Midlife is the Cat's Meow (My So-Called Hexed Midlife Book 1)

by Miranda MacLeod

Still, when the bell rang, I raced to the door like my feet were on fire, never more eager to see a gray-haired old geezer in my life. I swung it open and gaped. Instead of the old doctor, a woman stood on the porch. She was gorgeous in a bad girl kind of way, though the fine creases around her eyes put her at roughly my age or a few years older. Clad in head-to-toe leather, her long, dark hair was wild and windblown. I would never have recognized her had it not been for the motorcycle helmet tucked under one arm.

That bad girl persona she was rocking wasn’t just about fashion.

I gritted my teeth. “Where’s your dad?” “Somewhere around the ninth hole at Pebble Beach, I’d assume,” she replied with a wicked grin that brought out a dimple in each cheek. I found myself staring, riveted. “He retired years ago, after I took over the practice.” “You’re the island doctor now?” I was pretty sure if my eyes bulged any more, they’d fall out of the sockets and plop onto the foyer floor. “Nora Kenworthy, MD.” She swapped the helmet to her other side to free up her right hand, offering it in greeting. Her brow furrowed when I failed to respond, and she studied me for a moment, her front teeth biting into her lower lip. “Polly, isn’t it?” I balled my hands into fists, wanting nothing more than to land one of them right in the middle of her plump pink lips. Was that how she planned to play this? Hell no.

What I wasn’t expecting was the laughter that emanated from the good doctor, whether at my mother’s stubbornness or my fighting stance, I wasn’t sure. What surprised me even more was the way my insides did a belly flop, filling me with all the palm-sweating anxiety I hadn’t suffered since my teenage years. Was I still so concerned about what others thought of me that a little laughter could turn me inside out? I wanted to believe I’d matured, but the evidence wasn’t on my side. What else could explain the sudden, overwhelming self-consciousness I experienced the moment Nora Kenworthy so much as glanced in my direction?

I whipped my head toward Nora with a determination that would leave her no choice but to back me up. “How soon can you get her in?” “Let me see what I can do.” With that, she left her office, phone in hand. But before she did that, she winked. My heart sent out a flurry of staccato taps, like an urgent message over a telegraph wire. If I had to guess, my erratic pulse was signaling SOS. Was I going crazy, or had a Kenworthy just winked at me? I didn’t even know what that meant! Were we in cahoots now? Was she going to shank me when my back was turned? The uncertainty stirred up all kinds of turmoil in my insides. What kind of legitimate medical doctor went around winking at people? And, why was I reacting in such a weird way? I’d heard that coming home again could make you regress to childhood, but I hadn’t expected all the drama and angst of my teen years to come at me so fast.

“Good news!” Nora breezed back into the room, sliding her phone into her back pocket. Her leather pants were so snug I was amazed there was room for anything bigger than a dime. I had to admit she wore them well. Too well, even. It took considerable effort to drag my gaze back up to her face before I got caught staring.

“While Mr. What’s-his-name is a pain in the ass, what’s the worst that can happen?” There was an important lesson to be learned here, though I didn’t know it at the time. Never ask a question you don’t want to find out the answer to.

I would need to make an effort at proper nutrition in the future, but as far as I was concerned, it could wait until my mother was there to witness and give me credit.

The crackling in my veins had subsided when I spotted a newcomer who sent an odd burst of adrenaline zinging to my fingertips and toes. I almost didn’t recognize her without all the black leather. Catching my eye, Nora smiled and made her way to my table. “I didn’t expect to see you here. You look fantastic.” My lips flapped a few times, but I didn’t know what to say. Everyone was complimenting me tonight. I couldn’t remember the last time Phil had so much as looked in my direction. “Er, you look nice, too,” I finally managed to get out. It was true. Her sleek black pants suit was a perfect choice, feminine but professional. “Attending was a last-minute thing. I’m Dana Wardwell’s date for the evening.” “Lucky lady.” The way Nora said this, I wasn’t sure which of us she considered the lucky one, me or Dana. Either way, there was a certain something in her expression that hadn’t been there a moment before.

Nora didn’t seem to be in a hurry to join the other guests. In fact, she seemed quite content where she was. Every so often, her eyes would flick down my neck and across my shoulders with an intensity I could almost feel physically along my skin. It was a strangely pleasant sensation. “She was supposed to be getting me a drink,” I said, wishing she’d succeeded. Considering some of the inappropriate thoughts that were trying to race around in my addled noggin, I really needed one. Since when did I notice how another woman was looking at me, let alone care? I stumbled over a rough spot on the carpet in my ridiculous shoes, and Nora looped her arm through mine and led me to the bar. “Red, white, or something stronger?” The fabric of her jacket brushed the inside of my elbow, and my internal temperature skyrocketed. Perspiration beaded on my brow. I attributed it to fear, specifically fear of what the sheriff might do if she spotted me walking with her girlfriend like this. Even if it was totally innocent, the good doctor doing her best to keep a damsel in high heels upright, I doubted it would go over well.

“Would you like to have lunch on Monday?” Nora asked once we took our seats. A few rows up, the sheriff was shining her flashlight into an aisle. “Uh—” My heart clenched. This was going from bad to worse. Would the sheriff execute me on the spot if she overheard? “Or we could do later in the afternoon, say 2:15? Unless mornings are better.” Nora sounded a little flustered, or maybe that was me projecting my own fears.

