“What’s next?”
“Come with me,” he said, taking the keys back and heading to the supply room. “I need this, this, and this,” he said, pointing to various antiseptic supplies, gauzes, and wraps. He grabbed what he could and heard the siren from the fire truck in the distance. “Can you get the rest?”
“No problem,” Stella said calmly.
“Keep the keys. If you don’t mind helping out, I’ll have you running up here to get supplies as needed.”
“I can do that.”
“Thanks, Stell. This isn’t how I’d hope tonight would go, but this also might be my last chance for the night so . . .” Jace leaned forward and kissed her. It was rushed, but it still sent electricity shooting through his body as their lips met. Stella moaned and pressed against him. The horn of a fire truck broke them apart.
Jace raced downstairs, threw the lock open to the front door, and turned on the lights. Colton was driving someone’s SUV and Jack had two people in the fire truck with him.
In Jace’s peripheral vision, he caught glimpses of Stella until she was there next to him. “I got the rooms all stocked and the lights on. You can put them in order of emergency and I can get them into rooms and do anything you need me to do out here.”
Jace had been around enough emergencies involving civilians to know they either kept calm or freaked out. He was so relieved Stella was not the freaking-out kind.
“That would be a big help. Sarah and Molly should be here in the next ten minutes or so. Until then, I’ll need you to handle things both out here and then get anything Jack, Colton, or I yell for. Thanks, Stell. I mean it. I know this isn’t the romantic date—”
“Stop. This is important. You helped me when I needed it. Now I can help you.”
“Jace,” Colton yelled, and he and Stella rushed out to the street. “Twenty-one year old intoxicated male with burns to the face, chest, and hands. Patient two is a twenty-one year old female with burns to the back of the head and neck who’d had just one drink at the time. Patients three and four are twenty-two year old intoxicated males with burns to the hands and arms and minor burns to the face. Five and six are females with minor arm burns.”
With a quick glance at the two females Jack was helping down from the fire truck, Jace knew the order he needed to see them. “Stella, this male and those two females are to stay in the lobby. Colton, take the woman to room two. Jack!” Jace yelled as Stella rushed over to help lead the girls to the waiting room after assisting the male through the door and to the nearest chair.
“Yes?”
“Take this man to room three.”
Jace put his arm under the most critical patient and helped him into room one. Tonight was going to be a long night.
“Stella!” Jace called out as he sat his patient on the exam table.
Stella raced in but didn’t look harried. “What can I do?”
“I need help getting this burned shirt off him. Can you cut here and here?”
Stella nodded and Jace passed her a pair of gloves and the scissors. “I’m going to give you a shot for the pain,” Jace told his patient. “While she works on getting your shirt off, I’m going to work on your face.
“Stella, when you’re done, run upstairs and get the Mepilex AG Dressing. I’ll use that for his hands and the Cuticerin gauze for his chest.”
“Mepilex, got it.” Stella finished cutting and rushed from the room.
Jace worked on cleaning the burned shirt from the wound. His dressing appeared and he heard Colton and Jack both calling for Stella. At some point he heard Sarah in the lobby and then Molly was by his side.
Jace didn’t need to tell her what needed to be done, which was why Molly was a good nurse. They worked in sync until Molly said she was running low on Mepilex dressing for the last part of the patient’s forearm.
“Stella!” Jace called out, not looking up from using tweezers to clean the last part of the man’s burnt chest.
“Yes, Jace? Oh hi, Molly. I thought you were in the other room.”
“I need more Mepilix. One package should be good,” Molly said from where she was wrapping the patient’s arm.
“Got it. And Jace, Colton is worried about a spot on the woman’s head and wants you to look at it soon. He thinks it might need a skin graft.”
“Tell him I’ll be there in five minutes. After I finish here, Molly can apply the dressing.”
“Don’t tell me I’m being replaced as your work wife,” Molly said with a little laugh.
“I think I’ll keep my garden center for now,” Stella joked back before disappearing down the hall.
“What’s Stella doing here? Not that I’m not thankful for the help. Sarah and I were just surprised it was her who filled us in when we got here.” Without being asked for it, Molly handed him the sterile water to clean the wound.
“She was at my place when Colton called and offered to help,” Jace told her as he cleaned the wound.
“Should I be placing a bet at the café?”
“I’d like to know that, too, Doc,” the patient added.
Jace shook his head mutely and set down his equipment before stripping off his gloves. “Molly, can finish you up? I’m going to call the ambulance and send you to Lexington. There’s a spot on your forehead where you’ll need a graft.”
Stella came in then with the dressing, and Jace asked her to tell Sarah to call Flint to bring the ambulance for a forehead skin graft. Jace felt bad issuing orders, but it helped. The faster they could get these burns cleaned, the better for their condition.
Jace thanked Stella and then walked into Colton’s room. He’d done basic cleaning measures, but it was Jace or Molly who needed to do the deep cleansing and dressing. It was going to be a long night.
11
Stella didn’t know what she was doing, but she knew she was helping. That was all that mattered as she got Jace and Molly whatever they needed as they worked their way from patient to patient and room to room. Stella was talking to the patients in the lobby and to Sarah when she wasn’t running things to Jace or Molly. Slowly the lobby emptied. Flint had come and gone twice. Now family members and friends were picking up the other patients. It was one in the morning by the time the last patient left.
“Stella, it’s been lovely getting to know you,” Sarah told her as she slung her purse strap over her shoulder. “But I’m exhausted and still have a twenty minute drive. I’ll talk to you later. You’re good for him,” Sarah whispered before giving her a wink and heading out the back door.
“I’m exhausted. Thank goodness tomorrow is Sunday,” Molly said, placing her hands on the small of her back and stretching.
Stella smiled at the nurse and then leaned into Jace when he put his arm around her waist. Here he’d been working way harder, yet she felt that she could collapse into him and he’d catch her. Which he did. Even better, he pulled her closer and kissed the top of her head.
“You were such a big help. Thank you, Stella. Definitely not the romantic date I’d had planned.”
“Yes, thank you for getting the things we needed tonight,” Molly said and then sighed. “Think I can crash here?” she said with a little laugh as she stared longingly at the couch in the reception area.