Free Nora Ray (Ray Trilogy) by Kelley Brown Page A

Little girl!” he exclaimed coming around the table to give her a hug. “You have this job in the bag!”
    “ Thanks for the pep talk, Dad,” Nora stood to receive his hug. “I’ll be alright now.”
    Jokingly he shined his fingernails on his shirt and replied as he sat back down in his chair, “That’s what Dad’s are for.”
    The next afternoon Nora returned to the house after school to put on a fresh dress. Her Dad took her to the hospital so she wouldn’t have to ride her bike. She walked up to Mrs. Pinkerton’s desk.
    Mrs. Pinkerton recognized her immediately and stood from her desk and said, “ Mrs. Williams is expecting you.”
    This time Nora followed her as she clicked down the h all in her four inch heels to Mrs. Williams’ office.
    After introductions, she asked Nora to be seated so she sat on the edge of the chair with her hands firmly clasped together.
    Mrs. Williams seeing her nervousness smiled at her and said, “Tell me why you want to work at the hospital.”
    Nora tried to speak but nothing came out, she cleared her throat and this time she said, “ I plan to be a doctor. I want to get as much experience as I can to start preparing myself.”
    “ Do you understand that it takes years and years of studying and hard work to become a doctor?”
    “ Yes, Ma’am.”
    “ Why become a doctor?” Mrs. Williams asked. “Why not become a nurse?”
    “ My father has a really bad heart. He has been told that he will not live long.” Nora said, “I also have a cousin with polio. I need to help them.”
    Cocking her head to the side, Mrs. Williams asked, “ What can you do that other doctors can’t do?”
    Nora frowned to the side for a moment while she thought, then sat up straight in her chair, “ That remains to be seen. I just know that if I study everything I can find; there will be something I can do to help these people in pain.”
    “ You understand that a person has to take baby steps before he can run, don’t you?”
    “ Yes, Ma’am.”
    “ Since you’re still in high school, are you sure you can keep up your grades and work?” Mrs. Williams asked concerned.
    “ Yes, Ma’am, before we moved to town,” Nora explained, “We, excuse me, my parents had a dairy farm. I worked two hours before and after school milking, separating the milk and cleaning the barn.”
    “ Yes, Ma’am,” Nora said nodding her head. “I know what it is to work hard and still go to school.”
    “ I see,” Mrs. Williams nodded in amazement that this small young woman sitting before her had been required to work so hard in the dairy, especially on school days.
    “ Would you be willing to work two four hour shifts during the week and eight hours on Saturday as a nurse’s aide.
    “ Yes, Ma’am. Thank you,” Nora sighed relieved that she had secured that much work. “Thank you, so much. I promise I won’t let you down.”
    “ I feel sure you won’t. Nora, since you applied for a position here at the hospital, I checked your references and took the liberty to also check into some other things about you, I hope you don’t mind,” she confided. “I was intrigued by the interest that Mr. Littlefield was showing. I found out that you are a very dedicated student and carry a 4.0 GPA. I don’t want this job to interfere with you schooling in any way.”
    “ No, Ma’am,” Nora hurriedly assured. “I will not let my grades slip.”
    “ How is your father doing?”
    “ At this point he is taking it easy. He tires easily but seems to be holding his own.”
    “ Good, good,” Mrs. Williams shook her head. “Will Monday and Wednesday from four to eight be good for you with eight to four-thirty on Saturday? That gives you a day between on the week days to keep your school work up?
    “ Yes, Ma’am, that will be perfect.” Nora hurriedly assured her.
    Mrs. Williams stood and reached to shake Nora ’s hand to indicate that the interview was over.
    Nora hurried to tell her dad about the job she had