Don’t Fall for the Doctor by Lacey Bolt

Chapter 33

Michael tapped on Ashley’s apartment door and waited with a bag of takeout food in one hand and his computer bag slung over his shoulder. He could hear Ashley’s voice through the door. It sounded like she was on the phone. He hesitated and knocked again, a little louder. There were some brief rattling sounds of the deadbolt unlocking, and then the door creaked open. Ashley motioned for him to enter and then turned around and walked into her bedroom, closing the door behind him.

Michael closed the apartment door and walked into the kitchen, setting the takeout food containers that he‘d brought on the table. Then he went back to the living room and perched on the edge of the couch.

He set his computer up on the coffee table, which creaked and shifted under the weight of the small computer but held steady. Within moments, he pulled up a video tutorial on writing a resume and settled into the couch to watch.

After about ten minutes, Ashley walked out of the bedroom and sat on the couch next to him. “What are you watching?”

“A video about how to write a good resume. I figured it would be helpful.” He reached behind him and pulled at the throw blanket on the back of Ashley’s couch. He unfolded it and wrapped it around her. “I asked around the department today. Theresa confessed to complaining about you to Gwen. She said she wanted you to get transferred, not fired.” He took a deep breath in and braced himself for the next part. “Theresa also asked me out. I turned her down. I told her I can’t be with anyone except you.”

Ashley’s silence filled the room. He looked over at her. She stared back at him.

“Did you really mean that?” Her voice sounded small, uncertain.

He touched her lightly under the chin and turned her head so that he could look directly in her eyes. “I do.”

She shivered slightly, and the corners of her mouth turned up, but the smile didn’t reach her eyes. He could read the worry in her face and wanted to make it go away.

He turned back to the computer to bookmark the video. “Bill is asking around at his hospital to see if there are any job openings. He said he’ll let us know if he hears of any.”

“I already called his hospital, and they said they weren’t hiring in housecleaning.” Ashley’s voice sounded strained.

“Well, don’t give up yet. In the meantime, we can focus on a great resume. Since we probably can’t depend on Gwen to give you a good reference, we need to highlight all your skills on your resume.” He pulled up another video on job hunting tips. “We might need to get creative to find you a job, but we’ll find something. Are you good at typing? We could look into administrative assistant jobs.” He clenched his jaw. He was not going to ask her about Jeff’s interview offer. He made a promise. Any restaurant would be lucky to have her on staff, but he wasn’t about to lose her trust in him over a job.

But it made no sense. Would she really rather be unemployed and at the brink of homelessness instead of cooking in one of the best restaurants in the city?

Michael pushed his thoughts about Jeff’s restaurant out of his head. “Sorry. I know you can do this all on your own and that you’ll be fine without my help, but I want to do something.”

“This is really nice. I can’t believe that you want to help me so much.”

“It’s nothing, really. I brought over food. Want to eat first, or work first?”

Ashley didn’t move. She grabbed the corner of the blanket that he had wrapped around her and started playing with the fabric. “I’m not sure there’s much use in looking for jobs tonight. See that list over there?” She pointed to two pieces of paper near his computer, both filled with handwritten lists that had been crossed out. “Those are all the places I called and aren’t hiring.”

“Don’t give up yet.”

“I haven’t. But, also . . . well, remember that promise you made yesterday? When I asked you not to talk about me becoming a chef?

Michael nodded and held his breath in anticipation.

“I still don’t want to talk about it. But, I called Jeff. He wants me to come to the restaurant Saturday morning to interview. He said to bring you along and we can all have lunch together. He made it really clear that he won’t hire me just because of our relationship. I’ll have to really impress him with my cooking. I still don't know if I could take the job, though, if he offers me one. My parents wouldn't—" she took a deep breath and started her sentence over. "I need to have a job, and I can’t make it very long without a paycheck. Even with unemployment, I can’t make ends meet long enough to wait for the first unemployment check. My car still won’t run, and the restaurant isn’t on the bus route, and—”

Michael cut her off. “I’ll drive you. Just let me know what time to pick you up.”

Ashley looked like a huge weight was lifted off her shoulders. “Ten in the morning.”

“How about I pick you up at nine and take you out for breakfast first?” If Ashley was willing to put aside whatever had been stopping her from interviewing for this job, he wanted her to be well fed before stepping into that kitchen.

Ashley nodded, and Michael continued before she could change her mind. “I have good news for you. Your new friend, Henry, was discharged today.”

“Really?” Ashley didn’t look as happy as he thought she’d look. “That’s great.”

“What’s wrong?”

“I was just hoping to see him again before he was discharged. We talked about getting together this weekend. He doesn’t have family nearby, and I don’t know if he has any visitors at home. I was going to bring him some food.”

“You still can. He left a note for you.” He pulled a piece of paper out of his pocket with Henry’s phone number and address written in his shaky handwriting. “I guess he found out that we were dating.”

“Oh, um, he guessed that the other day when we ate lunch together.” The first real smile appeared on Ashley’s face as she took the paper from him.

Michael raised his eyebrows teasingly. “Should I be jealous that you finally look happy now that I’ve given you another man’s phone number?”

She picked up a pillow and threw it at him. It hit him square in the face and he laughed. He had finally taken her mind off her troubles, and he was glad to take a pillow in the face if it meant she was happy. He tossed it back to her.

“Watch yourself, Ash, or you—”

“Or what?” She threw the pillow at him again and leapt off the couch, running to the kitchen.

He tossed the pillow on the ground and followed her into the kitchen.