EIGHT
JACK
“Uncle Jack!” Tiny arms encircle my waist before I step into my sister’s living room.
“Hey, Lucy.” With a hearty laugh, I pick up my niece. “How’s my favorite girl?”
She accepts the invitation and wraps her arms around my neck, hugging me tight, and for a brief moment, I enjoy the closeness and Lucy’s happy giggling.
“I’m fantastic!” Lucy screeches in my ear. “Are you coming to my birthday party? Uncle Will is coming too.” She loosens her grip on me and grins widely. “Mom said we’re gonna have a unicorn party.”
“Of course. I wouldn’t miss it for the world.”
“Lucy, give your uncle a chance to breathe,” my sister, Olivia, says as she walks in behind me.
“Don’t worry, Liv. It’s fine.” I sit down on the couch with Lucy on my lap.
“Yes, Mommy, it’s fine,” Lucy says, furrowing her brows at her mother. She turns back to me. “Have you bought a present for me yet?”
“Lucy!” Liv scolds. “Stop. Now go to the kitchen and see if you can help Grandma with dinner.”
Lucy rolls her eyes, and I chuckle because she totally is my sister’s mini-me. “Fine.” She lets out an exaggerated sigh.
“How’s your shoulder?” I ask Liv once Lucy dashes out of the room .
She grimaces. “Could be better. It sucks that I can’t take stronger pain medication. I ice it most of the time.”
“Why aren’t you wearing a sling?”
“The doctor said it wasn’t necessary. They taped it, and I swear, I’m resting,” she declares solemnly. “Luckily, I won’t need surgery if it doesn’t happen again.”
“Well, this better doesn’t happen again!” I grunt and glare at her, which makes her roll her eyes at me. I roll my eyes right back at her.
“And the baby is fine?” I ask in a low voice.
Liv nods. “Yes, all good.”
“Does Mom know?”
“Not yet, but Ethan and I will tell her tonight.”
Ethan, my sister’s husband, had to go on a business trip for a few days, so our mom came down from Boston.
“I’m glad Mom could come,” Liv says. “Although it’s not easy to live under the same roof again, she’s a great help.”
“How long is she staying?”
“Until after Lucy’s birthday. She’ll return to Boston with Dad. Will is gonna stay a little longer, though, so the three of us can go to dinner sometime and catch up, okay?”
I smile at her. “Definitely.” It’s been too long since I spent some time with my two siblings, and I’m looking forward to it.
“Jack, my boy!” With outstretched arms, my mother enters the living room. “Why haven’t you said hello yet?” She gives me a scolding look before wrapping me up in a big, warm, motherly hug, and this time, it’s much harder to endure .
My mom thinks I’ve gotten over this whole no-touching thing. I made her believe I had because she was worried sick. And now that’s what I do. I play along and tolerate her hugs for her sake. It’s enough that she worries about me being single.
“Well, Mom, I know better than to walk into the kitchen to talk to you when you’re cooking.” I try not to cringe when she plants a peck on my cheek before vanishing out of the room with a laugh. When I meet my sister’s knowing gaze, I roll my eyes. “Don’t say it,” I mumble.
And, as usual, she doesn’t.
“Jack!”
Ugh, great. I’ve been at work for not even five minutes, and already, someone wants something from me. I continue filling my mug with steaming coffee before turning around. “Hey, Vince,” I say when my boss approaches me. “What’s up?”
“I need you to do maintenance today.”
With a heavy sigh, I lower my head.
“I know you don’t like it,” Vince says, “but Jonathan called in sick.”
“Can’t anyone else do it? What about Jeff or Cole?”
“Sorry, no. You’re gonna have to do it. I emailed you the list of jobs.” He squeezes my shoulder with a curt nod before leaving me standing in the breakroom, gaping after him .
Fuck.
Clutching at my mug, I slump into the nearest chair before grabbing my phone. But coffee first. The heavenly scent hits my nostrils when I take a sip. This will probably be the highlight of my day—the company’s coffee is excellent, and I’ll need a few extra cups today.
