J
o took a deep breath as she walked toward the administration entrance of the hospital and tried to release some of her built up anxiety on the exhale. It didn’t help. Nothing did—not even prayer. The misery hadn’t let up since the day Tage showed up unannounced and unwanted, destroying her life and her peace of mind.
Breaking up with Micah had been the right thing to do, but the grief that settled over her because of it was nearly unbearable. Thoughts of losing Ma had crowded in to join the party and she’d spent five days buried under a mountain of blankets. Sleeping, tears, and Netflix, combined with copious amounts of Cherry Garcia ice cream, was never as brilliant an idea as it seemed at the beginning, so it was a good thing she got called into the office. At least it had gotten her moving.
They probably wanted to talk to her about when she planned to end her leave and schedule her return to work. She had mixed feelings about that. It was time to get back into the swing of things, but she never wanted to see Tage Buford again. Ever. But her expectations of pulling that off were low. Even if the hospital granted her request to be moved to a different department, the chance that she’d run into him at some point was highly possible.
Jo caught her reflection in the glass door just before it slid open. Her eyes were stretched wide, her face pale despite all the makeup she’d applied to cover the dark circles. She couldn’t show up looking scared out of her mind. She squared her shoulders and schooled her features.
Nothing to fear. Just ask for the transfer and avoid Tage until you figure out what to do next. No reason the hospital won’t grant the request. As shorthanded as they are at times, there’s no chance of them letting you go without trying their best to make it work. And you’ve been a good employee. That should count for something.
Jo looked straight ahead, hoping she wouldn’t run into anyone she knew. Numb confidence set in as she spoke to the receptionist and was pointed in the right direction. That confidence bled out through the soles of her feet when she entered the office to find Tage sitting across the desk from Vince Bryant, the personnel manager.
She stood there with her hand still on the doorknob, staring at Tage and debating on the best way to escape while also wondering what he was doing here.
Vince stood and motioned to the empty seat next to Tage. “Miss Spencer, please close the door and have a seat.”
As she obliged, her gaze never left Tage. Would hitting him with a left hook be worth the jail time? No, she’d probably hurt herself more than she would him. Par for course.
She turned away and looked at Vince and that’s where her eyes would stay. Tage didn’t deserve anymore of her attention. He’d already taken too much.
Vince beamed an oily smile and Jo’s stomach took flips as she remembered he was one of Tage’s golf buddies.
“You’re probably wondering why we called you in.” He paused with a raise of his brows, but Jo didn’t answer. “We’ve been made aware of an incident involving you and Dr. Buford. I’m sure you know which incident I’m referring to.”
It was Jo’s turn to raise her brows, but she still didn’t speak. Yes, she knew to what he referred and who’d told him about it. The who behind the we he spoke of was the only unclear part. Who else had been in on the discussion between Tage and Vince and what power did they have over her future?
The man’s head tilted to the side, and he made a sound that was a cross between a huff and a laugh. “Miss Spencer, you threatened a respected doctor of this hospital with a firearm. What do you have to say for yourself?”
Jo folded her arms across her chest and leaned back in the seat. “Only that he shouldn’t have showed up uninvited on my private property and I hope he has enough sense not to try it again.”
The huffy laugh coming from Tage mirrored the one Vince gave earlier, but Jo pointedly ignored it.
Vince sat back and steepled his fingers in front of him. “It’s well known around here that you’ve been deeply involved with Dr. Buford for years now. Clearly, he had been a frequent visitor at your place before. I wouldn’t think an invitation was warranted, and an unexpected visit surely didn’t account for you brandying a gun. Frankly, I’m surprised he didn’t press charges. You’re lucky he’s a forgiving man.”
Despite her fight to keep her composure, Jo’s face lit up hotter than fireworks on the Fourth of July at the mention of the affair. “I’m sorry, what does this have to do with hospital administration? That happened on private property and had nothing to do with the hospital. And it happened while I was on leave.”
“Miss Spencer, you must know that an incident like that between a doctor and one of our nurses is a reflection on the hospital, which could get you terminated from your job.”
The desk phone buzzed, and Vince picked it up. Jo didn’t hear what was said for the white noise sounding off in her head. Help, Lord, please help whispered in the background of her thoughts like it was someone else praying the prayer and not her.
“Just a moment.” Vince left the office and quiet settled over Jo’s spirit.
From her peripheral, she saw Tage lean toward her, but she still didn’t look at him.
“Jo, he’s not going to fire you. I won’t let him. I told him you’d just lost your momma and—”
Jo pointed her finger in his face. “Mention my momma one more time and see what happens.”
Vince came back in and sat down. “Now where were we?”
“I think it’s my turn to speak.” Peace settled over Jo and clarity along with it. “I still have two weeks left on my leave. Consider that my two-weeks’ notice.”
“Now, wait a minute.”
“Jo, don’t do this.”
The two men spoke over each other until Vince held a finger up. “I can see you’re upset but there’s no need to quit. Truthfully, I didn’t plan to fire you. I just wanted you to understand the possible consequences of your actions.”
Jo pressed her lips together and took in a slow breath. “I didn’t think you had a leg to stand on as it was. Like I said, whatever happened wasn’t on hospital property and no charges were filed.” She leaned slightly forward. “I’ve been an exemplary employee. I expect a letter of recommendation and I’ll wait as long as I have to, but I want it today before I leave.”
“You can’t be serious.”
She leaned back and folded her arms. “Maybe I should call my lawyer and get him in on this meeting.” She nodded her head in Tage’s direction. “There has to be a law against you threatening to fire me at the whim of your friend here.”
Tage spoke to Vince in a low tone. “Her brother-in-law works for a big law firm in Charlotte. Maybe you should just let her go.”
