Page 56

“That can’t be hard to mess up, right? Plus, that kind of job requires you to blab people’s secrets all over town. Now that I come to think of it, being a shampoo girl is the perfect job for me.”

“Stop it,” Mom said, pointing the gravy ladle at me. “Listen to yourself. You’re not some untrustworthy ditz who’s not capable of dealing with responsibility, okay. How many times have you messed up walking someone’s dog?”

I shrugged. “Never.”

“And how many people are happy with your tarot card readings?”

“Almost every single one of them,” I said. Where was she going with this?

Mom gave me a satisfied look. “Ha, you see? You are trustworthy, and people love you. Don’t let some guy tell you you’re not, no matter how hot he is. Come Monday, you’re going to go to the clinic, do your job, and show Lewis he’d be a fool to let you go. Both professionally and romantically.”

Dad looked up from his now near-empty plate. “Ladies, it’s obvious what’s going on. The guy has trust issues. How would you feel about trusting someone again after being backstabbed like he has been?”

Mom and I both stared at him.

“What?” he asked. “I get haircuts too, you know. I might look like I’m never paying attention, but I always am,” he said with a sparkle in his eye.

“Fine, so the boy has issues,” Mom said. “That doesn’t mean he should treat our Olive like this. She apologized. It was an honest mistake.” She turned to me. “If he doesn’t come to his senses, I’m going to have a little chat with him.”

“Please don’t, Mom. For the love of all that’s good in this world, please don’t.”

“We’ll see,” she said.

Oh man. As if I didn’t feel bad enough already, now my mother was going to meddle again. Things between Lewis and me were most definitely lost forever.

Chapter Twenty-One

Lewis

Imight have overreacted a bit, but by the time I realized that, it was too late.

Yes, Olive shouldn’t have told the whole town about Addy’s pregnancy, but I shouldn’t have been so harsh on her. The entire ordeal had brought up painful memories of what had happened with Sue, and I got into fight or flight mode.

The one I should’ve fought for was Olive. It was useless to do so now, though.

It had been four days since our argument, and she was acting as cold as ice. On Monday, she showed up at the clinic like nothing had happened, except she wasn’t her usual cheerful self but a stiff version of the Olive I had come to know. Every time I tried to break the iceberg standing between us, she conveniently slipped away, telling me she had some important phone call to make.

So yeah, I gave up trying. It was probably for the best anyway. This way, no one could get hurt, and Olive could keep her job.

I should’ve felt proud of myself for doing the sensible thing, yet my heart felt like it was being ripped apart. I tried to distract myself by working late hours and taking on extra patients, but still, my thoughts kept circling back to her.

By the time Friday rolled around, my heart ached so badly, it made me queasy. I couldn’t give up on whatever had blossomed between us, no matter how short-lived it had been. Doesn’t a seed deserve to grow into something beautiful? Even if it failed down the line, at least we would have tried.

“Do you have a minute?” I asked Olive after seeing my last patient of the morning out the door.

“Is it work-related?” she asked.

I bit my lip and sighed. “It’s not, but it is important.”

She hesitated for a moment, and relief washed through me. Then she grabbed her bag from behind the reception desk and strode past me, head held high in the air. “I’m sorry, Lewis, but if this isn’t about work, then I can’t talk right now. I’ve got so much to do before the fundraiser kicks off tomorrow.”

“Wait,” I said, gently grabbing her arm. The sensation of her skin on mine sent shivers from my head to my toes. “We need to talk.”

“Later.”

She hurried away, and the door fell shut behind her.

Why was she so afraid of talking to me about anything other than blood samples, canceled appointments, and medication prescriptions? Did she fear I might fire her after all? Was she still mad at me?