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But her wide blue eyes and brunette hair were the same, along with those blushing cheeks. “Oh my god,Fletcher?”
“Olivia Griffen, aren’t you a sight for sore eyes,” I said with a grin.
“No one’s called me Olivia in years,” she replied, batting a hand at me. She had one of those smiles that made me want to smile right back. “I didn’t know you were working here—I was expecting Doctor Deb?”
I glanced over my shoulder in the direction of the reception area. In the last few days, I’d learned Brenda was a great nurse with an incredible bedside manner. The patients loved her. Her computer skills and professionalism, however? Well, those could use some help. “I told Brenda to warn the patients about me being here. You’re the second surprised one today.”
“I’m more surprised the rumor mill didn’t tell me before Brenda could.” Liv’s eyebrows drew together. “Why didn’t I hear that you were filling in for Deb? Where is she by the way?”
“I’m not just filling in. I’m back in town.”
“You’re kidding,” she said, shock clear on her face. “What brought you back from the big city? I thought you and your wife loved it there.”
I leaned up against the sink counter, crossing my legs, and told her the real answer. Not the one that made me look good. “Regina and I split up a year ago, and Maya has been struggling ever since.” Liv’s sympathetic look kept me going. “I thought maybe it would be good for her to be in a small town where she won’t slip through the cracks. And when I asked Doctor Deb if I could join the practice, she said she would love to have some help.” I shrugged. “I was supposed to finish unpacking this week and start next Monday, but she came down with shingles.”
Liv’s sympathetic look turned to worry. “Shingles? Is she okay?”
I nodded. “She should recover, but it’s not fun—she doesn’t have your mom to rub calamine lotion all over her and duct tape oven mitts to her hands.”
Liv chuckled, probably remembering that time all us kids got the pox. My dad was newly widowed and had no idea what to do with five sick boys and a farm to run. Deirdre had been a godsend, a second mom to my siblings and me.
I smiled at the memory and picked up the chart Brenda left for me. “So what brings you in today?”
Her features quickly fell. “I have a well-woman exam scheduled.”
Sensing her concern, I said, “We can reschedule it for when Doctor Deb comes back in a few weeks, if you’d be more comfortable.”
“I have to do it today,” she said with a frown. “It’s the last day my insurance will cover it.”
I nodded, going to the cabinet and readying the supplies, and then finished looking over her chart. “I see you’re on the pill. Is it helping with your endometriosis?”
Shrugging, she said, “I mean, my periods are...” She eyed me then. “It’s weird talking to you about this stuff. I still remember that time my brother threatened to put a used tampon in your boot and you nearly fainted. I hope you’ve gotten better with blood since then.”
The tips of my ears got hot as I ran my hand over my face. “Well that wasn’t fair because I didn’t have any sisters. But I assure you, I’m much more mature than I was back then. In this office, you’re just another patient and I’m just another doctor.”
She nodded resolutely and took a breath that moved her shoulders. “Okay, so my period sucks. It’s so painful every month, and before I quit my job, I had to use almost all my sick days and vacation days just to lie in bed with a heating pad and wait it out.”
I frowned. Doctor Deb really let her endure that much pain? “What kind of treatment plans have you and Deb discussed?”
“At my last exam, we talked about removing my ovaries, but keeping my uterus so I could get pregnant through IVF. But I’m so young and not married. It seemed like a hard decision to make, even if the odds of me conceiving naturally are low... so I’ve been stalling.”
My chest ached for Liv. I respected Deb and all she’d done for this community, but some things were too old-school. “You know, some women have laparoscopic surgery to help remove the extra scar tissue. They’ve had luck reducing period pain, and some women successfully get pregnant afterward.”
Liv’s eyes widened. “Seriously?”
I nodded. “I’ll write you a referral to a specialist in Dallas. It might take a bit to get in, but I think it’s a promising option for you.”
“I could hug you,” she said. Then her cheeks flushed. “If I wasn’t naked.” But just as quickly as her joy came, it was replaced with disappointment. “I can’t do the surgery.”
“Why not?” I asked. “Are you worried about anesthesia?”
She shook her head. “I don’t have any insurance since I quit my job. And I have no idea when I’ll find something else.... There aren’t a lot of options around here.”
An idea flashed through my mind. It was crazy, but... it just might work. But first, we needed to finish this exam.
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Liv