Shortly after eight, the waiting room doors whooshed opened and Nick strode in. “He’s here,” he announced with an infectious grin curving his lips. “He was born about an hour ago and everyone’s fine.”
The obstetrics floor waiting room was filled with a large group anticipating the news. Maddie Worth and the entire Russo family were there.
“Please tell me you took a picture with your phone,” Carol pleaded.
“Not one,” Nick said and was greeted with jeers. “But I took a couple dozen and if the peanut gallery will stop booing, I’ll show you.” Nick pulled his cell phone out and revealed the pictures he had taken of Tess holding their newborn baby, his eyes closed and in one, his mouth stretched wide in a yawn.
He fielded questions from everyone at once. “They’re still running a few tests, but he’ll be moved to the nursery in a little while and you can see him there. It’s down the hall and around the corner.”
“Nursery? Why isn’t he going to the room with Tess? Is something wrong?” Carol Russo’s face was lined with grandmotherly concern.
Nick moved to his mother’s side and wrapped his arm around her shoulders. “All the test results so far have been normal, and he weighs five pounds and two ounces. But because he arrived about a month early they want to place him under observation before letting him go to the room with Tess. And that’ll give Tess a chance to get some sleep since she didn’t get much last night.” He rolled his shoulders and raised his arms above his head to stretch out the kinks. “Neither of us did.”
Carol kissed Nick lightly on the cheek. “I know he’ll be all right. I’ve been praying for him this whole time.”
“Congrats, little brother. You did great.” Bella stepped toward Nick and pulled him into a sisterly hug. “Does my nephew have a name?”
Nick licked his lips nervously. “His name is still under consideration. But I’ll let you know as soon as he has one.”
In turn, his father and other siblings congratulated him, and as his family exited the waiting room to make their way to the nursery, Nick pulled Bella aside. “Where’s Lover Boy, by the way? I thought he’d be here with you.”
Bella’s mouth thinned to a straight line and Nick saw an almost imperceptible quiver in her bottom lip. “He…he’s probably with his lover.”
“He’s with another woman?” Nick had met Ed Wallace on several occasions, and while he and the man had little in common, Ed had seemed like a nice enough guy.
Bella shook her head and Nick watched her blink back tears. It took Nick a few seconds to process what she meant. “He’s with a man?” Nick’s voice rose in volume.
“Hush,” Bella commanded. She pulled a tissue from her pocket and dabbed at her face. “And yes, he’s with another man. Please don’t go all macho and threaten to beat him up. And don’t mention it to the rest of the family yet either. I just found out three days ago and I haven’t quite figured out how to tell them. They think he’s at home sick with the flu right now.”
Nick tried to process the news, but lack of sleep prevented all his synapses from firing in correct sequence. “I don’t know what to say. What can I do to help?”
“Nothing right now.” She gave a helpless shrug. “I don’t even know what to do. But you have a new son and he’s your priority at the moment. Come on,” she said, taking Nick by the hand and herding him down the hallway. “Introduce me to my brand-new nephew.”
When they reached the nursery, Nick found his family standing side by side in front of the window, all chattering at once about the baby that was front and center. He noticed Maddie standing to one side and approached her.
“Thanks for coming. I know it means a lot to Tess that you were here, and if you can stay a bit longer, I think she’d really like to see you.”
“You’ve got a great big family here that takes precedence over me. Plus I know from experience that Tess needs to rest. I’ll let her get home and have a couple days to settle in, and then I’ll come to visit. I’ll also offer unsolicited motherly advice.” Amusement flickered in her eyes. “Give her a big hug from me.”
“Are you sure you don’t want to see her? I hate you came down here for nothing.”
Maddie chuckled. “I think your mother was secretly relieved when she learned I’d gone to Lamaze class with Tess. So it wasn’t for nothing. Tell Tess I’ll see her soon.”
Nick took her hands in his and gave them a gentle squeeze. “I will.”
She shoved Nick toward the window. “Go. Be with your family and tell them all about labor and delivery.”
The remainder of the day was a blur of phone calls and flowers. Between short visits from Ben and Carol and the constant monitoring and prodding by the nurses, Nick and Tess had little time alone. By dinnertime, Tess was situated in a private room and the newborn slept in a hospital bassinette at the side of her bed.
