AllFreeNovel
Share Us
I nodded, my eyes opening. “Okay, but can you raise the head of the bed?”
“Of course,” he said and raised the bed so I could see the room better.
He kissed me once more and then left me alone. After a few moments, a woman in a brightly colored nursing tunic entered and went through her paces, checking my vitals, my pulse, my oxygen, my surgical wound, which I was shocked to see looked like a huge Frankenstein-like scar.
“Good God,” I said when I saw it, the edges held together by staples. “How many stitches?”
“Just the right number,” she said and adjusted my pillow.
“I guess my bikini days are over,” I said with a rueful laugh.
“Don’t be silly,” she said and smiled. “The scars will fade and will be a faint white in a year or so. They’ll be a great conversation starter.” She winked at me. “They saved your life and your baby’s life, so wear them like a badge of honor.”
“You’re right,” I said and sighed. “I prefer one pieces anyway.” I smiled at her, liking the way her mind worked.
When the nurse was done, my father entered the room and I could see that he was tired and pale. The whole business must have been very hard on him, given his own issues.
“Katie,” he said and stood by my bed, the cane in one hand. He leaned over and kissed my forehead and then he sat by the bedside and took my hand in his good one. “We’re so glad you’re okay. Elaine and I have been frantic for you to wake up, but Drake told us it was to give your brain a chance to recover from the concussion.”
I smiled at him. “I’ve been out of it so this is all news to me. How’s Elaine?”
“She’s fine and will be in when I’m done. We’ve all seen Sophia and she’s tiny but she’s a trooper, like her mother. Heath and Christie are in Haiti still, but they’ll be back soon and send their love.”
“Tell him thanks, and I hope he’s happy to be an uncle.”
“I will.” My father sat and stroked my hand for a moment. “I’m sure he’s ecstatic, just like we are.”
We sat like that, with him holding my hand, for a while, talking about what happened and I learned that the police were tracking down the car, which had been rented the day of the accident.
“It was a hit and run?” I asked.
“Yes,” my father said and nodded. “You don’t worry about any of that. You concentrate on getting better, okay? No talk about the accident. You need good thoughts only.”
I sighed. “It seems so strange to me. Like a story that happened to someone else. I have no memory of anything from lunch until I woke up.”
“Drake said there’s often amnesia surrounding a trauma like that. I’m told you were briefly conscious, but you probably won’t remember anything from that day.”
“I’m glad everything’s okay,” I said. “I can’t wait to see Sophia.” Then I turned to face him, frowning. “Are you sure she’s all right and you aren’t just keeping the truth from me?”
“Not at all,” he said and smiled. “She’s fine. She’s beautiful, just like you were. Tiny like a doll, but of good hardy Irish stock like us McDermotts.” He made a fist and tried to look fierce, but he only looked comedic. The he burst into laughter and I was so glad that he was there to allay my fears.
“I was afraid she might have died and you didn’t want to tell me,” I said, tears springing to my eyes again, despite laughing only a moment earlier. I wiped the tears away and tried to get control over myself.
“Don’t worry, dear,” he said. “I’m sure they’ll bring you to see her soon. Maybe tomorrow, depending on how you do when they try to get you up. You might be a bit dizzy at first. I know I was when I first woke up after my stroke, but they’re slave drivers around here so they’ll have you up and walking the halls in no time.”
I smiled. “Good,” I said. “I want to get better. I want to go home and get Sophia into her new room. We haven’t even finished decorating it.”
“Don’t worry about any of that,” my father said. He stood and squeezed my hand and then kissed me once more. “I’ll let Elaine come in and then we’ll get out of your hair.”
“Thanks, Daddy,” I said.
He nodded, patting my hand once more.
Elaine came in and we had another round of kissing and hugging and hand-holding. She told me about Sophia and how small and hardy she was, how the nurses were pleased with her progress and how I’d be up and walking soon and could start nursing Sophia as long as everything else was okay.
By the time she left, I was exhausted and fell back asleep before Drake could come back in.
The next time I woke up was when the nurse came in to take my vitals again, and she smiled when I opened my eyes.
