked up at me. “Mike, Mike Bonds.”
“Okay Mike, I need you to talk instead of shaking your head. Are you feeling any pain or tingling anywhere? Remember to tell me, don’t try to shake your head.”
“No, I’m okay, just shaken up.”
“Well, I tell ya what, I’m going to help these guys get you out of here and onto a long board then onto our bed. We’ll take you in to the ER just to be sure, and you can arrange for a ride and stuff from there. Okay?”
He mumbled a yes, probably still too stunned to speak.
“OK, I need that board in here. I’ll take C-Spine as we roll him out. Got it?”
Everyone nodded or grunted at me, so I figured we were good to go. This is something we do all the time and unless there are trainees, probies, or strangers involved, we don’t need to talk much to get our job done.
“Ready, One, Two, Three, Roll. One, Two, Three, Slide. Good job, let’s get him strapped and into the rig guys.”
We rolled him out and onto the board, slid him up into position, moving his body as one unit. Tony and the Rescue crew strapped and loaded the patient while I double-checked his car for any signs of trauma or personal items he might want with him. Finding nothing, I headed back to the rig.
Tony was already getting a set of vitals, so I started a more comprehensive examination.
“Mike, I’m going to poke and prod a bit, just let me know if anything hurts of feels weird.”
BTLS, Basic Trauma Life Support taught me some great stuff before I got into the more advanced medic training. One thing I learned was D-CAP-BTLS. It’s acronym reminds us to look for Deformities, Contusions, Abrasions, Paradoxical Motion (When two or more ribs are broken in two or more places, what we call a flail chest) Punctures and Penetrating injuries, Burns, Tenderness, Lacerations, and Swelling. After the ABC’s of airway, breathing, and circulation, this was the next most important look to help determine a patient’s needs for treatment and transport. Tony finished, gave me his numbers, and climbed in the front to drive us to the closest ER.
“I have good news Mike, everything looks good. I’m going to put my heart monitor on you, but only as a precaution and part of our protocol. Still feeling ok?” I started peeling paper off the sticky backs of our monitor pads and applying them. White over Right, Smoke over Fire. The white lead over the right side of the chest, the black opposite side of the chest, and the red lead, lower down on the left. A neat little trick I learned years ago, but I still think of it as I apply the leads.
“I’m fine. Was anyone else hurt? Do you know what happened?”
“Sorry, I really don’t know much. I know one person felt fine and signed off.”
He was quiet the rest of the ride, answering questions that I asked, but otherwise silent. That gave me plenty of time to do paperwork and call ahead to let the ER know what we were coming in with. We pulled onto the ramp of the ER about ten minutes after we left the scene, just as Mike was starting to absorb what had happened.
“This the MVA Donny? Bed three.” Maria, one of the regular nurses greeted me and gave me a room assignment as she passed by us. We transferred Mike to a bed in a cubicle. While I waited for Maria to come over, Tony took the litter to clean and remake it.
“Hey Donny, sorry for the wait. What do you have for me?”
“This is Mike, Double T-bone MVA, belted, multiple airbag deployment, nothing remarkable on exam, vitals stable, no past medical history. No complaints, just stunned so far.” Maria signed my paperwork, I gave her a copy, and headed out to the ramp.
When I walked back outside, Tony already had the litter cleaned, remade, and loaded. The back of the rig looked all put back together. Sometimes, its nice having a rookie around, they are so eager to get things done. I looked over to the other rig waiting on the ramp and saw that it was Spike, just done with the other patient from the scene. I walked over and bumped into her with my shoulder to say hello. Her partner was Pauline Connor, aka Pauly. Spike was, and is, one of the best medics in the whole county. She got the nickname because she has the most amazing gift for starting IV’s. Give her the most spidery, tiny, collapsing vein and not only will she get the line in every time, but she could launch that catheter from across the rig and have it land in position.
“What’s up Spike?” She was also our senior medic, a supervisor with more experience than any of the other medics in our company. Spike is on the smaller side, a mere 5’5” with slightly shaggy brown hair and intense blue eyes. She had an amazing smile, which she flashed at me just then.
“Nuthin’ Donny, nice job on that extrication. I’m guessing Mr. “I’m in love with my cell phone” is doing well?”
I laughed and nodded, “Nothing wrong with him but stupidity. Yours okay?”
She shrugged and a look of frustration crossed her face. “I guess so, just a shame that such a nice young woman is hurt cause some jackass couldn’t put down a phone long enough to drive someplace.”
