Risky Extraction

Chapter 4

Exhaustion set in as she walked around the emergency room to check on the patients still waiting for test results. She needed to move primarily to keep from falling asleep on her feet and the other small part to stop her thoughts of Crash.

She hadn’t seen him since the night of the wedding, but that was because she’d been avoiding him. It was difficult enough for her to resist him before, but now that she knew how it felt to get lost in his kiss, she wanted more. Much more.

Allyson hadn’t felt that alive in a long time, if ever. She couldn’t remember a kiss affecting her so much, even with Trent. It wasn’t that her late husband didn’t know what he was doing, but he’d never made every part of her body buzz.

It added to her guilt over her late husband. After Trent died, she blamed herself for his death. She always wondered if he’d been distracted because before he’d left, they’d decided to divorce when he returned.

It wasn’t anyone’s fault. Allyson and Trent couldn’t get past losing their second child and Allyson almost losing her life when she gave birth. They tried everything to work it out, but, in the end, they couldn’t. She never told anyone about their issues after his death; regardless of their problems, part of her still loved and missed him.

Since his death, she tried dating. There were a couple of other doctors at the hospital and a pharmaceutical salesman she met when he came to tell her about some products, but she felt very uneasy with him. None of the men ever got a second date. Although Witt continued to ask for another night out, she always turned him down. If she was honest, it had nothing to do with Trent. None of the men she’d gone out with compared to Crash, but it was a relationship that couldn’t happen—at least not a romantic one.

The problem was since they kissed, she couldn’t forget how it felt. She was surprised Cora hadn’t mentioned it. Her sister Bethany tried to talk Allyson into going out with Crash when Cora continued to insist she belonged with him, but as much as she wanted to, she couldn’t.

Allyson walked into the small office off the emergency desk and scanned the patients on the whiteboard. Most of them were waiting on tests, and one was detoxing from too much alcohol consumption.

“Are you okay, Ally?” Leah asked.

Leah had been a wonderful friend since the young nurse moved to Hopedale. She had a son and bonded with Allyson over being single mothers, although Leah didn’t talk much about her son’s father.

Allyson loved working with her because she was efficient and fabulous with the patients. Thankfully, they worked most of her shifts together, and Leah was the first one Allyson went to when she thought about going into private practice because she wanted her to go with her.

Dr. Sean O’Connor was retiring and offered her his part of the practice. His son, Ian, worked at the clinic as well, and Allyson was glad to work with someone she knew. The fact she could walk to work and have regular hours was the icing on the cake.

“Yeah, I’m fine. Had a long shift,” Allyson assured her friend.

“Well, Dad is taking Liam this weekend, and I know you’re off. Want to hit Jack’s Place for a few pints?” Leah asked.

“That sounds great, but I’ll let you know for sure tomorrow.” Allyson was about to leave the office when someone blocked her path.

“Hello, Dr. Sullivan,” Witt said with a smile.

“Dr. Davenport,” Allyson replied, trying to step around him.

“I hoped to run into you.” Witt rested his shoulder against the doorjamb, blocking her exit.

“I’m busy, Witt.” Allyson motioned for him to move.

“I see the board, Allyson. I wonder if you’d have supper with me on Saturday?” Witt asked.

Allyson tried not to roll her eyes. After four years of turning him down, he didn’t seem to take the hint that she wasn’t interested. The bastard even showed up at her door one evening with a bottle of wine. She lied, telling him her father was on the way to take her to supper.

That evening, she saw a side of Witt she never wanted to see again. He’d grabbed her arm and practically demanded another date. Luck was on her side because her father pulled into the driveway before Witt could do anything. He didn’t come by her house again but never gave up.

Leah had suggested she tell the asshole she was involved with someone, but she didn’t want to lie. Besides, the only guy she could think of was Crash, and she wasn’t about to involve him in a ploy.

“I don’t know how to make it any clearer to you, Witt. I’m not interested in going out with you. I wish you would stop asking.” Allyson looked him directly in the eyes.

“You’ll say yes one day,” Witt smirked as he chucked her under the chin with his knuckle. “I mean, who wouldn’t want to date a successful plastic surgeon.”

Before she could respond to the jerk, another trauma rushed into the ER. Witt moved, barely giving her enough room to pass him. Hopefully, he’d be gone after she dealt with the patient.

Three ambulances arrived over the last couple of hours of her shift. One patient didn’t make it, and the other two admitted. She wanted to go home and fall into bed for a week, but Allyson didn’t have that option.

The following day, she had a meeting with Sean and Ian. They wanted to go through all the paperwork and let her become familiar with Sean’s patients because she would take them over when he retired.

The drive home was twice as long as usual. Typically, it took ten minutes to get from St. John’s to Hopedale, but road construction seemed to be on every section of the highway. The province always pushed road work in the fall to complete it before winter, causing detours that she didn’t have the energy to deal with.

