Page 5 of Break

I chuckle lightly and nod against him. “Thank you. I might need a few days off during the move, but can I be on-call?”

He waves his hand around and steps over to the door. “Don’t worry about it. Just keep me updated, Annika can help out while you move, I’m sure. I’ll give her a call now. Is everything okay with James? I can take over his appointments starting now.”

I lick my lips and nod, not elaborating. Not now and probably not ever. “Please.”

Chapter 2

Marie

__________

Ihaven’t been home in two days. After meeting Alex and staying at the office until eleven that night, I booked a hotel. I had Alyssa and Caroline bring me a bag of clothes and toiletries before they went to school on Friday and I’m letting them use my car to get to and from school so that James doesn’t have to worry about it. He never has to worry about anything. Story of our lives.

He’s been texting me and calling me off the hook, but I can’t handle it. I can’t handle seeing his face, his body wrapped around her, or Alex in general, thank you very much.

The girls told me that he has a surprise for them this weekend and I can’t stomach what he’s going to be telling them. Was he even going to tell me if they didn’t have to come to the clinic? What would happen if I wasn’t at the clinic that day for his exam? The girls and I were just going to be blindsided with the auburn-haired, gorgeous woman strolling into our lives like it’s totally fucking normal to do so.

Was he truly just going to move another woman into the house while I lived there? I mean, come on. How is that logical?

I picked out that house, I even decorated it. The girls and I have made it a home for the past five years.

Well, if the universe was going to give me a sign that I was right about never telling him about the baby, then here it is. And her name is Alex.

My phone starts vibrating along the nightstand again and I roll my eyes when I see James’s face popping up on the screen. I ignore the call and get ready for my day. I don’t have to be in the office until this afternoon, so I’m ready to see the hopefully new house to see if it’s a good fit.

It’s a five-bedroom, one story house with six bathrooms. There’s an unfinished basement that I can use for storage, a jacuzzi in the backyard, which even has a space for a grill. A gorgeous yard with plenty of grass for a child to run around in.

It’s in a gated community and the schools seem decent. Plus there’s room for Caroline and Alyssa if they ever want to stay with me. It’ll be perfect.

It might be too large for just me, but it was the only house that the realtors could find that’s available so soon, and in a gated community. Since I’m still close with the team, I imagine I’ll have them over for barbecues and they need their privacy. There are only six houses on the street, plenty of space between the neighbors. It’s quiet.

After I get ready and leave the hotel, I have an Uber take me to the property to meet the owners. They’re an older couple, maybe in their late sixties. They both smile as I walk up to them when they open the door. Looks like they’ve been expecting me.

“Are you Marie Edwards?”

I nod and shake their hands. “Nice to meet you, Mr. and Mrs. Evans.” I look around and smile at the large white house. The door is painted a light blue, it’s perfect so far. There are shutters around each window, a three-car garage, and a nice sized-driveway. There’s even plenty of grass and two trees on the front of the property. This is adorable.

“Come on in, dear. Tell us about yourself. Will you be living here alone?”

I sigh internally as I follow them into the empty house. I’ll have to go furniture shopping, too, it seems. I start making a mental checklist on everything I need to do. Alone. The walls are painted a bright white, the flooring is a nice tan tile, maybe travertine. No appliances. So I’ll need some of those, too.

“Not for long. I just found out I’m pregnant… But my little sisters might be staying with me every now and then, they’re sixteen and live with their brother about ten minutes away. I’m a physician’s assistant, but outside of that, I truly live a boring life.” I chuckle and they smile so brightly at me.

Their eyes light up and they fawn all over me and offer me a water bottle and some cookies. “Wonderful! We were looking for a family to move in. We downsized recently and our son told us to rent it out instead of buying… But if you’re interested…”

I shrug and chew on my lip. “I looked at the comps in the area. I wouldn’t be able to buy it for a couple of years, probably depending on the price, but we can figure that out down the line.”

“What sort of clinic or hospital do you work in?” Mrs. Evans asks as they take me out in the backyard and show mearound the different gardens and fruit trees that are somehow thriving in the Minnesota climate.

I smile. “I’m in sports medicine. I work with Dr. Patterson, if you’ve heard of him.”

_______________

It’s moving day… It took less than twenty-four hours for Mr. Evans to call and tell me to meet him and his wife at a local coffee shop for me to sign the paperwork and hand over an insane amount of money for me to move in… It’s worth it though.

I still haven’t talked to James, but I’ve been in contact with the girls. I didn’t tell them everything, but they know I’m moving out.

Apparently their ‘surprise’ over the weekend was two matching red Mercedes SUVs to sweeten them up to Alex when he brought her over for dinner and announced they’re dating. And that she’s moving in.

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