The Baby Doctor

by Bobby Hutchinson

  Luke was watching her and frowning. “Stop it, Morgan. It’s not your fault any of this happened. You know as well as I do that if patients want to hide symptoms, they can. We’re not magicians. She should have told you she was ill.” He was saying the right things, but they didn’t ease the guilt that ate at her. Nothing did, not his arms or his words, and she couldn’t even stand still, she was so agitated. She stalked across the room, back and forth, her arms clasped across her middle, trying to ease the sickness in her gut.

  “That’s not all, either. I’m pretty sure it was Dylan who broke into the house tonight. I think Tessa’s been seeing him again without telling me.” She explained about the key and India’s fur coats and jewelry. “He’s the only one who could have known about all that. Oh, Luke, I feel like such a total failure in every way.”

  The laugh she tried for failed. “There I was, telling you what you were doing wrong with Sophie, and my own family is falling apart around my ears. Tessa told me tonight she wants to move out. India didn’t even tell me she was sick or that she’d sold her trailer in Florida and planned to move in with me.”

  She was becoming more and more upset “Then this thing with Dylan. It makes me so...so...” She borrowed one of his favorite oaths. “So bloody mad.” She was trembling. “And worst of all, there’s you. I miss being with you so much.”

  She shook her head, and utter misery overwhelmed her.

  “I just don’t know what to do, Luke. I feeless if I’m about to fly apart, and I’m so terribly ashamed of myself.”

  Luke got to his feet and took her hand, tugging her toward the door. “Come. Come with me. There’s something I want to show you.” She objected, but he half pulled her down the corridor to the elevator, not answering her questions about where they were going.

  He got off on the maternity ward and led her like a child down the quiet corridor. The nurse at the station looked up, recognized them and went back to her charts.

  Luke opened the door to the newborn nursery. He bent over the first bassinet he came to, deftly scooped the sleeping baby out and gently placed it in Morgan’s arms.

  Chapter Eighteen

  Confused, she automatically accepted the blanket wrapped bundle, cradling it against her and frowning up at him. “I don’t get it, Luke. Whose baby is this? What’s going on?”

  He crossed his arms on his chest and leaned back against the wall. “I learned this when I was a student. The nursing matron on Maternity was a regular battle-ax. She had all of us interns intimidated, although we pretended otherwise. One night she was giving one of the other fellows holy hell over some breach of her rule book, and he broke down in front of her and cried. It turned out his wife had left him that day for another man.

  “Matron never said another word, just hustled him into the newborn nursery and plunked a baby in his arms and ordered him to stay there and hold it until he felt better. He told me afterward that it worked. It put everything back into perspective for him. I still do it myself when I get desperate. I sneak up here and just hold a baby for a while.” He smiled at her, his eyes filled with such kindness and compassion her heart seemed to melt.

  “It always makes me feel better. Babies are very calming, and I need to be able to talk to you without having you run off on me.”

  Morgan looked down into the flower face of the child in her arms. The baby yawned and stretched, banging a minuscule hand against her chest. In spite of herself, she smiled, and with the smile came the release of the tears she’d been using ferocious anger to avoid.

  She sniffed once and then again, but they poured down her cheeks in a torrent, and Luke took a handful of tissues from a nearby cart and gently dabbed first at her face, then at the baby’s. “We don’t want to drown the poor wee fellow,” he teased gently. He fished another tissue out of the box and held it to her nose. “Blow,” he ordered.

  She did, and in companionable silence, they stood for a while, Luke lounging against the wall, Morgan unconsciously rocking the baby.

  “I’m in love with you, Morgan.” His words were soft and low, so unexpected she almost dropped the bundle she held. She opened her mouth to say she loved him, too, but he held up a cautionary hand. “I’m in love with you, but I can’t promise you more than that, not yet. I want to ask you to marry me, but the timing is all wrong.”

