10. Ayla

Chapter 10

Ayla

E ating dinner alone last night wasn’t on my agenda, but I could tell the second I heard Declan’s voice that something wasn’t right with him. Was I disappointed? A little. But I knew he’d been having issues dealing with his brother’s death. The situation was tragic, but there was obviously a lot more to the story.

What I hated was not knowing the next move. We’d left things open-ended. Our dinner could be rescheduled for tomorrow or a week from now. Dating in my twenties seemed a lot easier back in the day—less complicated. Now I’m thirty-two and most people my age were already married with kids. I didn’t want to date a bunch of men. The truth was, I liked Declan. I wanted to get to know him more, spend some time with him, date him, even. From the small amount of time we’ve spent together, I knew there could be the potential for more; there was chemistry between us last night, and I know had the fireworks not interrupted us, the kiss would have turned into something more passionate.

I wanted to find the right one and settle down.

Since it was already blazing outside, I slipped on a pair of denim shorts and a bright yellow tank top. The dental office was closed all week, so I could actually meet my mother and her friends for coffee. When I moved to North Carolina for dental school, I left a lot of my high school friends in Magnolia Grove. All of them were married now with families. I was probably the only one in my high school graduating class that wasn’t. It was hard to reconnect with those girls when we had nothing in common anymore. Hence, why I was meeting my mother and her friends. They kept things interesting with their gossipmongering.

Instead of walking, I decided to drive so I wouldn’t be a sweaty mess. I had my Acura TLX’s air conditioning on full blast the entire way. When I parked in front of Jitterbug Coffee, I could already see my mom and her two best friends laughing inside. It made me miss Kat and all the fun we’d have going to coffee shops during our class breaks.

My mother saw me and waved me in, holding up a steaming cup of coffee and pointing out that it was mine. I hurried in and took a seat in the empty fourth chair at their table. Jitterbug Coffee was one of my favorite places to hang out before I left for college. It was a little different back then, with more small-town charm, but now it had a vintage vibe you wouldn’t expect in a small Alabama town. All the tables were black with dark metal chairs. The tiles were all white with beige décor and pops of green everywhere. I loved the change.

“Good morning, ladies,” I announced, leaning down to breathe in my hazelnut coffee.

Both Diane and Eva’s eyes twinkled with mischief. Diane was a beauty queen back in her day. She still had bright red hair, which she kept long and wavy. She reminded me of Reba McEntire. Eva was a tiny spitfire of a woman at only five feet tall with short blonde hair who loved to stay tanned. Either they had some stories to tell or were waiting to hear some juicy gossip from me.

I took a sip of my coffee and savored the flavor as it went down my throat.

“Thank you for getting this for me,” I said to my mother.

She winked. “It was perfect timing.”

Eva patted my hand, her grin wider than the Cheshire cat. “So . . . what’s going on with you and the new guy in town?”

I looked at my mother and she shrugged. “Hey, everyone saw you two at the festival. You should’ve known these questions were going to come up.” She batted her eyelashes innocently. “Although, I personally would like to know, too.”

Before I could attempt to answer, my phone saved me. Diane and Eva weren’t just looking for simple answers; they were going to want the down-and-dirty details. They weren’t afraid to ask the embarrassing questions. There was one time when I came home from college for a few weeks at Christmas when I was dating Andrew. Diane had asked in front of everyone if Andrew and I were having phone sex since we were spending a couple of weeks apart. I had never been more shades of red in my life.

I pulled my phone out of my purse and didn’t recognize the number.

“It might be for the clinic,” I voiced, holding up my phone and hurrying out of the coffee shop. At least I was safe from answering their questions for a few minutes.

Once outside, I moved to the side of the building for some privacy and answered the call.

“Hello, this is Ayla Carington.”

Usually, I wouldn’t answer calls that way, but with the after-hours service connected to my phone, I wanted to sound professional.

“Good morning,” a man replied. “I’m assuming this is the Carington Dental office?”

