Make Time For Me

“Cara Dunn?”

Olivia blinked up at him again, losing her stride a little.

“You’ve heard of her?”

“Of course! She has this one piece of wilting roses cast in bronze, held by a woman, with a doe waiting beside them. She made the whole thing out of flowers before she had it cast in bronze. It’s incredible.”

“I remember that one. Somebody bought it – it went on auction, it was the first piece of hers that was auctioned and she was terrified that nobody would want it. But somebody bought it.”

“Whoever bought it is very lucky.”

Olivia smiled.

“They are. It’s beautiful. It was one of her favorites. Though she tells me that she’s become much better so she no longer misses it. I’m pretty sure she does. It was hard for her to let that go.”

“I guess it must’ve been.”

“It was. Well, this is me.”

“You drive a Jeep?”

Olivia raised a questioning eyebrow at him.

“There’s no reason why you shouldn’t drive a Jeep. The Jeep looks great.”

“Needs a wash, but I’ll get to that. Why, don’t I look like a Jeep kind of gal?”

“Get in and we’ll see.”

Olivia chuckled as she opened the door and got in, struck a pose, tilting an imaginary hat at him.

He grinned, and Olivia noticed that he had a dimple. Just the one, on the left. Why did that suddenly make him a lot more appealing?

Well, not appealing enough to make her reconsider her dating decision. There would be no more dating for her, not until she was sure she could handle it. The last two years had not been easy.

She was not going to make her life any more difficult than it had to be.

“Follow me, and I will lead you home.”

She smiled and waited as he got into a spiffy little sports car that looked absolutely impractical. He’d never have been able to fit his luggage into that while moving to the island.

“Hey! Hey, wait up!”

Olivia turned around to see Ellie and Angela running to catch up; Angela keeping up with Ellie was a surprise and a sight. Those tiny fairy feet could move very fast. She was like Tinker Bell, and she might as well have had wings.

“Jason, are you trying to steal Ellie’s roommate?” asked Angela when they caught up.

“Oh, well! Now that I’ve been caught, I guess I’ll have to try another day. I was going to show her the way, El.”

“Well, I go back on shift, so I’m sleeping in the break room. So you can show her the way,” said Ellie with a sigh.

“Oh, you have a long one?”

“I’m on night tonight,” confirmed Ellie. “Sorry I can’t show you everything, Olivia. I’ll be home by six, when’s your next shift?”

“Seven,” said Olivia with a wry smile.

“Great, that gives us a whole half an hour to catch up and get you comfortable. Don’t drink all my beer, Jason.”

The two women turned and walked off, and Olivia and Jason drove off. Olivia followed Jason, taking in the sights.

She had never lived on an island before. It was going to be her home for a few years, so she might as well get used to it.

She could smell the ocean everywhere. Even when she couldn’t see it, she could smell it. Population on the island was not much – nothing like a big city. She should look up the census and find out for herself, but anyway, tourism was the main industry there. She would be taking care of plenty of people who weren’t actually from the island.

It would be part of her job to integrate into the community to some extent. The thing with being a gynecologist – well, one of the many things – was that you needed people to trust you extra. Pregnant people tended to be more questioning of doctors because it wasn’t just them on the line. Their protective instincts were very keen and their minds were, unlike most people thought, very sharp.

If she wanted to be trusted with the lives and well-being of women shielding their hopes and dreams, she had to become a part of the community. It was something pediatricians faced, too. Jason, she could see, was going to have no trouble with that. He was friendly, outgoing, easy going – all the things that people who made friends and were trusted easily were supposed to be.

She distracted herself by noticing that the island had eclectic architecture. Every so often, there was a house that looked like a wild artist had had their way with it. There were bright splashes of color, patterns that stuck in your mind like burr to your sock, things that looked like graffiti she would have to come by and check out later, but on perfect, pristine cottages with glorious gardens, not the kind of place where unwanted graffiti would stay intact.

They twisted and turned, and Olivia wondered if she would remember this shortcut after all. But she could almost hear the ocean now. It wasn’t far now – it was almost there.

The sea.

It had always called to her. She had always loved it. That was one of the reasons why, despite everything, deep in her heart, she’d hoped that the residency in NYC wouldn’t work out, and she would be able to come to The Outpost. Because she had never before lived on an island, and she had a feeling that she had always been meant to live on one.

She might not have the chance to do it again for decades. She planned to go where her career took her.

But while she was on one, she would enjoy it. She would make the most of the slightly damp, salty feel of the wind, the sandy soil, the bright skies, the plants and trees that didn’t grow away from the coast. She would make the most of the next couple of years.