by Harlow James
I think back to the long hours of studying, the years of schooling and then clinical hours, not to mention studying and passing the NCLEX. It was grueling and exhausting, but I loved every minute of it and wouldn’t change my dedication to it for anything. Heck, even my mom knew from a young age that I was destined to take care of people—fix the broken, as she would say. I once nursed a baby bird back to health that fell from a nest, and when my best friend Rachel broke her arm, I was the one that fastened a splint out of my shoelaces and cardboard until we could get back home from the park we were playing at down the street from our houses. Taking care of people is ingrained in my soul, and it feels surreal to finally be in a position to do so.
I just never imagined I would be single, alone, and three-thousand miles away from my parents—in Emerson Falls, Oregon—when that dream became a reality.
“Well, the truth is I need to be here as much as you need me, so I think we’re all winning,” I say, but instantly tense when I realize I may have said too much.
“I’m definitely glad you’re here. So, I know this may sound forward, but every third Thursday of the month, a group of us goes out to Tony’s Bar to have a few drinks and socialize outside of the hospital. Would you be interested in tagging along? It’d be a great way for you to meet some of the other nurses and make some friends. I’m sure you’ll get lonely in a new place so far away from home,” Jess speaks and thankfully she doesn’t press on my comment from before.
“Um, I’ll think about it. Thanks.”
“No, don’t think about it. Do it! Come on,” she whines and then straightens her spine. “I know it’s scary going out with a bunch of people you don’t know, but I will be there and so will Alice,” she beams, and I really want to deny her—but Jess is one of those girls you can’t help but want to be friends with. I’ve watched her interact with patients all night, and she has a comforting spirit about her that puts people at ease. When she first started showing me around at the beginning of my shift, I instantly trusted her because I didn’t get any ill energy from her at all. She just seems like a decent human being, and lord knows, I could use a few of those in my life.
I sigh. “You’re right. Okay. I’ll be there,” I nod and smile as she claps her hands together in celebration.
“Yes! You’ll have a blast, I promise. And wear something sexy—something that will show off that body I know you’re hiding beneath those scrubs,” she says as her eyes dance down my torso and legs. “Curl that gorgeous blonde hair of yours and do up those eyes! I’ll need a wingman as I go out on the prowl,” she winks.
That comment withdraws a chuckle from me. “Uh, you’re on your own there. No men for me.”
“Uh oh, what idiotic thing did your ex do?” She teases.
“I just feel like I’m better off alone right now,” I explain, hoping that will appease her because in reality, no one needs to know about my ex. When my parents suggested I get out of harm’s way, I never realized how hard it would be to start over and have to dodge harmless questions at every turn. I like Jess, I do. But there’s no way I could tell her why I’m here.
No one can know why I’m here.
“Hey, I understand. But still, dress up. It always puts me in a better mood when I see myself all dolled up and reflect on that bad bitch looking back at me in the mirror. I don’t waste time doing too much to myself for work, so when I can, I try to enjoy it,” she shrugs.
“That makes sense. And hey, thanks for showing me everything today. I really appreciate it.”
“Of course. We’re a team here. Just let me know if you ever need anything,” she smiles and then we turn back to finish up the rest of our shift.
By the time I turn the key in the lock to my apartment, it’s after six in the morning. I’ll be on night shifts for the foreseeable future, so this will definitely take some time getting used to.
The ringtone coming from my bedroom startles me as I drop my purse and keys on the counter, but the sound also offers me a comfort as I race to my room and locate my one contact to my family back home.
“Hi, Mom,” I breathe into my burner phone as I answer, tears instantly clouding my eyes with how much I miss her.
“Darling. How are you, my dear? Goodness, I miss you so much,” she croaks through the line.
Sniffling and wiping the tears from my face, I gather myself to reply. “I miss you too, Mom. So much. But things are good. I started my job at the hospital last night.” I take a seat on my bed as I take off my shoes and flex my sore feet.
