Page 26 of The Widower's Girlfriend
I take another sip for courage, then launch into my tale, starting with meeting Walker at the airport, to our conversations, his announcement on stage, and then to his public posting of our relationship.
“And then...nothing. I haven’t heard from him since Monday. And I think it’s for the best. Clearly, being with me is going to tank his career, so it’s best I stay away. Don’t you think?” I finally wind down, picking up my sandwich while she digests everything I’ve dumped on her.
She folds her hands on the table and smiles at me patiently. “My sweet Jemma. You fell in love last weekend!”
I nearly choke on my sandwich. “No! I mean, I really like Walker, but we’ve only known each other a few days. You can’t fall in love that quickly.”
She shakes her head while her smile grows. “Yes, you most certainly can. And you did. True love is a precious thing. Why would you just walk away from that?”
I decide to drop the argument about falling in love. She can go ahead and believe that if she wants. “I’m walking away because it’s what’s best for Walker.”
She throws her hands up. “Exactly! Because you love him.”
I slump down in the chair and scrub my hands over my cheeks. “Argh! Maybe. I don’t know. All I know is I feel horrible.”
Charlotte nods. “I know, love. Why don’t you go talk to him? You’re assuming he doesn’t want to be with you when you don’t know that for sure. Be brave. Go find out. You barely even gave things a shot. If you quit now, I’ll forever be disappointed with you.”
My jaw nearly hits the table. “Wow, Charlotte, that’s pretty harsh.”
With a giggle, she stands up and leans down to hug me. “That’s because you don’t listen to subtle. Go get your man.” She walks away without a backward glance, nor an apology I might add.
I shoot imaginary darts at her with my eyes while she gets back to work and ignores me. I finish my sandwich and take the rest of my mocha with me when I stand to leave. One last glance at Charlotte and I see she’s eyeing me. One beautifully arched eyebrow rises, her lips pursed, and I know what that look means. She’s daring me to actually do something about my heartache.
And sure enough, that tough love ignites some fire in my belly. The caffeine has cleared the cobwebs in my brain and now I’m thinking in terms of fighting for what I want. I didn’t finally stand up to my lifelong friends for treating me like crap to let a man do the same thing.
I want answers. And by God, I’m going to get them.
* * *
There’s some sort of commotion at the front entrance to the hospital so I go in the back way, swiping my card and jogging up the stairs, only tripping once but catching myself before I completely wipe out. I don’t know what Charlotte put in that mocha, but I feel like I’ve had a complete turnaround this morning. I’ve got patients to see and time to formulate a plan to confront Walker. I want one last try to see if this will work between us. And if it won’t? He needs to say that to my face like a man.
Yeah, baby. Look at me being all self-confident.
I barely skim the first chart at the nurses’ desk on my floor when our head physician comes up next to me. Considering I don’t normally see him out on the floor on a regular basis, I’m surprised to see him sit down next to me.
“Good morning.” I give him a broad smile that he returns. I don’t know that I’ve ever seen him smile before.
“Morning. Thanks for sending Mr. James our way. He’ll be a great addition. You should get down to the press conference, don’t you think?”
My nose just went numb at the mention of Walker’s name. I’m so confused. What is he talking about?
“What?” I’ve completely forgotten about my charts. In my depression this week, did I forget something else?
“Mr. James? Downstairs? Go!” He stands up and walks away, shaking his head at my ignorance.
There’s a weird rushing noise in my head. I think Charlotte put way too many shots of espresso in that coffee.
I stand up quickly, the chair rolling back and hitting the wall. There’s no time to waste. If Walker’s here, I need to find him. I know I wanted to have a plan together for approaching him, but him being here is an opportunity I can’t waste.
When I reach the front lobby of the hospital, I see a small group of reporters standing around. My gaze rakes over the crowd until it lands on Walker, looking deliciously handsome in his blue suit and brown shoes standing with another good-looking man. I screech to a halt and drink him in. His hair is gelled back neatly and he’s freshly shaven. I immediately regret my refusal of the flat iron before I left my house this morning.
Walker’s head tips up and he sees me across the room, like he could feel my presence. He smiles and I can’t help my smile in return. The tight fist clenching my stomach for a week now lessens its grip. He holds his hand out for me and I walk forward as if in a trance.
“There you are. I was waiting for you.” When I reach him, he holds my hand and brings it to his lips, placing a sweet kiss against my skin and tugging directly on my heartstrings.
“Waiting for what?” My voice comes out breathy and I don’t even care.
He winks. “You’ll see.”
