Page 8 of Rewind

He waved his hands, still in mid chuckle. “I promise I’m not. It’s just that I’ve never seen this feisty side of you before.”

“I’m sorry.”

“Don’t apologize. I like it.” He stopped laughing just when her eyes met his.

Something akin to an electric shock burst inside her chest like a defibrillator. Amina took an involuntary step back as she glanced away from his handsome face. “I really have no reason to keep you here and I’m sure you have work to attend to.”

“Actually, my first patient won’t be here for at least another hour and I’m not on call this week so I don’t have to go into the hospital unless there’s an emergency. In fact, I don’t have any surgeries for the next three days. So, I have some time. You and I don’t really get a chance to talk that much and I’d like to rectify that.”

If she remembered correctly around this time she would have been at this job for almost three years. She didn’t remember any significant interactions between herself and Dr. Han besides work related banter and surface level conversations about the weather. But thinking about how she’d distanced herself from her co-workers and never allowed anyone to get close to her once Mark entered the picture, she regretted it.

Maybe that is what compelled her to say, “Then maybe you should take me out to lunch when you have time in your schedule.” The second the words were out of her mouth, Amina wanted a hole in the floor to open so she could fall through it. Her face grew hot and she looked at her feet scared to see the reaction on his face.

“As I stated before, my schedule is fairly light this week, but I’d prefer to take you out to dinner. That way we don’t have to rush.”

Her head snapped back, and she scrutinized his face to see if he was fucking with her. A trill of nervous laughter tumbled from her lips. “I was just kidding Dr. Han. You don’t have to take me out to lunch or dinner.”

He raised a dark brow. “That’s a shame because I wasn’t.”

“You’re going to make me think you’re actually asking me on a date.” She chuckled to brush off the awkwardness of the situation.

“Would I be overstepping a boundary if I was?”

Her eyes widened. This wasn’t real life. It couldn’t be. Sure she found him attractive. Anyone with eyesight would. But there was absolutely no way this delicious God of a man was actually asking someone like her out on a date especially when he’d never given any indication of interest in her before this conversation. Besides, the gossip around the office was that he was causally dating the dermatologist on the first floor, a real beauty.

But looking into his deep brown eyes she was rendered speechless. She could only manage a wordless nod.

He grinned to reveal a perfect white smile. Her heart nearly leapt out of her chest. “Then how about this Friday night? There’s a fantastic new Caribbean and Asian fusion restaurant in town that seems worth checking out.”

He sounded serious but Amina couldn’t help but wonder if this was really happening. Was she dreaming? Or when she died, did she actually go to heaven?

“Um….I…” She didn’t know what to say. On the one hand if there was any possibility of any romance happening between them, it would make things very awkward around the office if things went awry. But this could turn out to be a pleasant experience. Before getting nearly beat to within an inch of her life by Mark and meeting her fate in the form of a speeding vehicle, Amina’s biggest regret was never taking any risks in her life.

Even choosing to date Mark had been a safe choice at the time, or so she thought. Technically she was still with him and she hadn’t figured out what to do about that situation yet. “Dr. Han…”

“It’s okay if you don’t want to. I don’t want to make you uncomfortable.”

She quickly shook her head from side to side. “Actually, I’d love to but…I’m kind of in a relationship right now.”

He raised a brow. “Kind of?”

Amina realized she would sound bonkers if she explained that she’d died the night before and how she woke up five years in the past. But she couldn’t let this opportunity slip through her fingers just in case this was real. “It’s actually not going so well.”

At this point in her relationship with Mark, that wasn’t all the way true but considering how things ending, it wasn’t a lie either. She couldn’t see herself remaining with a man who would eventually lead to her death.

“Are you not allowed to have dinner with a friend?” He closed the distance between them and stood so close she could feel his body heat.

This conversation was taking a turn Amina could never have predicted but she was already too far down this road there wasno turning back. Her heart started to pound. “Are you saying we’re friends?”

“If we aren’t already, I’d like to rectify that.”

Before she could give this situation further thought, Amina said, “Okay. Let’s do dinner this Friday. Friend.”

He cracked a smile to once again reveal those perfect teeth of his. “Sounds good. I’ll go make the reservations. How does eight sound?”

“Sounds good.”

Their gazes locked and Amina’s breath caught in her throat. Dr. Han raised his hand and nearly touched her face but he yanked it back abruptly. “Sorry. I…ugh, thought I saw something in your hair.” He took a few steps back. “I should probably head to my office but we’ll firm up our plans later, okay?”

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