I just nodded in commiseration while our partners came up to us. “I guess we oughtta get back in service. What time are you guys off?”
Spike shrugged, “Supposedly, the same time as you. The third crew is swing today.” Swing crew was kept on the streets, theoretically to give the other crews time to turn over the rigs to fresh crews and head home. I say theoretically, because it’s a known thing through EMS that no matter how slow or busy the day has been, if you have plans after shift there will be a last minute call!
“Cool, if we meet up at the station, ya wanna grab a beer or something?”
I try to hang out with Spike when I can. I keep hoping her medic skills will rub off through association or something. She nodded and tapped my shoulder in a friendly way, and then we grinned and split off to our rigs with our partners. Pauly gave a little wave in our direction as Tony pulled out around their rig.
“Man Donny, that Pauly is hot! Do ya think she’d go out with me?”
Tony still hadn’t learned that unless you thought it could be serious, you didn’t date at the station house. Sure, people had coupled up that way. Our Captain met his wife at a smokehouse class he was teaching. She was a recent transfer to our district, and they kept running into each other. Eventually, he asked her out and things went from there, so we know it can work out. It’s still not encouraged, but it is understood that you keep playtime away from work, if you catch my meaning.
“Tony, I keep telling you, if you want something real, then fine. Otherwise let it go dude. Hit on another of those bar chicks you specialize in.” I gave him a grin to soften the words, but the rookie had to learn sometime.
“She probably plays for your team anyway,” he grumbled.
The truth is, I had no idea what team Pauly played for, as I hadn’t ever heard of her dating. She was only two years out of her probie time, probation or rookie year, and seemed to be shaping up as both a medic and firefighter. When she ran fire, she either ran rescue and still functioned in a medical capacity, or she was on the engine and ran hose lines. We’re in a system where the ambulances run out of the firehouses, and we’re all trained on at least basic level fire skills. Some areas have a separate fire and ambulance system, it just depends upon the area you live in I guess.
Whatever, I really didn’t care about who dated whom at the house as long as they didn’t bring drama to our family. I get enough drama in the dyke world and I sure as hell don’t need more. Oh yeah, in case you hadn’t figured it out, I’m a lesbian, so if that’s a shock you haven’t heard that about forty percent of all EMS and Firefighters are gay. I guess we’re just drawn to helping people.
Thankfully, we made it back into our area and to the local diner to grab some chow. It’s a cool little place that seems to cater to a small group of locals. You almost never see a strange face in there unless it’s someone new to the police or EMS.
However, we’re talking food now, not semantics! Food is, at the most basic level, required for nourishing our bodies. However, I think that good food and good company can enhance the effects of nutrition. In other words, I prefer good food to shoveling down a fast food burger.
Thankfully, this diner has a great cook, good prices (which they discount for cops and EMS workers on duty), and they keep our food warm, box it in a hurry, or even give us new food if we got called out during a meal. They know who we are and that we’ll come back so they never worried about us rushing out. The owners know that they won’t get stiffed for the bill.
They also make excellent soup! That was just the thing for a busy day with a chill in the air. I could already smell it as we walked in, heavenly potato soup with scallions, bacon and cheddar cheese.
Of course, another rule of EMS, tones drop just when you are hungriest and about to solve that hunger with a meal. As we walked in the door, the tones sounded from our radios. I really wanted that soup, but I turned up the portable radio to listen to the dispatch. Thankfully, they were calling the third crew to a call and not us, so we grabbed seats at the counter and gave our orders. While we waited, we nodded at a few people and talked about mundane stuff around the station. Tony started talking about his beloved Mustang, so I kind of glazed over. I nodded occasionally and he never seemed to notice that I really didn’t care. He figured since I was a dyke that I should love cars as much as he did, but the truth was, I don’t care one bit as long as it can get me from point A to point B in one piece.
My cell buzzed in its holster, so I grabbed it while spinning on my stool to face away from Tony. It was a back line from Dispatch. I wondered what was going on until I remembered that Caitlin was working this shift. Cait, also known as Caty, is Pauly’s older sister and a dispatcher with a lot of time in service. I’ve actually known her a lot longer than I’ve known Pauly. First, she was just a voice on the radio or phone if I called in for times for the report. When we write up our scene reports for the state, we need to include the time of dispatch, when we respond to the call, when we arrive on scene, and so forth.
