Socialite...or Nurse in a Million?

by Molly Evans

  Her path seemed meandering, but it led her eventually to the bench swing that was tucked away in a secret part of the vineyard. She sat and put the swing into motion then tucked her legs beneath her, hoping the motion would soothe her battered soul.

  The soft sounds of the breeze, the birds nesting in the nearby trees, the swish of the horses as they chased flies with their tails, all melded together in one blissful symphony of nature.

  Then the tears came. In the privacy of her vineyard she allowed herself to let go and ease the tension that had been building in her for months. She loved Miguel, but now she was more certain than ever that there would be nothing between them. Last night had proved that. They’d shared a beautiful experience and then walked away from each other. Letting go was always painful. Being in such a beautiful, peaceful place helped. Only time would ease the pain, but she would never, ever forget him.

  She’d had relationships in the past, but the breakups had never hurt her the way this one did. Not even her divorce had been this painful. Eventually, she calmed down and reconnected with the sounds of peace around her until the sound of footsteps on dirt penetrated her focus. One of the horses must have gotten out and decided to have a stroll through the vines. Wouldn’t her father have a fit if that happened? She opened her eyes and down the row in front of her she found the source of the disturbance, and it wasn’t a horse.

  Miguel stood there.

  Or perhaps against the afternoon sun the image was an illusion, a lame attempt by her heart to console her. Denial was a very powerful part of the grieving process. She knew that, but to have the full-blown figure of Miguel approaching her was something else. She blinked several times then held a hand up to shade the sun from her eyes. Nope. That was definitely Miguel getting closer to her, not an illusion. She swallowed and her heart pounded loud in her ears.

  “What are you doing here?” She rubbed her hands over her face and dashed away any lingering moisture, but she was certain her face was red and puffy. He would notice.

  “I needed to take a walk. I was restless.” He shoved his hands down into the pockets of his khaki shorts and looked down at the ground then back up at her with an intensity that surprised her.

  The nerves in the pit of her stomach clenched. What was he talking about? “There are plenty of places to walk in this town. There are the sidewalks, the parks, the Nature Center, the path down by the river.” The implication was clear. Why here?

  “I like this stretch of the river, but it’s on private property, you know.”

  She stepped forward. “I know.”

  “I wanted to come ask one of the owners if I could take a walk here, in the vineyard.” He stopped in front of her, just a foot away, and looked down at her, his eyes unreadable with the sun behind him. “I wanted to ask if she’d go along for a very long walk with me.”

  “Miguel, what are you talking about? What are you doing here?” She was so tired and confused she didn’t know what to think, couldn’t process what he was telling her.

  He took her hand and led her back to the swing she had just left. They sat. “Leaving you this morning was the hardest thing I’ve ever had to do.” He took her hands in his and squeezed. “That feeling, that pain, is something I never want to experience again.” He cleared his throat and swallowed a few times. “This is so hard to say.”

  “I know. When you left and didn’t look back, I knew things were over for us.”

  “Then when I thought of a future, I couldn’t think of one without you in it, but I don’t think I can do this.” He raised a hand and indicated the mansion and vines.

  “We don’t need to do this. In fact, we need to do something else entirely. There’s something you ought to know. Growing up in this environment was difficult and I know that’s hard for some people to understand. I had few friends, no boyfriends through school because the boys I knew were afraid of my father. Then people only wanted to know me because of my name and my family’s money.” She shuddered and heaved out a trembling sigh. “The only thing I have of my own is my nursing career.” Leaning her head back against the swing, she closed her eyes briefly. “Going to nursing school was the only time I’ve ever held my own against my father. Until now. Now I have a career and a job I love. Working at the clinic means everything to me, and I’ve discovered that I’m so much more capable than I’ve ever thought. It’s because of the clinic. Because of you, Miguel.”

  “My past, my brother’s death has haunted me through my life. I never told you but I was engaged when Emilio was killed.”

  “No, I didn’t know that.” Compassion for the young man that he had been welled in her. He’d been so hurt by life at a young age and had only survived without caving in to the grief because of his personal strength, strength he didn’t even know he had.

  “When I didn’t recover from Emilio’s death, she broke things off. I couldn’t give her what she needed and things just fell apart between us.” He placed an arm on the back of the swing and teased her hair with his fingers.

  “As you know, I’m divorced. It was a mistake from the start.” She sighed and allowed the pain of her past to bubble up. “He was after connections with my family and the business. I was incidental to the relationship.” Though it pained her to say it, it was the truth.

  He froze as the white-hot heat of protectiveness struck him. “No one should be incidental in a relationship. You are precious and the man was a total idiot for not seeing it.” As soon as the words left his mouth, he wondered if that was a statement about himself. “I should have seen it soon, too, Vicky. I’m sorry.” He sighed and dropped his gaze. “I’m guilty of not seeing the real you in the beginning, too. But you’ve helped me to heal from Emilio’s death and to learn to put the past behind me.”