When she finally pulled into her driveway, she wasn’t sure she’d make it up the stairs to her bedroom. She dropped her stuff in the front hallway, shuffled into the living room, and flopped down on the sectional. She was about to close her eyes when she noticed the open patio door. Allyson was diligent about checking all the doors and windows before she left for work, so it struck her as odd that she didn’t lock it.

The hair on the back of her neck prickled as she sat up and glanced around the room. Neither her father nor her son had dropped by because they would call first. Did she leave it open, or did someone break into her home?

Allyson slowly got to her feet and went to the sliding doors. She didn’t touch it or the frame but looked up and down to see if someone had pried it open. She crouched down to look at the latch.

“As if you’d know if someone had jimmied the lock,” Allyson grumbled to herself.

She reached into her pocket to pull out her phone, but it rang before she put her hand on it. Allyson startled at the sudden shrill tone and cursed herself for being jumpy.

“Hello,” she answered as she slammed the patio door closed.

“Hey, Ally,” her sister’s voice sounded weird.

“What’s up?” Allyson locked the door and jiggled it several times to ensure it was secure.

“I’m so bored,” Bethany complained.

“You have three kids and a husband. How are you bored?” Allyson laughed.

“Because my mother-in-law kidnapped my kids for the night, and my husband is gone to his weekly guy’s night with his brothers.” Bethany sighed.

“So, you’re calling your boring sister to see if we can be bored together?” Allyson dropped down on the couch.

“I’ll bring wine,” Bethany tempted.

“Deal.” Allyson jumped to her feet. “Give me thirty minutes to shower.”

“I’m getting dressed and grabbing the wine.” Bethany hung up before Allyson could respond.

She may be tired, but it was nice to curl up on the couch and chat with her sister. They didn’t get much time with each other because of their busy schedules. Bethany had recently taken over the only pharmacy in Hopedale because the owner wanted to retire. As a pharmacist, Bethany jumped at the opportunity to work close to home. It was also another reason why Allyson chose to take over for Sean. It meant she could stay in Hopedale and not drive back and forth to the city daily.

She saw her phone flash and realized it was about to die, then hurried to the kitchen to plug it into the charger she kept there. They were all over her house because she wanted to ensure the hospital could always contact her. Since her phone needed to always be on, she needed it charged all the time.

After a shower, she pulled on a pair of comfy leggings and an old T-shirt. She’d pulled her damp hair into a messy bun when her sister’s voice echoed downstairs.

“I’m opening the wine and not waiting for you,” Bethany shouted.

“I’m coming,” Allyson replied with a chuckle.

As she reached the bottom of the stairs, Bethany walked out of the kitchen with an open bottle and two glasses. They made their way into the living room, and as she was about to sit on the couch, she felt a cold chill swirl around her legs.

“Shit, Ally, I know after forty you go through the change, but your living room is freezing,” Bethany said as she placed the bottle and glasses on the coffee table.

“I am not going through the change,” Allyson grumbled.

That already happened when she had the hysterectomy. The operation had forced her body into menopause, but her sister didn’t know that.

“Then why do you have your patio door open in the middle of October?” Bethany asked as she closed the sliding door.

Allyson froze. The door she’d closed before her phone call was open again. Stepping next to the door, she checked the latch, but it didn’t seem broken, and after she locked it again, she yanked on it several times.

“Do you think I don’t know how to close a patio door?” Bethany asked as she poured the wine.

“No, the door was open when I got home, and I’m sure I locked it before I left—I know I did before I went to shower.” Allyson closed the blinds.

“Did you leave it open before you went to work?” Bethany snuggled on the couch and pulled a blanket over her legs.

Allyson flicked the switch for the propane fireplace and then joined her sister on the couch. As they snuggled under the large blanket, she sipped the red wine and sighed.

“I’m not a hundred percent sure of that, but I know I did before I showered,” Allyson said as she sipped her wine.

“Why don’t you get Brent to look at the latch? There could be something wrong with it,” Bethany suggested.

“I don’t need Brent to check a lock. I can do it myself.” Allyson sighed.

“Could be a reason to get him over here and…”

“Stop.” Allyson put her hand over her sister’s mouth.

Bethany did her best to push Allyson and Crash together. It was difficult enough to resist him because she wanted him so badly, but when they constantly pushed her, she sometimes wanted to scream at them.

“I’m just…” Bethany tried to say, but Allyson stopped her again.

“Brent and I can’t be anything but friends. End of the story and end of the conversation.” Allyson tipped her glass and took a large gulp of wine.

“Fine,” Bethany huffed.

“How are the kids?” Allyson asked, hoping to get her sister on to another subject.

“They’re good, but they’re growing up too fast. Grayson is already five, and Katie is two.” Bethany sighed. “Avery is five months old, but I want another before I get too old to have one.”

