Page 11 of No Greater Love
And he wasn't alone.
A girl of about eleven or twelve trailed behind him, clutching a backpack shaped like some cartoon character and a paperback book. Her dark hair was pulled back in a messy ponytail, and she had blue braces that flashed briefly when she nervously bit her lip.
Crawford's kid? Had to be. Same serious eyes, same way of standing, like she was trying to take up as little space as possible.
I stepped back, watching as Sophia immediately took control of the situation, ushering Crawford and his daughter into the charge office. Through the glass, I could see Crawford's rigid posture, the tension in his shoulders. The little girl looked small and out of place, clearly trying to be invisible.
"Babysitter drama," Maria muttered from beside me, appearing, like she always did, out of nowhere. "Poor Nate!"
I took a sip of my coffee, affecting nonchalance. "Not my circus, not my monkeys."
But I kept watching. The kid… Paige. That was her name. Was fidgeting with the book in her hands.The Giver. I remembered that book from school. Pretty heavy stuff for a tween, but Crawford's kid was probably as serious as he was.
Wait. I remembered now. A few weeks back, Crawford had been showing around a picture Paige had drawn for a science project. Something about heart valves, way beyond what an eleven-year-old should be capable of. He'd been so damn proud, practically bursting at the seams, even though he tried to play it cool. "Just sharing some interesting anatomical information," he'd claimed, fooling absolutely no one.
I'd taken a look, more out of boredom than interest. The kid had included the interatrial septum in her analysis of heart valves. Mostadultswouldn't catch that.
Through the glass, I could see Sophia's expression shift from stern to sympathetic. Crawford looked like he was drowning. The kid looked like she might cry any second. After a moment, they all disappeared from the break room, heading for the charge nurse’s office.
"What do you think will happen?" I asked Maria, keeping my tone disinterested.
Maria shrugged. "He'll probably have to call out. With the new attendance policy, that'll be rough." She lowered her voice. "HR's been on the warpath lately.”
I frowned. Crawford was a pain in the ass with his military precision and his constant "by the book" attitude, but he was also one of the few nurses who always had your back in a crisis, who never complained when shifts ran long, who took the difficult patients without whining.
And that kid. Something about her quiet determination to be brave, the way she clutched that book like it was a lifeline... it reminded me of my cousin Alexis at that age. Scared but trying so hard not to show it.
Before I could overthink it, I found myself walking toward the charge office. I knocked once, decisively.
Three faces turned toward me as I opened the door. Crawford looked shell-shocked, Sophia looked calculating, and Paige... Paige just looked lost.
Something twisted in my chest, unfamiliar and uncomfortable.
Damn it.
"Oh my God, hiiiii, is this your daughter?" I blurted, channeling my inner enthusiastic babysitter voice. "The one who drew that heart valves picture you showed everyone!?"
Paige looked up, clearly startled. "You showed my picture to people?"
Crawford's ears reddened. "It was exceptional work."
I leaned down slightly to Paige's level, surprising myself with how genuine my interest was. "I thought it was soooooo cool how you included the interatrial septum. Most people forget that's technically a fifth distinct area."
Paige brightened visibly, sitting up straighter. "Dad helped me build a model!"
The words tumbled out before I could stop them: "If you need someone to watch her, I could stay with her in the break room. Just until you can sort something out." I shrugged, trying to look casual, like this wasn't completely out of character for me. "I'm good with kids. Got a bunch of younger cousins."
Crawford stared at me like I'd grown a second head. Sophia's eyebrows nearly hit her hairline.
"Are you sure, Tasha?" Sophia asked, her voice neutral but her eyes sharp. "You'd be responsible for her. I'd need to pull you from the floor."
"I can handle it," I replied, a defensive edge creeping into my voice. What, they thought I'dcorruptthe kid? "For an hour or so. Give him time to make some calls."
Sophia made her decision quickly. "Okay, Tasha. Thank you. For one hour. Break room. I'll let Nathan and I handle Fast Track between us."
Crawford looked at me like I'd just thrown him a life preserver in a hurricane. "Tasha, I... thank you. Seriously. I owe you big time."
His sincerity was so unexpected it made me uncomfortable. "No worries, Crawford," I said, already turning to Paige, desperate to change the subject. I gestured to the book in her hands. "Is that 'The Giver'?"
