Page 69 of Head Over Spurs

She gulped, this was her biggest contract. If she lost it, she’d lose her income source. But what if she wanted a new one now?

“I do have a conflict, yes.” A big one, just not the type that Michelle was imagining. It wasn’t about another shoot. It was about finally having her own life.

“Well, I would need to know by end of day tomorrow. But Ialready sent a package to your home address listed. Maybe it will remind you what you can get with this contract.”

“I’ll call you by end of day tomorrow,” Jules assured her. She wouldn’t commit to anything until she heard from the doctor. Until she talked to Riley.

Ending the call, she slid down the wall. Her long hair caught between the back of her head and the subtly yellow painted surface. She remained hidden by the fake tree, sitting on the cool tile with her knees pulled up to her chest.

A week. It simply would not be enough time to sort out everything tangled up in her head, and her heart.

Across the way, she watched one of the double doors open. She held her breath, waiting. No doctor emerged. Letting out an exasperated sigh, she continued to watch the room before her.

A man in a red and white striped sweater sat alone in a corner, book in hand. A younger couple held hands and huddled together, their eyes on the doors as much as her own were. And coming through the archway from the café, Grey and Maddie entered the scene. Each of them carried two paper cups with plastic lids. So, they had found that coffee then.

She watched as they approached Cooper. Grey handed him a cup as Maddie’s eyes scanned the room. They landed on her and Jules attempted a half-hearted wave from her spot on the floor half tucked away behind a plant.

With a worried dip in her brow, Maddie assessed her as she approached. She reached down and handed Jules one of the coffees before settling onto the floor beside her.

“How are you doing over here?”

“I’ve been better.”

Maddie dropped her head to Jules’s shoulder, a hum of understanding escaping her tightly pressed lips.

“Did you really get me decaf?” Jules asked after a moment.

With a single burst of laughter, her best friend replied, “Of course not. I know better.”

A small smile caught the corner of her mouth, the first since Cooper had called. She lifted the cup and took a sip. A deliciously sweet, nutty flavor greeted her. She tipped the cup back once again, going for a more generous gulp.

As the warm liquid worked its way down, spreading a feeling of comfort through her chest, Jules turned to Maddie. “I got a call while you were gone.”

“Yeah?”

“The magazine booked the new airline tickets without me confirming.”

“They can do that?” Maddie asked as the double doors across the room swung open.

“Apparently. I need to talk to Riley. But with everything happening right now…” Her thought trailed off because this time, it was a white-coat clad doctor. And his attention was focused on where Cooper and Grey sat.

Jules’s hair raised on the back of her neck, her heart rate rising right along with it. This was it.

She jumped up, rushing across the room as he came to a stop before the pair of cowboys. “You brought Riley Walker in, right?” she heard the doctor ask them.

“I did, yeah,” Cooper nodded stiffly. “How’s he doin’?”

“You can see him now,” the doctor said rather than answering the question. His focus drifted over the four of them as they huddled around him. “Straight down the hall until you hit the dead end. Make a right, and then he’s in room 137.”

Jules didn’t waste a second taking off in the direction from which the doctor came. She had a room number. Nothing was going to stop her from seeing him this very moment.

Her heart raced as she reached the dead end and hung a right turn. Her boots slipped on the squeaky-clean floor as sherounded the corner. At this pace, the silver and mint colored plaque that read 137 came into view in no time.

With the door closed, she wrapped her hand around the overly shiny handle. She took a steadying breath before pushing it down. Whatever version of her Sundance was inside this room, she didn’t care. She threw the door open and stepped inside.

31

JULES

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