Page 7 of Break

James:Marie, fucking call me back. What the hell is going on?

James:Alex is meeting the girls tonight, I would like your support…

James:You’re moving out??? This is your home, too. I wasn’t going to ask you to leave.

James:I tried talking to Dr. Patterson, he hung up on me. Was it something I did? Said?

James:I see you’re using the card… keep it. It’s yours… without you I wouldn’t be here. I owe you everything… Fuck… whatever I did, I’m sorry. Please don’t shut the girls out.

I sigh as I set my phone down and look around to see all of the guys are done eating. “What’s next?”

It’s close to midnight by the time the movers leave. I handed each one of them a cash tip and made sure to give them a great review online. Holy shit that was easy. Why did we never use them before?

I have two empty bedrooms, one of them is being used for storage that I might set up into an office, but my room and the girls’ rooms are all set up and furnished, their bathrooms are ready for use. The living room, kitchen, and foyer are perfect… the outdoor furniture and my smoker are all happy in their new spaces.

It’s quiet and lonely, but not for long.

I smooth my hand over my bloated stomach and crawl into bed. The guys even helped me put all of the bedding on the mattresses. I want to cry. I hate being alone and this just really is the icing on the shit cake I’ve been served.

I roll over and make sure my phone is plugged in and that my alarm is set. I only missed one day of work, shockingly. I didn’t think they would help me with literally everything. All of my clothes are even folded or hung up in my walk-in closet.

Shit, I need to text and email Dr. Patterson, let him know I’ll be there tomorrow so that he doesn’t have to beg Annika todeal with my workload. I send the messages and scroll down to the group thread between the girls and me to shoot them a message.

Me:Hey girls, I have rooms all ready for the both of you whenever you want to swing by… maybe we can do dinner this week or a girls’ weekend? Let me know. I can buy you a few sets of clothes if you want to spend the night. Love you both.

I sigh as I toss my phone down on my white nightstand and roll around in bed for what feels like hours before I finally fall asleep.

_______________

Annika scurries from the office as soon as I let her know I’m here and she doesn’t need to worry about my patients this week. That woman cracks me up.

She’s a few decades older than me and has a lot of work to do at the new, second office across town. I would scurry out of here, too. Her graying brown hair is always in her signature braided style. She wears thick glasses over her hazel eyes and has the most gorgeous dark brown skin.

I go over the patient notes from yesterday and write down my own to call some patients back. I also notice there’s a flag on James’s file that his test results are in. I groan when I open it up and read through the reports. Clean. Thank fuck.

Not that I ever worried about it. Even when he’s out with the puck bunnies or dating around, he’s always careful and gets tested regularly. I chew on my lip as I read through my emails and busy myself in between appointments.

Speaking of appointments, I need to make one of my own.

Who do I know that’s had kids recently? I pick up my phone and press ‘4’ for Patti’s line. She has a million friends and a few older siblings that I’m sure have kids. She should know at least one good OBGYN around here.

“What,” she mumbles, sounding like she’s eating something.

“Are you eating at your desk?”

“Duh. What’s up?”

I clear my throat and wrap the cord from the phone around my finger. “Can you come into my office really quick?” She hangs up on me and is in my office within moments. Always one for the drama.

She slams the door closed and collapses down on my chair in front of my desk. Her black hair is up in a messy bun and her tanned skin looks so fresh and healthy; I feel like kicking her sometimes. I always look tired, gaunt and pale.

Her dark eyes twinkle at me and her plush lips are pulling up into a smile. “So… Who’s the guy?”

I roll my eyes at her and bite my inner cheek. “Know any good OB’s around here?”

She blinks at me and tilts her head to the side. “Why?”

I shrug and fidget with my fingers. “Yes or no?”

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