A/N – 'Pikes Peak Medical Group' is a fictitious facility (I checked!), but I based it on other medical buildings I've been in, where there's a large, common waiting area for patients, and different check-in desks along the perimeter for the various specialties.

Chapter 2

Grace's Café was a cheery place tucked in the northwest corner of the building. Square and rectangular tables were provided for dining, and as he'd noted earlier, an outdoor patio added extra space during pleasant weather. Scattered signs indicated free Wi-Fi with a passcode of 1868, and Andrew idly wondered if that was a randomly generated number or a year of significance.

He paid for his coffee and sat to wait. He could have spent the entire time scrolling through his phone, checking the news and tweets and such, but he regularly looked up to keep an eye out for Colleen, not wishing to appear disinterested when she reappeared. He found he wanted to give her every second of his attention – after having known her all of five minutes.

What was he thinking? He'd only just met her, and besides, there were too many obstacles to a personal relationship. He wouldn't be sticking around. She might not like older men (though the gap between their ages couldn't be more than a decade). He was her superior. She might already be involved with someone. And did he mention he wouldn't be sticking around?

He hadn't planned on becoming a traveling doctor. Things had just worked out that way.

The original plan, of course, had been to join his uncle's practice. But part of his medical school training was the chance to explore different options, and when it came right down to it, Andrew's heart wasn't in cosmetic surgery. Or other prominent specialties for that matter – he would never make it as an ER doctor, for example, having to make those instantaneous life or death decisions. Many of his overachieving peers at Harvard considered it simple and old-fashioned, but Andrew discovered that general, family medicine suited him best. When he had told his uncle of his choice, it had not gone well.

Thus, once his residency was over, Andrew felt he needed a change. There was nothing tying him to Boston, his parents were both deceased. Working locum tenens had been the perfect solution - and as a bonus, a great way to see the country.

Andrew was toying with his empty cup as Colleen approached, now dressed in her own set of lavender scrubs.

"Dr. Cook," she greeted, "ready for that tour?"

"Absolutely," he replied, standing, unable to hide the grin on his face. "I'm all yours, Colleen." She stared at him, dumbfounded, and he belatedly realized how that could come across. Andrew cleared his throat. "Um, please, lead the way."

They spent the next fifteen or so minutes exploring the building, a mix of medical services, including an urgent care, pharmacy, and the café on the first level; assorted doctors' offices on the second; and ophthalmology, optometry, and labs on the third.

"How many people work here?" he asked.

"I don't know. Fifty or sixty, maybe? If you really want to know you can ask in Admin. That's on the third floor where we'll get your badge."

"How long have you worked here?"

"I started working at Grace's when I was sixteen, then when I got my assistant certificate last year, I switched to Dr. Mike's office. Since she's not here today, I'm helping out in pediatrics, they're short-staffed today."

Just then a black man in a blue jumpsuit with the name 'Robert E' embroidered on it greeted her. "Hey, Colleen, I heard the great news."

"Hey, Robert E. Yes, we're all excited, we could hardly sleep."

"I bet. All that cryin', but sure is worth it."

"Robert E., this is the doctor filling in for Dr. Mike, Dr. Cook. I'm just giving him a tour."

"Welcome, Dr. Cook," Robert E. said, offering his hand for a shake.

"Thank you."

Robert E addressed Colleen again. "Gonna bring that baby in for a visit?"

"In about a week when they do the first checkup."

"Lookin' forward to it. Well, I better get to the ladies' restroom on one, seems that faucet is leaking again." He hurried off.

Andrew turned to Colleen in confusion. Her exchange with Robert E. had made it sound like Colleen actually lived with Dr. Quinn. And maybe she did for some reason. But, as much as he wanted to, it was not his place to ask about her personal life, so instead he went with, "Interesting name, Robert E. Is he a musician?"

His guide grinned as she explained, "There used to be two Roberts who worked maintenance here and neither one wanted to be called Bob or another name. So, to tell them apart we used Robert E. and Robert K. Robert K. retired last year, but since we're now used to it, everyone still calls him Robert E. Even Grace calls him that. She said it sounds sexy." Colleen tittered, and Andrew couldn't suppress his smile either.

Eventually they reached the Administration office and Colleen checked her watch again, keeping close track of the time. "I gotta get back downstairs, Dr. Cook. I'll see you Monday?"