Meanwhile, I didn’t know what to do with the disappointment that had crushed my chest when I realized Nora’s proposition was one hundred percent professional. Thankfully, I was saved from responding as the lights around us dimmed and the stage grew bright.

“I’m sure if they needed help, they’d let you know.” I nearly rested my hand on her arm but thought better of it, folding my fingers in my lap like a good girl instead. It was possible Nora Kenworthy wasn’t quite the ogre I’d made her out to be. I might even go so far as to say I liked her. A little bit. But in a thoroughly platonic sort of way. That was all.

“I’d better get this door open.” Even after saying this, Nora held my gaze for a moment, not moving, an unreadable expression on her face. It sent chills of a totally different type running through me. That settled it. I was a complete and utter fool. Never in my life had I been interested in any woman before. Up until recently, I’d been convinced I would hate this particular woman with my dying breath, based only on her possession of the Kenworthy name. But now, just because I’d found out she was dating a woman, I was obsessed.

“My lady,” she said, but not before turning on the light in the entry so I could see, proving she knew the place well. How many times had she been by to take care of my mother? Before I could ask, Nora said, “Sleep well tonight, Tallie.” “You too,” I replied, my whole body going up in flames. Probably a hot flash.

“Can I get my order to go?” I asked, keeping an eye on Nora, who didn’t appear to be going anywhere. “You can, but if you want some company, I’m planning to have mine here.” Nora supplied the information casually, but I got the sense that she hoped it’d change my mind about leaving. “Good to know.” The more I thought about it, the less I relished the thought of drinking my coffee while cycling home. “Maybe I will.” I followed up this totally banal statement by giving a toss of my head like I thought I was still in high school, and the head cheerleader to boot. I felt my face and neck go up in flames. What on earth was I thinking? Dana stifled a laugh behind her hand as Nora grinned foolishly.

But the thing about growing older that no one warns you about is you don’t ever feel old. Okay, my bones might ache at the end of the day, my joints creak when I bend too fast, and I’m always tired. But in my mind, I still feel like I did my senior year. And every time I look in the mirror, that’s the face I expect to see looking back at me. I’d transitioned from maiden to mother willingly enough back in the day, but I wasn’t ready for crone.

“Hi,” Nora said, her eyes flicking from my carefully fluffed hair and sweeping quickly down my sundress before making sustained contact with mine. “You look beautiful. Are you ready to go?” “I’m, uh…” Did she say beautiful? Once again, a simple compliment had my cheeks engulfed in flames. I took in her black trousers and shiny shoes, the exact opposite of casual beach chic. “Am I dressed okay? My mom and aunt seemed to think we were going someplace fancy.” “What’s your definition of fancy?” Nora opened the passenger side door for me, waiting while I took my seat. “Linen napkins,” was the only thing I could think to say. “Then yes.” She closed the door before I could protest. “Should I change?” I asked when she got behind the steering wheel. “Never.” I sank my front tooth into my lower lip. What the hell was that supposed to mean?

Sure enough, Nora breezed right past the burger place I’d thought we were going to and pulled into the parking lot for the Whale’s Tail. This was definitely the restaurant my mom had been talking about, although I was still adamant this wasn’t a date. I maintained this stance as Nora hopped out of the car and zipped around to open my door before I had a chance to do it myself. “Let me help you out.” Nora held out her hand for me, and honestly, what was I going to do? It would’ve been rude not to accept it as the friendly gesture it was surely meant to be. I was raised to have manners, after all. I took her hand and steadied myself as I got out of the car. “Thank you.”

Threading my arm through hers in a chummy and not at all romantic way, I took in the restaurant’s deep navy-blue storefront.

Roberta

Bertie, I presume?

“All you have to do is follow. Do what I do,” Nora said. “And look pretty, of course. But you’re a natural at that.”

A woman’s hands. I hadn’t realized it then, but now it was crystal clear. Bertie Chase, the notorious bootlegger of Goode Harbor Island, was a woman disguised as a man.

“Look, Nora, I—” “I’ve gotta go, Tallie. We’re short staffed at the clinic, and there’s some big shot law enforcement type coming from the mainland to ask a bunch of questions about the local handling of all this Alex Tate stuff.” “Okay.” I swallowed as Nora hopped on her bike and fired up the engine, my chest hollow, as if my heart had given up and moved on to greener pastures. Like Antarctica, probably. I had no idea what I would’ve said if she’d let me have a chance to finish talking. What was there to say? I was just out of a bad marriage, not even legally divorced yet, not to mention a single mom with two kids and no career prospects aside from helping run a tiny inn. On top of all of that was the simple fact I’d never given even one thought all my life to having romantic feelings for a woman. At least, not until I’d met Nora. Which, really, who could blame me? If there was going to be one woman on the planet who could give me second thoughts about sticking with my hetero lifestyle, why wouldn’t it be a tall, dark-haired beauty who wore leather like a rock star, but also saved lives because she was a friggin’ doctor. And charming, and funny, too. And the way she looked at me, like I was the most interesting person in the room, the only woman in the world… Well, I mean, damn.