“Woohoo! We did it!”
I shake my head, laughing lightly because oddly enough, I feel… fine. No ring on my finger, none on hers, but somehow, I feel okay. Nowhere as bad as I thought I’d feel after getting married.
“Not as scary as you thought?” Molly teases, patting my arm before slipping her hand into Colt’s.
Truthfully? No, it’s not. Maybe I just needed it to be fast and low-pressure. A band-aid rip instead of a slow, agonizing peel with a day’s worth of events.
“Yeah, not bad.”
“Lean in for a quick photo,” Molly says.
Regan presses against my chest, and I wrap an arm around her waist while Molly lifts her phone and snaps a few shots of us. We must look ridiculous out here, her in cutoff shorts, me in khakis, both of us grinning like fools. As soon as Molly lowers the phone, Regan spins toward me, practically buzzing with excitement.
“Let’s drop this paperwork off at Betsy’s so we can get the keys to the home.”
I shake my head. “I gotta head into the hospital for my shift. You go ahead and get settled.”
She tilts her head to the side, not seeming disappointed. “Will I see you at the house later tonight? I can help you move in your stuff.”
I probably should. No sense in wasting more money at the motel now that I technically own a home. But one more night of separation from Regan might be the smarter choice. Just one more.
“Yeah,” I say, hesitating. “I’m not sure. We’ll see.”
If she’s disappointed by my lukewarm response, she doesn’t show it. Just gives me another tight squeeze then flashes me a smile before skipping off to her car.
Molly leans in with a smirk, dropping her voice to a whisper. “Tonight’s your wedding night… you two have fun.” Then she winks.
And fuck. I hadn’t even thought about that.
Chapter 15: Hayes
“Have a good night, Doctor Walker,” one of my nurses at the community hospital calls after me with a smile as I strip off my surgical cap and toss it into the bin.?
I give her a tired wave, rubbing at my eyes. So much for getting out of here by two. It’s now well past three in the morning, and the night shift has been relentless. Emergency after emergency, one crisis bleeding into the next, and with us being the only hospital within fifty miles, there’s been no reprieve, and my back and knees are screaming at me in protest.
When I took this job, I knew exactly what I was signing up for, and I was excited about it. Still am. Being the guy everyone relies on in a small community hospital is the challenge that I wanted post-residency with the kind of wide open spaces to enjoy on my days off.
But nights like this, when I’m still green around the edges, it can feel overwhelming. The only redeeming quality is thatbusiness has been booming—if you can call an influx of injuries and illnesses “booming”—and thanks to a hefty donation from none other than Mrs. Mayberry herself upon her passing, they’re hiring another ER doctor this summer and expanding the small hospital’s ICU unit soon. At least that means there will be someone to split the load. Someone to keep me from burning out before I even hit my stride.
“Have a good night, everyone,” I call as I make my way out.
Now that the chaos has finally died down, the ER feels eerily empty, like a ghost town after a storm. I scrub a hand down my face, too drained to bother changing out of my scrubs before leaving, and grab my bag from my office. The walk to the parking lot is short, and as soon as I slide into the driver’s seat of my truck, I rest my head against the steering wheel and catch my breath. When I look down at my phone, I notice I missed a phone call from my little sister Scarlett made two hours ago. There’s a text from her too.
Scarlett:I’m sure you’re working. Call me whenever you get this. I don’t care if it’s super late.
I sigh, hitting redial immediately because I’ll never make her wait. She answers immediately.
“Hey, bro.”
“Hey, Scar. What are you doing awake?”
I can hear the grin in her voice. “Waiting up for you to call me back. Just kidding. I’m packing.”
“Oh? Where are you going?” I ask, starting the truck, letting it idle as I try to decide where the hell I’m even going. The motel? My new house that I share with my new wife who is likely already asleep. I don’t know what to do anymore. My brain is exhausted from making life-saving decisions all night and I’mconsidering sleeping in the hospital parking lot so that I don’t have to decide my next move.
“I’m visiting some friends in New York. And on the way…” she pauses. “Thought I could stop by and see you in your new city.”
That has me freezing. Because as of earlier today, I am officially a married man, and I haven’t had a chance to tell my younger siblings, Seth and Scarlett any of that.