“Oh, sweetheart, that’s wonderful! Was it everything you imagined it would be?” I can almost envision my mother sitting on her white sofa in the formal living room of our mansion of a house while holding her hand to her chest as she talks to me. The same blonde locks that I inherited from her would be pulled back into a sleek chignon, and a custom-tailored outfit would adorn her slender body. My mother is the epitome of elegance, a virtue I was held to as well since our family is one of fortune. But my parents never let money distract them from what was important in life—family, goals, ambitions—which is why they fully supported me when I told them I wanted to be a nurse.
“I mean, it was kind of a slow night, nothing too exciting. But yes, Mom. It was climatic, finally walking around the halls of a hospital on my own, knowing I could handle whatever was thrown my way. I made a new friend as well. Her name is Jess and she’s a nurse too. I just… I’m afraid of saying too much…”
“Pfeiffer,” my mother starts, “I know you’re scared. We are, too. But please don’t put your life on hold while we handle things. Mason has been quiet, which is unnerving. But you have an entirely new life to live out there as Piper Davis now. Make the most of it. Lie low, don’t ruffle feathers… but also don’t be afraid to live and make friends. Just be cautious of sharing too much and you’ll be fine. Remember, you left so we could keep you safe. But that doesn’t mean you have to put your life completely on hold while this mess gets cleaned up.”
The deep breath I let out escapes my lips, tension leaving my body that’s been building for weeks. I’ve been so scared to leave my safe haven, the four walls of my apartment that is my new home for the foreseeable future, but I can’t live like this forever. I know myself too well to know that eventually I will need human interaction. Sociable and people-pleasing to my core, my entire childhood comprised of helping others and volunteering my time where it was needed. I need to make a life here in Emerson Falls, even though the one I had before burst into flames.
“I’ll try. Gosh, I would give anything to be able to hug you right now.” The ache in my chest doesn’t seem to ebb each time I speak to my mom—no, I feel like it only gets worse.
“Me too, darling,” she croaks and I can hear her cry through the line as I do the same on my end.
“This is so unfair. I just still can’t believe I had no idea, let alone that Mason would use me…”
“Believe me, Pfeiffer… no one is as upset about this as me and your father, but we are handling it. Unfortunately, no one has seen Mason for a while, so it’s been hard to track him down and settle things.”
“I feel so stupid, and right now, I’m too tired to even fathom how I got here. I love you, Mom, but I just got home and I’m exhausted. Can we talk more soon?”
“Absolutely, dear. Go get some rest and remember to fly under the radar. I’ll be in touch. Love you, Pfeiffer,” she whispers.
“I love you too, Mom.”
After ending the call and stripping off my clothes, I enjoy the scalding hot shower, soaking my well-worked muscles after my long shift. Tonight was only twelve hours on my feet, but I know that most nights there will be no guarantees when I’ll get off. My body is sore, my mind is reeling, and my exhaustion is slowly winning by the time I throw myself into bed and pass out.
It’s been hell to get here, several unimaginable obstacles thrown my way, but being far away from the chaos back home gives me a little solace, as well as knowing that my life here in O
regon will be close to the one I envisioned back home—just minus one person I thought would be right alongside of me.
Chapter 3
Cash
Two Weeks Later
“A bet’s a bet, man.”
“Fuck, I know, Coop. But it’s Misty Chambers,” I whine while Cooper stands above me at my desk in the station.
“It’s been almost six months and you’re the one who had the idea for the bet in the first place,” he replies, referencing our stupid need to out-man each other back at the Date the Deputy auction in April. Each year our station holds an event to raise funds for the Fallen Deputy program to give money to the families who lost loved ones while on duty. Earlier this year, the committee who organizes the event added a Date the Deputy auction to bring in more money. Cooper and I bet against each other on who could bring in more for their date, and thanks to his now fiancé Clara, he won by a landslide, which means I have to uphold the stakes of the bet by asking out Misty Chambers, the town man-eater, on a date.
