The Royal Contract

“I am sorry, but I don’t think you are sick.” She exasperatedly told the patient, who still pretended he was seriously ill. “We had already run several tests. We can’t find anything wrong with you.”

Other patients deserved her undivided attention and not this man. She dropped the chart back on the cradle and asked the nurse to work out the discharge papers of her patient. “Go home and be happy because you are healthy.” She turned to leave.

“But, Doctor Sheldon.” The man was about to plead his case, but she moved to another patient assigned to her. At least the next one needed her help.

It had been a long morning after that for her. She did not hate her assignment to the emergency area, but sometimes, it was frustrating when what she wanted was to be a surgeon. But everybody had to start somewhere.

Her shift was far from over, but she had a thirty minutes coffee break. Therefore, she moved along the hallway, ready to visit her sister. She usually spent time with her whenever she could.

First, it was good for her sister to hear a familiar voice. And it also helped her release her pent-up energy and frustration to her sister, who was always ready to listen to her woes.

“You know what. It is much better to talk to you now because you don’t have much to say.” She teased the woman, still lying unconscious on the bed.

Usually, her sister always had these words of wisdom that was hard to hear because her brain recognized she was right, but her heart refused to accept the sad truth.

.....

But at some point, she still admitted that her sister knew what was best. And in the end, she had to listen to her or suffer the consequence. But today, she wanted to hear her voice. She needed her advice. Sadly, she was the only one talking.

“Rosella, when are you going to wake up?” She questioned her and whoever was in charge up above. “We all need you.” She mumbled once again.

She knew if Rosella finally woke up, her silly crush on her soon-to-be brother-in-law would fade, and she would be free from this guilt. Yes, she felt terrible that she was lusting after the man that her sister was about to marry.

But who could blame her when he was the perfect man? Almost all the women in this place wanted him. And she guessed she was not immune to his charms even if he was not directing them at her.

“Anyway, I met a guy. He is cute.” Then, Roseann stopped. “Maybe not cute is the term. Let us use hot instead.” She corrected herself.

She guessed talking about another man was a better distraction and topic to talk about to her sister. She could not admit to her sister that she was falling for her future husband.

“He is a lawyer. His name is Adam.” She tried to think of what else to tell her sister, who did not respond to her chatter. “Anyway, he is attractive, and based on his bio, he is a great catch.”

“Anatomically speaking, he is sculpted like a God.” She giggled a little, remembering how he felt underneath her palm. “He had solid muscles underneath that business suit he was wearing.”

She tried to enumerate the positive things she believed he possessed, hoping that it would be enough to divert her attention to him and away from her sinful thoughts.

“I think you will like him. I don’t know him much, but from our conversations, I think the two of you, more or less, think alike.” She concluded, based on her observation.

Now, she wondered what the man thought of her proposal. Was he considering it? Was he even thinking about it? Or maybe he thought she was crazy and forgot all about her.

She would only know once he contacted her. So far, he had not called or texted her or even shown up. Maybe he was still thinking about it. At least, she hoped that was the case because she believed she needed his help.

“I want you to meet him. But first, you need to wake up to do that.” She continued telling more about him. But she failed to notice that she was not alone in the room.

Not anymore.

“So, I guess you went against my advice.” The voice by the open door said.

She gazed up to find the other man that occupied her mind. The last person she wanted to see today. But she guessed she could never avoid him as much as she wanted. They would always stay connected to the most significant person in their lives.

“What are you doing here, David?” She asked as she glanced at her watch. It was not yet his time to watch her sister. “Aren’t you supposed to be at work?” She queried. “Are you slacking again?”

She remembered he almost abandoned his job to live in the hospital. Now, she was worried that he might have relapsed.

“I am working.” He responded, defending himself from her accusation. “I was just in the vicinity and thought to drop by and check on her.” Then he looked at her with raised eyebrows. “What about you? Aren’t you supposed to be working?”

She looked at her watch, and her time was almost up. “I was on a break, but it is time to return to work.” She admitted as she stood from the chair.

She was somehow relieved that she had an excuse to leave. She did not want to spend more time with her ideal man, thinking it might only complicate things for her.

“I will be back here later if you want to discuss this mystery man. Anyway, what is his name?” David asked before she could leave the room.

The last thing she wanted to talk about was the other man that she wished to use as a distraction from him. She knew it was a mistake that she even told him about the man from the bar.

“No. I can handle this on my own. I don’t want your investigator snooping into his life.” Roseann told him. “He is a good man, and there is no need to dig up on his life.”

She was not making the same mistake of sharing information about the man that she was waiting to call. But again, she hated the concern and kindness that David kept showing her. It only added up to why she should like him more.

“Still, he must be hiding something behind his charms. Come on. I only need a name.” He pried a little more. “What about I introduce you to someone I know? I think the two of you will hit it off. I assure you this one is a great guy.”

Was he setting her up on a blind date?

“No, thanks. I don’t need you to find me a man. I think I am capable of doing that myself.” She rolled her eyes at David before walking past him and out the door.

“What about tonight? Are you coming? I will order your favorite if you join me for dinner.” David shouted from the inside.

But that was not what she wanted, another reason to like him more. “No, thanks. I already have a dinner date.” She responded, putting a little excitement in her voice to make it believable.

Of course, she lied to him. But she did not want him to suspect she was avoiding him. How long could she keep up with this, maybe as long as it took to get him off her system?

“Is it with this guy again?” She heard him as he peeked at the door. “Are you sure he is not a psycho killer?” He persisted.

Yes. And no.

She had no idea how to profile a serial killer from a decent guy. But she doubted that a man like him could kill a fly. But what did she know? Still, she was willing to risk it rather than find herself with a guilty conscience.

“I think if he was, then he is one heck of an attractive one.” She jokingly replied. “Anyway, this is none of your business. Now, I have to run.” She had to because she was late.

She rushed out of his sight and into the elevator. Now, what should she do? She desperately needed to do something to keep her mind off the man that she could not have.

If the other man would not call her, maybe she should be the one to call him back. Better yet, she should surprise him at his apartment. He could easily dodge her calls if he did not want to see her.

“Are you seriously considering this?” She mumbled to herself at the empty elevator.

But she believed desperate times required desperate measures. At that moment, he was the only solution she had. She had to convince him to help her by whatever means necessary.

Was that a good plan? Maybe not, but she had no other options at the moment. It was better she pushed herself to another man than end up hurting her sister if she learned what she thought of her fiance.

She would never dream of hurting her sister, not in this lifetime or the next.