Page 78 of More Than My Hometown

The mention of Nicaragua feels like it should be painful. Like it should be accompanied by a sharp pang, or a twinge, something to make me wince or recoil. Instead, there’s nothing.

Yes, it sucks that it all went down the way it did, but I had no control over the hospital opting to cancel the contracts, resulting in the termination of me and several colleagues, so dwelling on it isn’t going to get me anywhere. Plus, it was what I needed to pull the trigger on the ketchup pact. Something I likely would have left undone had my employment remained intact.

Pretty sure Garth Brooks has a song about this, the little blessings in disguise—or maybe his was about unanswered prayers—but either way, that’s exactly what this was. A blessing in disguise.

“Thanks. I assume you’re calling about my email?” I ask, not wanting to linger on the topic of my last assignment.

“Partially,” she responds, hesitancy laced into her voice.

“Is something wrong? Did I miss something?”

“No, no. We got your request for an early opt-out of your employment, and everything is in order. And since you were part of the whole deal in Nicaragua, the agency has automatically approved it.”

Oh, that’s good. That makes that easy then. So why the call?

“Buuuut…”

No, no buts…

My stomach clenches. Cathy just said that they had my paperwork. That it was automatically approved. So why a but? Buts are bad. So, so bad.

“You were already on my list of people to call. I was just trying to get my ducks in a row. And I still can’t promise that they’re in a row, or that one isn’t actually a pigeon.” She laughs at her own joke and I smile despite the internal panic trying to crawl through my skin. Because I understand that feeling all too well. “And then I looked at your file and I saw your request, and well, I figured I needed to get my butt in gear and call.”

“Okay. Is there an issue?”

“Oh, no. Exact opposite. There’s an opening…in one of your requested countries. So, I’m calling to see how serious you are about that opt-out.”

Oh, well then.

“Very, Cathy.” That answer is easy. “I know it might sound crazy, but these last few weeks have made me reconsider a lot of things, and while I’ve loved working with y’all and all of the incredible experiences that I’ve had everywhere I’ve been, it’s time to stay put. I’m in the process of applying to a hospital here locally in Georgia, which is why I asked for the opt-out, so⁠—”

“It’s Reykjavík,” she cuts me off.

Reykjavík? As in Iceland? My stomach flips, the air in my lungs failing to move, the news hitting me hard and fast. There’s an opening in Reykjavík. Holy shit.

The one place I never made it to. At least not professionally. I got to visit once, while I was posted to Austria, but only for a quick weekend getaway, instantly falling in love. I put it on top of my requested locations before we’d even left, hoping that something—anything—would come up. But the need never arose. So I kept going elsewhere.

Until now.

“Maisey, you still there?”

“Yeah, sorry, Cathy.” I shake my head, trying to clear my jumbled-up thoughts. “Reykjavík. Wow…I…I don’t know what to say.”

“Does that change things?”

Does that change things? Good question…

I told Ewan that I was done traveling. That he was my future, and that Hickory Hills is our home. All the dreams we’ve talked about and plans we’ve started making—I can’t go back on those. I don’t want to. I meant them. He is my future. This is my home.

But Reykjavík would be a dream come true.

Fuck…

“It…ye…I don’t know.” I sigh, closing my eyes and wishing that I wasn’t thinking about this. “Maybe.”

“I thought it might.”

“Cathy, I have things in motion here. And…and this is no longer just my decision. I can’t give you an answer right now. I need some time to think.”