“Oh, yes they can.We went from having two children when we first did ours to having six when we got around to it later.And some of the people that we had down as our children’s godparents had passed away.It was just updated about ten years ago, and we thought that we should make another change.”She said she was glad that things were getting updated for them.“I am as well.My sister left her things undone, and when she passed away, it was a nightmare to get things settled.I think there are still some things that aren’t taken care of, but we did the best we could without a will.Everyone should have one, even if you don’t think you own anything worth it.It’s not going to leave the people you love scrambling around trying to figure out what to do with your stereo equipment.I know that’s not quite right, but you understand what I mean.”
“We have wealth, too, that needs to be dealt with if we pass.Even though we’re both single, the two of us have a lot for someone to have to deal with.”She asked when they were getting married.“Tomorrow afternoon.The judge said he’d come by and do it for us so that there is one less thing we have to worry about.Kahana and I both agreed that something at the courthouse was better than having a large wedding that no one will remember years from now.”
Katie smiled.“I was hoping someday one of my boys would want a large wedding.It’s been my dream to be the mother of the groom.”They all laughed, and Debra told her she was sorry.“Oh, don’t be.Axel and Kahana have always been the most practical of the boys.They wouldn’t even allow me to have large birthday parties for them when they were little.It was too much fuss for them, they’d tell me.I did have more luck with the other four, but not by much.They didn’t mind parties, but not with their friends.They just wanted family around, and that was all right too.”
When Axel showed up, he brought flowers for his mom.He was the romantic of the boys, she told her, and she loved that about him.Kahana wasn’t she was informed, and more than likely thought that having a big wedding would be a waste of money.Debra said she thought the same thing.Before they went to find themselves a place to spread out, she asked Axel about his office space.
“I’ve been thinking about you working there, too.I think we can get along all right.”She said it would only be temporary as she was going to work from home.“No, you won’t like that either.I mean, I work from home, but not a great deal.It’s family time when I’m home, and you should do the same.I know that Kahana only devotes so many hours to his working from home so that he doesn’t avoid the office.You can work with me on family projects, and we’ll work our own cases when we have them.I’d love that.”
“I think I would as well.I have enough law books to supply a large school.Grandda, even for as old as he was, bought the latest books when they were put up for sale.I have all his notes, too, on cases that he filed when he was a younger man, too.The firm is going to allow me to leave them there with the idea that they might use them sometime.I said that would be perfect.”He said he might need to borrow from her as well.“I’m having my office redone at home.It’s a mess.Not really a mess, but something that I’ve discovered that I can’t work from.It was very masculine.Your mom is going to help me get it looking more like a woman works there than a bunch of old stogie men that didn’t believe that women should do anything outside the home.”
“He more than likely thought that he was right in that, too, from what I’ve heard about him.I take it all the partners are men at the firm.”She said that they were going to take on more attorneys when they were finished buying the firm from her.“I thought that was a done deal.What’s the hold up?”
“There are five partners in the firm, and a lot of underlings as grandda called them.They’re going to make a few of them partners so that the cost to them all is a little less.I can wait on them.I’m still getting income from the cases that they’re trying, so that’s no big deal to me.I think when they finally get around to it, I’ll make a bundle off the deal and be happy that I don’t have to go to work there anymore.It wasn’t a bad place, just very masculine.”Axel told her that if she needed help, to let him know.He’d done this sort of buyout thing before and had a few ideas that she might want to incorporate into her dealings with them.“All right.I’ll take you up on that.”
The usage of the building that he was in was finalized, and he said that they’d get around to what the rent was going to be sometime.He said he wasn’t in any kind of hurry as he was happy to be working for himself.She was, too, she told him, and was glad that they’d be able to work things out.She was on her way home again when the others went to the office to update their will.Debra was excited for this next phase of her life.
The first thing she did when she got home was to call someone to come and pack up the office.Then it was to send the books off to be cleaned and restored if needed.Grandda took great care of his books, so she didn’t see any problem with them being in bad shape, but wanted to make sure.There was a lot of money in law books, and the value of them rarely went down.
~*~
Kahana loved being busy.It made the time go by faster, and his workload seemed less of a burden on his time.Also, he was able to be there for someone who might not have had a doctor yet.He even got to generate some more business when some of the people said that they were going to tell their family members about him.
“We have a walk-in who would like to talk to you about something.I couldn’t get anything more out of her than that.”He asked how old she was.“I would say she’s about sixteen, but I can’t tell anymore.They all look like they should be in high school to me.”
“I get that too.”He asked when he was going to see her.“I mean, did we have to squeeze her in?I don’t mind at all.I was just thinking I like being busy.”
“She’s your next appointment.If you can get her to fill out some of the paperwork that I gave her, that would be great too.”Margaret was his assistant and bookkeeper.They got along well, and he was happy to have her on board.“Just be sure that you want to take her on.I’m worried about her being pregnant or something.And she’s too young for that, no matter what I think her age might be.”
