“Evening, Officer.”
“Off duty. Your Highness will suffice,” Caleb quipped, peering behind Gabe. Gabe smiled as he held his hands up.
“Summer is in the ladies’ room. She’s on these meds that make her feel terrible. She won’t belong.”
“Tablets?” I queried, my gaze fixed on him.
“Yeah, for her anxiety. It’s been bad lately.”
Gabe and Summer had moved in together recently, and Summer’s mental health had taken a turn for the worse. It seemed any stressful event would trigger her anxiety, and Gabe had persuaded her to see the doctor.
“Ah. It’s horrible for her,” I sympathized as he nodded grimly.
“She panics abouteverything. No matter what I say, she thinks up the most unrealistic scenarios. It’s exhausting for her. I just wish I could take it away.”
Gabe was creating quite the stir as a famous soccer player, and I noticed people nodding in his direction. He smiled politely as he took the champagne from my hand.
“Let’s go find a decent drink. Something that’s not pretentious and vile.”
Caleb made a face as he finished the champagne, shuddering. “It’s expensive shit. But shit all the same.’
We made our way to the bar, which was somewhat extravagant. The counter was made from pure glass, with fairy lights strung through bottles. The drinks were all on display under the bar, bottle after bottle of alcohol, no expenses spared. I ordered a vodka and coke, and the boys ordered a whiskey, and they laughed at the fact they both requested it straight on the rocks.
“What does Summer want?” Caleb asked as he eyed Gabe, who appeared distracted.
“Hmm? Mineral water. She can’t drink with the meds,” he mumbled as Caleb nodded.
The hurt was apparent in his eyes, and I wondered what he was going through daily. He looked tired and worried, but I didn’t want to use tonight as an opportunity to pry. His eyes lit up as I turned to see Summer walking towards us, tentatively looking around the room. She wore a strapless black dress, and her lips painted a deep red to match the rose tucked behind her ear. She’d gone for the Latin look, her full lips smiling as she made it over to us, greeting us warmly.
I studied her carefully.
Her cheekbones appeared slightly sunken, and she lookedexhausted. Caleb and I shared a glance that didn’t go unnoticed by Summer.
“Why do you guys look so worried?”
Gabe shifted awkwardly as I looked to Caleb to answer. He was always the most honest of us all and had a way with words that no one else did.
“Summer, you look thin and tired. What’s going on?”
“I’m fine, Cale. You both look amazing, by the way.”
He frowned at her as he nodded slowly. “Bullshit,” he muttered to me as I continued to study her. She’d already drunk the mineral water Gabe had handed her minutes earlier. My mind ticked as I listed her symptoms in my head, my medical brain tuning in.
Caleb watched me as he leaned in close.
“Tell me, Nurse Chung. What are you thinking?”
His voice was low as I bit my lip. I just finished school and wasn’t qualified to make medical diagnoses. But my instincts told me something was wrong.
“Summer, can we have a chat?”
She sighed nodding. “Let me just order another water. I’m parched.”
The three of us exchanged looks as I nodded to them.
Leave her with me.
Something was going on, and I needed to find out what.
