Mickie
Just when you were about to have sex with your husband, your kid has an Exorcist-worthy vomiting episode.
Wasn’t that always the way it went?
Not long after Dawson and I had rejoined the gala the other night, I received a hysterical call from Sage, saying that Gabby had been throwing her guts up. She was terrified she hadn’t fully cooked the hamburgers she’d made for them, and Gabby was experiencing food poisoning. But after rushing back to the house and examining her myself, I’d quickly recognized signs of the flu.
Needless to say, there had been no more sexy times for me and Dawson that night. He’d taken Leo with him to Mason’s so he wouldn’t get sick, too, while I stayed up all night taking care of our daughter.
I really was beginning to think there was an evil force at work here.
Was this one of those “the best things in life don’t come easy” things? Because I think we’d gotten the gist of it by now.
Buuut…
Maybe it was also a good thing. I mean, I did say when we needed to hold off on the sex. Maybe Gabby’s upchucking had saved Dawson and me from taking a wrong turn.
Ugh. I was so confused.
How was I supposed to justify resisting my own husband? Hell, how was I supposed to resist him in the first place?
I was about to take my lunch break at work when my cell phone rang. Margot.
“Stuck any thermometers up anyone’s butt lately?”
I snorted in laughter. “Well, hello to you, too. It’s still too early in the day for discussions about anal penetration, but I’ll keep you posted.”
“Fair enough.”
She loudly smacked her gum over the line. It was a long-time habit that used to drive me bonkers when we were younger. Now, I kind of missed hearing it all the time.
“How about you?” I asked. “You cussed anyone out recently? Or spit your gum in anyone’s face?”
“Unfortunately, no,” she replied, laughing. “But I haven’t had a good therapy session in a while, so here’s hoping.”
She was definitely one of those DMV employees who pretty much dared you to mouth her, so she could go all up and down on your ass. She not-so-charmingly liked to say it was more effective than any amount of therapy one could buy.
“What’s up?” I asked, glancing at the clock on the wall. “I take my lunch in five. I can call you right back.”
“No, this won’t take long,” she said. “My lunch is almost over, anyway. I just wanted to call and see if you were working the weekend of the ninth.”
I pushed some papers aside to peek at my desk calendar. “I’m on call that weekend, but I can always switch with someone. Why?”
I heard cars honking in the background, and thought of my childhood home back in Jersey. Man, it felt like a million years ago.
“Well, Milo is going to basketball camp in Levittown that whole weekend, so I thought I’d come for a visit.”
My head shot up. “You mean to Baltimore?”
“No, I thought I’d visit my other sister in Maui,” she retorted. I could just picture her sarcastic eye roll. “Yes, Baltimore, dummy.”
I smiled. “You can’t blame me for being surprised since it’s been, what, four years since you’ve come down our way?”
She sighed. “Yeah, yeah. I’m the worst sister ever. You can spend my entire visit berating me for it. That weekend’s good, though?”
“Definitely. I’ll switch my on-call time with someone. It won’t be a problem.”
If she was actually able to make it down, I’d rearrange anything on my schedule to make it work. Due to money and Milo, she rarely got to take trips, and I could really use some good time with my sister.
“Good.” She was silent for a moment, and I knew what was coming. “How are you and Dawson doing? You tell him about the job offer yet?”
Guilt swarmed me.
I was such a terrible person for being angry with Dawson the way I had been the other night. At least the position he’d been offered was in the same department, and in the same city, for that matter. Mine was an entire state away, and I’d still stood there making him feel bad for keeping things from me.
And the coward in me still hadn’t told him.
I understood what he meant by not wanting to bring up a conversation that might lead to an argument. Things had been going really well between us lately, and I didn’t want to ruin it by mentioning my situation.
I was officially the worst wife ever. And a hypocrite to boot.
“Dawson and I are actually really good,” I said, clearing my throat when my voice cracked. “But no, I haven’t told him about the job in Jersey yet.”
She hesitated. “Don’t you think it’s important that he know? I mean, the clock’s ticking.”
I went into the break room and grabbed my salad out of the fridge. I needed some fresh air, so I decided to eat my lunch outside.
“Yeah, I know it is,” I said impatiently. “But one of the reasons things are going so well between us is because we’re just focusing on us. Not all of life’s other complications, like jobs. He and I are complicated enough.”
She snorted. “That’s the truth.”
I huffed. “Thank you.”
“Welcome.” She smacked her gum some more. “Just don’t let it blow up in your face, all right? Because if you think you two have problems now, you’ll have loads more if you wait too long to tell him.”
I passed by the nurses’ station and mouthed break to Lanie, who gave me a thumbs up.
“I appreciate the advice, but spare me the lecture. It’s too early in the day for one of those, too.”
“Whatever you say. I’ve got to get back to Hell, so we’ll talk later.”
I chuckled and hung up, though my unease over the conversation didn’t dissipate. I knew I needed to discuss the Jersey job with Dawson. But if we were able to patch things up and everything else went back to normal, there wouldn’t be any need to tell him. I would turn down the job, and it would all be a moot point. Right?
