“I’m fine.” Bea looked at Freya standing next to the bed in the treatment bay at the emergency room. “I stumbled off the step stool and twisted my ankle. That’s all.”
When she’d first landed on the ground, she’d been more afraid for the baby. But after a moment or two, she’d realized everything was probably okay with the pregnancy and that she’d just hurt herself.
“But you also bumped the back of your head on the shelf.” Genuine concern filled Freya’s expression. “It could be more serious than you think.”
One of the kitchen staff had heard the commotion in the storeroom and found Bea sprawled on the floor. She’d convinced everyone not to call an ambulance, but the older woman had insisted on driving her to the county hospital.
The curtain opened, and the emergency room physician came in carrying an electronic tablet. “Hello. I’m Doctor Hanson. You’re Bea Fortune?”
“Yes.”
The dark-haired woman wearing a white hospital coat turned to Freya. “And you are?”
“I’m her aunt. And I’m not going anywhere.” The look on her face dared anyone to tell her otherwise.
“As long as it’s okay with Ms. Fortune.”
Bea nodded. “She can stay.”
Dr. Hanson consulted the tablet. “It says here that you experienced a fall in your restaurant and hurt your left ankle?”
“And she hit her head,” Freya chimed in.
“But not that hard,” Bea objected. As the doctor examined her ankle, she winced. “It’s a little tender.”
Dr. Hanson checked the back of Bea’s head. “Have you felt dizzy or disoriented since the fall?”
“No. Nothing like that. Not even a headache.”
The doctor took a pen light from the pocket of her coat. “Follow my finger.”
Bea complied, looking left to right then up and down.
“If you’re head does start to hurt or you feel dizzy, let us know.” Dr. Hansen pointed to Bea’s ankle. “Most likely you suffered a sprain. But I would like to take a couple of quick X-rays to be sure.”
Alarm ran through Bea, and she placed her hand over her abdomen. “You can’t.”
“Don’t be so stubborn.” Freya scoffed. “It’s a precaution. Why not be sure?”
“I’m not being stubborn. And I am being cautious.” This wasn’t the way Bea wanted to announce the news, but... “I’m pregnant.”
Freya’s eyes widened.
Dr. Hanson scrolled through information on her screen. “I was just about to ask you if you were. You didn’t indicate yes or no on your form.”
“In the midst of everything... I must have missed the question.” Embarrassment sent a rush of heat into Bea’s face. Did that make her a bad mom?
“How far along are you?” Dr. Hanson asked.
“Less than a month. I had a blood test to confirm it a couple of weeks ago.”
An understanding expression crossed the doctor’s face. “Have you set up an appointment to start prenatal care?”
“Yes.”
“Good.” She gave Bea a reassuring smile. “As long as we stay away from the abdominal region, we can safely take a few X-rays.”
The doctor left, and Freya looked to Bea. “Does Devin know about the baby?”
He had become a part of her life lately, so it made sense Freya would make the correlation. “Yes. We wanted to wait at least another month before telling anyone. Something happened, and we had to tell his ex-wife and his daughter. Otherwise they wouldn’t know, either.”
As a hospital aid arrived with a wheelchair, a thought popped into Bea’s head. She grasped Freya’s arm. “Were you able to get ahold of Devin?”
Bea’s phone was back at the café. Earlier, before she’d been caught up in the admission process when they’d first arrived at the emergency room, she’d asked her aunt to reach out to him.
“I took care of it.” Freya waved her on. “Now you just focus on looking after yourself and my great-niece or nephew.”
On the way to get the X-ray, a small bit of anxiety gripped Bea. The fall hadn’t hurt the baby, and the doctor hadn’t been concerned. But what if she had? This visit to the hospital would have had an entirely different outcome.
Closing her eyes, she wished for Devin. Freya had called him. Undoubtedly, he was on his way. Surprisingly, tears threatened to well up as a sense of relief came over her.
Her climbing stepladders would now be added to the list of things he worried about along with her getting enough sleep and not skipping meals. And right then, she didn’t care if Devin gave her a mini lecture when he arrived about taking better care of herself. She just looked forward to the hug and kiss he would give her afterwards.
