It had been a good night. Working at Ninety-Two was a good fit for her. She liked the people she worked with, and she had creative freedom to express herself through the food she made. All in all, not a bad start to a new beginning in a new city.
Her phone rang so she pulled it out of her pocket. It was her friend Laura.
“Hey, what’s up?”
“I was wondering if you were home yet.”
“Just got here. It’s late for you. I would have called you but I thought you’d be asleep.”
“No, I switched shifts at the hospital so I’m on until eleven thirty. I just got home. Jon’s asleep and I’m wired. Are you crashing or are you up for some company?”
“I won’t go to sleep for a while yet. Come on over.”
“I’ll be right there.”
Amelia hung up and smiled, then shrugged the blanket off and went into the cabinet to pull another wineglass down. She loved her rental house. It was older with tons of quirky charm like uneven wooden floors and yet the sunny, large kitchen had been updated with all new, high-end appliances, perfect for her. The house’s best feature, though, was its prime location, right down the street from Laura and Jon’s house. Since she didn’t know anyone else in San Francisco, finding this place had seemed like kismet.
She went to the door just as Laura rang the bell. She opened it and Laura swooped in, still wearing her scrubs and tennis shoes. Despite having worked a full shift as a nurse, her best friend was still gorgeous. It simply wasn’t fair.
“And how was your day?” she asked.
“My day was I hope you’ve opened a bottle of wine,” Laura said in response.
“As a matter of fact, I was sipping on a fabulous cabernet when you called.”
“See, this is why we’re friends.” Laura made her way down the hall, her dark brown ponytail swinging as she walked.
Amelia laughed and followed her, glad her friend was comfortable enough to pour herself a glass of wine.
“Are we on the porch?” Laura asked.
“Yes. The heater’s on. Grab yourself a spot and a blanket. I’m going to go change into something more comfortable, and I’ll be right there.”
Amelia dashed upstairs and changed out of her work clothes and into yoga pants and a long-sleeved cotton shirt, then slid into her favorite pair of slippers. She found Laura on the wicker chair, a fleece blanket covering her legs.
October in San Francisco could be cool, but the porch was closed in and with the heater on it was very comfortable.
“Tell me about your day,” Amelia said.
“Two car accidents, one drug overdose, a ruptured appendix, a broken finger and one surly drunk who threw up all over one of the other nurses.”
Amelia grimaced as she tossed one of the blankets over herself. “Well, at least the drunk didn’t throw up on you.”
Laura raised her glass of wine. “Small favors.”
“Look at it this way. At least you’re not bored. Isn’t that why you went into nursing?”
“True. I can’t believe I started my freshman year of college thinking I wanted to become a CPA.”
Amelia smiled as she remembered their first year together. “You did always score high in the math classes.”
“Math always came easy to me. But I was following in my mother’s footsteps. She was the finance whiz. Midway through the first semester I knew I’d die a slow, agonizing death in finance.”
“Plus you were so good with people. And you knew you loved medicine.”
Laura leaned back and propped her tennis-shoed feet on the old, scarred coffee table Amelia had picked up at the flea market the first weekend she’d come to town. “True. I’d have made a kickass doctor. It was just all those years of medical school—”
“And all that debt.”
Laura laughed. “Yes, all that debt—that kept me from realizing that dream.”
“You could still go to medical school if you wanted to.”
“I don’t want to. I’m happy being a nurse. It fulfills me.”
“Then you’re right where you need to be.”
“As are you. I’ve never known anyone who loves what they do more than you. And God knows you kept the entire dorm fed the first year. I was the only one smart enough to become your best friend, thereby ensuring I’d eat well through college.”
Amelia laughed. “See? You’re good at math, an angel of mercy and insightful as well.”
“I’m practically perfect. And so are you.”
“Is that what we’re doing tonight? Talking about our perfection?”
Laura swirled her wine around in the glass. “Not a bad way to spend the evening. But you could tell me about your night. Was it busy?”
“Not too bad. Ninety-Two has been bringing in a lot of patrons since we opened. I’m happy about that.”
“I’m sure you are.”
“And I met with Ken and Flynn before opening today. Flynn is having a team party there later this week.”
Laura set her glass down. “The Sabers are all going to be there? Oooh. All those hot football players.”
Amelia shrugged and took a sip of her wine. “Which means a lot more to you than it does to me.”
“Bullshit. You love football.”
“I do love football. I’m just not a football player groupie.”
“Granted. Still, all those hot men assembled in one room. So many of them single. You could have your choice.”