“Great,” Luke says. “And you’ve already met Kevin, one of our senior medical students. He’s going to tell me what he’s learned about you, okay? Feel free to interrupt if he misses something.”
Kevin clears his throat before he begins. “This is Claire Thompson. She’s a nine-year-old girl presenting with abdominal pain that started at around seven P.M. yesterday. Her mother brought her to the ER this morning, over twelve hours after the onset of the pain.”
Kevin forgot to mention that we stopped at a walk-in clinic first, but he’s basically right. My daughter had abdominal pain for over twelve hours before I soughtmedical attention. I’m hardly going to win the mother of the year award.
“So that’s actually a pretty common timeframe, right, Kevin?” Luke interrupts. “People often wait to see if abdominal pain will go away on its own. If people came in every time they had a stomachache, the health care system would collapse.”
“Right,” Kevin agrees. At least he has the sense to agree with Luke. He finishes his case summary, then Luke turns to Claire.
“Okay, Claire,” Luke says, looking her in the eye. “The tests show you have appendicitis, which means a little pouch off your intestine is inflamed. The good news is that you don’t need your appendix, so we’ll take it out. It should be a quick operation, and you’ll feel a lot better when it’s done. Okay with you?”
“Okay,” Claire says shyly. She’s hanging on every word he says. I can tell she worships him already.
“Kevin,” Luke says, “why don’t you sit with Claire for a minute while I talk to her mother?”
Luke and I step outside the cubicle and stare at each other, and I suddenly feel very exposed. I’m pretty sure my tank top is supposed to be an undershirt, and my graying white bra straps are on full display. I cross my arms over my chest.
Luke’s gaze drops to the floor. “Melissa,” he says gruffly.
“Luke,” I reply. Neither of us is going to get points for scintillating conversation today.
“Melissa, I need to know if you’re uncomfortable with this, with having me operate on Claire. I’d be happy to ask a colleague to take over if you want.”
I feign ignorance. “Why would I be uncomfortable with it?”
He sighs. “Because of our history, Melissa.”
Damn right I’m uncomfortable with it, but much as it’s painful to see Luke again, there’s no one I’d trust more to operate on my daughter.
“Ancient history, Luke,” I say dismissively. “We were kids. We both moved on ages ago.”
“Right,” he says stiffly. He’s still staring at the floor as though it holds the answers to life’s mysteries.
“Are you good?” I ask. “Surgically, I mean.”
He finally meets my eye again. “Yes,” he says simply, and I believe him.
“Then I want you.”
As soon as the words leave my mouth I realize what I’ve said. I’ve always blushed easily, and I’m sure my cheeks are tomato-red right now.
But Luke might not notice I’m blushing, because he’s focusing on the floor again.
“Okay,” he says. “I’ll put Claire on the list for surgery this afternoon. There’s an ortho case finishing up, but we should be able to get her up to the OR in about an hour. In terms of the risks, there’s a small risk of bleeding and a small risk of injury to the bowel or other organs. If all goes well, she’ll be able to go home tomorrow or the next day.”
“Okay.”
“Do you have any questions?”
“No.” He’s the expert, so I’ll just have to trust him. I had my appendix out when I was seventeen, but mercifully, the anesthetic worked, and I don’t remember anything about the procedure.
“Okay. The nurse will be by with a consent form for you to sign.”
“Sure. Uh, Claire’s father—my ex-husband—is on his way. He should be here within half an hour, and he’d like to talk to you before the surgery if it’s possible.” If thesituation were reversed, and Claire needed surgery while she was staying with Troy, I’d probably want to meet the surgeon too.
“That’s fine,” Luke says. “I’m happy to talk to Claire’s father if he’s here in time. But if we wait too long, there’s a risk her appendix will rupture. If he’s not here by the time the OR is ready for her, maybe I could talk to him on the phone.”
I nod. “Of course.”
