“Well, this is a nice surprise,” I said with a smile.
I set the sandwiches down onto the table and Karina and I exchanged a quick hug.
“Hey there,” she said, resuming her seat. “It's not often I run into you during the week. Everything okay?”
“Everything's great,” I said. “Work is quiet today. We try and keep Mondays open for emergency visits since everyone waits through the weekend. I thought I'd grab some lunch since I didn't have patients.”
“It was good timing,” Karina said. “Leigh Ann and I just got here a few minutes ago. We were doing a bit of shopping and decided to grab some lunch.”
“Thanks again for coming to my parent's party on Saturday,” I said. “They loved seeing you and Leigh Ann. In fact, they sometimes refer to her as their 'step-grand daughter'“.
Karina laughed. “You know I wouldn't miss it. I haven't missed one in twenty years and I'm not about to start.”
I took a bite of my sandwich and washed it down with some orange-flavored bottled water. “It was nice seeing all of the kids play. They get along so well together. I wonder if they'll be friends two decades from now, like what happened with us.”
“It wouldn't surprise me,” she said. “They're thick as thieves. Speaking of connections, I noticed you and Dr. Matthews were hanging out quite
a bit during the party.”
I nearly choked on my sandwich from surprise. “What?”
Karina shrugged. “You and the Doctor hardly left each other’s side the entire day.”
“Oh, yeah, well.” I stumbled over my words. “We've just become pretty good friends since we've started working together. Plus, I was the one who invited him, so maybe he felt like he needed to hang out with me more than anyone else.”
Karina smiled and leaned across the table. “He's super cute, Hannah. You don't need to feel ashamed about having a crush on him.”
“A crush?” I asked, feeling my face burn as I blushed. “What? No, it's nothing like that. We're just good friends.”
“Okay,” Karina said, keeping the mischievous smirk plastered on her face. “But I know love when I see it and there was definitely something there between you two.”
“Do you really think so?” I asked.
“I know so,” she said casually.
“Maybe you just had too much of the adult punch,” I said, laughing.
“That's very possible,” Karina admitted. “Even so, I wasn't the only one who noticed.”
I cocked my head to the side. “What do yo mean?”
“Even your mom mentioned it,” she said. “Right after Dr. Matthews left the party, she asked me if there was something going on between you two.”
“Seriously?” I shook my head, causing my hair to fall across my forehead.
“It's not a bad thing,” Karina said. “I think it's kind of hot. Think about it, Hannah. A nurse and a doctor? That's the kind of things they write books about.”
“But the town...” I sighed. “Everyone thinks that he's engaged to Katie. Do you know what the Ladies' Bridge Club would do to me? My own mother told me to back off. They want him to be with Katie.”
I motioned to the bakery behind us.
“Screw 'em.”
I sighed. Karina had always been popular in school and the town adored her and Leigh Ann. She'd never felt the strength of the town when they decided on something. I had. I still had nightmares about Mrs. Thompson choosing me as the lead for the school play because it would bring me out of my shell. I had been so nervous that I had thrown up after every rehearsal and they finally gave up and let me just be in the band. The worst part was that I didn't even audition for the play.
When the town wanted something, it happened to you whether you liked it or not. The Ladies' Bridge Club was worse than the mafia.
“There's nothing between us,” I told her firmly. “It couldn't happen and even if it could, I wouldn't allow it. He's my boss for crying out loud. You and I both know that mixing relationships with work is a huge no-no.”