He hit me with one final glare before turning to walk back inside, not another word on the matter.
I contemplated taking the day off and locking myself in my bedroom. If I didn’t love my job so much I probably would have done that. Instead, I gave myself a talking to and went back inside. I had shit to get through today, and I refused to give Linc any power over my actions. I’d pep talk the fuck out of today if I had to.
“You good for tonight, hon? I mean, you look like you need some time with your girls, but if you wanna cancel so you can sleep, I’ll understand.”
I watched Adelaide, my bestie, shove her bag in her work locker and wondered just how bad I looked. It hadn’t been the best morning so far, but I thought I at least looked okay. “If I look as bad as you’re saying, I shudder to think how awful I’m gonna look by tonight.”
She pulled her long red hair into a ponytail and shook her head. “Okay so you don’t look that bad, but I know you well enough to read the signs that shit isn’t right with you. Is Linc still being an ass?”
“Ugh. Ass doesn’t cover it. I’m not sure why, after three years of doing his best to ignore me, he’s suddenly always on my doorstep. He doesn’t listen when I ask him to please give me some notice he’s coming over, or even to ask if he can. And his child support payments have gone from bad to worse. I used to at least count on some money from him; these days I either get nothing or I get it late. That shit makes it hard for me to budget, you know?”
“Oh, honey, I know. You know I freaking know. Some days I want to scream at Jedd for what his bullshit support has done to my financial situation, but you know what? We’re stronger because of these men, Lily. Because of them, we’ve had to figure out how to stand on our own and give our kids what they need. When it gets too hard, remember that and be proud of who you’ve become and what you can achieve on your own.” She threw me a wink as she added, “And just know that there are good men out there and that one of them’s going to rock your damn world one day.” The wink was because after two years of being single, Addy had started dating Mr Tall, Dark, and Handsome, and he was rocking her world in ways it had never been rocked.
“Just ignore me, babe. I’m having one of those weeks. I’ll get my shit together again soon.”
Usually I didn’t allow anyone or any situation to interfere with my mojo. Usually, I’d get my meditation cushion out, light some candles and meditate my way through this kind of stuff. Or I’d burn some oils, fill my bath and chant my way through it. But Linc had been screwing with me for too many weeks now, and I was all out of sync with myself.
“What you need is a girls’ night out. I’ll organise one. And maybe we’ll find you a guy to blow your mind for even just one night.” She whipped out her phone and shot a quick message off before I could stop her. Looking back up at me, she hit me with the huge smile Adelaide Sutton was well known for. “Quinn and Georgia are in the loop. We’ll finalise plans tonight. And Lily? I have the exact right dress for you for this!”
Before I could say anything or stop her, she was out the door, and I was alone thinking about the exact right dress she had for me. It would be slutty and most likely red. Addy had a thing for red dresses. I was all for colour, but I just knew this dress was going to scream “fuck me all night long in any way you want and I’ll be sure to blow you real good” from a mile away. I closed my locker and headed out to start my shift, putting all thoughts of the red dress out of my mind after I decided I’d definitely wear it. God knew, this celibacy thing had to come to an end. I needed to get laid.
“Lily! Wait up,” my boss called out, hurrying to catch up. Falling into line, he said, “Fuck, it’s madness here today.”
I eyed the exhaustion lining his face. “You need to take that holiday you’ve been talking about for six months, Jackson.”
“Don’t get me started on that,” he muttered. “The higher-ups keep pushing our workload. At this rate, I’ll be getting around Greece with a fucking cane.”
Hospital life was never slow. The problem was, though, that these days it wasn’t just hectic, it was unbearably so. Staffing and funding cuts were killing us, to the point where I’d even started considering leaving the hospital to work for a physiotherapist friend who had her own successful practice. She’d been after me to join her for over a year, but I loved working with Jackson and Adelaide so much that I hadn’t entertained the idea.
He shoved a chart at me. “I need you to start with this woman today. Her brother is causing me no end of fucking grief, and while I’m loathe to give him what he wants, I just want him gone.”
I frowned. “What’s going on?” It was unlike Jackson to get this worked up over anything. His patience and calm way of getting through work were what made him so good at his job.
“She had hip surgery yesterday, and he’s in everyone’s face about her recovery. One of the nurses mentioned physical therapy was up next, so he’s been harassing them to get us down there. Apparently, he wants to be there for our first session, but he’s busy and doesn’t have all day to wait around for us.” Anger clouded his face. “Like we’re not fucking busy ourselves.” He exhaled loudly and muttered, “Fuck.”
“I think maybe you need to take the day off. It’s so unlike you t
o get worked up over an asshole like this and to cater to his demands.”
“The nurses want him gone too. I haven’t met him, but I’ve been told he’s menacing.”
I nodded. “Okay, well with the mood I’m in this morning, he can menace me all he likes. I’ve had just about enough of asshole men.”
His face turned serious. “Be careful, Lily. These guys aren’t worth messing with. I don’t need another Mackie case on my hands.”
The case he referred to had caused our team no end of headaches. The father of a young girl had assaulted one of our physiotherapists when he’d refused to cave to the guy’s demands. His treatment plan didn’t fit in with the father’s work schedule, and while we’d tried to accommodate that, we didn’t do enough as far as the father was concerned. They’d had a roaring argument that ended in the father punching our guy. Jackson had been the one who had to answer to bosses and deal with the fallout.
“I’ll tread carefully, but I won’t allow him to walk all over me.”
He sighed. “God help me.” Shaking his head, he added, “For once, I’d just like to be given a team member who doesn’t ruffle feathers.”
I grinned. He didn’t mean that, but I knew both Adelaide and I created headaches for him. “You’d be lost without me.” I took a step away from him. “I’ll do my best to keep the peace.”
Ten minutes later, I entered the hospital room of Skylar King and came face-to-face with who I presumed was the guy Jackson had mentioned. And I could see why the nurses were keen for me to get him sorted and out of here.
18
King