  She swallowed hard and waited, speechless for once, and he sighed and rubbed his eyes and then gave her a sad, crooked smile. “You have serious problems to work out with Tessa and your mother, and I have a lot of work to do in the coming months to get to know my daughter. I’ve begun, but it’s going to take time and energy. I’ll probably be a grandparent before I’ve learned how to be a father.”

  He moved closer to her, stroking a finger down her cheek, outlining her mouth with his thumb. “You see, my darling, loving is easy for you, but I’m just beginning to realize how hard it is for me to trust, or to accept love and give it freely. The things you said to me before you walked out the other night made me angry, and they hurt like hell, but they needed saying.”

  She started to apologize for hurting him, but he shook his head and grimaced. “They were all true. I’ve pretty much ignored Sophie since my wife’s death, and when she became pregnant, I handled the whole thing as badly as possible.”

  Morgan leaped to his defense. “But it must have been awful for you, losing your wife.” She didn’t realize how wistful her voice sounded. “Sophie’s told me how much you loved her, how happy you all were together.”

  “I’m glad Sophie remembers it that way.” He shook his head. “It’s not the way it was, though.” He told her about Deborah. “The marriage I believed to be reasonably good had broken down, and I hadn’t even noticed.”

  Morgan’s face registered the shock she felt. How could any woman married to Luke even consider another man?

  “I raged and blamed her,” he went on. “I was angry and bitter for a long time, and when I got beyond that and took a look at myself, I began to doubt I could ever sustain any sort of love relationship. Certainly I’d failed with marriage, and with Sophie. It wasn’t until I made love to you that first time that I began to see what had been missing in my marriage, why I’d put my energy and most of my time into my work. The feelings I had for you scared the hell out of me, because I’d never felt anything remotely like them before.”

  “Me, either.” Morgan’s heart swelled with love for him.

  “I don’t know what the future will bring, but if you’re willing, I want to start over, Morgan. I want you and me to be part of each other’s families this time. I’d like to get to know Tessa. I want you to be Sophie’s MD, and meet Jason and his family. I’d like to help you any way I can with your mother.”

  It was what she’d longed for, but when she thought of Tessa and Dylan and India, she knew it wasn’t going to be easy.

  “You sure you know what you’re getting into?” She was teasing him, but she was warning him, too. She was also trying to figure out what else this new beginning might involve. “Luke.” She felt her face getting warm, and she bent her head over the baby, feeling the blush rise to her hairline. “What about the houseboat?”

  He tipped her chin up so he could look at her. His green eyes twinkled, and this time his smile was wide. “I think we deserve one little secret, don’t you?” He leaned over the baby to kiss her.

  After a while Morgan drew away long enough to lay the warm bundle back in the bassinet. The baby had helped, but knowing Luke loved her was what had eased the heartache. Her anger was gone, and she felt a new sense of hope and optimism as they went hand in hand back down to ICU.

  They stayed at St. Joe’s another hour, and when it seemed that India’s condition would remain relatively stable, Luke drove Morgan home through the deserted streets of the city. Morgan saw everything through a blurry fog of weariness. It had been a long and difficult night, and it wasn’t over yet. She still had to talk to Tessa and decide what to do about her suspicions about Dylan Vogl
er.

  She fell asleep on Luke’s shoulder before they’d gone many blocks, waking when the car stopped in front of his house.

  Sophie and Tessa must have been watching for them. They were waiting in the entrance hall, still in pajamas.

  “How’s India? Is...is she gonna be all right?” Tessa’s face was pinched and white, and it was obvious Sophie had been crying.

  “Is she gonna die?” Sophie’s mouth trembled, and Luke put an arm around each girl as Morgan did her best to explain India’s condition.

  “No one knows for certain if she’ll come through this.” She steeled herself to tell them what she knew to be true. “Even if she does, she won’t have very long. Her heart is wearing out. She must have been sick for a long time, and hitting her head the way she did has been very hard on her.”

  The girls exchanged glances.

  “There’s something we’ve gotta tell you, and it’s real hard to say,” Tessa burst out, twisting out from under Luke’s arm and moving away from them.

