A Necessary Distance

Andrew's POV

The office was quiet except for the low hum of the air conditioning. I leaned back in my chair, rubbing my eyes. The day had been exhausting—too many meetings, too many decisions to make and clients to see. I glanced at the clock. 7:30 PM. It was getting late, but I still had work to finish.

My phone buzzed on the desk, and I saw Dr. Augustine’s name on the screen.

"Yes?" I answered, trying to keep my voice steady.

"Mr. Walker, this is Dr. Augustine," he said. "Your wife, Mrs. Walker was here earlier today and she seemed quite interested about her mother's medical condition."

I felt a knot tighten in my stomach. I knew Sheila would start asking questions, but I hadn’t expected it to happen this soon.

"Did you tell her anything?"

"No, sir. I thought it best to inform you first since you instructed me not to tell her about what we discovered after running the tests on her mother."

"Good," I replied, noddi