Gray no longer worked there but Jo kept that to herself. She stood. “I’ll be back in an hour. That should give you more than enough time to get that letter typed up.”
She’d only made it a few feet past the receptionist desk when Tage caught up to her.
“You’re making the biggest mistake of your life.”
She kept walking. He was the biggest mistake of her life, but that was over and done with. Even if she spent the rest of her life alone, she’d never go back to him.
“Call me when you come to your senses.”
Never going to happen.
♥
Jo hadn’t been home five minutes when Rachel showed up with the kids—including Lala. Her chest tightened when the little girl ran and jumped into Jo’s open arms.
The two boys headed for the small box of toys Jo kept in the corner of the living room, and Rachel made herself at home on the couch. She eyed Jo up and down. “Where’ve you been, looking all spiffy?”
“I had a meeting at the hospital.”
Jo sat down on the other end of the couch and rocked the child back and forth in her arms. She needed a rocking chair. There was plenty of room for one between the couch and fireplace. A rocking chair is for rocking babies, and you have none.
“How’d it go? Did they talk you into ending your leave?”
“In a way. I quit my job.”
Rachel leaned forward and stared at Jo. “When did you decide to do that? What are you going to do for work now?”
Jo shrugged. “I shouldn’t have any problem finding another job. Something will come along.”
“What happened to make you quit?”
She’d been hoping Rachel wouldn’t circle back around to that question. “I was being interrogated about what happened here last weekend—”
Rachel interrupted with a huff. “What business was that of theirs? You weren’t on hospital property when that happened.”
“My thoughts exactly. He was there at the meeting, and I think it was just him trying to manipulate the situation.” She couldn’t bring herself to say Tage’s name to anyone in her family. Maybe one day they would forget him altogether. Or at least stop talking and thinking about the fact that she’d had an affair with a married man.
“Wow, he must have it really bad for you to go through all that trouble.”
“I think it has more to do with control issues than it does me.”
“Did you get mad and storm out?”
The part of the meeting where she decided to quit played through her head again. She could still see the shocked look on Vince’s face when things started going against the plan concocted by him and Tage. “It was the weirdest thing. A prayer came to mind without me giving it conscious thought and then peace settled over me. I just put in my two-weeks’ notice and left. Well, I did threaten them with a visit from my lawyer.” She chuckled. “But other than that, it was easy. A lot easier than I thought it would be.”
“Good for you. I’d loved to have been a fly on the wall when you threatened Gray on them. I bet they didn’t see that coming.”
“No, they didn’t.” The whole meeting that ended with her quitting her job had come as a surprise for her too.
Lala made a noise and Jo tilted her head to look at the child’s face. “When did she start sucking her thumb?”
Rachel’s lips pressed together as she studied Jo. “It started this week. I think she’s picked up on what’s happened between you and her daddy, or at least the mood of what’s happened. She hasn’t been herself all week.”
Jo pulled Lala closer and kissed the top of her head. As she’d spent the week buried in her grief, she’d wondered how much the breakup had affected Micah, but it never occurred to her that it would have altered the mood of this precious child. But what could be done about it? Micah and Lala both deserved better than a homewrecker like her.
She’d learned her lesson and nothing like Tage would ever happen again. But if she’d stayed with Micah, he’d always wonder. There could never be any trust in his relationship with her. Jo couldn’t ask him to live like that.
The sound of tires crunching gravel drew Jo’s attention to the window. Her lungs momentarily stopped working at the sight of Micah’s 4Runner pulling into her driveway. “What is he doing here?”
Rachel put on an innocent look that wouldn’t fool anyone. “He sent a text that he was on his way. I told him to just meet me here.”
Jo stood and carried Lala the few steps to where Rachel sat. “Here, sit with Aunt Rachel for a minute while I go to the bathroom.”
Lala only whimpered as Jo kissed her cheek and held her aloft but quieted as soon as she was settled in Rachel’s lap.
Rachel huffed. “You’re not going to let him in?”
“You didn’t have any trouble finding your way inside my house. I’m sure he won’t either.”
Instead of hiding in the bathroom, she made a run for the still empty bonus room off from the kitchen. She stood against the wall just inside the open door, hoping she might hear whatever was said.
The doorbell rang and Jo heard Rachel’s greeting after she opened the door, but whatever Micah said was too low for Jo to make out. She inched closer to the doorway and tilted her head, hoping it would help her make out the murmuring coming from the living room. There wasn’t a doubt in her mind that she was the topic of conversation.
Jo straightened and panic set in at the sound of heavy footsteps across the kitchen floor headed in her direction. She bit her lip and turned to face the doorway. She both wanted and dreaded seeing Micah’s face. She heard something brush against the other side of the wall and then he spoke without coming into view.
“You don’t have to hide from me, Jo. I had hoped to see you, but I won’t come any closer if you don’t want me to.”
Just hearing his voice again nearly broke her resolve. She closed her eyes and pressed her palm to the wall separating them but didn’t speak.
“I’ve missed you.”
She leaned her head against the wall and let the tears slide down her face. I’ve missed you too.
“I want you to know that I have been praying for you. Praying for us both. I love you and have every faith that we can work this out.”
Jo tightened her throat and pressed her palm firmly across her mouth. Micah had never told her he loved her before and the declaration coming after their relationship had ended left her feeling shattered. Lord, this isn’t fair.
The silence lasted long enough that she questioned if he was still there, but she hadn’t heard his receding footsteps.
“I’m going to leave you for now, but this isn’t over. Not as far as I’m concerned, anyway. If you get to the point where you’re ready to talk, I don’t care what time of day or night it is, you know how to get in touch with me. However long that takes, I’ll be waiting.”
He walked away then, taking another shattered piece of her heart with him. She turned and slid down the wall and continued to cry. Lord, when will the tears end and the healing begin?