Once the X-ray was done, she was wheeled back downstairs and taken to a curtained-off patient bay adjacent to the emergency area.
Freya wasn’t there. Maybe she was outside meeting Devin?
A moment later, her great-aunt came into the patient bay alone. “There you are. It took two people to tell me where to find you.”
“Hopefully Devin, won’t have the same problem. I’m surprised he’s not here yet.”
“Oh, when I called the paper, he wasn’t there. I had to convince them to give me his number. He didn’t answer his phone, but I left him a message.” She patted Bea’s arm. “I’m sure he’s on his way.”
So Freya hadn’t actually spoken to him? Had he gotten the message? But even if he hadn’t, if he’d stopped by the café, someone would have told him what happened to her. Shouldn’t he have already reached out to Freya?
Or had he lost track of time while caught up in a story with his phone off, again? Lauren had said when he was chasing a story, he shut everything out because nothing else mattered.
Bea closed her eyes, trying to erase doubt. But what Lauren and Carly had said about Devin loomed in her mind.
Dr. Hanson came into the patient bay. “Sorry for the delay. But I have good news—you’re in the clear. You just have a small bump on the head, no concussion. As far as the ankle, you don’t have any joint instability or serious bruising. The pain and swelling should resolve in one to three weeks. Rest, ice, compression, and elevation are all you need. Someone will be in shortly to wrap that ankle for you, and then you’re free to go.”
“Thank you,” Bea said.
A short time later, as they prepared to leave the patient bay, she stood by the bed trying to find her balance with a pair of crutches. Her thoughts about Devin were just as shaky and unsure.
As if reading her mind, Freya gave her an empathetic look. “Should I try to reach Devin again?”
“No.”
“Are you sure?” Freya took her phone from her purse. “He’s probably worried about you.”
“If he was, he would have called—”
The curtain opened, and Devin rushed in. Concern filled his face as he went to Bea. “Are you okay?”
Instead of relief, despair assaulted her. She wasn’t okay, and she got the sense nothing would be for a while. But she couldn’t just ignore reality.
She sat back down on the bed and propped the crutches beside her. “Freya, would you mind giving us a minute?”
Her aunt gave a quick smile. “I’ll be in the waiting room.”
After she left, Bea responded to his question. “I’m okay, and so is our baby. Where were you? Freya called the office and your phone?”
“Something happened with Carly. My phone rang but I put it on silent to focus on the situation.”
“Is she all right?”
“She overheard me and Lauren arguing about the co-parenting agreement and the move.” As Devin stood in front of her, he took hold of her hands. “But right now my focus is you.
Until when? First his inattentiveness for the past few days, now this. If something serious had happened that put her or the baby in jeopardy, he wouldn’t have been there for her.
Devin cupped her cheek. “Why don’t you stay with me for the next few days? I don’t have stairs at my place. It will be easier for you to get around, and I can look after you.”
Bea swallowed against tightness in her throat. The more she allowed herself to depend on him, the more promises he’d break. And honestly, she just couldn’t face the same disappointment with Devin that she’d felt with her ex not being there when she needed him, no matter what the reason. She had to protect her heart. She had to protect her baby. He had obligations that didn’t include them. And she did love him too much to make him choose. It was best to cut her losses now.
Bea took in a breath, but instead of air coming into her lungs, it felt like a flood of misery. She leaned away from his hand on her cheek. “I can’t go home with you, Devin. Trying to turn our co-parenting situation into something else is a mistake.”
Devin gripped her hand. “If this is about me not getting here right away, I’m sorry...”
As she glanced down at her still-flat stomach, panic warred with the conviction inside of her. She was scared, but she could do it. Bea met his gaze. “It’s just not about that. You have other obligations in your life. But my primary focus is our child. And then the café. I need stability right now to balance everything. And I can’t create that if I’m trying to be in a romantic relationship with you. But you’re welcome in our baby’s life.”
Devin looked stricken. “Bea, don’t do this.”
“No, Devin, please—I’ve made up my mind.” Swallowing hard, she slipped her hand from his. “I’m doing what’s best for all of us.”