MilaOn Thursday, I finally had a day off again. Even though my days off were still as often as they used to be, it felt a lot longer between them with all the double shifts I was working. At least, the ward was calming down. Most of the accident patients could be moved to regular recovery rooms and beds were emptying in the ICU. It was always good news when we had less work because it meant that people were getting better.Or passing away, but that wasn’t the case, here.My phone rang. It was Danielle. I smiled and answered.“Are you off today?” Danielle asked.“Yes. I really need this break.”“I hear you,” Danielle said. “It’s dull without you, though,” she said.I told her I would be back tomorrow, and we ended the call. Danielle and I had been getting closer over the past week. She was a sweet girl, eager to learn, and her compassion was staggering. But she was young, and she struggled under the pressure sometimes. She was a little squeamish when it came to blood and puss, which
Mila“I guess I can’t blame him. If you were my sister, I would have wanted to protect you from the world, too.”I shook my head. “He can protect me without stopping me from living my life. So, was he pissed off?”“Yeah, he was. He has this ‘I-don’t-care’ attitude that scares me.”I sighed. “He had the same with me. What if he’s done with us?”“I don’t know,” Ben said, and he looked as depressed about it as I felt. Jerrod had been like a brother to him, too. I knew that it was as much of a loss to Ben as it was to me. I thought about something and frowned.“When was this?” I asked. “When did he talk to you?”“On Monday.”“That was three days ago. Why didn’t you tell me about this?” I had called Ben the moment Jerrod had left my apartment. Why was he keeping it from me?“I didn’t know how to tell you. It wasn’t a good conversation at all, and after how upset you were about your conversation with him, I didn’t know how to talk to you about it. I should have, but I’ve been sitting on thi
BenDid I feel like shit for what I did to Mila? Yes, I did. When I had said to her that I was trying to figure out if I belonged in this life, I meant it. Not because I had wanted her to think that she wasn’t important to me, but that was how it had come across.I had had so much on my mind when I had met her for coffee. And I guess that was my fault. I should have pushed it away. But I had been having a bad day. My father and Uncle Dean had died, and it turned out it might have been for a reason, and not just an accident. I had no idea where I was going with the company that had been left to me. Twice. I had no idea who I was supposed to be. Was I going to be the man my dad and Uncle Dean wanted me to be? Or the man that turned them down, even after everything that had happened?And what about Jerrod? If I stayed with Mila, I was sure I would lose him. But if I said goodbye to Mila to keep Jerrod in my life, I felt like I would lose a piece of myself. So, maybe going back to New Yor
BenI had to get back to New York, soon. Not only to meet in person with David but to get away from all the people I cared about. If there really was someone after me to get me the way they had gotten my dad, I didn’t want anyone else in the crossfire. Mila, Jerrod, Paul and my mom. The Castles. The guys at the fire station. I broke out in cold sweat when I imagined anything happening to them.Before I left, I had to mend some bridges. I had to make sure that everything was alright between Jerrod and me. He was my best friend, practically my brother. I had to make right what I had done wrong. Because I had been a total dick, lying to my best friend and not being open with him about what was going on. That was on me, and it was up to me to fix it. He had every right to be pissed off with me.When I called his number, he answered as if he didn’t know it was me. Maybe he hadn’t checked the caller ID.“Can we meet up and talk?” I asked.“No.”“Come on, Jerrod. Let’s take care of this.”“
MilaOn Saturday, I had a rare single shift. I would have worked a double shift, but I asked for a single shift because I was worn out after working so hard. I got it as long as I was on call. I was fine with that. I was always ready to jump in when there was an emergency. And it didn’t happen all too often.Jessica Wright had finally been moved to a regular recovery room, and I was glad about it on so many levels. First of all, she was getting better. In my career, we were happy people left and didn’t come back. It meant they were healthy and safe and that was something we wished for everyone as nurses and doctors. Secondly, I was relieved not to have to deal with Mr. and Mrs. Wright anymore. Of course, they had only been concerned parents. But Mrs. Wright had been harder work than some of the other parents I had dealt with. Having said that, since Jessica had woken up, Mrs. Wright had changed into a calm, nice lady.Stress and fear changed a lot of people.Jessica’s bed might have
Mila“Spending time with you, doing whatever you want.”“Did you know I was going to call?”“Yeah, I did,” Skylar said and laughed. “You’re predictable.”“I wasn’t even supposed to have a single shift.”“I’m in touch with my psychic abilities.”I told her she was being full of shit and invited her over. Skylar and I arrived at my apartment at the same time.“You look exhausted,” she said after she hugged me and we walked in.“It’s been a rough week,” I said. “A lot of double shifts and we have a critical patient that’s getting me down.”We sat down in the living room, and I all but collapsed on the couch.“So, let’s talk about something completely different. How’s Ben?” Skylar asked.I sighed.“That’s not the reaction I expected,” she said. “What’s going on?”I told her what had happened.“Oh, I knew you slept together,” Skylar said when I told her that part.“What? How?”She gave me a look that suggested I was being an idiot.“Do you think I’m blind? You two were all over each other
BenOn Sunday evening, I drove with my mom to the Castle house. Paul had decided not to join us. Even though mom and Miranda had been friends since long before he had come into the picture, he never really made my mom’s friends his friends. My mom didn’t seem to mind.“You could have told me what was going on, you know,” my mom said. Of course, Miranda had told her that I was with Mila. This city, even though it was so big, was a gossip town. Or at least, the people in my life were.“I didn’t know if you would approve,” I said. But it wasn’t only that. I had been scared that Miranda would find out if my mom knew. Women never kept secrets from each other when they were best friends, and the story would have been far too juicy for my mom to ignore.“What are you talking about?” my mom asked. “Mila is a beautiful young lady. She’s just the kind of balance you need in your life.”“I wish Jerrod would feel the same way,” I said.“He’ll come around.”Everyone was saying that, but I knew him
BenEven though her blushing was cute, everything else about her was sexy. Mila was easily the most attractive woman I had ever seen, without even trying. She carried herself with grace, and she gave the impression that she was completely unaware of her beauty. Which only made it more so.“Let’s sit down,” Miranda said. “Harry just carved the meat.”Everyone jumped in, helping to carry the dishes of food to the large dining room table. When we sat down, I realized what was missing. Jerrod wasn’t here. He had been invited, but he hadn’t come. He was too upset with us, and his mom had invited both Mila and me for supper. There was no way it wasn’t a celebration of our relationship of sorts. The only person pissed off about what was going on between us was Jerrod.I could understand that he was upset about us lying to him, keeping our relationship a secret. But Jerrod was also upset that we were together in the first place. He had always been very protective of Mila, and I wasn’t sure he
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?”