Authors: Elizabeth Kelly
“Stop pushing, Lily!” The doctor suddenly
shouted and Lily collapsed against him again, panting heavily as the doctor
looked at the screen that monitored the baby’s heartbeat.
She had a worried look on her face and as
she stood and approached Lily, Logan could feel his heart thudding wildly in
his chest.
“Lily, look at me.”
Lily turned her gaze wearily to the
doctor. “What?”
“The baby’s not moving down the birth canal
the way she should. Her heartbeat is way higher than it should be and I’m
afraid she’s in distress. I’m worried that the cord might be wrapped around
her neck. I think we need to do a C-section.”
“What?” Lily gave her a look of panic and
Dr. Stevenson squeezed her shoulder soothingly.
“I think it’s best for both you and the
baby if we do an emergency caesarean.”
“Are you sure?” Lily whispered.
“Yes, I am.” The doctor replied firmly.
Lily stared up at Logan. Her gaze was wide
and frightened and he bent his head and kissed her softly on the mouth. “It’ll
be okay, sweetheart.”
She nodded and turned back to the doctor.
“Okay.”
“Good.” The doctor turned to the nurse.
“Let’s get her prepped for surgery.”
She eyed Logan. “Mr. Anderson, you can
wait in the waiting room and we’ll let you know – “
“No!” Lily shouted immediately. “I want
him in there with me.”
She squeezed Logan’s hand and gave him a
look of panic. “Don’t leave me, Logan.”
“I’m not going anywhere, sweetheart.” He
said quickly. “I promise.”
She nodded with relief and squeezed his
hand as Logan gave her a look of confidence that he didn’t feel. “Everything
will be fine. You’ll be holding your baby girl before you know it.”
* * *
“Logan?”
Logan looked up from the vending machine
when he heard Janet’s voice. She was hurrying towards him. Rob, carrying
Hazel in his arms, was right behind her and Logan smiled at them both.
“How is she?”
“She’s good. Both her and the baby are
fine.” He took Hazel from Rob and kissed her soft cheek.
“Hi, baby bug.”
“Hi, daddy.” Hazel whispered. “Is Lily
okay?”
“Yes. She had to have surgery to have the
baby, but both her and the baby are doing just fine.” He picked up the cup of
coffee from the vending machine and sipped at it, making a face at its thick,
bitter taste.
“Can I see her?”
“Yes, but just for a few minutes. Lily’s
very tired and she needs her rest.”
“Okay.”
He handed Hazel to Janet. “She’s in room
303. Tell her I’ll be up in a minute, okay?”
“Sure.” Janet squeezed Hazel. “C’mon,
baby bug. Let’s go see Lily and the baby.”
She carried Hazel down the hall as Logan
sat down in one of the hard plastic chairs in the lobby. He set the coffee
down on the side table and buried his face in his hands.
“You okay, man?” Rob had sat down beside
him and he rested his hand on Logan’s shoulder.
Logan nodded. “Yeah, I’m good.”
“Are you sure?”
He nodded again. “Yeah. The surgery went
really well and Lily’s okay.”
“So, what’s wrong?”
He shook his head and then glanced up at
Rob. “Lily asked me to stay with her and I said of course. I was there when
they pulled the baby out and…”
He sighed deeply and looked at his
trembling hands. “Erin wouldn’t even let me in the room when she had Hazel.
Do you remember?”
“I remember.” Rob said quietly.
“I was Hazel’s father and I didn’t get to
see her being born or cut the cord because Erin was a selfish, cold bitch.”
“She was.” Rob agreed.
“Lily not only wanted me in there with her
but when the surgeon thought I was the baby’s father and asked if I wanted to
cut the cord, Lily let me.”
Logan swallowed thickly and stared at Rob.
“She’s so beautiful, Rob. She looks just like Lily. She has thick, dark hair
and a perfect round head and when Lily was holding her, the baby opened her
eyes and she – she looked at me.”
Rob squeezed his shoulder and Logan shook
his head in wonderment. “I fell in love with her right then and there.”