  Sophie swallowed hard and turned agonized gray eyes up to her father. “It’s our fault India got hurt, Daddy.”

  “What do you mean?” Luke frowned at her.

  Tessa wrapped her arms around her thin torso. Morgan could see that she was trembling. “It wasn’t Sophie, it was me. She only came along because I kept naggin’ her.” In a gush of words, she told them about skipping the Monday meeting and going to meet Dylan and Brody. “I bragged to them about India’s stuff, the jewelry and fur coats and things. I was...” She gulped and stared up at the ceiling. “I was a little drunk. Dylan had some vodka.”

  She saw the horror on Luke’s face and hurriedly added, “Sophie didn’t have a drop, just me. I even told them we were gonna be at the play. I said all of us were going. And Dylan knew about the key in the backyard, I used it once when he was with me.” Her troubled gaze met Morgan’s. “You figured that out. And Sophie and I both know for sure it was them that did it But it wasn’t Sophie’s fault it was mine.” Her tone was vehement.

  Sophie shook her head impatiently. “I told you before, Tessa, I’ve got a brain. I can think for myself. You didn’t tie me up and drag me along. I’m just as much to blame as you. I...I wanted to make Jason jealous, and I was really mad at Daddy.” Her gaze skittered to her father’s face, and despite her brave words, Morgan saw the apprehension in her eyes.

  Luke was staring down at her, and it was impossible to tell from his expression what he was feeling or how he was going to react.

  Morgan could feel every nerve in her body tense. Only hours ago, Luke had said he wanted them to share their problems. He loved her, she knew deep in her soul that he did, but that was the easy part. This was where things became much more difficult, this would be an indication whether or not they could ever truly be a family.

  Everything in her seemed to stop for a moment, waiting for the rest of her life to take shape.

  The room was very still all of a sudden.

  Luke’s first reaction was anger, swift and familiar, burning like a fiery chain that twisted itself around his chest. The very thought of Sophie being with Dylan and that other thug, Brody, made him tremble with rage.

  She’d lied to him just when he was trying to be tolerant, to trust her. He despised being lied to. He’d known all along Tessa was a bad influence. He should never have allowed...

  He looked up and saw Morgan watching him. He looked at Tessa, and then at Sophie, and he saw the fearful expressions on their young faces.

  All of a sudden, something inside of him ground to a halt. Everything he wanted was in this room. The key to happiness was here, and it was his to turn. He could open the door wide or lock it forever. The choice was his.

  He drew in a deep, cleansing breath that hurt his ribs, but the second was easier. His voice wasn’t normal, but it was the best he could manage.

  “It sounds to me as if you and Tessa made a bad error in judgment, Soph, but everyone does that sometimes.” He drew the girls to him, one under each arm. “Let’s go make Morgan some breakfast, and we’ll all talk this over and figure out what we should do.”

  Luke turned and looked at Morgan.

  Through the blurring of her tears she knew she’d love this man for always.

  Chapter Nineteen

  St. Joe’s Medical Center was sorta like an ancient castle, Tessa decided as she hurried through the complex maze of winding corridors that led to the medical ward. The sports bag she was carrying got heavier with every step, and it was a relief to finally step into the small private room. She closed the door behind her and tried to smile.

  “Hey, India, how ya doin?” Now that she was here, Tessa felt really nervous. It had been eight days since India was hurt, and although she’d visited her every one of those days, this was the first time Tessa had been really alone with the old woman. It was India’s first day out of the intensive care ward, and there wasn’t exactly a lot of privacy up there.

  “Boy, look at all the flowers.” The room was filled with bouquets of every sort. Doc Gilbert had brought the red long-stemmed roses, and on the bedside table was the cute teddy bear Sophie had left

  Tess approached the bed, hefting the sports bag carefully onto the armchair beside it

  “Hello, young lady.” India’s voice was sort of a sigh. She had oxygen prongs in her nose, and it was still a shock to see how puffy she’d gotten and how blue her skin was, particularly around her nose. She smiled at Tessa, though, and Tess leaned close to hear what she was saying.