When the lactation nurse showed up to help Tess with breastfeeding, Nick wondered if he should stay or go. It wasn’t as if he hadn’t seen her bare breasts before. But feeding a baby—using her breasts for their intended purpose—seemed like such a private thing, and he excused himself from the room.
“Would you call Walter and let him know the baby is here?” Tess called just before he disappeared through the door. “Ask if maybe he can try to explain to Mama that she has a grandson?”
“Sure thing. I’ll call him right now. I know he’ll be excited to hear.”
Nick dragged himself to the waiting room at the end of the hall and collapsed into a chair. He had been up for over eighteen hours and fully understood the meaning of sleep deprivation. After dropping six quarters into a vending machine and receiving a cup of bitter sludge in return, he made the call to Walter and listened as the elderly man promised to do his best to tell Pauline about the baby.
He ended the call and leaned back in the chair, stretching his legs out and rolling his head from side to side. What he wouldn’t give for a good massage since his body felt as if it had been in a barroom brawl.
When his stomach growled and reminded him he hadn’t eaten anything except the crackers and soda the nurse had brought him, he grasped the chair arms and pushed himself to a standing position. He wasn’t excited about cafeteria food, but he didn’t want to leave the hospital just yet.
Halfway to the cafeteria, his phone buzzed and Pete Clark’s name appeared on the screen. Nick was tempted to let the call roll to voice mail, but he knew this was probably the announcement of who had won the photo assignment. And hadn’t he vowed less than twelve hours earlier that he was going to take the job if it was offered? Hell, he was leaving town even if he didn’t get the assignment. He’d make that trip to St. Kitts after all.
He tapped the phone to answer and lifted it to his ear. “Hey Pete. What’s up?”
“You’re up, that’s what. Skill trumped nepotism and you, my friend, landed the job. You need to grab your passport, pack your best camera equipment and be in Sofia in two weeks.”
“Yippee,” he replied sardonically.
“Well if that’s all the excitement you can muster, maybe—”
“Listen, Pete. I’m excited. I’m thrilled. I’m ecstatic.”
Liar.
“It’s just that I have a… I mean my… I’ve just had a lot going on lately with family and I’m exhausted at the moment.”
“Nothing wrong with your parents, I hope.” Pete had been to the Russo household on several occasions and Carol had treated him like visiting royalty.
“They’re fine. It’s just a little…well, I don’t want to bore you with details. Can I call you back tomorrow when I’ve had a chance to sleep and handle some things?”
Pete agreed, and after he ended the call, Nick resumed his trek to the cafeteria and thought about the conversation. Why couldn’t he tell his boss the truth?
My baby mama just gave birth to my son who looks just like me.
Oh, hell yes. That would sound just great—like a wannabe celebrity right out of the tabloids.
And exactly what was Tess to him? They weren’t engaged. She had made it abundantly clear she wasn’t interested in marriage just for the sake of legitimizing the baby’s birth. Hell, she had made little effort to tell him she was pregnant.
Yet she was more than just a friend.
Yesterday he’d have considered an answer to Pete’s offer a major decision he had to make. But after going through the labor and delivery process with Tess—a process he had heard most couples describe as bringing them closer together—the decision didn’t seem so big anymore. His career meant everything to him, and this assignment would be an enormous boost to that career.
Tess had known all that his job entailed when they became involved. She knew about it when she got pregnant and decided not to let him know. She knew about it when he moved in to help her out after the doctor ordered her to rest. Why would she expect him to do anything other than take a plum assignment when it fell into his lap?
According to the doctors, barring any complications Tess and the baby would be released in several days. Nick could stall Pete, get Tess and the baby settled at home and then tell Tess he had to leave. His mother would help with the baby care now and soon Tess would have childcare arrangements in place. Plenty of mothers everywhere worked and managed just fine on their own. Tess would join their ranks and probably win a gold medal for her efforts.
There. Decision made. End of discussion.
Nick drove all thoughts of the subject from his mind and made quick work of an overcooked burger and soggy fries. He would love a beer chaser, but that would have to wait until he got back home. No, he would have his best Scotch. Neat. And enough of it to make him sleep straight through the night and halfway to noon.
