Doctor Kim

Chapter 27

Minji didn't take me to the restaurant my mother had suggested, thankfully. We went to a fancy chef's table place in Music Row, where the entire dining room consisted of long tables arranged in a square around the open kitchen. Diners sat on the outside, watching the show as the two chefs prepared the different courses and plated them to look like art.

The food was amazing, but the company at my side was even better. Minji wore a charcoal gray suit without a tie, and a white dress shirt with the top few buttons undone. She looked every bit the part of confident, rich doctor during the drive over in her BMW, her expensive wristwatch gleaming in the early evening sun.

I smoothed my palms down the floral dress I'd borrowed from Danielle, that was just a little too sexy and formal to call a sundress. The spaghetti strap top was simple black, cinched at the waist, but gave way to a flowing skirt patterned with cream-colored flowers. She'd also lent me a pair of gorgeous black heels, where the straps crisscrossed around my ankles and made me feel like a bombshell.

That was, until I was seated beside her in the car, heading toward dinner. My forty-year-old girlfriend was undeniably sexy, so what the hell was she doing with a barely twenty-year-old girl? I loved that she wanted to take me out, but I dreaded it at the same time. What kind of looks were we going to get from everyone at the restaurant?

Huh.

No one batted an eye at us.

Maybe my makeup and sexy dress gave me enough of an edge to look older. I had a fake ID in my purse I'd gone back and forth on bringing. Jay and I, along with a group of our friends, had bought them last semester from a shady website which I was certain was a scam, but a month later a package from China arrived at Jay's dorm. An innocuous teddy bear with six expert fake IDs stuffed inside.

I didn't get carded at dinner. Minji ordered a bottle of white wine and the server brought two glasses. As I sat at the table, a glass of sauvignon blanc in hand, watching the sizzling skillets and impressive knife skills on display, I felt like an imposter. I was a child pretending to be an adult, but as long as I faked it convincingly, no one but Minji would know.

Her hand rested in my lap, and I was worried I was going to vibrate out of my seat. She was so comfortable with this. With being with me. I loved every freaking minute of it and did my best to look like I belonged with her. When it was just the two of us, I did, but out in public? That was going to take some getting used to.

Course after course was served, and although I wasn't usually an adventurous eater, I ate every drop on the odd-shaped bowls and square plates, maybe even the garnish I wasn't supposed to. Wine buzzed through my system, mixing with the powerful effect of her touch on my leg.

"How is he?" I finally asked, after the last course had been served. We'd avoided talking about Jay all evening, but I couldn't put it off forever. He'd come back from North Carolina on Sunday, and tonight was the first time I was seeing Minji since her son had returned.

Minji's expression shuttered. "He's fine."

The mood between us shifted faster than a rabbit bolting from a cage, and I struggled with how to get it back on track. "Uh, good. How were your rounds this morning?"

"I asked him to stay at a friend's place tonight," she announced quickly.

"Oh." I hesitated. "Why?"

The hand on me moved. It slipped beneath the hem of the dress, so her palm brushed against the top of my thigh, and the bare skin contact sent a tinge of pleasure zipping to my center.

"Because," Minji's eyes darkened a shade, "I have something to give you."

"What is it?"

"A surprise."