“All right.You should come in with me.”She said she had the phone to man and that she couldn’t do it.“I guess you were right.I need to hire a couple of nurses.While I like being able to spend time with patients, I’m going to stretch myself too thin, and that won’t bode well for me.”
“I’m forever right.You have to get that into your thick head.”They both laughed at her joke, and then she got serious.“I’ll put out an ad in the morning for a couple of nurses.Even if they want to work part-time, it will be better than nothing.I can’t be in two places at one time, and you need the help.Especially when things start to pick up the way that they are.”
“All right.If you happen to have a few minutes, just drop into the room.I don’t know what’s going on, but I’d like to not be arrested for anything while my business is picking up.”Margaret said she’d do her best, and that was all he could have hoped for.“Just be around if things get wonky.I really don’t want to go to jail when I’m getting married tomorrow afternoon.”
The woman, there was no doubt that she was older than she looked to even him, told him her name was Sarah MacMillen and that she was twenty-four years old.She also said that she wanted to get on birth control because she’d met this guy who she wanted to get intimate with, and she didn’t want to have a baby.Ever.
“I can do that for you.However, it would have to be after an exam.I can’t just put you on birth control without making sure you’re healthy enough to be on them.There are side effects, too, that I’d like to discuss with you as well.”She said that would be all right as she’d been reading things on the internet about her options.“Good for you.That’s really smart.There is also the fact that the only sure way to not get pregnant is to not have sex.I’m not telling you not to be intimate with this person, but you have to realize that even condoms aren’t a hundred percent.They break too.”
“I understand.”She seemed to have her facts all lined up for him to go over, and he was proud to help her.More people should be prepared when they go to see the doctor, and they’d be better informed when the time comes.“I know too that I have to be on them for a few months to make sure that they’re taking effect.I’m not saying I want to jump into bed with him as soon as I take the first pill, but I know that I will still need to be careful.I don’t want to have children at all.”
“I can understand that as well.It’s your body and your timeline.”She thanked him for telling her that instead of telling her she might change her mind later.“You might, but that will be totally up to you.Don’t let anyone pressure you into anything that you don’t want to do.As I said, it’s your body, and you are the one to decide if you want to have children or not.”
After talking to her for a few more minutes, she decided to set up a time for him to do an exam.In the meantime, he ordered blood work for her to have done, which would give him a heads up if there was anything wrong.He was happy to be able to help her with her needs and was glad that she was willing to give him a chance to be her new doctor.
After she left, filling out the paperwork that Margaret needed.The file was set up for her, and she was ready to go as his new patient.He was sort of excited to know that he was going to be helping someone who needed not just a doctor but advice as well.He was glad that he’d had the time to spendwith her, too.At the other firm he worked for, they only allotted twenty minutes with each patient because they couldn’t make any money if they spent a lot of time with one person.That was the one thing that he had hated the most about the other place.He didn’t have time to get to know anyone there that he treated.
For the rest of the afternoon, he saw his patients and spent as much time with them as he could.As the day was winding down, he could feel the pressure behind his eyes that made him wish that he’d slept better last night.Not that he would give up making love to Debra, but it was wearing him to the bone to be up late and get up early.
“Last patient.It’s Mrs.Booth.She wants to talk to you about the twins and they’re sleeping habits.”He asked what that might mean.“She said that she’s having trouble getting them to sleep at the same time.She wondered if you had any advice.She also mentioned that she thinks that they’re not getting enough from her breastfeeding.I think I’ll leave that one up to you.”
“Thanks.”He went to the room she was in and could see right away that she wasn’t sleeping well.There were bags under her eyes, and she looked like she could cry at any moment.He asked her what was wrong, and she burst into tears.“Oh, honey, it’s going to be all right.I got you.”
“They are starving to death, and I’m dying trying to keep up with them.I just don’t have enough milk coming in for them, and I’m worried that someone is going to take them from me because I’m a shitty mom.I don’t want that to happen.I love them so much that it hurts to think that my parents are going to be taking them away from me because I don’t know what I’m doing.”
“I’m sure we can figure things out.Where are they now?”She said they were with Charlie, and he was dealing with them so that she could have a walk.“And you walked to here, I’m assuming.I’m sure that it’s not as bad as you think it is.Have Charlie bring them in, and we’ll go from there.I’ll weigh them both and figure out a supplement that you can give them when you just don’t have enough milk coming in.”
“They’ll take them away from me if I give them formula.”He asked her who.“My parents.They have it in their head that I’m going to be a terrible parent to them, and they’re going to try to take them from me.And giving them formula will be just the ammo they need to take them.I love them, Kahana.I can’t just sit by while they take them from me.”
