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She watched as he put the stethoscope to her belly and listened to the baby. Their baby. His child. His heart pounded so loudly in his chest that it was a wonder he could hear the fetus.
Pulling the stethoscope from around his ears, he glanced at her. “Are you staying here?”
“No,” she said. “I stopped to rent a room when the contraction started.”
“Has it stopped now?”
“Yes,” she said.
“She had a second bout of pain a little bit ago,” the clerk told him.
“Where’s your husband?” he asked, fairly certain there wasn’t one as he placed a blood pressure cuff on her arm.
That was his child.
“No husband.”
For a moment, they were quiet as he took her blood pressure and pulse. Fear seized him as he realized the implications and how she could even now be in danger. Staring at her, he pulled the stethoscope from his ears and took her hand.
“Your blood pressure is one forty over ninety. That’s high for a pregnant woman. You’re alone?”
“Yes,” she said, gazing at him. He saw the terror in her eyes. Somehow he had to make her realize that he would take care of her and their baby. When they were alone, they would talk, but now he needed to get her to the hospital and get her checked out.
He was not about to lose Amelia or this child.
“We’re out of rooms, Santa. She has no place to stay,” the clerk said. “She’s nine months pregnant with high blood pressure, alone, and driving in a storm. What a bad idea.”
What the hell was she doing out on the road alone at nine months pregnant? She should be at home with her feet propped up, someone taking care of her. And that someone was damn well going to be him. But first, he had to reassure her. It wouldn’t be good for her blood pressure to rise any higher.
“Where are you headed?”
“Whitefish, Montana. I’m so close,” she said. “I just want to be with my mother and father and family for Christmas.”
Standing, he motioned for the guys who had unloaded the stretcher. “Because your blood pressure is high, I think we should take you to the hospital and get you examined.”
She started to cry. “The baby is all right?”
He reached out and took her hand in his. Warmth filled him. They were having a baby. This woman that he’d searched so hard for was here in front of him, and he would do everything he could to take care of her.
“We’re going to make certain that you and baby are just fine. Everything appears normal, but I want a doctor to look at you. We don’t want you coming down with preeclampsia. It’s not quite time for that little one to arrive, so we want to keep him or her in the oven a little longer. And since you’re alone, I’m not willing to let you get back in your car.”
Biting her lip, she sighed. “The doctor warned me about the disease and the symptoms. I’ve been in the car for over eleven hours. Maybe that’s why my blood pressure is high.”
For a moment, he wanted to throttle her but knew that would do no good. It would be best if he stayed calm and got her to the hospital. After that, he was going to convince her to stay with him.
“Your feet are puffy and swollen. Not a good sign,” he told her. “Are you agreeable to going to the hospital?”
“Will you be there?”
The way she asked gave him hope.
“I wouldn’t be anywhere else. Not even the children’s Christmas party will keep me from being with you.”
“You can’t miss that,” she said.
How could he play Santa when his own child might be in danger?
“We’ll see,” he said. “First, let’s get you to the ER.”