I mulled over all these questions as I entered the courtyard and sat down on a bench. It was a warm day, but the surrounding trees provided enough shade that I wasn’t uncomfortable. The smells of freshly mowed grass and my Italian salad dressing filled the air. But even the chirping birds and cloudless sky couldn’t assuage my growing fears.
I loved my husband. I loved our family.
I didn’t really want to leave Baltimore. But I also wouldn’t hate being closer to Margot.
I didn’t totally hate my job now. But I could potentially love the job they were offering me in Jersey.
Was it wrong of me to even consider taking the job before Dawson and I had worked everything out? I didn’t want to leave him. Ever. But would he be willing to move to New Jersey if I explained it was what I wanted? Because if I wanted to move and he didn’t, I wasn’t sure where that would leave us.
I wasn’t sure what that said about us.
Things were going well, yes, but would they stay that way? Were we on the road to reconciliation, or was the smoldering physical stuff between us just a giant smoke screen?
After all these years, were we still right for each other?
I hated myself for even considering the question.
“For someone on her break, you look like you’re thinking awfully hard,” came a voice to my right.
I jolted in shock, so lost in my thoughts I wasn’t expecting company. Dr. Stein stood beside the bench watching me with an arrogant grin. His expression irked me, and I was in no mood for whatever antics he had ready.
“Sorry,” he apologized. “Didn’t mean to startle you.” He pointed at the other end of the bench. “Is this seat taken?”
I just shrugged, unconcerned if he thought I was being curt. I continued to eat my salad, praying he would allow me to sit in peace and quiet.
But that would be too good to be true.
“I wanted to let you know that I gave the Stevenson Medical Center a reference the other day,” he said. “They called about the supervisor position you applied for.”
They’d already offered me the job, so they must have just been doing follow-up procedures. As bothered as I’d been to put down his name as a reference, there was no denying he had some pull in the medical community. He was a very well-known and respected surgeon. So, whether or not I wanted to admit it, working with him looked good on a résumé.
“I appreciate that,” I replied with no emotion. “Thank you.”
I could feel his eyes on me, but I refused to look in his direction. His scrutiny and interest in my life was starting to become troublesome. The fact that I’d never once encouraged his advances should have clued him in to backing off.
I guess too many of his brain cells were being used to inflate his ego.
Which was a scary thought considering this guy operated on human beings every day.
“No thanks needed,” he said. “You’ve done an exceptional job here. You never told me why you’re wanting to leave, though.”
I swallowed a bite, considering my words. “It’s not really a matter of wanting to leave. I’ve just been exploring my options.”
His arm was resting on the back of the bench, and I swear his fingers were creeping toward my shoulder.
“Does this have anything to do with the problems you and your husband are having?”
My head jerked around, my eyes connecting with his. He wasn’t smiling or frowning, but more like waiting for me to deny it. The man had some nerve. But the thing was, I couldn’t really afford to piss him off by yelling my offense at him. For the same reason his name had enough clout for a good reference, he also had the power to make my life here at the hospital a living hell.
“With all due respect, that’s not really any of your business,” I said in as even tone as I could manage. “I simply have family in the Jersey area, and my husband and I were discussing the possibility of being closer to them.”
His expression told me he knew I was full of shit. “I see,” he said, narrowing his eyes. “And what if you two aren’t able to work things out? Will you move without him?”
What the hell was this asshole’s game? Was he really that bad at taking a hint?
Or did he just not care?
He seemed to read something on my face because he scooted a little closer and added, “I’m just asking as a friend, Mickie. We’ve worked together for several months now, and I’d like to think of us as friends.”
Not even close, douchebag.
And something about the way he said my name really grated on my nerves.
“I’m not comfortable discussing sensitive personal subjects like this, Dr. Stein,” I said, emphasizing his last name. Reminding him that we were definitely not friends. “Whatever happens between my husband and I is between me and him.”
He smirked and moved even closer. His body now separated mine by mere inches. If he laid even one finger on me, I was prepared to pull out the self-defense moves Dawson had taught me.
“Suit yourself,” Stein said. “But I’m always here. You know, if you want to…” He trailed off as his eyes slid down my body. “Talk.”
His hand grazed my arm before he stood up and walked off, sauntering away like a smarmy jackass. Gross. Now, I wanted to take a shower.
I kind of couldn’t believe what had just happened, either.
Stein had officially taken his interest to another level. An inappropriate, illegal one. Now, there was one more thing I had to worry about and watch out for.
As if life wasn’t already stressful enough.
All of those worrisome thoughts fled my mind as I was walking back into the building, though. The text Dawson just sent contained the one word that was able to alleviate all those worries and transform them into pure desire.
The one I hadn’t seen or heard in years.
The one that sent blood rushing to my head.
Dawson: Tonight. Gemini’s Isle. 8pm… CINDERELLA.