“Hey, girls,” Lauren exclaimed, hugging Samantha first, and then Kate, who came out to join them.

“It’s so good to see you. Come on, let’s go sit in the back,” Kate said. She gestured to a young man working the espresso machine. “Tim’s got everything handled.”

Lauren followed her two oldest friends to the back corner of the sizable café.

“First things first,” Lauren said after they’d settled around the table. “How’s married life treating the two of you?”

Kate and Samantha had each gotten married within a few months of each other. It had been a little over a year since Lauren had come back to Cedar Creek to stand up as a bridesmaid for Kate. Samantha and her husband, Paul, had eloped and married in Vegas a few months before that, shocking everyone with the news upon their return.

They talked about married life for a while, Lauren feeling content to sit and listen to stories of the highs and occasional lows that came with new commitment. She laughed often, and, even though she loved her life in Kansas City, Kate and Samantha were the two things she missed most about Cedar Creek.

“Enough about us and our love lives,” Samantha said. “We’re boring old married women now. What’s going on with you? Has a lucky guy snatched you up yet?”

Lauren’s face warmed, and Kate picked up on it immediately.

“There is!”

“No, not exactly,” Lauren hedged. This would be difficult. “I can’t really talk about it.”

“What? Why not?” Samantha’s eyes went wide. “Is he married?”

“Goodness, no. It’s just…I’m not allowed to talk about patients.”

Understanding dawned on their faces.

“You have a crush on a patient?” Kate asked, keeping her voice low.

Lauren hung her head. “It’s more than a crush. I’m crazy about him. He was a patient that I saw for his first appointment, but I’m in a different clinic now.”

“So what’s the big deal?” Samantha asked. She was, hands down, the most outgoing of the three, and had always been the type to go after what she wanted without reservation.

“I feel weird about it. I work there as a provider, and he’s a patient.”

“Date him and don’t tell anyone about it,” Samantha offered.

Kate scowled at Samantha. “You know she can’t do that.”

“Can’t or won’t?” Samantha retorted.

“Both,” Lauren cut in. “It’s not black and white, but it’s an ethical line that I don’t want to mess with. I need to keep up a good reputation to get a job there. Plus, what if he’s interested in me only because of what he’s going through? People become more emotional during trials like what he’s dealing with. I don’t want to take advantage of the position he’s in.”

“Okay, that’s fair,” Samantha acquiesced.