Page 2 of Remembering You
He covered his grin with the back of his hand and met her gaze. Though his snickering smile was hidden, she could see it in the way his eyes crinkled at the corners.
Aw, hell. Marty gave in, laughing in spite of herself and shrugged. “Happy Valentine’s Day, Dr. Foster.” Marty lifted her coffee cup to him in a mock toast.
“And happy Valentine’s Day to you. And Dick, of course. Please give him my… regards.”
Marty’s jaw dropped momentarily and Dr. Foster’s face fell right along with it. “Oh, God. I’m so sorry,” he said. “I thought that would be funny and break the ice, but it came out so creepy.”
Marty laughed, grateful for the fact that he apologized and broke the tension first. “It’s okay.” Hell,shewas the one openly talking about her date with her vibrator in public, after all. She gave him one last smile and walked past him to a booth in the corner.
Sliding into the booth, she checked her cell phone for the time. She was early. She wasalwaysearly. The hospital had cut back her hours so she only worked three days a week. She took a long sip of her coffee, inhaling the sweet acidic scent. That was fine with her. It was like a partial early retirement. And since her home’s mortgage had been paid off many years ago and all the kids were out of the house, she had very few bills to keep up with these days.
She sighed, catching her reflection in the window of the cafe. She wasn’t a self-conscious woman; not by any means. But nurses half her age had their eyes on Dr. Foster. He could have his pick of just about anyone in that hospital. Besides, even if Dr. Fosterwasn’tout of her league, Marty wasn’t even sure she wanted to play the damn game. Jim’s face popped into her memory and she smiled, remembering the look on his face when she first walked down the aisle on their wedding day.
Dr. Foster looked up from the counter as he took his coffee and turned, walking back over to her.Oh, no. Crap.Why was he coming over here?
Approaching, he took a sip of his coffee. “Do you know it took me two months to discover this place? I just thought it was a crappy hotel cafe. No one told me it was the best breakfast in town.”
Marty set her coffee down on the table. “Well, Elsa’s is Maple Grove’s best kept secret. You can’t blame any of us for wanting to keep it close to the vest.”
His grin widened. “Oh, I see how it is, then. Well, I guess I won’t be telling you where the best pie in Maple Grove is—“
“Latte Da… Lex’s bakery,” she answered, feeling her own smile spread across her face. She wasn’t about to reveal the fact that Lex was her son-in-law. “I’ve lived in this town for thirty-four years, Dr. Foster. You’re gonna have to do better than that.”
He dropped his cheek to his shoulder. “Marty, we’ve been working together for three months now…”
Three months and seventeen days, actually, she thought.
“Please, call me Chris.”
She nodded and took a sip of her coffee. “Okay, Chris,” she repeated, smiling up at him.
He drummed his fingers against his paper coffee cup, pretending to be deep in thought. “Hmm. Well, in your opinion, what’s the best, most romantic restaurant? The sort of place you would go with someone really special?”
Marty’s throat went dry. Those excited little butterflies in her belly practically dove into a depression, all falling to the pit at once. He was asking for her recommendation for adate. Who the hell was he taking out tonight? She resisted the urge to squeeze her eyes shut and instead, cleared her throat, trying to buy an extra moment. “Well, Angelina’s is a well-known upscale Italian restaurant, but in my opinion Greico’s has the better food. And um, well, for a really nice night? I’ve always been partial to Jolie. It’s French food, but not those tiny portions you usually get.”
“Jolie,” he repeated. “I’ve never been much for French food, myself. Too many snails and weird stuff like that on the plate.”
“You sound like my husband,” Marty laughed.
Was that…? Did his grip on the coffee cup just tighten? Did his smile drop just the slightest bit at the corner of his mouth? No, she must have imagined that.
“Husband?” he asked, his gaze dipping to her ring finger, now adorned with her silver wedding band.
She twirled it on her finger. “Mylatehusband,” she clarified quietly. “I don’t usually wear my ring to work. Especially in surgery.”
His eyes softened. “I’m so sorry,” he said. “Was it… was it recent?”
Marty shook her head. “Oh, no. Over eighteen years ago now. I just—” Once again, she twirled the ring, loose on her finger. “Just can’t bring myself to not wear his ring.”
Chris nodded, growing quiet.
Too quiet.
And when things got too quiet, Marty’s mouth tended to run with the silence…
“Luckily, Dick’s not the jealous type, you know?”
Likethat.
