Total pages in book: 53
Estimated words: 50006 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 250(@200wpm)___ 200(@250wpm)___ 167(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 50006 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 250(@200wpm)___ 200(@250wpm)___ 167(@300wpm)
“You should know what you’re in for,” Tiffanie said quietly.
He didn’t make a joke. Her face signaled him that whatever she wanted to tell him was serious. “Okay. I appreciate that. Talk to me.”
“You’re aware I have cancer, but I haven’t shared any details.”
“I’ll listen to whatever you want me to know,” Phineas said, swallowing hard to rid himself of a lump the size of Texas in his throat. Please let her be okay.
“I was lucky. They did a scan, thinking I had some kind of gastric problem—gallbladder or such. Instead, they found a shadow on my ovary. They discovered that small mass early, improving my chances of survival. I decided to have both my ovaries and my fallopian tubes removed. If genetics had caused this, I would risk having cancer strike the other side.”
“You were so brave. I’m glad you made the best decision for you.”
“Yes. There’s a history of breast cancer in my family, and ovarian cancer can be related as well.”
“Sounds like you did a lot of research and had a good doctor,” Phineas said, sorry that he hadn’t been in her life from the beginning when all this scary stuff was happening. “You’re having chemo now to make sure the cancer is gone?”
“Yes. Just in case a few cells migrated from that spot. There’s no evidence of that, but the risk exists. The blood tests haven’t assured the doctors that I’m in the clear, but the scans show no signs of cancer.”
“Best news ever. So, you keep working on getting everything to be perfect.”
“Yes. But the chemo is hard. My body doesn’t like it. I haven’t lost my hair, but I have trouble with appetite and energy,” she confessed. “Last week, the doctor stopped chemo to give me time to recover. The break is risky, but necessary to keep me….” Tiffanie’s voice broke.
Phineas hesitated, thinking the worst. He didn’t want to say that fear aloud but forced himself to speak for her. “Alive?”
“Yeah, that. I do feel better. I think you’re the reason why.”
“As long as you see an improvement, I’m ecstatic. No matter what the reason is. When do you return to the doctor?”
“Next week. Ivan’s supposed to take me, but would you?”
Jumping at the chance to go with her, Phineas nodded, happy to support his Little girl. “Tell me the date and time to get on the road,” he requested. “I’ll clear my schedule.”
“Tuesday at one-thirty.”
Phineas pulled his phone out of his back pocket and made a note for himself. “When do I need to pick you up? Is the office close?”
“About an hour away,” she said hesitantly.
“I’ll be here at noon unless you want me to leave earlier to have some lunch.”
“Oh, I couldn’t eat. I’ll be too scared,” she said.
“Noon. Text me the address, Little girl, so I’ll be prepared.”
She nodded and looked across the room. “I can’t have kids, Phineas. I mean, that’s the last of my worries, but if having a family is important to you….” Her voice faded away.
“You are important to me. We’ll get you healthy and then we’ll figure out what our future might hold. I’ve never planned on having kids, but if they are essential for you, we have options.”
“It’s that easy?”
“Not really. You’re going to have to fight hard to get better. I’ll be right by your side every step of the way.”
“I’m sorry,” she whispered.
“I never want you to apologize again for the awful thing that happened to you. You didn’t ask for cancer. I will spank your bottom or stand you in a corner if you say that in the future.” Phineas’s blood boiled at the thought of her feeling bad about something no rational person would seek out—ever.
She nodded and threw herself into his arms. Phineas held her close, squeezing her against him with gentle hugs. She would be okay. Tiffanie had to recover.
Chapter Fourteen
Waiting for Tuesday to roll around took forever. Tiffanie slept at Phineas’s house every night except for Friday when he had a once-a-month evening teen gathering at the library. Then she stayed at Ivan’s because remaining awake until ten was too much for her after a long week. Phineas had snuck in to sleep with her when the event concluded.
She couldn’t figure out if she really felt as good as she thought or if having Phineas around simply made things better. The testing would tell everything. She’d crossed her fingers so many times they ached.
Monday, Tiffanie moped around the house, sure that she would get awful news the next day. She wasn’t interested in anything. TV was boring. Even the spiciest book couldn’t hold her attention. And forget napping. Her brain hopped from one worry to the next. What would she do if the numbers got worse? If the doctor recommended a more powerful chemo blend?
Could she physically and mentally handle another round of being so sick and fragile? Her weakened condition was better than the alternative, but at some point, she’d have to accept that she’d fought hard, but the chemo had won. Trying to distract herself from negative thoughts, Tiffanie had buried herself in tasks until she was completely drained.