Текст книги "Meant for Me"
Автор книги: Faith Sullivan
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Текущая страница: 9 (всего у книги 13 страниц)
“No,” he says sharply, his eyes trained on my face.
“Wow, none at all?” I coax, acting like I believe him.
“Nope.” His leg starts to twitch, giving him away.
“Well, I’m sorry you sat in your Jeep all night for nothing.” I glance at him like he’s someone to be pitied and he looks like he wants to leap over the desk and strangle me. Just the reaction I was hoping for. And he thought he was going to rile me up? Huh, think again.
“Yeah, me too,” he remarks, glaring back at me. But it’s too late. He should’ve guarded his secret more carefully if he didn’t want someone with half a brain to figure it out.
“I haven’t seen you hanging around with Ben lately. Did you two have a fight or something?” I tilt my head innocently, full of sisterly concern.
“You could say that,” he mutters, dodging the question.
“Oh yeah, I think Dad mentioned something about you and the swim team and having his brother fired. Boy, you really don’t fool around, do you? I guess you learned from the best.” I give him a wink, letting him off the hook for now.
But he knows I have leverage on him and I intend to use it if he gets out of line again. I just wish he didn’t always go for the jugular instead of stepping back and counting to ten. He’s too impulsive for his own good, and he’s going to pay for that someday. He just better not cross me in the meantime. I need to keep him on his toes and not get lulled into taking him for granted. We nearly got into a shitload of trouble when Will exposed that fake newspaper story we’d concocted all to protect his ass. He better not force me to go out on a limb for him again because I won’t. From now on, I’ll let Ryan clean up his own messes.
“Are we done?” he asks sullenly, getting to his feet.
“Oh yeah, we’re done.” My eyes pierce his, sending him a clear message of who’s in charge.
He shuffles out of my office, purposely dragging his feet. I close my eyes and sigh. What a loser.
But I have more important things to think about, like getting myself over to Eric’s house.
Chapter Fifteen
Eric
God, does it feel good to wake up in my own bed.
I stretch carefully, not wanting to disturb Ivy. I watch as the sunlight catches her hair that’s sprawled across my chest. I soak in these precious moments, listening to the rise and fall of her every breath. She’s back in my arms. Catastrophe diverted—for now.
Ever so slowly, I sit up and run my hand under the covers. The sheet is warm from her body, but I don’t feel anything amiss. Hopefully it means the bleeding has stopped. I’ll have to ask her for sure when she gets up, but so far, so good. Maybe we can begin to put this episode behind us and start focusing on the positive. We have a baby on the way. We should be excited, not scared to death.
As much as I don’t want her to wake up alone after such a traumatic night, I have to get going. The garden center needs me. I have a lot to catch up on. It’s bound to be a crazy day, and I can’t waste a minute of it. Groaning as my skin comes in contact with the chilly morning air, I hurriedly toss a wrinkled sweatshirt over my boxers and root through the closet for a pair of jeans. The laundry was backed up before I left. I should really throw a load in before I head out. I don’t want Ivy to have to worry about it. She needs to stay in bed.
I make my way softly down the steps with Shep at my heels. I open the door to let him out, surprised to see a thick frost covering the ground. I have to warm this place up. I glance over at the woodpile and there are only a few logs left. I’ll have to refill it before I leave. There’s just so much extra stuff I have to do now that Ivy’s on bed rest. I hope I can keep up with it all. I’ve lived here by myself for so long, but I really got used to her handling most of the household chores. It’s nice having a partner to balance things out. But I’ll just have to pick up the slack until she’s back on her feet.
Quietly, I arrange the wood in the fireplace before setting it ablaze. I gaze into the flames. I was planning on taking Ivy to the Hideaway Cliffs this weekend, but it doesn’t look like that’ll be happening anytime soon. Her condition is still too iffy to be carting her around the countryside. She could start bleeding again and we’d be miles away from the hospital. It’s better if we stay close to home. At least Doc’s in town if we need him.
I’m tempted to bring in the crib and place it at the bottom of the bed for Ivy to find when she gets up. But I really want to be there to catch the look on her face when she sees it. I can picture her examining every inch of it, pointing out all of the hand-carved details I already know by heart. Hearing her ‘ooh and aah’ over the crib would be like experiencing it for the first time through her eyes. Her reaction was the only thing I thought about as I spent hours and hours making it as perfect as I possibly could for our baby.
