Page 35 of Dr. Brandt

I needed to get a grip. I shook the green-eyed monster off my shoulder and decided I would blame my momentary lapse in sanity on memories conjured by Cameron’s pristine office.

Yeah. That was it.

Chapter Seventeen

Jessa

When we walked toward the room where Lisa waited for us, I was more anxious than ever. I had no idea where these feelings had come from because I was surrounded by all things zen in this hospital. There was no call for this. Nonetheless, my heart was racing, my palms sweaty, and all the other exciting symptoms accompanying nearly chucking up your guts in front of God and everyone.

As we followed Dr. Palmer into the private sitting room and I laid eyes on the young woman, my fears vanished.

Her black hair was cut into a pixie-like bob, accentuating the pointy features of her face. Her eyes were a vibrant green, and her complexion a soft pale color. The rosy-red blush of her cheeks made me grin. This young lady was a physical display of health and happiness, with no traces of a medical condition that led to life-changing surgery.

“Hi, I’m Lisa.” She snapped to her feet and nearly danced over to where Jackson and I stood next to the doctor.

“I’m Jessica,” I said smiling, “and this is my son Jackson.”

“Call me Jacks,” Jackson said, much more forward than I imagined he would be after meeting someone for the first time.

Lisa’s energy was intoxicating, though. She was filled with excitement and radiated positivity. I don’t think there was any way someone could be negative around this girl.

“Hey, Dr. Palmer,” she said, hugging the woman I had developed a jealous streak for minutes earlier.

“How’s our favorite gem?” Dr. Palmer questioned.

“Good,” she said. “Where’s Dr. Brandt? He promised he’d be here, and I haven’t seen him in forever.”

“He was called into surgery,” Dr. Palmer said, “but I’m going to make sure he buys you that bag of Kettle Corn he promised the day you left us.”

“Mm-hmm. He owes me,” she said with a silly smile.

“Lisa, where did you want to begin the interview?”

“Interview?” She rolled her eyes and giggled, “Dr. Palmer, you are way too professional sometimes. It’s just me, and Dr. Brandt said to keep it casual.” She looked at Jackson and me. “You guys want to go outside? The breeze gardens were always my favorite when I was in rehab here.”

“Sounds great,” I said, trying to loosen up and go with the flow.

“Here, Jacks,” she said with a darling smile, “walk with me.”

It was an endearing moment, and I was grateful for this opportunity.

“They are cute,” Dr. Palmer said with a hint of sass as we walked behind the two.

“They are,” I answered. I saw the girl’s slight limp on her right side and noticed that she didn’t seem to have movement in her right arm.

My heart rate raced, and this time it was somewhat justified. Cameron hadn’t mentioned these possibilities when he went straight to the idea that surgery was the only answer.

I didn’t want to jump to conclusions until we heard Lisa’s story, but I was happy we were headed outside where I could get some fresh air because I felt myself beginning to spiral.

I knew the surgery would have some life-changing effects, so why was I surprised that one of them was potentially staring me in the face?

Fuck. Why is this happening to Jacks? How are we supposed to do this?

I felt like punching one of the beautiful willow trees we passed by.

I tried to steady myself, knowing that if I spoke, I had no idea what manner of unfiltered things might come out of my mouth.

I wanted to march back into that hospital, find Cameron, drag his ass out of surgery, and demand he tell me why he didn’t warn me about these side effects. Jackson’s future in sports would be out of the question, at the least.

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