Chapter 1 #2
"Three skinned knees, one case of fairy wing strain, Zinnia's hair, and now Gromm's loose tusk." I tick off the incidents on my fingers. "Plus, I'm pretty sure the Sanderson twins are faking their stomachaches to get out of their math test."
"They absolutely are," Harriet confirms, popping a piece of carrot in her mouth. "Performance anxiety. I've seen it before."
"I'll talk to them about some breathing exercises." I make a mental note, then take another blissful bite of my sandwich. "How about you?"
Harriet rolls her eyes, a strand of ash-blond hair falling from her messy bun.
"Millie Primrose convinced Bellamy Otterton that krakens can turn into sharks during the full moon. I spent twenty minutes trying to reassure him that it’s just a silly joke and that the Saltwater Ocean Camp he will go to this summer is perfectly safe. "
“That child is going to be the death of us all.” I snort into my water glass. "Just like her great-aunt."
"Speaking of people who don’t know how to mind their own business," Harriet says with a mischievous glint in her eye. "Are you sure you want to help Principal Braggstone for parent-teacher night tomorrow?"
I stop mid-sip. This is one complication I don’t need in my life.
“He asked about you. Wanted to know what restaurant in Saltford Bay you like best.”
“What did you tell him?” I swallow, careful to keep my face neutral. Harriet knows how I feel about this. About him.
Principal Orlin Braggstone has been attempting to court me for the better part of a year, despite my increasingly desperate efforts to politely deflect his attention.
I know troll males are stubborn, but this is getting ridiculous.
“You need to tell him no, once and for all.”
I hate that I’m staying holed up in my office just to hide from my new boss.
"He’ll get the message in time." I push away my half-eaten lunch. "He cornered me by the punch bowl and spent fifteen minutes telling me about his rock collection."
“Was that at the Christmas party?”
Harriet wrinkles her nose at the thought.
“Yes.” I nod. “Which might have been interesting if he hadn't been standing so close I could count his nose hairs.”
“It’s completely inappropriate.” Harriet shakes her head. “I mean, he can ask once, but then he needs to get the message.”
"Exactly!" I throw up my hands. "I don't want to hurt his feelings, but…"
"But you need to stop being such a people pleaser and just tell him you're not interested." Harriet lifts her brow in that way of hers that means business.
"I know, I know. It's just…” I deflate slightly, knowing she's right. “He's my boss, and he's not a bad person. I just haven’t found the right way to get my point across."
"It’s easier to just avoid him, is that it?" Harriet supplies. "It’s not like you two work together or anything. How do you figure this is going to work out?"
"It will," I protest weakly.
"In the meantime, you’ll spend enough time in this office to reorganize the entire medicine cabinet by color and alphabetical order?" She arches an eyebrow at me.
"If it’s necessary," I insist, though we both know it’s never the kind of thing that’s necessary. "Anyway, can we change the subject? The new doctor is visiting the school on Thursday. What do you think of that?"
Harriet's eyes light up, and I immediately regret bringing it up. "Oh, you mean the mysterious, supposedly devastatingly handsome doctor everyone's talking about? Mrs. Primrose is telling everyone she nearly had a conniption just seeing him walk around the other day."
I roll my eyes. "I'm sure Mrs. Primrose is exaggerating, as usual."
"She called him, and I quote, 'a tall drink of glacial water with cheekbones that could cut diamonds.'" Harriet fans herself dramatically.
"Since when do you put so much stock in what Mrs. Primrose says?" I ask, trying not to let my curiosity show. "She also claimed that Mayor Ironhoof was secretly a ballet dancer in his youth."
"Which turned out to be true!" Harriet counters. "Remember the Winter Festival last year? Those were definitely trained pirouettes."
I can't help but laugh at the memory of our seven-foot minotaur mayor twirling gracefully across the ice rink, his hooves somehow not skidding once.
"Fine, but that doesn't mean this new doctor is God's gift to the women of Saltford Bay just because Mrs. Primrose says so.”
“I also heard he’s an elf,” Harriet says, her brows rising comically high. “What do you think of that?”
That leaves me speechless for a bit.
“An elf? Aren’t they usually keeping to the High Court?” I take a bite of my sandwich and chew pensively.
“They do.” Harriet nods. “I’ve never even met one. They don’t mingle with the riffraff like us for the most part.”
“I mean, their doctors have a stellar reputation, but I’ve never heard of an elf leaving the High Court to practice medicine in a little town like Saltford Bay.”
Harriet doesn’t seem to think this is interesting in the least.
“Never mind the reason he’s in town.” She leans in. “Mrs. Primrose is telling everyone she hopes you and the new doctor get along together.”
Ugh. I can’t win with this girl.
“Evelyn Primrose needs to mind her own business.”
Harriet shrugs, a knowing smile playing on her lips. "Well, Evelyn’s matchmaking did work out pretty well for Gerralt and Cassidy. They're disgustingly adorable together."
She's not wrong. Bernice's grandson, Gerralt, a gruff but kindhearted orc, had been successfully mated with Cassidy Perkins, the human owner of Saltwater Lodge, after Mrs. Primrose's not-so-subtle maneuvering. They recently announced their engagement, proving that sometimes the town busybody did know what she was doing. Only I’m not in need of matchmaking. If anything, I’m in need of the opposite.
"That was a lucky coincidence," I insist. “They were both already living here, both clearly interested in each other. Who even knows if the handsome new elf doctor is single?”
"Why, are you interested?" Harriet asks innocently, but I know better. There’s nothing innocent about Harriet when romance is involved. "I was just mentioning that we have a new, reportedly handsome doctor in town who'll be visiting the school. You're the one who jumped straight to romance."
My cheeks heat up, and I throw my napkin at her. "You're impossible."
"And you're transparent," she counters, dodging the napkin with practiced ease. "Admit it. You're at least a little curious."
"I'm professionally curious," I clarify. "As the school nurse. Nothing more."
"Mm-hmm," Harriet hums. She doesn’t even pretend to believe me.
The bell rings, signaling the end of lunch period. Harriet hops off my desk, wiping crumbs from the corners of her mouth.
"Duty calls." She sighs. "See you tomorrow?"
“You know it,” I say with a dramatic hand over my heart.
After she leaves, I tidy up my office, restocking bandages and organizing the paperwork that never seems to end.
As I work, my mind wanders back to the mysterious new doctor.
Despite my protests to Harriet, I can't help but wonder what he's really like.
Saltford Bay doesn't get many new residents, especially not ones who practice modern Elven medicine.
It’s been six months since old doctor Wells retired and the townspeople had to rely mostly on themselves to get over their illnesses, with serious cases being sent to the larger hospital in the next town over. Having a full-time doctor in town again will be great for residents.
And if he happens to be handsome, well, that is beside the point. Professional curiosity, that's all it is. I'm simply interested in what kind of medical professional would choose our little town as their new home.
But as I prepare for the afternoon rush of playground incidents and post-lunch tummy aches, I catch myself smoothing down my unruly red curls in the small mirror on the wall.
Purely professional, I tell myself firmly, ignoring the little flutter of anticipation in my stomach. Thursday is just another school day. Nothing special about it at all.
Except, perhaps, for the chance to meet the doctor who's apparently handsome enough to make Mrs. Primrose have a conniption.
Not that I care about that part.
Not at all.