Free Paging Dr. Hot by Sophia Knightly Page B

and talented. You’ll be back in shape in no time. No time, I tell you! The baby weight will melt away,” I say cheerfully.
    “I guess so.” Elise gives me a shaky smile. “You’re sweet to try to cheer me up with the pep talk. How’s the heart campaign coming along?”
    “It’s going great, but I wasn’t able to get Dr. Perez to chair the Bowled Over event. She’s swamped with other commitments.”
    “Oh, too bad,” Elise says, distracted when one of the babies pulls away from her breast and starts to fuss.
    “Want me to call the nurse?” I ask.
    “No, but can you take Jake for a minute?”
    “Sure, hold on a sec.” I run to the door and hold my hands under the antibacterial pump on the wall beside it long enough to disinfect them. Poor little Jake is howling and bright red by the time I take him from Elise.
    “Shh, shh,” I croon, carefully cradling him while Elise gently dislodges his twin from her breast.
    “Here,” she says handing me a clean cloth. “Put this on your shoulder and burp him like I’m burping Josh.”
    “Okay,” I say, even though I’m anxious about holding such a teeny newborn. With excruciating care, I position Jake’s precious body against my cloth-covered shoulder. I have never held anything so delicate in my life. He feels like a fragile bird beneath my hand as I pat his back. My eyes well up thinking about Elise all alone with her babies. The injustice is staggering. Where is the father, I wonder as I angrily blink back tears. It’s not fair that Elise has to be both parents for her babies.
    Elise sees my tears and bursts out crying. Great, now we’re a crying orchestra, Elise, the twins and me.
    I force a smile on my face so I can cheer her up. “Your sons are beautiful, Elise. You are so lucky.”
    “Thank you,” she blubbers. “Don’t mind me, I’m majorly hormonal.”
    “I’m feeling a little hormonal too.” I take a trembling breath and change the subject. “Back to the heart campaign…Dr. Perez had a great suggestion. I can’t believe I didn’t think of it sooner. I figured it would be impossible because he’s practically a celebrity.”
    “Who are you talking about?”
    “Dr. Alex Escobar. You know, the cardiologist who writes the ‘Heart to Heart’ column.”
    “Oh, him,” Elise replies, her tone like a deflated balloon. “He’s not a good choice.”
    “Why not? He’s amazing. I read his column every Monday morning, even before I get to the headlines.”
    “I don’t like him.”
    “How come?” I ask, surprised. What is there not to like about a man who provides excellent insight and hope for heart patients?
    Elise starts to say something, but is interrupted by her mom and dad as they return from lunch. They take over with the twins and Elise visibly relaxes. I say my good-byes and promise to call her tomorrow.
    On the drive to the station, I’m still rattled by what I just witnessed. Elise sure has her hands full. I’ve never seen her so unhinged and so vulnerable. I haven’t wanted to pry about who the father is and I don’t know if she’s even told him about the twins. Come to think of it, I know close to nothing about Elise’s personal life because she’s very private. Thank God she has a close-knit family who will help her raise the twins. Even with a full-time nanny, she’ll need all the help she can get.
     
     
    Vinny, the young Cuban intern, intercepts me as I breeze into the WBCG station. He looks excited, but for Vinny that’s normal.
    “What’s up?” I ask, noticing the way his big brown eyes bug out.
    “Guess who’s here?” he whispers conspiratorially, dying to dish as his dark eyes do the hula hoop.
    “Who?” I ask, playing the game.
    “Dr. Deviled Ham.”
    I grin. That’s exactly what Devon is. “Where is he?” I glance over my shoulder.
    “He and Antoinette are having a cozy tête-à-tête in her office,” he says, giving me a wink.
    Vinny loves to say things like tête-à-tête and entrez-nous .