And I don’t want to upset her either. Things are still on the fence. Maybe it’s best to get through her first week home and make sure everything’s okay. If something does happen—God, I don’t even want to think about it—the crib will turn into a painful reminder of our loss and not the fulfillment of the promise it was meant to be. She’ll want to destroy it, just like I did, and try to erase the heartache from our lives. But I’m not giving up on this baby—not yet. And neither should she. It’s already proven to be a survivor. Our child is determined to come into this world, and I want to be there to welcome it when it does.
I hear Shep scratching at the door, begging to be let in from the cold. His insistence jolts me out of my head and back into reality. I better get a move on if I’m going to provide for this baby. I have a lot of ground I need to cover before it gets here in April, and I want to be ready. There’s no time to waste.
The last thing I want to think about is losing it all if Ivy doesn’t comply with Lauren’s demands. I had a lengthy conversation with Will on the plane when Ivy fell asleep during the last two hours of the flight. He knows what I’m expecting from him in terms of managing Lauren and keeping up with the workload. Ivy’s not to be overtaxed or overburdened in any way. He’s prepared to handle the bulk of the project while seeking Ivy’s creative input when he needs it. He briefly alluded that Lauren wanted to sensationalize Cassidy’s story but clammed up when I pressed him for details. He said it would be better if I had Ivy explain it to me, whatever that means. It doesn’t sound too promising. That’s a conversation I’d rather save for another day.
When I open the door, Shep charges in as I bend down to pick up the rolled-up copy of today’s Gazette. I’m about to turn around and go back inside when I hear someone’s footsteps crunching through the frost-covered grass from the back of the house. I groan inwardly. I’m not ready for my morning dose of Will yet. I hope he doesn’t think we’re going to sit down and eat breakfast together or something.
I brace myself as the footsteps round the corner and come face to face with Ben. He seems startled to see me standing there with my mouth open. For a second, we just stare at each other, totally at a loss for words.
“Ben, what are you doing here, man? Shouldn’t you be on your way to school?” I ask, peering at him against the glare of the sun.
“Uh, yeah…I was thinking of taking the day off to see if you could use some help catching up on everything.” He stumbles but quickly recovers. I almost buy it—almost. Something’s up, and it concerns some scheme of Will’s. That much is certain.
“I don’t think the school would appreciate you playing hooky on my account. I don’t need a truant officer busting my ass over the star quarterback not being able to play in Friday night’s game.” I tuck the paper under my arm, feeling him out.
“Do you really think it matters?” he asks, grinning like the joke is on me. “I have what you would call ‘special privileges.’”
I hate the smug look that’s plastered all over his face. He probably can do whatever he wants and get away with it. A sports hero like him is revered in this town. No one’s going to stop him if he feels like skipping class. More power to him is the general attitude. I’m torn because I could really use his help today, but I don’t want to give him the satisfaction of going along with his whims like everyone else.
“What’s going on? Did I miss something?” Will comes jogging around the side of the house, the wind at his heels. “Ben stopped by to see if I needed a lift to the garden center. I didn’t think Ivy would be up to working today, so I thought I’d make myself useful.”
Will is really off his game. There are so many holes I could punch in his story, it’s ridiculous. Ben is wearing the same clothes he had on last night. His truck is nowhere to be seen. And there’s no way in hell that he’d do Will a favor out of the goodness of his heart. Unless…
I don’t have a chance to question him further because a car is rumbling up the road toward the house.
“Holy shit.” Will whistles under his breath.
“Is it really who I think it is?” I ask, grinding my teeth.
“Yep, in the flesh,” Will responds, hustling to my side to get a better view. “It’s about to get ugly up in here. Ben, you might want to get away while you still can. You definitely don’t want to be on this bitch’s radar.”
“That’s for damn sure,” I groan as the car comes to a stop.
“Well, I guess I’ll see you down at the garden center.” Ben waves halfheartedly, disappearing into the woods instead of walking past the car and onto the road. Smart boy.
“Later,” Will calls out, leaning in front of me to watch him depart.
“Really, Will? A high school kid?” I ask, raising an eyebrow.
“He’s no kid,” he responds, unperturbed.
I roll my eyes just as Lauren glides out of her Mercedes wrapped in a white wool coat. She removes her Gucci sunglasses, settling them atop her perfectly coiffed head. She looks expensive. From her leather boots to her cashmere gloves, her whole appearance screams luxury, wealth, and power. I don’t blame Will for gulping beside me.
