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“Is he going to—what if he says something? You know; about the baby and you and Rafael?” Her words are quiet.
I place my hands on her cheeks. “Angel, this man is paid more money than you can imagine, and it isn’t for his doctorate. It’s for his discretion and ability to keep his mouth shut and opinions to himself.”
She nods, chewing on her lip. I kiss her softly and guide her into the room. The portable machines he brought are set up by the exam table, and the equipment to draw blood is laid out on the counter by the sink to the right. The room, other than being in a house, is set up exactly as it would be in a doctor’s office.
The old man smiles as we walk in, and I help Jordan onto the table.
He and his son, Baron White and Baron White Jr.—who will take over when his father can’t handle it any longer—are the only doctors I mess around with. The Whites have been with my family for years, and I plan for it to remain that way. They’ve always been loyal and appreciative. Never ask questions and keep quiet.
“First I’ll do a regular exam. Then I’ll listen for the heartbeat and do a sonogram. You can ask any questions you may have at any point.” Just like Dr. White to be direct.
“Okay,” Jordan says, giving him a small smile.
“Relax, angel,” I tell her, standing beside the bed. Rafael is by the foot of the bed, looking like he may pass out.
Jordan blows out a breath and nods. Dr. White goes through the motions of checking her vitals, and when he’s done, he lays her down and asks her to pull up her shirt so he can feel around her stomach. She tentatively lifts it beneath her breasts, and he presses along her abdomen in different spots.
“I’m going to place this paper cloth beneath your waistband so I don’t get any gel on your clothing, and I’ll need to lower them just a bit to get the right positioning.”
“Okay.”
I don’t like him touching her like this, but it needs to be done. For our baby. So I keep my mouth shut.
He squirts some bluish colored gel on her stomach and places the doppler on top. He moves it around, and before I know it, a fast thumping sound echoes through the room.
The old man smiles, staring off into space, seemingly thinking something over.
“Strong heartbeat,” he comments. “146. That’s great. Any questions so far?” he asks, looking between the three of us. We all shake our heads. I’m still in disbelief over hearing my child’s heartbeat for the first time. My eyes find Jordan’s flat stomach. To think there is a small baby in there. A growing child. A life. It’s—I can’t put it into words.
Jordan reaches for my hand and squeezes so tightly, making me realize I’m still staring at her stomach. I look at her, and she smiles so brightly.
We made a baby.
Well, one of us did. The thought sobers me, and I try not to feel any resentment toward Rafael. If this is his baby? Well, it’s still my baby, too. And if it bothers me so much, I’ll have to get her pregnant myself next time.
Dr. White goes to the ultrasound machine, turns it on, and wheels it closer to the bed. He swivels the screen so Jordan can see it and Rafael moves to my side to get a better look.
Rafael looks down, pausing at my hand linked with Jordan’s, with an almost longing look, but quickly brings his attention back to the screen. I wonder if this has him thinking about some life changes. Or maybe he’s regretting agreeing to be a part of this.
“All right, dear, more gel. This may be cold,” Dr. White says.
He squirts more gel onto her and presses this larger doppler to her lower stomach. He moves it around, and I watch on the screen as shades of black, white, and grey move but I have no idea what the hell anything is. All the colors look like nothing more than little blobs or random shapes. He stops on one part in particular, leaning closer to the screen as if trying to see something better.
To me, it doesn’t look like much of anything. Just two black circles between a bunch of grey stuff.
“What’s wrong?” I ask quickly, because the look on his face definitely tells me something is wrong.
“Oh, nothing,” he says, looking at me with a sly smile. “I have some good news, and maybe some better news.”
“What does that mean?” I ask carefully. Jordan and I share a concerned look. Rafael audibly swallows.
“Well, it seems you’re having twins,” Dr. White says with a bright smile.
Twins. Twins? We’re having twins?
“What?” Jordan breathes out, clamping my hand tighter.
“That’s right, dear. There are two babies. Right here.” He points to the screen, tapping one of the black blobs with a grey bean inside. “This is Baby A.” He moves to the other black blob and bean on the side of it. “And Baby B.”
