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Logan:I’ve thought about you a lot.
Jeni:Really?
Logan:Yeah. More than I probably should.
Her fingers paused over the screen. What was she supposed to do with that?
“Who are you texting?”
She jumped at the sound of Andrew’s voice, quickly flipping her phone over. Her brother raised an eyebrow.
“No one.”
“Jeni.” He was attempting to use a firm tone with her, and she almost laughed. “Is it a guy?”
“Shh,” she growled, glancing at her family sitting opposite them. “They’ll hear you.”
The waiting room was large, and thankfully none of them seemed to be paying attention. Rhonda was on her phone, and Valerie and her mother were animatedly conversing about something that Jeni would assuredly not be interested in.
It would be bad enough if they thought Jeni was talking to any guy. If they knew it had been Logan? God help her. It had been barely more than a week since they first met him at the hospital, and he’d been around on a few additional occasions with Andrew since then. Logan was right—she’d avoided him each time, finding something else to do when he was there. Her mom and sisters couldn’t get enough of him, apparently having consumed whatever Kool-Aid he doled out to women. They didn’t even care that he worked for the Chiefs.
Well, Rhonda kind of did. She was the most hardcore of them all. And if Jeni’s dad were here instead of keeping their farm running, he’d have sided with Jeni and Rhonda on that. She was sure of it.
“Maybe if they do, you can distract them while I slip through that door unnoticed.” Andrew tilted his head to the door leading to the exam rooms. “Pretty sure I don’t need four of you with me.”
“I’m not giving up my spot, and I can guarantee not one of those women will either. This is your first appointment with an oncologist. We’re with you in this, Andrew.” Jeni put a hand on his forearm, taking the rare opportunity to tell him how much she cared. “We love you more than life itself.”
“I know.” He gave her a half-smile and patted her hand with his. “If only you’d love me from a distance.”
Jeni yanked her hand away and elbowed him in the ribs. “When I was the one in your shoes, there was no getting rid of you.”
Andrew leaned back against the chair and closed his eyes. “I was your saving grace.”
“That’s true.”
Still resting on the wood, his head tilted in her direction, and one eye opened. “Until I wasn’t. I’m sorry I left you there.”
“You went to college. It wasn’t like you had a choice.”
“I could have waited a year. Took classes online like you did. If I had, maybe you wouldn’t have—”
Jeni geared up to interrupt him, but a man in scrubs opening the door did it for her.
“Andrew Bishop?” the man called.
Five Bishops stood and followed the man into an exam room entirely too small for all of them. Jeni and their mother claimed chairs next to Andrew, while Rhonda and Valerie stood along the wall.
Dr. Patel, a thin, beautiful, dark-haired woman with a kind smile and intelligent eyes, entered soon after. If she was annoyed with how cramped the room was while she examined Andrew and spoke to him about his treatment plan, it didn’t show.
Jeni took notes while Dr. Patel outlined her recommended treatment—four months of chemotherapy. She said Andrew didn’t need radiation and reiterated the high possibility of cure for his early stage disease. She gave them ample time to ask questions and then explained that a pharmacist would come in to discuss the side effects of chemotherapy.
A short time later, a knock sounded at the door, and a red-headed woman entered. She looked young to be a pharmacist, but Jeni was still asked for her ID at bars so she didn’t have room to talk.
Then, the strangest thing happened.
The woman stopped short when her eyes alighted on Andrew. He sat up straight, his gaze fixed intently on her. Jeni looked between the two of them, feeling the urge to reach up and snap a finger between them.
Interesting.
