Author: Kristan Higgins

Joe smiled. “I didn’t mean to interrupt, girls. Just wanted to say hello. But I’ll see you tomorrow, right, Millie?”

“Um, yes. You bet.” It was hard to speak normally—Joe referring to our togetherness was quite overwhelming, and the alcohol in my system wasn’t helping. Still, I managed to smile at him.

“Great. Have a good time,” he said and ambled back to the bar. Katie and I watched as he was immediately approached by two women.

“Thanks for sending him away,” Katie smiled.

“Oh, sure,” I said, still gazing at Joe.

“You’re purring,” she commented.

“He’s so…I just…”

Thankfully, the waitress interrupted my drooling idiocy by placing two glasses of wine in front of us. “Courtesy of Brad Pitt over there,” she said with an appreciative nod at Joe, who waved cheerfully.

We talked about normal things like work and family and were reluctant to leave. My brain was blurry from the wine, despite the fact that I had stopped drinking a while ago. “You know, Katie,” I said, “I think we need to call someone for a ride. I don’t usually have more than a beer or two, and I definitely shouldn’t be driving.”

“Okay,” she said. “Joe would give us a ride, I’m sure.”

“No,” I answered. “No Joe. Joe had the pleasure of my company last night, and Joe must wait for it before he gets it again. The shecret of my shuccess.” At this very moment, Joe was nearly invisible, surrounded by a bevy of women. He caught my eye and grinned. Darling boy. I flushed with pleasure.

“Then let’s have another drinkie while we decide who’s lucky enough to come fetch us,” Katie suggested. She flagged our waitress down once more. “Yes, could we please have two slippery nipples?” she said in her sweetest voice. I exploded with laughter.

“You won’t be laughing when you taste them,” Katie said. “They’re gross. But fun to order. Should I call my parents? My dad will come get us.”

“No, because then they’ll think I’m a bad influence,” I reasoned. “And then they won’t babysit next time we want to do this. I’ll call my dad.”

“Yeah, right. I can just imagine how happy Big Barnes would be to see his little princess drunk.”

“Excellent point. Dad is still a teeny bit overprotective.”

“How about Trevor?” Katie named her twin brother, older than she was by eight minutes.

“No, Trevor doesn’t like me.”

“Oh, come on! He likes you fine!” Katie exclaimed.

“Nope. Not Trev. How about Steve?” I offered the name of another of Katie’s many brothers.

“Just married, remember? I don’t think Sheila would like him coming out at eleven o’clock to fetch his sister.” Our waitress brought the nipples, and they were, as promised, rather gross.

“Sam will come get us,” I said, watching as Katie sipped her, uh, drink. “How about Sam?”

Katie’s eyes narrowed suspiciously. “Millie,” she warned.

“No, no, nothing like that. I’ve learned the error of my ways. But Sam’s sweet, and he won’t cop an attitude—get it? And besides, he never goes anywhere. He’d love to come and get us.”

“Do you swear you’re not trying to fix us up again?” she asked.

“Not unless you want me to,” I said innocently, though my eyes may have crossed a little.

“I don’t.”

“Okay, okay, but let’s call Sam. Sam’s awesome.” I fished my cell phone out of my bag and dialed Sam’s number. My nephew answered.

“Hi, Danny, how are you?”

“Hey, Aunt Mil. What’s up?”

Not wanting Danny to know I had been overindulging, I spoke carefully. “I’m looking for your father, Dan. Is he available?”

“Sure. Hang on. Dad,” he called. “It’s Aunt Millie. She sounds trashed.”

“Danny!” I said, simultaneously irritated and amused. “The boy can tell I’ve been drinking,” I said to Katie.

“Imagine that,” she answered dryly, taking a sip of water.

“Giving up on your nipple?” I asked, and we burst into laughter again as Sam came on the line. He agreed to join us at the Prison, and though it had become increasingly difficult for me to estimate time, appeared at our table a little while later.

“Hey, Millie, Katie,” he said, smiling and sitting down. Our faithful waitress, who had put up with us for hours now, took his order for a beer. “I understand you girls need a ride home.”

I sighed gustily. “Now who told you that? Danny? He’s jushta a child.”

Sam laughed softly. “I hope I am here to be your chauffeur, Millie, because there’s no way I’ll let you behind the wheel.”

“What about Katie?” I complained. “She’s been drinking, too!”

“At least Katie’s not sloppy,” Sam said, throwing Katie a little wink.

“Yeah, well, she can out-drink an Irish firefighter at a wake. And here I thought you’d be grateful that we rescued you from another night at home alone,” I said.

“Oh, I am, I am,” Sam replied. “It’s not every night I get to be with the two prettiest women on Cape Cod.”

Katie rolled her eyes, but such corn-pone sweetness made me want to weep, suddenly. “Sam, you’re the best,” I said sappily. “We love you, Sam.”

“Hey, guys.” Joe Carpenter stood at our table. “How’s it going, Sam?”

“Okay, Joe, how about yourself?”

“Never better. You playing next week?” Joe was no doubt referring to the sacred softball league.

“Yup. You guys?”

“That’s right. Thursday, I think.”

