Private Property: a Contemporary Romance Novella by T. Michelle Page B
Authors: T. Michelle
Ads: Link
functional again in a few weeks.”
Tabitha’s mind sobered and her heart dropped. The tears began flowing and her throat tightened once more. A few weeks would not make her boss happy – it was only a summer gig . Hell, she hadn’t even managed to get one good day in. She’d be out of a job for sure now. Not that she could blame him; Mr. Parker would have to fill the position.
Jared seemed to read her mind. He brushed her hair back from her forehead. “Sorry about the job, Tabitha. But there will be others. This had to be done. You have two pins holding the bone together. They can stay in for the rest of your life, but if they begin giving you trouble, we can take just as easily them out.” He rose to his full height and glanced at her friend.
“Kristen, I’ll have the staff bring a rollaway bed for you. Something tells me that you’ll want to stay by her side.” Kristen nodded, blinking back her own tears. Jared let himself out, promising to come and check on her after she got more rest.
As soon as the door closed behind him, Tabitha let the dam to break. Tears streamed down her face, her nose began to run and her breath came out in hitches.
Kristen tried to soothe her as best she could, but she knew what Tabitha had endured before finally landing this job. “I’m so sorry, Tabby. But, hey…maybe this happened for a reason. Maybe you just needed to take a break. Something will come along, you’ll see.” She was rubbing the back of Tabitha’s hand so constantly that her skin had started to burn from the friction. “You can stay with me until something comes along.”
Tabitha shook her head. She was exhausted and groggy . “I can’t do that. I’m tired. I just want some sleep.” She closed her eyes and prayed for a better day.
She woke in the quiet, wee hours to the picture of her friend curled on a low bed beside her, a large man standing in front of the window, staring out.
“Jared?” She whispered in the dark.
He turned around, his hands still clasped behind his back. “How are you feeling?”
“Oh, okay. A little more clear- headed now.”
He studied her in the waning light. “What will you do now?”
She hesitated to answer; she hadn’t thought that far ahead yet. “I don’t know. I guess it all depends on this.” She waved a hand at her bandaged arm. Until then she hadn’t realized that a partial cast encased it from her shoulder all the way down around her palm.
“Don’t worry – I re-stitched the wound on your hand before casting it. You had apparently torn some stitches out trying to push yourself down the hallway earlier.” He moved to sit next to her on the bed. He looked ragged – the surgical attire long since discarded, his glasses removed.
“You should get some rest, doctor.”
“I will as I need to.”
Tabitha stared at him for a long moment. “I don’t know how to thank you. I don’t – ” She paused to compose herself. “I don’t know how I will pay for all of this. I have no job, no insurance…” She trailed off.
“Let’s not worry about that right now. For the time being, let’s just concern ourselves with your recovery.”
“Why are you doing this?”
Jared’s eyes locked on to hers and he held them a moment in the silence. “I don’t really know. I’d say it was my job, but…I don’t know.” He stood up then and quietly exited.
Tabitha lay still, studying the ceiling tiles until she drifted off to sleep once more.
Chapter 5
She was running through a dark ness – a forest maybe. Just like all the other times, something bad was chasing her. Only this t ime, her right arm had been ripped off, ragged tendrils of skin and torn muscle seeping blood from the shoulder. She couldn’t catch her breath, couldn’t stop for fear of being caught, couldn’t manage to wake herself up.
“Hey… hey, Tabby.”
Tabitha woke with a start,
Tabitha’s mind sobered and her heart dropped. The tears began flowing and her throat tightened once more. A few weeks would not make her boss happy – it was only a summer gig . Hell, she hadn’t even managed to get one good day in. She’d be out of a job for sure now. Not that she could blame him; Mr. Parker would have to fill the position.
Jared seemed to read her mind. He brushed her hair back from her forehead. “Sorry about the job, Tabitha. But there will be others. This had to be done. You have two pins holding the bone together. They can stay in for the rest of your life, but if they begin giving you trouble, we can take just as easily them out.” He rose to his full height and glanced at her friend.
“Kristen, I’ll have the staff bring a rollaway bed for you. Something tells me that you’ll want to stay by her side.” Kristen nodded, blinking back her own tears. Jared let himself out, promising to come and check on her after she got more rest.
As soon as the door closed behind him, Tabitha let the dam to break. Tears streamed down her face, her nose began to run and her breath came out in hitches.
Kristen tried to soothe her as best she could, but she knew what Tabitha had endured before finally landing this job. “I’m so sorry, Tabby. But, hey…maybe this happened for a reason. Maybe you just needed to take a break. Something will come along, you’ll see.” She was rubbing the back of Tabitha’s hand so constantly that her skin had started to burn from the friction. “You can stay with me until something comes along.”
Tabitha shook her head. She was exhausted and groggy . “I can’t do that. I’m tired. I just want some sleep.” She closed her eyes and prayed for a better day.
She woke in the quiet, wee hours to the picture of her friend curled on a low bed beside her, a large man standing in front of the window, staring out.
“Jared?” She whispered in the dark.
He turned around, his hands still clasped behind his back. “How are you feeling?”
“Oh, okay. A little more clear- headed now.”
He studied her in the waning light. “What will you do now?”
She hesitated to answer; she hadn’t thought that far ahead yet. “I don’t know. I guess it all depends on this.” She waved a hand at her bandaged arm. Until then she hadn’t realized that a partial cast encased it from her shoulder all the way down around her palm.
“Don’t worry – I re-stitched the wound on your hand before casting it. You had apparently torn some stitches out trying to push yourself down the hallway earlier.” He moved to sit next to her on the bed. He looked ragged – the surgical attire long since discarded, his glasses removed.
“You should get some rest, doctor.”
“I will as I need to.”
Tabitha stared at him for a long moment. “I don’t know how to thank you. I don’t – ” She paused to compose herself. “I don’t know how I will pay for all of this. I have no job, no insurance…” She trailed off.
“Let’s not worry about that right now. For the time being, let’s just concern ourselves with your recovery.”
“Why are you doing this?”
Jared’s eyes locked on to hers and he held them a moment in the silence. “I don’t really know. I’d say it was my job, but…I don’t know.” He stood up then and quietly exited.
Tabitha lay still, studying the ceiling tiles until she drifted off to sleep once more.
Chapter 5
She was running through a dark ness – a forest maybe. Just like all the other times, something bad was chasing her. Only this t ime, her right arm had been ripped off, ragged tendrils of skin and torn muscle seeping blood from the shoulder. She couldn’t catch her breath, couldn’t stop for fear of being caught, couldn’t manage to wake herself up.
“Hey… hey, Tabby.”
Tabitha woke with a start,
Similar Books