We met one time on a call when she was an innocent passerby and saw a wreck and stopped to offer aid. I knew her instantly by her voice. Later, I called in to dispatch to get our times and she answered the phone. We started talking about the patients from the wreck and the next thing I knew ten minutes had passed. Ten minutes doesn’t seem like a lot to civilians, but to me that’s a huge space of time to have to myself during a busy shift. We’ve gotten pretty close over the years, hanging out and doing things together.
I answered my phone with a greeting for my favorite dispatcher, and was surprised when the Caty didn’t respond right away. I knew something was wrong, so I tried again.
“Cait, are you there? What’s going on?” I heard a muffled cough and then a sniffle before her voice came on the line.
“Sorry Donny, I’m gonna bail on you tonight. I feel like crap. I think I have a head cold coming on.”
“That’s okay Caty, just drink a lot of OJ, and get some sleep. Did you want me to bring anything over for you? Soup, tea, me?” I said it with a grin, but I knew I meant it. I would certainly have taken care of her while she wasn’t feeling well, but there were certainly times, well most of the time lately, that I wouldn’t mind us getting a lot closer.
She laughed, “That’s the best offer I’ve had in a week. Didn’t you plan on us hanging out with some of the crews though? I don’t want to keep you from your plans. Besides, you take care of sick people all day.”
I put a stop to that nonsense right away. “Caty, I see them all the time. We practically all live together here anyway. I’d rather see you. Besides, its different taking care of someone you know instead of some random stranger. Let me come over, I have homemade chicken soup in my freezer that is yours for the asking!”
I knew I was sort of wheedling my way in, but it was worth it to me. We have been getting a lot closer the past year, but I still don’t know if that is the closer as friends, or closer like we might end up as lovers type yet. She agreed to my bribe of soup, so I promised to swing by my house and then go over to her place when I got off shift. Her shift ended an hour before mine, so it gave her time to get home as well.
Hanging up, I swiveled around and found my soup and my partner waiting for me. Oops, I guess he overheard at least part of that conversation. A major rule in life: Never let the probie know much about you until you figure out what kind of medic they will evolve into eventually. I already figured Tony would be a good medic but now I’d never hear the end of it if he suspected I was after Pauly’s sister.
Of course, he asked about the call. “So, who was that on the phone? Hot date cancel on you?”
“Wise ass! That was Caitlin. She can’t join us tonight because she has a sick friend. I’m giving her some chicken soup to bring over later.” I don’t know if he bought it but he shut up so we could eat in peace.
#
I pulled into Cait’s driveway and parked behind her beat up Ford Explorer. She lived in a nice little single ranch style house on the edge of suburbia with small, but nicely kept front yard. She had left garage door open, so I went in through the door and let myself into the house.
“Cait, where are you woman?” I admit it, I was bellowing and the size of the house didn’t warrant it, but I was having fun. I heard a muffled response from her bedroom and for just a minute, I thought of going in on the pretext that I thought she could be hurt. I decided discretion is indeed the better part of valor and went into the kitchen to heat up the soup. As I was banging around, digging out a pot to boil noodles, Caty walked out looking freshly showered and adorable in navy blue sweats. I know, sweats aren’t exactly erotica material to most, but I love a woman who is able to look comfortable in her own skin. Sweatpants mean the wearer is either comfortable in their skin or just doesn’t give a rip. Her short dark brown hair was in slight disarray and her hazel eyes were tired and slightly bloodshot. Her poor cute nose was slightly red from too much tissue abuse. It was time to take matters into my own hands!
“All right, go get comfy on the couch. I put a box of those tissues with lotion on the table for you, and a wastebasket near the table. I’ll finish heating the soup and get you some juice.” She shook her head, smiled and did as she was told.
“I don’t think I have any juice,” she said.
“That’s okay Cait. I didn’t think you would so I brought my own. Orange Mango in fact, quite tasty and chock full of vitamins to help you get better quickly.”
“You are too sweet Donny. I don’t understand why some cute woman hasn’t laid claim to you yet.”
Little did she know, a woman had laid claim to me, and I was honoring that claim by taking care of her when she was sick. Yeah, I know, I’m a romantic sap at times, but beneath the chest of every tough girl, beats the heart of a marshmallow. I brought out the soup and juice then went back to the kitchen to grab my own. When I got back, I saw her sitting up and looking at me with a thoughtful expression on her face.
“Did I ever tell you that I require egg noodles in my chicken soup?” she asked.
