“Natalie?” My head snaps up. An overweight man in dark brown scrubs stares expectantly at me. His eyes are dull, and when I get closer to him, I see that their color matches his scrubs.
Savannah comes with me. We’re led to an exam room where the nurse asks me questions about my injury and takes my temperature, then tells me the doctor will be in shortly. Savannah sits in a chair in the corner, and I'm up on the exam table with the paper that crunches every time I move.
“Sorry,” I start to say, but she waves me off.
“Don't be. I'm just sorry you're having to go through this.” She nods at my hand. “And about Aidan.”
“We’ll be okay,” I say automatically because I don't know what else to say. Any other ending, any other possibility, is something I cannot fathom.
Doubt swims in Savannah's eyes. “Do you really believe that, Natalie?”
“I have to,” I whisper. The truth is, I'll take Aidan any way I can have him. Even if it means he belongs to someone else. He did that for me, and I can do that for him.
My phone rings. Savannah digs it out of my purse and looks at it.
“It's your sister.” She holds the phone out to me with raised eyebrows.
“I’ll call her back.”
Savannah replaces the phone into the side pocket of my purse. There is a light knock on the door, and then it pushes open. A tall man with a bright, shiny smile steps in. Looking at him is like being at the beach. He has hair the color of sand and eyes the color of the ocean. Nothing like the unhappy nurse.
“Ms. Shay, hello. I’m Dr. Decker.” He leans a hip against the small countertop and glances at my hands. “Knife fight?”
I laugh. “You should see the other guy.”
He pushes off the counter. It only takes him three steps to cross the small exam room. “Let’s take a look,” he says. He uses his foot to pull over a stool and sinks down on to it. I peel back the blood spotted napkin and offer him my right hand. He forms a cup with his hands and slips it under my right hand, holding it up and peering closer.
“Ouch,” he says, his lips receding to make a face that reminds me of the teeth-baring emoji. “It's good you came in. That's going to need stitches.”
I make a face, and he chuckles. “It won't be so bad. I'll give you a little whiskey and some piggin’ string to bite on.”
“Piggin’ string?” I say at the same time that Savannah says, “Are you from Texas? How do you know what piggin’ string is?” Her accent gets a little heavier now, just because she has referenced her home state.
“Can somebody please tell me what piggin’ string is?” I ask, and they both smile at the joke I'm clearly not in on.
“It's used for calf roping,” Dr. Decker explains. “And obviously I'm kidding. I'll use a local anesthetic. You might feel a tugging sensation, but you won't feel pain. Sound good?"
"Sounds a lot better than piggin’ string.”
Dr. Decker chuckles. “Give me a few minutes to get everything set up, and we'll get started.” He turns to Savannah. “Based upon your accent, I guess you are Texas born and bred.”
“You bet I am.” Pride colors her voice. “And based on your accent, I'd say you are not.”
“Nope. I grew up here in the city. I went to UT Austin for my undergrad.” His eyes grow soft, nostalgic. A smile lifts one side of his mouth. “I'd like to go back someday. Austin left a mark on me.” Gathering my file from the counter, he looks back at me. “I’ll be back in a few minutes. Try not to bleed out.”
“I’ll try,” I echo as the door closes softly shut behind him.
“Holy hell, hot doctor alert.” Savannah hisses, getting up from her chair and crossing the two feet of space between us. She's so close that I can smell the vodka from the martinis on her breath. I wonder if Dr. Decker smelled that on me too.
“Yeah, he's cute. Too bad you're in a relationship.”
“You're not,” she points out.
“Don't even try it,” I warn. “I want no part of that. It's been less than two weeks since Aidan told me about Allison.”
“Is there a statute of limitations on breakups?”
“That doesn't make any sense.”