“Well, if it’s not the two guys I just so happen to be looking for.” She rakes her eyes over us, lingering a tad too long on the area below my belt. “Long time no see, boys.” She shuts the car door with a wallop, leaving its toasty interior behind to brave the chilly greeting she’s sure to expect.
“What are you doing here, Lauren?” I ask curtly.
“To do business, of course, silly.” She swats my chest while removing her gloves. “We have a lot of things we need to discuss.”
“Not here you don’t.” I spread my legs farther apart, blocking her access to the door. “You’re not welcome in my home.”
“Now, Eric, don’t be like that. We’re all going to have to work together and things would go a whole lot smoother if we all just got along. With poor Ivy confined to her bed, you had to have been expecting a visit from me sooner or later. How else are we supposed to get this thing done?” She bats her eyelashes at me, only provoking me further.
“Will already informed you that you’re not to have access to Ivy during all this. He’ll act as the go-between. Any message you have for Ivy, tell him. You will not be meeting with her in person. Is that clear?” I cross my arms in front of my chest, daring her to contradict me.
“Yes, he did tell me about your list of demands, but it doesn’t mean I have to agree to them,” she chuckles, drawing some paperwork out of her purse. “You’re in no position to tell me what to do. I have in my hands a copy of your latest bank statement. I believe you’re several weeks behind on a loan payment? You wouldn’t want me to call the manager and have him start taking the necessary steps to foreclose, would you?”
“You’re bluffing,” I retort, placing my hands on my hips.
“Try me,” she spits back.
I’m just about to tear into her when I hear shuffling behind me.
“What’s going on?” It’s Ivy. She’s out of bed and standing outside in nothing but my shirt. I instantly see red.
“Well, speak of the devil,” Lauren drawls, smirking as Ivy shivers. “Ivy, tell this Neanderthal boyfriend of yours to step aside. We have work to do.”
“I don’t think so,” I growl, stepping in front of Ivy, blocking her from view. “You’re not coming in. Don’t even think about it.”
“Eric, it’s okay,” Ivy says, catching me off guard. “She’s right. We have a lot to catch up on.”
“You can’t be serious,” I spin around, searching her eyes for some kind of explanation. “You’re in no condition to—”
“She’s a big girl. Why don’t you let her decide for herself?” Lauren advances again, causing me to lean into Ivy. “Or maybe you want to hear a little bit more about what we intend to work on. I’m sure it’ll blow your mind.”
“Lauren, don’t,” Ivy warns, and there’s no mistaking the fear in her voice.
Lauren has something on her. It’s the only reason why Ivy would so readily give in to her demands. Ivy is in no state to go head-to-head with her. It’s not a fair fight. That’s why she’s caving. It probably involves me somehow and she’s trying to protect me so that I won’t get hurt. That’s the only explanation for why she’s backing down when Lauren’s coming on so strong. She must be feeding her a line about me. But I’m not afraid to set her straight. It’s about time someone put Lauren in her place once and for all.
“Will, take Ivy inside. I’ll settle this,” I seethe, not even looking at Ivy as she protests behind me.
Will closes his eyes and curses under his breath but obeys my command. He slips his arm through Ivy’s, trying to get her to retreat inside, but she grabs a handful of my shirt, attempting to push me out of the way so she can get to Lauren.
“Eric, stop! You don’t know what you’re doing,” she cries, desperately trying to hang on to me. Will lifts her off feet but she continues to struggle against him. “I’m begging you, please don’t do this. Please!”
“Get her upstairs!” I roar as her nails dig into my skin.
She’s nearly hysterical, and I don’t like it. She’s gotten herself too upset over this. It’s the last thing I wanted for her right now. She fights Will with all her might, and he ends up tossing her over his shoulder as she continues to scratch and claw at him.
“She’s going to tell you that Cassidy was cheating on you!” Ivy shouts before Will has a chance to close the door. She’s panting in his arms. Tears are streaming down her face. But for a minute, my mind goes blank. I know she’s in distress, but all I can focus on are Lauren’s red-painted lips as they curl into a hideous smile. This can’t be happening. Not again.
“You beat me to the punch once again, Ivy. Bravo!” Lauren smirks as Ivy pounds Will with her fists to let her down.
“Get out,” I say, my voice deadly.
“I guess my work here is done,” Lauren says, calmly lowering her sunglasses onto her nose. “Ivy, I’ll be in touch to schedule our next writing session. We’re going to have to flesh out all of the juicy details of Cassidy’s affair. Can’t wait. Oh and Eric, if you think I’m lying, which I’m not, you might want to talk to Ben’s brother. I’m sure he could provide you with a ton of information about their secret trysts. Like I said, fascinating stuff. It’s going to make such a great movie, don’t you think?”
