by Paige Parker
“Look,” Dylan said, tightening his arms around Kylee. “I know this is an inconvenience. You don’t have to act like this was your idea. We really appreciate you letting us stay here, and I’ll do whatever I can to make sure it doesn’t affect you in any way.”
Julia swallowed hard and nodded. With all they had been through, she felt like a jerk worrying about some furniture and ruined dinner plans. She didn’t really need the dining room anyway. “Thank you, but really, it’s fine. We can have the dinner at Evan’s house. I know you’ve been through a lot. I’m…” But what else could she say? Sorry for being insensitive about letting you take over my house? Even though it’s an inconvenience, I still feel bad for your loss and want to help you? No. She went with, “We’ll all adjust.”
“Daddy,” Kylee said, looking up at him.
“Right,” Dylan said. “Could we trouble you for some water?”
Alyssa turned, took another bottle from the refrigerator, and opened it for Kylee.
“Thanks,” Dylan said, and they left the kitchen, Kylee drinking her water like she hadn’t had any in days.
Alyssa gave Julia a weary look.
“I’m sorry,” Julia said. “I feel like a jerk.”
“He lost his wife, then his job, and now his house. Give the guy a break.”
“I’m trying to,” she said through clenched teeth. “But why didn’t they have family they could stay with? Or a closer friend or something?”
“Dylan’s not from here. Melanie was. Her parents offered to let them move in, but they don’t have the room. With all Kylee’s been through, he didn’t want to move her from her school and friends, and we live in her school district.” Alyssa shrugged. “It makes the most sense for them to be here. Dylan’s got friends, but they’re all married with kids of their own.”
Julia sighed. “Well, it’s only temporary, right?”
“Right.” Alyssa took one more sip before putting her water back in the fridge. “He’s trying to get his job back, but they think he needs more time. He was on severance for a few months, but now that’s run out, too.”
“Where did he work? He’s a pediatrician, right?”
“No, he’s a surgeon. Has been for years. He was at Springfield North.”
“Oh.” It was one of three hospitals in the area, and the one with the best reputation. She worked at Springfield South and had applied at all three hospitals in the area before securing her nursing position. If he’d gotten fired from North, he might have a hard time getting a job at either of the other hospitals in the area. Then what? They’d have to stay permanently? Or he’d be forced to move away. Maybe there was something she could do to help. She owed him that much.
Chapter 3
The next day at work, Julia went to talk to the head of surgery. Dr. Willard had become something of a friend over the last months. Julia was often chosen by him to be part of his team on surgeries. She hadn’t been given a lead nurse position yet, but hoped it would come as she continued to prove herself.
Dr. Willard was in his office, shoving forkfuls of salad into his mouth while flipping through the pages of a journal. She knocked softly on the open office door.
He looked up and smiled when he saw her. “Come on in.”
“Sorry to interrupt your lunch.” Julia sat in one of the chairs in front of his desk.
“Not at all.” He closed the journal and swallowed his mouthful. “What can I do for you?”
“It’s not for me, actually, but a friend of mine. I’m not sure how familiar you are with surgeons at other hospitals, but my friend, Dylan McCoy, was a surgeon at Springfield North.”
“McCoy…” He thought for a moment, then recognition crossed his face. “Did he recently lose his wife?”
“Yes, that’s him.” Julia didn’t know if it was good or bad that Dr. Willard knew about him already. “He’s taken some time off to grieve, but it seems that they’re not ready to hire him back yet. Problem is, he’s lost his house because he’s been out of work too long. I thought if we were looking to add to our surgical team, maybe we’d have a place for him?”
He tapped his fingertips together for a minute. “Well, I’d have to make some phone calls, talk to his superiors at North, and I’d have to clear it with our director, of course, but we can always use another set of skilled hands. I’ll get back to you.”
“Thank you, Dr. Willard. I know he’d really appreciate a chance to get back to doing something he loves.”
