The Watchmaker's Gift

I

It was not for her.

Anaya didn't take long to locate her colleagues. She noticed Novak first. Weighing in at over two hundred pounds, with huge shoulders and a mass of muscles concealed beneath a burgundy smoking jacket, he was impossible to miss. The medical director of St. Jude's Retirement Home, Dr. Novak Gray had been a championship boxer in his youth and still trained regularly to keep himself in shape.

He dwarfed the slender woman beside him, his wife. Jiri was his opposite in every conceivable way, a portrait of grace and poise wrapped in a swan-white dress. How someone built like one of those tiny dancers in a music box had become the toughest and most respected physical therapist in Emberswick, Anaya couldn't comprehend.

"There she is!" Novak's shaved head gleamed as he turned to greet her. The wide smile that cracked across his dark, weathered face was in perfect harmony with his booming baritone.

Anaya slid onto the empty stool across from him. "So sorry I'm late. I got caught up writing out prescriptions for tomorrow." An excuse for what was, unfortunately, becoming trademark tardiness featured in all her opening lines these days.

"Speaking of apologies, sorry we took so long to organize this. Happy one year work anniversary, Anaya," Jiri said, lifting a glass of water in a fluid motion. Her auburn curls swayed as she nodded in approval. "We're happy to have you with us."

Anaya's actual anniversary date had come and gone more than a month ago, but she still appreciated the sentiment behind the couple insisting they take her out to celebrate. Even if she preferred they not make it a thing. "Thank you. Both of you. But you didn't need to go this fancy."

"Pish posh," Novak replied in his usual manner. For a hefty man, he possessed a peculiarly... delicate vocabulary. "What can I get you to drink, my dear?" He passed her the menu and signaled the staff for service.

She regarded Novak carefully. His earthy brown eyes focused on the different fruit and cheese platters marked on the blackboards adorning the walls. He was truly a "gentle giant," but she couldn't shake off the unease snaking through her.

Is this some sort of test?

Novak knew of her past, or at least the parts in her official record. She was on medications that didn't mix with alcohol, providing she took them. Yet there they were.

"A bottle of sparkling water, thank you. It's a celebration, after all. But I'm really just here for the cheese." Unable to hold back the slight snark, Anaya flourished it with a wry smile.

"As the lady wishes." Novak turned from her to instruct the waiter.

While he and Jiri rattled off their own selections, Anaya let out a quiet sigh, trying to exhale some of her tension away. The effect was short-lived. As soon as the waiter departed, leaving silence in his wake, Anaya cringed. This was the moment she'd feared, the one that would set the tone of their evening. She never knew how to break the ice. As with most things, she had only two extremes. She could either obliterate the awkward pause and become the life of the party, or keep her trap shut and let the cold shoulder freeze them to the marrow.

Jiri cleared her throat. "So. How has the new rotation been suiting you?" Her mint-green eyes fixed on Anaya.

Ugh, do we really have to do this?

The only thing Anaya dreaded more than uncomfortable lapses was filling the quiet with talk about her job. Did they have nothing else in common to talk about? Glancing at her two companions though, she supposed they didn't.

"Change is good," she replied, brightening her tone. "It exposes me to different cases and more experience."

Novak gave an unceremonious snort. "Well, I wish your previous patients would adapt so quickly. Vera and Alexis abhor change. And Gregory too, though he's not quite as persnickety. He cooperates for all his checkups, but never speaks a word more than necessary to anyone else except you."