“Um, you might have mentioned it at some point, I guess. I like it that way too so I brought a bag with me.” I started to blush because while I wanted her to realize that I was into her, I didn’t want her to get it if she didn’t feel the same way. Subtle, yeah, that’s what I wanted.
Okay, I’ll admit it! I am a major chicken shit! I didn’t want to come out and tell her I’m interested because if she isn’t I might mess up a great friendship. Plus, can you imagine the crap around the station if Pauly finds out and doesn’t like that I hit on her sister? I was just playing it safe, yeah, I’ll keep telling myself that story.
Cait ate her soup, looking over at me occasionally, but then she would just go back to her soup. For my part, I was fine with that; it meant fewer questions in my head about how to answer her. When we finished I gathered up the dishes and brought them into the kitchen. I loaded them in her dishwasher, then got more juice for us and went back in to her.
“So, why didn’t you want to go out tonight Donny? You love hanging out with everyone. Did something happen?”
Aw jeez, she thought I had a bad day! “No, nothing like that, I just didn’t want you home alone when you were sick. We both know you don’t cook when you’re sick, and you would have gone to bed without eating. Besides, I haven’t seen you much lately, with all the doubles we’ve both been pulling, so I thought it would be cool to catch up.” That sounded believable and was actually the truth!
She chuckled, “You know me too well. I love cooking but it’s too much bother when I don’t feel well. I know it’s just a head cold, but I’d rather be hungry, than exert myself. Thanks for thinking about me.” She reached out to me but then withdrew her hand to grab a tissue as she sneezed.
“Bless you,” was the automatic response from me as I moved closer to hand her another tissue if she needed it.
“Thanks. I didn’t feel that one coming. Hey, you don’t want to get too close. I would feel horrible if you got sick too.”
“C’mon, we both know that at this point you aren’t contagious.” However, I moved anyway since I didn’t want to push my luck. Tonight felt different, like maybe, she was catching on but didn’t know what to make of my interest. Of course, it could just be that she didn’t feel well. Who knows? I don’t claim to understand women just because I am one! Things mellowed and we talked about work, before shifting to the latest camping gear coming out for the new season. As winter drew to a close, we both felt the pull of the woods and couldn’t wait to get back out into nature. One of the cool things about EMS work is that you work a few really long days, and get more days off in a row so it’s not a problem to get away for a three or four-day stretch.
I took off and headed for my house once Caty started yawning. I made her promise to get some rest and to call me if she got worse. I pulled into my driveway in my Rav-4 and sat there a minute, listening to the engine ticking as it cooled down. I gave a sigh, and headed inside. As expected, the house was empty and there were no messages waiting for me. It was close to two years later, and on nights like this, my house still felt large and empty around me.
I guess I should explain, since you weren’t around for it, but I used to have a live-in girlfriend. I still remember the night we met, I had been about to get off duty when one last call came in. I was on with Spike that day, about six years ago. I was still a pretty new medic back then, only just over a year on the job.
When we got to the scene we saw a woman, maybe about twenty-eight or so, holding the screen door open for us. She pointed us towards the bathroom, (it’s a fact, more people code in the bathroom on the john than anywhere else in the house) and told us that she didn’t know how long the patient had been on the floor, but she didn’t want to move him in case he was injured. We found an elderly gentleman on the floor with his eyes open. He had a pulse and he was breathing, though it was a bit shallow and rapid for my liking. We got him into a sitting position after doing a quick exam to rule out any physical injuries. We put him on oxygen and the heart monitor before we determined that while he was not critical, but we should transport as soon as possible. I left Spike with the patient while she started a line, and I walked out to get the litter and talk to the woman who let us in.
She was standing in the living room gathering medications and paperwork for us. “Excuse me miss, but do you have any information about the patient? Name, age, medications, past medical history?” She turned and handed me a bag of medications and a stack of paperwork about an inch thick.
“That should have everything in it, but this was my first visit to his house. I’m Karen, a visiting nurse from St. Mary’s Hospital.” She has amazing eyes, the kind of greenish blue that remind you of really clear seawater, diving in just looked so appealing. I reminded myself that I had a patient to care for.
