Page 35 of Spurred On

“Where were you this morning?” I step out of my boots and set them off to the side. Part of me wants to ask why she was so quiet on the drive while I’m at it.

She goes back to wiping down the already spotless counter. “Oh, I got up early to feed the baby cow, clean out the stalls, and then go for a walk.”

“Okay, well, I’ve been wanting to talk to you.” I take a few steps closer, and she stops in her tracks at my words.

She hangs her head for a second before looking up at me. “Listen, Mav, I don’t want you to feel any pressure. If you don’t want anything else to happen, that's okay. I kind of jumped your bones. And I—”

Closing the gap between us, I cup her face in my palms. “I made a mistake by not being perfectly clear with you. I got a little overly excited about having you in my bed and forgot the most importantpart.” I study her face for a few seconds. “That wasn’t just sex for me, and I hope it wasn’t for you, either. Because I want to give this a go, for real.” Her eyes go wide as saucers and grow a little glossy.

Her voice wavers as she speaks, “Are you sure? You’re on the road a lot, and I’m sure there are other girls out there.”

Rubbing my thumb across her cheek, I look her in the eyes, wanting her to feel the sincerity in my words. “There are no other girls out there for me if you’re in the picture, and I hope you are.” She sucks her lips in as her eyes water. Unable to handle the silence, I press on, “So are you? It’s okay if you don’t want this. I will back off, and we can go back to how we were.” I would hate every single second of it, but at the end of the day, I will always respect her and her decisions.

Her hands cover mine, and her voice is so quiet I have to strain to hear her. “No, I don’t want to go back.”

The smile that stretches over my face feels foreign because I don’t know if I’ve ever been this happy. The smile she sends me in return melts every piece of me. “Are you just going to stare at me, or are you going to kiss me, cowboy?”

I shake my head as I lean in, and my lips start as a whisper against hers. My pounding heart thunders in my ears.

This kiss isn’t heated like our previous one, it’s slow. An exploration of each other. The little sigh she lets out makes my blood heat. But I don’t want to push it, I want to slow this down and do it right because I think I could spend forever kissing her.

Chapter 21

Ava

The day has come, freaking finally. The hospital finally cleared me, and I get to start working. I still woke up at the crack of dawn to feed my baby cow. I’ve decided it's a pet, and though she’s down to one bottle a day, she’s now my baby. Rhett and Weston will have to go back to being the stall bitches. But really, the work wasn’t that bad, I really enjoyed it. On my days off from the hospital, I still plan on helping because I’ve become slightly attached to all the furry critters.

Pulling into the hospital parking lot, I try to settle my rumbling nerves. First days are always scary. Add in the first day as a fresh nursing graduate, and it’s even worse. On the plus side, I’m decked out in a new pair of scrubs and shoes, leaving me feeling slightly more confident going into my first big day.

The outside of the hospital is all brick and stone. Being that we are in a rural area, it’s pretty small. I was told that HR or whoever would be training me would meet me in the front lobby at eight to do the paperwork, and then it’s go time. The sliding glass doors automatically open in front of me and I walk through. I’ve noticed that all hospitals smell the same: sterile. Like the air and everything around it is a little too clean.

Lucky for me, I was provided a tour during my interviews, so I have a pretty good idea of where I’m headed. Of course I showedup embarrassingly early. The roads were clear, but I didn’t want to be the girl who was late on her first day, so I left thirty minutes earlier than I needed to. The drive was uneventful, so I made it even faster than I thought.

Time passes slower than molasses as I tap my shoe, looking around. The front area has nice little plants here and there, and pictures of local scenery hanging on the wall. There’s a charm about small towns; all the little finishing touches make even the hospital feel just a little bit cozier.

“Ava?” Aspen says, practically skipping toward me with her ponytail swishing from side to side.

“Aspen, hi!” I hop off my seat and pull her into a hug.

She pulls back, keeping a grip on my forearms. “Guess who gets to train you?” She wags her eyebrows, clearly trying her best and failing to contain her excitement.

“No way?” My hands squeeze onto her forearm.

“Well, they mentioned a new hire, and I rolled the dice, thinking it would be you, and volunteered.” She smiles and wiggles her whole body at the same time. I love her energy. She reminds me so much of Erin, it almost soothes the little piece of me that misses home.

“Alright, so for the first part of the day, we’ll have you complete computer orientation and take a lunch break, and after lunch, we will work on seeing where your skills are. Let me take you to the computer room.” I follow her down hallways of white tile and fluorescent lights.

She leads me into a breakroom with two computers in the back corner, facing a large window. The sunlight will be a nice reprieve from staring at the computer screen all day.

“Let’s see if you can get logged in. I have a folder here for you, it should have all the info you need.”

The setup goes easy, and she gets me logged into my charting training. “Okay, babe, this is where I leave you. You will be dying of boredom. So, stay strong. I’ll swing by and grab you for lunch, and then we can get started on the fun stuff.”

Aspen was absolutely correct. These video trainings make me want to melt into a puddle on the floor in the worst way. My brain feels like complete and total mush and I can feel the oncoming headache from the computer's constant light starting to buzz in the back of my head.

The door to the room swings open. “I am here to rescue you from your misery.”

“Thank God,” I say, ripping the cheap headset off my ears.

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