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Chapter Two
Nick
“All right, Tanner, you’re all fixed up. I was able to get rid of the cavity and fill it in. Did Meghan talk to you about better brushing?” I ask the nine-year-old who’s lying in the reclined chair before me.
The boy nods his head profusely, and out of the corner of my eye, I don’t miss the smile that plays on Meghan’s lips.
Very sexy and totally kissable lips.
I mentally shake that completely inappropriate and unprofessional thought out of my head and give the boy my full attention. “You’ll be numb for about another hour. It should be completely gone by dinner,” I tell him, glancing up and noticing the mid-afternoon time.
“Tank you,” he replies, his mouth barely moving.
“You’re welcome. We’ll see you back in six months, okay? If you do better at brushing, we can add you to our no cavity club. You’ll even get a free pizza certificate,” I tell him as I pull the latex gloves from my hands.
“I wike pizza!”
“I figured,” I reply with a laugh. “But you need to make sure you’re brushing really good, hitting all of your teeth, and you have to remember to floss. Even those pesky ones in the back.” Standing up, I smile down at the boy and hold out my fist for the expected fist bump. “You did good. I’ll see you soon, Tanner.”
No sooner do I step into the hallway of my dental practice does Patty, our receptionist, flag me down. “Mrs. Ellis is on the phone. She says that tooth just fell out again,” she says as she rolls her eyes.
“Teeth don’t generally just fall out of your dentures unless you’ve done something to knock them out,” I say aloud to no one in particular.
“I’m aware, Dr. Adams,” she replies with a smile.
“Who do we have left?” I ask, glancing up at the clock again. Three o’clock.
“Two regular cleanings. We’ve been on schedule all day,” she says with a pleased look.
“Excellent,” I reply with a matching grin as I step into my office.
“Oh, but your four o’clock,” she starts but stops, causing me to turn around. Patty clears her throat before she confirms my final appointment of the day. “It’s Collette.”
“Oh goodie,” I mumble, choosing not to use the colorful language I normally say when referring to my ex, but resorting to Meghan’s standard response when she can’t curse.
Before my office door closes, Patty hollers, “Mrs. Ellis is on line two!”
Looks like I’ll be dealing with Mrs. Ellis and Collette today.
Awesome.
I spend the next forty minutes working at my desk, finishing up a few things, until I’m paged to Meghan’s room. My heart starts to race as I get up and make my way down the hall. Plastering on my best professional face, I step through the doorway. Meghan is there, standing at the small counter and writing in the chart. Her long, brown hair is pulled back in a messy ponytail that looks like someone might have just tangled his fingers in it.
Okay, so I might be that someone. It is my fantasy, after all.
Clearing dirty images of my dental hygienist from my mind, I turn my attention to the old woman lying in the chair. “Ahh, Mrs. Huxley. How are the tulips blooming this year?” I ask as I slide my hands into a pair of latex gloves.
“Wonderful, Dr. Adams. My entire garden is full of bright colors,” the elderly woman gushes. “My lilac bush is in full bloom, as well, and my entire garden smells so heavenly.”
Smiling, I glance over at Meghan to find her with a sly grin aimed directly at me. “Well, Mrs. Huxley, let’s see if we can’t get you back in your garden before dinner. Meg, how did Mrs. Huxley’s cleaning go?” I ask, slipping the paper facemask over my mouth.
“Perfect. Her x-ray images are on the screen for your review,” she replies, handing me the mirror.
I glance around inside my former high school English teacher’s mouth, making note of changes from her last appointment. As I turn to Meghan, I start, “Can you hand me–” but am cut off by the periodontal probe being placed in my hand.
“Thanks.”
She doesn’t reply, just makes the notes in the chart as I speak. We’re a great team. The best, actually.
