JO ALMOST CHOKED on the mouthful of water she’d just taken. Now it was her turn to be stunned. She coughed and then swallowed the hard lump of panic that was suddenly lodged in her throat.
“You think we should get married?”
Henrik winced. “Isn’t that what’s expected?”
“Maybe if this was like...fifty years ago. Henrik, I don’t want to get married. Do you want to get married?”
He frowned. “No. I don’t. It’s why I only usually get involved with tourists. I don’t want or have time for a relationship.”
It sounded a little callous, but she understood: she didn’t want a relationship either. Even though her one night with Henrik had been amazing, it wasn’t enough to build a permanent future on.
There had to be more than just amazing sex.
“Right.” She rolled her eyes. “So you’ve told me. Look, we can work out raising this child together and not have to marry each other. You should love your partner when you choose to enter into that kind of commitment.”
She knew that firsthand.
She had loved David. So much.
Marriage was something she had never really wanted until she’d met David. She’d been so happy with him. Until it all came crashing down. There was a part of her that was nervous about raising this baby on her own and trying to balance a very full career as a trauma surgeon in a Toronto hospital with parenting a child, but she was up to the task. Although she’d always pictured having a traditional family, life clearly had other plans for her.
Her baby would still have two parents.
Henrik was on board with being a part of their baby’s life. It was just going to look a little different and span two provinces when her friend came back from Germany and she would have to leave Nubbin’s Harbor.
Then a terrible thought crept into her mind. What if Henrik didn’t allow her to leave with their child? What if he sued for custody? She hated to think this way about him, but she didn’t know him well enough yet.
He was the father of her baby and still really a stranger to her.
You can make it work.
She wanted to be friends with Henrik, and she also had to work with him. She was letting her anxiety get the better of her. They had to make this work.
Of course, the one man she had been attracted to since David died, the one person she decided to have an uncharacteristic one-night stand with was a colleague. Fate was cruel.
“You’re right. I wasn’t thinking straight. It’s just that’s what I was always taught to do. I feel very responsible for our child. I want to be involved,” he said, earnestly. “It all caught me off guard.”
Jo smiled and reached across the table to take his hand in hers. His strong hand clasped hers, and it was reassuring.
Warm.
And she couldn’t help but think of his hot hands on her skin a month ago. It made her body tingle at the thought of it.
“I really appreciate it. We’ll figure this out.”
“I’m glad you told me,” he said quietly.
“Why wouldn’t I?”
“Why should you? I’m just a stranger.”
There was a bitter mistrust to his voice, and she wondered who had hurt him so much.
Hurt she understood.
“Well, when I saw you there, and Lloyd told me you were one of the paramedics in town, I figured it would be kind of hard to hide my condition. It’ll be there for everyone to see in a few months.”
Henrik smiled and rubbed his thumb over her knuckles. Just that simple act made her skin flush and her heart beat a bit faster. She pulled her hand away, quickly.
It may have been a magical night, but it was just one magical night.
That was it.
It was clear that he didn’t really want a relationship, and she certainly didn’t want to fall in love again. The prospect of falling in love with someone and being hurt was too great. It was too much of a threat to her heart, and she wasn’t willing to take that chance.
There was a furious banging at the door.
Henrik got up and answered the back door.
Lloyd came in, his face red. “It’s Marge!”
“Marge?” Jo asked.
Lloyd pushed past Henrik. “Marge, one of the local hookers.”
“What?” Jo asked, startled.
“She works at the arts emporium. She crochets blankets for the inn and tourists,” Henrik explained. “You know...a hooker.”
“Lloyd, what’s wrong with Marge?” Jo asked, still confused.
“She’s in labor, and she’s not going to make it to the hospital. She’s at the clinic! I came for Henrik, but I’m so glad to see you, Doc Jo!”
“Come on,” Henrik said. “I’ll take you. Tell Marge and her husband we’re on the way, Lloyd.”
Lloyd nodded and scurried away.
“It’s a busy night,” Jo remarked, pulling on her sweater and her boots.
“It’s not usually like this, but this is Marge’s fifth child. It’s no wonder that they’re making quite the quick entrance,” Henrik said.
