Page 7 of Hard Hat Hottie

“Gah. One could hope.” Shay giggles. “But then again, none of the nurses would get anything done.”

I watch as he lifts his bright yellow hat from his head long enough to run a large muscular hand through his dark blond hair, his smile never wavering.

Shay leans in to me and releases a heavy sigh. “I bet women just throw themselves at him wherever he goes.”

“Uh huh.” I breathe, biting into my lower lip as I picture him catching me when I do the same, all toned and tan, his pecs and abs on full display.

“You two better get a move on or you’re going to be late,” Gretchen says as she walks by. It’s at that moment I realize the van has made a second loop in the time we’ve been ogling this sexy specimen.

Curling my fingers in a short wave, I give him a coy smile as I make my way to the entrance doors. It’s fleeting, this exchange at the start of each shift. There are no obnoxious cat calls or whistles. Not from the guys working, nor from Shay and me. I laugh. It’s all in fun. Heck, he’s probably got a wife and kids. I’d never actually act on anything with him. But that brief greeting puts a spring in my step as I start my shift each day. And around here, much like the arrival of the shuttle bus, it’s a rare delight.

“Harlow, how do you like that? We can start the shift without needing to wring out our clothes first.” Sadie grins from the time clock as we approach to punch in and start work.

“She might still need to.” Shay gives me a playful nudge. “All buff and beautiful was giving her his usual welcome to work greeting.”

I can’t keep from smiling. “Yeah, he has about the same effect on me as that sweltering walk used to.”

The three of us head to the breakroom, where we begin each shift with a quick update from the charge nurse on expectations for the evening. Grabbing my lunch sack, I’m making my way to the fridge when I hear Tony snicker.

“Not sure why you bothered packing that. We’re so short staffed, there’s no one to cover lunch breaks.”

Gretchen clears her throat as she enters the room. “We may be short on nurses, but I’ll step in to let you try and have something to eat. No one clock out for dinner, because I won’t be able to manage covering your patients for a full thirty minutes.But I’ll see if we can get administration to pay for pizza so you can enjoy what you brought another time.”

“Good luck getting administration to pay for anything,” someone mutters from the back of the room.

“Well, they did provide an air-conditioned shuttle to and from the parking lot. They didn’t have to do that,” a female responds in a voice so hushed I could barely make out the words. But I’m certain after seeing that sign earlier, the hospital administrators had little to do with the van. Hopefully, pizza is a little more in line with their budget.

Gretchen reads a motivational quote before we start our evening, as is her norm, and we disperse to check where we’ve been assigned for the next eight hours.

“Yes!” Sadie squeals. “You’re with me in fast track, Har.”

Nice. I bounce on my toes. Eight hours working with Sadie, knowing cocktails are waiting for us at the finish line? I can handle this.

“Oh, please give me something for the pain,” the young blonde who’s sporting a wicked sunburn from head-to-toe groans just before, again, puking into an emesis basin. This scenario happens far too frequently here. Tourists in their early twenties come to visit the shores of Candy Cane Key, get smashed on cheap liquor, and then pass out under the merciless rays of the sun without fully appreciating the need to liberally re-apply sunblock.

“I’ve brought you some more nausea medication and some Tylenol.” I inject the Zofran into her IV, hoping this and the fluids will take the edge off of her poor life choices.

I say this without judgment. For I have no right to criticize. This naïve girl will eventually shake off her hangover, her skin will heal, and she’ll be no worse for wear. Unlike me, whose life choices left her with unplanned pregnancies and not one, but two, shotgun weddings that barely lasted a year or two.

James “Jimmy” Potter swept me off of my feet at the tender age of twenty. Six years my senior, he came into my life like a hurricane, fast and furious. We met at a bar in town and quickly became inseparable. Tall, dark, and handsome, Jimmy’s still well-built and makes many a head turn. But his biggest asset with women is his charm. He’s a charismatic guy who’s mastered the art of pulling a girl in to his orbit. The problem is, once you’re there, he’s no longer interested in putting forth any effort to keep you.

I doubt Jimmy would’ve ever settled down had I not gotten pregnant. Yet while I was devastated that we’d been so careless, Jimmy took it all in stride. Granted, hewasseveral years older, but I hadn’t thought him the type to want to settle down. Yet, he was quick to reassure me things would be okay. I’d planned to start nursing school in a few months, but he encouraged me to put things on hold until the baby was born. Jimmy worked as a plumber and felt confident we’d manage financially and wanted me to focus on motherhood. At least, that’s what he led me to believe.

It wasn’t until later I realized what he really wanted was for me to be at home, waiting on him like June Cleaver did inLeave it to Beaverfor Ward and her boys. Except Ward was home for dinner every night. Not hanging out with the guys at the local pub or placing bets on random sports events at the Casino two towns over.

Once it became clear this wasn’t simply a passing fancy, I packed my bags and my infant and moved in with my mother until I could find a way to make a life for the two of us. However,as I quickly discovered, if you aren’t careful, life has a way of repeating itself.

Robert Pierce walked into my life much as my first husband had. He’d been visiting our quirky beach town during the Christmas in July festivities. He was a self-proclaimed jack of all trades, looking for a new place to call home. He said he wanted to make an honest wage and spend his weekends on the beach, fishing and enjoying all that the Florida Keys life had to offer. Rob regaled stories of his work, from Hazmat technician to roof inspector. After a few too many Mistletoe Margaritas, we were paired in the Santa sack race and, well, you know where this is going.

Unlike Rob’s work ethic, his super swimmers were overachievers. Despite birth controlanda condom, it wasn’t long before I found out I was pregnant and got married once again. I’m not sure what had me believing this time would be different. I mean, at least Jimmy had a steady income with his plumbing business. Even if he tended to gamble it all away.

Rob spent as much time unemployed as working. And some of his occupations paid little more than minimum wage. When it became clear I’d married a carbon copy of Dear old Dad, I packed my things, gathered up my little ones, and contacted a divorce attorney.

I’m not making excuses for my poor decisions. Looking back, I’m certain my unplanned pregnancies were fated. I couldn’t have asked for better boys. If the only way they were meant to come into my life was via Jimmy and Rob, so be it. And as the years have gone by, I find my exes to be more tolerable. So long as we aren’t living under the same roof.

“The countdown is on!” Sadie squeals. “Thirty minutes ’til we can get the drinks flowing.”

“Oh, where are we going?” Shay asks, giving me jazz hands. “You bitches aren’t allowed to leave me in the dust. We’re thethree amigos, three of a kind, the trinity of awesomeness.” She laughs. “I still have my hat in the car.”

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