“Yes. I’m Dr. Ayla Carington, owner of Carington Dental. How may I help you?”

I could hear him sigh with relief. “I know you probably don’t have any openings, but I figured I’d call and see. I ate some popcorn this morning, and I think I chipped a back tooth. The pain is not pleasant.”

I always made it a point to see everyone in an emergency. Having tooth pain could make anyone miserable.

“Of course, I can see you,” I told him, glancing down at my smartwatch. I had all day. “Does ten o’clock work for you?” It gave me thirty minutes to say my goodbyes to Mom and her friends and get to the office.

“It does. Thank you. I’ll be there at ten.”

We hung up and I went back inside to grab my coffee. Diane and Eva were sad that I didn’t have time to fill them in on my love life, but it was a relief to me. There wasn’t much to tell.

My mother stood and grabbed my arm before I could leave. “I’m going with you. You might need help with something.”

There were times when she used to help my dad when he took emergency calls.

“Are you sure?” I asked, glancing over at her friends who were still chatting away at the table. “I don’t want to take you away from your Tuesday morning gossip fest.”

She waved me off. “Please. It’s the same old stuff.” Then she linked her arm through mine. “Besides, I used to like being at the office with your dad. Most of the time he didn’t even need me.” Her brows furrowed. “But I think that’s because I was a horrible assistant.”

That made me laugh because it was true. My father never came out and told her that, though. I was the only one he confessed it to.

“What?” she said, squeezing my arm. “Is it true? Did your dad tell you I was horrible?”

I patted her hand as we exited the coffee shop. “Of course not. You know how dad is. I think he enjoyed working alone at times.”

Her lips pursed. “Uh-huh. I think there’s something you’re not telling me.”

I led her to my car, avoiding her question altogether. “You can ride with me to the clinic, and I’ll bring you back to your car when we’re done.”

We hopped in my car and I finished the last of my coffee the second we pulled into the clinic’s parking lot. However, my mouth dropped when I noticed the expensive cherry apple red Bugatti Divo parked in my spot. No one in town had the kind of money to afford a car like that.

“Wow,” my mom gushed. “It’s obvious this person isn’t from Magnolia Grove.”

I parked a couple of spaces over from the expensive sports car to avoid hitting it; no one was in it. A minor ding would probably cost a hundred thousand dollars to fix.

We walked in through the back door, and I went straight to the front while my mom prepped one of the exam rooms. I could see someone was standing outside, but when I opened the door, I wasn’t expecting to see a handsome man dressed in an expensive three-piece suit. Then again, he did drive a Bugatti that was worth over five million dollars .

His caramel-brown eyes raked over my shorts and tank top with surprised humor.

“Dr. Ayla Carington?” he asked, his grin broadening.

I couldn’t tell how old he was, but if I had a guess, I’d say mid-forties, even though he appeared younger. He had a little bit of gray mixed in with his dark hair. But underneath that suit, it was clear he had a muscular build.

“Good morning,” I said, holding out my hand. “And yes, I’m Dr. Carington.”

He shook my hand, his grip firm as he smiled. “Either you’re the worst dentist in town with no patients, or you’re closed today,” he teased. “Which one is it?”

Chuckling, I squeezed his hand as firmly as I could and let go. “We’re closed for the week, but I always come in if there’s an emergency.”

His smile dropped. “Oh, I’m sorry.” He stepped back and held up his hands. “I never would’ve called if I’d known that.”

I held the door wider. “No, it’s okay. Please come in. I do this all the time. Hopefully, you can excuse the clothes, though. I know it’s not exactly professional answering the door in shorts and a tank top. It’s just most of my emergency patients are locals. They’re used to seeing me in all sorts of attire. I even came in pajamas one time.”

The guy laughed; his teeth were so white they almost glowed. I was curious to hear why he was in Magnolia Grove.

“Now, that would be fun to see. I can’t imagine my dentist from home doing that.”

I motioned for him to come in and shut the door behind him. He was tall, just like Declan, around six-foot-two inches tall.

