“You know, it feels weird to see you here. I’ve always associated you with Vegas.” I pick up a nacho, dip it in cheese, and look across the table at Aiden.

“That’s funny. I’ve been here for ten years,” he says as he takes another sip of his beer. “So this is where you hang out, huh?”

“Yeah. It’s close to where I live, close to the hospital, and close to my old college as well, so most of the time it’s the convenient choice.”

“No kidding. This is prime location. It took us two minutes to walk here from the hospital.”

I give Aiden a smile. Our location is not the only thing that feels strange about what’s going on. It’s also the fact that we’re having small talk like strangers do. I feel like Aiden and I have gone way past the introductory stage now, and yet here we are.

“Where do you live?” I ask, despite the niggling feeling that I’m asking exactly the kind of question a stranger would ask.

“Just outside of town, to the east. The rents here are too high for my Mom and me,” he says easily.

Unlike some people I know, Aiden has never hidden the fact that his family doesn’t have much. I love the fact that he owns it and doesn’t seem to feel any shame about it. It’s easy to be confident when you’re doing well for yourself, but it takes guts to own up to your problems.

Despite his humble beginnings, he’s made it through medical school, and now we’re peers. That’s way more impressive than the same achievement for someone like me, or someone like Trey. We both have dads who are prominent physicians; they have enough sway to help us advance in our medical careers.

Trey’s been texting me, by the way.

He’s been asking me out and I’ve been giving him excuses that get worse by the week—I’m sick, I have to go to the dentist, I need to organize my books by color, Game of Thrones is on, I’m deep-cleaning my fridge, and my horoscope warns against going out of the house.

Now I need to brainstorm excuses that require me to be outside, because Trey’s offered to come to my place several times. You know, to help clean the fridge or something like that.

Trey’s a nice enough guy, really. He’s just a little brash for me. He’s also either dumb or gullible or both because he bought my lame excuses instead of laughing them off. Obviously, we don’t share the same sense of humor either.

It’s nothing at all like how things are with Aiden.

Even though being so close to him makes me nervous, I find it easy to find things to say, and whatever I say seems to amuse him no end.

The way he gazes at me, rapt with attention, puts a permanent smile on my face. We must look like idiots, smiling and staring at each other while the food only gets nibbled on every once in a while.

I don’t know about Aiden, but I don’t have time to eat. I’m too preoccupied with this invisible force that connects us together. Oh, and also, we’re kind of talking about cysts.

“So I brought out the ultrasound machine,” I say, “and wait for Dr. Graham to find me like she said she would. Meanwhile, I put the gel on the patient and run the probe over her skin.

“The patient looked at the screen and went, ‘Ooh, is that my ovary?’ I tell her yes because what else could it be? The probe was right over her womb. But then she asked me another question.”

“Oh, no. That doesn’t sound good,” Aiden says, already grinning in anticipation.

“She asked, ‘Do you see cysts there?’” I pause and let out a sigh. “So I had to tell her I didn’t really know how to use the ultrasound machine.”

Aiden chuckles. “That’s not too bad, as far as first days go.”

“Why? What happened on your first day?” I ask. This should be interesting.

“Oh, not much,” Aiden says. “I only almost killed one patient.”

I widen my eyes. “He survived, though?”

“Oh, yeah. Sorry, I was exaggerating. I didn’t mean to alarm you.” Aiden shoots me an apologetic smile. “On the way to the hospital, the EMS took the insulin pump off this guy with Type I diabetes. I didn’t catch that right away, but I did before it was too late.”

As I exhale, I realize I’d been holding my breath.

“Sorry,” Aiden says again.

“No, that’s okay,” I say.

I know lots of doctors have a somewhat dark sense of humor; it’s a tool they use to cope with the impossibly massive burden of being responsible for other people’s lives.

It’s not that I’m offended; I just didn’t expect that kind of comment from Aiden. It reminds me, once again, that he’s not the same person as the teenage Aiden I used to know.

But I kind of like this new Aiden. He intrigues me. I want to get to know this gorgeous man sitting across the table from me right now.

“I’m told any doctor’s bound to make a mistake,” I say. “It’s inevitable because you’re only human. It’s healthy to poke fun at your own mistakes rather than let them consume you.”

“Thanks for saying that.” Aiden smiles as he runs his fingers through his hair. His blue eyes scan the restaurant. “I think they’re closing soon.”

“Really?” I check my watch. How is it already 9:45? “Yeah, they are,” I say.

“They just turned off the music and some of the lights. That’s the universal sign that they want us to get the fuck out of here.”

I laugh.

Aiden chugs the rest of his beer, and we quickly go to the counter to make the payment, leaving about half a plate of nachos on the table. He insists on paying—that hasn’t changed.

Once we’re outside, I notice we’re walking a little closer than we did before. A little slower, too.

God, I don’t want this spontaneous date to end. We’ve been talking for hours, and I still haven’t had enough of him. Now my own watch is telling me I only have a few minutes left? Traitor.

“This person who told you about how making mistakes is inevitable . . . Was that your dad?” Aiden asks as his arm grazes mine.

“Yeah. It’s probably hard for you to believe, but sometimes he says things that make sense, too.”

Aiden laughs softly. “He’s a good man, your dad. He said some good stuff during his speech at the wedding, too. I could tell how much he loves his family.”

“Sometimes a little too much,” I say wryly.

“That’s better than too little, right?” Aiden asks as we pass through the gate of my apartment complex. “I assume he’s the reason why you live in this nice building.”

“Yeah, that’s true.” I slow down my pace. I can’t believe we’re already here and we wasted our precious walk talking about my dad, of all things. I look up at Aiden.

From the way he gazes back at me, I can tell he feels the same way. His hand brushes against mine, although it feels more deliberate than the previous accidental arm graze.

When our fingers interlace, I’m not surprised. It feels like a natural progression of things, like this is exactly what we’re supposed to be doing.

We stop right in front of the main entrance to my apartment building, our fingers still entwined as our lips lock together. Aiden’s strong arms wrap around me, surrounding me with his musky scent.

He claims my mouth, and I kiss him back with the passion I’ve kept buried for too long. I thought it had left me forever. Turns out it’s still there, just waiting for Aiden to bring it back to life.

When we pull back from the kiss, the air is electric. Although our lips no longer touch, he’s got me trapped in his embrace and I’m clutching onto his muscled arms. We’re both panting, out of breath.

“Do you want to come up to my place?” I blurt out.