“Okay, thanks. Are you riding along to the hospital? If so, I’ll have you sit up front with me.” Yeah, it was a shameless attempt to get more time with her, but she was hot with a capital H. She looked to be about 5’9” tall, reddish blond hair pulled back in a no nonsense bun, and she was wearing dark blue scrub pants with a matching scrub top with those slip on clog things that nurses seem to favor. She was either blessed with a good metabolism or she worked out, it’s hard to tell for sure behind baggy scrubs, but her arms looked toned to me. Besides, that is why I find scrubs so hot. You can get a general feel for the person wearing them, but for the most part, they hide the physique. Taking them off someone is like unwrapping a surprise package.
“Well, he is my last patient of the day, so I was planning on heading back to the office but maybe I should go in with him. Just in case I guess.”
I silently gave a whoop of gratitude in my head and gallantly showed her to the front seat of the rig then grabbed the litter to bring to my partner. We loaded the patient and locked the door behind us as we maneuvered the litter to the back of the rig. I hopped in the front to take us in to the hospital.
I chatted with Karen while I drove, learning about her career and that she was single for the past year. I was getting signals from her that she might be interested in me as well, but it was hard to gauge. Besides, my gaydar has never functioned well. I’m even slower to realize when someone is interested in me. I was certainly interested in seeing what was beneath those scrubs she wore so well.
When we pulled up to the ER, I jumped out and helped Karen out before going around and helping Spike with the litter and patient. Once we got the patient transferred to an ER bed and signed over to someone else’s care, I walked over to Karen to let her know we were heading out. Then it dawned on me, her car was at the guy’s house!
“How are you getting back to your car?” I’m not the most suave of people, but hey, at least I showed an interest.
“I guess I hadn’t thought that far ahead. I’m sure I can catch a cab or call someone at my office to come get me once he’s settled in.”
There was the cutest frown line forming between her eyebrows and I was struck with an irrational urge to kiss it away. Instead, I offered an alternative in transportation options.
“I’m off duty now, all we have to do is drop the rig off and I’m done. If you’d like I can come back and pick you up to take you back to your car.” Part of me was praying she said yes, the other part was terrified that she would say yes.
“Are you sure? I don’t want to be any trouble and you must be tired by now.”
I assured her in my most chivalrous manner that rescuing damsels in distress was what I did best. She blushed faintly, but smiled and agreed to wait for me to give her a ride back to her car.
Back in the rig, I filled Spike in on my plans and she offered to restock the rig when we got back so that I could freshen up and go rescue the cute damsel. She gave me a grin and teased me the whole way back to base about women swooning at the site of my uniform. Little did she know that I was the one enamored of Karen’s uniform of scrubs and all they hid from my interested eyes.
A quick wash of my face, a brush of my teeth, and I was in my car heading back to the hospital where I had left the lovely Karen. I parked and re-entered the ER through the EMT doors and quickly found Karen still sitting with her patient. She gave me a bright smile and my heart did a little flutter.
“Hey, told you I’d be back in a flash! How’s he doing?” I thought it only polite to ask even though my entire being was focused on Karen now.
“Better, they think it was a mild infarct and they are moving him upstairs to CCU soon. He’s been asleep and besides, he doesn’t know me, so it’s safe to leave. I did call his family and they’re on their way.” She gave me a weary grin and continued, “The good news is that my supervisor is giving me until Thursday to get the paperwork in since I have off the next two days.”
“I’m off the next two days as well. Since we’re both off for the next couple of days I suggest we spend tonight relaxing! Could I interest you in joining me for dinner?”
She looked at me with one eyebrow raised and a quizzical expression on her face. Suddenly, it seemed as if she had made up her mind about something and she shook her head no.
My heart plummeted like a stone to my gut, and I tried to play it off. “Okay, no problem, I’ll just run you to your car and then I’ll grab dinner.” As if I was going to be hungry after getting turned down by my Aphrodite of nurses.
“Donny, I wasn’t saying no to dinner, just no to going out. I’m still in scrubs.” She gave a small laugh, “You know you’re still in uniform too, it does kind of limit where we could go.”
Damn! I hadn’t thought of that, I was just thinking of getting to see what was under those scrubs! Thankfully, I had an inspiration to salvage the night!
“Well, there is a killer chef available who doesn’t have a dress code. If I can get us in would you be interested?” I smirked knowing that I could get a seat any time.
She gave me a skeptical look and asked, “What kind of food? And how do you know we can get in?”
“Tonight’s specialty would be Chicken Piccatta with angel hair pasta and the house salad, served with a nice white merlot. I know we can get in because I have the key.” I dangled my key ring in front of her and showed her my house key. I knew I had all the makings for the Piccatta at home and I had already thawed some chicken so I was set.
