Private Practice Episode 3.06 Slip Slidin' Away

Addison's patient, Lily, has Stage 4 ovarian cancer and needs to be admitted to the hospital. But she's not going anywhere until someone she trusts agrees to watch Milo, her cat. This just in: Addison Montgomery has just been cast as the new Catwoman!

Addison gets into caring for the cat. She even buys Milo a new travel carrier. While on the way to visit Lily, she runs into her cute oncologist, Dr. Brian Reynolds (guest star George Newbern). He asks her out and she accepts. The pleasant moment doesn't last long as they reach Lily's room to discover she's passed away. Addison thinks she may end up like Lily, dying alone in a tiny room without friends. When Lily's cousin shows up at Addison's office, she offers to take Milo off her hands. That's not going to happen.

Naomi meets Dr. Gabriel Fife. He's a brilliant, arrogant, wheelchair-bound specialist who has designed a technique that improves the success rate for complex implantations in high risk groups such as little people. Curtis and Sally Donovan want to have a dwarf baby and Dr. Fife says, "We're going to give it to them."

Naomi has no intention of "designing" a baby and says so to her boss, William, who hired Fife behind her back. William says he isn't asking her to accept him, he's telling her. Even though she's being asked to do a procedure she finds morally wrong, Naomi is having trouble confronting Fife because he's in a wheelchair. So she decides to try to change the minds of the patients. But the Donovans make a compelling argument for the procedure.

Naomi discovers Fife has withheld information from her regarding the cancer risk for the baby. She tells off Fife and he's impressed she got over her reluctance to confront someone in a wheelchair. The Donovans know the risk and still want the procedure. But this time it's Naomi who makes the compelling argument. She will NOT implant a sick embryo. But she does offer to help them have a healthy baby because whether he or she is tall or small, it won't matter. That baby will be theirs to love and that's all that matters. Told ya it was compelling.

Charlotte is upset because two weeks have gone by and she has no patients. Cooper tries to help things along by going into an online chatroom and finding a few folks who may be in need of a good sexologist. Charlotte catches on to his scheme and says she doesn't want his pity patients. Coop argues that it isn't pity, it's a referral. He was only trying to help. Charlotte finally comes around. What's the web address for that chatroom again?

Pete's patient, Barbara, is seriously depressed. Her fiance, Jimmy, desperately wants her to get better. Violet is also treating Barbara and suggests a way to end the depression right now: Electroshock Therapy. Don't worry. This isn't One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest shock therapy. The whole procedure takes only a few seconds and Barbara wakes up no longer depressed. But she also doesn't know who Jimmy is.

Violet believes Barbara's memory was not affected. She thinks something terrible happened with Jimmy and she's blocked it out. But Jimmy's actually a nice guy. Too nice. He's the guy at the bar that you go home with at 3 a.m. because the guy you really want has already left with someone else. Barbara is pretending she doesn't remember him because she doesn't want to hurt him after all he's done for her. Poor, nice Jimmy.

Violet and Pete decide to lie to Jimmy to spare his feelings. Violet says, "Memory and emotion get all wrapped up with each other and sometimes it's hard to pull them apart." By the look on Pete's face, we get the sense that he may be taking this sentiment to heart. When Jimmy says this isn't how it was supposed to be, Pete agrees. But it is what is. All you can really do now is try to be happy for her. This time it's Violet who appreciates the sentiment. We do, too.