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“Don’t you think…I’d be a little boring?”
“Not at all.” She smiled. Nate Miller was technically single, handsome, and intelligent. Not to mention he was a doctor. He was like catnip to ninety-nine percent of the female population. But what made him really attractive was that he didn’t seem to have a clue. Allie hoped his girlfriend knew how lucky she was.
“Is that what you wanted to talk to me about?” he asked.
“Not exactly.” She told Nate all about her ghost story and how she’d tried to find out if anyone had died in the senior center. “So, what I’m looking for is any evidence that someone might have had a heart attack or a stroke inside the building. I know it sounds ghoulish, but according to my research, ghosts tend to haunt places that held deep meaning to them, and a life threatening event sounds pretty deep to me.”
“And you want me to go through Doc Morrison’s records to see if I can verify that?”
“I would never ask you to go through records. That would be too time consuming. But I thought maybe you could ask Dr. Morrison if he remembers anything that would fit that description.”
He shook his head. “Even if he was willing to share that information with me, I couldn’t relay that on to you. HIPPA violation and all that.”
“Oh, yeah, sure.” Well, there went that idea.
The door to The Bistro opened. Nate glanced up. He stuck a finger inside his shirt collar to loosen his tie, like it was too tight all of a sudden.
Allie turned to see Lauren Handy, or rather, Lauren Donalan, standing at the food counter. Lauren’s gaze drifted through the small dining room. She spotted them and froze, but quickly recovered her surprise and waved, leaving Allie no choice but to wave back.
“Looks like a high school reunion,” Nate said. He wrapped up what was left of his sandwich and stood. “I hate to run, but I got to go. Sorry I can’t help with your research but I enjoyed catching up. Maybe we can do it again before you leave town.” He took her business card and promised he’d think about doing an interview.
Allie noticed that Nate didn’t stop to speak to Lauren on his way out the restaurant. It wasn’t that he particularly snubbed her, but he didn’t take the time to stop and say a simple hello, either. Maybe they hadn’t interacted all that much in high school. Or maybe he was in a big hurry to get back to his patients.
Allie took a few bites of her sandwich, willing herself to stay calm. Not that she was nervous at the thought of running into Lauren, she just didn’t know what she’d say to her if she—
“Hi, Allie.” Lauren’s soft voice cut through her thoughts. “I’d heard you were back in town. It’s good to see you again.”
“Hi there, yourself.” So much for not knowing what to say to Lauren Donalan!
Lauren looked different from the way Allie remembered her in high school. Gone was her signature long Barbie hair. Instead, she sported a jaw length cut with side swept bangs. Not many women could get away with hair that short, but on Lauren it looked terrific. It made her blue eyes bigger and her pink lips plumper and everything else about her seemed more intense. Despite having had a baby she still looked like she could fit into her cheerleading outfit, but today she looked like she’d stepped straight out of a sixties fashion magazine. She wore a bright yellow unbuttoned raincoat over an orange shift with tiny purple flowers. Lauren also wore galoshes, which was a little weird because it was probably about eighty degrees and sunny outside. Allie had never seen anyone but little kids wear galoshes. The whole thing should look ridiculous. But it didn’t. Not on Lauren.
“You look great,” Allie said, still a little in awe.
“Thanks!” Lauren held back the edges of her raincoat to give Allie a better look. “I just got this at an estate sale a few weeks ago. I was going to sell it, but I couldn’t resist.” There was a shy excitement to her voice that instantly won Allie over. “You look great, too. But then, you always did.”
It was just like high school all over again. She wished she could dislike Lauren. But she couldn’t. The whole thing seemed unfair somehow.
“Thanks,” Allie said, searching for something to say. “So, you own the shop next door?”
“I’m renting for now, but yeah, the shop is mine.”
“Congratulations.” And then because it would seem strange not to mention it, she said, “I was sorry to hear about you and Tom getting a divorce.”
“It was hard on Henry, but Tom is a great dad.” She fidgeted with the hem of her raincoat. “He’s made everything a lot easier by following us back here to Whispering Bay.”
“You didn’t like Atlanta?”
“Oh, I liked it enough. But it wasn’t home, you know?” She seemed pensive for a few seconds, then brightened. “Cameron is a sweetheart. You must be really proud of him.”
At the mention of her nephew, Allie smiled. “I hear he’s in the same class as your son.”
“And the same soccer team,” Lauren said. “I was relieved when Henry made a friend. Moving is always hard on kids.”
Allie nodded, not sure what else to say.
“So are you back home permanently?” Lauren asked.
“Work assignment,” Allie said. “Tampa is home. For now.”
