by Belle Ami
“She must still be on the aft sun deck, napping, sir.”
“Thanks.” Miles raced up the starboard stairs to the upper deck and made his way to the aft deck. Adelia lay asleep as Miles, stealthy as a cat, climbed into the large, yellow playpen and crawled to her. He bent to kiss her. With her eyes closed, she smiled beneath his lips. Her arms encircled his neck, pulling him closer into a more passionate kiss. “I missed you,” he whispered as he continued to kiss her.
“I missed you, too. Hmmm, you smell so good. All fresh and minty. Did I miss lunch?”
“Absolutely not. Besides, lunch is served when you are ready, Mrs. Bremen. Come on; I’m starving.” He stood and pulled her to her feet.
The table was set with colorful majolica pottery. Karolin and Todd were serving themselves from the buffet table that contained an assortment of antipasto and salads.
“Hi, guys. How was Ponza?” Adelia and Miles each filled a plate and sat down.
Todd, as usual, was ebullient. “Amazing! We explored a grotto, went snorkeling, and did a little beachcombing. The water was heavenly! In fact, chef is preparing our catch as a treat for lunch right now. Karolin and I netted a couple of spiny lobsters. Lobster and spaghetti, perfecto!” He kissed his fingers, raising them to heaven in a traditional Italian gesture of praise.
“It’s a shame you’re missing all of the fun, Adelia,” said Karolin. “Todd, pour me some more of the Gavi di Gavi. It’s so refreshing.”
Miles frowned as he observed Adelia’s pained expression. “Adelia, how would you feel about cutting our trip short and going home? I’m afraid our dream honeymoon is turning into a real bust. Karolin and Todd can finish out the trip. After the baby’s born, we can always take another honeymoon voyage. What do you say? I’ll book us a flight out of Amalfi.”
Adelia kept her eyes cast down, trying to hide her elation. “Would you mind terribly, Miles? I’m afraid pregnancy on a boat is not all that much fun.”
“But, Miles, it’s your honeymoon!” Karolin protested.
“And I’m sure you and Todd will make the best of it without us. That’s it, then. I’ll book us a flight tomorrow.”
Chapter 16
Adelia didn’t think anything could make her happier than arriving back in New Hope in time for foliage. The crisp fall air and the changing colors of the trees were a panacea to the misgivings that had plagued her on the yacht. Even the morning sickness began to subside as she settled into life on the farm. Miles began his daily commute to the city, leaving her to supervise the horse facilities, and within weeks, she had the operation running efficiently.
Miles had forbidden her to ride; however, there was nothing to stop her from supervising the training of the horses and performing the business management that was needed at Green Way Farms. She hired a student from Del Val College to hack the horses and ride them for potential clients. Since her return, she had already placed one prospective Grand Prix jumper stud out for trial and purchase with a well-known trainer. This sale would place Green Way Farms in the black and publicly announce that it was a first-rate breeding facility.
Adelia was also working on hiring a marketing and PR firm for an ad campaign targeted at the English-riding community in North America. For years, Americans had been indoctrinated with the perception that the greatest jumper and hunter horses were bred and trained in Europe, particularly in Germany, Belgium, Ireland, France, and Holland. This was an accepted notion because most of the great equestrian jumping breeds had developed in Europe. American buyers looking for fancy mounts traditionally flew across the pond in search of bloodlines and lineage that ensured excellence. Adelia was determined to alter those perceptions and chip away at that market by dispelling the notion that the best could only be found on another continent. With improved breeding of studs and mares and a documented line of champion offspring, she was determined to offer everything that was available overseas—and more—right here in the States. It was a business plan she had conceived soon after she graduated from Cornell. Now, with two premier horse facilities on the West and East Coasts, she was preparing to ratchet up the implementation of her dream.
Within days of returning home, Karolin’s gynecologist corroborated Miles’s speculation that, indeed, Adelia was pregnant, about twelve weeks, which placed her due date at the end of March or beginning of April. With the foregone conclusion that motherhood was upon her and that her life had taken a decidedly domestic turn, she blossomed and embraced her new role of wife and mother.
