Page 9 of Second Chance to Score

“I’m not an asshole, and you know it. You need to make me the bad guy so you can hold onto your anger.”

“I don’t need you to psychoanalyze me, Robbie. I don’t need anything from you.”

She pulled away from me, and I let her go, knowing the value of a strategic retreat.

“Okay, well I appreciate you helping me anyway. And Violet?”

She stopped but didn’t turn around. “Yeah?”

“I’ll see you soon.”

Violet

I shouldn’t have been happy about Robbie saying he would see me soon in that deep voice that seemed full of promise. But of course I was. My damned heart was a traitor.

After sending off Robbie’s examination results and treatment plan to the team’s doctor, I spent the rest of the day working with my other patients, half distracted the entire time. Fortunately, I was having dinner with my good friend Steph tonight. She would set me straight. No one was as practical as Steph.

I met her at our mutual friend Carmen’s restaurant. We often did this so if things were slow, Carmen could join us. Steph was already at a table when I arrived, looking particularly glowy. As usual her long brown hair was pulled back in a low ponytail, and she was dressed practically. She worked in emergency management and was always ready to run to the next disaster at a moment’s notice.

I slid into the booth across from her, smiling in appreciation when I saw that she’d already ordered us a bottle of wine.

“Hey, it’s been a minute, how have you been Violet?’

I poured myself a glass of wine.

“I’m okay but what’s going on with you?” I asked, giving her an appraising look. “You look oddly happy.”

Steph was not one for big emotions.

“Christopher and I got engaged.”

My eyes widened in surprise. Steph was one of the last people I expected to get married, especially at our age. She’d been on her own for a long time before falling for a small-town guy who lived in the mountains. We all figured that the relationship was doomed.

Steph was the top emergency management official in the state and one of the only female directors in the field nationwide. After working so hard to get ahead in a male-dominated field, I knew there was no way she’d give it all up for some small-town guy. To everyone’s surprise, including hers, Christopher had given up small town living – and being the mayor of the town where he’d lived most of his life—to move to Denver to be with Steph.

I’d met Christopher several times. He was a little rough around the edges – in fact back in his hometown he’d had the nickname “Mayor McGrumpy”—but he was perfect for my straightlaced friend. Somehow, they softened each other, even though they were both strong personalities. You only had to look at them together to realize they were very much in love. Plus, I couldn’t fault a guy who was willing to make big sacrifices for the woman he loved.

“Let me see the ring,” I said, giving her a big smile.

She held out her left hand, showing me a simple band with small, inset diamonds. It was perfect for her.

“Congratulations! I’m so happy for you.”

“I never expected this to happen, but I’m glad it did.”

I got that. You didn’t get to be single women in midlife without making peace with the fact that you might be alone for the rest of your life. And for women with big careers like ours, it was even more challenging to find someone. Speaking of someone...

“Remember Robbie?”

“The guy you dated in college and then he fucked around on you? Of course.”

Steph and I had become friends after I broke up with Robbie, so she’d never actually met him, but he’d definitely been the subject of many “men are scum” rants.

“He came into my clinic today.”

“Why?”

“My father wanted me to work on a hip injury that Robbie has. I told him no, but as usual my father just ignored me and did what he wanted.”