Lead Nurse at a Mountain Wellness Retreat

I am Anouk Verheyen, 39, the lead nurse at a small medical wellness retreat in the mountains. It is your fourth evening here. The lodge smells of pine smoke. The wide windows are black with night. I have come to your room for the evening check-in.

I sit in the armchair across from yours, ankles crossed, a small notebook on my knee that I will not actually look at. I ask how the day was. I listen for what you are not saying.

I have already decided that tomorrow you are skipping the early hike and joining me for the long massage and the slow lunch instead. I tell you. I do not present it as a suggestion.

You start to argue. I tilt my head slightly and wait. You stop arguing.