“Where are you from?” I questioned. I couldn’t place his accent; it was neither southern nor northern.

I took the lead and he followed me toward the back to the exam rooms.

“I live in Atlanta but am from California,” he answered. “My name’s Robert Forbes. I was passing through here on my way to New Orleans when I bit down on a popcorn kernel. I think I broke a tooth, but I’m not sure.”

My mother came out of one of the rooms and nodded that it was ready for us.

“I will definitely take a look, Mr. Forbes,” I said as I led him into the exam room and flourished a hand for him to take a seat.

He sat down and smiled at me. “Please, call me Robert.”

Once I masked and gloved up, I laid the chair down and he pointed out the tooth that bothered him. His teeth and gums were perfect. I couldn’t visually see anything wrong with the tooth, so I took a digital X-ray to be sure. When the picture popped up on the screen, there was no indication of a crack.

“Do you see anything?” Robert asked as I moved his chair back to its regular position.

I examined the X-ray for a few more seconds and shook my head. “Nothing. You have amazing teeth. I don’t see anything wrong with that tooth.”

Robert shrugged and stood. “That’s good, at least. When I was younger, my parents always got onto me about brushing my teeth. They would show me pictures of my Uncle Ray, who had a mouth full of rotten ones. I was told mine would get like that if I didn’t clean them. Guess I’ve been protective of my teeth ever since.”

My shoulders shook with laughter. “Yeah, that’ll do it.” I stood and waved a hand around the room. “I didn’t have to see pictures. I was here every day as a kid, helping my dad. I saw a lot of messed up teeth.”

Robert smiled. “I appreciate you seeing me on your day off.”

I held out my hand. “You’re welcome. I feel bad that I can’t do anything for the pain.”

He took my hand. “It doesn’t even hurt anymore. I probably just overreacted and thought the worst.”

“I’m the same way,” I said, laughing. “There was one time I fell off my bike when I was seven and thought I’d broken my leg. I was so afraid my leg would grow crooked if I didn’t get it checked out.” I walked him to the front lobby and stopped at the door.

“And was it broken?” he inquired, facing me instead of opening the door.

“Of course not.”

His brows furrowed and he nodded toward the front desk where my mother sat watching us. “Don’t you need me to check out and pay for the visit?”

“Nope. We’re good here,” I replied. I wasn’t about to charge him for me doing nothing.

Robert smiled and there was a hint of more than just a friendliness behind those caramel-brown eyes of his. “Well, then, why don’t I take you out to lunch? Are you seeing any more patients today?”

“As of right now, there are no more.” I chewed on the inside of my lip, not knowing what to say about lunch. I’d never had anyone ask me out at my office before.

Robert clearly sensed my hesitance by the way his smile fell.

“No to lunch?” he asked.

Sheepishly, I sighed. “Believe me, I’m happy you offered, it’s just . . .”

“You’re seeing someone?” His gaze dropped to my hand. “I didn’t see a ring, so I assumed you weren’t married.”

I held up my hands. “I’m not, but I am interested in someone else. It’s all new and the last thing I want to do is jeopardize it by going out to lunch with another man.”

Robert chuckled and opened the door, but I could sense he wasn’t used to being turned down. He was a very attractive man who I had no doubt could get any women he wanted.

“I understand,” he replied, turning around to face me. “Maybe I’ll see you around when I stop back through on my way back from New Orleans.”

I nodded. “That’s a high possibility. I’m always here and there.”

“Great. Take care of yourself, Dr. Carington.” He smiled one last time and headed for his car.

I shut the office door and watched through the window as he drove away.

“He seemed like a nice guy. Very handsome, too,” my mother called out.

“I agree.” I turned away from the window and joined her at the desk.

She lifted her brows at me, her eyes twinkling. “Does turning Robert down mean that things between you and Declan are progressing?”

I snorted. “Not exactly, but I’m hoping it will soon.”

I just had to break through his walls first.