Page 160 of Diego

She nods against my chest, but she does not let go. I have spent the last week thinking about giving her space, telling myself I was doing the right thing by staying away after the conversation in her apartment. None of that matters now.

There is no distance between us when she is shaking in my arms, and there is nothing I want from her except to make this stop hurting.

I keep her against me until her breathing begins to settle. She wipes at her face with the heel of one hand and looks embarrassed about crying, which is so completely Blair that something in my chest twists harder.

“Don’t,” I murmur.

Her eyes lift to mine. “Don’t what?”

“Apologize for any of this with your face.”

A shaky breath leaves her that is almost a laugh, but it disappears just as quickly. “I’m scared.”

“So am I.”

That gets her full attention. I do not usually hand my fears to anyone, but there is no point pretending with her now. I bring her hand to my mouth and press my lips against her knuckles. “I am scared out of my fucking mind.”

She closes her eyes for a second, and I hold her with our hands locked together until the door opens.

The woman who comes in is familiar. Dr. Mehta is in scrubs beneath a white coat, her expression composed without giving anything away. A nurse follows behind her, and through the doorway I can see another staff member maneuvering an ultrasound cart toward the room.

“Blair, I’m Dr. Mehta.” She steps closer to the bed. “Julia called me when you were brought in. I’ve taken care of her, and I’m currently seeing Donna as well, so I came down as soon as I could.”

Blair nods quickly. “Is the baby okay?”

Dr. Mehta does not rush the answer. “I don’t have that answer yet. Your bleeding has stopped for the moment, your blood pressure is stable, and that is encouraging, but we need imaging before I tell you anything about the pregnancy itself. I know waiting is awful, but I do not want either of you assuming the worst before we have information.”

“What caused the bleeding?” I ask.

“That is what we are going to look for.” She glances toward the cart now being brought inside. “There are several reasons someone can bleed in the first trimester, and some of them look much more frightening than they ultimately are. Right now, I want you both to stay with what we know. Blair is stable. The bleeding has slowed and stopped. We are going to look at the pregnancy.”

Blair’s fingers tighten around mine.

Dr. Mehta notices. “Because you are still early, I want to do a transvaginal ultrasound. It will give me a better view than an abdominal scan at this stage. The nurse will help get everything ready, and I’ll talk you through what I’m seeing.”

Blair swallows and nods. “Okay.”

I look at her. “I’m staying.”

Her eyes flick toward me, and she gives me the smallest nod.

The nurse moves efficiently, drawing the curtain even though the room is private and helping Blair shift lower on the bed. I turn my attention to Blair’s face while they prepare the probe, keeping my hand around hers and refusing to look anywhere else. She is tense enough that I can feel it through her fingers, and I rub my thumb over her knuckles while Dr. Mehta takes her place beside the monitor.

“This may feel uncomfortable, but it should not be painful,” she says. “Tell me if anything hurts.”

Blair nods again.

The room goes quiet except for the low hum of the machine.

At first, I watch Dr. Mehta’s face more than the screen. I am looking for something there, some change I can read before she speaks. She adjusts the image, moves the probe slightly, then focuses on the monitor with the concentration of someone who knows just how important the next few moments are.

Then she says, “There.”

Blair’s grip on me becomes painful.

I turn toward the screen.

I do not know what I am looking at.