Pregnancy had not deterred Miles’s passion for her; if anything, his desire to please her had grown stronger. Their lovemaking reached new heights, and in the afterglow, as they lay cradling each other, he told her that it was as if he could feel their child’s heartbeat within him. Adelia had become the receptacle of all of his dreams and aspirations, and the life that grew within her was the consummation of that love. It was a blissful period for the newlyweds as their love grew simultaneously with the thickening of Adelia’s waistline.
When Karolin returned home from Europe with Todd, she began to spend every other weekend in New York with him. Her relationship with Miles became exceptionally accordant, and her interest in the pregnancy and her future role of aunt had become a genuine obsession for her. On the weekends when she remained at Green Way Farms, Adelia was delighted to have Karolin’s sisterly input and was careful to include her in all decisions pertaining to the baby.
Miles encouraged Adelia to transform and decorate two bedrooms that had served as a guest suite into a nursery, and she quickly set about demolishing the existing bathroom and bedroom to create a child-friendly environment. On the weekends, they combed flea markets and antique shops, searching for furnishings and fabrics with a horsey theme. The final decision of colors would depend on Adelia’s twenty-week ultrasound, scheduled for the following week. Both Miles and Karolin were coming to the appointment where the baby’s gender would be revealed and then celebrated.
Adelia had chosen her obstetrician, Dr. Bateman, not only for the many recommendations his reputation had earned but also for the serenity and confidence she felt in his presence. He reminded her of Lucas, outwardly tough and professional, but inwardly the paradigm of compassion and caring. She trusted him implicitly, and for Adelia, trust was the deciding factor, whether it was a person or a horse.
The excitement was palpable among the three as Dr. Bateman entered the examination room where Adelia lay, her stomach protruding through the hospital gown.
“Well, young lady, how are you feeling today? I see you’ve brought the whole family.” He smiled, acknowledging Miles and Karolin.
“I’m feeling good, Dr. Bateman, although there certainly seems to be a lot more of me to love. How are you doing?”
Picking up Adelia’s file, he quickly scanned it, nodding. “I’m fine. Lots of babies being born keeps me busy. Everything looks good so far. Let’s take a look at this ultrasound, shall we?”
He squirted some warm gel onto Adelia’s belly and adjusted the screen so she could see the images that began to appear as dark, shady smudges while he moved the transducer over her abdomen. The images evoked a chuckle from Dr. Bateman. He looked at Karolin and Miles. “You are twins, are you not?”
“We are twins. Why?” Miles asked perplexed at the question. “Is there anything wrong Doctor?”
“I want you to look closely as I move the transducer.” He slowly slid the wand until it revealed what looked to be two heads in profile. “Twins,” he said. Moving it slightly again, he added, “And look at that. That is what can only be called the male of the species.” He turned to Adelia and Miles, who were holding hands in awed silence. “I’d say you are the parents of dizygotic twins, better known as fraternal twins, in this case a boy and a girl. Congratulations!”
Miles bent to kiss Adelia. “I can’t believe it—twins!” He placed his other arm around Karolin’s shoulders, hugging her. �
��Karolin, twins, just like us.”
Tears ran down Karolin’s face, and she hurriedly wiped them away. “Congratulations, both of you!” Her tears garbled her words. “I can’t believe it…I’m just so blown away by this!”
“It seems surreal. I know so little about babies, let alone twins,” whispered a wide-eyed Adelia.
“Don’t worry, Adelia; you have us to help,” Karolin assured her. “Besides, who should know more about twins than Miles and me? We’ll be fine.”
“I’ll leave you three to your happy good fortune. Adelia, I want you on special vitamins and diet. I’ll send the nutritionist and then the nurse in with instructions. I want to see you again in four weeks. Take care of yourself, young lady.”
“Thank you, Doctor.”
The months passed with everyone in the Bremen’ household mindful of the pending birth of the twins; Adelia and her burgeoning pregnancy dictated the ebb and flow of life.