“I’m going to count to ten and you better get the hell off my property!” I completely lose it, advancing on Lauren until she stumbles backward, gripping the railing before making her way down the porch steps. I chase her to the door of her car, standing there until she gets in and starts the ignition. It’s taking all of my willpower not to physically pull her out the vehicle, but somehow I restrain myself. But she still has to have the last word.
Sliding down the driver’s side window, she calls out, “Oh and Will? You might want to change your shirt. You have blood all over it.” She peals away, but not before I manage to pound on the hood.
Rage is coursing through my veins as I raise my eyes to the porch in fear. Ivy has gone completely still as Will lowers her carefully to the ground. Lauren was right. His shirt is covered in Ivy’s blood as it continues to trickle down her legs. For a split second, I think I’m going to collapse, but somehow I find my feet and clumsily charge up the steps, my heart pounding.
“Will, call an ambulance!” I shout over Ivy’s muffled cries as she begins to shake. “Ivy, it’s okay. I’ve got you, baby. Just relax. We’ll get you to the hospital and everything’s going to be all right. Take some deep breaths for me. That’s it.”
I gently lift her into my arms, following Will into the house. I rush into the kitchen, laying her on the table. Frantically, I root through a drawer for a clean towel before returning to Ivy’s side. I’m terrified of what I’m going to have to do next.
“Ivy, honey? Open your legs for me, okay? I’m going to have to try and stop the bleeding until they get here, all right?” I swallow hard as it turns into a steady flow, dripping onto the floor. She complies, her breathing ragged. There’s so much blood. I bite my lip hard. There’s no way she’s still pregnant. There are thick clots on her upper thighs, and I try not to look as I apply pressure to the towel to stem the flow.
“They’re on their way!” Will cries, running into the kitchen. He stops dead when he sees just how bad things are. “Umm…do you need me to do anything else?” He runs his hands through his hair, not even realizing they’re covered in Ivy’s blood. It’s everywhere—on him, on me, on her.
“No, just get out!” I yell at him, and he hastily departs.
This isn’t something he should be a part of. There’s no place for him here. He brought this to our doorstep. We were done with Lauren and he had to bring her back into our lives. I should’ve never encouraged Ivy to work on that damn screenplay. Just look at the havoc it’s caused. It’s probably going to cost us our child.
Ivy’s face is white as her eyes roam across the ceiling, guessing the magnitude of the situation. She’s conscious but she’s miles away from me. Her body’s rejecting what our love created. If only she’d stayed in bed. Why the hell did she have to come to the door? At this point, I don’t care who Cassidy slept with. It’s not important. That part of my life is over whether I like it or not. This second chance is what I dreamed of, hoped and prayed for on my knees, and now it’s being taken away from me too. A shudder runs through me as I try to contain my emotions. I can’t break down in front of her. I have to be strong, just until I can be alone. She didn’t have to protect me from Cassidy. She already saved me from her.
I hear the wail of the ambulance pull up as Will directs them inside. I pray that somehow it’s not too late. Somehow they’ll be able to save our unborn child. Ivy shouldn’t have to go through something like this. I’ve already experienced the loss of a child. I know what it feels like, and I should’ve done everything in my power to spare her such a fate. I should’ve put my foot down. I should not have let her go to L.A. I should’ve slammed the door in Lauren’s face when I saw her coming.
But now it’s too late.
I watch helplessly as the paramedics transfer her body onto a stretcher and rush her out of the kitchen. I follow behind them blindly, not even reaching for a coat and forgetting about my wallet and keys. My only thought is about her and how I’m going to get her through this.
Chapter Sixteen
Ivy
My baby. My sweet, precious baby…
My fingers find the corner of the hospital bed sheet as I stare at a pumpkin decoration hanging on the wall. Oh yeah, today’s Halloween. I almost forgot. With everything going on, I lost track of time. I remember thinking about what I was going to dress the baby up as next year. I’ve always loved those fuzzy lamb costumes. But now there might not even be a baby. I scrunch up my face to keep from crying. I don’t know how there can be. I lost so much blood.
After being rushed to the city hospital twenty miles away, the doctor stemmed the bleeding and conducted a barrage of tests. Eric is sitting motionless beside me as we wait to hear the results. It doesn’t look good. One of the nurses even gasped when she was cleaning me up.
