18. Growing Admiration

Ali

A li kept her hand in Jo’s as they entered an addition just a few blocks from Jo’s apartment. “This is a different route,” she teased. She saw the sign for the garage sales, just like Jo had, and she knew Jo rarely could scoff at a deal. It was one of the many reasons she was being pulled to Jo.

Jo grinned as they continued to take Maverick on his morning walk. Only this time, it was a bit extended. They both didn’t work until later and they didn’t have to rush to get around to go to the hospital. It was days like this that Ali couldn’t take things for granted. The peacefulness of being together was something that always caught her off guard.

But there was more to their booming relationship. Ali needed someone to push her, and Jo was that person. But it also was a relationship that had a lot of give and take. Jo needed someone who would show her that sometimes it was alright to fall as long as you continued to get back up. Ali didn’t want Jo to give in just when things were getting rough, because that would show her that she should quit. Ali didn’t want that strain on Jo.

It’d been nearly two weeks since Vincent had his surgery, and to Ali’s relief, it seemed like Jo had finally come to realize that she wasn’t this weakling. She was a strong and independent woman and, as it turned out, a damn good nurse. Ali was happy to be the beacon that Jo needed to comprehend that truth.

Ali pulled Jo’s hand up to her mouth and kissed her fingers. Jo looked over and grinned. “What’s that for?”

“Just relishing in how happy I am.”

“I am, too.” Jo leaned in and gave Ali a sweet kiss. They were miles away from the hospital, and the likelihood of encountering anyone who would squabble at their intimate connection was slim to none. They walked up a driveway, and Jo peered at the tables, picking up a few odds and ends. Ali just glanced around. Their hands were connected when Jo wasn’t breaking from the connection to pick up something else.

Ali grabbed a book and read the back of it, then flipped through the pages to see if there was any writing in them. She held it while Jo continued to look over another table. Jo looked over and shrugged. “I think I’m good. Are you getting something?”

“Just this book. Wait for me, won’t be much more than a minute.” She left Maverick and Jo at the end of the driveway and went to pay for the book. There was a line waiting, and only one person was working the sale, so she stood back and looked at the other tables that were set up in the garage.

“Ali? I thought that was you.” She glanced up and saw she was the next person in line. Jessica stood, grinning. Then her eyes went past Ali to glance at Jo and Maverick. “She works in your department, right?”

“Um yeah, Jessica. Just out killing some time.” Ali shrugged, acting like it was the most natural of things, but her mind went back to HR, where she caught her there to pick up an application. Why was it that she didn’t have to fill out the application much later? Was there a conspiracy going on? She nervously shifted her feet and smiled, holding up the book. “You have a line forming, and I don’t want to keep people waiting.”

“Oh. Right.” Jessica smiled, but Ali could nearly read her mind. “How are things going?” Jessica asked. “I heard you applied for the nurse educator position. You would be doing really well at it. I’m positive. I hear they’re narrowing it down shortly. Now that you’re in the running, I probably don’t stand a chance.” Jessica replied, a soft giggle coming from the other side of the table.

“I’m doing well. Haven’t really heard a whole lot about the job lately. Not sure I would really do the job justice.” Ali handed over a dollar for the book. “But I guess we will see. You, on the other hand…” Her words trailed off.

Jessica shrugged. “Who knows? I’ve been contemplating taking my hat out of the race. I haven’t been there nearly as long as you have. Or others, for that matter.”

“Well, if your supervisor thinks you’re qualified, I would say that’s all that really matters.” Her heart fell to her stomach. Would seeing her there with Jo get her disqualified? She swallowed. “Thank you.”

“Yep, of course. Happy reading.” Jessica smiled but then looked out past Ali again. She smirked, or at least Ali suspected it was a smirk. Ali grimaced and turned on her heel, then hurried away to meet up with Jo.

“She’s busy,” Jo commented.

“Um, yeah, she is,” Ali mumbled.

Jo reached out for her hand, but Ali slipped it into her pocket, while the other one held her purchase. She wished they hadn’t made the stop into the addition. Her heart wouldn’t be bleeding at that very moment.

“Something wrong?” Jo asked.

“Can we just go back to the apartment? I don’t feel all that great.”

Jo’s brows furrowed. “Do we need to take you to the hospital?” she asked, concern etched on her face. Ali shook her head, and they headed in the opposite direction. Once they were on the path back to Jo’s apartment, Ali heaved a sigh.

“That garage sale,” she started. “Well, turns out the owner works at CAPMed.”

Jo’s jaw dropped. “I see.” She then stopped walking and the concern returned. “And?”

“Well, she made mention of you and how you work in my department, and I’m sure she was just probing for some sort of green light where she suspected what she knew she suspected.” Ali groaned. “I mean, we were holding hands and all.”

