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'Please call. It is urgent' is the first message from Sharon I see on my phone when I open my locker on returning from the training session. There are four missed calls from her. This is unlike her. I dial her number as I sit in my SUV. She picks up at the first ring.
"Jon, I am in trouble. We shouldn't have gone out. We should not have met again." She is tense and breathing heavy.
"Hey, calm down, will you? What is the matter?" She doesn't listen to me, speaking in one continuous train of words, not allowing me to speak a single word in between. It is difficult to make any sense over the popping sounds. She is wringing the poor bubble wraps. Sharon never told me but I guessed it out. It is her stress buster. What has set off such a panic?
"Sharon. Sharon, will you stop for a minute?" I raise my voice to get her to stop and listen. "What are the pop sounds in the background? Are you practicing something?" The image of my goofy girl sitting in her consulting room twisting the hapless wrap makes me smile. If she were physically present, I would have lost a tooth today. She is worried about something and I am grinning.
The sounds stop and there is absolute silence on the phone. She clears her throat. "Is this better?"
I chuckle, "yeh, much better. What happened, why are you so worked up?"
Sharon narrates the unfolding drama. Noah has posted a photo of our kiss on twitter with hashtags like #fraternizingwithpatient and #baddoctor, tagging both of us. It has gone viral since my name is involved. She has got a call from her medical association. The State Board has ordered an inquiry.
I need to take this on myself. Can't let anything happen to her. "Sharon, stay calm. Give me a moment. I will speak to Kevin and set up a meeting right away. Be ready, I will pick you up in thirty minutes."
"Jon, it may not be a good idea for us to be seen together. The press has been at the hospital since the story broke," Sharon is jittery. She must be devastated. I want to rush in there and hug her. Protect my Tigress from the fallout. She is right though with the press hovering around the hospital my presence can complicate matters.
"Okay, I will text you Kevin's address. You can come there. Don't worry, Sharon. We will deal with this together." I understand her panic. This is too much for a person who has never faced paparazzi. I am used to this, my life has always been in the news. There is a lot at stake for her. She has worked hard to be where she is. The stakes are high for me as well. I will not let the world ruin the one true relationship that has come my way after a long time.
I dial Kevin while still in the car. This is an unexpected interception when things were getting better. Noah fucked up our lives. I should have smashed his face at the conference. It is too late for that now. When Kevin picks up, I tell him the story and ask for a meeting.
"What the hell were you thinking?" For the next few minutes, I get a dressing down. Let me sum up the rant into four words—I told you so.
"You both meet me in my office at three, and do not come together," Kevin commands me on the phone.
Kevin would do a swell job at being a school principal. He is six months older than me, but he treats me like a belligerent kid. Any other time, I would give him back in kind. We fight often, but now is not the time; I have to protect her. He always has my back. I suppose him worrying for me is proof of the affection he has for me.
I take a detour to a hardware store on my way to Kevin's office and ask them to make a special delivery. When I reach his office, Sharon is already there.
"You both are in trouble." Kevin is facing Sharon when I walk into the room. I sit next to her and give her a light peck on the cheek, holding her hand. Her palms are ice cold. I rub them for a while. Her furrowed face breaks my heart. I wish I had a magic wand to make this shit go away.
"Can you two explain yourself?" Kevin turns towards me and oh boy, save me from the daggers. "I can understand Sharon being new to all this, but you Jon, where was your head. You have enough experience in the public eye. And Sharon, how did you forget the implications of Jon being your patient. God, what were you two doing, making out in public? Can't you keep your hands off each other for a minute?"
"It was not like that. You don't know the full story." Sharon is about to lose her cool. When I open my mouth, she stops me. She narrates the entire episode to Kevin.
"I had things under control until this caveman turned up,"
I raise my hand in defense. "Hey, not fair. Noah is a jerk. You can't blame me for trying to protect what's mine."
Kevin snaps at us. "I still think you two should have walked away from it, instead of creating all the drama."
