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“In the corridor, freaking out, of course.”
My reaction is to laugh, but exhaustion weakens my entire body. “Tell him I said thank you. If I were alone, I don’t think I’d have gotten myself to the hospital fast enough.”
“I will pass the message on,” she assures me, softening her tone. “You need to get some rest.”
“I know.” I yawn before my eyes fall heavily, and sleep is imminent.
My eyes flutter, the fluorescent light blinding me and making it difficult to open them wide. On my second attempt, the surroundings come into focus. I’m in a hospital room, though it looks slightly different from the one I was previously in.
Millie is beside me, watching with a watery gaze. Behind her, Will is also inside the room.
“What happened?” I croak, barely able to talk from a scratchy throat.
Millie grabs the cup with a straw on the table next to me, then encourages me to have a drink of water. I move my body slowly, so I’m slightly upright, but everything is sore.
After managing a few sips, I start to feel a bit better.
“They moved you out of the delivery suite,” Millie informs me, placing the cup down. “Now, don’t be alarmed. You were bleeding more than usual, which is why you were so tired. They managed to stop the bleeding but want to keep an eye on you.”
“But the baby?”
Will moves closer to me, resting his hand on mine. “She’s beautiful, Ava. I remember when Ashton was born, he was even smaller.”
Millie nods in agreement. “It’s true. He was born at twenty-nine weeks, but look at him now, he’s healthy and even enjoys eating mud if you don’t watch him.”
I smile gently, unable to muster up a simple laugh. “Do you know when I can see her?”
“Austin said as soon as you get your energy levels up,” Will mentions, yet worry still etches his face. “So you need to drink and eat something.”
There’s a knock on the door, and a hospital worker pops her head in with a tray of lunch. With Will and Millie’s help, I manage to sit up to eat what I’ll call a less than desirable meal.
But beggars can’t be choosers. I end up finishing the mush and whatever brown thing they passed off as meat.
Somewhere during my rice pudding, there’s another knock on the door.
“Come in,” Millie says.
When the door opens, I see my parents’ faces. Mom looks relieved to see me, pressing her hand against her chest, then places her purse down to hug me. She pulls away as Dad hovers behind her. He draws his brows together, repeatedly rubbing his face. I instantly notice how disheveled he looks, not like the usually well-groomed Lex Edwards the world is used to seeing. Of course, he’s dressed in a navy suit, but his tie has been removed, and the shirt beneath looks creased.
“Hey, Dad.”
Mom touches his arm to comfort him. Then he moves closer to me as I wrap my arms around him. Inside his embrace, I bask in the familiarity, thanking my lucky stars they’re both here. Finally, we both pull away, but he lingers close by, sweeping the hair away from my forehead.
“You had us worried, sweetheart.”
“I know.” I sigh, then faintly smile. “I had me worried too.”
The door opens again, but this time, Austin walks through. The moment my eyes lay on him, I breathe a sigh of relief he is still around. As much as I love my family, seeing him brings a sense of calm.
He moves to my other side for Mom to ask about the condition of the baby.
“She’s doing well and weighing heavier than expected for her age.”
“And her heart?” Dad questions.
“Beating perfectly,” Austin assures him. “Our focus is her lungs. She’s on the ventilator ri
ght now. We’re closely monitoring how she progresses before we can remove it.”
