The Procedure by Tabatha Vargo, Melissa Andrea Page B

thought.
    A deep cleansing facial with botanical herbs and purifying oils took care of months’ worth of dead skin. A mani and pedi made my hands and feet presentable for a night on the town. After a quick, but yummy, lunch, I was ready for my hair appointment.
    Four hours of complete pampering, a sassy new haircut, and some highlights later, I was on my way with a promise to have lunch very soon with Collette. I didn’t feel like a completely new woman, but I knew it was a start in the right direction.

 

 
     
     
    Pulling into the parking lot of Georgina’s, I cut the engine and inhaled the smell of Italian food. It wasn’t Mama Maria’s, but it was the second best thing and I was starving.
    Picking up the doctor’s note Roman had given me, I stared at the second thing he’d prescribed. Written in his actually quite legible doctor’s scribble was, lunch with a friend.
    Lunch with a friend sounded lovely. The only problem was that I had no friends. I wanted to actually enjoy myself, and I knew if I invited one of the country club wives, I’d be too nervous and ready to leave as soon as I could.
    So content with spending the day by myself, I made reservations, taking the time to dress up and do my hair and makeup before leaving. I loved my new hairstyle, and I’d even learned a few makeup tips from, Gina, the cosmetologist at Serenity Spa. I wasn’t trying to impress anyone but myself. I wanted to forget everything going on at home like Roman had said to do, and I wanted to go have some me time.
    “A table for one for Aldridge,” I said to the hostess when I walked up to the podium on the outdoor patio.
    She nodded and smiled as she grabbed a menu. “Right this way,” she said, getting ready to lead me inside, but a quick glance around had me stopping her.
    “Actually, do you think I could sit out here? It’s a beautiful day.”
    She smiled and nodded. “Of course.”
    “Thank you.”
    I followed behind her as we weaved through the outside tables. She stopped at a table for two next to a small garden.
    “Is this okay?”
    I inhaled the sweet smell of multi-colored blooms and peeled my jacket from my body. “This is perfect,” I said, sitting down.
    “Great. Your server will be right with you.”
    “Thank you.” I smiled up at her as she handed me a menu.
    I was accustomed to going to Starbucks alone, but never out to eat. My uncomfortableness prompted me to eat outside where there were less curious stares in my direction wondering why I was unworthy of someone else’s company.
    Swallowing hard, I ignored the few eyes that I felt pelting me like a hailstorm and let my eyes move over the menu.
    Instead of deciding on my meal, I sat there, wondering when eating alone had become taboo in the eyes of those who had someone at their table. Why could I not enjoy a lunch by myself without being judged?
    Lost in my own little world, I barely heard my name being called next to me.
    “Samantha?” Roman’s voice moved over me, leaving chills in its wake.
    I looked up to find him and two other men standing just on the other side of the iron gate that lined the patio seating. He was dressed in slacks and a solid color T-shirt, and I almost didn’t recognize him outside of his white coat and teal scrubs.
    He towered over me, a grin transforming his lips into something I couldn’t quite name, but it made my stomach tighten slightly and I wrote it off as nerves. I realized I was just sitting there while three pair of eyes stared at me, waiting for me to do something, anything.
    “Roman,” I finally blurted. “What a nice surprise.” I smiled.
    “How are you?” he asked as if we hadn’t seen each other in years rather than days.
    “I’m great. Just following doctor’s orders.” I gestured to my table.
    His eyes moved to the empty seat across from me before clashing with mine again. “Are you alone?” he asked.
    I nodded, swallowing hard. “Yes.”
    I knew my face was on fire while I tried to focus