On more than one occasion Karolin had asked to place her hands on Adelia’s pregnant belly and feel the movement of the twin lives within. Each time Adelia had been moved and confused by the tearful reaction elicited. Later, alone with Miles, she had questioned him about Karolin’s odd behavior. Each time he had evaded her questions and given unsatisfactory answers.
With his back to the headboard of their bed, Adelia leaned against Miles’s chest, his arms about her with his hands resting on the swell of her pregnancy as he waited for one or both of his children to shift position within their mother’s womb.
“Miles, you must know why Karolin has such a visceral reaction to childbirth. Did something happen to her?” Adelia was determined to get to the root of the problem with Karolin.
Immediately Miles’s body tensed as he prepared himself for another drilling. “I’ve told you, sweetheart, that it’s nothing. I think a part of her wants children, but the wild party girl side is afraid and doesn’t. She’ll eventually come to grips with it. You shouldn’t be worrying about Karolin. The only thing you need to do is enjoy this special time in our lives, I know I am.” He bent and kissed her neck.
She sighed in response to his affection. “Of course, I’m content.” She looked up into Miles’s eyes. “I’m madly in love with my husband, and I presume he’s in love with me.
“You’re right about that.” He beamed.
Again, Adelia peered ahead as if straining to see through a dense fog. “It’s just that I can’t help but wonder…” She persisted.
Frowning, “I’m telling you Adelia to forget about it. There’s nothing there. Karolin is changeable, and sentimental, I might add.”
“I guess you’re right. Maybe it’s just my own nerves projecting themselves onto Karolin.”
“I feel them! Somebody just kicked!”
“Did they?” Adelia placed her hand over his and waited, forgetting about Karolin.
Adelia lay in bed, staring out the window and watching snowflakes drift silently; the landscape was disappearing like a cake beneath a layer of white icing. The pastures stood empty and barren of horses; they had all been blanketed and safely ensconced within warm stables. All the colors of land and sky had been erased, leaving only black, white, and the in-between shades of gray that appeared as elongated shadows of darkness and light. A roaring fire burned in the hearth, now and then emitting a crackling counterpoint to the hiss of flames sucking the oxygen from the air.
Adelia’s hand rested on the large, globular protrusion of her belly that strained against the sheets. She was in the last trimester of her pregnancy and, to her consternation, had been ordered to bed rest. She felt somewhat comforted that her predicament of inactivity fit well with the naturally imposed physical constraints of winter. At least the world outside wasn’t bursting forth with chromatic vibrancy and stimulus, which would have only enhanced the deprivation that the pregnancy now imposed upon her. Miles was insistent that she remain as immobile as possible, but in fairness, he spent every minute he could trying to alleviate the boredom that was inherent in being bed bound.
It amused Adelia that Miles had assumed many of the traits of a male emperor penguin, whose paternal dedication was notable among species. During the sub-zero temperatures of winter, when blizzards and darkness assaulted Antarctica, the male incubated and protected the egg through most of the winter until the female, who had journeyed back to the sea to feed, returned. Even after the chick hatched, the two parents thereafter shared the duties of protecting it from the elements.
It amused Adelia to no end, watching Miles prepare for his role of fatherhood. Every day he would massage her belly with cocoa butter and whisper endearments to the twin lives that grew within. Some days he would read to the unborn children, and other times he would serenade them with classical music. Because of Adelia’s imposed bed rest, Dr. Bateman had arranged for a private Lamaze coach to come to the house to train the Lindstrom household in the art of breath control and relaxation to better facilitate a healthy birth. Another addition to the household was a private chef who came every day to prepare healthy meals, which helped relieve the monotony of bringing in food and relying on Karolin’s cooking, which left much-to-be-desired. Each day, like birds in a nest, the bedroom provided a safe haven for the pregnancy to evolve.