*****
“He’s beautiful,” Maddie gushed as she cradled the six-day-old baby in her arms. “Holding a newborn almost makes me want to have another one and try for a boy.”
“You’re kidding, right?” Tess asked in disbelief. “I’m not sure I’d ever want to go through labor and delivery again. I sneezed yesterday and thought I would faint. Who knew the birth canal and your nose were connected?”
Maddie laughed. “You’ll forget about all that the first time this sweet thing looks up at you and smiles.” She brushed her finger gently down the baby’s upturned nose. “Won’t she, little guy? Huh?”
“I may forget about the discomfort, but I’m pretty sure my baby-making days are over. Right now I’m just trying to get as much sleep as possible and figure out how breastfeeding works. I feel like a cross between Elsie the Cow and Dolly Parton. I’m producing enough milk to feed triplets. And the advice I get.” Tess sighed in frustration. “Everyone feels compelled to tell me how they couldn’t produce enough milk or how I should give him cereal to make him sleep through the night or whatever else they think I have to know. I’m relieved Michael is healthy, and I just want to enjoy every moment of motherhood with my adorable, perfect son. But please tell me the advice stops at some time.”
“I wish I could, but we mothers have a code we follow regarding advice. And I’m going to offer you the absolute best piece of advice I have.”
Tess sent her friend a disbelieving look. “Not you too?”
“It’s simple. Use common sense and ignore any advice that flies in the face of common sense.”
The baby began to wriggle and turn his head toward Maddie’s chest. “Sorry, pumpkin, but this isn’t your feeding station.”
Tess flinched at the mention of “pumpkin.” “Here, let me have him. He’s ready to eat. Again. I want to know who came up with the four-hour feeding schedule. If I tried to wait four hours to feed him, I’d be gushing milk and he’d be screaming his head off.”
“Probably the same monk who’s never seen a woman and also designed the hospital’s sanitary napkins. They’d fit an elephant.” Maddie stood and placed the squirming infant in his mother’s arms. “Common sense, remember? And my other advice is to take every offer of help you get. Don’t let pride stand in the way of some assistance with whatever they offer. And don’t be afraid to ask for help. It’s not a sign of weakness to admit you can’t do everything.”
Tess fumbled with the catch on her nursing bra and tried to arrange a receiving blanket over her shoulder while her hungry son began to whimper. She had been shy about nursing in front of anyone, but she didn’t want modesty to cause her friend to leave. If she didn’t get the baby feeding soon, the whimper would become a wail. She knew that all too well since she had heard it quite clearly in the middle of the night.
“Need any help?” Maddie offered.
Tess opened her mouth to refuse and then remembered her friend’s advice. Maddie was still nursing her younger daughter. She knew what it was like to have a newborn. False modesty would serve no purpose now.
“Could you grab that pillow and put it under my elbow, please?”
Tess shifted against the pillow until she was comfortable, shrugged off the blanket and raised the hem of her oversized blouse. She put the baby to her breast. He latched on quickly and fed with gusto, his tiny hand resting near her heart—the heart he had stolen when the nurse had placed him in her arms for the first time. Too bad he wasn’t the only one who had stolen her heart. Life might be simpler without so many tugs at her heartstrings.
Damned hormones.
“There,” Maddie said. “That wasn’t so difficult, was it? And let Nick help you too. There are lots of things a father can do for a baby even if they can’t feed them. And speaking of Nick, how are the two of you doing?”
“Would you mind getting me a glass of water?” Tess asked. “See? I’m getting the hang of asking for help.”
Maddie’s disapproving look wasn’t lost on her, but the woman left the den and then returned with the requested drink.
“Any more requests to make so you can avoid talking about you and Nick?”
The common sense mentioned earlier should dictate telling her friend about the phone call she had overheard and the real possibility—no, make that probability—that Nick would be leaving soon. And even if he didn’t have a career-making assignment in the works, she remembered the things she had said to him during labor and wouldn’t blame him for taking them to heart and walking away.
“I’ve screwed things up, Maddie,” she confessed, miserable over what had happened and what most likely would happen. Tess told her friend everything from overhearing the phone call to her outrageous statements six days before. “I have a new baby who wants to eat every two hours and Nick is probably leaving soon for Bulgaria. So that’s how Nick and I are doing.”