she had been a physician in the emergency department at St. Michael’s Hospital in downtown Toronto, a job she walked to from a twentieth-floor apartment a few blocks away. Today, she was the doctor in the small Lake Huron town of Moonflower Bay and was renting a house twice as big as her old apartment at a fraction of what she used to pay.
Also: four weeks ago, she’d had a boyfriend named Rufus. Now she was single.
“We’re so glad you’re here,” the older woman said. “It’s been a real pain having to drive to Grand View or farther to see a doctor since Doc Baker retired.” She leaned in. “Did you buy the practice from Ed?”
Nora had not bought the practice from Dr. Edward Baker. She’d responded to a classified ad in Ontario Medical Review, just out of curiosity, once she’d started toying with the idea of a total life reset. Before she could even blink, Dr. Baker had responded with a more-than-fair price to buy him out. But there was total life reset, and there was total insanity.
She hadn’t quite crossed over into insanity yet.
So she had counterproposed that she lease the practice for two years, Dr. Baker had agreed, and here she was. New town, new specialty, new life. And, most importantly, the government offered medical school loan forgiveness to people who did time in places with doctor shortages. Worst-case scenario, she spent some time professionally unfulfilled, treating ear infections and writing referrals for joint replacements, but she’d make some money and be back in Toronto in a couple years, ready for the Walsh Sisters’ Real Estate Adventure.
Moonflower Bay was a palate cleanser, basically. Once cleansed, she could go back to Toronto with a mended heart, a clear head, and a little bit of cash.
She could go back to Toronto a woman in control of her own destiny.
“Dr. Baker and I worked out a rental agreement for two years,” she said to both Carols.
“Why only two years?” Carol Senior asked.
“My sister and I are planning to buy a house together, but the Toronto housing market is through the roof.”
“So I hear. What a world we live in when a doctor can’t afford a house.”
“Not even close. These days, I think you have to be a Russian oligarch to afford a house in central Toronto.” She explained about the loan forgiveness program. “So my sister and I are both going to save aggressively and start shopping in two years. In the meantime, I’m going to try my hand at small-town doctoring.” Wait. Had that sounded patronizing? I’m just gracing you with my sophisticated, big-city presence for a couple years?
Neither seemed offended. Carol Junior pointed at Aquaman. “This here is Jake Ramsey.”
“I like your hair, Jake Ramsey.” Now that it was down, it came past his shoulders. It was the kind of hair women coveted. Nora might even grow hers, if it was guaranteed to end up looking like that. A mixture of naturally thin hair and long shifts at the hospital had always meant short, low-maintenance hair for Nora, but it was even shorter than usual these days, because she and her sister had shaved their heads five months ago in solidarity with their grandma, who’d lost hers while in treatment for breast cancer.
Jake made a sort of noncommittal grunt. So maybe he wasn’t part wolf so much as part pig? Aquapig? She smiled. That sounded like it could be a spinoff of the British show about the pig family that her youngest nephew was obsessed with.
Carol Senior excused herself, saying she needed to make a phone call, and CJ ran a brush through Jake’s hair. “I’m trying to learn more about updos and braids. There never used to be that much demand for them, but Moonflower Bay has gotten popular with tourists in recent years. I’m finding myself doing more weddings.” She patted Jake on the shoulder. “Jake is nice enough to let me practice on him in exchange for a weekly wash and the odd trim.”
He shrugged. “They do some kind of thing to it that gets the tangles out.”
“Deep condition.” CJ chuckled as she fastened a smock around Nora’s neck and handed her a magazine. “Let me just wash Jake’s hair real quick and get the conditioner in, and I’ll start on you. Sound good?”
Nora nodded, suddenly not trusting herself to speak. Because the view in the mirror was all wrong. She had been going to the same salon in Toronto for years. Sitting in the