"Absolutely," he agreed with a little too much enthusiasm. Down, boy. "I'm looking forward to it." His eyes followed her retreating figure as she hurried back to the staircase, sorry to see her go. Under other circumstances, he'd be asking for her number. But he hadn't come here to find a love match. He was here to work.

With a sigh, he opened the door to the Admin office and entered the space. The receptionist, whose nameplate read 'Myra Bing,' was on the phone. Once the call ended, she jotted a note before looking up. "Sorry to keep you waiting. How can I help you?"

"I'm Andrew Cook, I'm the doctor filling in for Dr. Quinn while she's on maternity leave."

"Oh, right, Dr. Cook. Nice to meet you. I'm Myra. I just need to see your driver's license for verification, then I'll take your photo for our ID card." Andrew handed her his Massachusetts license, which she studied. "Boston? Isn't that where Dr. Mike is from?"

"Yes, it's an interesting coincidence," Andrew commented neutrally.

"A Boston doctor filling in for another Boston doctor thousands of miles from Boston," Myra mussed. "Must be fate or karma or something." She handed him back his license. "Can you come stand over here?" She indicated a space where there was a blank wall and Andrew complied with the request. She snapped a photo, then another in case he'd closed his eyes on the first one, then sat back at her computer to generate the ID. "This'll just take a minute."

Andrew nodded. "That's a great view out the window," he pointed out towards the vista of the Rocky Mountains, making small talk.

"Yeah, it gets really pretty in the fall when the leaves change. Horace – that's my husband, well, ex-husband – used to make big piles of leaves for our daughter to jump into when she was little. Now the gardener makes the piles, but it's just not the same, you know?" Andrew smiled politely but said nothing. "She still sees her daddy, though. We share custody… oh, I don't know why I'm telling you all this, it's probably not what you expected to hear on your first day…" she fretted.

"It's all right, Myra," he said sympathetically. "Sometimes we're like tea kettles and every once in a while we need to let out some steam so we don't explode and make a big mess."

She smirked. "They teach you that in medical school?"

"A little something I picked up during my stint in pediatrics. I've found it to be good advice."

The computer beeped, diverting Myra's attention. She punched a hole in the card and affixed a clip. "Here you go, Dr. Cook. If you have any trouble with it, just let me know. Sometimes we get a finicky one and have to redo it."

"And I presume you'll want it back on my last day?" he asked, checking the usual procedure.

"You got it."

"Thank you, Myra. It was a pleasure to meet you."

"Likewise." As he left, she sighed dreamily. "He is a cute one," she murmured to herself.

:

On his way back down the stairs, Andrew resisted the urge to stop on the second level to try to get another peek at Colleen. He wasn't a stalker. So, he continued on down to the first floor and back to the doctor's lounge, testing his new badge. It worked, and he let himself in. A couple of straggling physicians were now present, either finishing changing into scrubs or putting away lunches they'd brought from home or finishing their morning coffee, so it took longer than usual to change back into his regular clothes as they made a point of introducing themselves to Andrew before they made their way out the door to get to work.

Once he was back outside, Andrew's gaze was drawn to the spot where he'd first met Colleen. Had it been only an hour ago? Shaking his head, he hurried off to his car, not wishing to be splashed again.

As he drove around the streets of Colorado Springs, he tried to figure out what it was about her that intrigued him so. Many assistants and nurses and PAs he'd met over the past year were various combinations of cute, kind, friendly, intelligent, dedicated. He hadn't been attracted to any of them – well, okay, to a certain degree he had, had even sat to lunch with a few of them, always keeping it casual, and never taking it outside the office - but none had attracted him this strongly. Was it the loneliness, the fact that that he hadn't dated anyone since Erica during their residency? It had been good with her, but the residency had ended, and they'd parted ways. When he'd decided to be a traveling doctor, he knew his personal life would need to be a low priority, the work would be the focus. He hadn't signed up looking to meet someone and see if love and a long-term commitment might take root. And yet he had just met someone with whom he wanted to do exactly that.

Colleen was special. He couldn't put his finger on why she was special, he simply knew that she was.

And maybe there just wasn't an explanation for why two people should randomly meet and fall for each other. Well, he appeared to be the one doing the falling. He had no idea about her.

Monday couldn't come soon enough.

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