Riley's eyes widened, and she stared at her uncle until Daniel elbowed her in the ribs with his good arm.
"Uh, yeah, sure." She sprang to her feet. "Let me wash up."
Uncle James alternately explained to Daniel how he would use the ultrasound to guide the needle into the shoulder joint and to Riley what he needed her to do to assist him. Her job was mainly to hand him different syringes as he injected Lidocaine first then the Cortisone.
Once he was finished, he turned to Riley. "Excellent work, thank you." He cleaned up the garbage and rolled the ultrasound machinethrough the curtained partition then stepped back inside. "Remember, Daniel, rest it for at least four weeks. I don't care how good it feels." He turned to Riley again. "After you're done helping Daniel get put back together, I'd like to talk to you before you leave."
"Okay."
She quickly stepped out of the role of nurse to help Daniel button his shirt and set his sling properly. He grabbed her hand as she was about to step away. "Thank you. I probably should have listened to you and let you bring me in last night."
"Yes, you should have." She smiled as she patted his good shoulder. "Hopefully, the cortisone will do its job, and you'll be relatively pain and craving free soon."
"I don't think there is an injection strong enough to make that happen, but it will be nice to be out of pain." He stood and stepped into the hallway. "I'll be in the waiting room."
"Okay, I have no idea what Uncle James wants to talk to me about, but I don't think I'll be very long."
It didn't take her long to find her uncle, who was busy giving instructions to a nurse, so she hung back and waited for him to finish.
Smiling, he put a hand on her shoulder, playing the part of caring uncle and guided her to an empty cubicle. "Your mother told Hope and I what happened to you. Let me say how terribly sorry I am that you had to go through that."
Riley's gaze dropped to the floor as she blinked away the tears that suddenly filled her eyes. "Thank you."
"I hope you're utilizing Emily's expertise to help you deal with it."
She nodded. "I am."
"Good." He patted her shoulder. "Okay, the real reason I asked to speak with you is this: I'd like to offer you a job."
"What?" Her mouth dropped open.
"You have skills that we desperately need. Both here in the hospital and at the clinic."
"But I'm not?—"
"I know you aren't—or rather weren't—planning on sticking around, but I'm pretty sure I'm not the only one who would like youto make your move back to Providence permanent." He cast a glance toward the door that led to the waiting room.
Mixed emotions swamped Riley. She loved working with Dr. Nelson, but she'd already had the thought multiple times over the past few weeks that if Daniel was willing to take a chance on them again, she'd do whatever it took to make things work. Even if it meant moving back to this small town that she was so eager to leave seven years ago.
Coming home wasn't as bad as she thought it would be.
Besides, if she went back to Seattle, she risked running into Collin again. She hadn't received any more phone calls, letters, or flowers over the last two weeks, but she didn't dare hope he had given up.
"Can I think about it?"
"Sure, but if you're interested, I'd like you to start as soon as possible." He stepped out of the cubicle and waited for her to follow.
Riley laughed. "A little desperate, are you?"
"Extremely, but I'm confident your skills would be a great asset to the hospital."
She couldn't help grinning at the praise. Setting Daniel's shoulder and helping Uncle James had made her realize how much she missed nursing. Riding horses and working with cows was enjoyable, but it was also exhausting and dirty work. Helping someone feel better and occasionally even saving a life was much more rewarding.
"I'll let you know in the next day or two."
"Great. I look forward to your call."
Riley’s steps slowed as she walked toward the door to the waiting room. She glanced around. People in small towns got sick too and accidents happened everywhere. She could make a difference here like she did in Seattle.
