C30

Sierra sat across from Miles as he placed her coffee in front of her before settling into his own seat.

“So,” he said, taking a sip of his drink. “What did you want to talk about?”

Sierra wrapped her hands around her cup.

“I've been thinking about us.”

Miles nodded, waiting for her to continue.

“I like spending time with you, and I think you're a good person. But I'm not sure I want to take things any further.”

He considered that for a moment before nodding.

“Fair enough.”

Sierra looked at him, a little surprised by how easily he accepted it.

“I hope you don't think I've been wasting your time.”

“Not at all.” He gave her a small smile. “I've enjoyed spending time with you. I just don't think either of us has been particularly serious about this.”

She relaxed a little.

“You don't?”

Miles shook his head. “I like you, Sierra. You're easy to talk to, and we've had a good time together. But I haven't been thinking that far ahead.”

Sierra laughed softly. “That's reassuring.”

“I'm glad.” He smiled. “I just don't see the point in forcing something if it isn't going anywhere.”

She nodded, feeling some of the tension leave her shoulders.

“I suppose you're right.”

“Besides, there's no reason we can't still be friends.”

“Of course.”

They continued their coffee, talking about work and a few other things. The conversation gradually became lighter, and by the time they finished, the awkwardness Sierra had anticipated had mostly disappeared.

When they stood to leave, Miles glanced at her.

“So, we're good?”

Sierra smiled. “We're good.”

“Great. I have a meeting to get back to, anyway.”

“Then I won't keep you.”

He gave her a brief wave before heading in the opposite direction.

Sierra watched him leave, relieved that the conversation had gone more easily than she'd expected.

She hadn't wanted to hurt Miles, but neither of them had been deeply invested in the relationship. There was no reason to make their decision more complicated than it needed to be.

As she turned toward the hospital, her thoughts drifted to Alex.

Her expression softened before she caught herself.

She still didn't know exactly what she felt for him. She had spent days trying to separate her concern for him from the feelings she'd carried for so long, wondering whether she was holding on to the past or simply refusing to accept that it was over.

But perhaps she had spent enough time thinking about what she felt.

Maybe it was time to do something about it.

Sierra reached for her phone and unlocked the screen.

She scrolled through her contacts until she found Alex's name.

For a long moment, she stared at it.

She knew he might turn her away again. She knew he might never feel the same way about her, and she couldn't pretend that possibility didn't frighten her.

But she was tired of letting that fear make every decision for her.

She wanted to give her feelings a chance, even if the outcome wasn't what she hoped for.

Her thumb hovered over his name before she finally pressed dial.

---

Alex was seated on his couch when his phone began to ring.

He glanced at the screen, and his brows lifted slightly at the name displayed.

Sierra.

For a moment, he simply stared at it.

Why was she calling him?

They hadn't spoken much lately, and he couldn't remember the last time she'd called him out of the blue. He considered letting it ring, if only to give himself a moment to figure out what he would say when he answered.

Eventually, he picked up.

“Hey.”

“Hey.”

“Sierra?”

“Yeah.” She hesitated. “Erm… can you come pick me up?”

Alex blinked.

“Sure.”

The answer came so quickly that he barely had time to consider it.

“Okay. Thank you.”

“Where are you?”

She told him.

“Alright. I'll be there soon.”

The call ended.

Alex lowered his phone slowly, staring at the screen as though it might offer an explanation for what had just happened.

Sierra had called him.

And she'd asked him to come get her.

He leaned forward, resting his elbows on his knees, and ran a hand over his face.

Why?

Had something happened at work? Did she need help with something? Was there a reason she'd chosen to call him specifically?

He tried to settle on a reasonable explanation, but the truth was that he had no idea what was going on.

What bothered him more was how easily he'd agreed.

He could have asked questions. He could have told her he was busy or asked her to explain why she needed him.

Instead, he'd said yes almost immediately.

Alex stood and reached for his keys before stopping halfway to the door.

What are you doing?

He wasn't supposed to be encouraging anything between them. He had already made his position clear, and the last thing he wanted was to give her a reason to misunderstand his intentions.

Yet the thought of refusing her hadn't even crossed his mind until after the call ended.

He let out a frustrated breath.

Perhaps she simply needed a ride. It didn't have to mean anything beyond that.

He repeated the thought to himself as he grabbed his phone and headed out.

Still, as he got into his car, an unfamiliar nervousness settled in his chest.

He had no idea what awaited him when he arrived.

And for some reason, that bothered him more than it should have.

---

Sierra glanced at her phone when a message came in.

I'm outside.

She gathered her things and walked out of the building.

A car had stopped in front of the hospital.

Almost as though she'd been expecting it, she walked straight toward it, opened the passenger door, and got in.

Only then did she turn her head and realize who was behind the steering wheel.

Alex.

For a moment, neither of them spoke.

He stared at her, long and hard, his expression difficult to read.

Sierra slowly straightened in her seat.

“Nice to see you?”

Alex's brows drew together.

“You called me.”

“I know.”

“well this is...awkward.”

“yeah...”

He looked at her for another moment, clearly trying to understand what she was getting at.

“Is something wrong?”

“No.”

“Then why did you ask me to come?”

Sierra turned toward him fully.

She had imagined this moment several times while waiting for him, but now that he was actually sitting beside her, she found herself struggling to begin.

“I wanted to see you.”

Alex went still.

For a moment, he seemed to have no response. Then he looked away, his fingers tightening slightly around the steering wheel.