Page 48

“It’s fine. Melody is here and is already with your mom,” Patti says, standing, giving me that empathetic smile that I hate, and I walk swiftly to follow her down the hall.
Mom and Melody have had a few calls, and now I finally get to meet the doctor face-to-face. I’m trying to keep myself in check because the flutter of excitement dancing in my chest from the possibility that Melody will be our answer, the one who will save my mom, is hard to tamp down.
“I’ve got it, Patti.” I hear Hudson and turn, seeing him step out from a room at the side, and I suddenly feel an overwhelming sense of relief and safety.
“No problem, Doc,” Patti says before turning and walking back to the front desk.
“Hey,” I murmur to him, releasing a heavy breath as my body relaxes.
“Hey, you,” he says, his voice low, then he steps toward me and slides his hand around my waist, pulling me tight. I fall into him, tears already threatening and my hands already shaking. As I wrap my arms around him, I never want him to let me go.
“Lacy? Are you alright?” he asks, clearly concerned because my behavior is off.
“Just… hold me…” is all I get out, and I feel his hold around me tighten. His hands splay across my back, nearly every inch of my front covered and my back protected, and I bury my head in his chest and close my eyes. He rubs my back, his hand moving up and down slowly, and I just breathe.
“It will be fine. Your mom will be fine.” He thinks I’m upset about Mom, and I should be. Guilt riddles me instantly. Here I am, worried about some random flower delivery, when my mom is literally fighting for her life. I clear my throat and pull back a little, looking around, because we are standing right in the middle of the corridor. Anyone can see us.
“Sorry, I’ve just had a big day.” I give him a small grin, and he eyes me warily. He knows that isn’t it, but he doesn’t push, and I’m thankful.
“Besides, should we be this close at your place of employment, Doctor?” I tease as my hand runs up his arm, enjoying the feel of him, my frantic state already soothing the minute his hands touched my body.
“Hmmm, no one around who I can see…” he says before he bends his head and his lips hit mine. The kiss is soft and over too quickly, but it’s enough to rid me of the swirls of anxiety I’ve been feeling all day and the immense fear I experienced this morning. “How are you?” he murmurs as he pulls back slightly, assessing my face.
“I’m good, even better for that amazing discussion we had in your kitchen yesterday. You?” I ask, pushing the topic onto him as I still feel my hands are a little jittery. It’s been a long time since I was thoroughly kissed like that, and I can’t hide my smile.
“Same, but I realize that there are many other rooms in my house I still need to show you,” he says cheekily, and I giggle.
“I look forward to that, Doctor,” I admit. “Do you still want to share a sundae with me on Saturday?”
“I want nothing more, especially if you do that sexy thing with the cherry stem in your mouth.” He winks, quickly pecking me on my lips again. “We better go in. Your mom has been in with Melody for about fifteen minutes. I just had to take a call.”
I nod, and Hudson knocks on the door of the consultation room.
“Enter,” a stern female voice says before Hudson opens the door.
“Lacy’s here,” Hudson says, opening the door wide for me to step through.
I walk in, spotting Mom straightaway, smiling, and I get one in return.
“Sorry, I’m late,” I say as I sweep in and look around.My eyes settle on the woman sitting opposite my mom. I knew she was stunning, seeing her on the video call last week, but in reality, she is almost like Barbie. Blond hair, blue eyes, blinding white teeth, and even though she’s wearing a loose white coat, I’m pretty sure her figure is amazing. The complete opposite of me.
“Hi, I’m Lacy,” I say, extending my hand.
“I’m Doctor Wilkinson. Please take a seat,” she says, and as Hudson closes the door, I sit in the empty seat next to Mom, feeling like I am in the principal's office at school, my hands already fidgeting in my lap. “As I was saying, Veronica, we have discussed this before on our video call, that there are no guarantees. I think we all know this is not a disease we can beat. However, partial remission is a correct diagnosis at this point and full remission is also possible. I would like to do a few more tests to check a few things,” she says, and I frown.
“Of course, Lacy and I know the situation,” Mom says as her hand grabs on to mine. The doctor looks at the movement before her eyes flick to mine.
Hudson pulls a chair up next to me and takes a seat with us and my mom practically beams at him.
“So…” Melody says, and the three of us look at her. “What I would like to do is run some tests, I can see your red blood count is a little low, so a potential transfusion may be needed.”
“Transfusion?” I question, needing clarification, and I feel my mom’s hand grip mine tighter. I take a deep breath, feeling my fight-or-flight starting to develop, so I try to calm my breaths. Then I feel Hudson’s hand grabs my other hand, giving me a squeeze. I see Melody’s eyesflick to the movement, before she looks sharply at Hudson, then her eyes rest back on me.
“What are you thinking?” Hudson asks her, and I look at him, grateful he’s asking the questions as my mind is running and not connecting to many thoughts today.
“Veronica,” Melody says, looking straight at my mom, ignoring Hudson and me. “I think it would be pertinent to run a few more diagnostic tests, because your red blood count isn’t where I like it to be. It can be an indication that there’s possibly some bleeding internally. At this stage, I want to ensure we do everything we can to support you, so we can look at blood transfusions from someone who shares the same blood type as you.”
“I’ll do it. We match. I’ll give her mine,” I say so quickly, my mother looks at me sharply, and Hudson’s grip on my hand hardens.