“Good.”
“It was nice meeting you, Doc,” he said.
“Take care, Boxer.”
I left his room, feeling a twinge in my chest. I didn’t understand it any more than I understood the sudden bout of melancholy that washed over me.
An hour later, I was at the nurses’ station watching Boxer leave his room with a prospect by his side. He was taller than I realized. His blue and black flannel shirt was rolled up at the sleeves, showing off his inked forearms. Boxer wore a leather vest, which proudly sported the Blue Angels logo on his back.
Even though he was moving slowly, I detected a hint of natural swagger, like an eighteenth-century pirate hell-bent on destruction and damnation.
“Be still my ovaries,” Lizzie murmured.
“Right?” Amanda added.
“Stop it you two,” I demanded.
“If your ovaries aren’t doing cartwheels right now, then you need to get your hormone levels checked,” Lizzie said.
Boxer sauntered to the elevators, and when he saw me noticing him, he waved and then pretended to doff the rim of an invisible hat.
The prospect stood near him, ready to lend a hand, but Boxer didn’t need it. The young man pushed the button, and the elevator came almost immediately. The two of them got in, and Boxer called out, “You’ll miss me when I’m gone, Dr. Ward! Admit it.”
The doors closed but not before I saw his cheeky grin.
“Please tell me you’re about to make a bad decision with him,” Amanda demanded.
I shook my head slowly. “Nope.”
“What?” Lizzie gasped. “Why not?”
“Because he’s a patient.”
“Not any more he’s not,” Lizzie said. “What other excuses do you have?”
“He’s a biker,” I said.
“Uh, yeah. That’sexactlywhy you should go for it,” Amanda said, with Lizzie nodding along.
“How do you figure?” I demanded.
“He’s a leather-wearing, incredibly hot alpha male who’s charming as hell,” Amanda went on. “He’d be fun to run around with for a little while.”
“And then you can release him back into his natural habitat,” Lizzie added. “No muss. No fuss.”
“All guys are a fuss,” I said. “I doubt Boxer is any different.”
“You’re really not going to even consider it?” Lizzie asked. “After I helped him set up the adorable juice box cocktails date?”
“It wasn’tthatadorable,” I protested.
“Yeah, Linden, it was,” Lizzie said.
“It was a manipulation tactic, and I didn’t like it,” I admonished.
“You lie,” Amanda teased. “Yousoliked it.”
“I would totally be all over that,” Lizzie said. “Maybe I should run after him and give him my number?”