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By the end of the day, Gareth was grateful to be going home, even if it meant he was once again alone with his thoughts.
He’d just finished making himself some supper when his phone rang. Seeing Janessa’s name on his screen, Gareth hesitated to answer it. However, he knew she would just keep calling.
“She said she’ll come back,” Janessa said once he answered. “As long as you’re really sure it’s okay.”
“I’m not sure that it is, but it’s fine.”
“That… That makes no sense.”
It made perfect sense to him, but he didn’t try to explain it to Janessa.
“I know this isn’t easy,” Janessa said softly. “It’s not easy for Aria either. She knows how you feel about her.”
Gareth doubted that. How could she, when he didn’t even know how he felt about her? “But she’s still coming back to the clinic.”
“She found something here that she desperately needed. It goes beyond just you,” Janessa said. “She has no one, Gareth. She needs a job, and she needs a home.”
Gareth knew that, and it would make him selfish to deny her those opportunities.
“I said it was fine,” Gareth said, keeping his tone firm so that it gave away none of the conflict he felt. “If you think this is the right thing to do, then stop trying to convince me.”
Janessa let out a big sigh. “Fine. I’ll see you tomorrow, and Aria will be in too, because I could really use the help.”
After they said goodbye, Gareth gripped his phone. He barely had time to collect his thoughts when his phone rang again. Recognizing it as a video call, he frowned, since it was usually only his parents who liked to see him while they talked.
Sure enough, it was his mom calling. He’d been a bit surprised that they hadn’t contacted him yet to share their thoughts on the situation with Aria.
“Hello, darling,” she said when he answered. “You look tired.”
“I am. A bit.” He knew better than to deny something his mom observed.
“We had a conversation a few minutes ago with Jay,” she said as his dad moved into view behind her. “How are you doing?”
Gareth rubbed his forehead. “I’ve just been trying to deal with my own personal emotions about everything.”
“I understand and let me say that I’m sorry about what’s happened with Aria.”
“It was a bit of a shock to discover what she’d kept from us.”
“Are you willing to forgive her?” his dad asked. “Or has your anger gotten the better of you?”
His parents had known him the longest, and they knew his strengths and weaknesses. “I’m struggling.”
The love in the smile his mom gave him pulled emotions from deep within him. Emotions he’d been trying to ignore.
“We’re praying for you,” his dad said. “And we’ve been talking since Janessa told us what had happened with Aria, trying to figure out the best course of action for the clinic. You know we prefer to let you and Jay handle things there now, but this seems to be a situation that requires involvement from all of us.”
“We’ll be in the office tomorrow morning to speak to Nora.” His mom grimaced. “We’ve decided to let her go.”
“Really? You’re going to fire her?” Gareth asked. “I would have thought you’d see her actions as protecting the clinic.”
“I might have seen it that way if I didn’t think she had ulterior motives,” his mom said. “This was not about the clinic. This was about her feelings regarding Aria. If she’d truly been concerned about the clinic, she would have approached the situation much differently.”
“We can’t be without a female doctor,” Gareth reminded them.
“We understand that, so your dad is going to return to Haiti for another month,” his mom said. “I’m going to stay here to help out in the clinic.”
“Are you sure they don’t need you in Haiti?” Gareth asked.
