A Nurse to Tame the ER Doc

No one always smiled so it shouldn’t bother her that Jack was irate.

But it did.

Because old feelings had pitted in her stomach and ruined everything.

* * *

“I’m sorry.”

At Jack’s interruption, Taylor didn’t glance up from the book she was reading. Not long after she’d dropped her purchases off in her car, she’d grabbed her bag, a book, and had taken off until she’d found a semi-shady spot to while away the afternoon until it was time to report for her shift.

“For?”

“You know what for.”

“It’s not a big deal.”

“Tossing my words back at me?” He squatted down next to where she sat on a blanket on the far side of the event area. “I guess I deserve that.”

“You’re giving me more credit than I deserve.” She hadn’t even realized that’s what she’d done until he’d pointed it out.

“I’m not giving you nearly the credit you deserve,” he countered. “Last night was amazing.”

Trying not to let his words get to her, she nodded. “This morning not so much.”

“I am sorry you heard that.”

She shrugged. “Don’t be. We both know it’s true.” She took a deep breath, then continued. “And we are both okay that it’s true. I’m just another festival fling for you and you’re my post-divorce late rebound fling. We both got what we wanted and, like you said, it meant nothing.”

He sighed, then

gestured to her blanket. “Can I sit with you?”

Surprised that he’d asked, she nodded. “It’s not as if you aren’t going to see me in a few hours during our shift.”

“I needed to talk to you before then. To tell you I’m sorry.”

Her hands shook. She didn’t want him to notice so she set her book on the blanket, wrapped her arms around her legs, and clasped her hands together. “I don’t understand your need to apologize, because you just stated what we both already knew. But, fine, apology accepted.”

He let out a long sigh. “I’ve ruined everything, haven’t I?”

She didn’t understand. “What is there to ruin, Jack? Last night was amazing. We work tonight and leave in the morning. End of story.”

“I don’t want us to end this way.”

I don’t want us to end at all.

Her eyes widened in surprise at her unexpected thought. She’d known from the beginning they would end, that whatever happened was temporary.

She swallowed to moisten her dry throat.

“I’ve had a great time with you, Taylor. The best.”

She could feel her eyes starting to water and didn’t want to cry, didn’t even know why she was on the verge of doing so, just knew she did not want to let him see her cry. “Please, don’t do this.”

His brows formed a V.

“Don’t say things you don’t mean.” Had her voice sounded a bit desperate? She’d been going for strong, independent, I don’t care, not pleading. She straightened her shoulders, tilted her chin, and willed her persona to be nonchalant. “Don’t pretend any of this was more than what it was.”