“Start with upward facing dog and transition into downward facing dog.”
Julia moved according to the voice on her yoga video. She positioned her feet on her mat, pressing them into its softness, and breathing deep. Her morning yoga routine was one of her favorite times of the day, a time that grounded her for the rest of her waking hours.
“Lift your right leg high.”
She lifted her leg, and as she did, banged her foot on a lamp, sending it clattering to the ground. She fell out of the pose and landed on her butt. The lamp lay on the floor on its side, but seemed undamaged. She picked it up and inspected it as the yoga instructor continued on without her.
“Grab your ankle for the sugar cane variation.”
Julia rubbed her foot and ignored the yogi. She turned to set the lamp out of the way and started at the sight of someone watching her. She let out a small yelp and almost dropped the lamp. After setting the lamp down, she smiled at Kylee.
“Hi, sorry. Didn’t know you were there. You startled me.”
“Sorry.” Kylee was holding tight to her bear. “What were you doing?”
“It’s called yoga. It’s just stretching and breathing. You can watch if you like.”
“Can I try it?”
Julia looked around and considered. Several extra tables, a few chairs, and smaller pieces like the lamp she’d almost broken, filled the empty space that was usually available in the living room. She’d had to move several pieces to make enough room for her mat. “I think you’ll have room right here.” She pointed to a space on the floor between her mat and the TV. The floor was hardwood, which would make yoga comfortable, but she only owned one mat. She pulled a small blanket off the couch and laid it on the floor for Kylee. Then she rewound the video to the place where she’d left off.
This time, when Julia bent over and lifted her leg high, Kylee mimicked her pose, after setting her bear down carefully so that it could see her. When it came time to bend forward and grab their ankles, Kylee fell over into her. Julia managed to keep her balance, but felt slightly annoyed. This was her time, and she didn’t want it interrupted.
Kylee sat up and giggled. “Whoops. This is hard.”
“It just takes some practice,” Julia said. Maybe Kylee would get bored and go do something else.
But Kylee stayed and finished the twenty-minute video. She stretched her little body into the poses and wasn’t half bad, Julia noticed. Her determination was admirable. Some of the harder positions were difficult, but she tried her best and scrunched her little face in concentration as she held each pose.
When the video ended, Kylee clapped her hands and hopped up and down. “I did it!”
“You did.” Julia couldn’t help but laugh at her excitement. “How old are you now, Kylee?”
She held up one hand and an extra finger.
“Wow. Six. Did you know I was at your first birthday party?”
“Yeah. I’ve seen the pictures.” She picked up her bear and dashed out of the room. Moments later, she heard her exclaim from the kitchen, “Daddy, I did yogurt!”
Julia followed her to the kitchen. “She means yoga.”
Dylan chuckled. “Ah. That makes much more sense. She wasn’t in your way, was she?”
“No, not at all. She’s pretty good, actually.”
“She used to take dance classes, but that was before.” Dylan watched Kylee tear open the lid of a yogurt cup and dig a spoon in.
“Mommy liked to watch me dance.” Kylee said, shoving her spoon
into her mouth.
Dylan nodded solemnly. “She did.”
Silence fell across the room, broken only when Kylee smacked her lips together with her next spoonful.
“Well, I better go get ready for work,” Julia said and hurried upstairs to her bedroom. She glanced at her phone to check the time and saw a waiting text from Dr. Willard.
“Can you have Dylan come in today? We’d like to speak with him.”
She dashed back downstairs. “Dylan!” They were still in the kitchen, Dylan now pouring himself a mug of coffee. “Do you have any plans today?”
“Just to get Kylee to school and pick her up.”
“Can you come into the hospital? The head of surgery wants to meet with you.”
He took a sip of his coffee. “Me? Why?”
“Well, I told him you were a brilliant surgeon and that we needed to hire you.”
He blinked at her. “You did?”
