MilaOn Friday, I arrived at the hospital for my afternoon shift to find Mr. Norton awake. He looked a little drowsy after being in a coma, but he was smiling, and Mrs. Norton looked relieved and happy that her husband was back.“Well, this is a wonderful surprise,” I said when I walked in.“Honey, this is Nurse Mila. She was so good to me while you were … you know.”Mr. Norton looked at me. “Thank you, Nurse Mila.”I nodded. “I’m so glad to see you’re awake and feeling better. You had us worried when you came in.” I moved around the room, taking care of my duties. I checked his vitals, put the food tray close to the door, and made sure the pillows were comfortable.Mr. Norton offered a bashful smile. Mrs. Norton held his hand, and I was pretty sure she wasn’t going to let go of him for the foreseeable future.“We also received good news,” Mrs. Norton said, looking lovingly at her husband. “He’s not paralyzed.”“Oh, that is wonderful news,” I said. “Not a lot of people bounce back fro
MilaA lump rose in my throat, but I swallowed it down. I hoped the men had had a chance to say goodbye.When I left the room, I walked to the nurse’s station and recorded the time of death and the cause. I logged the file, and I excused myself.In the restroom, I closed myself into a cubicle and finally let myself fall apart. Sobs racked my chest, and I doubled over, wrapping my arms around myself as if I could keep it together if I did it physically. I’d known this was going to happen. I didn’t know how, but I’d known.Those men would never be the same. I had been lucky enough never to lose a parent, but I knew from what I had seen that the loss of a loved one changed you forever. I had even seen it in Ben, although he’d barely known his dad. Those three men, once they handled their grief in their own way, wouldn’t ever look at life the same.Maybe they would become bitter. Maybe they would blame themselves. Or maybe, they would celebrate the long life of the woman they’d lost, reme
BenOn Saturday, Jerrod and I went into town and found a bar that was hopping with patrons and loud music. I wanted something to draw me away from everyday life. And Jerrod didn’t want to get hammered at his parents’ place. We all needed a break sometimes.“We’re going all-out, tonight,” Jerrod said. “You’re going to have to suffer at work tomorrow.”I shook my head. “I have two days off in a row. Usually, I have twenty-four hours on, twenty-four hours off. But this weekend I have all to myself.”“Even better,” Jerrod said, and we clinked our beer bottles against each other.“So, how’s it going at the station?” Jerrod asked. “I bet you could pick up any woman in this room. A man in uniform and all that.” I laughed. “I guess I could.” But I didn’t want just any woman. Only one had been on my mind lately, a woman I wasn’t allowed to have.“I love my job,” I continued, talking about work rather than having to avoid talking about Mila because Jerrod asked the right questions. “I enjoy th
Ben“I’m not your girl,” Skylar said, pulling a face, and I laughed. Skylar obviously hated it when Jerrod hit on her, and for exactly that reason, he would keep doing it.Mila turned to me, and her smile softened. She looked beautiful, as always. Her hair was down around her face, the tips brushing her shoulders, and she wore a smoky type of eyeshadow that was so popular these days, and it made her look sexy and smoldering. She wore a little black dress that showed off her long legs and heels. I hadn’t seen her from behind, but I was sure it made her ass look great.Despite how hot she looked, there was something about her that was sad. She wasn’t moping, per se, but there was something about her that seemed a little defeated. I had the feeling it had something to do with work. If she wanted to talk about it, I would listen. If she wanted to forget, I would help. I wanted to be there for her. The feeling was so sudden, it caught me off guard. I hadn’t ever wanted to be there for some
MilaWhen I woke up later on Sunday, the sun was already high in the sky, and it fell right on my face through the curtains I had forgotten to close. I turned around and groaned. My head pounded something fierce, and I felt sick to my stomach.It was all the alcohol I had consumed with Ben. It was easy to keep drinking, especially if the company was good. The music played all night long, and the more I drank, the better I felt. Now that it was in the light of a new day—or later the same day—I regretted it all. Why did I drink? It made me feel like shit for a lot longer than it had made me feel good, and it was expensive. Although, the latter didn’t count this time because Ben had paid for my drinks.Which had been very sweet of him. I wondered if he suffered as much as I did today. He’d told me he had to be in great physical condition to be a firefighter and he’d trained for years to keep up his fitness. I had to admit, it made him look fantastic too. Muscular and delicious. But fitne
MilaWe were all on high alert. The woman’s heart stopped twice. We managed to bring her back with a crash cart, but I was terrified she wouldn’t make it through the night. The driver was losing blood so fast, it didn’t have a chance to clot. We had to give him extra blood, and thankfully, he had a common blood type and we had more than enough in the blood bank. When they needed something like O-negative, it got harder.By the time I could tear away for something as simple as a bathroom break, I had been running around for four hours, and there was still no sign of slowing down. I hadn’t paid attention to my hangover. There hadn’t been time. Now that I stopped to take a breath, my head thudded dully and I felt nauseous. I hadn’t had a chance to eat anything. The only thing I’d had all day was the tomato juice.After I finished in the bathroom, I bought a bottle of water and a cereal bar from a vending machine and forced it down even though I didn’t feel like eating.And it helped.Ben
