Page 54 of Just One Chance
Avery nodded. “Thanks, Lucy.”
Avery kept herself busy, playing mindless games on her phone, too preoccupied to do anything that required brain power. When she heard David’s voice coming toward her, her heart lurched, and she dropped her phone into her bag before clenching her trembling hands into fists. When the curtain slid back and David stepped into view, her heart nearly fell to the floor.
He wasn’t wearing the typical scrubs she’d grown used to seeing him in. He wore dress pants, a shirt and tie, and a lab coat, a stethoscope draped over his neck. He looked so achingly handsome, Avery almost couldn’t breathe. “Hi,” she said, her voice catching in her throat.
David smiled. “Hi.” He stepped more fully into the room, pulling the curtain closed behind him. “I was told I was seeing a woman with a heart condition?”
Avery laughed. “I guess you could say that.”
David pushed his hands into his pockets and looked up at her through his lashes, his expression sheepish and adorable. “I’m really nervous right now, Avery.”
She smiled and laughed, then walked toward him, reaching out both her hands for his. “Don’t be nervous. I came here with something very important to say. I just need you to listen.”
He nodded. “Okay,” he said, his voice barely a whisper.
Giving his hands a squeeze, Avery moved them to the small of her back, so she stood in the circle of his arms, her hands pressed gently against his chest. He felt warm and solid and real under her palms. She kept her eyes down, certain that if she looked at David directly, she’d probably start to cry. “I came here thinking I was going to tell you that it was time for you to just jump in the pool already, but then I realized you already did. You jumped when you sent me that letter.”
“That letter felt a lot bigger than jumping in a pool,” David said.
Avery laughed softly. “Just go with the analogy, all right?” She slid her hands up to David’s shoulders, finally looking into his eyes. “It isn’t you that needs to jump in the pool, it’s me. I was scared, David. Scared of feeling too much, too fast. Scared of forever, which I’m pretty sure this thing between us has the potential to be.” She shrugged her shoulders. “You said it was now or never, so I choose now. I mean, if you’ll still—”
In one swift movement, David pulled her against him and lifted her chin, cutting off her words with a kiss. Avery gave in completely, letting him lead, opening herself up as he deepened the kiss, his arms wrapping fully around her. Several moments later when he pulled away, she had to lean against him for how dizzy she felt, for how intensely her blood pounded through her veins.
“I think this definitely qualifies as a heart condition,” she said softly.
David pressed a kiss against her temple. “Want to get out of here?”
Avery looked up. “You don’t have to work?”
He shook his head. “I only came in for a meeting with the hospital board.”
“Which is why you’re so dressed up,” Avery said.
He nodded. “There’s a new initiative they want to implement in the ER to improve response time and overall patient care. They’ve asked if I’ll head it up.”
Avery smiled. “That’s amazing.”
“It comes with a little bit of a pay raise, so I’ll take it. Though at first it will mean less time with patients, and I don’t love that. Hopefully that will just be temporary. It was Dr. Stevenson who recommended me for the job,” David said. “I didn’t expect it at all.”
Avery thought back to her conversation with Tucker when she’d threatened to go public with his raunchy behavior. Was it possible her threat had something to do with David getting a promotion at work? Maybe. But she’d never say as much out loud.
“Let’s go celebrate,” Avery said. “I’ve got a gift card to the Darling Oyster Bar that I still haven’t used.”
David threaded his fingers through hers and led her out of the ER. “Oysters, huh?” They stepped into the parking lot, and he turned, pulling her into him and wrapping his arms around the small of her back.
“They do say oysters are an aphrodisiac,” Avery said with a knowing grin. She leaned up on her tiptoes and kissed David with all the longing she possessed.
“Actually,” David said, breaking the kiss, “that’s a myth. There’s not anything in oysters that would make someone more inclined to romance. Research indicates it might be the slurping motion of eating raw oysters that turns people . . .” His words trailed off and he cleared his throat. “I should stop talking and just kiss you again, shouldn’t I?”
“Yep,” Avery said, her tone matter of fact. “That’d be good.”
And itwasgood.
That time, and the next, and every time after.
Epilogue
Averystoppedattheend of the wooden walkway that led to the beach behind her house and took off her shoes before stepping onto the sand. She didn’t see David, but she’d find him soon enough. They often met out on the beach after work, and his text had told her he’d be there. The sun had long set, but the moon and stars were bright enough overhead, it was easy to find her way without a flashlight.