“Yeah, well, if it wasn’t for Clara and her glaring jealousy, I definitely would have won.”
“Don’t blame this on Clara. You’re just pissed you lost.” He stands there with his hands braced on his hips, staring me down more like a father than my best friend.
“I’m afraid I’m going to catch something just being near the woman, Coop,” I shudder as I visualize Misty next to me, licking her lips. The woman works at the high school as a secretary, but when she’s not around teenagers, she’s flaunting her body and trying to nail down any single guy she can. She’ll have you married before the end of the first date, and when things don’t end the way she wants, she retaliates like a cliché crazy ex-girlfriend.
“Well, make sure you have all of your shots then because I gave her your phone number this morning while I was getting coffee at Skye’s Creations,” he smirks.
“What? What the fuck, man!” I shout as I stand and get in his face.
“You’ve been sitting on this for too long, Cash, so I took matters into my own hands.”
“You’re such a cock sucker, Walsh.”
“And you love me.”
“Not right now, I don’t. Fuck! Now she has my number? I don’t give out my number, Coop! So, when things don’t lead to a second date, what the hell do you think she’s going to do… accept it quietly? Fuck, no! The woman is going to act like a tornado and blow up my phone and maybe even my car.”
Cooper grins in my face, clearly pleased with himself. “Think of it as you paying interest for waiting this long.”
“If Clara wasn’t such an awesome chick, I’d shoot you in the dick.”
“She’d have your head, Williams. Misty said she’d be in touch soon by the way, so be on the lookout for her call,” he winks and then saunters off.
It’s a Tuesday afternoon and Cooper is about to end his shift just as I’m starting mine. Months ago he got switched to days, but I’ve still been assigned to the night shifts since I’m one of the newer guys in the department. Besides that, I’m single and don’t have anyone waiting for me at home, so it doesn’t bother me so much to be working all hours of the night.
My life is pretty simple—work, go to the gym, take care of my yard, and visit Birdie whenever I can. I enjoy my peace and quiet, except at night when I look forward to the company of a woman who can treat sex for what it is—a physical release between two people that enhances your mood tremendously. Without that release at least twice a week, I’m a surly asshole and Cooper is always the first one to call me on it.
Now my sour mood is a result of the fact that he gave my phone number to Misty. That’s a hard rule in my hook-up handbook—no phone numbers exchanged. After having to change my digits a few times back in college, I learned my lesson and now know to avoid that exchange of information, hence why most women track me down through social media instead, although I’m really not on there that much anyway.
Back on traffic patrol for the evening, I spend a few hours cruising around town, writing a few tickets for expired registrations and one for an illegal right-hand turn on a red light. Traffic laws are in place for a reason, people. Obey the rules of the road and no one gets hurt.
The truth is, I don’t mind being the one to make sure people don’t drive like idiots. It gives me a sense of pride to put people in their place and make sure they know to be aware of the other innocent lives on the road. And maybe there is a small part of me that wishes I could catch Piper going the wrong way down a one-way street again.
I’m rattled by the notion that even two weeks later, I still can’t get the image of her face out of my mind. Women are a dime a dozen to me normally. I mean, I respect them, understand they’re people to. But when I meet one I want to get to know on a physical level, I’m very upfront about the stakes from the beginning. It’s not my fault then if they read too much into our time spent together. I can’t help it if the orgasms that wrack their body make them momentarily delusional and they wake from the ecstasy thinking there will be anything more than sex between us. But I’m not disrespectful to them. Women tend to associate sex with feelings—but I never let myself go there. Feelings are messy. Feelings lead to love, which I’m convinced isn’t for me, not with the example of a marriage that I witnessed growing up.
So when thinking about Piper makes little goblins of confusion start to manifest in my chest, it makes me feel uneasy. Even after leaving the retirement center a few weeks ago, I tried like hell to find a woman to take my mind off of the blonde angel that shook me. My pick for the night was adequate, but I couldn’t fight the need to envision Piper’s face while I fucked the other woman. It was dirty and raw, but I didn’t feel the same satisfaction that I normally do from sex.