Eric isn’t saying much either. Besides repeatedly asking if I’m okay, he remains pretty stoic. This has to be hell for him to have to go through this again. I’m young. I’m strong. I’m healthy. I can’t understand why this is happening. I hate not having control over my own body. I didn’t mean to get so upset this morning, but I couldn’t let Eric find out about Cassidy. It was up to me to protect him, and I failed. And now he’s shutting himself off from me. I can feel it. And I’m powerless to do anything about it in this state.
I study his profile. He has a far away look in his eyes like he’s zoned out to where I can’t reach him. I thought he’d be angrier, but he’s not. He seems more defeated, like someone took the wind out of his sails. It pains me to see him so listless, so lethargic. It’s like he’s closing in on himself, his spirit drained. And it scares me because this must have been how he looked after Cassidy died. Those months when he shut out the world and retreated into his anguish. I don’t want that to happen again. I’d do anything to bring him back to me—to restore his hope, to make things okay. I just don’t know how.
If he’s shutting me out, then I have to make amends. I put our baby in jeopardy by stepping onto that porch to confront Lauren. I was aware that what I was doing was dangerous. I should have stayed in bed. But I didn’t want her to be the one to tell him about Cassidy. He needed to hear it from me. I would’ve been able to find the words to soften the blow. Instead, Lauren ambushed him.
The whole thing just makes me so mad. I could have prevented this, but I didn’t think she’d act that fast. We were only home a couple of hours before she went on the attack. Sure, she’s vindictive, but she’s not crazy. She plans her every move well in advance. She could’ve tortured me for months, hanging it over my head. But she didn’t. She struck hard and she struck first, not her usual approach.
She must really have a lot to lose. It’s the last card she has to play and she dealt it early in the game. She’s desperate to maintain some kind of tie to Eric, but he’ll never forgive her for this, especially if I end up losing the baby. What possible satisfaction could she get out of it? I can’t believe she’s that sadistic that she would take such pleasure in our pain.
But forget about Lauren and her twisted schemes. I need to get Eric to talk to me. He’s way too quiet, and I’m worried about him. I have to find out what sort of thoughts are running through his head. He can’t keep everything locked inside. As far as our baby is concerned, we’re in this together. He can’t shoulder the burden alone. We have to be there for each other, not run in opposite directions.
“Eric?” I shift my head on the pillow, my eyes pleading with him to look at me.
“Not now, Ivy,” he reprimands softly.
“But we have to talk about this,” I insist, pushing myself up into a sitting position.
“Lie back down.” He gets to his feet, his hands immediately on my shoulders, urging me back under the covers. “You have to stay calm. Don’t go getting yourself all upset again.”
“But you have to talk to me. You can’t keep on sitting there like this isn’t happening,” I protest as he pulls the blanket up to my chin, tucking me in.
“Let’s wait and hear what the doctor says before we start jumping to conclusions and getting all excited.” His hand caresses my hair, giving me hope that his gruff exterior isn’t directed at me.
“But if—” I almost utter Lauren’s name, but his penetrating gaze stops me.
“Don’t, Ivy. Just don’t,” he warns me before retaking his seat. Placing his head in his hands, he sighs deeply. “Not here, at least. I want you to focus on yourself and not worry about all this other stuff, okay?”
“I didn’t want her to be the one to tell you—” I try again, but I fall silent when the door swings open and the doctor enters, examining my chart.
“Well, Miss Thompson. It seems like you are one lucky lady.” I didn’t catch his name before. I was too distracted by the transvaginal ultrasound he was conducting. But his name tag says Patel.
“I’m still pregnant?” I ask, my voice just above a whisper.
“You are,” Dr. Patel beams at me.
Eric jumps to his feet, and it’s kind of a funny moment as he wraps the tiny man in a bear hug, lifting him off the ground. Flustered, he shuffles his paperwork, trying to regain his bearings after Eric puts him down.
“Oh, Doc, I’m so sorry. It’s just—” Realizing his overabundance of enthusiasm, Eric quickly starts to apologize.
“It’s quite all right,” the doctor says, straightening his glasses, already endearing me to the warm tones of his Indian accent. “It is a happy day, but we’re not in the clear yet.”
“What do you mean?” Eric questions, his demeanor abruptly changing.
“All things considered, I detected a faint rhythm that could be the baby’s heartbeat, but it was weak and I wasn’t absolutely certain.” Dr. Patel holds out his hands, sticking the chart under his arm. “However, I just got the results of the hCG levels back from the lab and they’re normal, indicating that the fetus is still alive. Miss Thompson did not miscarry.”
