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In fact, it was quite the opposite. We were much flirtier than we used to be. Our conversations were friendlier and more sensual. Everything was just better, as weird as that sounded. And I was happy with it, but even with that being said, I wanted more. I didn’t just want to be a nanny to Ezra even if that was all I was destined to be in his eyes.
“The food looks amazing, Quinn,” Ezra commented as he walked to the table, putting a hand on my shoulder and grinning before taking a seat. Just like usual, Paige was chatting away about anything and everything, with me and Ezra adding in little comments here and there wherever we felt that our input was needed.
In the past, our relationship had been strictly professional. I didn’t do anything without his say so, and he watched me like a hawk at all times. And it was refreshing to be able to say that was no longer the case.
Now, we were friends. Or, at least, I liked to think that we were. To be completely honest, I didn’t know what was going through his mind most of the time, but I liked to think that he, at least, agreed that we were closer than we had been, in the past. Having sex had opened us up to be different around each other, and maybe I should have been grateful for that, rather than wanting more.
What was better than being able to say that I was friends with him? Ezra didn’t have very many friends, although I was sure that had to do with the fact that he didn’t like very many people. I had a privilege that I was sure many people wanted but nobody was awarded. Ezra liked to be by himself, without distractions, so it was amazing that he was finally letting me into his life the way that I wanted.
Even if a part of me wanted more, I was happy with the newfound friendship we’d managed. It was better than when he had been snapping at me all of the time or was cold towards me for no reason.
“Daddy, are you still going to take me to the park?” Paige asked once she had finished eating, her eyes bright with happiness and excitement. She was a very cute little girl who found joy in all of the smallest things. “You told me yesterday that you were going to take me. You promised.”
“Well, you know if Daddy makes a promise, then he’s going to follow through.” He picked her up, and she started giggling.
Ezra looked at me. “Do you want to come?” he asked.
“Sounds fun,” I told him with a grin on my lips. “Just let me clean up real quick.”
I picked up all of the plates and washed them before putting them into the dishwasher and starting it, considering that I hadn’t done so the night before. Then, I grabbed the spray from underneath the sink, and sprayed it on the counters before wiping it all down. Afterwards, I grabbed a broom to begin sweeping up everything.
My phone began ringing just as I finished, and I put the broom down before answering. “Hello?”
Ezra was staring at me, and I could see him out of the corner of my eye. I wanted to tell him to stop because he was distracting me, but I knew better than to do that. Instead, I gently bit my bottom lip and turned my back to him so that I wasn’t looking at him.
“Is this Quinn Sharpe?” The voice on the phone asked.
“Uh, yes it is.” I pulled the phone away from my ear to look at the caller ID. It said my mother. That was weird. Why would someone have her phone? “Can I ask who I’m speaking with?”
“It’s her doctor, Dr. Richards,” he introduced himself. I could feel my entire body freeze when I realized who I was talking to. “I’m calling about your mother. Unfortunately, she has been admitted to our hospital because of heart failure. Her health is continuing to deteriorate although we’re currently doing everything that we can for her. Her odds don’t look wonderful, and we think it would be best if you came here to be with her in case these are her last days. From our records, you are her only living relative, correct?”
My heart is pounding against my chest, and trying to settle it was harder than I would have thought. This couldn’t be happening. My head was beginning to spin. “Yes, I’m…” my breath wasn’t coming out the way that I wanted. “I’m her daughter.”
“Then we do ask that you come here, immediately.” The phone went dead, leaving me to attempt to gauge this news on my own. She was my only living blood relative, and now she was dying. What was I supposed to do with the news that my mother was dying? All I could feel was panic rising inside of me.
There was no way that this was happening right now. I had to put my life on hold at once. I needed to be with her because if these were her last days, she deserved to have her daughter holding her hand on her deathbed.
To let the news digest, all I wanted was to fall to the floor, wrap my arms around my legs and cry. Of course I had known that my mother’s health wasn’t the best, but that didn’t mean I’d ever pictured that she would die, not really. She was my mom, and I didn’t want to lose her. Just because I didn’t see her every day didn’t mean that I didn’t love her, that I didn’t wish that I could be with her.
I took deep breaths in an attempt to calm myself down, as the tears began to flow from my eyes. I leaned against the counter, the small sobs leaving my throat even as I tried to quiet them. I had never fought for control of my body so much just to lose the battle.
My entire body jolted when I felt someone behind me, tapping my shoulder. My immediate thoughts were that it was Paige. And I wanted to stop crying, stop being sad, because seeing me would make her sad, as well. I just wasn’t able to stop the waterfall of tears pouring down my cheeks.
“Quinn.” It wasn’t Paige. I recognized the voice as Ezra, and I stood up and turned around, slowly to look at him before wiping my nose. There was concern written all over his face, and he looked beyond worried. I never let my emotions dictate me or my personality on the job. This was different.
“What’s the matter?”
“I need to go,” I told him, sniffing. “I have to go. I really need to leave. Is that okay?” I was hyperventilating from all of the crying and the amount of fear that was wrecking throughout my body. “I’ve never taken a leave, and I know this isn’t the most conventional job, but I’ve got to go. Is that going to be okay? Please tell me that it is.”
Ezra seemed completely overwhelmed with my answer as he pulled me against his chest, letting me cry against his shirt and soak it with my tears.
“Of course,” he told me, his voice low, as he did his best to console me. “What’s going on?”
“My mother’s dying,” I told him, honestly. “She’s dying, and I need to be there for her. So, please let me go.”
“You’re free, Quinn,” he told me. “Take as much time as you need.”
“Thank you,” I said. “I have to leave.”