Jo nodded. “This is all my fault. I should have never taken the detour. I got too comfortable in us being us and forgot that there could be real complications that come from this.”

“Hey, this is not your fault. We both knew that something like this could be inevitable. I do NOT blame you. Do you hear me?”

Jo nodded, and they resumed the walk, but things remained quiet between them until they were just a few minutes from Jo’s apartment building.

“Who is she?” she asked.

“Her name is Jessica. She works in the ER, and she’s up for the same promotion that I am, but she’s not vindictive. For that, I am assured.”

Jo snickered. “You may think that, but some people can change. Especially if they feel threatened.” Again, the silence. Ali hated that anything like this could put a strain on their relationship. She tried to be so optimistic, but this was the first time that she felt fearful that the bond they’d been moving towards was going to come crashing down.

They reached Jo’s apartment, and Jo unhooked Maverick, and they both watched as he ran to his water bowl. Ali laughed. “Thirsty boy,” she said.

Jo nodded, then met Ali’s gaze. “Maybe we should slow things down a bit. I can’t be the reason you don’t get the promotion. I wouldn’t feel right about that, especially when you have been working so hard to get it.”

Ali moved in closer to Jo, as she continued to argue all the reasons why they needed to go their separate ways. There was just one reason Ali wouldn’t accept losing the fight.

“Jo, we don’t even know what repercussions could come of this. Nothing may happen. So, until it does, I’m not going to worry about it. Are you?”

“But…” Jo started.

Ali reached up and touched her lower lip. She couldn’t tell Jo what all was in her heart. She couldn’t tell her that over the course of their paths crossing, she caught herself falling for the woman she should avoid. She opened her mouth, but no words would come out.

She moved in, and they kissed, her hand going up to Jo’s chest and just staying there. Her tongue swooped in and claimed a moan. She couldn’t say all of that when Jo was steadily consuming her heart. They would just wait things out and see what happened. With any luck, they were just worrying for nothing.

A couple of days later, Ali reached the nurse’s station and glanced around. There was only one nurse she was looking for. May sat behind the computer, her eyes drawn into whatever she was reading. Ali cleared her throat, which finally broke May from gawking at the computer.

“Oh hey,” she said, smiling.

“Do you know where Jo is? I need her to help me with something.”

May smirked, and Ali tilted her head. “I think she had to take something to Vincent in ICU. She should be back soon.”

“Thank you!” Ali headed away from her and glanced over her shoulder to find that May was back staring at the computer. She didn’t want to make noise in the elevator, so she slipped through the door and hurried up the stairs to ICU. She checked around to see if anyone was looking in her direction. When she saw that the ward was bare, she hurried towards Vincent’s room. She peeked inside and saw Jo at his bed.

“Hope you like the comic book. Found it at a garage sale over the weekend.”

“Thanks, Jo.” He leaned in, and they embraced. Ali grinned and continued to watch the sweet encounter.

“How are you feeling?”

“Good! They say I could get out of ICU tomorrow. Will I come back to your floor?”

“Yep. And we’ll have a bed waiting for you.” Jo ruffled her fingers through his hair. “I have to get back to work, but I can’t wait until you’re out of here.”

“Bye, Jo.” She turned around and saw that Ali was right there. Jo’s mouth hung open until they left the room.

“I’m sorry. I just got that comic book and had to bring it to him. Did you see his face? Wasn’t that worth it?”

Ali laughed. “Come here.” She pulled Jo after her and through the door to the stairs. She pressed Jo up against the wall and kissed her passionately.

“You’re not mad?” Jo breathlessly asked as Ali brought her back into a kiss. They stayed there for a moment and embraced one another, their tongues soothing each other’s as they kept their passionate moments behind closed doors. Yet, anyone could walk through the stairwell, and they’d be caught. There was something daunting and exhilarating about that.

“I missed you,” Ali replied, parting from the kiss.

Jo grinned. “I love it when you startle me like that.” They held hands the rest of the walk down the steps until they reached the stairs, and they reluctantly had to pull back.

“When do you get off? I was thinking we could meet up at your place. I’ll bring the dessert, and we’ll stay in, all cozied up in bed together.”

Jo groaned. “As amazing as that sounds. I have to work until midnight.” She made a face. “But tomorrow night, I’m free. I could whip us up some dinner, and you’re all the dessert I need.” She winked, and Ali laughed as Jo opened the door, and they stepped out of the stairwell together. She gave a slight nod, then looked to see Julia coming out of the office. Their eyes met, and Julia smiled, but the smile didn’t quite graze her stare.

