Danni’s eyes grew wide in astonishment, the green seas of her soul, reflecting the churning thoughts in her mind as she stared at the screen. Blinking slowly several times, she raised her head to look at Garrett. "I don’t believe it," she muttered.


"What?" Concern edged through her voice. "What don’t you believe?" ‘Jeez, don’t tell me that Nathaniel Hostetler beat out both Rene and I? I don’t mind being second to Chabot but….’ The surgeon’s face grew very intense. "Let me see," she moved quickly around the corner of the table, standing behind the nurse. "Where?" Her eyes searched the screen frantically.


Danni lifted her hand and pointed to the line of deciphered information. She waited a moment then looked up at the face of the tall surgeon looming above her, as she quietly read the screen. ‘I can’t believe it. I knew that there was a good feeling, but never anything like that.’


Garrett’s mouth opened slightly as she let out a low whistle. It startled her to think that she had such an impact on the outcome of the patients. Her numbers were consistently higher with all of the nurses that were involved in trauma. One number stood out above the rest. Her gaze narrowed as she read over the line a second and then a third time.


"Can you believe that?" The nurse asked the tall woman who was still mesmerized by the numbers on the screen. "It’s got to be wrong. I bet someone forgot to add all of the data in to the equation."


"Hmmm…maybe it’s just reiterating the fact that we make a good team." She nodded in affirmation. "It does always feel kind of better when we work together, don’t you think?"


Danni thought for a moment. "Yeah, I’d have to say that you’re right. It does feel kind of natural, that way." The blonde pushed her chair back from the table. "So what do you think it means?"


The surgeon looked over to the blonde, studying her face for any misgivings. "I think we shouldn’t look a gift horse in the mouth." With that said, they both looked intently into each other’s eyes, trying to read the thoughts of the other. The clear blue crystals of truth shone forth like a beacon that had been lit for the first time. It had been more than half of her lifetime in coming, but now the openness to extend herself, allowed those chains that had bound her to loosen. Feeling slightly uncomfortable with the situation, Garrett chose to look back to the monitor screen. There was a moment of hushed stillness in the room as each woman came to grips with her own thoughts.


"I guess McMurray was right when he insisted that you and I work on the formal proposal for the support group." She used the information to tease at the nurse’s inquisitiveness.


"Support group?" Danni’s eyes riveted to the form of the surgeon as she stood looking over the information on the screen in a nonchalant manner.


The surgeon used her best poker face, playing with the nurse’s mind. When she felt she could contain her excitement no more, she slowly let her lopsided smile take hold. "Yeah," she nodded her head. "We have to have it in his hands the Monday before Thanksgiving. Then he’ll review it and present it at the Board of Directors meeting that Wednesday."


"He’s willing to back the idea? Did he have any suggestions? You know, if we include counseling, we could…" her mouth was going as fast as her mind could think.


The bombardment of questions was more than Garrett could comprehend. She just stood there amazed at the obvious excitement of the petite woman. ‘I don’t even think she realizes that she’s involved yet.’ Garrett shook her head and smiled politely. ‘I think we’ll need to use a tape recorder for the idea session. I’m never going to remember everything that she’s saying.’ The surgeon chuckled to herself as she made the effort to stop the rambling woman. "Slow down, Danni. One thought at a time, please."


"Oh…sorry, I guess I got carried away." She admitted to her friend. "I’m glad you’ll have the chance to do some good with your idea."


"My idea? If I remember correctly it was your idea." She looked the nurse straight in the eye, blue meeting green and holding it there. "McMurray is insisting that both of us…me and you are involved in this project from start to finish."


The nurse remained motionless, wondering if she had heard right. ‘Did she just say ‘both of us’? McMurray is insisting that I be involved too?’ "I…I don’t know what to say." The blonde woman blinked in astonishment.


"That’ll be a first. So when do you want to start putting it all together?"


"Garrett, you said that he wants it the Monday before Thanksgiving, right?"


"Yeah, and your problem with that is…?" The surgeon raised her eyebrow in question to the young nurse.


Danni hurriedly scrambled with the mouse to pull up a calendar on the computer screen. Seeing it, she froze then quickly came back to life, her voice full of fear. "That’s less than a week away!"


"I know. McMurray wants us to utilize work time to get it done. He’s going to talk to Dr. McCormick and get your time cleared with him." She looked around to make sure no one was watching or within earshot before she continued. "He said that Ian is always trying to squeeze his way into Trauma Service’s special projects and that he’ll probably jump at the chance to have you on the team."


"When do you think he’ll…"?


The intra-departmental intercom crackled to life interrupting Danni’s thought, causing her hand to reach for her trauma beeper. "Nurse Bossard, please report to the Manager’s office immediately."


Blue eyes flashed at green, locking them in for a brief second. "I’d say that McMurray already has. You better get going."


The nurse nodded her head and showed two entwined fingers, "Wish me luck." She stood up and proceeded down the hall to Nan’s office.


