The Wildflower (Completed) (Southern Nights)

Chapter 8

“The Heart of a Wildflower”

2012 Copyright All Rights Reserved

Chapter 8

Elizabeth stood in the shower and leaned her head back to let the streams of warm water caress her body.

The billowing steam and the feel of the water as it pelted her skin were therapeutic and left her in a reflective state. She started to think about the night before and her date with Zeb. She wanted to hate him, but after the way he had opened up to her, she was struggling. She was already falling for him again and no matter how many times she told herself that she was asking for trouble, her heart just refused to listen.

The water started to run cold and Elizabeth turned around to shut it off. She gingerly stepped out of the shower and reached for the towel that she left on the back of the toilet.  Her thoughts started to drift again. Could six years really make that much difference in a man?

It was clear that Zeb wasn’t that same guy that she remembered back in high school. She believed him when he told her that he had grown up. If she learned anything last night at all, it was the fact that Zeb Crooker was distinctly male.

But that didn’t necessarily change any of her circumstances. She still carried a child that they had created together and she gave him up. She never tried to contact him. She never tried to contact his parents. Her mother knew she was pregnant but insisted that she give the child up since she refused to name the father.  She had to make an executive decision. It was the only decision that she felt she could make at the time. It was what was best for their son, she reminded herself.

Elizabeth wrapped the towel around her shivering body and walked into the bedroom. Her eyes instantly drifted to the alarm clock on her dresser. “Shit!” She muttered the curse when she saw that it was already eight o’clock. She was supposed to be at the hospital for her next shift in less than thirty minutes. She had been so lost in her thoughts this morning that she lost all track of time. Now she was going to have to rush just to get there on time.

She pushed all thoughts of Zeb behind and rushed into her closet, literally throwing on her scrubs and quickly brushing out her hair. She didn’t bother with make-up and swiped an apple from the fruit bowl on her way out of the door. She started up the car and glanced at her watch, it was fifteen past eight. She had fifteen minutes to make a twenty- five minute drive. She put the car in reverse and spun out of the driveway thinking - piece of cake.  She’d make it.

Elizabeth strode into the hospital and 8:30 on the dot. She eagerly welcomed the coolness of the air conditioner when it touched her skin. The humidity was already rising and making the southern heat outside feel absolutely miserable. That didn’t bode well for the afternoon weather either. It probably meant that they were going to be in for a round of severe storms this afternoon, and when the thunderstorms strike, there is an influx of traffic accidents. She was already anticipating this afternoon would be a busy one. She couldn’t stop the light sigh that slipped past her lips when she walked passed the nurses station.

“Good morning Lizzie.” Chris looked up from his clipboard and with the apologetic smile that he wore on his face she knew immediately that she was needed. “They could use an extra hand in Trauma One once you get clocked in.”

“Sure thing,” she replied. Emergency nursing was her job, and every time that she had a hand in making someone better, she knew that all the training and hard work she went through to get to this point was worth it. “Give me just a second to put my lunch and my purse into my locker and then I’ll be there.”

“I’ll let Dr. Mayberry know.” The phone rang and Chris smiled at her while he picked up the receiver.

Elizabeth added a little more pep to her step and made her way to the lounge. She stashed her purse and lunch in her locker and then made quick steps to Trauma One. She stopped outside the door and as a matter of habit; she started to scrub her hands. The water started to run over her hands and a hunky vision of Zeb sitting on top of his horse flittered into her mind. She started to think about the picnic and their playful teasing with the strawberries. She chuckled at the memory.