Page 4 of Big Easy

"Bye, Ada. Drive safe." I smile over my shoulder and give her a little wave, then make my way down the hall toward room 112.

When I come upon the open door, I spot a man sitting in a chair beside the bed.

He turns his attention away from the TV and stands when he spots me walking in.

I smile. "Hello. You must be Mr. Sanders' son.

My name is Sutton. I'll be your father's nurse today. "

The man shakes my offered hand. "It's nice to meet you, Sutton. I'm Peter."

Peter Sanders looks to be in his mid to late thirties, stands about 5 feet 10 inches tall, and has brown hair with a receding hairline.

Dropping Peter's hand, I look over at Mr. Sanders, who is sleeping soundly. "Mrs. Ada tells me your dad settled in well and that the doctor should be around later this morning. Is there anything I can do for you now? Do you have any questions for me?"

Peter shakes his head. "None that I can think of, but thanks for stopping by to check on us. That was very kind of you. I can already tell I'm really going to like you, Sutton."

"Great." I smile. "I'll be back in a bit to check on your dad. Please don't hesitate to call me if you need anything."

With a nod, I turn and leave the room.

By the time my shift is over, all I want to do is go home, curl up with a good book, drink a glass of wine and catch up on my rest, but I know that's not possible since my family expects me for dinner.

In fact, I'm so tired, I don't even notice the man standing just outside the facility when I exit the front entrance.

"Sutton," I hear my name called, and jump.

Peter steps out of the shadows with his hands held up in front of him. "My apologies. I didn't mean to scare you."

I take a deep calming breath, getting my erratic heartbeat to slow. "That's okay, Peter. You kind of snuck up on me there."

Peter gives me a sheepish look. "Sorry. I just wanted to say thank you again for being so wonderful with my father."

My body loses some of its tension, and I give Peter a warm smile. "You're welcome. I know how difficult a time like this can be, and it's my job to make the patient and their family as comfortable as possible."

"I see that. I'm glad my father and I have you as his nurse."

I give Peter a small nod and go to leave once again when he stops me. "Actually, I was wondering if you would like to grab a cup of coffee. I know a place just down the street." Peter''s expression looks hopeful, and I feel bad.

"I'm sorry, Peter. I can't. I have plans. But I'll see you back here tomorrow."

After a quick goodbye, I continue on across the parking lot to my car. And when I pull out of the lot onto the road, I glance in my rearview mirror to still see Peter standing in the same spot I left him as he watches me leave.

The drive to my parents' house is a short one. "Mom! Dad!" I call out when I walk through the front door of the house.

A familiar voice greets me. "It's about time you showed up. You know mom won't let us eat until everyone is here." My older brother Collin walks into the living room.

I roll my eyes and hang my purse on the rack beside the door. "Excuse me for having to stop and get gas."

Collin ruffles the hair on the top of my head, something he has done since I was little, then pulls me in for a hug. "You know I love you."

"Yeah, yeah." I poke him in the ribs. "I love you too. Even when you get on my nerves."

"Freaking finally," Lilly complains as she throws her hands in the air once Collin and I walk into the kitchen, where she is standing next to my mom at the stove.

Lilly holds up a bottle of wine and lifts a brow.

I nod in response. Just then, my mom turns away from the stove and beams at me. "Hey, sweetie."

"Hi, Mom." I walk over to her and give her a kiss on the cheek. "Where is Dad?

"He got home just before you arrived and is now upstairs grabbing a quick shower.

" A few minutes later, my dad walks into the kitchen.

"Where are my girls?" Lilly and I giggle in unison as Dad pulls us in for a hug, then he kisses the tops of our heads.

He drives us nuts, but we're still daddy's girls at heart. Always will be.

"What do you guys say we eat out on the back deck?" Mom asks.

"Sounds good, Mom," I say, and my sister nods in agreement.

"You ladies go on out. I'll carry the dishes out." Dad turns to Collin. "Want to give me a hand?"

"You got it, Pop."

While my dad grabs the casserole dish containing the lasagna, Collin gathers the dinnerware, and we all file outside onto the deck.

Fifteen minutes into dinner, we have all given our usual life update. Dad then brings up the one topic Lilly hates the most. "You still see that asshat, Donald?"

My sister huffs, and I can't help but snort. Beside me, Collin chuckles. "You know his name is Dillan, Dad. And yes, we still see each other."

I've met Dillan a few times, and he seems like a nice guy.

The problem is my dad doesn't like any of the men Lilly and I date.

Although my list is a whole lot shorter than hers.

The last boyfriend I had was two years ago.

Noah was a guy I met while in nursing school.

Six months into our relationship, I caught him out at the movie theater with another woman.

When I confronted him, he didn't even have the decency to look ashamed that I caught him cheating.

Noah confessed he had been seeing the other woman for two months.

He actually had the nerve to blame his cheating on me, stating I was boring and that the sex was terrible.

He said those words right there in the middle of the theater in front of a dozen onlookers.

I had been mortified, mostly since Noah was my first. I've been too chicken to attempt another relationship.

I'm perfectly content with my book boyfriends.

My sister and Maci are the only two people who know what happened between Noah and me.

If my dad and Collin knew what he had done to me, I'm sure he would have gone missing. Noah didn't get away scot-free, though.

My sister, being the protector she is, had my back once again.

At the time, Lilly had been dating a guy who owned a garage.

One night not long after the movie theater incident, she had him and a friend of his go to Noah's house in the middle of the night.

They ended up jacking his car up and taking his tires.

They even got under the hood and took out his spark plugs and a few other parts.

What made the whole ordeal even more rewarding was his new girlfriend stayed with him, and her car was also at his house.

They did the same thing to her brand-new Mustang.

I would have given anything to see their faces the next day.

"What about you, baby girl?" My dad turns his attention toward me, knocking me out of my wandering thoughts. "Any douche bags sniffing around you lately?"

I scrunch up my nose. "I'm going to ignore the fact that you just used the term douche bag. It sounds ridiculous when old people say it. And to answer your question, no, I'm not seeing anyone."

"Who are you calling old?" My dad asks, looking offended, and I giggle. My dad is not old. I just like teasing him—tit for tat.

"Liam, stop badgering the girls." Mom jumps in, scolding him.

"I'm not badgering, baby. I'm simply taking an interest," he defends himself.

"Yeah. Why don't you take an interest in Collin," Lilly adds, using air quotes. Ask him about his “love life."

"Hey," Collin raises his palms in the air. "You can leave me out of this."

"Okay, okay, you guys. Dinner is getting cold, so let's eat," Mom cuts in, using her 'mom' voice.

Got to love family dinner night.