me you’re home.”
Olivia laughed. “I’m about two minutes from home. I know it’s late, Catherine. I hope I didn’t wake you.”
“Not at all. I’m curled up in my favorite chair enjoying a fire and a cup of green tea.”
“That sounds lovely. I wanted to thank you and your mother for referring Emma to me yesterday. The office staff told me about her call today before I left. I hope we can help her.”
“I hope so too, Olivia. She’s a fighter. I can’t believe that a physician would look at a woman’s age and make a plan of care without taking the person into consideration.”
“Age is only one factor, and certainly never a deciding factor. I’ll see what we can do for Emma when she comes in next week. I promise you that I’ll give her my best.”
“I don’t doubt that for a moment, Olivia.” Catherine heard a car door slam. “How was the rest of your evening?”
“The office appointments went smoothly. Then I spent some time with a patient I did a mastectomy on yesterday, who I admitted into the ICU.”
Catherine hesitated. “How’s she doing?”
“Not as well as I’d hoped. I’m afraid she’ll develop pneumonia if we don’t control her pain better so she can deep breathe. And I’m worried about her daughter.”
“Why?”
“She’s having a real hard time dealing with her mother’s diagnosis and surgery. She’s only twenty-five. Her mother’s only forty-eight. When I first met her in my office she seemed distant, timid, and skittish. She didn’t have many questions. Now I think it’s just that she’s terrified of what’s going on.”
“I can understand how she feels.”
“I know you can. I’d like to talk with your mom about her. I’m hoping she can help me with this family.”
Catherine hugged a pillow tight to her chest. “I’m sure she’ll be happy to help. Are you home now, Olivia?”
“I just got here. I’m grabbing a glass of orange juice, and then I plan to sit on our back deck to enjoy the full moon and you. What time did you finally leave the bookstore?”
“I didn’t get out of there till seven o’clock. We have an all-male reading group that meets at the bookstore every Thursday. The average age of these guys is seventy, and you wouldn’t know it by their behavior. They were supposed to be discussing Wuthering Heights when they got into a heated discussion about the war in Afghanistan. My mom went over and told them they were behaving worse than the group of third graders we had in yesterday. She was the perfect distraction for them. They totally lost their train of thought and started flirting with her. I believe she came away with two marriage proposals and a promise to be more civil.”
“I’m not surprised. Your mother’s an incredible woman. I’m sure anyone of those men would jump at the opportunity to win her affection.”
Catherine was aware of how much she enjoyed talking to Olivia, as long as the subject wasn’t a difficult one. “She’s too young for them, and she isn’t interested in dating. She was so devoted to my father that I don’t think she even sees the way those men look at her.”
“That’s a shame, because I sense your mother has so much to offer in a relationship.”
“I agree with you, but it would take an incredible person to break through her walls.”
“Did your parents meet in Ireland or were they already in the U.S.?”
“Both sets of my grandparents immigrated to the U.S. shortly after they were married. So my parents are second-generation immigrants. They met when my mother hired my father to do the accounts for her real-estate agency. As the story goes, it was love at first sight.” Catherine leaned her head back against her chair. “I’d like to see her share a relationship with someone special again, but it would be really strange to see her with anyone other than my father.”
“I understand that.”
“I guess you do. You would never have imagined your father falling in love with
Olivia laughed. “I’m about two minutes from home. I know it’s late, Catherine. I hope I didn’t wake you.”
“Not at all. I’m curled up in my favorite chair enjoying a fire and a cup of green tea.”
“That sounds lovely. I wanted to thank you and your mother for referring Emma to me yesterday. The office staff told me about her call today before I left. I hope we can help her.”
“I hope so too, Olivia. She’s a fighter. I can’t believe that a physician would look at a woman’s age and make a plan of care without taking the person into consideration.”
“Age is only one factor, and certainly never a deciding factor. I’ll see what we can do for Emma when she comes in next week. I promise you that I’ll give her my best.”
“I don’t doubt that for a moment, Olivia.” Catherine heard a car door slam. “How was the rest of your evening?”
“The office appointments went smoothly. Then I spent some time with a patient I did a mastectomy on yesterday, who I admitted into the ICU.”
Catherine hesitated. “How’s she doing?”
“Not as well as I’d hoped. I’m afraid she’ll develop pneumonia if we don’t control her pain better so she can deep breathe. And I’m worried about her daughter.”
“Why?”
“She’s having a real hard time dealing with her mother’s diagnosis and surgery. She’s only twenty-five. Her mother’s only forty-eight. When I first met her in my office she seemed distant, timid, and skittish. She didn’t have many questions. Now I think it’s just that she’s terrified of what’s going on.”
“I can understand how she feels.”
“I know you can. I’d like to talk with your mom about her. I’m hoping she can help me with this family.”
Catherine hugged a pillow tight to her chest. “I’m sure she’ll be happy to help. Are you home now, Olivia?”
“I just got here. I’m grabbing a glass of orange juice, and then I plan to sit on our back deck to enjoy the full moon and you. What time did you finally leave the bookstore?”
“I didn’t get out of there till seven o’clock. We have an all-male reading group that meets at the bookstore every Thursday. The average age of these guys is seventy, and you wouldn’t know it by their behavior. They were supposed to be discussing Wuthering Heights when they got into a heated discussion about the war in Afghanistan. My mom went over and told them they were behaving worse than the group of third graders we had in yesterday. She was the perfect distraction for them. They totally lost their train of thought and started flirting with her. I believe she came away with two marriage proposals and a promise to be more civil.”
“I’m not surprised. Your mother’s an incredible woman. I’m sure anyone of those men would jump at the opportunity to win her affection.”
Catherine was aware of how much she enjoyed talking to Olivia, as long as the subject wasn’t a difficult one. “She’s too young for them, and she isn’t interested in dating. She was so devoted to my father that I don’t think she even sees the way those men look at her.”
“That’s a shame, because I sense your mother has so much to offer in a relationship.”
“I agree with you, but it would take an incredible person to break through her walls.”
“Did your parents meet in Ireland or were they already in the U.S.?”
“Both sets of my grandparents immigrated to the U.S. shortly after they were married. So my parents are second-generation immigrants. They met when my mother hired my father to do the accounts for her real-estate agency. As the story goes, it was love at first sight.” Catherine leaned her head back against her chair. “I’d like to see her share a relationship with someone special again, but it would be really strange to see her with anyone other than my father.”
“I understand that.”
“I guess you do. You would never have imagined your father falling in love with
Similar Books
