Page 85 of Chaos At Second Sight

The smell of roasted coffee and the familiar two o’clock rush settled my tired nerves. Students, professors, nurses, and doctors filled the Laugh But Work café outside the pediatric center where we volunteered. Floor-to-ceiling bookshelves covered the walls between framed degrees and anatomy sketches, giving me something new to inspect every visit.

Teresa scooted forward, her chair scraping softly against the floor as she reached for the menu. “They added vegetarian options.”

“That’s great. You can order something more than fries.”

For a moment, I imagined Teresa mated to a werewolf. A vegetarian human and a carnivorous beast.

Werewolves couldn’t live on soy and tofu alone; our inner beasts demanded meat. I managed having it a few times a week, but most werewolves I knew ate it daily. Then there was Logan, combining venison, beef, and chicken into one meal and calling it balanced nutrition. Who does that?

Teresa and I had just finished a double shift. We were sweaty, exhausted, and still in pale-blue scrubs and messy buns. But nobody had died today—that alone made it a good day. We were catching up after my trip to Scotland before I had to disappear into my three-hour lecture.

“Tell me about this new boyfriend! I can’t wait to meet him!” Teresa leaned back in her seat. “I’m sorry about Sillas, though. I hope he didn’t take it too badly.”

She’d never even met Sillas, yet she worried about him.

That was Teresa.

Barely five feet tall, with strawberry-blond hair and enormous doe eyes, she looked downright huggable. Between medical school, working to pay for said medical school, and volunteering, she somehow still found enough kindness for everyone else.

I gave her the condensed version of Logan, naturally omitting Lucien and every supernatural detail.

“Poor Mrs. Tina!” Teresa giggled. “She’ll be devastated.”

“So devastated! She really wants to set me up with that grandchild of hers.” I took another sip of my cappuccino. “But the way she describes him? Skipping lectures, always fighting, girls showing up at her doorstep to ask for him?” I shook my head. “She’s describing obnoxiousness!”

Teresa made that adorable little piglet snort of hers. Then she reached into her bag for her oversized pill organizer and popped open another compartment. It looked like her fourth tablet of the day. I resisted the urge to read the label, though a flicker of worry stirred in my chest.

“I’m just relieved I can finally use my boyfriend as an excuse.”

“He can’t be that bad.” Teresa smiled. She never said a bad word about anyone. “Mrs. Tina is delightful.”

She really was.

“What about you? Any news? Your mom?”

“She was supposed to come back this summer but had to postpone again.” Though her news was devastating, her grin was still bright.

“When did you last see her?”

“Four years ago.”

“…Oh.”

“As long as I know she’s healthy, I’m fine,” Teresa murmured, almost reassuring herself.

I reached across the table and squeezed her hand. “You must be incredibly proud of her. Special Forces isn’t exactly easy.”

“I am.”

“So, what are your plans for the summer then?”

She shrugged. “More volunteering? Maybe catching up on some sleep.”

We both giggled.

Just then, my phone vibrated inside my white coat. My face split into a grin.

“Chie!”