Page 27 of Heartsick & Lipsticks
“The podcast I love,” she continued.
Recognition dawned on Lola’s face. “Oh, right.”
“So, is it him? Is he dying?”
“No. His mother is my patient.”
“That’s impossible. His mother is dead,” Callie refuted.
“No, she’s not,” I assured her.
“If his mom’s alive, then he’s not an orphan.” Callie’s brows furrowed as she tried to make sense of what I was telling her. “So, wait, heliedabout growing up in foster care?!” Her voice grew louder with each word she said.
I could see that she felt outraged at his deception. “No, hedidgrow up in foster care. She’s been out of the picture.”
“What does that mean, out of the picture?” Callie asked.
“It doesn’t matter. I’ve already said too much.”
“It means she was probably on drugs or just didn’t want him.”
“Lola!”
“What? It does,” my mother stated matter-of-factly.
“Was she on drugs? Did she not want him?”
“You already messed up the NDA; you might as well just tell her,” Lola suggested unhelpfully.
“I’m not going to say anymore.” My tone left no room for argument. I wasn’t sure how this had gotten so out of control, but I was stopping it now. “And you can’t tell anyone about this. Not Jenny, not anyone. I could lose my job. I could get sued.”
“Okay. Fine,” Callie agreed with a sigh.
“Callie, I’m serious,” I stressed.
“I won’t. I promise.” Callie turned and walked back into her room.
As I watched her, a knot formed in my stomach. I never broke rules. Especially rules that could get me fired and sued.
I should have stayed on vacation.
