"I thought about it," she admitted. "But it doesn't make sense.
Why me?
He can have his pick of the best around."
Dr. Lobb grinned but his eyes were serious.
"You are the best around, honey. It's about time you realized that."
The elevator door opened and they stepped out into the basement corridor, where the employees' cafeteria was.
Jennie looked down at her white uniform.
"I'd better get out of this and into a dress."
"I'd be just as happy if you just got out of that."
He laughed. "You don't have to put on a dress for me."
She looked up at him, smiling.
Someday, this young man was going to be one of the really good ones.
"Maybe I’ll surprise you sometime."
"Surprise me by bringing back a steak sandwich," he called after her. "I've about given up on the other."
Doctor Grant held a package of cigarettes out toward her.
She took one and he held a match.
His eyes met hers over the flickering flame.
"I suppose you're wondering why I asked you to lunch?"
She nodded. "I was curious, to say the least."
He smiled.
"I'm sorry if I provoked your curiosity. But I really meant it when I said I like to forget about my practice during lunch. But I guess now it's time to get down to business." She didn't answer. "During the past year, Miss Denton, I’ve had an excellent opportunity to observe your work in surgery.
From the very first, I was aware of your aptitude and I have always appreciated, as a surgeon, the extremely competent manner in which you render assistance."
"Thank you, Dr. Grant."
"As you may know, Miss Denton, I have a rather extensive and busy practice.
There are many physicians who refer their patients to me for surgery.
Much of this practice is of a minor nature and under proper conditions, can be attended to in my office. It relieves the patient of a considerable part of the economic burden. Jennie nodded silently. "This morning, I learned from Miss Janney, who's been associated with me for many years, that she's getting married and plans to move to Southern California."
He drew on his cigarette. "When I came to the hospital today, I took the liberty of speaking to Sister Christopher about you.
She agrees that you'd make an excellent replacement for Miss Janney."
"You mean you want me to work for you?"
He smiled. "In my roundabout manner, that is what I was about to ask.
Are you interested?"
"Of course.
What girl wouldn't be?"
"It's not an easy job, you know," he said.
"I have a few beds in my clinic and very often, we'll have to work late.
Occasionally, I even keep a patient overnight. At such times, you'd have to remain on duty."
"Dr. Grant," Jennie said, smiling, "I've put in two eight-hour shifts a day with only four hours' sleep between, for the last week. Working for you will seem like a picnic."
He smiled and reaching across the table, patted her hand reassuringly.
Jennie smiled back at him.
He wasn't so bad, after all, even if he did take out a few perfectly healthy appendixes. He was only the surgeon. He couldn't be responsible for the faulty diagnosis of every physician who sent him a patient.
But that was before she went to work for him and found out that healthy appendixes weren't the only things he removed.
He also had a very busy practice in unborn babies up to ten weeks after conception.
As a matter of fact, he was probably the busiest abortionist in California.
But by the time she was aware of that, it didn't matter, because she was in love with him.
Nor did it matter that he was already married and had three children.
8.
The telephone rang just as she was about to leave the tiny two-room apartment over the clinic.
She went back and picked it up.
"Dr. Grant's office," she said. It was an extension of the telephone in the office downstairs.
"Jennie?" came the whisper.