And now I’m just frustrated and confused and wondering why the hell I let one interaction with a mystery woman shake me so hard.
Around midnight I’m gliding along downtown, hoping to catch an idiot or two who decided to drink and drive. It may only be a Tuesday, but some people still like to hit the bottle early in the week. Tony’s Bar looks particularly busy for this time of night, so I circle and wait. The temperature has decreased tremendously outside, blasting a frigid chill through the crack in my window.
Turning down a one-way street to make my way back around, I’m paralyzed by bright headlights that barrel towards me as I lay on my horn—but it’s too late. I slam on the brake but apparently the other driver forgot where theirs was because the crunch of metal, smell of oil, and crack of glass all hit my senses in a matter of seconds. The impact from the collision rattles my mind and I vaguely recall smacking my head on the window before everything goes black.
I filter in and out of consciousness, fighting the need to go to sleep with being awake enough to let the responders know what happened. I’m a deputy—I’m the one that should be responding to the scene instead of being a victim of the crash. But contrary to what someone may think, officers are involved in far more collisions on duty than you might realize.
“Where am I?”
The white lights above me in the ceiling burn my retinas as I blink and adjust to the haze, and I realize I’m lying down in a bed that is not my own.
“Calm down, Deputy. You’re at the hospital,” a soothing hand and equally smooth voice draw my attention to the left of my bed, but the face of the nurse comforting me is turned towards the screen of the monitor, clicking away on the keys.
“What… the hospital? How did I… how did I get here? What… what happened?” The laundry list of questions clouding my mind fire off at lightning speed even though I stutter as I try to form words. The pounding in my head throbs as I fight the pain, and I swivel my head in every direction imaginable while I attempt to recount what landed me in this bed.
“Don’t worry. I’ll bring you up to speed in just a minute. But first, we need to discuss your injuries…” the woman says with her face still turned away from me.
“My injuries?”
“Yes, I’m afra
id there was an infection.”
“Where?”
She turns to face me and then that same rush of heat that occurred the first time I saw her face burns hot within my chest and between my legs. A slight tilt of her head accompanied by a grimace alerts me that I might not like the answer.
“In a spot of yours that apparently all the ladies want to see…”
I glance directly down to my crotch, covered in the hospital gown that lies flat over my dick, but the appendage quickly starts to rise when I look back up at her and notice how tightly stretched the fabric of her scrubs is across her chest and how much brighter her eyes look now in the hospital lights, accompanying the slight smirk of her lips.
Suddenly my brain and my dick wake up when I realize this woman is joking with me. “Well, by how he’s standing at attention right now, I’d say my dick is just fine.”
She chuckles and I can sense her attempt at control in not peeking at the goods herself.
“Maybe the antibiotics kicked in then finally,” she says while standing tall again, reaching for something on the counter under the window spanning the entire far wall of the hospital room. Walking back towards me, she reaches her hand out and places my phone in my palm. “But by the amount of messages from women blowing up your phone, I’d say it’s only a matter of time before your dick catches something and falls off.”
Sure enough, one peek at my phone and I see dozens of notifications from the woman from a few weeks ago. She’s already had a turn on the Williams’ sexual rollercoaster and is desperate for seconds. Not surprising though, is that about half of the messages are texts from an unknown number asking about a date. I’m assuming the number is Misty’s, but I can deal with that later. For now, I’m much more focused on getting to know the woman that has serendipitously landed in my lap again.
Fucking Birdie.
“Are you jealous, Piper?” That catches her attention, her head flicking back at me so fast, I swear I can hear her neck pop. A devious grin stretches across my mouth as her entire sarcastic demeanor from before disappears. “What? You think I didn’t remember you? Well, I guess it looks like you found your way to your meeting, huh?”
