Total pages in book: 72
Estimated words: 70524 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 353(@200wpm)___ 282(@250wpm)___ 235(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 70524 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 353(@200wpm)___ 282(@250wpm)___ 235(@300wpm)
I widen my eyes. “Yes. How did you know?”
“My best friend takes me there every so often as a wingman,” Dr. O’Rourke says. “It’s not a place you easily forget. Do they still have those two in the matching sweaters heading up the bar?”
“DeeDee and Dudley. Yes! And the waitstaff’s uniforms…”
He nods. “I’m aware. Definitely a unique spot, for sure.”
“That’s what I told Maddox—”
Dr. O’Rourke widens his eyes. “Maddox? You went with Maddox? Maddox Hathaway?”
I furrow my brow. “Don’t tell me you know him.”
“He’s my friend. The one who takes me there.”
Dinah drops her jaw. “As his wingman.”
Dr. O’Rourke presses his lips together. He’s stepped in it now, revealed his best friend as a player.
But it’s okay. Maddox told me about him last night. So he’s dated other people casually before. Who hasn’t?
Dr. O’Rourke runs his fingers through his dark hair, mussing it a bit. “He’s a great guy, Alissa. I swear.”
I hold up a hand, chuckling. “It’s okay. He told me about you, Dr. O’Rourke. Didn’t mention your name, though, so I didn’t make the connection.”
“Maddox and I grew up together.” Dr. O’Rourke smiles. “Went our separate ways when I went to college and then med school, but once I returned to Chicago for my residency, we picked up right where we left off.” He looks at me, his eyes narrowed. “I don’t think Maddox has ever taken a woman to Aces before, though. How did you meet?”
I laugh. “On a whim, honestly. I took a different route home from work two nights ago and happened upon his shop. We got to talking, and we hit it off.”
Dr. O’Rourke scratches the side of his head. “He’s pretty secretive about his membership there. He inherited it from his father, you know, and as I’m sure you’re aware, they didn’t exactly have the best relationship when he died. If he took you there, on a first date no less, he must think you’re pretty special.”
My cheeks warm.
“Awwww!” Dinah groans, her hand over her heart. “I’m maid of honor for your wedding, right?”
“Well, I have no sisters, and you’re my only female friend in the city, so I guess so.” I chuckle. “But we’re getting ahead of ourselves. We’ve had one date. It’s not quite time to pick out china patterns.”
Dr. O’Rourke makes some notes on his iPad. “You wanted to talk to me about a patient.”
“Right.” I close my eyes, take in a deep breath. “Lou Chambers and Carol Lutwidge.”
He smiles. “The lovebirds. How are they?”
I sigh. “Not great. They say they want to discontinue treatment and enter hospice if they can’t get their respective transplants within the next month.”
Dr. O’Rourke’s eyes soften. “I see.”
Dinah gasps. “But they’ve got to hold on. We get organs all the time. Odds are one of them will be a match.”
“They may change their minds,” Dr. O’Rourke says. “But I’ll have the forms sent up from legal, just in case.”
“Doctor,” I say, “shouldn’t we try to talk them out of it? A month is such a short time span. What if one day later we receive the organs they need?”
Dr. O’Rourke frowns. “Then they will go to the next person on the list. You know how informed consent works, Alissa. We can’t force people to take treatment they don’t want. This is a hospital, not a prison. People are allowed to leave whenever they want.”
“But—”
He holds up a hand. “I know you like them, Alissa. We all do. But part of respecting a patient includes respecting the decisions they make. Thank you for bringing this to my attention. I’ll go and see them right away.” He pats me on the shoulder. “And you never know. A miracle could happen.”
I sigh. Carol and Lou have been waiting for a miracle for several months at this point.
At least they have each other. Their families live outside of Illinois.
There’s something romantic about the idea of them facing death together, holding hands almost in defiance of it.
And I can’t help but wonder… Is Maddox the man I’ll grow old with?
Will he watch me as time takes my youth, carves wrinkles in my face, steals the color out of my hair? And will he say that he can’t see any difference, that the woman he loves looks the same as the day she walked into his shop on a whim?
Oh my God…
We’ve been on one date. What is wrong with me?
Crazy that Dr. O’Rourke is friends with Maddox, though.
Chicago is a big city. It’s quite a coincidence.
Dr. O’Rourke told me I’m the first woman Maddox has taken to the club.
That he keeps his cards—pardon the pun—close to his chest, because he inherited the membership from his father.
Wait.
How did Dr. O’Rourke put it?
He inherited it from his father, you know, and as I’m sure you’re aware, they didn’t exactly have the best relationship when he died.