It is my turn to get upset. "Hold on, Kevin. We are not here so you can scold us like school kids. Don't tell us about the problem, we are the ones staring down that gun. We are here for the solution. What are our options?" My sharp voice brings Kevin to focus on what is more important at the moment.
"It is a precarious situation, Jon. Both her medical association and the state will investigate. There are strict guidelines." Kevin paces the room.
He then reads out from a paper he is holding. The code of ethics states that any sexual contact, even in the form of a romantic kiss during a doctor-patient relationship, is misconduct and is liable to investigation and action. The state board can suspend or cancel her license.
All this is scary and worries me. "But she is no longer my doctor. It's been more than three months."
Kevin shakes his head. "It may not be of much help. These things are difficult to prove or disprove. The investigation will still happen. How the board decides, is something we cannot control."
Oh shit, this is worse than I thought. I bite my lip. "What if I say I started the relationship? Will it get her off the hook?"
Kevin's gaze makes me uneasy, adding to my frustration. I am not sure what is upsetting me more—Noah, the social media trolls or Kevin's attitude.
"Will we have a say? I mean, will Sharon get time to explain? Can we be a party to the investigation?"
Kevin is silent. My patience runs out. "Come on man, give us some hope. What should we do?"
Kevin takes a deep breath and speaks to both of us. "Let us list out the positives. She is no longer your doctor. The only public kiss happened three months after Dr. Thomas took over your care. Sharon tells me there is no document she has signed or has her name on, after your discharge. The best thing is that the discharge states that you will follow up with Dr. Thomas." He pauses for a moment and sits next to us.
Kevin turns to Sharon and asks her, "Sharon, can anyone at the conference vouch for the events that took place there? At least it will help us bring context to what happened and discredit Noah. Show his actions as vindictive. I will also file for a restraining order against Noah on your behalf. He is a mean person. He might do anything to use his perverted shot at fame."
"Now you're is talking! What else, Kevin? I depend on you to clear this mess." I slap my hand on Kevin's shoulder.
"We might say you both had met before you had the doctor-patient relationship." Kevin doesn't sound so sure about this.
Sharon is not comfortable with this last bit. "How can we say that? I did not know Jon when we met on the interstate. The next time we met was in the OR."
"Yes, we can say that. I was interested when we ran into each other on the highway," I interject. She is surprised. "Hey, I would have chased you if you had given me the correct information, instead of posing as a kung fu fighter." It takes a little convincing, but Sharon agrees.
Kevin goes over the plan once again. "The State Board will call for medical records. Once the date of hearing is decided we can become a party to the investigation. I have spoken to a few of my friends who represented such cases. They will help us prepare."
I nod and put my arm around Sharon, "Does this lessen the worry, Tigress? Trust Kevin, he will help us out of this."
Kevin smiles in acknowledgment, but it does little to smoothen the deep furrows from Sharon's face. I put my arm around her shoulder pulling her towards me, holding her tight. "Hey, I am here for you."
She only sighs and fidgets with her dress. I don't like her bothered and worked up. The whole situation is eating her peace of mind and I can't do anything about it. Not until the investigation begins. However, I need to take the gloom away and help her unwind. An idea forms in my mind.
"Noah is about to roast me alive and all you can do is stand here and smile."
Her sharp tone jolts me out of my daydream. It is a definite sign for me to do something. Sharon is on a short fuse and unless I defuse it, she will explode.
I scratch my stubble and bring out my charming grin. "I was wondering if we can try that caveman stuff while we are alone."
She grunts. It does not take much to get my growly Tigress out of her slumber. From the corner of my eye, I see the swift movement of her leg. I evade her knee, protecting my crown jewels with my hand. "Ow Tigress, not there! They are too precious for our future."
The twinkle in her eyes is a sure sign that a sharp retort is coming my way. She doesn't disappoint me. "Po, don't tempt a surgeon else you will have more than your precious jewels to worry about."
"Ew. Can you two go take your filthy minds out of my office?" Kevin shoos us away from behind his desk, trying to control his laughter. When we are leaving, he asks us to lie low for the moment and avoid being seen together in public.
Easier said than done.