“You’re not too old,” Allyson said with a chuckle.

“Okay, I don’t want to be pregnant again, but I still want a baby.” Bethany grinned.

“You and A.J. could adopt,” Allyson suggested.

“No, I’ll wait until another one of the women pops out a baby and go to their house to get my baby fix.” Bethany snorted.

“Isn’t Caroline having a baby?” Allyson remembered someone mentioned it at the wedding.

“Yes, and she’s so excited. They knew before the wedding but didn’t want to say anything until they returned from their honeymoon last week.” Bethany put her glass to her lips.

“I bet Bruce is as well, but if it’s a girl, she won’t be allowed to date ever.” Allyson laughed as Bethany nodded in agreement.

They were on the second bottle of wine when Bethany’s phone chirped with a text message. She looked up from the screen and grinned.

“My hubby finished his guy’s night, and he’s coming to pick me up.” Bethany drained the rest of the wine in her glass.

“And what are you two ever going to do tonight with no kids and an empty house?” Allyson smirked.

“I’m sure we’ll find something to fill our boring night.” Bethany winked.

Allyson walked her sister to the door and waved as Aaron strolled up the driveway. She almost choked on the wine she sipped when he picked Bethany up and tossed her over his shoulder as if she weighed nothing. It was at that moment she noticed the truck Aaron headed for.

Crash must have been dubbed the designated driver for the evening. Her heart picked up as she met his gaze through the passenger side window. She gave him a little wave, and he nodded to her.

Things were different since the wedding three weeks ago, but maybe that’s the way it had to be. She had to make sure that line in the sand was clear because, as much as she hated the thought, Crash needed to find a woman who could give him the life he deserved.

“I’ll see ya later, Ally,” Bethany shouted before Aaron helped her into the vehicle.

“Okay, love you,” Allyson returned.

“Love you too,” Bethany called out through the window as they drove away.

Allyson sighed as she stepped back into the house—alone again. Selling the large house seemed like a better idea every day. Then, she could be lonely in a smaller place. Maybe she should get a dog.

She’d put the wine glasses in the dishwasher and tossed the empty bottles in the recycling bin when her doorbell rang. Glancing at her watch, she tried to think of someone who would be coming to her house so close to midnight. Maybe her sister had forgotten something.

When she opened the door, her breath caught. Crash stood there looking way too good for her slightly inebriated brain. She swallowed several times before she finally spoke.

“Brent. Um, what are you doing here?” She tried to sound casual.

“Beth said you’re having issues with your patio door.”

He stepped around her and headed toward her living room without hesitation. She stood holding the door for a few seconds before she realized he wasn’t leaving until he checked the lock.

“I probably didn’t lock it properly.” Allyson followed him.

“Well, I’m going to make sure it’s locked. I’ll never sleep worrying about you here alone and a bum lock.” Crash tried to open the door with the lock engaged.

When it didn’t open, he unlocked it and crouched to look at the latch. Allyson’s eyes immediately checked out how his jeans molded to his fine ass. Her distraction caused her to miss that he’d said something.

“Ally?” She jumped when he called out to her.

“Uh. What?” She tucked her hands into the pockets of her sweater.

“Pass me the broom,” he said.

She hurried into the laundry room and returned a few seconds later with her broom. Crash was scanning outside the patio door as if looking for someone to pop out at him.

“Why do you want the broom?” Allyson asked, handing it to him.

He took the bristle part of the broom off and jammed the handle into the frame of the patio door after closing and locking it again.

“Nobody is opening this unless they’re inside the house. I’ll pick up a security bar for it tomorrow. These doors aren’t always secure,” Brent explained.

“You don’t…” Allyson stopped when he put up his hand.

“I know I don’t have to, but I’m doing it anyway.” He took a step closer to her.

“Thanks,” she whispered.

“Hopedale isn’t exactly the city, but the idea of you here alone and having a door anyone could open doesn’t sit right with me.” Crash shoved his hands into his pockets.

“I appreciate it. Tell me how much…” Allyson stopped again when he raised an eyebrow.

“Just say thank you and move on, Ally.” Crash sighed.

“Thank you, Brent,” she replied.

She wanted to ask him to stay, but she had to keep a distance between them. Allyson wanted him to have the best life possible with a family and a wife who could give him everything. That would never be her.

“Okay, so now I can sleep.” He walked around her and went to the front door.

Allyson followed him, trying to keep the lump in her throat from strangling her and the tears in her eyes from spilling down her cheeks. She felt lost without his friendship.

“Thanks again, Brent.” Allyson’s voice cracked.

“No problem.” He headed down the steps, then stopped. “Goodnight, Ally.”

He didn’t turn around as he walked to his truck and hopped in, and Allyson was glad because he would see the tears in her eyes. Things were never going to be the same. Why was life so unfair?