The Assignment

“Don’t apologize. Tell me what’s wrong. You look a bit down.”

I hadn’t shed a tear over the situation with Troy since our talk last night, and I’d vowed not to, especially in front of Kiki.

But Ruby’s simple question caused my eyes to well up.

She noticed right away. “Oh, dear.”

Wiping a lone tear, I sniffled. “I’m not supposed to be doing this at work.”

“You’re not at work. You’re technically in my house—or at least the only house I have. See that sign?” She pointed to an embroidered wall hanging. “Home sweet home? I make the rules in this space. So, tell me what has you so sad.”

The words that came out of my mouth were a surprise. “I think I’m in love.”

There was no other explanation for how sick to my stomach I felt at the first real threat of losing what I had with Troy.

“Well, that’s a beautiful thing. Why are you crying?”

“Because I don’t think I realized it until I felt like I was about to lose him. I am about to lose him. And it’s partly my fault.”

“Why are you losing him?”

I took a seat across from her. “I sort of gave him an ultimatum—not in so many words, but I asked him to assess whether a long-term relationship with me was what he really wanted before we took things any further. You see, he’s never been the monogamous type. So, I think we’re gonna be on a break while he goes back to Seattle to take care of some business. He technically lives there. The whole thing was my suggestion, but almost the second he agreed with me, I felt devastated. I think I wanted him to try to talk me out of it. The fear I felt when he didn’t made me realize how strong my feelings are. I already miss him, and he hasn’t even left yet.”

Ruby snapped her fingers. “Wait, this is Louie’s grandson, isn’t it?”

I’d never said anything to her about dating Troy. “How did you know?”

“When you said Seattle, it hit me. He’s a nice kid. I’ve spoken to him, and I knew he was from out of town. Plus, I remember that little duet you did at The Carpenters singalong.”

“Yeah, you got me. It’s Troy Serrano.”

“No secrets among family, you hear?” She winked. “You can tell me anything. It’s safe with me.”

“Thank you, Ruby.”

“You’ve heard the term absence makes the heart grow fonder, of course?”

“Yeah...”

“Well, sometimes absence takes out the trash.” She chuckled. “Trust me, if he doesn’t come back to you, you never had him to begin with. This little separation will be good. It will prove once and for all whether you mean something to him.”

Is it really that black and white? “What if he cares about me, but doesn’t think he’s cut out for a long-term relationship?”

She shook her head. “No such thing. Either you love someone enough to take the chance on yourself or you don’t. End of story.”

• • •

Later that afternoon, I was shocked to find Troy pacing in the hallway in front of his grandfather’s room.

“Hey, I didn’t know you were coming today,” I called as I approached.

He breathed out a sigh of relief. “There you are. They said they didn’t know where you were.” Despite the worried expression on his face, Troy looked amazingly handsome in a black wool coat and scarf, as if he’d just walked out of a men’s clothing catalog. His thick, gorgeous hair was wind-blown.

“I was talking to one of the residents. Is everything okay?”

“The meeting I have to attend for work got pushed up to early tomorrow morning. That means I have to take the next flight out. I’m headed to the airport.”

My heart dropped to my stomach. “We won’t get to spend time together before you leave?”

His forehead wrinkled. “No. I’m afraid not. But I couldn’t leave without seeing you. So I came to say goodbye.”

The whole thing didn’t sit right with me, even if he had no control over the situation.

He looked devastated. “I’m so sorry, Aspyn.”

My throat tightened. Was he sorry for leaving early or in anticipation of something else? I shoved my concerns aside. “You can’t help it, right? There’s nothing to be sorry for.” My entire body tensed in an attempt to fight the feelings of sadness and longing.

“Do you think you could sneak outside for a couple of minutes so we can have a moment alone?” he asked.

I checked my phone. We had a trip to the outlet mall scheduled, and the van would be boarding soon. “I have just a few minutes before we have to leave for a trip.”

Troy followed me out a side door. It was chilly out, and I hadn’t put on a jacket. The cold air seeped through the thin material of my scrubs.

Troy looked down at me. “Of course you have to be wearing my favorite scrubs right now. As if leaving wasn’t painful enough.” He forced a smile.