Macey presumably had a nurse’s sense of humour after all.
‘I’m sorry, Macey,’ Candy said again as she stretched her brain as to what she should say. She rinsed out the cloth again and then mouthed to Macey, ‘What do I say?’
Macey offered a tiny shrug.
Was she supposed to ask if she wanted to wash her vagina? ‘Macey,’ Candy said, and cleared her throat. They stared seriously at each other, though they were both laughing on the inside. Each knew the other’s thoughts. ‘Would you like to wash your genitals?’
‘No!’ Elaine, clearly incensed by Candy’s apparent ineptitude, took the cloth from Candy. ‘This is how you do it,’ Elaine said, and soaped up the cloth again. ‘Macey,’ she said, holding out the cloth, ‘would you like to wash your muffy?’
Macey and Candy cried from laughing.
Not in front of Elaine, of course, but as Elaine went to set up for the leg dressing Candy had to wipe the tears from Macey’s eyes as they tried to keep their laughter quiet.
They clearly didn’t succeed because Steele popped his head in.
‘Did Elaine do her muffy thing again?’ he asked.
‘She did.’ Candy grinned. ‘Has she done it before, then?’
Steele nodded. ‘Somebody has to tell her that that’s not the technical name for it.’ Steele grinned. ‘Please, God, it’s not me.’
‘She’ll be a wonderful nurse,’ Macey said, still smiling. ‘At least she’s thorough.’
Candy was told to go for her coffee break and so she made a mug of coffee and put it beside Macey’s bed, ready to set to work on her nails.
‘Have your break,’ Macey said.
‘I honestly like painting nails,’ Candy said. ‘I do my mum’s every week and I just wish I had four sisters instead of four brothers. It really does relax me.’
She held up a bottle of coral nail polish. ‘Is that colour okay?’
Macey gave a small nod.
Macey sat quietly as Candy set to work. Candy didn’t chat very much because she really was concentrating. There was something so soothing about painting nails that she truly did enjoy doing it. The immediate improvement was instantly gratifying and having nice nails was also a very easy lift to the sprits.
‘Four brothers?’ Macey said suddenly.
‘And then came a daughter.’ Candy gave a wry smile.
‘Are they very strict?’
‘They are but they’re also very lovely. I know that I really have nothing to complain about, but...’ Candy shook her head. ‘I’m still plucking up the courage to tell them that I’ve booked a holiday to Hawaii. They’re not going to be pleased.’
‘Why?’ Macey asked. ‘Because you’re going with your boyfriend?’
‘I don’t have a boyfriend,’ Candy said, taking Macey’s other hand and starting to work on those nails. ‘That won’t appease them, though...me in America on my own...’
Macey looked across the ward and saw that Steele was looking towards them, or rather at Candy. When he realised that she was watching him he gave her a very brief smile and then looked away.
She might not say much but Macey knew everything that went on in the ward.
‘There,’ Candy said, finishing off and admiring her handiwork. ‘Let them dry for a little while before you do anything.’
‘No washing my muffy for the next half-hour, then,’ Macey joked and smiled at Candy as she rested her head back on the pillow. ‘Thank you, my dear.’
As she went to take her mug through to the kitchen Candy passed Steele. ‘What time do you finish?’ he asked.
‘Eleven-thirty,’ Candy said.
‘Do you want to get lunch?’
He’d completely sideswiped her but, then, Candy thought, he had been doing that since the moment she’d clapped eyes on him. ‘The canteen?’ she suggested.
‘If you like but I think we can do better than the canteen.’
Oh!
Did she want to have lunch with the sexiest man she had ever met? There really wasn’t an awful lot to think about.
‘Yes,’ Candy said, ‘that sounds great.’
‘Good.’
‘But aren’t you on call?’