Page 36 of Dream a Little Dream

“I’ll have a Manhattan.” Kyle placed the cocktail menu on the table, signaling we might need it later. “And can we order your calamari to start? Is that okay?”

“Yes,” I said. Sal’s calamari was a favorite of mine. How had she known? She hadn’t. We were just really good at meshing together. I’d known that part from the start.

Possibly-Preston took down the request and flashed a smile. “On it. And I’ll be right back with those drinks.”

“How was the ER today?”

Kyle shook her head. “There’s nothing like it, Potter. In my most dramatic case of the day, I removed three porcupine quills. That would never have happened in Charleston. The pace and style of care is entirely different.”

I nodded. “That makes sense. And I’m guessing it was one of the Martins? Porcupines aren’t native to South Carolina, but the Martinettes have that little wildlife rescue on about six acres and take rehab cases from all over.”

“I can confirm that the animal was not a local. Didn’t even know what a Jessamine was.”

“Hence his displaced anger and those lodged quills.”

“I still can’t believe that this is what living out here is like.”

I laughed. “Don’t say out here. We’re not another planet.”

“Feels like it.” She covered my hand. “In a really good way.” Only she didn’t take it away right off and I stared at our point of contact, my skin running hot beneath her touch. Catching my surprise, she slowly withdrew it just as our drinks were placed in front of us.

“Are you the new doctor?” Preston asked.

“I think so?” Kyle answered. “I certainly am both of those things.”

“My mom pointed you out at the Grinder.” Don’t even get me started on the name of our town’s coffee shop. It was equally horrifying and hysterical at the same time. “She thought I should get your number.”

My eyes narrowed. Was Preston the law school dropout hitting on my date? I shook my head at my own brain’s error. At mydinner companion.

“She sounds very sweet.” Kyle peeked over at me. “We might be ready to order when you are.”

I stared at Preston hard. “I’ll take Sal’s Chicken Penne,” I said to the tune ofI’ve got my eye on you, buddy.

“Make it two,” Kyle said in a much more serene delivery.

Once we were alone, she turned her focus back to me. “Everyone is so friendly here.”

“One word for what that was.”

She sat back in her chair and eyed me. “Wait a minute. Are you a little jealous?”

“Not in the slightest,” I said, and sipped my drink, ready to speed things along. The strong taste of vodka and olive juice offered me the mix I needed to take us there. “So, you’ll never believe this, but four months ago, I showed up on this adorable bridge in Charleston and waited.”

Kyle nodded, the smile slipping right off her face. Rightfully so.

“And waited. But no one ever showed up.”

“That must have been an awful day.”

I didn’t like to revisit those memories, for fear of being swallowed up whole by them all over again. “It was. So…what happened?”

For a moment, I thought I saw a flash of panic behind her eyes followed by a look of resignation. “No matter what I say, it’s not going to be good enough. But I’ll do my best.” She swallowed and met my gaze. “It wasn’t a good day for me either, mainly because I knew you were there waiting for me and I was paralyzed. I wish I’d handled it differently.”

“Why were you paralyzed?” I could barely move waiting for her response.

“I lost a young patient at the hospital about a month before the day we were set to meet. I lose patients on occasion, and it’s not that you ever getused to it, but you do learn to cope. This time was different.” She sat back as if transported. “He was just a kid who’d been in a pretty bad bike riding accident, multiple injuries, several systems affected. Every step of the way there was a new obstacle I wasn’t expecting. But he should have pulled through.” She paused. “And didn’t, possibly because of a decision I made.”

“Oh,” I said, absorbing.

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