Chapter 112 Carol Can Sing
Carol, sitting beside Matilda, leaned over and whispered, "That woman's trying to hook up with your husband."
Matilda's voice stayed level. "I noticed."
On stage, Bella was all smiles. "Major Gonzaga, you must have some talent. Come up and show us something."
The crowd immediately started cheering and egging him on.
Wentworth shook his head. "I don't have any talents."
"Then just come sing a song for us?" Bella pressed, her smile widening.
"I'm not a good singer."
"Don't like singing? Then just come stand up here while I perform. You can do that, right?"
Everyone kept heckling until Wentworth had no choice. As the highest-ranking officer there, participating in a little audience interaction wouldn't hurt. But once he got on stage, Bella announced they'd perform a theatrical scene together. Mainly her performing—singing while shamelessly flirting with Wentworth the entire time.
Watching from her seat, Matilda's fists clenched. How dare she hit on my man.
Carol noticed and leaned over. "You should go up there and sing something."
Matilda chickened out immediately. "I can't sing." She had a naturally nasal voice—what could she possibly perform?
"Then I'll go!" No sooner had the words left Carol's mouth than she was on her feet, calling out loud enough for everyone to hear. "Hey, emcee! Stop putting Major Gonzaga on the spot. You just want someone to come up and sing, right? I can do that."
With that, Carol strode right up on stage. Seeing her coming, Wentworth seized the chance to return to his seat. His eyesight was good—he'd been watching Matilda the whole time. Any longer up there and he'd have had some serious explaining to do with his wife.
Bella had no way to keep Wentworth on stage now. She could only welcome Carol with forced enthusiasm. "And you are...?"
"Family."
"Oh, and what's your talent?"
"Didn't I just say? Singing."
The sound tech quickly cued up some music. Before long, Carol's powerful voice filled the auditorium—she could sing perfect soprano. Everyone who knew her was shocked and delighted, especially Ethan. His eyes were completely glued to her.
...
For the rest of the performance, Bella couldn't bother Wentworth anymore. When the show ended, since they were so far from anywhere, the performing arts troupe would be staying overnight on base. Wentworth had already gotten Danny and the others to handle accommodations, but Bella still tracked him down.
"Major, can I get your number? You know, for future correspondence?"
"My wife doesn't like me randomly giving people my number."
"You're married?" Bella's face fell immediately.
"Yes. She just left."
Bella wasn't ready to give up. She'd performed in so many places and this was the first time she'd seen a major so young and handsome. "Adding a contact is no big deal though, right? Maybe there'll be more performances in the future. I'm a publicity officer in my district—I could help promote Stoneford Town's base."
"Not necessary." Wentworth smiled politely. He had Rick come take over hosting duties while he headed off to his guard shift.
...
Before she knew it, December had arrived. Stoneford Town's new hospital was finally complete. One outpatient building, one inpatient building. The structures weren't tall, but the hospital had tons of recreational and fitness facilities—basketball court, soccer field, even a small garden. The scale was actually better than Prairie Horizon Medical Center.
Maybe because the environment was so nice, it soon attracted several doctors and nurses from other areas. The staff was approaching ten people now. Matilda and Ethan both transferred to work in the new outpatient building.
Every time Matilda went to work, it felt a bit surreal. The building materials were top quality, and there was plenty of high-end medical equipment. Compared to the old clinic, it was like jumping several tax brackets. Of course, once the hospital's standards went up, locals started coming to check it out. Even if they weren't sick, they wanted to look around.
So Matilda and Ethan took the opportunity to promote health insurance, posting materials outside and printing handbooks to distribute to various villages.
Before long, Dr. MacAllister returned with Mrs. MacAllister. While in Majestic City, he'd heard they were building a new hospital here, but he never imagined that after being gone just a few months, it would already be finished. He had his own exam room now, with a computer. The pharmacy had hired a new doctor too.
Dr. MacAllister got all choked up. Ever since Matilda arrived, his life seemed to have taken a sudden turn. Days that used to stretch endlessly ahead with nothing to look forward to now felt vibrant and full of possibility.
...
Matilda still hadn't moved to the new staff housing. Since it was just built, she worried about formaldehyde levels. Ethan hadn't moved either—he couldn't bear to leave Carol, so he preferred staying at the diner.
On another day off, Wentworth wanted to take Matilda to the county seat. Now that the town hospital had new doctors, days off could be regular—not like before when she basically never got a break.
On the way there, she asked, "What made you suddenly want to go there with me?" In the year she'd been here, she could count on one hand how many times she'd been to the county seat.
Wentworth smiled. "I want to take you on a date."
"Really? So what have you planned?"
"You'll see when we get there."
"Alright then, color me intrigued." She wanted to see what kind of date this straight-laced military guy could come up with.
The drive took over three hours. By the time they arrived, she felt dizzy and slightly nauseous from all the winding roads. Once there, he first took her out to eat. The county wasn't big, but it beat Briarford County's two restaurants. At least here they could choose from different cuisines. Matilda was used to the heavily oiled, heavily spiced food at the diner, so she wanted something lighter.
After eating, they wandered around the county town for a while, trying various street snacks. The handsome guy and beautiful woman drew attention everywhere they went—people kept doing double-takes.
Matilda couldn't stand all the staring. "Going out with you isn't easy. We're like a traveling circus act."
"That's because you're too beautiful."
"My fault? When I go out alone, nobody stares at me like this."
"What do you mean nobody? Every time you go out alone, you run into trouble. I worry about you going anywhere by yourself."
"I only attract bad guys. You attract everyone."
Wentworth pulled her close. "Since you don't want people staring, then we should..." He trailed off, suddenly looking a bit awkward.
"We should what?"
After a moment of hesitation, he finally said, "I booked a hotel room."