“That’s wonderful news,” I respond breathlessly, still not quite believing it.
“But when will you be able to check the heartbeat again?” Eric brushes by the bit of good news, eager to know more.
“Possibly as soon as next week,” Dr. Patel grins encouragingly.
“But you’re sure the baby’s still in there?” Eric questions, placing his hand upon my belly.
“Yes, hormones don’t lie,” Dr. Patel responds, winking at me.
“But what’s causing all of the bleeding and why does it keep happening? Is the baby in some kind of trouble?” Eric asks, not taking his eyes off the doctor as I cover his hand with mine.
“Worst case scenario? It could be a placental abruption,” Dr. Patel answers.
“What is that?” I prod, squeezing Eric’s fingers. It doesn’t sound good.
“There might be a large blood clot at the edge of the placenta, but I’m not sure. We’re going to have to do more ultrasounds as the baby grows in order to be certain,” he advises, glancing at me then at Eric. “But that’s only if the bleeding continues.”
“And if it does?” Eric takes a gulp of air, trying to maintain his composure.
“We’ll monitor the flow and if it’s accompanied by any contractions. My main concern is that I don’t want the placenta to detach completely before we’re able to deliver the baby,” Dr. Patel explains. “If we have to do an emergency C-section, I wouldn’t want it to happen earlier than twenty-two weeks.”
“But what about Ivy? Is her life in danger going forward with this pregnancy?” Eric’s leg starts to twitch, shaking the side of the bed.
“I’m not going to sugarcoat things, Mr. Young. If the placenta detaches while the baby is in utero, both the mother and the baby will be at risk.” Dr. Patel steps forward to place a hand on each of our shoulders. “From this point forward, until I have a clearer picture of what’s going on, I’m going to order that Ivy goes on pelvic rest and stay away from any heavy lifting.”
“Pelvic rest? Does that mean what I think it does?” I frown, waiting for him to confirm my suspicions.
“No sex,” he says, pointing his finger first at me and then at Eric. “You’re to refrain from any activity that might irritate or infect the cervix or the uterus—anything that might cause any unnecessary trauma. No more baths. No more exercising. I’d like you to relax with your feet up as much as possible. While I’m not restricting you to complete bed rest, I don’t want you moving around unless you absolutely have to.”
“No sex?” I mutter, ignoring everything else and focusing on the thing I can’t be without.
“Ivy!” Eric reprimands, obviously embarrassed.
“I’m afraid not,” Dr. Patel chuckles while checking his watch.
“Damn,” I groan, sinking back into the pillows.
Eric shakes his head at me but doesn’t say anything.
“I have marked here that Dr. Teller is your OB-GYN. But since I was the perinatologist on call today, if you would like me to take over your case, I would be more than happy to do so.” Dr. Patel retrieves a business card from his front pocket and begins writing on the back. “I’m giving you the number of my pager so you can reach me at any time. I would feel better knowing that you remained my patient because I specialize in this area, and I want to make sure you receive the kind of care you need.”
Eric’s eyes meet mine and I know we’re on the same page.
“Yes, Doctor. We would like that very much.” I nod as he hands Eric his card.
“Excellent! When you get home, call my office and we’ll set you up with a follow-up appointment for next week. And we’ll listen to the baby’s heartbeat. How does that sound?” Dr. Patel grins, clicking his pen.
“That sounds great, Doc. Thank you.” Eric gets off the bed to shake his hand.
“And if the bleeding gets to be too much, if it fills a pad completely or if it starts and it won’t stop, come straight to the emergency room and call me once you get here, okay?” Dr. Patel asks, encompassing us in his steady gaze. “Until then, get some rest and take it easy. No stress. No worries. Think positive. This baby is a fighter, a champion. I can’t wait to bring it into the world.”
His remark causes both Eric and me to smile as he steps out of the room and moves on to the next patient.
“I really like him,” I exclaim, releasing the breath I didn’t even realize I was holding.
“Yeah, me too,” Eric says, dragging his chair closer to the bed.
“Except for the no sex part.” I can’t resist teasing him.
“Ivy—”
“I know…I know. But consider yourself warned. After this baby is born, you won’t be able to keep my hands off you.” I grin at him, trying to make light of the situation.
For a moment, he doesn’t respond. Instead, he lifts my hand to his lips, kissing it as he closes his eyes. He knits his brow as he draws in a ragged breath, and I see how much he’s taking what the doctor said to heart. I can’t have him thinking this way. I can’t.
