Page 58 of Rules Of Our Own

The security guard leads me through the building, and I can feel all eyes on me. Everyone is already starting to make assumptions as to why I’ve been asked to leave my residency. Out of all the guesses, none could possibly come close to the truth.

I keep my head down and my gaze locked onto the floor as I wander through the many halls for the last time. When I’d first stepped foot within this building, I was brimming with enthusiasm and eagerness; now, it feels like those walls are crumbling around me.

I push the thought down and let my mind go blank. If I go down that path, I won’t make it out of here without crying. I push through the front door and wince when I leave the shadow of the building and move into the harsh sunlight.

“Do you have a ride home, Dr. Brooks?” I glance back at the security guard. He’s standing just inside the doors.

“I’ve got my car, no worries.” I barely have the words out when the automatic doors click shut behind him, and I have to blink back tears. Not here. With my luck, Jason’s lurking somewhere, watching this whole thing.

“Hey.”

I spin and spot Kristie standing with her back close to a tall brick column that’s hiding her from view.

The second our gazes meet, I can’t stop the tears from streaming down my face.

“What the hell happened?” She wraps me in a hug, arms squeezing around my sides, and I let the box full of my belongings fall to the ground.

“They think I was stealing from the hospital.” My words wobble as I force them out.

“What the actual fuck?” Kristie hisses, and the corner of my lip twitches.

If everything wasn’t going to shit, her uncharacteristic swearing would be funny. I take several deep breaths, needing to get my shit together. “I think it was Jason. Now he’s trying to pin this on me.”

“Okay,” she says calmly in her best patient voice. “You have options. We can make an appointment with the board and tell them that.”

“There’s no way they’ll listen to me if I don’t have proof. It’s not like I can go in there and be like, my ex, who just happens to be one of your sons, is a creepy dickwad who’s probably trying to frame me for his own crime. Please give me my job back,” I say, and then my own words slap me in the face.

Oh my God. I’m never getting this job back.

I try and fail to suck back a sob.

“Listen to me, Mia. I’ll ask around. Someone’s got to know something. That bastard is not getting away with this. We’ll string him up by his balls, and then you can come back and be my work bestie.”

I bark out a laugh, some of the weight lifting from my shoulders. “I owe you.”

She gives me a mischievous grin. “Not for this, girl. This is going to be fun.”

* * *

My mind’s blank as I drive home from the hospital. The sky is a perfect blue, and the sun shines brightly, but it all feels muted. Like someone turned down the volume on life itself. I pull into my parking spot, shut off the engine, and sit there for a few moments, gathering enough courage to go inside my apartment.

When I finally open the door, Crookshanks meows at me and rubs against my legs until I pick him up. He purrs in my arms as dread slowly rises inside me like a tide.

I drop to my couch and bury my face in his soft fur. The reality of how screwed I am crashes over me like a wave. It will be nearly impossible to find another internship in Ottawa, and even if I could, it wouldn’t compare to the one I just lost. An overwhelming sense of helplessness sinks into me, and I hug my cat to my chest, taking several breaths before reaching for my phone.

I click to Sidney’s contact, knowing she’d want to know about this, but freeze. She’d cancel her trip if she knew, and I can’t do that to them. Instead, I send a quick text to the men I’ve been desperate to talk to.

Me: How have you been?

I watch my phone as the moments tick by, and anxiety starts to tighten my shoulders. What if they don’t answer? What if I’m crossing the line by reaching out to them when it was all supposed to be a short-term thing?

Bubbles form on the screen, and I can’t look away.

Alex: Where have you been, Kitten? Missed you.

River: Mia, are you okay?

I sniff. How does he always know?

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