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"No coffee?" Her plaintive tone stopped just short of whining. Rebecca was obviously not a morning person. He tried to keep a straight face as she continued grumbling. "Who scheduled this thing so early in the morning, anyway? The doctor can't possibly be wide enough awake to operate."
"You won't see the doctor right away. There's a good deal of preparation to be done before the procedure."
"At least the doctor will be awake by the time he gets to me. I'll be zonked long before I get any anesthesia, though. Are you sure I can't have any coffee?"
"Positive."
Gillian echoed his sentiments, pointing toward the garbage, where he'd thrown the grounds. "All gone."
"We may as well head for the hospital, then. No reason to hang around here." Rebecca turned and left the kitchen.
Desmond picked up Gillian and carried her out, shielding his concerns from her while keeping a comforting mental touch.
"Don't pick me up, Daddy. I wanna walk."
"It's too far for you to walk, Gillian. I have to carry you."
"No. I wanna walk. I'm not a baby." She looked at Rebecca, and Gillian's face crumpled in the precursor to a fit of tears. She'd proved she wasn't a baby by kissing his hand and making it better.
He calmed her with a quick image of her marching self-importantly by his side. He'd let her walk, if it meant that much to her.
"All right." He set her down on the floor and took her hand. "You can walk. But as soon as you start getting tired, I'm carrying you."
"Okay." Her smile radiated pride.
He opened the front door and ushered the ladies through. Then they walked at a child's pace through the corridors of the Institute toward the hospital wing. Midway through the second miniature park, Gillian admitted she n
eeded help. He carried her the rest of the way.
When they arrived, they were greeted by Doctors Chen and Laurence. Dr. Chen nodded a welcome, while Dr. Laurence introduced himself to Rebecca.
"Hi, there. I'm Dr. Michael Laurence. You're going to be my patient today. How are you feeling?"
"As well as can be expected without my coffee."
Desmond and Dr. Laurence laughed. Rebecca frowned, and muttered something under her breath about not being awake enough to laugh.
A nurse walked in with an armful of colorful child's toys, and set them on the carpeted floor of the waiting room. Gillian spied the distractions, and squirmed to be let down. When Desmond stood her on the floor, she hurried off to the pile of toys at the fast walk that was her top speed. He watched her go, making sure she got to her destination safely, before turning his attention back to Dr. Laurence.
"Before the nurse preps you, Ms. Morgan, I wanted to make sure you didn't have any last minute questions. As soon as you're ready, I'll give you your first anesthetic shot."
"Let's just get this over with."
Dr. Laurence motioned for the nurse to lead Rebecca away. She glanced over her shoulder at Desmond.
"I thought you were coming with me."
"You want me to?" He forced his face to remain impassive, even though he felt a grin struggling to break free.
"Of course I do," she snapped. "What's the point of being brave if there's no one there to see it? You're my witness."
"I'd be honored." Despite her explanations and rationalizations, he was certain she felt the same connection between them as he did, and wanted his presence to comfort and strengthen her. But he wouldn't burden her with that particular truth just yet. After all, it was only his opinion.
The door burst open and Philippe rushed in, out of breath.
"Am I late?"
"No," Desmond told him. "In fact, you're just in time. I need you to watch Gillian while I go with Rebecca."
