“Thank you, I stay active.”
The woman lingered again, and Nova felt a roil of awkwardness go right up her back. Ugh. She tried to think of what to say, a polite term that said, “I appreciate you and your time, but I’m too exhausted to socialize right now,” but nothing came to her.
“Well, I’m off to do the cardio the therapist keeps harping at me about. You have a lovely day, young lady.”
“You too. Be safe.”
The older woman looked from Nova then to the equipment over on the other side of the facility, then back before tottering off, leaving Nova to her heavy panting.
She knew she needed to get up before she got stiff, so with a groan, Nova got to her feet. Well… got to her butt first, took a few deep breaths and thought about where she was in the world and just exactly how the force of gravity felt on every joint of her body, then she pushed herself up to her feet and wobbled around the mat until she felt like she could walk a straight line.
Part of her wanted to just say goodbye and walk out of the door, but she knew that there were at least three more exercises that she was supposed to do before he came back. So she headed over to the strange sort of circle platform with half of an exercise ball in the center of it, stood on that little bump and tried to balance while doing her leg lifts.
So many leg lifts.
It was about another half hour before Nova wobbled over to where her PT was refilling his bottle. When she had first started, he’d been with her during every moment of every exercise, but thankfully they’d built up enough trust in each other to let Nova go some of the simpler ones on her own.
“Hey there, you look worked out.”
“That’s because I am,” Nova said with a laugh, leaning against the wall. “Am I clear to go?”
“I’m not quite sure. I’m worried about that knee of yours dislocating after so long. And you said that it just happened, there wasn’t an injury? Or fall?”
“Well, I may have tackled someone a few days earlier, and we both fell.”
True to character, her physical therapist’s eyebrows shot up. “You tackled someone?”
“Uh-huh.”
“Any reason?”
“I was saving a snake.”
“Ah, of course. And this person, they didn’t happen to be smaller than you, maybe a child or otherwise very soft human?”
“Nope, guy was six foot five and built like a brick house.”
“Right. Well. So that definitely could have exacerbated this issue. Your muscles are still pretty inflamed, and I’m worried about them locking up or building up scar tissue even worse, so I’m going to show you some exercises you can do at home. I want you to do them every day.”
“And then I can go home?”
He crooked a smile at her, his brows pushing into a faux-upset look. “What, you saying that you don’t like hanging out with me?”
“Well, you are kinda a pain in my butt. And everywhere else, for that matter.”
“Yeah, but that’s my job. It’s literally what you pay me for.”
“I suppose it is, isn’t it?”
They shared a laugh and walked over to the equipment and mat area, where he walked Nova through the exercises. She worked hard, and when she was done, Nova really did feel like a limp noodle.
From there it was a hurried goodbye and a drive back to her place so she could shower. She took her time, staying in until the hot water was all gone and enjoying every minute of it. Once she was out, she dried herself off, got into comfy clothes, and then headed over to collapse onto her couch and veg out.
Of course, the moment her butt touched the cushion, an urgent buzzing sounded from her phone. Someone was calling her? No one ever called her anymore. Most of her friends were back in the UK, and they always texted each other first to make sure that the other party was awake.
Flipping her phone over, she saw that it was Elizabeth calling her.
What could she want?
“Hello?” Nova asked, sitting up like the vet could see her.
“Hey, what are you up to? Are you busy?”
“No, just got home, actually. Why?”
“I’ve got a cow here that’s having some trouble, and I’m going to step in on the birth in an hour or two. There’s no better way to learn than firsthand, so I was wondering if you wanted to boogie on down? I got approval from Sterling for some overtime.”
Oh, man. Nova was exhausted, down to her very bones. But Elizabeth was offering a great opportunity, one that didn’t exactly come by in droves. Especially considering that it wasn’t even birthing season.
“Alright. I’ll head out right now. Be there as soon as I can. I did just get out of PT, so I’m shaky and limpy from the workout. Nothing I can’t handle, though.”
“Alright, I trust your judgment. Call me when you’re at the drive. Talk to you soon.”
“Yeah, talk to you soon.”
Helping birth a calf was amazing.
Even though Nova mostly just stood beside Elizabeth, handing her things when she needed and gently petting the cow’s head, she was so glad she had forced herself to get out of the apartment and speed to the ranch. The experience was invaluable, and even if her legs were screaming at her when it was all said and done, it was more than worth it.
Also, it felt good to be trusted already. She’d barely been at the job a week and her boss was calling her in for surprise overtime to bring a new life into the world? Amazing. Nova hadn’t felt so vital at a job since well… ever. And although she knew Elizabeth would have been fine without her help, it just was such a nice change that Nova’s efforts provided noticeable relief.
Maybe that was why she was so drawn to animal care in the first place. Her lofty dreams had been to be an actual vet, but considering how expensive and long she would have to go to school for that, it was much too far out of her reach. Especially considering that her grades had only been average growing up. If only scholarships took into account that being constantly made into a villain by her family could really tank a teenager’s motivation to do anything.
Nova shook her head as she hobbled to her car, thighs protesting with every single step. She wasn’t going to ruin the wonderful feelings in her by thinking about her family. Not when helping Elizabeth had helped her feel so useful and smart. Basically everything they’d told her she wasn’t. She’d proved them wrong, and that was that.
She was also absolutely filthy.
She was going to need to take a shower again, but she didn’t mind. It would give her more time to soak in the wonderfulness of the moment. To turn over every detail ad nauseam until the whole thing was memorized. She—
Nova was so absorbed in her thoughts and her protesting muscles that she hadn’t exactly been paying attention to where she was going. One moment she was walking, the next she collided with something very solid.
“Ow!”
She bounced off the thing, rubbing her nose as her eyes watered. Had someone suddenly erected a wall on her usual path? Oh, nope, it was Sal.
“Sorry,” Nova said automatically before it clicked in her brain exactly who she was talking to. Oh.
He didn’t say anything for a moment, instead staring in that very strange way of his, the same stilted look he had given her at the end of their conversation in the barn. For being such a handsome guy, he sure was awkward.