“If you say so,” she mumbled, as he punched the down button on the elevator.
After they stepped on the car, Pesh eyed her. “You really are worried, aren’t you?”
She nodded. “My career means everything to me. I don’t want to do anything to jeopardize it.”
“Then I’ll make sure we don’t sit by ourselves.”
“Thank you. I really appreciate that.”
As the car started its decent down, Pesh threw his head back and exhaled a long breath. “Well, that was…”
Megan grinned at him. “The good doctor seems speechless. Surely in all your years in the ER, you’ve seen crazier or more mortifying cases.”
He cocked his head, appearing thoughtful. “A screwdriver lodged in a rectum is probably the tamest.”
“The tamest?” Megan questioned incredulously, as the elevator door dinged open.
Pesh laughed. “A man high on meth walking into the ER with his penis in his hand is probably the craziest.”
Megan’s hand swept over her mouth. “He actually cut off his…” She gazed around to make sure no one was listening to their conversation.
“Is the good nurse speechless?” he teased.
She rolled her eyes at him. “So what happened?”
“We got him sedated and into surgery as soon as we could. I heard they were able to sew it back on. I’m not aware of whether or not it was ever…fully functional again.”
“That is crazy.”
“I know.”
Pesh handed her a food tray. As they surmised their choices, Megan asked, “Was that your standard line of questioning in a situation like that?”
“I think we’ve established that I haven’t been privy to many priapism cases, but yes, any time there is an issue with the penis that is not related to the urethra or bladder, you would ask those questions.” After the food service worker gave them both an odd look, Pesh looked pointedly at her. “Why do you ask?”
She shrugged. “Just to be prepared for the next time.”
He cocked his brows at her. “Do you want to practice your line of questioning? You know, show me what you’ve learned?”
“Let’s get our food first, shall we?”
“Okay.”
After deciding that the grilled chicken salad was about the most appealing item in the food line, she grabbed a drink and some of the freshly baked chocolate chip cookies. Just as she inched up to pay, Pesh put his tray next to hers. He had chosen some kind of stir-fry that didn’t look appetizing to Megan. When she dug in her purse for her wallet, he handed a twenty to the cashier.
As he took his change, she shot him a look. “What?” he asked.
“You buying my dinner doesn’t look very innocent,” she hissed, as they started toward the tables.
Pesh shook his head with a smile. “I highly doubt she’s keeping the gossip mill going on how Dr. Nadeen bought the lovely new clinical student a salad.”
“You never know,” Megan countered. Trailing Pesh, she watched as he made his way over to a table filled with doctors and nurses. While the bottom half was filled with people, the top was practically empty.
“Mind if we take these seats?” Pesh asked.
“Go right ahead, Nadeen,” a bushy haired doctor replied.
“We’re expecting a few more to join us,” he said, before covertly winking at Megan.
“You play a good game,” she said, softly.
“Thank you.”
She’d just finished drizzling dressing over her salad when Pesh said, “Ready to prove yourself?”
“Are we really going to talk about this while we eat?”
“You’ll learn that most lunches and dinners are spent either reviewing cases or getting input on cases.”
“Fine then.” Putting on a professional air, she asked, “Have you taken any erectile dysfunction medication?”
After swallowing a bite of stir-fry, he replied, “No, never.”
“Do you have trouble obtaining an erection?”
The twinkle returned to his eyes. “I would think you wouldn’t need to ask that question after our previous encounter.”
A shiver went down her spine as she remembered her core rubbing against the hardened ridge in his pants. “Considering it is unlikely that I would have any previous knowledge of the patient, just answer the question.”
He gave her a sly smile. “No, never.”
“Do you have trouble maintaining an erection?”
“I could once again point out that you had personal knowledge of how well I was able to maintain myself once aroused, but I’ll refrain. Instead, I’ll say no.”
“Ha, ha, nice way to get your point in.”
“I had to try.”
She cocked her head at him, giving him a teasing smile. “If a patient was trying to flirt as much as you are during my questioning, then I would have to remind him that I am a professional.”
“I see. Then forgive me for trying to undermine your professionalism.”
“You’re forgiven…for now.”
He took a long swig of his iced tea. “You did really well back there.”
“Really?”
“Yes, you did. For that to be your first case on your own, you managed to keep yourself together and to give the patient the best level of diagnosis and care you could.”
She couldn’t help the warmth rushing to her cheeks that his compliments caused. “Thank you. I appreciate your confidence.”