“Sure. It’s the truth, isn’t it? I mean, I guess I’m making an assumption on the brilliant part, but I figured if you worked at North, you couldn’t be too bad.”
He chuckled. “No, I hope not. Wow. Thank you, Julia. I don’t know what to say.”
“You don’t have to say anything. Just thank me when you get the job.” She smiled at him before going off to get ready.
Chapter 4
“I was wondering if maybe you’d want to carpool?” Dylan asked as he and Julia poured cereal into bowls. “When our shifts are at the same time, that is.”
“Right. Sure, I guess that makes sense,” Julia said. It was Dylan’s second day on the job and they currently both worked the 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. shift.
Julia finished her cereal and set her bowl in the sink. “I’ll be ready in a few minutes.” She went upstairs to grab her purse and security badge, then met Dylan in the entryway.
“I’ll drive,” he said. “I owe you big time for talking to Dr. Willard and getting me this job.”
“It was no problem.”
He held open the front door and smiled at her as she walked through it. Her heart skipped at the sight of his grin and she immediately felt guilty. It wasn’t fair to Evan for her to be so attracted to him. During the car ride, she kept her eyes facing forward or out the window. Anything to avoid looking at him.
They ended up on the same shift rotation, which meant they carpooled together every day. Every day it was more of the same thing. She kept their conversation to small talk and looked at anything but him. In general, she avoided him as much as possible. Now that he’d gotten the extra furniture out of the living room and dining room, they had enough space to spread out and she could be in a different room than him most of the time when they were home. But when she sat beside him in the car, he felt so close, and she couldn’t ignore her racing pulse.
“I have a big surgery today,” Dylan said. “I’m on the quad bypass.”
“You are? That’s huge!” Her hand reached out involuntarily and touched his arm. She pulled it back immediately. “Congratulations.”
“Thanks. I’m excited. I didn’t expect to land such a complicated surgery after only a month.” He beamed at her and tapped on the steering wheel.
After Julia signed in and put her things away, she went to get her assignments for the day. When she looked at the sheet, she saw the quad bypass listed. And beside the time and operating room, it said, “lead nurse.” Julia looked over the sheet again, checking the other names and positions. Could this be right? But after her third read through, she was sure. Dylan had not only chosen her to be part of his surgical team, but he’d made her the lead. Her first time in such a high position. She could barely contain her excitement as she went to scrub in.
Inside the operating room, Julia grinned at Dylan and mouthed, “Thank you.” They worked and sweated together for hours with the rest of the team. The surgery was a success and it ended with many shared hand slaps and congratulations.
As she left the operating room, she saw Dr. Willard talking with Dylan. Her heart filled with joy when she heard Dr. Willard praising him. Dylan had to know how big of a deal this was.
“Julia!” she turned at the sound of Dylan’s call, and he hurried down the hall toward her. “Hey, I was going to head to lunch. I’m starving after that. Want to join me so we can discuss the surgery?”
“That sounds great.” It wasn’t an unusual request. There was often discussion amongst the team after a complicated surgery. It just didn’t usually happen over lunch.
They walked together to the cafeteria. He talked excitedly about the different aspects of the surgery and how he’d felt performing each step. Clearly, he was feeling very pleased. He didn’t stop smiling the whole time.
After they ordered and received their food, they choose a table outside in the warm spring air and continued their conversation. His excitement was contagious. She’d already been feeling pumped up after having been a successful lead nurse for the first time, but the way he talked about stitching together arteries made her appreciate the art of medical science in a new way. She couldn’t help but gaze in adoration as he described the feel of the knife in his hand.
“This is why I went into medicine, you know?” Dylan took a bite of his sandwich. “We changed that man’s life today.”
“Yes, we did.” Julia smiled back and let her gaze fall toward the building, where she saw Evan approaching them. She sat up straight and waved at him.
“Heya,” Evan said. “There you are.”
“We were just having lunch,” Julia said.
“And celebrating a successful surgery,” Dylan added. He stuck out his hand and introduced himself.