Even with all of the good intentions, Adelia often found herself moody and depressed. Her last phone call with Detective Weiss had proven unsatisfactory. She knew that, given her condition, he was hesitant to share with her any information that might prove upsetting. It wasn’t what he said that bothered her; it was what he didn’t say that shadowed her happiness. After the twins were born, she was determined to unravel the thread of mystery surrounding Miles and her father’s relationship, even if it meant confronting Miles point-blank.
The colors and sounds of spring burst upon the sleeping countryside as streams gurgled blue in the glimmering sunshine, and green began to saturate Mother Nature’s palette, filling the gray expanse that had been winter. One by one, the pregnant mares had begun to give birth to a new generation of colts and fillies, and the sounds of mares nickering to their young filled the air.
Adelia went into labor just before dawn, her moans waking Miles and triggering immediate action in the household that was so well prepared. In the car, Adelia closed her eyes to absorb the latest assault of pain as she gripped Karolin’s hand in the backseat of the Range Rover. Miles sped toward the hospital in Doylestown, where Dr. Bateman would meet them.
Miles’s eyes darted back and forth from the road to the rearview mirror. “Breathe, honey; we’ll be there in a minute.”
Adelia inhaled and exhaled a series of short breaths as she tried not to scream.
“Hurry, Miles. They’re coming closer together.” Karolin kept her eyes on her watch as she timed the intervals between Adelia’s contractions.
Miles hit the gas pedal, and the car lurched forward. “Hold tight. It’s just ahead.”
Nearly passing the driveway to the entrance of the hospital, he hit the brakes, and with tires screeching, he made the turn. Jumping from the car, he ran to get help and a wheelchair.
“We’re here, Delie. You’re going to be fine.” Karolin patted her hand.
Adelia tried to smile at her sister-in-law, but the best she could muster was a squeezing of Karolin’s hand when a fresh wave of labor pain assailed her.
Within minutes, Adelia had been wheeled to a private labor room, where it was determined that she was seven centimeters dilated. The birth was imminent.
Karolin wiped Adelia’s perspiring brow as Miles whispered words of encouragement. Adelia dug her nails into Miles, grunting as she bore down, her breath coming in rapid gasps. “Damn you, Miles. It’s all your fault!”
“I know, honey. I’m sorry. Just keep pushing. You’re almost there.”
“Good girl, I can see the crown…one more push.” Dr. Bateman applied steady pressure on Adelia’s stomach.
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br /> Determined to be rid of the pain that racked her body, she bore down, growling, “Grrrr…get out!” With a rush of amniotic fluid, one baby emerged from the birth canal into the expert hands of Dr. Bateman. Everyone but Adelia sighed with relief as the firstborn’s cries filled the air. She was hardly aware of the congratulatory words being pronounced as she was seized by another punishing pain that took her breath away. Dr. Bateman handed the baby off to the nurse and prepared for the arrival of baby number two.
Miles barely had time to look at his son as he was whisked away to be cleaned, weighed, and swaddled. He was in awe of the miracle that was unfolding as his wife squeezed his hand in a vise grip, bearing down again in pain. Seven minutes later, their daughter was born. Adelia swooned with relief, sinking into the pillows in exhaustion. Miles and Karolin slumped into chairs, each nearly as spent as Adelia. Moments later, the nurse returned with the twins, giving one to Karolin and one to Miles. Adelia smiled weakly, but proudly as each was laid beside her for inspection.
“They’re beautiful, aren’t they?” Adelia gazed lovingly first at one and then the other of the newborns.
“Of course they are, just like their mother.” Miles was quick to interject as he gazed adoringly at his newly made family.
“They look just like Miles and me.” Karolin added.
Adelia examined them with a furrowed brow. “Do you think? I see my parents—”
“Excuse me,” interrupted the nurse. “Let’s get these two hungry babies fed. Why don’t you two get a cup of coffee and give Mother a few moments of privacy to feed them?”
“Right, we’ll be back in a few minutes. Let’s go, Karolin.” Miles, smiling, bent to kiss Adelia and then the black, downy sweet spot of each baby’s head. “I love you, Adelia, Fallyn, and Liam.”
Chapter 17