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Always a careful midwife, Brooke had never been so vigilant as she was with Carol. She checked everything repeatedly, helped Carol with her breathing and did everything she could to relax the couple.
She suggested the pool but Carol was adamant that it didn’t appeal to her.
‘I know it’s illogical but I just can’t help thinking that the baby shouldn’t be in water.’
‘That’s fine, but your labour is going pretty slowly,’ Brooke told her, trying not to make her anxious. ‘We need to try and speed things up if we can or the baby might get tired. Could you get up and walk around a bit if Bill helps you?’
With a huge effort Carol manoeuvred her bulk off the bed and started to pace, with her husband supporting her.
Dave Richards, the infertility consultant, popped his head in halfway through the day to see how she was doing, and Brooke took the opportunity to leave the room and bleep Jed. She would have given anything to avoid him completely but she had a feeling that he was going to be needed.
He rang back immediately, his voice crisp and professional as he asked her questions about the woman.
‘I’ll come up and see her when I’ve finished clinic,’ he said finally, after she’d told him the whole story. ‘Hopefully she won’t need any help, but you’re right to play it safe. I’ll have a word with Dave, too, before I see her.’
Replacing the receiver, Brooke walked back into the room and carried on encouraging Carol to move around and stay upright, helping her breathe as the contractions became stronger and closer together.
It was three o’clock when Jed arrived, his blue eyes tired as they skimmed past Brooke, without giving her a second glance, and rested on Carol.
‘How are things?’
His voice was gentle and he sat down on the bed next to her as he leafed through the notes and traces that Brooke handed him.
‘This all looks fine, Carol.’
‘She’s been moving around a lot and she’s certainly made progress in the past few hours,’ Brooke told him, her voice calm and professional. She concentrated hard on the notes—anything rather than look at the soft dark hair at the back of his neck. She knew how soft that hair felt, knew how every inch of him felt, and she loved him with every bone in her body—
‘No pain relief at all?’ Jed frowned and looked quizzically at Carol. ‘You’re fine about that, are you, Carol?’
‘Brooke’s helping me breathe and that helps a lot,’ Carol said stoically. ‘I really don’t want anything else, Mr Matthews.’
Jed nodded slowly. ‘OK, well, that’s your decision, but let us know if you change your mind.’
‘Is everything still all right?’ Carol asked anxiously, and Jed nodded.
‘At the moment everything seems fine but keep moving around. We do need to speed things up if we can. I’ll pop back in another hour and examine you and we’ll see where we go from there.’
Brooke watched him go, trying to ignore the pain in her chest. She couldn’t carry on working in the unit and seeing him every day. It was torture. She was going to have to find another job, somewhere that put some distance between them. Life had to change.
CHAPTER TEN
CAROL continued to make slow progress and by early evening she was ready to push.
‘Is it nearly over?’ She was clearly exhausted, her face pale and strained as she collapsed against the pillows after another contraction.
‘You’re doing so well, Carol. Just a little bit longer and then you’re going to hold your baby.’ Brooke brushed a strand of dark hair out her face, feeling almost exhausted as Carol. The responsibility for this particular delivery suddenly seemed enormous, and she checked the foetal heart again, reassuring herself that things were still going well.
An hour later the foetal heart was starting to cause her concern and Carol was clearly exhausted with the effort of trying to push.
Brooke pressed the buzzer and slipped an arm round Carol’s shoulders. ‘You’re so tired, Carol. Take a few deep breaths. That’s it. Well done.’ She glanced up as Gill came into the room, her eyebrows raised. ‘Could you bleep Jed for me, please?’
She could have done it herself, of course, but she didn’t want to leave Carol even for a moment. They’d formed a bond during the long day and she knew that her presence was a comfort to the exhausted woman.
Gill gave a brief nod and left the room without a question, leaving Brooke to talk quietly to Carol.
‘The baby isn’t really moving down the birth canal any more,’ Brooke said gently, ‘and you seem so very tired that I wonder whether we should just ask Mr Matthews to fit a suction cap to the baby’s head and give you a bit of extra help as you push.’
‘Oh, I don’t know.’ Carol gave an exhausted sob and shook her head. ‘I just don’t know any more.’