They both chuckled at that.
It had been a long time since Jo had attended a birth. Usually when they came into the emergency room, Obstetrics was called, but she was pretty sure that she could handle this. But tying off a femoral artery in the back of the ambulance didn’t jangle her nerves as much as having to attend an emergency birth in her small clinic without the safety net of the hospital. She hoped it was a smooth birth.
It took all of five minutes for them to make it to the center of town and to her small clinic where Lloyd had unlocked the door with a skeleton key and was guiding Marge and her frantic husband, Scott, inside.
Henrik parked on the street, and Jo dashed inside. Jennifer was there looking flustered.
“Oh, thank the Lord,” Jennifer said. “I was trying to call an ambulance.”
Jennifer looked at Henrik and then at her. Jo tried not to blush.
“Well, I’m here now. Call the ambulance again in case we need it,” Jo told her as she made her way over to Marge.
She looked like she was in major pain and was hunched over, Scott holding her up as she panted heavily.
“Doc, I tried to make it to the hospital, but it’s coming something fierce,” Scott said.
“Let’s get her to the exam table so I can check her,” Jo said.
Marge cried out, and her water broke all over the waiting-room floor as Henrik stepped inside and locked the door behind him. Marge was sinking to the ground, screaming.
“I don’t think she’s going to make it to the table, Doc Jo,” Henrik remarked. “What do you need?”
“Blankets, gloves... Everything is labeled and ready in the back. Jenn can help.”
“Come along, Lloyd,” Henrik said, leading a horrified Lloyd out of the waiting room.
Jo tried to lead Marge away from where her water had broken to a cleaner area. Henrik was back with blankets and helped her spread them out. Jo pulled on the rubber gloves that Henrik had brought her. They removed Marge’s undergarments, and Jo was glad that Marge was wearing a nightgown. Then she pulled off Marge’s rubber boots.
Scott braced his wife’s back, behind her.
“I’m going to look now, okay, Marge?” Jo asked.
Marge was biting her lip and nodding.
As soon as Jo checked she could see the head, and internally she was relieved that this appeared to be a run-of-the-mill birth so far, despite the speed. This she could deal with.
“I called Lisa, the midwife for this side of the island, but she’s out near Eastern Tickle dealing with an emergency birth there too,” Henrik said. “Jennifer said the ambulance is coming.”
Marge cried out.
“Well, this baby isn’t going to wait for someone to come back from the... Tickle area.” Jo shook her head, because she’d never thought that was something she would say in her life. “Marge, when you feel the next contraction, I want you to push. You’re crowning.”
Marge nodded. “I feel it.”
“Then, push for me,” Jo urged.
Marge pushed, the head came through, but then it stopped, and Jo’s stomach knotted as she mentally tried to flick through her rotation from ages ago when she had been on the obstetrical floor as an intern.
“Okay, Marge. Breathe, no pushing,” Jo said, firmly.
“What’s wrong?” Henrik asked very quietly, squatting beside her.
“I think it’s shoulder dystocia. I’ve seen it once, but obstetrics wasn’t my strong suit,” Jo murmured back. She hadn’t dealt with it herself, and she was trying to go through the HELPERR guidelines in her head and hoping that she could remember them.
HELPERR was a mnemonic that was used in case of shoulder dystocia and the steps needed to safely deliver the child.
“I’ve dealt with a birth like this,” Henrik said, pulling on gloves. “We can try the McRoberts’s maneuver. Then, we’ll have to watch for maternal bleeding. I’ve called the paramedics on duty, but we should see if that procedure will work first.”
“McRoberts’s is when we pull her legs up and one of us applies pressure, right?” Jo said, as everything came rushing back to her. She smiled up at Henrik, who was being so wonderfully calm and reassuring. She felt like she was the one who was losing control, and he’d centered her in that moment so she could collect her thoughts.
Henrik nodded. “I’ll help her hold her legs, and you apply the pressure to make sure the baby’s shoulders rotate.”
Jo nodded and then raised her voice so her patient could hear. “Marge, I need you to draw your legs up, way up to your stomach. Henrik and Scott will help.”