“Uh huh, and who exactly is our Chef of the evening?” she asked with a knowing grin.
At that, I started to lose my nerve a bit but I tried to continue with my plan. “Me of course! Haven’t you heard about firehouse chefs?” I paused, realizing I might be coming on too strong since I still wasn’t positive we were both batting for the same team. “Look, its no hassle to toss a little extra salad and add a chicken breast to the pan. You’ve had a rough day and I liked talking to you in the rig earlier. I don’t know about you, but I don’t get to meet a lot of people who understand the jobs we do.”
Karen thought about it and agreed with me. I was nervous, but excited, as we headed out to my sturdy Rav-4. She smiled when I opened her door for her and my heart fluttered. I went around and got in, offering her full control of the radio and CD’s, not something I usually relinquish so easily. We rode back to the scene of the call, and then I had her follow me to my house. When we got there and parked, I went over to her car and opened her door for her and asked if she needed help carrying anything inside. What can I say? She made me want to be a bit more butch for some reason. I’m usually pretty middle of the road with the whole butch/femme thing, but for some reason I felt protective of her. Maybe it was me still being in uniform. She smiled and declined as she pulled a small backpack out of her backseat.
“I’ve got it. It’s just my usual mess of stuff. I don’t carry a purse but my backpack serves great double duty.” She nodded towards the house that I had just purchased last year. “Is this all yours? It’s really nice!”
I blushed a little with pride. I had scrimped and saved, and pulled as much overtime as I could, to get the money together to afford this place. I waited until I had enough of a down payment that the monthly payments would be reasonable before making the leap to home ownership last summer. It was larger than I needed for just me, but I fell in love with it the moment I saw it. I spent my free time renovating and refinishing the woodwork, making the old Victorian look darn good for her age. When we entered, I gave her the quick tour before I started dinner.
“Let’s start at the top of the house and work our way back down,” I suggested. Karen agreed readily, leaving her backpack by the door. As we climbed the steps I saw her run her hand over the old fashioned banister in admiration.
“This is gorgeous! I can’t believe it looks this good after all these years!”
I flushed with pride. “I actually replaced the old one, but I carved it to look just like the origial.”
We reached the top of the stairs and I turned on the hall light to show her the upstairs.
“That is so cool! You have the old-fashioned button switches!” She looked concerned for a moment, “Please tell me the electric isn’t the same age as those buttons?”
I laughed, “Nope, it was all updated about ten years ago. The previous owner like the old style and found someone to upgrade them to handle the new wiring. I loved them, so I kept them.”
I showed her the first two bedrooms, one of which I had converted into an office space.
“How many people live here?” asked Karen.
“Just me. I know, it is somewhat big, but I just loved the place. Plus, I got a great deal on it. It needed a lot of restoration of the plaster and floorboards. I set up the other rooms in case I get visitors or something.”
She smiled, but didn’t say anything else about it. When we went back downstairs, I showed her the living room, dining room, and the smallish den.
“I really love the den! It seems to be very you, Donny.”
I cocked my head to one side and I must have looked puzzled.
‘I mean, it has those great wood built in bookcases, leather club chairs, the maroon carpets. It just feels old school and safe. I feel safe with you, just like in this room.”
I felt the blush rising in my face and tried to redirect us. “I’m getting hungry. Ready for some firehouse chef work?”
We headed back into the kitchen and I had Karen sit at the kitchen table so we could talk as I worked. Before I got started, I removed my duty belt, my uniform shirt, and the Kevlar vest I wore, leaving me in just my dark blue EMT t-shirt. I felt her eyes on me and apologized for my impromptu striptease as I explained that it was both hot and heavy wearing all that gear. She shook her head and smiled to herself before almost whispering,
“I really don’t mind, but I thought you looked great in that uniform.” At that, I felt my eyebrows shoot up and a smile crossed my face. Perhaps I had been right about that mutual attraction after all.
“Well, if you wish, I could always put the shirt back on after I get the food ready,” I offered only slightly teasing. She only shook her head and sipped from the glass I had just given her of the white merlot.
“I think what you’re wearing is just fine and easier to cook in. I wouldn’t want you uncomfortable.”
Whew, it started to feel a little warm in there except I hadn’t turned the oven on yet. Perhaps it was those eyes following my every move as I got dinner together.
