Free Urgent Care by C. J. Lyons

Jason said with a grin. “It’s harder than it looks, you know. I’m not sure if you’re qualified.”
    “Hah. Very funny. You call in the ID consult—I think Ken Rosen is on for them. I’ll call neuro and try to explain why they’re being asked to drop everything to do a simple spinal tap.” No sense in Jason getting chewed out on Frantz’s behalf.
    Lydia slid into a chair—it felt like the first time she’d sat down all day. As she waited for the neurologist to return her page, she watched Nora. The charge nurse was flipping through the triage notes of patients waiting to be seen, prioritizing them, making notes on patients who would need follow-up in the waiting room if they weren’t seen soon, and creating a list of orders—obvious labs, X rays, and the like—to help facilitate the process.
    Yet Nora seemed to be moving at half speed, reading a chart, then moving on, checking herself, and going back. Distracted. Lydia fingered the small flash drive Boyle had given her, rubbing it like a worry bead before slipping it back into the pocket of her scrubs. She understood the feeling. But the ER was no place to be working when you were distracted. Good thing it wasn’t too busy.
    The phone rang. “Lucas Stone here,” came a man’s voice. “Someone page neurology?”
    Thank goodness it was Lucas—he wouldn’t mind doing the LP; he loved procedures, even simple lumbar punctures. Plus, ever since he and Amanda had announced their engagement after Thanksgiving, he’d been incredibly easygoing about everything. Lydia couldn’t remember the last time they’d gotten into one of their usual good-natured debates. Or that she’d been able to get him started on a rant. Although he was still as germophobic as always—but she hated to tease him about that. Not with more important things like the wedding on his mind.
    At least she didn’t have to worry about Trey ever getting googly-eyed like Lucas. What she and Trey had was good, was great, but it definitely wasn’t headed anywhere near an altar. Not anytime soon. Thank God. It was hard enough handling living with someone, much less ’til death do us part.
    “Lucas, it’s Lydia. I’m going to apologize up front, but it’s not my call. I have a private patient down here; his attending is certain he has meningococcemia, although I don’t buy it. Anyway, the attending, a Dr. Frantz, wants you to do the LP.”
    There was a pause and she almost hoped that Lucas would snap at her—or at least vent a little at Frantz’s stupidity. But no, instead he merely said, “When do you need me?”
    “Well, to complicate things, the kid got a slug of antibiotics before he even hit the ER. So the clock’s ticking.”
    “No problem, I’ll be right down. Oh, and I have those bridesmaid dresses for you to look at.” He hung up before he could hear Lydia groan.
    To prevent any perception of a conflict of interest because Lucas was an attending physician, Amanda and Lucas wanted to be married before Amanda began her internship in July. But as a medical student, Amanda was too busy to plan a wedding, so Lucas—being more than a little obsessive-compulsive—had taken over the plans. And was surprising everyone by apparently enjoying the process.
    Nora joined her at the desk, shuffling the triage charts. Lydia flipped through them, signing orders for the labs and X rays.
    “When Lucas comes down, tell him the spinal tap kid is in the isolation room.”
    “Where are you going?” Nora asked.
    “To check on my patient in bed two. But don’t tell him that—he has more bridesmaid dresses for us to look at.”
    “I haven’t even found a dress to wear to the gala on Saturday and he expects me to pick out something for a wedding that’s not until May?”
    “I thought you were working Saturday.”
    “I am, but only seven to three. I promised admin that I’d be at the gala by four—they asked all the charge nurses to act as hostesses.”
    “You don’t sound too happy