“I knew I was right!”
I eyed him disgustingly as he downed his drink with mirth. Sometimes I hated that Matt could read me so well. I could do the same to him, and I rarely let him off the hook whenever he was the butt of the joke.
“Is she someone I know?”
“Why don't you keep your nose out of this?” I snapped.
“Easy,” Matt said with a wink as he gulped the entire contents of his glass.
“She's definitely fucking with your head if you're this bothered,” he taunted me with a smile. I drove my fingers through my hair, regretting showing up there that night. Since seeing Ella earlier in the day, I couldn’t get her off my mind, and I couldn’t stop reliving our first night again. Matt was right. Ella was fucking with my head.
“Take it easy, Armand,” he laughed. “Can he get another scotch?” he asked a passing waitress before she nodded and turned to the bar.
When he turned back to me, he had a more serious expression on his face. “I heard you had problems with Jay and Sarah again.”
“I handled it, Matt. I’m thinking of having Jay transferred to another hospital.”
He sighed. “Is he that unresponsive?”
“It’s not him.” I found myself clenching my right hand, wanting another drink.
“What the fuck is wrong, then? You know that boy needs you.” Matt's voice was curt and accusatory, which didn't sit well with me.
“Don’t use your ethic bullshit tone on me,” I said. “You're not the one who has to manage the sister's incessant troubles, just ask Carl what he’s going through. Also, the boy needs a doctor that his sister won't meddle with.”
“You know that's impossible, right? You know Sarah would meddle with anyone, and you're probably the only doctor who can handle her.”
I was so frustrated that I slammed the bottom of my cup on the table. “You weren’t at the stand-up meeting when she stormed in to cause trouble, so you can't sit here on some holier than thou ass and tell me what to do.”
“Oh, stop playing the victim now, man. You landed in this by fucking her. I warned you not to get involved with your patient's sister.” Matt's voice was stern, he was obviously not backing down from this argument, and I was about to retort when Reuben and Carl stepped back in.
“Okay, that's enough, or I'm throwing you too out,” Reuben said, stopping Matt and me from whirling into a pissing match.
I blew out a sigh. “Sorry, man," I muttered to Matt. He nodded and clinked his glass against mine, and went back to drinking.
“What the hell is wrong with you today anyway?” Reuben asked. He and Carl rejoined us at the table.
“I’m fine. Long day.” I wasn’t ready to tell them about Ella. I was sceptical about how to mention that I was developing another attraction to a family member of another patient. Especially not after how it had gone with Sarah. But it was also obvious that there were no better persons to share my predicament with than the three at this table.
“Really?” Matt asked, concern in his voice. “You only act like this if you lose a patient. So what the hell is going on? You’re not acting right.”
I started to speak, but Carl interrupted. “Don’t you dare say it's fatigue. The three of us have watched you go for days without sleep and still captivate us with your weird sense of humor after coming off long hauls.”
I sighed. Maybe it's just right to tell them as they might find out before long anywhere. “It’s a patient,” I said, looking at Matt. “There is little chance of losing him, so it's not about that. It just kills me watching his daughter push herself into exhaustion in response to her father's health. I think she thinks she's responsible for his heart attack by not being available and is trying to make up for that by not taking a rest now.”
The table grew silent, and I knew exactly what they were thinking.
“When did you become a psychologist, and why do you sound like you have more concern over this woman than your actual patient?” Reuben pressed.
“I never said that,” I replied flatly.
“You didn’t have to,” Matt said. “Who is she? And how in the hell are you sitting here, worrying over a woman so much that it's fucking with your mood?”
I threw my hands up. “I can’t fucking do this with you three. I thought y'all would at least understand.”
“Then help us understand?” Matt smirked at Reuben and Carl.
“Fine,” I said, emptying the last of my scotch down my throat. “Remember the woman from the New York party?”