Page 97 of Ashes

I got up and grabbed my things from the bench, saying a quick thank you to Alessandra before making my way outside. Once inside the car, the deafening silence was back and I was left alone with my thoughts.

With Kenna’s words replaying in my mind.

CHAPTER 26

SIENNA

I placedmy scrubs into the hamper and was making my way back to my locker when the door to the staff locker room cracked open.

Leena stood at the threshold. “Oh, good, you’re still here,” she stated, relieved.

“Is everything okay, Leena?” I asked, worried there was something wrong with one of my patients.

I’d done one last check before I ended my shift and everyone seemed stable, but this was the ER, so occasionally things changed quickly. I knew she’d just started her shift, so she might have noticed something I’d missed.

“No, Dr. Bruni. Everyone’s okay,” she said, giving me a wide smile. “I just wanted to wish you a happy birthday before you left for the day.”

Oh.I’d been working with Leena since I started my residency and it shouldn’t be a surprise that sheremembered what today was, but I was so used to people forgetting that it caught me off guard.

It was always funny to me how someone who I’d only been working with remembered more than my own family had.

“Thank you, Leena,” I replied, giving her a grateful smile.

“All right, I’ll let you go before someone else keeps you from doing so,” she said, letting out a small chuckle.

I huffed out a laugh because she was right. If I stayed any longer, a nurse, a student, or another resident would stop me to ask a question. Not that I minded, but it had been a long day and I was ready to go home.

“Have a good night,” I said.

“You as well, Dr. Bruni,” she answered before leaving and closing the door behind her.

I plucked my phone off the top shelf in my locker and checked it one more time to see if I’d gotten any messages. My hope that this year would be different died a quick death when the only texts I found were from my group chat with Kenna and Esra.

You shouldn’t be surprised,my mind mocked me.

After quickly answering Kenna’s and Esra’s birthday wishes, I grabbed my bag from the bench and closed my locker behind me, then headed out.

I hadn’t seen either of them since the weekend of Kenna’s wedding two weeks ago. Esra had been swamped with the collection and Kenna went back to North Westernthe following week of her wedding, the repairs from the flood finally over.

I walked out the employee exit and walked through the parking lot behind the hospital, heading for my car.

Initially when Jamal had said he was taking care of it, I’d thought he would get it towed and scrapped since he’d often complained about the atrocious state of my car.

Instead, he’d surprised me a few days ago after picking me up from work with a revamped version of what my little compact SUV once was.

He’d not only fixed the transmission, but he’d also had the shop give my car a facelift, updated the A/C so it would actually work and added seat warmers so I wouldn’t be cold on the drive to the hospital when the temperature dropped in the winters.

When I’d complained that I couldn’t afford all these repairs, he’d simply pinned me with a glare and told me that he would never be comfortable letting his wife drive around in a car like that.

Although Iwashappy to have her back, the fact still left me with a bittersweet feeling. I might not have initially enjoyed Jamal driving me everywhere, but I’d grown to look forward to our time together every day.

Our quiet rides had turned into moments where I’d learned a little more about him every time and I’d miss them.

Another thing Jamal did over the last two weeks, aside from giving me the best orgasms, was move me into hisbedroom. He claimed that his wife should be sleeping in his bed, not her own.

It didn’t take much convincing.

I drove through town, making a quick stop at the grocery store before heading home. Once parked in our driveway, I turned off the ignition and adjusted my seat back.