“I guess I should have texted first, but I wanted to surprise you.” Evan held up a bag of food.
“Oh,” Julia said. “I’m sorry.”
“No, it’s okay. Like I said, I should have texted first.”
“I was just heading back to work.” Dylan waved and walked back into the building.
“I’m surprised you were able to get away for lunch,” Julia said. “It’s a nice surprise.”
They kissed briefly and he took the seat where Dylan had been.
“It was a really slow day.” Evan glanced over his shoulder at the building. “So, you two eat together every day?”
“No, that was the first time. We were both in the quad bypass today and he made me lead nurse, so we were just celebrating. It was his first big surgery since he came on staff here.”
“He chose you as lead?”
“Isn’t that great?” She beamed and swallowed a bite of food.
Evan’s reaction was less than what she’d expected. “So, you’re living with the guy, driving to work with him every day, now he’s showing favoritism, and you’re having lunch together?”
Julia set her sandwich down and looked at him. “Living with the guy? He moved in because Alyssa told him he could stay with us after his wife died. I can’t believe you’re reacting like this. We drive together to save on gas, and he wasn’t showing favoritism. He picked me because I’m good at what I do and he sees that. I thought you’d be happy for me, but now you’re getting jealous?”
“I’m not jealous. You have to admit that it’s a strange situation.”
“Sure it is. And it’s temporary.”
“Right.” Evan pulled a burger from the bag and peeled back a corner of its wrapping. “Temporary, yet he’s been working here how long and still living with you?”
“It’s only been a month. How quickly do you expect him to find a place?”
“Shouldn’t take a month,” he said with a full mouth.
Julia shook her head. “Evan. We’ve been dating for almost a year now. How could you be jealous of him? I love you and want a future with you. I barely know Dylan, and I’m just trying to help him out. That’s all.”
Even set down his food and turned to her. “I’m sorry. You’re right. I guess I just wasn’t expecting that when you got this job and I got prompted we’d be spending so much less
time together.”
She put her hand to his check. “It’s kinda cute that you freaked out.” She kissed him and touched her nose to his. “Just don’t do it again.”
He put his hand over hers and kissed her again. “I won’t.
Chapter 5
Julia stretched out in her bed, feeling the lateness of the morning. She rolled over and looked at the clock. 8 a.m. For most people, that might not be sleeping in, but when she had to get up at 5:30 to be at work by 7 a.m., the extra hours were pure luxury. She always slept as late as possible on her days off.
She dressed to the smell of bacon and coffee. When she went downstairs, she found Alyssa and Dylan in the kitchen, eating breakfast.
“There’s plenty of bacon,” Alyssa said when Julia walked in.
Dylan added, “And coffee.”
“Perfect.” Julia piled a few pieces onto her plate, scooped a small pile of eggs beside them, and poured coffee. She joined them at the table.
“Ooo, here’s one!” Alyssa said. She pointed to an ad in the paper lying open on the table. “It’s three bedrooms.”
Dylan turned his head to read over the listing.
“Are you looking for houses?” Julia asked.
“Starting to,” Dylan said. “Now that I have a job, I can work on getting us out on our own.”
“Oh,” Julia said. She’d gotten used to having him and Kylee around for the last months. Kylee had become her favorite yoga buddy and, of course, Dylan and her shared their work. Surprisingly, she felt a pang of sadness imagining what it would be like when they were gone. “Well, no rush or anything.”
“Hmm, this one could work,” Dylan said. His phone dinged, and he pulled it out to look at the screen. “Uh oh.” He got up and left the room. They heard him talking a minute later.
“You done?” Alyssa asked, her hand hovering over Julia’s plate.
“Yes, thanks.”
Alyssa finished clearing the table as Dylan walked back in the room.
“Well, I’m sunk.” He ran his fingers through his hair. “I have to go into work. My patient from my surgery yesterday is having complications.”