“I SAY THIS as a woman who formerly loved you and still cares about you…”
Nico looked up to see Maria standing there with her arms crossed. Uh, oh. She had that look in her eyes, the one she got when she was about to give him a long lecture.
He moaned. “I don’t need this right now.”
Although each day since Anna had left felt like a struggle to get through, two months had gone by and he’d been busy getting the hospital fully operational. Things had come together in large part thanks to the governor and to Lieutenant Luke Williams, both of whom had become close personal friends of his. Luke had managed to get himself assigned to Guam, and both men had put in some hard labor when they weren’t at their day jobs to help get the hospital up and running.
“You’re going to hear it!” Maria said. “I am done with seeing your mopey face around here. I have work to do, a hospital to run, and we’ve hired and fired two CMOs in less than six weeks. I need you to snap out of it.”
Nico couldn’t help but crack a smile. Maria was being a friend, and despite her bluster, he could see the worry lines etched in her forehead. “Listen, Miss Bossy, haven’t I done everything you’ve asked? It’s not my fault the CMOs can’t cut it here.”
“Right, especially after you keep riding them for not performing miracles like our famed Dr. Atao.”
She took a seat across from him and softened her tone. “Listen, I know this hasn’t been easy for you, but maybe it’s time you really said goodbye to her. We just hired this really cute nurse for the ER…”
“Maria!”
“What, you think I’ll be here waiting for you? I’ve got several dates lined up.”
“Would one of them be our maga’låhi?” Even Nico hadn’t missed the way Tom doted on Maria, following her around like a lovesick puppy.
She raised a brow and looked at him sideways. “I’m not ready for him yet.”
He bit his tongue before he said something that would get him a new lecture. The last thing he had a right to do was give love advice to Maria.
“You’re right. I need to start focusing on my family. Nana has a phone consultation with that oncologist you found in California.”
Maria nodded. “I checked his credentials—he’s really good. And if it works out, he’s willing to come here once every two months for exams and consultations on Nana’s case and any others we want to give him. He’ll do the rest of his work remotely. He’s not cheap, but if we have a few more patients, I think he’s worth it.”
Nico thanked Maria, then drove home to Tumon Bay. The house was still a disaster and barely habitable, but he was slowly making progress. He’d managed to pump out the water on the first floor and dry it out. The next step was to fix the roof. Maybe he’d get out of Maria’s hair and spend some time working on the house.
After Anna left, it had felt right to move back in there. He couldn’t explain it to himself or Nana, but he wanted to fix it. Five years ago, he hadn’t been able to face the house that only held memories of Anna, but now something felt different. It wasn’t just their house, it was also his. A labor of love. It was the first place that belonged to him, the first big purchase he’d made. All his. He remembered how he felt when he signed the papers to buy it. At the time, he had no idea whether he was making the best decision or the biggest mistake of his life. But the house had turned out exactly as he’d pictured it would. Until Lucas’s diagnosis, he’d been able to make his wife happy there. He’d been able to provide for her. For the first time in his life, he’d felt like he could do anything he wanted.
This was his house, and he wasn’t going to sell it. He was going to use the insurance money to rebuild it and make a home for himself. With or without Anna.
He went to the kitchen and took out a bottle of beer from the refrigerator that he’d gotten working just last night. The kitchen wasn’t fully functional yet because the plumbing had been damaged. Tito had promised to come by on the weekend and help him repair it now that his leg had healed.
Nico opened a drawer to retrieve a bottle opener and caught sight of the divorce papers. He’d shoved them in the drawer when he’d gotten home the day Anna left and hadn’t touched them since. Her ring was back in the little silver antique box in the dresser upstairs.
Everything had changed, yet nothing had.