Page 5 of Doctor Do-Over

My phone starts pinging with messages. I see one from my brother, one from my mother, and one from my agent. I selectmy agent’s message first because she’ll have information on Eddie.

Cortney

Eddie and I will meet you at the hotel after we land.

Me

Awesome. Just landed. Miss him so much. How is he?

Cortney

Same as always. Grumpy with me and missing you.

I pull my roller bag behind me as I make my way to baggage claim. My body is stiff, and my legs ache from the flight, but it’s nothing compared to the other pain. A slight twinge in my chest makes me pause for a moment. Feeling as if I might collapse, I search for a place to sit. But the pain recedes, and I continue walking. I check my heart rate on my watch. It’s high but not too bad. I need to sit down and check my blood pressure, but I want to get to the hotel first. For a fleeting moment, I think of Tanner. I miss him. I wish we could have had more time to explore the desire between us.

While I wait for my bags, I read the other text messages.

JD

Thought you were going to try to come home. Mom misses you. Dad is down in DC for some meetings, so she’s lonely. She could use some mother-daughter time.

Mom

Love you, baby. Hope your European leg goes well. Call me when you land in London. I’ll be on shift but will still answer.

I don’t respond to my brother. It’s just a guilt trip—the same one he’s been giving me for almost a year. I’ve traveled and stayed away from home, except for Christmas. I don’t want to hear about how I’m not being a good daughter for not staying home. Both he and my father think I should find a traditional job and give up writing. They don’t understand how much I love it or how much money I’ve made doing it, especially with the television series on the horizon.

When I was at home, I worked at a friend’s tattoo parlor, drawing designs for them. But I don’t want to settle, and I’m not looking for marriage, not yet, anyway. Well, maybe if it were Tanner. I shake my head, trying to push that thought away. I like him, but I can’t do more than that. I don’t want another man telling me what I can and can’t do or dictating what counts as a real job.

As soon as I have my luggage and clear customs, I step outside to find a gentleman holding a sign with my name on it. I walk over and smile at him.

“I’m Wry.” My agent doesn’t book me under my pen name to keep fans from finding me. We’ve worked hard to keep my true identity hidden.

“How do you do, ma’am? I’ll be your driver for your stay here. I’m Chet.” He smiles as he takes the cart from my hand and begins loading my luggage into the back of the black car. I love the traditional cab look.

I move to the back door he opened before starting on my luggage. I put my carry-ons in first and then slide into the seat.

After chatting with Chet for a moment, I pull up my mom’s contact on my phone.

“Hello, Mama.” I try to sound happy, but I know she’ll see right through my facade.

“Hello, baby girl. I miss you. What’s wrong?”

Yep, she can always tell.

“Nothing, just J.D.,” I fib. I am not going to admit to my mom that I regret walking out on my one-night stand.

“He’s just worried about you.” She defends him, and I shake my head. It has always been this way. I love my family, but they don’t get me. They are all in the medical field, and I never wanted to go down that path. It killed my father when I failed science classes. I’m smart, just not into science. I can quote the classics and have a secondary minor in literature, but J.D. says that’s a degree a partier would get. My brother should know I’m not the party type. I could have stayed at home and gone to Eastport University, but I didn’t want to. I was tired of my family controlling everything. If it wasn’t about what my job or career should be, it was them hovering because of my health.

I chat with my mom and tell her about the signing in New York. I don’t tell her about Tanner. She tells me she’s loving her shift in the ICU and can’t wait to move to maternity next. She rotates between departments, making sure that nurses are all current on their continuing education credits and addressing any further education needs. She’s part of the nursing education department.

“How has your BP been? Did you wear compression socks on the airplane? Did you get an electrolyte?” She starts in with her concerns. “That could be why you’re so short with J.D.”

“No, it’s the fact that he doesn’t understand that I have a real job. That I make plenty of money. It’s the fact that he is overly protective and worries I might get taken advantage of out here without him. That’s what is bothering me about J.D.” I pauseand decide to answer her questions before she asks again. “My blood pressure has been good. I thought I was going to collapse after I got off the plane, but it was just a twinge. Yes, I wore my compression socks—the graduated ones, even. As for an electrolyte, Cortney always has one waiting for me.”

“Good. How is Eddie?”

“I don’t know. He’s flying over with Cort. I’ll get to see him in the morning.”

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