BenSunday had been a fuckup. I had been so hungover, I hadn’t been able to function. My head had felt like it was going to explode, and I had spent half the day hugging the toilet, vomiting out everything my stomach contained even after there was nothing left to get rid of. It was a lesson in self-control if I’d ever had one.Moderation. I should have tried some.I had texted Mila in the morning, but she hadn’t replied. That kiss had been bouncing around in my mind since the moment I had woken up, and I had felt like a bastard for doing that to her when we obviously couldn’t be more.I didn’t even know if she felt anything for me. The passionate response I had gotten from her could very well have been the alcohol speaking. God knows she’d had as much as I’d had.And if she was in any kind of physical shape as I was, she would have suffered as much too. Judging by her spectacular body, she was in great shape, which meant we had both been suffering.I had been such an idiot drinking so
I nodded, and the guy called Jonas ran in with the other two guys. I had studied fire engineering, and Ted needed me to brainstorm a way to vent the wire on the one side and draw it toward the oxygen we gave it so it was safe for the men to start fighting it on the other side.I was explaining to Ted that a fire could consume itself if left alone for long enough when shouts from inside were heard, followed by a loud crash.“Shit,” Ted said, and we both ran. I watched as the building collapsed in front of me, one half crumpling like it was made of paper.“How many are still in there?” Ted shouted.“Three,” came the reply, and I could taste the fear.“Any civilians?”“Negative.”Shit. They were ours.The firemen turned their attention to the three men inside, forgetting about the fire for the moment. Ambulances were already on scene, and EMTs were on standby, ready to take care of anyone coming out.“We found them!” Tyler shouted from inside. He had gone in with Sam and Jay to retrieve
BenI had sold the company as Jerrod had suggested. I had thought about it long and hard and decided it was what I wanted. I hadn’t wanted to be the CEO of the company in the first place. Not when my father had left it to me and not when Uncle Dean had, either. I had put in the work and found someone worthy of the company. I heard it was thriving, now.The money received for the company sale had been enough to pay Brantley, and I still had enough left to give Penny an amount. I felt Uncle Dean’s widow had deserved a bit of an allowance after everything she had been through because of my father.After Brantley and Penny, I had bought a large house in Portland for me, Mila and Landon, and I had put the rest away as an investment for the future. We had so much money we would never struggle, even if we both stopped working.Mila and I were both working because we loved what we did. Mila didn’t want to stop nursing after she had Landon, and I understood. She asked for fewer shifts so that
BenSeven Months LaterWhen I unlocked the door to the house I had bought six months ago, I was stepping over the threshold as a father. It was the first time, and I was very aware of it. A lump rose in my throat, but I swallowed it down.“Ready?” I asked Mila. She nodded and climbed out of the car. She moved comfortably. It was amazing how women bounced back from giving birth in no more than a day or two. It would have been different if she had had a C-section or something, but Mila had given birth naturally.She opened the car door and lifted the carrier out of its brace.“I’m coming,” I said, running to her. I took the carrier from her so she didn’t have to strain herself and put my arm around her as I carried little Landon in the other hand.Mila had given birth to a beautiful baby boy twenty-four hours ago. It had been a beautiful surprise. I would have been just as proud if it was a girl, but I was so happy it was a boy. Landon Atwood had a great ring to it.We walked together t
MilaAgain, he didn’t touch my pussy even though he came so close. Instead, he moved up my hip bones and kissed my stomach, my ribs, moving past my breasts to my shoulders and working his way down one arm. When he reached my fingers, he sucked them into his mouth and played with his tongue around them. It was a strange feeling, ticklish and such a turn on.Ben let go of my hand and moved across my chest, avoiding my breasts, moving over my shoulder and down my other arm. When he reached my fingers, I was just about losing my mind with lust. I wanted him inside me so badly, and he’d been teasing me by not touching any of the areas I so desperately wanted him to touch.When Ben pressed his fingers against my pussy, I jumped. I had wanted it so badly, now that I had it, it was like a jolt of electricity shooting into my body. Ben pressed his thumb against my clit and pushed two fingers into me. He moved his thumb while curling his fingers over my G-spot, and it didn’t take long at all be
