Page 66 of Strictly Against Policy

Shoua and Anthony both blinked at me. I raised an eyebrow at them.

“Has anyone ever told you how hot you are when you’re a concerned doctor?” Anthony spoke up.

I blew out an exasperated sigh as I squeezed the medicine out of the syringe back into the bottle. “I’m aware.”

“No wonder you bring all the girls to the yard when you have that white pharmacist coat on.” Anthony grinned, light coming back to his previously sullen face. He nodded at the medical tape over my Adam’s apple. “I’m assuming your blind date went well?”

Shoua gently smacked his shoulder as I laughed. “No, it didn’t. But I bumped into a familiar face after. It all turned out for the better.”

They glanced between my face and throat in confusion. I chuckled again as I peeled off the medical tape to gloat about what Lina did to me. Their eyes widened temporarily before Anthony howled out an awful croaking laugh too jarring for the ears.

“You slut,” he mumbled as Shoua furiously typed something on her phone.

I grinned. “She called me the same thing.”

Their eyes widened again as my cousin continued typing. She showed me her phone screen again with the softest smile. I think I like her.

I smiled back with warm cheeks. “Yeah,” I breathed. “I like her too.”

Shoua and Anthony looked at each other, mouths forming the same knowing smirk. This was the most alive they’d looked the whole night, making me laugh out loud again. I couldn’t help but smile at the thought of Lina.

“Anyway, I’m going to head out,” I said, still chuckling. I rose from the ground and grabbed the jacket I threw on the couch’s armrest. “Take it easy, rest, and take the meds I brought, especially the fever-relieving ones. If you need any more mouthwash, just let me know. I’ll make time to swing by to mix up more.”

“Sure thing, doc,” said Anthony, getting up with me to walk me to the door. “By the way, Dr. Lo, I have a question.”

I turned to him with crumpled brows. He only called me doctor formally when he wanted to tease.

“Did that familiar face you met last Friday happen to have a name that sounds similar to Hli Nag?” he asked, raising a brow.

I hummed, mouth cocking into a smirk as I stepped out the door. I looked back at him and my cousin on the couch. The two of them wore a look of growing eagerness as they waited to hear my confirmation.

I tipped my head as my mouth stretched so wide my cheeks ached. They couldn’t see my smile because of the face mask I wore, but I knew the corners of my eyes crinkled. “Maybe.”

I received a text instantly and quickly checked it, expecting it was Lina. Instead, it was a text from Shoua.

Shoua

Tell Lina you two are going to be the hottest, smartest couple I know.

I looked up at her and showed Anthony her text. “I’ll see you two later,” I said. “But before then, don’t try to infect anyone.”

“The only one we’re hoping to infect is you,” he mumbled.

I laughed, slipping my phone into my back pocket. “As your pharmacist, I suggest you keep your mouth shut and enjoy the silence, Anthony Hughes.”

He rolled his eyes at me as he closed the door in my face. A thunderous chuckle still rolled out of me when I got into my car and tore off my face mask. I quickly sent Lina a text that I was heading over with our own batch of Korean beef bone soup for dinner.

On the way to her place, my giddiness kept coming out in bursts of chuckles, wide smiles, and hot cheeks. Despite the long day, I no longer felt tired. The thought of seeing Lina became my focus. I wanted to kiss her. I wanted to hold her. Most of all, I just wanted to breathe her in and ease into her warmth.

At the stoplight, I leaned into my seat and let out all the stress building up under my skin, releasing it with an exhale. My fingers traced over the spot where she’d left her mark on my body and soul. Warmth sparked across my chest. But the fervor of it was gone as soon as it started. The world came to a slow pause.

I watched the scene before me with crumpled brows and a dry throat.

A familiar face instantly grabbed my attention out of the corner of my eyes. She walked hand in hand with a man I didn’t know. Delight shone brightly in her eyes, and love twinkled in his as he watched her. They crossed the street with big grins and laughed out loud. Without a doubt, it was the same bright melody I grew up with and would recognize anywhere instantly. I watched on as the man placed a loving kiss on the back of her hand as she smiled sheepishly.

The only time I’d ever seen her wear that look of utter happiness was with my dad.

My mom looked straight ahead as emotions washed over my body in waves of ice and fire. Her dating shouldn’t have come as a surprise. But it still did. Along with frustration, happiness—and somehow, abandonment—all at once.