“What’s wrong?” Marge asked, wearily.
“Your baby just needs some help. Their shoulder isn’t in the optimal position. We’re going to try this and see if that helps.”
Marge nodded.
Henrik and Scott helped Marge pull up her legs, bracing them as Jo placed one hand on Marge’s pelvis, waiting for that next contraction. She glanced up to see Henrik. His gaze fixed on her, and she relaxed. He nodded as if to say she had this. A silent encouragement.
Josephine knew what to do.
This baby would live, as would Marge.
“Marge, when the next contraction comes, push for me,” Jo said.
Marge nodded. “It’s coming.”
Jo felt the tightening of her abdomen as the contraction moved across her. Jo pressed on her suprapubic area, and she could feel the rotation happen. The baby’s shoulders slipped free. Jo stopped applying pressure as she caught the baby, who started crying right away at the indignity of being abruptly expelled from her warm home.
“It’s girl,” Jo announced happily as she cleared away everything, and Henrik wrapped the baby, helping place the crying newborn on Marge’s chest. Scott and Marge were already doting on their newest child.
Jo smiled and watched them. She could feel the love, and it warmed her heart. She was also relieved that Henrik had been there to help her. She wasn’t sure that she would’ve handled it so well without him.
The placenta was delivered, and Jo cut the cord. There were no signs of extra bleeding, but Marge and the baby should be taken to the hospital so they could be monitored. As Jo cleaned up and got the placenta placed in a biomedical bag for the obstetrical team to examine, the sound of sirens grew louder until they stopped in front of the clinic.
There were flashing lights illuminating the waiting area.
“I’ll go get them,” Henrik said, peeling off his rubber gloves and disposing of them.
Jo stood as the team came in, and she gave her instructions and information to the head paramedic so that they could tell the hospital staff what had happened and what to watch for. Henrik assisted in getting Marge settled onto the gurney and the baby into an isolette for safe transport.
“Can I ride with her?” Scott asked.
“There won’t be room,” Henrik stated. “But I’ll take you to the hospital, Scott.”
“Ta, thanks, Henrik,” Scott said, brightly.
Marge grabbed Josephine’s hand, smiling at her. “Thank you for helping me, Doc Jo.”
“You’re most welcome,” Jo said, warmly. “Congratulations! I can’t wait to see the little miss for her first checkup in a week.”
Marge nodded. “Her name is Josephine. After you.”
A lump formed in Jo’s throat, and tears stung her eyes. “I’m honored.”
Marge let go of Jo’s hand as the paramedics wheeled her out of the clinic, with Scott following. She turned to Henrik, who was disposing of the mess.
“Thank you for helping me,” Jo said. “I couldn’t have done it without you.”
Henrik grinned. “I can say the same. I’m glad you were here too.”
“I’ll check on Lloyd and make sure he gets back home,” Jo said, trying not to laugh.
“Oh, good. He was a bit shook up. He may be the voluntary fire chief, but Nubbin’s Harbor doesn’t usually have this much action.”
“I don’t know if I can take this much excitement nightly.”
Henrik chuckled. “I better take Scott with me. Make sure he gets to the hospital okay. I’ll come by tomorrow morning, and we can finish our conversation.”
“I think we said all we need to say,” Jo said.
“For now.” Henrik didn’t say anything else and left the clinic.
She didn’t know what he meant by that, and she didn’t want to overthink it. He was right: they hadn’t exactly finished their discussion before Lloyd showed up. She glanced around her waiting room and sighed.
Lloyd peered his head around the corner from her office. “It’s safe?”
She smiled. “Yes. You all right to get home?”
Lloyd nodded. “I’ll be fine. Tonight calls for a stiff drink. You going to come by and have some more screech?”
Even though tonight did warrant a stiff drink, she was not in a position to indulge, and she didn’t feel like explaining the reason to Lloyd. Nubbin’s Harbor didn’t need to know about her condition quite yet.
“I think I’ll pass. I have some cleaning up to do, and I’ll have to wait up for a call from the hospital to discuss the birth.”
Lloyd quickly ducked his head. “I’ll let myself out. Have a good night, Doc Jo.”