  “What have you got in your bag for me? The food here is disgusting.” India complained steadily about the hospital food, even though she hardly took two bites of anything.

  She was a world-class complainer, no doubt about that. Tessa had made a habit of bringing in little treats for her, cookies she’d baked, or a taste of whatever she and Morgan had made for dinner the previous day.

  “You’re not gonna believe what I brought you today. You gotta close your eyes.”

  “Humph.” India managed to look offended, but she did as she was told, and Tessa grinned as she reached into the bag and carefully lifted Skippy out and laid him on the bed beside India. “I was scared he’d take a fit in the hall and get us both kicked out. If somebody comes in, hide him under the covers.”

  “Skippy! Oh, you brought me Skippy.” The way India said it made Tess really glad she’d gone to the trouble of smuggling the little dog in. India’s eyes got all teary, and her face sort of crumpled as she stroked Skippy’s black fur with a trembling hand.

  “The vet put that cast on his hip. He figgers she’ll be as good as new in a coupla weeks,” Tess gabbled. It was so hard, trying to talk normally to somebody who was gonna die, maybe even today. And what made it worse was that India couldn’t talk much; she just didn’t have enough breath for it.

  Morgan had explained what was happening to her, the way her heart was like a pump that had worn out and how all this gunk had backed up into India’s lungs so that breathing got harder and harder. Morgan had said that all the medicine had stopped working now; there wasn’t anything more doctors could really do. There were already scary moments when India didn’t take a breath for such a long time Tessa’s own chest hurt with waiting.

  Morgan had asked if India wanted to come home, but the old lady absolutely refused. She said she liked it here, and Tess could see why. All the staff fussed over her because they knew she was Morgan’s mother. And India took full advantage, pressing the call button for the slightest little thing. The nurses didn’t seem to care, though. They spoiled her silly, and everybody pretended she was getting better.

  Tessa thought of what she’d come here to say.

  “Yesterday the cops caught the guys who knocked ya down and took your staff, India. They found your fur coat and some of your jewelry, too.”

  “About time.” India looked pleased.

  Tessa’s heart was hammering.

  This was really tough. Morgan had said it was up to her whether or
not to tell India the full story about Dylan and Brody, about her part in the whole awful mess. And even Frannie had said that it wasn’t really necessary, that going to the police and telling the truth was the important part, but Tessa knew this was something she had to do.

  “One of those guys who hurt you was my boyfriend,” she began, and she couldn’t even look at the old woman as she stumbled through her confession. Skippy whined once or twice, and India soothed him with her hand, but she didn’t try to interrupt.

  “It was awful of me to tell them about you and your stuff, and even before that I wasn’t very nice to ya, and I’m real sorry about that.” Tessa’s hands were all sweaty, and she wiped them down her jeans. “I just wanted ya to know,” she finished lamely, daring to glance at India. If the old lady was feeling better, Tessa figured she’d really let loose at her now, the way she had so many times before. In fact, Tessa wished with all her heart that India could just sit up and blast her good.

  “I’ll understand if ya don't want me to come up here anymore,” Tessa went on. “But when you...” Her voice faltered. “When you come home again, I promise I’ll try to be lots nicer than I was before.”

  It wasn’t going to happen, but Tess didn’t know what else to say. She waited in agony for India’s response.

  “Nonsense.”

  Tess thought she must have misunderstood. She leaned closer to India. “Sorry. What did ya say?”

  “Nonsense.” India puffed at the oxygen and glared up at Tessa. “Women are much more interesting when they’re not nice.” Again she sucked in oxygen. “Don’t you forget it.” Her swollen hand was stroking Skippy’s back. Her eyes seemed to have sunk into the puffiness of her face, but Tessa could have sworn she winked.

  “I like you as you are, did from the start. Got spunk, like me. And when I come home,” she puffed, “I want your bedroom. Mine...” She had to stop again, struggling for air, and the seconds ticked by and she didn’t breathe and didn’t breathe, and then finally she did again.