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I picked it up.

“Hello?”

“Good evening. May I speak with Lakelyn Monroe, please?” a professional, pleasant voice asked.

“This is she.”

“Hi, Ms. Monroe. My name is Dana Ivy, and I’m calling from the nursing recruitment department over at Bellmont Medical Center.”

My heart surged with pure excitement.

Bellmont?

Oh, my God.

“Yes, ma’am!”

“I’m calling regarding the clinical registered nurse position you recently applied for. We reviewed your résumé and background, and we would love to bring you in to schedule an in-person interview with our department head.”

For a second, I was so stunned I couldn’t even get words past my throat.

“Ms. Monroe? Are you there?”

“Yes! I’m so sorry. I’m here!”

The woman on the line laughed softly. “No problem at all. Would you be available to come in tomorrow morning?”

Tomorrow?

Hell, yes!

“Absolutely.”

“Wonderful. Would nine-thirty work for you?”

“Yes, ma’am. That’s perfect.”

She gave me the medical center’s executive wing address, the room number, the name of the hiring supervisor I would be meeting with, and a few standard interview instructions. I grabbed a notepad and scribbled everything down so fast I nearly ripped the paper in half.

When we finally finished going over the details, I thanked her profusely… probably five different times.

“We look forward to meeting you tomorrow, Ms. Monroe.”

“Thank you so much!”

I ended the call and let out an uncontainable shriek of joy. “Thank you God!”

I jumped completely off the bed, pacing back and forth across the hardwood floor for several seconds, clenching my fists, before sitting back down because I genuinely didn’t know what the hell to do with all the energy coursing through me.

Bellmont Medical Center was the top-tier hospital job I had wanted since the moment I planned our move back home. It was one of those prestigious facilities that everyone warned was damn near impossible to get into without insider connections, and they wanted to interview me that following morning.

I picked up my phone, clutching it to my chest, and then let my attention drift softly toward the empty side of the bed.

I smiled, my throat tightening with a sudden wave of raw emotion. “Caspian, I don’t know what’s going on in this house, and I don’t know if any of this is really your doing, but if it is... thank you, baby.”

I wiped a tear from my cheek.

“You promised you’d always be here, and somehow, even though I still don’t understand where you are or how any of this is happening, I feel like you’re keeping that promise.”