“Ali, I need to see you for a minute.” Julia waved her over, and that pit in her stomach returned. Jo rushed off, and Ali slowly moved to the office. She knew that would most likely not be a good sign. Julia closed the door behind them, another red flag, then turned to face Ali. “I have some news,” she began. Ali swallowed and nodded. “I just heard from the board that you have been short-listed for the promotion. In fact, there are only two people they’re even considering. You have a really good shot here. You just need to keep doing what you’re doing, and this should be your promotion. ”

“Wow!” Ali breathed a sigh of relief. That wasn’t what she expected to hear, but she was overjoyed and slightly overwhelmed. “Thank you for letting me know. I can assure you that I will do what I have to do to get this promotion. It’s been weighing heavily on my heart, and I know I will do you proud.”

“I have no doubt,” Julia replied before her face fell. “There’s just one more thing.” Ali waited for the ball to drop. It was too good to be true, and there was always something that would wreck things for her. “As you know, I have been observing you.”

“Haven’t really noticed,” Ali admitted.

Julia smirked. “Then clearly doing the job, as it’s not supposed to be too obvious. Nonetheless I have been, as have some of the board members.” Ali’s brows furrowed. “What I’ve witnessed and what other members have witnessed is a bit unsettling.”

“How so?” Ali frowned.

“You can’t show favoritism, especially if you get this promotion and it appears that there’s a certain nurse that’s new to CAPMed, and you are giving her the majority of your attention. I just want to warn you that it can appear like there’s something going on outside of CAPMed’s walls.”

“What? She’s doing a great job, and I feel you should commend the workers that put all their efforts into their jobs. That’s a bad thing?”

Julia shook her head. “I didn’t tell you who that one nurse is,” Julia pointed out. “That speaks volumes, and rewarding someone for doing a good job isn’t always a bad thing, but there’s been some talk, and I would hope that you would know better that if people see that you are favoring one over the other, they might just think that you’re not qualified for this job. We both know that’s not true, right?”

Ali nodded but tore her eyes away from Julia’s. She felt the reprimand would only get stronger, and she couldn’t get too defensive, or Julia would know there was cause for concern. “I understand, but you have nothing to worry about.” She nodded and reached her hand out for the door, opening it so Ali could leave. “Thank you for letting me know that I’m one step closer.” She then turned and headed away from her. The problem was that she didn’t know how she could even celebrate when the only person she wanted to go to was Jo.

She heard Jo’s laugh echo through the corridor, and she turned and hurried away from it. She reached for her phone and pulled up Nolan’s contact information.

Nolan:

Could use some company tonight. Meet me at Alley Bar eight o’clock?

Nolan knew more than anyone, and he was a confidante that she could rely on. She couldn’t wait until she got to the club, got that drink, and had a real heart-to-heart with her best friend.

Luckily, he was able to meet her, and Ali was the first one to arrive. “I’ll take a beer.” She waved down the bartender and sat back on a stool, waiting for him to get there. He arrived ten minutes later. He greeted her with a kiss on the cheek. “I’m ecstatic you could make it,” she admitted.

“I’m ecstatic you still have time for me,” he teased. “What happened to another hot night with you know who?”

Ali groaned. “She had to work, and frankly, I guess I’m kind of avoiding her.” They grabbed their beers and headed to a table.

“Uh oh. Rough waters in lover’s lane?” he asked. “I mean, don’t take that as a bad thing. Brody and I had our share of trouble at the start. It all worked out, though.”

Ali shook her head and sipped on her beer. “It’s nothing like that. I mean, we are vibing well together. Maybe a bit too well. I worry that maybe I’m getting too close to her and just being na?ve.”

“You can’t be serious,” he replied. “Love looks good on you. Don’t shy away from it. I happen to think that Jo is the perfect woman to be with you.”

“You, maybe, but hospital protocol, not so much.” She grimaced, and he gawked in her direction. “Julia informed me that people are talking and that it’s obvious I’m showing favoritism to one particular nurse.”

“Tell her she’s wrong!” He shrugged, taking a drink of his beer. “Although, you might want to stop making heart eyes to that said nurse.” He laughed when Ali tossed a napkin at him. “It’s simple, though: if you don’t let someone see you rattled, then they’ll never truly figure it out.”

“I wish I could believe that,” Ali mumbled. She downed her beer and stared at her empty bottle. “I guess I didn’t realize that people in the hospital would be talking.”

“What about Jessica?” he asked. She had already caught him up on the garage sale and how she had run into Jessica. She secretly wondered if Jessica had mentioned something to the hospital board. Was she the other person still up for the promotion? Those were things that made her question everything.

“It’s possible, it was her. I’ll probably never know.” She stood up. “Want another beer?”

He held up his bottle and shook his head. “Not quite yet.” She left the table, and her thoughts rushed back to Jo. It would be disappointing to end things simply because they worked in the same hospital. But if it came down to it, she didn’t know how she would handle that. She would just have to lay low and try to keep things even safer while in CAPMed. There was no reason for rocking the boat.