Page 69 of The Doctors Will See You Now

“You promised that nickname would be banished from your vocabulary.”

He shrugged. “Minor amnesia from Mrs. Linwood.”

“Amnesia moment, my ass. She hit you weeks ago,” I muttered and he laughed.

“Banished nicknames aside…what’s our next stop, Mel?”

“Umm…” I looked around the little neighborhood that made up the East Village and knew instantly once my eyes locked on a place that always brought back some of my fondest memories.

It was an area of the city I didn’t get to explore often, but it had one of my favorite little antique shops nestled inside of its neighborhood. Obscura Antiques and Oddities, a store full of vintage items that were about as far out as my parents. You could literally shop there every weekend for a year and not leave without finding something seriously strange and intriguing.

“Follow me!” I exclaimed and hopped off the bench to my feet.

“Where are we going?” Will asked as I locked my hand around his wrist and tugged him off the bench and toward the crosswalk that led to eclectic heaven.

“It’s a surprise.” I grinned and glanced over my shoulder as I navigated us across the street and down the sidewalk until we were standing in front of the shop. Its sign hung like a beacon of allure on the space that was once used as a funeral home.

“Obscura Antiques and Oddities?” Will read with a question in a voice.

“Have you ever been here?”

He shook his head with a soft smirk. “I can honestly say that I haven’t.”

“Get ready to be amazed,” I said, shoving him inside playfully. The bell rung proudly as the door swung open with a creak.

I glanced around the store with a nostalgic smile etched across my lips. God, it looked exactly like it had fifteen years ago. Not a single thing had changed. It was as if it was my very own time capsule of good memories that had stayed preserved just for me.

Will put his hands to his hips and quietly scanned the shop, his eyes roaming across each nook and cranny. “An antique shop?”

“The best antique shop,” I corrected. “My grandmother used to bring me here every Sunday when I was a kid. And she always had one rule. We couldn’t leave without bringing one thing home.”

God, just the smell of the store—dust mixed with wood mixed with that universal scent of old books—brought back good memories. Some of the best memories I still had of my grandma.

“I like that rule,” Will said and pressed a soft kiss to my lips. “I think we should keep it.”

I grinned against his mouth. “I think we should, too.”

He leaned back and stared into my eyes with a challenging smirk lighting up his face. “But let’s up the ante on it.”

I quirked a brow. “How exactly are we going to do that?”

“Whoever gets the best find gets to choose where and what we eat for dinner tonight.”

Considering dinner with Will always ended in sexy times with Will, it was a no-brainer. Count me motherfucking in.

“I’ve never been one to back away from a challenge,” I said with a determined hand to my hip.

“Me either.” Will leaned in close, his lips just brushing mine.

Without hesitation, I left him standing near the entrance and moved toward the back of the store, where I knew the weirdest items were located. I was a woman on a mission, and I didn’t let his occasional comments of “Oh! I think this is it!” or “Man, I’ve got so many good things, I don’t even know how to choose!” deter me.

His mind games wouldn’t work on me.

And if I was being honest, I really fucking wanted Chinese tonight. Ever since I had to watch Marlene stuff her face full of Chicken Lo Mein last week, I’d been craving egg rolls like a son of a bitch.

“How’s it going, Mel?” Will called from the front of the shop.

“Just fine,” I replied and grinned to myself as I rummaged through a stack of obscure medical magazines from the fifties. These weren’t it, but I was getting close. I could feel it.