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“So fucking leave, asshole,” Phil spits over his shoulder.
“Phil, stop,” I admonish. Typical. The man has always had a temper. What the hell did I see in him, anyway? Maybe when we were in Italy everything just felt a bit more romantic.
I try to sit up to call Rudy back, then wince as pain radiates across my chest.
Rudy pauses, taking half a step toward me. Then his face hardens, and he turns away and walks out the door.
A nurse bustles in. Her name is Wendy, and she must be nearing the end of her shift because she’s been taking care of me all night. She’s kind and gentle and incredibly efficient, but she has a spine of steel. Her hair is a riot of curls barely tamed in a bun at the nape of her neck. Her rich, dark skin is set off by the blue scrubs she’s wearing, and she lifts an eyebrow at the interloper in my room. There’s none of the soft kindness in her gaze now. “Everything okay here?” Her eyes narrow on Phil. “Who are you?”
“I’m the father,” he says, that hard, bulldog expression setting itself over his features.
The nurse doesn’t even blink. She turns to me. “You want him gone?”
“She wants me to stay,” Phil says, taking a step toward the nurse.
She lifts a hand. “Sir, one more step and I’m calling security. Now, Lily, you want this guy here, or do you want him gone?”
I take a little sip of a breath and lie back on my pillows. “Gone,” I whisper. “I think I need to sleep.”
Phil splutters, but the nurse extends a hand toward the door to my room. “You heard the woman. Out.”
“I’m coming back later,” Phil says, and it sounds a little bit like a threat.
I just close my eyes. I don’t have the energy to deal with any of this.
Wendy closes the door behind him with a sneer. “He seems like a winner.”
I huff a bitter laugh and blink my eyes open. I turn to watch her take my blood pressure and let out a long sigh. “I think I fucked up, Wendy. The guy I want didn’t know I was pregnant until just now, and he told me he never wanted to be a stepdad. The father of my kid didn’t know about the breast cancer. I don’t want him anywhere near my baby, but he just told me he left his wife for me. Everything is a mess.”
She grunts, making notes on my chart. “Don’t worry about any of that now. You’ve got more important things to think about than some prissy little man with an ego problem, or some blond hunk who won’t get his head out of his ass and accept you as you are.”
My laugh is a bit lighter this time. “You know, that might be the most accurate description of him I’ve ever heard.”
“Which one?” She arches a brow, grinning.
“Both of them.” I laugh, then shake my head. “But I meant Phil. He is prissy, small, and he has an ego problem. I can’t believe I ever had sex with him.”
“I know his type. They turn on the charm like a faucet, and turn it off just as quick,” she says, then slides my chart back where it goes in its slot at the head of my bed. “Doctor Gilmore will be here in a few minutes, and they’ll be serving breakfast within the hour. Your mom and sisters coming back today?”
I nod. “I’m surprised they aren’t here already.”
“If they have another box of goodies today, tell them to save me one of those blueberry muffins,” she says, then gives me a wink. Her hand squeezes my shoulder. “You’ll be okay, Lily. Trust me.”
I nod and watch the nurse leave, grateful to have yet another woman on my side. If there’s one thing I’ve learned over the past few months, it’s that women are a lot more reliable than men when the going gets tough. A lot more reliable.
My doctor confirms the surgery was a success and is confident I’ll be able to leave the hospital within a couple of days. They think they got all the cancer cells, which is good news. My mom, Trina, and Candice ask about a thousand questions, and I’m glad they’re here. I don’t even have the energy to decipher words, let alone ask for details on medical procedures and follow-ups.
First, sleep. Then, home. After that, when I have the energy, I’ll think about the upcoming chemo. Once that’s done, I might even consider the looming prospect of labor and delivery. Actual motherhood is on the very distant horizon.
Rudy and Phil can go kick rocks for all I care right now. My mother fluffs my pillow as I drift off into a hazy sleep, a hand on my stomach to feel my growing bump.
I have more important things to think about now.
CHAPTER 34
Rudy
She’s pregnant.
