Lauren couldn’t help but glance at the thick, brown, soft-looking hair covering Andrew’s head. Her fingers twitched, and she gripped her thigh as she brought her eyes down a few inches to meet his. “Yes, I expect you to lose all of it. It starts to thin right after chemo begins, but it usually isn’t noticeable until after the second or third treatment. There comes a point where people get tired of hair everywhere, and that’s when they get it cut short or shaved off.”

Andrew nodded slowly. He swallowed hard, his Adam’s apple bobbing in his throat. “When do I start?”

“I’ll write the chemo orders as soon as we’re done. It takes some time to obtain insurance approval, and we have to get your port placed first. Our nurse, Kiara, is probably getting that appointment set up as we speak. Best guess, I’d say in a week.”

“Does he need to wear a mask when he’s in public?” This from the short-haired, blond sister.

“That’s usually unnecessary with this chemo. We’ll get lab work done often, and if we ever feel something indicates special precautions, we’ll tell you.”

“I have two young kids. Can he be around them?” the same sister continued. That explained the PTA shirt.

“You can’t keep them from me.” Andrew said to his sister, then frowned at Lauren, like she actually had control over who he saw and who he didn’t. “I’m not going months without seeing my niece and nephew.”

“Of course, that’s fine. Just not if one of them is sick, okay? Otherwise, there are no restrictions. Doing the things and seeing the people that make you happy are important.”

There was a brief silence, and Lauren waited for additional questions.

“I have one,” Mrs. Bishop said. “Can Andrew…um, that is…is it safe for him to, you know,” she lowered her voice. “Be with a woman? Intimately?”

The sudden eruption in the room was startling.

“Oh my gosh, Mom.”

“Did you really just ask that?”

The only sound from Jeni was the slap of her hand across her mouth.

“Mom!” Andrew was the loudest. His face flushed beet red.

Lauren told herself to stay calm, despite the fact that thinking about Andrew and sex sent her heart into a dangerous rhythm. She was a professional, and she’d been here before. “It’s common to ask about sex during chemotherapy—”

Andrew cut her off. “Do not answer that question. Please.”

“Andrew, I wasn’t born yesterday,” his mother protested. “You’ve been with Caroline for months now, and you need to kno—”

“No, I don’t.”

“Andrew…”

“Stop.”

“It’s completely natural—”

“Caroline and I broke up, okay?”

Four sharp gasps told Lauren this was something Andrew hadn’t yet told them.

“You did?”

“When?”

“What happened?”