MilaLate on Friday night, my phone rang. I was already sleeping, and it took me a while to find my phone on my nightstand.“Are you awake?” Ben asked.I smiled. “I am, now.”“Can I come over? I have great news.”I looked at the alarm clock next to my lamp. The red numbers said it was well after midnight.“Of course,” I said.Half an hour later, a cab pulled up and dropped Ben off in front of my apartment building. I had been looking out for him. I buzzed him up before he rang my apartment, and I smiled when he stumbled up the step to the front door. He had been drinking.When I opened the front door to him, he stepped forward and folded me against his body.“I missed you,” he said.I laughed. “It’s been two days.”“Two days too many,” Ben said. He smelled like beer and cigarette smoke.“Where were you?” I asked.“I was at the bar, having drinks with Jerrod.”I raised my eyebrows. It was good news. Unexpected, and good. I led Ben into my apartment and closed the door.“Get back in bed
BenI shook my head. “I won’t. I know I haven’t treated her right, but I thought I was doing the right thing. I’m sticking around, now. I’m not going anywhere. I’m madly in love with her. Mila is one of a kind.”Jerrod nodded. “She is. And I can see how you feel about her. I have no doubt that you care for her. It just pissed me off so much that I was the last to know.”“I get that,” I said. I really did feel bad for what we’d done. But there was only so many times I could say I was sorry. I knew that this time, Jerrod had accepted my apology.Jerrod nodded again. We both drank our beers, listening to the music and watching the crowds shuffle in. As the night dragged on, the bar filled up with patrons who were done with their work week and looking for a way to unwind.“It’s just all so unexpected,” Jerrod said after a while. “Your relationship with her when I still see her as a kid is one thing. But now she’s pregnant. Man.” He scrubbed his face with his hands. “I don’t know what to m
BenOn Friday I walked into the bar where Mila and I had gone with Jerrod and Skylar. We hadn’t been careful enough that night, and Jerrod had seen us together. That was when the trouble had all started between me and Jerrod, and I was hoping this was where it would all end.I had texted him, telling him I was going to be at the bar tonight. I wanted to talk to him, but I was tired of running after him when he wasn’t interested. I had asked him to come to meet me. He hadn’t replied. I had told him what time I was going to be there, and now that I was here, time would tell if Jerrod was going to show up to talk to me.My wristwatch told me it was eight o’clock. I would give him half an hour before I left again.Until now, everything had been about Jerrod. He had been the one who had been wronged. Mila and I had kept our relationship secret from him when it was already a no-no that his best friend and younger sister were dating. It had been wrong not to tell him and even worse that he h
Mila“I love you, too.”There was nothing else to say. Words couldn’t describe how we both felt at that moment.After I changed back into my clothes, we met Dr. Holt in her office again. She gave me a prescription for prenatal supplements and an eating plan with do’s and don’ts for the next seven months.“I’ll see you back here in about eight weeks,” Dr. Holt said. “Then we’ll find out what you’re having.”When Ben and I walked back to the car, I felt like I was walking on air. Everything felt different, now. I felt more ready to be a mother, to have this baby and to raise it, than I had before. Now that I had seen the baby, I knew that I wanted all of this.Did Ben feel the same?“You know, you still have time to back out of this,” I said to Ben. He stopped dead in his tracks and looked at me.“What makes you think I would want that?” he asked.I pulled up my shoulder. I couldn’t guarantee that this feeling of amazement was mutual. Ben took a step closer to me and kissed me long and
MilaOn Wednesday I had the day off again and had scheduled an ultrasound. Now that everyone knew about me being pregnant, it was time to meet the baby.Ben was with me. It made me less nervous, but only a little. It was crazy how tense I was about the appointment, even though everything was out in the open now. The idea that I was pregnant, that we were having a baby, was terrifying.It had all happened so fast. It had been mere weeks since Ben had come back to Portland for the first time and now we were starting a family together. There were nights when I was sleepless and in a fit of panic, wondering how the hell we were going to get through this. We had been a part of each other’s lives for years, but when it came down to knowing each other, we were practically strangers.When I was with Ben, like now, all my worries melted away. We were great together. He was so attentive now that I was pregnant, and since he had told me he was going to stay, our relationship was stronger than ev
BenI let go of Jerrod’s shirt. He stumbled back, his expression surprised. Maybe he had expected me to throw the first punch. He had been ready to fight me. But I wasn’t here for that. I hadn’t come to beat up my best friend. I had only come to set the record straight.“She’s a great person, Jerrod. You know that. She doesn’t deserve this shit.”I turned around and left the office. Jerrod stayed behind, gaping. I had never been one to back down from a fight. There had been enough fights in high school that had shown Jerrod that. But this wasn’t high school, and Jerrod was like a brother to me. If I ended up with Mila, he would be a brother-in-law, in fact.So, I wasn’t going to go there.Instead, I headed back home like a good boy to seethe in private.After I had taken the time to calm down, I phoned Mila.“How are you doing?” I asked.“Better,” she said, and I was relieved. “I came off my shift just now. I’m going to crawl into bed for a few hours.“Have you told your parents yet?”