Page 47 of One Night Only

The bone-deep exhaustion I’ve been carrying around all morning slinks away as if someone’s cut it out of me. A buzzing energy replaces it, and I didn’t even have to chug three energy drinks like I used to as a med student.

She’s here,my heart seems to scream at an insane pitch, as if it wants the entire world to know.

“Dr. Cross,” Rahul says with a stiff nod. Then he grabs Zach’s arm and tugs him away, leaving us alone in the quiet corridor.

My stomach tightens as I reach her. A part of me worries I fell asleep in the comfortable armchair next to Mom’s bed and I’m dreaming. That I’m conjuring her because I’m so desperate for her.

Wide brown eyes pop open. Slowly, as if she’s afraid that I might disappear if she moves too fast, she straightens in the chair and rubs her eyes. She swallows, her fingers flexing around the cup. “You’re back.”

I take the cup with its pungent, stale coffee and put it on a table. My jerky movement makes it slosh. “You’re here,” I say, faking a steadiness I don’t feel. “And you stole my sweatshirt.”

She tugs at the neckline before coming to her feet. “I wanted to check on Martha.” Her voice is soft, uncertain, as if she’s not sure whether she should be here.

I nod without moving closer.

She doesn’t relax. Her shoulders are tense, gaze flicking to mine, then away. I can read it clearly in her face—the worry that maybe last night was a fever dream. That maybe I’ve changed my mind.

“Mom asked if you were going to come see her later today. I told her you had to leave for your big interview and your fancy house-sitting appointment.”

Her gaze jerks to mine. Shame heats my chest at my passive aggressive comments. God, what this girl does to me…

“I won’t leave without seeing her,” Ani says with a lift of her chin.

I keep my hands locked behind me and lean my shoulder against the wall. “She also said she found a hot nurse to introduce you to, if you’ve come to your senses and dumpedthat teddy bear of a man,” I add, my grumpiness at my mother’s suggestion back in full force.

Ani doesn’t take the bait. She chews a little more on her lower lip, and I’m tempted to tug it free, to lick at the little indents she’s leaving in the tender curve. Tempted to tell her she’s ruining the flesh that belongs to me. “Everything went well with the consult?”

“Hmmm,” I say without offering much in response. My arms are literally aching to hold her, my entire body thrumming, but I want her to come to me. To claim me.

If she just takes one step toward me, I’ll run the length of the entire world to get to her.

“How did the admissions interview go?”

“It was fine.” She runs her fingers down her face, leaving little pink trails behind. My stomach tightens at how tired she looks, how much this costs her.

Just a few more steps, sweetheart,I want to say.We’re almost there.

“How long do you plan to stay here? In Portland?”

“Haven’t decided yet.”

A sudden flash of temper changes the very angles of her face. Her nostrils flare. “Where will Martha stay during recovery? Have you found a physiotherapist for her? The last lady you hired was a total bitch, and Martha hated her.”

“You could have just called Mom and asked her all this, Ani. I don’t want to be the go-between—”

“I’m here for you, okay?” The words echo in the high-ceilinged corridor like drumbeats, like thunder. Like the sweetest song I’ve ever heard. Tears fill her eyes, and her throat moves in a hard swallow. “I wanted to see you. We were already on the highway, and I made them take an exit. Zach thinks I’ve finally lost it. It’s very probable because my mind won’t stop imagining all these impossible scenarios for the future, and...” She trails off, tugging at the sweatshirt and wipes her face on it.

Staying silent in the face of her pain is the hardest thing I’ve ever done.

She faces me, her features ravaged. “You know what my life is like and how much shit I have to unpack. Both for myself and with my family. I’m a stranger to them. I mess up everything I touch. I’m starting nursing college in summer, and I don’t know if I’ll even be any good at it. Now Asha’s getting married—”

“What does all that have to do with you coming back?”

She’s vibrating with emotion as she snaps out, “Why are you making this so hard?”

Her voice cracks, and my body automatically bows toward her. But I fight her gravity. I prefer her anger so much more than the despair I just glimpsed in her eyes. “I asked you to stay. You left. And now you’re back. Instead of telling me why, you’re spouting stuff that I don’t give a fuck about.”

She watches me warily for long, painful seconds. A little color creeps back into her cheeks. “You don’t curse like that usually.”

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