Page 70 of Always Been You

Jess had insisted on taking Ethan to the doctor yesterday for his checkup, much to his great dismay. She'd even used Daisy as leverage, saying that if she didn't take him then his grandma would. That got him to agree real fast.

"He's doing better. He’s got some mobility back in his arm. It's just not happening as quickly as he wants. He didn't get cleared to return to work, even limited duty for another two weeks."

"Oh, that's not good."

Jess had been giving Ali updates on Ethan. Basically letting her know that he was moodier than a hormonal teenager and maybe the worst patient in the history of patients. He was also going stir crazy being in the house all the time.

"Yeah, he didn't take the news that well. But, I'm hoping this will cheer him up."

"Well, if it doesn't, I don't know what will."

"That's what I said."

"Great minds." Ali nodded.

Jess smiled, "I'll call you tomorrow."

She disconnected the call, retied her coat, grabbed her bag of props, and was out the door.

The shortest route to Ethan's house was Lakeside Drive, which was lined with tourists enjoying the warm summer evening. Jess watched a man pick his toddler up and put her on his shoulders and then lean down and kiss his wife who was pushing a stroller beside him.

Jess never thought that was something that she'd have. A family. When you don’t think you’ll live that long, you tend not to plan those kinds of things. But she was going to be twenty-nine in a couple of months and she was healthier than she'd ever been in her life.

And she wanted that. Maybe not the kids, but the husband. The marriage. And she wanted it with Ethan.

These past few weeks had shown her that she didn't just love Ethan when things were easy. She loved Ethan when he was cranky, irritable, and mean. He’d tested her patience and even though there were more than a few times that she'd considered smacking him upside the head, she'd refrained and reminded herself that he was like an injured animal lashing out. And besides, his bark was much worse than his bite.

As much as she wished that he'd never been hurt and that his team had never been ambushed, she had to admit that the circumstances had given her a clarity she wasn't sure she would’ve reached otherwise.

She loved Ethan Steele. For better or worse. For richer or poorer. Till death do they part.

She wanted the ring, the white picket fence, the whole shebang and she wanted it with him.

The night before, she'd fallen asleep next to Ethan while they were watching The Office. She'd dreamt that she and Ethan were Jim and Pam, but they looked like themselves. They were sitting at Jim and Pam’s desks and Ethan looked over at her and said, "I love you,” she’d been so shocked she hadn’t said anything. Then, the dream took a weird turn when Steve Carell wanted them to join the circus. But then real-life Ethan shook her shoulder and she opened her eyes and saw that he was looking at her and she was transported right back to the moment in her dream when he’d said he loved her. This time she didn't hesitate, she said it right back.

Ethan looked horrified and that woke her up immediately. When she was fully aware of her surroundings she sensed a weird energy. Maybe it was just her, but regardless she got out of there right away.

It was the second time she'd confessed her love to the man, and both times he hadn't said anything back. Her batting average was not great but she wasn't out yet. She was going to take one more shot at it. This time she was going to do it with a little flare.

Jess took a deep breath as she pulled into Ethan’s driveway. She was ready to lay her cards on the table. And the naughty nurse outfit was just her way of stacking the deck in her favor.

Without giving herself time to overthink it, she grabbed her bag and jumped out of the car. Her heels clicked on the brick path to his front door in perfect time to her heartbeat. She’d never done anything like this before, and her mind was racing with possible outcomes.

At this point, she’d be happy just to get a smile from Ethan. He’d started out as RGF, then it was Mr. Sunshine, and now she was calling him Oscar, as in the grouch. He was miserable, and she wanted to cheer him up.

With a confidence she didn’t quite feel, she opened the door and walked straight to the backroom, where Ethan was lying on the couch watching television.

“Hey.” He started to sit up, which still took considerable effort on his part, but he stopped when she untied the belt and shrugged off her coat.

“Holy shit,” he breathed as his mouth was wide open and his eyes were devouring her and his reaction gave her the extra boost of confidence she’d been missing.

“Mr. Steele, I’m Nurse Myers here to do your physical.”

She grabbed the television remote and turned it off before kneeling beside him. She pulled her prop stethoscope out of her bag and placed it over his chest.

“Take a deep breath for me, Mr. Steele.”

She watched as his chest rose beneath her hand. She started to move the instrument down and when she got to the waistband of his sweats he spoke.

---