  “You won’t ever forget Emilio, but you can let go of the pain surrounding him.” He’d begun the process and maybe some small part of that was due to her help. “If I’ve helped in any way, I’m very glad.”

  “I think from here we need to make a vow that the future is ours and one that we make together. One that’s our own.”

  She gasped, uncertain what he meant and not wanting to jump to conclusions. Did he mean at the clinic, to go to the hospital with him? What? Her heart raced and her mouth went dry. “Tell me what you mean by that.”

  Miguel squeezed her hands then dropped to the dirt in front of her. “Last night was filled with more magic and passion than I have a right to, but I don’t want to let go of it, or let go of you.” He placed his hands on her thighs. “I don’t know what my future is going to hold, but I want you in whatever that is. I want us to build one together.” He looked down at his hands then back up at her. “I don’t know when or where, and there are probably a dozen reasons why you shouldn’t, but, Victoria Sterling-Thorne, will you marry me?”

  She launched herself from the swing with a squeal and wrapped her arms around his shoulders. Unprepared for the sudden weight of her, Miguel toppled over, and they crashed to the ground. She spread kisses over his face and ended with one long, hot kiss that left them both breathless.

  “Is that a yes?” he asked when he could breathe again.

  “Yes, that’s a yes.”

  He hugged her tight. “Oh, good. If that had been a no, I was going to get worried.”

  They sat up and returned to the swing where Vicky curled against Miguel’s side and they exchanged kisses that got longer and longer and nearly as hot as the sun overhead.

  “How did you find me out here?” She pulled back with a frown.

  “I stopped at the house.”

  “You did?” Her stomach clenched.

  “Your father told me you’d probably be out here.” Miguel winked. “He’s actually not so bad when you get to know him a little.”

  This was a day of miracles if Charles was being civilized. “You actually spoke to my father?”

  “Yes, when I told him I wanted to marry you.”

  Stunned, Vicky stared at him. “I love you.
”

  “I love you right back.”

  EPILOGUE

  VICKY looked at the schedule on Miguel’s computer. There were too many holes in the physician side, but at least they were getting filled in one by one.

  She grinned. Two months ago she’d never have imagined so many changes in the clinic. Now they seemed natural. With some additional brainstorming with Dr. Flemming, who had indeed taken over nearly half of Miguel’s shifts, they had found extra physicians to put in time so that Miguel could in good conscience accept the position at University Hospital.

  “Got a minute?” Tilly asked from the doorway.

  “Sure. Come on in.” Vicky sipped from her coffee cup. “How’s Carlos doing on the computer?”

  “Not too bad for a beginner,” Tilly said, and grinned.

  They’d made some changes in staffing. Since Carlos was officially on light duty, Tilly had trained him to take over the computer scheduling and answering phones so that her nursing skills could be better utilized triaging patients. Vicky was now the office manager and had given most of her duties over to Tilly.

  “I’m just glad he could come back at all.”

  “There are a few things I wanted to ask you about. You may have done things differently when you were triaging, but I just wanted to see if this change is okay with you.”

  Although Tilly was the triage nurse and Vicky now the office manager, they had an equal relationship and interest in the clinic. “Let’s see it.” They looked over Tilly’s proposed changes and Vicky had no issues with them. “Looks good. If something doesn’t work, we can always try something else, right?”

  “Sure. Just like always.”

  The phone rang and Tilly left as Vicky returned to her scheduling.

  Hours had passed when she felt a presence in the doorway. When she looked up, her heart flipped and a smile crossed her face. “Hi, there. What are you doing here?”

  Miguel crossed the room and leaned on the desk beside her. “It’s quitting time. Got time for dinner?”

  “Sure. Anything special?”

  “I think it is. We’re celebrating.”

  “I know I got most of the schedule filled, but is it worthy of a celebration?” She smiled.

  “Not that—this.” He placed two fingers in his shirt pocket and fished out a small wrapped package. Holding it in the palm of his hand, he waited for her to take it.

  “Ooh. I see.” She licked her lips. “I can’t take it now.”

  “What?”

  “I’m in work clothes at the end of the day. I should be wearing a dress and—”

  “You were in work clothes when I met you and they don’t detract at all from the way I feel about you.”

  “Miguel,” she whispered, and tears filled her eyes. “I love you.” Carefully, she took the box from his hand, unwrapped it and opened it. Her first sight of the ring made her breath hitch. “It’s gorgeous.”

  “I hope it fits.” He extracted it from the box and placed it on the tip of her finger. “Victoria Sterling-Thorne, will you do me the honor of being my wife sometime very soon?”

  “I will.”

  He pushed the ring all the way onto her finger and it fit to perfection—just the way they fit together.

  ISBN: 978-1-4268-8975-2

  SOCIALITE…OR NURSE IN A MILLION?

  First North American Publication 2011

  Copyright © 2011 by Brenda Schetnan

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