I don’t feel a need, though, to make a big deal out of those words. They simply are the truth. Something we’ve both known in our hearts.
Instead, I pull back from her and ask her one more time. “What are you doing here? And how long can you stay?”
“How about forever?” she asks, her eyes shining bright.
“What?” I ask carefully, my breath caught in my chest. Afraid to hope.
“I just had a job interview at St. Joseph’s on Long Island that went amazingly well. So amazing, in fact, that they offered it to me. I start in three weeks.”
My knees almost buckle from the complete euphoria coursing through me. “Please tell me you’re not kidding.”
“I’m not kidding,” she says as she leans back into me.
“But how? How did this happen so fast? We just talked yesterday, and you didn’t say a word.”
She’s quiet… her hands rubbing my lower back. I can sense hesitation in her, so I prompt her, “Holly?”
“My father helped me,” she says quietly.
I pull back from her, taking her by her elbows and leaning back to look at her. “What?”
“He pulled some strings. Got me the interview. I just found out about it two days ago. I didn’t tell you yesterday because I wanted to surprise you with a visit, regardless of how the interview went.”
“Your father helped you,” I murmur in wonder. Clearing my throat, I ask, “He just helped you out of the blue?”
“No,” she says with a wince. “I called my mom and asked her if he would, and apparently, he did. I haven’t talked to him, but she called me with the details and told me they wanted to meet with me right away. I hopped a plane here this morning and just finished the interview about an hour ago. They offered me the job on the spot.”
Shaking my head, my lips curve upward. “This is just unbelievable.”
“I know,” she says with an excited grin. “Three weeks and we can be together again.”
“We’ll need to move out to Long Island. It will be easier on you to be closer to the hospital. I can commute into Brooklyn.”
“You want to move in together?” she whispers, her eyes wide.
“Yeah, don’t you?”
“Well… yeah, but—”
“Sam thinks it’s a good idea, and so do I,” I tell her quickly.
“Sam thinks it’s a good idea?” she asks with a grin.
“Yup, and I’m expecting he’s going to demand we get a house with a fenced-in yard so he can have a dog.”
Holly laughs, wraps her arms around me, and pulls me back down for a kiss. When she releases my lips, she says, “I think we should get the kid a dog for sure.”
I kiss her again… swiftly, because I hear the swinging door bang open and the voices of a few of the guys coming through.
Sobering a bit, I ask her hesitantly, “Are you going to talk to your dad?”
“Yeah,” she says with no hesitation. “It needs to be done. I need to thank him at least, and I don’t know… maybe talk to him.”
“Want to go over there tomorrow when I get off duty?”
She shakes her head. “No, I only have one more day here and I don’t want to spend it with anyone other than you. But I do have an idea of how I want this to go down.”
I look at her in question, but she doesn’t give me anything else. Instead, she steps back into my arms and hugs me with a sigh of contentment.
My life just got very fucking good.
Epilogue
The Grande Ballroom of the Plaza Hotel is overflowing with people, flowers, and champagne. It’s an auspicious occasion, where New York’s medical finest are lauded for their groundbreaking work.
My father, of course, was the main honoree, being the recipient of the Franklin R. Murray award, which is voted on by his peers. I had to look it up, not being overly familiar with how things are done in New York anymore, but I saw on the website that the award goes to a physician who best uses his or her talents and skills to improve the lives of his or her patients through actual practice, teaching, and charitable works.
The award is really quite impressive and when my father took the stage to accept it, I found myself clapping with actual respect for him. Tim, decked out in the most gorgeous tuxedo I’ve ever seen, was clapping right alongside me.
We make our way through the throng of people. Now that dinner has been concluded, the band is playing and people are taking to the dance floor. My father knows I’m here, as I got word through my mother that I would attend. What he doesn’t know is that Tim will be with me.
I’m not sure if I’m doing this for the shock factor, or if… once again… I just want to rip the Band-Aid off.
I moved to New York this past weekend. Tim and I are still looking for a house we can buy together, but for now, I’m staying in his small apartment. I start work next week, and I’m terribly excited because I’ll be doing work on the pediatric trauma services.
I haven’t seen my mother or father yet, and it’s been difficult to put off their invitations to get together. But I didn’t want to succumb to the possibility of something more with them until I could show them just what they’d be getting if they wanted me back in their lives.
I needed to show them that Tim is a part of my life.
The biggest part of my life, actually.
Spotting my father and mother ahead, Tim takes the hand he had on my waist and laces his fingers with mine. With a reassuring squeeze, we make our way toward them and the group of doctors they’re talking to.