We talked as I pounded out the chicken breasts before dredging them in flour, then egg, and then seasoned flour before putting them in a heated skillet to brown on each side. I put water on to boil for the pasta then turned to the sauce. Some butter, lemon juice (fresh squeezed of course), a pinch of sugar to tame the acidity, and some white wine. Once that was combined, I added in several spoonfuls of capers and stirred in just a touch of cornstarch to help thicken it up and give the sauce a light gloss. While that simmered ever so gently, I added the pasta to the water and set the timer; then I popped the skillet with the chicken into the oven to finish and stay warm.
I put together the salad and made a quick vinaigrette, set the table and drained the pasta when the timer went off. “Dinner is ready M’Lady,” I said with a slight nod toward her and the table. I joined her at the table after retrieving my own glass of wine and made a toast. “To new friends!”
Her expression faltered a bit then her smile regained its strength. “To gallant knights rescuing damsels in distress,” said Karen as she touched her glass to mine.
I felt a slight blush creeping up my neck and hurried to serve her some salad and pasta. She just looked at me with a grin on her face while my heart started racing. If this woman wasn’t flirting with me then I needed to check my mental health! I made some lame comment about the food but she groaned appreciatively after taking her first bite.
“My God Donny! Why hasn’t anyone snatched you up yet? You’re respectful, you do something amazing for a living, and you can cook!” She took another bite and looked over at me as she chewed. “You aren’t hiding some major flaw or physical defect are you?”
I shook my head and chuckled. Did I dare flirt back? She was so hot and all I wanted was to pull those scrubs from her and see what lay beneath. “Well Nurse, I don’t know about flaws but as far as physical defects I’m pretty sure I’m in good shape. Want to find out for yourself?”
That was it. I had put it out there and made the move. Time seemed to stand still for a moment as my heart pounded in my chest and my palms grew damp. I had no appetite for food. I had no appetite for anything but that lovely nurse in her scrubs.
Karen stood after taking a sip of her wine and she put the glass down carefully. She moved towards me and pulled me to my feet. “I think I would require a very up close and personal exam to verify your physical status. I wouldn’t want to do a shoddy job for one of our female firefighters now, would I?”
My heart felt like it would fly right out of my chest as she took one of my hands in hers and guided me to the bedroom with a quick stop to get her backpack. I would have followed her anywhere but now I was a little nervous about the backpack. Pushing it from my mind I asked, “Um, Karen? Are we going to do what I think we’re going to do? I mean, you’re gay too right?”
She threw her head back and laughed. It wasn’t a mean laugh, just one of enjoyment. Smiling at me, she had me sit upright on the edge of the bed and she rested her hands on my shoulders after dropping her pack on the foot of the bed. “Oh yeah, I’m a card carrying member of the family and we are going to do whatever you feel comfortable with doing. I’ve been interested since you first asked me for the paperwork at that house. You looked so strong and powerful in your uniform, so confident, yet caring. I was drawn to you immediately. That’s why I went in the ambulance with you and not in my own car. I was trying to figure out if you were gay.”
I started to laugh, as the irony was amusing. “We were totally on the same page. I have a thing for women in scrubs and I think you fill yours out wonderfully. I thought you weren’t into women so I was trying to be subtle.”
It was her turn to laugh. “If you had been anymore subtle I would have thought I was coming home to meet your husband and kids! But its all okay now, we worked it out and we’re both interested in the same thing.” She looked at me inquisitively and I nodded, words having failed me for the moment. “I have to ask one thing first, what’s your real first name? I’m not sure I can make love with someone named Donny.” As she said that, she leaned in and started to kiss around the pulse in my neck ever so gently.
“Chloe, its Chloe. Oh God, that feels so good!” I moaned. “Call me anything you want, just don’t stop doing that!”
Karen leaned in and kissed me gently then slowly deepened it until I was breathless. She had moved her hand from the hem of my shirt up my ribcage to just under my breast. I moved my head so I could start nibbling on her neck but she stopped me with a look. I would have been confused but there was a look in her eyes that said I should just play along.
“Not so fast Chloe! First I must examine you for physical defects, remember?”
Oh yeah, the game, I had forgotten about that but hey, having a physical from a hot nurse couldn’t be too bad. She pulled back and rummaged through her backpack obviously looking for something. She pulled out a stethoscope and some other items I couldn’t see, since she put them on the other side of her bag.
