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“Excuse me, can you tell me—”
“Eva? She was up in X-Ray, but now she should be on the second floor. Ortho.”
“Uh, thanks.” The woman’s face was unfamiliar but she knew about Eva and me, which meant she lived in Pilgrim. “I really appreciate it.”
“No problem. I’m rooting for Eva to change your ways, just so you know!”
“Thanks again, I think.” Her laughter sounded behind me as I found the elevators, which took too long so I opted for the stairs, too anxious to know what had happened to Eva to require X-rays. Another nurse, a redhead with a deep tan, pointed me toward a room at the end of the hall and I rushed inside, feeling breathless. And then confused when I spotted Eva playing poker with an older version of herself. “Eva?”
“Oliver.” She blinked and looked at her mother before returning that steely gray gaze back to me. “What are you doing here?”
What was I doing there? I shrugged, working hard to keep my heaving breaths even. “Olive said you had a medical emergency. I was concerned.” Admitting it had the strangest effect: relief. “What happened?”
The older version of Eva beamed a smile at me from her spot on the bed. “I was trying to impress my tennis instructor—a man far too young for me, mind you—and I fell right on my behind, giving my ankle a good twist before I landed. Doctors think something might be sprained.” Her words were sheepish, but flirty and confident. “Thank you for stopping to check on me, though… young man.”
I stepped forward and held a hand out to the woman. “Oliver March. You must be Eva’s aunt? Sister?” Eva groaned beside me, but the other woman only laughed.
“Oh, he is charming to hell and back! Yes, you are,” she cooed and put her soft, delicate hand in mine. She was just like Eva, only more carefree and open. “You can call me Mirabelle.”
“In small doses, maybe,” Eva grumbled.
I ignored her. “That’s a beautiful name.”
Eva pushed at my shoulder with a groan. “She’s not a member of Time For Love so put those smoldering eyes away, Oliver.”
I laughed and shook my head. “No, but since she’s trying to impress her tennis instructor, she is single—something I know a little bit about. Make sure you tell the guys you were diving for a shot right down the line, they won’t be able to get enough of you.”
Mirabelle blushed furiously and shook her head, putting both hands to her cheeks. “Oh, you are incorrigible! I think I like you.”
“That’s good, Mirabelle, because I like you, too.”
“That’s great,” Eva groaned. “We all like each other, but this is a hospital room, not a tea party.”
“I could probably rustle up some tea,” I said with a cheeky smile, earning me a wicked glare from Eva. “If you’re thirsty.”
Mirabelle laughed again. “Where have you been hiding this handsome devil, Eva?”
“Wherever it was, he obviously escaped, Mama, and he needs to go back.” It was my turn to laugh at just how out of sorts she was by my unexpected visit. “Or maybe he has a certain appointment he forgot about today?”
“Nope. Olive hinted that I might find you here when I was too worried to focus on etiquette lessons.”
“Aww, how sweet,” Mirabelle cooed, earning an even darker glare from Eva. “Don’t mind my daughter, she doesn’t have a romantic bone in her body. Don’t tell anyone,” she whispered that last part. “She has a rep to protect.”
“Mama!”
“What? No offense, but I don’t often get visitors this pretty, so excuse me if I want Oliver to sit and tell me all about his adventures in matchmaking. You are a very engaging writer, young man.”
I blinked at the compliment. “Thank you, ma’am. That means a lot to me.” It was the rarest of all the compliments I received, and the most appreciated. “Matchmaking is quite an adventure, Mira. Ever tried it?”
She shook her head. “I’m just getting back into dating after losing my husband, so I’m trying the old-fashioned way first.”
“Meeting a handsome doctor?”
She laughed again and smacked my hand. “From your lips, Oliver. Now, tell me more.” Mirabelle got comfortable and rested her chin on her balled-up hands like an eager teenager.
“Eva is a good teacher, and if I had any interest in doing the love and marriage thing, I might learn a lot. As it stands, I don’t plan on ever falling in love.”
Mirabelle flashed a sympathetic smile before a loud, guffawing laugh erupted from her small frame. “Handsome men like you never plan on falling in love. It always has to smack you upside the head when you’re least expecting it.” Her laughter went on and on, making me feel a little childish.
I sat back in a hard plastic chair and sighed. “To think, I was just starting to like you, Mira.”
