Second Dive (Kings of the Water #3) - Jasmin Miller Page 0,15
her divorce.
But, as usual, they told her they believed in her, and that she was capable of managing it all, half a foot already on the next airplane. Metaphorically, of course, but it might as well have happened. Being supportive and overly loving while at the same time being absent. That’s our parents in a nutshell. Loving from afar. Not as available to us as we’d often like.
The elevator ride is quick, and I feel her eyes on me the whole time.
When we step out together on the third floor, her gaze is gentle. “You know you can talk to me, right?”
“You’re the second person today to say that to me.”
Her eyebrows go up. “Really? Who else said it?”
“Coach.”
“Mmm. Interesting.”
“Is it?”
“Yes.” She brushes a stray hair from her forehead. “Lorenzo usually doesn’t say anything until he really has to.”
“Maybe.”
“So what’s going on?” She’s not going to let this go. Once she knows something is going on, she’s like a ferret. Their latch-on bite is brutal, and you have to cover their nostrils in hopes they’ll let you go.
Talk about random tidbits in my brain.
Naturally, my gaze flickers to my sister’s nostrils. It might distract her from digging deeper, but yeah, no, thank you.
Instead, I exhale dramatically because I feel like it today. “He said I need to figure out what’s going on and what I want to do because my times have been shit.”
“Ouch.” Daisy grimaces. “I’m sorry.”
I shrug, because I still don’t know what to say or think about it.
A flicker to her watch has her eyes widen. “Dang it, I have to hurry. But let’s talk about it some more later, okay? I want to help if I can.”
“Sure.” The only acceptable answer right now, not that I want to talk about it again.
With another quick squeeze to my arm and a wave, she turns around and speed-walks away.
After releasing a pent-up breath, I turn the opposite way and head in the direction I was told to go for the meeting.
When I get to station five, I stop dead in my tracks at the scene in front of me.
A man and a woman laughing together. The guy bends down to kiss the woman’s cheek before he disappears behind a door that leads to the exam rooms.
The woman’s smile still lingers on her face, lighting it up like a Christmas tree. She looks absolutely stunning. Radiant even.
Most importantly, it’s the last person I was planning on—or was ready for—ever seeing again.
Chloe.
Once the love of my life.
Now, at the top of my shit list. Could my day get any worse?
Seven
Chloe
The smile on my face drops when my gaze collides with Noah’s.
Noah?
What the hell is he doing here?
If his squished-together eyebrows are anything to go by, he’s as confused as I am.
A small woman walks toward me before I can say anything to him—or rather decide if I’m going to say anything to him—her hand stretched out toward me. “Hi. You’re Chloe Williams, right? I’m Tammi Brown, the healthcare interior designer. We talked on the phone.”
Until she contacted me and introduced herself, I had no idea there was even a job like that.
Forcing my face muscles to work, I put that smile back on my face as I shake her hand. “Hey, Tammi, it’s so nice to meet you in person. Thanks again for this opportunity.”
She shakes her head and chuckles, her hand going to her chest. “Believe me, thank you. I cannot wait to see your painting on the wall. I adore the sketch and know the kids will absolutely love it.”
Several artists are working on this project, spread out across the hospital and outpatient center. I was assigned to the outpatient clinic, level three, and stations three to five to the right of the elevator. That was the info I got along with measurements and pictures of the space so I could draw the design on paper before I transferred it to the computer.
I was thrilled when they let me choose the theme, because I didn’t even have to think about it. Ocean life. Plain and simple. There’s always been something about the underwater world that fascinates me.
Which, coincidentally, has always been a link between Noah and me. Whereas he liked to be the fish in the water, I was never more than an average swimmer but loved anything water-related. It calmed me. The smooth movements of a person or animal—small or big—in the water is intoxicating to me.