Lloyd sidestepped the mess and headed out.
Jo breathed a sigh of relief, locked the door to the clinic and then went to look for her cleaning supplies.
Jennifer was filling up a bucket with water. “I thought you’d need this.”
“Thanks,” Jo said, sighing. “It’s been a long day.”
“I bet.” Jennifer handed her a pair of rubber gloves. “So you’ve met the Fogo Island heartthrob, eh?”
“Who? Henrik?”
Jennifer grinned. “Aye.”
“I met him a month ago.”
“And he’s the father?”
Jo’s eyes widened. “How do you know?”
“I have a kid myself, as well as many sisters, and there’s just a look about you.”
Jo snorted. “Not the glow, surely.”
“Also I saw your pregnancy test. You left it on the counter.”
Jo groaned. “It’s still new. Please don’t tell anyone.”
“I won’t.” Jennifer smiled. “I’m happy for you.”
Jo shared Jennifer’s smile. It was a relief that Jennifer knew, then she wouldn’t have to go out of her way to hide it from her. Jennifer was pretty perceptive. “Thanks, Jenn. Now, let’s get that waiting room cleaned up!”
Jennifer nodded. “Aye aye, Captain.”
Jo took a calming breath. Jennifer had noticed, and she couldn’t help but wonder who else in town would. Who knew a one-night stand could get so complicated?
Henrik had had an out-of-body experience last night when he’d had dinner with Josephine. Of course, last night he’d had a couple. The first was when she’d told him that she was pregnant with his child.
The second had been when he’d suggested they get married. He laughed now thinking of it.
After Melissa had left him standing at the proverbial altar, he’d sworn that he was never going to do that again. He was never going to put his heart on the line like that.
Yet, he just couldn’t shake Josephine from his mind. When he’d first seen her on the beach today, he’d reminded himself to keep his distance and keep it professional.
All that came crashing down when she’d told him she was pregnant.
Josephine was already firmly entrenched in his life, and it terrified him. He wasn’t sure the walls to his heart were strong enough to resist her or able to handle it when she left. Not if, but when.
She was only here for a year.
Nothing was holding her here.
No ghosts were holding her like they were anchoring him to this island.
He was pretty positive that wherever his gran was, she was laughing at him for karma coming to kick him in the backside.
After he made sure that Scott was safe at the hospital and reunited with Marge and the wee baby Josephine, he headed back to Nubbin’s Harbor. Instead of going straight home, he drove slowly by the clinic and saw that Josephine was mopping the floor. She had her earbuds in, and she was dancing and singing. Her honey-blond hair was in a high ponytail, and periodically she would stop to bang her head and he couldn’t help but wonder what type of rock anthem she was listening to.
It was quite the sight. The mother of his child-to-be.
It made him laugh.
She was so adorable and sexy.
And it took all his resolve not to knock on the door of her clinic and join her in her cleaning. Then he caught sight of Jennifer and thought better of it. Though he knew that he should keep his distance from her, there was a part of him that he’d thought was long buried away. A part of his heart that was bucking over the constraints and rules that he’d set for himself.
Didn’t his heart know that it was for his own good?
He drove back to his lonely cottage and tried to get a good night’s sleep. He was on duty tomorrow afternoon, and he would be driving an ambulance around the island. His first day back to Fogo had been exhausting, so he should have been out as soon as his head hit the pillow. But no matter how much he tried to sleep, he couldn’t.
All he could think about was Josephine.
How kind and smart she was. How she made his blood heat and his body ache with need. How much he wanted to get to know her and be around her.
She was consuming him.
Then he thought of their baby and remembered that Josephine was only here for a year and then she’d be moving back to Toronto and taking their child with her, and he felt nauseous.
Even the thought of being a father was thrilling. It was something he’d always wanted but never thought he’d have after Melissa left him.
The chance of a family.
It was like a dream, but he was worried of losing it all when Josephine left.
After hours of tossing and turning he gave up, had a shower and got dressed. With a coffee in hand he decided to take a walk out on the beach, which really was just a collection of smooth flat rocks at the edge of the spit that his defunct lighthouse stood on, but he needed to clear his head and wanted to catch the sunrise over the Atlantic.
