Their first week back they were both very anxious to hear each other's voices on a daily basis, so their phone calls back and forth became routine. Annie was working a lot of night shifts and trying to sleep in the day, and they usually talked in the late afternoon. Robert was busy too, but he was fortunate that his business didn't run on set hours, and he could usually make time for Annie whenever she was available.
She had told him that the first available appointment with Dr. Maier would be the next Wednesday afternoon, and he was quite surprised to see her cell phone number show up on his call display at 3 p.m. that day.
"I wasn't expecting to hear from you this early, Annie. Didn't you have an appointment today?"
"Ah... yes I do. In fact I'm with Dr. Maier now. I've given her written permission to speak with you about me, and she'd like to speak to you privately. If it's okay with you, I'll give her the phone and then wait in the outer office while she talks to you. I'm... not sure... I don't know what she wants to talk about. Is that okay? Do you mind talking to her?" Annie sounded a bit flustered on the phone as she spoke to him.
"I don't mind at all, Annie. You should know by now that if there's anything I can do that will help you out, I'll be happy to do so," Robert quickly replied.
"Thank you, Robert. I'll give the phone to Dr. Maier."
There was half a minute of dead air, and Robert could hear a bit of rustling and a few muffled words before hearing the distinct sound of a door closing. A couple of seconds later he heard a woman's voice, sounding pleasant but businesslike, speaking with a very slight accent that he couldn't quite place.
"Good day, Mr. Porter. I'm Dr. Greta Maier. I understand that Annie has told you that I see her regularly. She also told me today that she has been very open with you about her ordeal, and says that she has given you all of the, shall we say, 'gruesome' details of her captivity."
Robert quickly answered in the affirmative to all of the doctors statements, and then continued, "I have come to realize that I am in love with Annie, and if there's anything I can help you with, please let me know what it is."
"Well, Mr. Porter, I must say that speaking to a third party isn't a normal routine for me, but then, Annie isn't a normal patient. I'm sure you're now well aware of the hell that she survived, and I have been shocked and amazed at the recent signs of recovery that she has shown. She attributes almost all of it to you."
Robert didn't quite know how to comment on that statement so he said, "I don't know that I can take that much credit for the great strides she seems to be making. A lot of it is Annie's willingness to trust me, something she apparently found impossible to do with other men. I think she really wants to make improvements, and that I've been fortunate to be the conduit she's used."
Dr. Maier chuckled and replied, "I don't think you realize just how much of a match you are for Annie at this stage of her recovery. She has told me about your acceptance of your own scars and how well you deal with the issue. You have set a very good example for her."
"It appears that you think there's something I could do to assist with Annie's continuing recovery. I'm completely willing to follow any suggestion you can give me." The sincerity in Robert's voice came through loud and clear to the doctor.
Dr. Maier sounded very happy as she replied, "More of the same, Mr. Porter. That is my request to you; more of the same. I wanted to speak with you to confirm Annie's high regard for you, and I think I have done that. I don't believe there is any likelihood that you're going to misuse the trust that she is giving you."
"I like to think that I'm a good judge of character, even if I have to make that judgment solely on the sound of one's voice. I sense that in you. I would ask only that you talk to me first if for any reason your feelings toward Annie should change."
Robert began to interrupt with a statement disagreeing that that could ever occur when the doctor quickly continued, "I'm not suggesting anything of the sort will happen, I'm just asking that in the unlikely event that anything comes up to negatively affect your relationship with Annie, that you give me a heads up right away."
"I am fearful that Annie could suffer a drastic relapse in her condition if that happened and it was not properly handled." The doctors concern was evident in her voice.
She continued, "Don't for one second feel that you are 'stuck' in a relationship with Annie. These things can happen, and I feel confident I should be able to get her past anything that comes between the two of you. I only ask that you think of her, and let me know first, so that I can prepare her for it."
Robert was emphatic as he said, "I can't imagine that a circumstance such as you suggest could ever happen. My feelings have become very deep for Annie, much deeper than I would have ever imagined. I have never in my life expected to find someone like Annie, someone I could feel so much love for."
"I know what you're asking, and to put you at ease I will unequivocally assure you that I will do as you ask. But to put it simply, I just know it's not going to happen."
"Thank you, Mr. Porter. You have me convinced." Dr. Maier continued by providing Robert with both her office and cell phone numbers.
Robert reciprocated with his own contact information and emphatically stated, "Please be sure to call me if there's anything I can do to help."
He continued with, "Thank you, Dr. Maier. I'd prefer if you called me Robert though." He gave a short laugh and added, "I'm not used to this Mr. Porter title." He thought for a moment before asking, "How much of our conversation can I repeat to Annie? I know she's going to wonder what we spoke about."
The doctor gave a small laugh herself and replied, "Very well... 'Robert'. You should be able to tell her everything about our conversation. Your judgment with her has been good, so how you do that I will leave up to you. Thank you again for speaking with me. I can see that I can be much more confident that the remarkable progress shown by Annie will continue. Goodbye, Robert."
The doctor hung up, and after Robert had done the same he sat there looking at the phone, a smile on his face and happy with the knowledge that Annie's steps forward were now confirmed as being very real and most likely permanent.
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Later that evening Annie called, and one of the first things she asked was what had Robert discussed with her doctor. Robert did give her a short rundown on the conversation, but he didn't give any mention to the doctor's request for a heads up if he ever wanted to stop seeing Annie or tone down their relationship. He didn't want Annie to dwell on a possibility that he himself discounted completely.