“Danny’s looking good. Fielding like Nomar of old,” Joe commented affably. I yawned hugely just as Joe turned to me. “Hey, girls, why does Sam get to hang out with you? I thought it was girls only. No boys allowed.”

Katie tossed her hair in an efficient shake. “Sam’s not a boy, Peter Pan. He’s a man.”

Joe looked startled for a second, but Sam intervened. “I’m here only as a public servant, Joe.” He smiled at me, eyes crinkling. I smiled drunkenly back. How I loved Sam!

“Right,” Joe said. “Well, I’ll let you guys be. Have a good night. See you tomorrow, Millie.” He leaned in and kissed me quickly on the mouth, then returned to his stool.

Sam led us to his car a short time later and drove us home. He kissed us each on the cheek, advised aspirin with an entire glass of water and drove off.

“You’re a prince, Sam,” I called, waving.

“He really is a prince,” Katie murmured. “Don’t look at me that way. I’m just stating a fact.”

CHAPTER NINETEEN

THE DAY AFTER MY SLEEPOVER with Katie, Joe dropped by the clinic. Just his walking into the reception area caused a hushed and reverent silence to fall over Jill, Sienna and three female patients ranging in age from eleven to seventy-three.

“Hi, Millie,” he said as I came out of an exam room.

“Joe! Hi!”

“Got a minute?” he asked.

We ducked into my office.

“What’s up?” I murmured, a thread of uncertainty unraveling in my stomach.

“Oh, I was just driving by and saw your car,” he said, coming closer.

“Oh.” Think of something to say, quick.

“And I missed you.”

“Oh,” I whispered.

He kissed me then. Oh, Joe, I thought, I can’t believe we’re really together.

Ten minutes later, he left the clinic, waving cheerfully to Sienna and Jill, leaving me in a trembling pile of lust after six hundred seconds of glorious necking.

“My God, who was that? Millie, are you sleeping with that guy?” Sienna asked.

“Goodness! That Joe just gets better looking every time I see him,” Jill commented. “And are you sleeping with him, Millie?”

“Mrs. Doyle!” I said, reverting to childhood formality. “Sienna, that’s Joe Carpenter, the sweetest and most gorgeous man in the world.”

“He’s so…wow,” Sienna said, dazed. “He could be a movie star or something.”

“I know.” I grabbed a pen and wrote out a prescription. I may have been humming.

“I can’t believe he’s with you,” Sienna murmured, still staring at the parking lot. “I mean, you’re really great, Millie…it’s just that guys like that…uh…”

“What, Sienna?” I asked more sharply than I meant to.

She blushed. “Forget it. Sorry.”

Giving her a look, I went into the other exam room to see my next patient.

SIENNA WASN’T THE ONLY ONE who was surprised to learn that I was dating Joe.

On Thursday I was in my office dictating cases, getting ready to race home to change, fix my hair and reapply makeup for my date with Joe. Sienna poked her head into my office and I switched off the tape recorder.

“What’s up, Sienna?” I asked.

“The cops are here to see you,” she whispered.

I glanced out the window and saw an Eastham police car in the lot. “Oh, that’s just Sam,” I told her. “My brother-in-law.”

“He’s cute, too,” Sienna said thoughtfully. “In an old-guy kind of way.” Of course, for Sienna, anything past twenty-five was old, so no doubt Sam seemed close to death. I quickly ended my dictation and smiled as Sam came into the room. Thankfully, the leathery-faced, gravel-voiced Ethel wasn’t with him. She frightened me.

“Hey, Sam,” I said. “Thanks again for the ride the other night.”

“No problem,” he said, standing in the doorway. “It was fun.”

“Everything okay?” I asked, expecting more news from the Trish front. “You can sit down, you know.”

He looked strange in my office, very official and serious. And, let’s admit it, a good-looking a man in uniform…nice. He sat down, his gun clunking against the chair.

“Are you seeing Joe Carpenter?” he asked bluntly.

“Yes,” I answered cautiously. “What about it?”

Sam looked at the floor. “I was, uh, kind of surprised the other night, when I picked you and Katie up, that’s all. You know, when Joe kissed you. I didn’t realize you guys were dating.”

I stared at Sam. “So?”

“I guess I’m just surprised. You didn’t say anything about it.”

“It’s kind of new,” I replied neutrally.

“Yeah, sure. It’s just…I don’t really see you guys together.” He shifted in his chair as if he had sand in his bathing suit. “You don’t seem…”

That was it. I flung my pen down on the desk. “Don’t seem what, Sam?”

His eyebrows rose. “Well, it’s just that Joe doesn’t seem like your type.”

“What exactly is my type, Sam?” I snapped. “Do you have any idea? Tell me, since obviously you’re an expert in ‘my type.’”

“Whoa there, Millie, I didn’t—”

“What you really mean is that I’m not Joe’s type, don’t you?”

“Millie—”

“Because why? I’m not pretty enough?” I slammed my file drawer shut.

“No! I didn’t say—”

“God, I am so sick of hearing people ask why Joe is with me! First Trish, then Sienna and now you!”

“Millie, don’t put words in my mouth. I didn’t mean anything—”