Against All Odds

Chapter Ten

"Milo, great to see you again," Dr. Cole says, stepping into the room. "How are you feeling?"

"Better," I tell her, relaxing into the seat. I never thought I would be back in this exam room, seeing as she had advised me just a few weeks ago to go off my hormones.

"How was the heat?" she asks, her face as professional as ever.

"Longer than usual. It lasted five days."

She nods, jotting notes on her clipboard. "Any other symptoms?"

Crinkling my brows, I look up at her. "What do you mean?"

"Lubrications levels, knot satisfaction, fever, water intake, sleep levels?"

The questions make me blush but I answer anyway. This woman has seen me with my pants down, I can answer these embarrassing questions. "Uh, there was more slick than usual, a lot more. My partner used one of those knotting toys, it helped to calm my heat. Not better than a real one, but good enough to take the edge off. I-I didn't take my temperature throughout the heat, so I don't know. My partner made sure I stayed hydrated and ate a little. Sleep wise, I napped in between bouts of heat, but other than that, not much."

She nods her head, jotting that all down, but then sits back in her chair. "That sounds about what I expected with the symptoms you were showing in the hospital. How long has it been since your heat ended?"

My eyes flicker over to the calendar on the wall, quickly counting the days since my heat ended. "Eight days."

"Alright." She stands up to walk over to the small sink in the room, quickly washing her hands before snapping on a pair of gloves. "I would like to run a few blood tests. But first I want to check some things. Is that alright?"

Nodding my head, I sit up in the chair. She comes over to me, first listening to my heart and breathing, and then taking my temperature. One she has the bases down, she starts to massage down my neck, making me wince when she gets to the junction of my shoulder.

She hums, finger gently brushing over the area. "Looks like your scent gland is swollen. That can be caused my mate separation, especially during a heat."

"My husband and I are in the process of getting a divorce."

"May I ask who you spent your heat with?"

"A friend," I tell her, shrinking in on my self.

"No judgment," she says. "I'm just asking because spending your heat with another can cause the body to go into overdrive. Seeking out one's mate is the body's way of protecting itself. It should go away on its own in a few weeks. If it starts to bother you, put a warm compress on it."

Her hands continue on, going along each of my arms before she has me laying back on the table. When her hands massage over my stomach, I can't hold back my wince. It is an aching pain, something that I only notice when she presses on it.

Her hands feel along my stomach, gently massaging the area before pressing down a little harder. Once she is done, she helps me to sit up before going to jot some notes down on her clipboard.

"Is everything alright?" I ask, worry settling in me. My body is already screwed up enough. I don't know if I can handle another thing going wrong.

Dr. Cole looks up at me, a small smile on her face. "Everything seems fine at the moment. The pain in the torso area is most likely from the harsh heat. All the hormones are causing your normal bodily functions to go into overdrive. Your body just seems to be settling at the moment. The swelling is most likely from the uterus expanding during your heat. Again, it should settle down within a few days."