“They are,” Ann agreed. She’d worked them when she and Heidi had first started dating and for years afterward. It was only in the last couple years that she’d had enough seniority to request working days and actually managed to keep the shift.
“Well, I hope we’re not scaring you too much with all the sick kids.”
“Not at all. I’ve worked peds before. It’s just been a while since I have. I like ICU. It’s a bit calmer most of the time. Less patient to staff ratio.”
“That’s true.” Jerica’s lips moved upward, the freckles dotting her cheeks moving as if to wink.
The door burst open, and there she was, the petite blonde who had so much of Ann’s attention. Shock crossed Lila’s features as she made eye contact with Ann before slowly shifting her gaze to Jerica. “They said I could find you in here.”
“Yeah. What do you need?” Jerica took a sip from her coffee.
“I gotta make the order for the day.”
“Oh.” Jerica grinned. “And here I thought you were going to ask if you had an invite to the friends-giving party this year.”
Lila narrowed her gaze and flicked a glance at Ann. “Maybe. Last year was…interesting.”
“How so?”
Sighing, Lila shook her head. “Doesn’t matter. I’ll come if you’re hosting again.”
“I’m trying to.” Jerica smiled. “Everyone comes and they’re at the point it’s expected now.”
“Right. Sorry to push, but I’m running late today.”
“Yeah, I’ll go get it.” Jerica walked out of the break area, and Lila stared directly in Ann’s eyes.
“What are you doing here?”
“I picked up some hours,” Ann replied tersely. It hadn’t been that long since she’d seen Lila last, and oh how those lips would feel pressed against hers. It would be the perfect, glorious distraction that she wanted. Ann tore her gaze from Lila’s lips to her cool blue eyes. “Figured I could grab some and get out of the house.”
“Avoiding?” Lila always went straight to the point.
Ann admired her for that as much as she hated it sometimes. There wasn’t much hiding anything from Lila because she’d be sure to find it. “Perhaps.”
“I thought we talked about you avoiding.” Lila’s voice lowered, her words poignant.
It had taken a lot for Ann to confess that particular sin of hers, and she often regretted trusting Lila to hold that secret so close. Ann’s heart thudded. She wanted Lila to be right next to her, to hold her as she answered the statement, but Lila stayed put, maintaining professional distance between the two of them.
“We did, and sometimes it’s the only solution to my problem.”
“Ann.” The amount of pity in the one word tore Ann apart. She didn’t want to hear it. She wanted Lila to be fun and flirty, just like she had been the other week. She wasn’t ready to dive deep into why she didn’t want to be home by herself, why she was so upset about Heidi’s answer to whether or not they could have sex the night before.
“Lila,” Ann countered, putting a wall right in front of all that pity. She couldn’t take the shame and the guilt if Lila spelled it out to her. It would be too much.
“I got it.” Lila turned just as Jerica came back in. They sat at one of the small tables, poring over forms that were quite familiar to Ann.
She didn’t even bother to say anything as she left the room and went back to work. A few minutes later, she was just coming out of a curtain when she made eye contact with Lila as she left the unit. Lila gave her a sad smile before disappearing into a hallway. Ann’s heart clenched. Lila was right, and Ann knew it. She’d known it before Lila had even shown up. She was avoiding.
Not just her home life—it was easy to put a front on that—but she was avoiding her own feelings on the problem. What had happened last night had only highlighted the last fifteen years of issues between her and Heidi. Sex.It always seemed to come back around to that, didn’t it?
Ann adjusted the chart from the patient she had just left, recording the information so the doctor could do her assessment.
Doctor Vasquez grabbed the chart before Ann even had a chance to finish inputting the information. She waltzed toward the curtain as she read it over and tossed over her shoulder a “Coming?”
Ann struggled to keep up, her joints protesting at the quick movement. No one had ever told her how hard being a nurse was on her body, not even when she’d been in nursing school, though she should have figured it out then. In her early twenties, she hadn’t thought twice about it.
Following Vasquez into the room, Ann stepped to the side. Vasquez asked questions, listened to the patient, answered questions, and then moved on after making some orders for tests. Ann’s mind spun at how quickly it all happened, but she went with it before turning to put in the lab orders. She was hunched over the computer terminal when Jerica showed up again.