AllFreeNovel
Share Us
When I reach the kitchen, Nurse Marley is seated at the island feeding Isa a bottle, and Ned is seated next to her nursing a cup of coffee. She’s clad in yoga pants and a hoodie, much like the way she was dressed when I first met her. Ned’s dressed in the same suit he wore yesterday, except it’s rumpled and his tie is loose. Plus, his dark hair is mussed. For sure, he slept on the couch.
“Good morning,” I say weakly, interrupting their animated conversation. What have they been talking about?
At the sound of my voice, they look up at the same time at me.
“Ava, are you alright?” asks Nurse Marley, concern in her voice.
I fight back tears. “I think I may have some kind of stomach bug.”
Ned balks. “Sweetheart, please don’t come too close. I can’t afford to get sick.”
I want to die. Or at least curl up into a ball on the kitchen floor.
My voice quivers. “Isa has her first wellness visit with her pediatrician this morning.”
“At what time?” asks Nurse Marley.
“Eight thirty in Beverly Hills. I don’t think I should go with her. I may give her something.” Truth is, I’m physically and emotionally not up for it. I look at my husband imploringly. “Ned, can you take her?”
“I would, but how am I going to get her there? It’s not like any of my cars is designed for infant-travel. Nor is yours.”
He’s right. The Audi convertible he generously bought me when we announced our engagement is not fit for a baby either. Plus, I have no clue where our infant car seat is—yes, it’s somewhere among the mountain of baby gifts stacked in my garage but where? Luckily, a lovely nurse who had given birth to her son a few months earlier gave me a ride home from the hospital.
“Can you move the appointment?” Ned asks after a sip of coffee.
“No, and my doctor said it was important for her to be seen by her pediatrician as soon as possible, especially after her difficult birth.”
I tighten the belt of my bathrobe, nearing tears, when Nurse Marley pipes in.
“Ava, I’d be glad to take her. And my car is equipped with a car seat. I just need the address.”
“Really?” I squeak out.
“Of course! You rest, you poor thing.”
Fifteen minutes later, she’s almost out the door with my baby swaddled in her arms. And my freshly showered husband, in a change of clothing, is accompanying her. His briefcase in one hand, a baby bag in the other.
“Call me after the visit,” I tell them, pleased that my husband is taking an interest in his daughter at last.
Feeling a little stronger and less anxious, I clean up the kitchen, loading coffee cups into the dishwasher and sweeping coffee grinds into the trash. When I pull open the trash compactor, my eyes grow wide. A dozen now-tattered white roses are scattered on top.
My blood runs cold. Where did they come from, and how did they get here?
FOURTEEN
NED
The doctor’s office is smaller than I imagined. And more crowded.
Located in the heart of Beverly Hills on Bedford Drive, it’s filled with young moms, wailing babies, and boisterous toddlers who are occupying themselves in a corner play area. Half the kids are coughing or sneezing, green snot dripping from their red, runny noses. Why didn’t I bring a mask? Just what I need…the flu.
After signing in and presenting my insurance cards, I find two vacant side-by- side seats. Marley sits down beside me, the baby in her arms, the car seat carrier and baby bag by her feet on the laminated floor. An attractive woman sitting next to Marley turns her attention away from her little boy who’s quietly coloring at the kids’ table, and glances down at Isa.
“My, my, what a beautiful baby,” she coos. “Such a gorgeous cross between the two of you.”
I’m at a loss for words. Marley answers for the two of us. “Why, thank you!”
Before I can respond, a nurse emerges from a door to the right and calls out our names. Mr. and Mrs. Sinclair. We stand, Marley gathering the carrier and me the baby bag, and meet her. Clad in duck–print scrubs and holding a clipboard, the woman flashes us a smile and introduces herself. Her name is Lourdes.