****************


The young nurse paused outside the closed door of her Manager’s office. She took in a deep breath trying to settle herself and her nerves. ‘I can’t believe that I’m this nervous. It’s not like this proposal is going to alter the rest of my life.’ Then she took one more breath and exhaled it slowly. ‘I mean, it will probably only last the next six months…till Garrett leaves.’ Danni didn’t want to think about that. She was finding the tall, stoic at times woman much more to her liking than she ever felt possible. ‘God, I’m going to miss her. Maybe we could still keep in touch with one another.’ When her body finally calmed enough to appear eager without being over enthused, she gently knocked on the door.


Danni didn’t have to wait long before the door was opened and the smartly dressed woman in her mid forties was showing her to a seat. Nan always gave off a professional image, even in her worst moments. She was a hard book cover to read in that prospective. The petite blonde walked through the doorway noticing that Dr. McCormick was also seated in the room. Stopping abruptly and motioning in the direction of the already occupied chair, Danni started apologizing. "I’m sorry. I didn’t know that you had someone here. I thought that the overhead said immediately. I’ll…I’ll come back later." Her legs edging her back into the hallway as she attempted to leave.


Ian McCormick jumped up from his chair, his face full of eagerness. Danni thought back to the last time she had seen that look in his eyes. Her mind shown a brief glimpse of the man in an outdoor seating, now she recognized it. ‘The softball game, right before the ambulance arrived.’


"Danni, we’re both here to talk to you." He motioned to Nan. "Now come on in and have a seat."


She moved into the room and shook Ian’s offered hand. She watched the appreciative look in his eyes. ‘Well, at least he’s not angry about something.’ She released his grip and stepped in front of the chair that her Manager was now motioning to.


Nan quickly moved to her seat behind her desk as the other two sat down. Folding her hands on her desk, she looked over to the Chief of the Emergency Department. Seeing his slight nod, Nan turned to address the young nurse directly. "Nurse Bossard," she smiled then restarted. "Danni," the Manager wanted to keep the impromptu meeting as informal and friendly as she could. "Dr. McCormick approached me about the possibility of adding you to a task force that is being formed jointly between the Department of Trauma Services and our own."


"Oh?" Danni fought hard not to laugh, thinking back to what Garrett had revealed to her about McCormick and how Dr. McMurray viewed him. "I didn’t know that there was any kind of task force being assembled." Her air of naivete being aided by her youthful appearance she pushed on for more information. "What will the task force be dealing with and why do you think that I would be interested in it?"


Ian took over now, as he attempted to explain how he had gone to the Chief of Trauma Services, Dr. McMurray, with the proposition and they had both agreed that it would be best for a task force to be put in place. Then he dropped the bombshell. He announced that a proposal would have to be drawn up and since it was so close to the quarterly Board Meeting, it would have to be done within the next few days. He offered some "I’m too busy to do it myself" excuse, then proceeded to tell her that it was his idea to use the best and the brightest from each department to be the work horses. He was coming to an end of his long explanation when he reached out and placed his hand on top of her’s as it resting on the arm of the chair. "That’s why we thought since the staff all felt that the two of you work so well together, that it would be no problem for either of you."


Danni looked at him, then at Nan. "Work well…with whom?" ‘I just love seeing what he’s going to offer as the excuse for picking Garrett and myself for this project.’ The petite nurse played with them as she eyed the balding man skeptically. She didn’t want to seem too eager. Besides, it was fun watching him sweat a little. The gods knew that he made the staff all sweat occasionally with his egomania about competing with other departments within the hospital.


"Well," he brought his handkerchief out of his pocket to wipe the isolated bead or two of perspiration not forming on his forehead, "with Dr. Trivoli, of course." He sounded shocked that she would not have already figured this out.


"You have to admit it, Danni, you two do have a natural feel for each other. It’s like you communicate on some level that none of us are aware of." Nan shocked herself at her own astute observation of the pair. "In all of my years, I’ve never seen someone be able to do that with all of the hostility that woman can give off. It’s been hell trying to keep nurses from refusing to work under her demands all around the hospital. The other managers are all receiving complaints about her from their staff." Nan shook her head. "Thank god, for some odd reason I’m not one of them. She’s viewed differently by the staff here in the E.R. Maybe it’s because we don’t see her for that long of a time." She paused to take a breath, and then continued. "You seem to be able to bring out a side of her that no one else could see. For that, I’m grateful."


The young nurse sat dumbfounded. She didn’t realize it was that noticeable to those around her. The "taming of the shrew" as some had termed her attempt at having a friendship with the perfectionist surgeon behind her back. She had ignored them and rightfully so. She could see the faint image of the real Garrett Trivoli, even as early as that first morning run in. It was something that she believed in, just like now. She believed in Garrett’s idea, knowing full well that she had a stake in it also. The eventual healing of the surgeon’s own traumatized soul. Her thoughts were interrupted by the sound of the deeper male voice.


"I’d like to see this project get all the support that it needs. What do you say, Danni?" He winked and looked encouragingly at her. "You’re the best one to work with her on this." ‘I would have liked to! I have no idea why McMurray, that old jackass, wouldn’t have anyone else but you paired up with his prima donna.’


Danni had her mind made up before she had ever entered the office some thirty minutes earlier. Now, it was time to voice her belief in the project, and Garrett also. She turned her gaze now to Nan. "You do realize that if I take this assignment, I’ll have very little time to concentrate on it with my present scheduling?" Her face was serious and very business-like.