As he made his way down toward the shore, out of the corner of his eye he caught sight of a massive iceberg not far off. It was the largest he had seen in some time and made his little cottage look like a tiny speck.
“Wow!” he heard someone gasp.
He rounded a tall rock and found Josephine, in running gear, sitting and staring at the iceberg.
“Good morning,” he said, surprised.
She turned, and her eyes widened. “Right, I forgot that this isn’t the derelict public beach I thought it was for the last month. I’m sorry.”
“It’s okay,” he said. “I don’t mind. I just didn’t expect to see you out here.”
“I like to run out this way first thing, or rather walk, now I’m pregnant. I like to catch the sunrise.” She nodded toward the iceberg. “So this is what the start of iceberg season is like?”
“Yes,” he sighed. “I did see a stream of traffic heading toward Joe Batt’s Arm and mostly likely Fogo Island Inn for just this.”
“I can see why it brings in tourists,” she said in awe.
“I’ll probably be on some search-and-rescue shifts this week,” he said, sitting down next to her on the rocky ledge.
She frowned, pulling down her toque. “I hope not.”
“It’s inevitable. People want to get up close and personal to the icebergs. I mean, what harm could they really do?”
“You tell me,” she said, a smile tugging at the corner of her lips. “This is my first experience seeing them up close.”
“Well, they’re larger below the water than above.”
“Ah, the tip of the iceberg, as it were.”
He grinned and tapped his nose. “They also can tear out the side of a ship. I’m not just talking about the Titanic, but the big cargo vessels from Montreal that bring goods up to northern communities in Labrador and Nunavut. You have to be careful. They’re beautiful, but they can be deadly, and we’ve had one too many close calls.”
“Wouldn’t the ships just avoid them?”
“They can’t always be avoided, and as I said, they’re deceptive. Something really small on top could be huge and terrifying underneath. Those ones, you usually find out the damage after the fact.”
“Well, I will still try and think positively that nothing too bad will happen.”
“This is just the start of the tourist season. Be prepared. It’s going to be a busy summer.”
“It’s not even the end of spring yet,” she teased. “And I did deal with a nasty stomach flu that ran through town.”
“Exactly.”
They shared another smile and then sat in silence staring at the behemoth. It was comfortable just sitting here with her. It felt right, and that was a little bit unnerving. The last time he had been this comfortable with someone had been Melissa, and that had ended in disaster.
“Well, I should get back to the clinic,” Josephine announced, standing up. “I have a morning full of appointments. I know you mentioned coming by and talking...”
“Right, well, we can talk another time,” he said. “Are you free for dinner again?”
“You have leftovers?” she asked hopefully.
He grinned. “No, I’m having them for my lunch today while on duty. I thought you might like to come to Seldom with me. There’s a little place down by the water where we can get something to eat and talk, without so many locals from Nubbin’s Harbor milling about.”
“I’d like that. I’m not quite ready to tell the world that I’m pregnant.”
“Agreed.”
That’s the last thing he wanted, especially when they still really needed to decide how they planned to coparent this child. They walked back up to the main road.
“What time would you like to meet?” she asked.
“I’ll come by your place at six, if that’s okay?”
“My last appointment is at four. Six is great.”
Josephine put her earbuds back in before waving and slowly walking away. Henrik stood there, admiring her back view, remembering how he had run his hands over those round cheeks.
His blood heated, and his mouth went dry.
Get a grip on yourself.
He shook his head and made his way to his truck. He was going to get some breakfast on the road and try to do something out of town before his afternoon shift started. Something away from Nubbin’s Harbor, hoping that old saying Out of sight, out of mind would prove true.
Of course, who was he kidding?
He would still be thinking about her. He hadn’t stopped thinking about her since he met her.
It hadn’t worked when he’d been at sea, and it wouldn’t work today. It frustrated him that she was invading his thoughts so completely. That he desired her still, and the strength of his need for her was overruling all the safeguards he’d put into place years ago to protect himself.
What was it about her?
This was not the way to keep someone at bay, and Henrik felt with a sense of looming dread that his defenses were coming down.