Rob didn’t say anything and Logan gave him
a quick look. “The baby, I mean.”
“Yeah, I know you meant the baby.” Rob
replied. He paused and then clapped Logan on the back. “It’s certainly not
Lily you’re talking about. You’ve been in love with her for the last three
months.”
Logan opened his mouth to protest and Rob
laughed loudly when nothing came out. “C’mon, man. Your woman’s waiting for
you.”
“Rachel is a beautiful name.” Janet smiled
at her before staring down at the tiny baby in her arms. “A beautiful name for
a beautiful baby.”
“Thank you.” Lily said softly as she
cuddled Hazel on the hospital bed.
“How much did she weigh?”
“Seven pounds, two ounces.”
“That’s a good weight. Congratulations,
honey.”
“Thanks, Janet.” Lily kissed the top of
Hazel’s head.
“How are you feeling?”
“A little sore but not too bad.”
“Good. Any idea how long you have to stay
in the hospital?”
Lily shrugged. “No more than a couple of
days, I hope.”
“I want you to come home tonight.” Hazel
suddenly said.
“I can’t, honey. I have to stay a little
longer and then I’ll be home.”
The little girl started to pout and Lily
hugged her closer. “It won’t be too long, honey.”
Rob and Logan entered the room and Rob bent
over the baby in Janet’s arms. He brushed his fingers across her cheek before
turning to Lily. “Congrats, Lily. She’s gorgeous, just like her mama.”
“Thanks, Rob.” Lily smiled at him as Logan
took her hand and squeezed it briefly before ruffling Hazel’s hair.
“Do you want to hold the baby, Hazel?”
Lily asked.
The little girl nodded and Logan eagerly eased
the sleeping baby out of Janet’s arms and cradled her close to his chest. He
kissed the top of her soft head.
“Sit up straight, baby bug.” He
instructed.
Hazel sat up in the bed and straightened
her legs. Logan carefully transferred the baby to her lap as Lily put her arm
around Hazel and helped support her head. Logan squeezed in next to Lily and
the three of them stared down at the baby.
“She’s wrinkly.” Hazel announced.
Lily laughed. “Yes, she’s a little bit
wrinkled. She’ll fill out.”
Hazel continued to study her for a moment.
“She’s okay, I guess.”
“Hazel.” Logan chided gently as Lily
laughed again.
Hazel glanced up at Lily. “Do you love her
more than me?”
Lily shook her head. “No, honey. I love
you both equally.”
“Okay.” Satisfied, Hazel looked down at
the baby again.
There was the quiet click of a camera and
Logan and Lily looked up to see Janet with her camera in her hand.
“Sorry.” She grinned at them. “I can’t
help it.”
Lily smiled at her as Hazel continued to
look at the baby. “Hi, baby.”
“Her name is Rachel, baby bug.” Logan
said.
“Hi Rachel.” Hazel bent and kissed the
baby’s head before looking at Logan. “Can we go home now, daddy?”
“You’re going to stay at Aunt Janet and
Uncle Rob’s house tonight, baby bug. I’m going to stay at the hospital with
Lily.”
Hazel’s face crumpled. “I don’t want to
stay there. I want to stay with you, daddy.”
“Hazel – “
“That’s fine, honey.” Lily interrupted
Logan. “Daddy will go home with you tonight.”
Logan frowned at her and she gave him a
quick shake of her head.
Janet stood up and held out her hand.
“Hazel, why don’t you come with Uncle Rob and I back to the car. We’ll grab
your jacket and your dad can meet us down there after he says goodbye to Lily.”
“Sure!” Hazel said happily.
Logan lifted Rachel out of Hazel’s arms and
held her as Hazel hugged and kissed Lily. “Bye, Lily. I’ll see you later,
alligator.”
“In a while, crocodile.” Lily smiled at
her and patted her bottom as she squirmed off the bed and took Janet’s hand.
“Congratulations again, Lily. I’ll pop by tomorrow,
okay?” Janet said.
“Yes. Thank you, Janet.” Lily reached out
and squeezed the woman’s hand and Rob gave her a brief wave before they left
with Hazel.
