Made for You (The Best Mistake 2)

“Dr. Anders is doing okay?”

“Yeah, Blake is great. He’s a little green, but conscientious…asks questions when he has them. And the patients love him. Especially the thirteen-year-old girls.”

“I bet,” Brynn said absently. Blake Anders had been doing a residency with them, but when Brynn had called in “sick” for the week, he’d been asked to take on more hours.

She only hoped that he’d be open to taking a lot more patients for the next few weeks.

“What’s going on, Brynn?”

Brynn took a deep breath, forcing herself to meet Susan’s eyes. “I think I need some time off.”

Susan didn’t flinch. “Longer than this week, you mean?”

“Yeah. I’m thinking more like…through the end of the month.”

“Okay, no problem. As long as you need.”

Brynn stared at her partner in exasperation. “You’re supposed to freak out. At least a little bit.”

Susan gave a small smile. “Oh, believe me, if I didn’t have Blake, I probably would. But honestly, we’ll handle it. You’ll be missed, but you’ve gotta do what you’ve gotta do.”

Brynn sucked in a breath. Just like that. It was so easy. She’d been half expecting—hoping—that Susan would protest. Maybe try to talk her out of it.

No going back now.

“Well, okay, then,” Brynn said. “I’ll make sure all of my patient notes are updated, of course. And I’ll contact them all personally to let them know I’ll be on leave. And you can call me anytime. And I’ll check in…”

Susan put a hand on her arm. “Brynn. We’ve got this. You take care of you.”

Brynn nodded. “Yeah. Okay. I will.”

“Look, I don’t mean to pry, and I understand you want privacy, but…”

“I’m okay, Susan,” Brynn said with a reassuring smile. On the outside, anyway. “There are no scary health issues or suicidal impulses, I just need some time, you know?”

“Totally. My sister had this total epiphany last year, and went on this three-month-long backpacking trip through Asia. When she came back, she gave up law and opened up her own organic bakery.”

Brynn blinked. “Well, I’m not planning on quitting. And I can’t bake worth a damn. And backpacking? When did she shower?”

Susan gave a slight laugh. “Okay, I can see that you need this break more than I thought. Seriously, though, don’t give yourself any expectations for the next few weeks, okay? Not even good-intentioned ones.”

“Sometimes the good-intentioned ones seem to do the most damage,” Brynn muttered.

“Too much of a good thing, and all that,” Susan agreed.

“Yeah, I guess.”

Susan glanced discreetly at her thin designer watch. “I’ve got a patient in five. You’ll let me know if you need anything?”

“For sure. And I’ll get all my notes together and have them to you and Blake by the end of the week.”

“I know you will,” Susan said breezily, heading toward the door. “And Brynn? Have fun, okay? Whatever that looks like…mimosas for breakfast, skydiving, Vegas, monkey sex…just go for it.”

Brynn tilted her head and narrowed her eyes at Susan. “You say that so easily. Have you ever gone for it?”

Susan gave her a cheeky smile. “No. But I’m only twenty-seven.”

Touché.