Yup, definitely a few extra cups. The list of today’s jobs isn’t that bad—save for one: software issues on an ultrasound device.
In the maternity ward.
At the hospital where Emma works.
I haven’t seen her since Paul’s birthday party two weeks ago, and I tried hard not to think about her because Paul is still right. I can’t offer her what she needs and deserves. So I suppressed all thoughts about her—until now.
Hmm, ultrasound device in the maternity ward. I wonder if I’ll run into her friend Rob, whom she talked about.
After finishing the third cup of coffee, I go about my work day. My mind revolves around that one job, though, and when I step into the hospital that afternoon, I tell myself for the umpteenth time that I won’t meet Emma that I finally believe it.
“Hi, the name’s Boyd,” I introduce myself at the reception desk. Ten minutes later, a nurse leads the way to the maternity ward, and I follow her into an exam room.
“Oh, hey.” A doctor sits behind a desk and looks up from his paperwork when we enter.
“Hi,” the nurse says. “The engineer guy is here. ”
With a too-wide smile, the doctor rises from his chair, and after greeting me with a handshake, he points to the ultrasound device. “Thanks for getting back to us so quickly. This one seems to have some kind of software problem.”
I nod, and my gaze falls on his name tag: Dr. Robert Jenkins.
Rob. Emma’s friend. I eye him up and down, wondering if that is the type of guy Emma is into. Medium height, blond, neatly cut hair, no striking facial features, black-rimmed glasses.
A boring nerd.
I internally roll my eyes at my stupid thoughts and focus on why I’m here. “I’ll get right to it,” I say with another nod.
Rob sits back down and continues with what he was doing before, and I concentrate on doing my job, trying this and that to fix the problem. But I have to acknowledge to myself that I can’t find its source. I clear my throat, and Rob looks up from his work. “It might not be a software problem,” I tell him. “Maybe it’s the hardware. I have to check.”
“Um, okay. Sure, go ahead.”
I wonder why he’s still here. Doesn’t he have patients to examine? Is he here to babysit me? Whatever it is, he annoys the shit out of me, but that might be because he’s a good friend of Emma’s. Or more?
While I dismantle the ultrasound device, someone knocks on the door. I look up when a middle-aged woman sticks her head in .
Judging from her clothes, she’s a doctor as well. “Hi, Robert,” she says before coming in and handing him a file. “Emma’s results are in.”
“Oh, okay,” he responds. “Thanks.”
I avert my gaze, pretending I didn’t just stare at them after I heard the name Emma, but I noticed that Rob shot me a glance. That’s when the other doctor realizes I’m there. “Oh,” she says. “Sorry, I didn’t mean to interrupt. Um, will you tell her?”
“I will. Thanks, Susan.”
The woman leaves the room, and out of the corner of my eye, I watch Rob flipping through the file. I wonder if they were talking about Emma, the one we both know. Because why would they call anyone else by their first name?
Dammit, I need to stop this shit. Even if they were talking about her, that’s none of my business. I can’t help but speculate if there’s something wrong with her, though.
That’s when it happens. A moment of inattention, and I touch the wiring of the ultrasound device. A strong and very unpleasant tingling sensation rushes through me. “Shit!”
“Are you okay? What happened?” Rob rushes over, but I hold up my hand.
“Don’t come too close. Could you just pull the plug?” I point to the wall where I, the idiot I am, forgot to unplug the ultrasound device. “Fucking stupid mistake,” I mutter through gritted teeth, holding back the urge to kick the damn machine while shaking my sore hand.
“Did you get an electric shock?” Rob eyes me up and down, and I nod .
“How are you feeling? That can sometimes affect the heart. You should go to the ER for an ECG, just in case.”
I know it’s not that bad, but going to the ER where Emma might be working right now? I seriously must be out of my fucking mind if I consider this.
“Hm. Yeah, maybe I should.”
It’s settled; I’ve gone crazy.