Logan was still sitting beside her and he
was staring at the baby in his arms with wonderment. “Hello, Rachel.” He
whispered. “I’m so glad you’re here.”
Lily blinked back the tears as Logan kissed
Rachel’s forehead before glancing at her.
“Lily, I think I should stay with you and
Rachel tonight. You’ve had surgery and you might need my help in the night.”
She smiled at him. “I think it’s better
for Hazel if you go home with her. She’s already worried and a little
jealous. Let’s not make that worse, okay?”
“Yeah, you’re right.” He sighed. “I’ll
take her out for supper and maybe ice cream. She’d like that.”
“She would.” Lily smiled again at him.
“Logan, thank you.”
“For what?” He gave her a surprised look.
“For everything. For staying with me, for
giving me a place to live and a job. I appreciate it so much.”
“Of course.” He hesitated and then leaned
in and kissed her lightly on the mouth. “If you need anything, just call my
cell. It doesn’t matter what time it is.”
“I will.” Lily promised. “Now go home and
get some sleep, okay?”
He nodded and kissed Rachel again before
handing her back to Lily. “I’ll see you tomorrow, baby bee.”
A small grin crossed Lily’s face. “Baby
bee?”
He flushed. “Sorry.”
“It’s fine.” She smiled at him and he couldn’t
resist leaning in and kissing her a final time.
“Promise you’ll call me if you need me.”
“I promise.”
“Hazel and I will be back first thing in
the morning.”
“I know. I’ll see you then.”
He slid off the bed and hesitated. “Are
you sure, Lily?”
She nodded. “Yes. I’ll be fine and I’ll
call you if I need anything.”
He took a deep breath. “Okay, see you in
the morning.”
“Good night, Logan.”
* * *
Lily stared fixedly at the phone in her
hand. She had just finished feeding Rachel and the nurse had taken the baby
back to the nursery. She had hoped that Rachel could stay with her but because
of the C-section and without anyone to stay with her, they wouldn’t allow it.
The nurse had promised to bring Rachel back for her next feeding and after
kissing the baby’s soft head, Lily had nodded and watched them take her away.
She sighed and quickly dialed the number
before she could change her mind. Her fingers twisted nervously in her lap as
the phone rang and she cleared her throat as Regina’s familiar voice said
hello.
“Hi Regina. It’s Lily.”
“Hi Lily.” Regina said warmly. “How are
you?”
“I’m good. I – I just wanted to let you
know that I had the baby.”
“You did? That’s wonderful! How are you
feeling?”
“Good. I had to have a C-section but both
the baby and I are doing just fine.”
“That’s really great. Thank you for
calling us.”
“You’re welcome.”
Regina paused. “How much did she weigh?”
“Seven pounds, two ounces.”
“That’s a good weight.”
“Yes. She’s very healthy, she has all her
fingers and all her toes and she has dark hair.”
“Good.” Regina said happily. “What did
you name her?”
“Her name is Rachel. Rachel Annabelle.”
There was silence on the other end of the
phone and after a moment, Lily said, “Regina? Are you still there?”
There was loud sniffing and then Regina
cleared her throat roughly. “Yes, I’m still here. Thank you, Lily. I can’t
tell you how much it means to me that you used the name Annabelle.”
“You’re welcome.” Lily replied softly.
There was another hesitation and then
Regina said, “Could we see her?”
Lily hesitated. “Yes, but can you give me
a few days? I’m still in the hospital but once I’m home and settled I’ll give
you a call and you can drop by and visit. Okay?”
“Yes, of course.” The relief in Regina’s
voice was undeniable. “Thank you so much, Lily.”
“You’re her grandparents. You deserve the
right to meet her.” Lily answered. “Listen, I should go. I’ll call you in a
few days, okay?”
“Of course. We’ll talk to you soon, Lily.”
“Bye, Regina.”
Lily hung up the phone before lying back in
the bed and staring up at the ceiling. Despite Logan’s protests, she knew she
was doing the right thing.