She had me sit right on the edge of the bed and she started by listening to my lungs with her stethoscope. Next, she had me breathe deeply while she watched my chest move. She decided to move the exam along but she told me I needed help removing my clothing. She had me stand up after I removed my boots and she reached for my belt buckle slowly undoing it and removing it from my uniform BDU’s. She let it drop as she reached for the buttons on my BDU’s, slowly undoing each one with care until they fell off of me and I could step out of them. I was left in my t-shirt and briefs while she still wore her scrubs. She reached out and pulled my shirt over my head with the ease of someone who helps patients dress and undress all day. Next, my bra and briefs joined the pile of clothes on the floor and she had me lay down on the bed for my exam.
She kicked off her clogs and took off her socks before joining me on the bed. Karen kneeled over me and started her examination. Starting with my head, she massaged my scalp and neck then followed with light and gentle kisses. She moved down my neck to my chest, bypassing my breasts with nipples so hard they almost hurt. She continued her pattern of “examining” with her hands followed by her mouth as she worked down my abdomen. She checked each quadrant in detail before starting down my legs; again, missing the parts I really thought should be examined in depth. She rolled me over to check my back, which received more of a backrub than an exam. One of the items I hadn’t seen was a bottle of warming massage oil and she used it liberally on my back and legs, blowing on it as she worked her way down my body. Finally, my body was totally relaxed though excited. I was dripping wet and ready to move this to a more intimate exam.
I was moaning and sighing at her ministrations as I felt the whisper of her scrub shirt as it brushed against me. She allowed me to turn back over and face her. I reached up and unfastened her hair. It was gorgeous and silky, the reddish blond color matching well with the dark blue of her scrubs.
She looked at me with a teasing expression in her eyes, “Do you want me to finish your exam now or wait a while?”
I moaned as her hands brushed lightly over my nipples. “Now, please Karen, now!” I couldn’t help myself. I needed to know what she felt like inside of me. She lightly covered one of my breasts with her mouth as she caressed the other with her hand still slick from the oil. She switched sides and one hand started wandering down to the junction between my legs. I felt her fingers parting my lips and moaned as she slid in my wetness. She groaned as well as she found the base of my clit and started stroking up and down the shaft. She shifted so that she could tease around my opening with two fingers before suddenly sliding in.
“I think I need to visualize the exam site,” she said as she moved her head down to join her hands. She started lapping up my juices as she moved deep inside of me adding a third finger to her efforts. I felt so full; so incredible that I never wanted it to end. I raised my head and watched this vision in blue scrubs lapping away at my cunt and lost my mind. My hips started bucking and I was shouting her name as I had the best orgasm of my life.
When I calmed down she slowly slid out of me and joined me at the top of the bed. She held me tightly as the aftershocks continued.
When my body calmed I turned to her. “You forget that I do examinations too! Now it’s my turn and I hope you aren’t too attached to those scrubs. Medics don’t undress people, we cut their clothes off.” I reached for my trauma shears from my spare duty belt on the chair near my bed. I went slowly, cutting through the seams so I could discover the beauty hidden beneath the scrubs.
I moved down her body, leaving the remnants of her scrubs on, but lifting up the fabric where I had cut it open to access her skin. Her body writhed under my touch and I decided not to make her wait too long. Instead, I thrust my hand beneath her panties to find the wet heat I was craving. I started circling her clit with my thumb as I moved two fingers into her tight opening. I could feel her body tightening and knew she was getting close. I moved faster and harder, stroking her clit in time with her thrusts until suddenly she arched and screamed. I gentled my strokes as she finished her tremors and slipped out of her. I leaned over and gave her a kiss before asking, “Did I pass my exam?”
She moved in with me about five months later and she moved out about two years ago. We were together almost three years when she was offered a teaching job and took it without consulting me. Unfortunately, the job was across the country and when she finally told me about it, she had less than a week before she was moving out there. According to her, our relationship had been falling apart for some time and she felt trapped. This was a way to make a clean break and not run into each other all the time. My heart broke because I had still loved her and thought we were doing fine. Karen never said anything until that last week and then, well, I don’t like to talk about it. That was my only serious relationship and ever since I’ve been kind of gun shy.
Caty is the first woman I’ve thought about as more than a casual date since Karen, but I’m too afraid to tell her, so I doubt it will go further. I tell myself that I don’t want to risk the friendship. I mean that part is true but I’m even more afraid of getting in too deep. I wasn’t sure my heart would recover after Karen and I don’t know if I can take that pain again. Besides, while I know Caty is gay, I don’t know how she would feel about dating me.