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The other men left, rolling the stretcher between them. The nurse gazed at Ryan and then at Amelia.
“Santa, why are you still here?” she asked.
“He’s the father,” she told the nurse.
“Oh,” the woman said, her mouth opening in shock.
“This is Amelia,” Ryan said. “The girl I’ve been searching for since I went on that cruise nine months ago.”
The nurse shook her head and smiled. “I’m glad you finally found her, but this is a surprise.”
“For both of us,” Ryan said, taking Amelia’s hand again. “A good surprise.”
The nurse shook her head and took Amelia’s blood pressure. “How many weeks?” the nurse asked.
“Thirty-eight,” Amelia said.
“It’s still high. The doctor should be in soon. At thirty-eight weeks, you could have the child with a high probability of survival, but we’d rather wait a bit longer. Let’s see what the doctor thinks. I’m going to help you get into a gown. Do you want Ryan to stay or leave?”
“He can stay,” she said. He’d already been up close and personal with her.
After the nurse had her settled in, she left the room.
“Never expected to see you again this way,” Ryan said, standing beside the bed, holding her hand. His grip was firm like he didn’t want to let her go.
“No, believe me, it was a shock for me as well. And for a moment, I was afraid.”
“No,” he said. “There was no reason for you to fear me being upset. I’d been searching for you for months. I’m thrilled you’re having our child. I just wish I’d been there from the beginning.”
“Me too,” she said.
Ten minutes later, the doctor walked in and glanced at Ryan. “Hello, Santa Claus. I hear you two are expecting. Looks like very soon.”
“Yes, sir,” Ryan said.
These were people he worked with every day, and while Amelia wasn’t ashamed, they had not had a chance to talk in private, and she longed to see if he was just putting on a brave front or if he was truly happy to see her and learn they were expecting.
It all felt awkward, and she realized it probably wasn’t helping her blood pressure.
Right now, her focus should be on this baby.
She took a deep breath and released it slowly. Two more weeks and then this child would be welcomed into the world.
“Do you mind if I examine you?” the doctor asked.
“No, go ahead,” she replied.
After he examined her, he smiled. “You’re just barely dilated. That baby is not quite ready to come out. I think you were having Braxton Hicks because you physically pushed yourself today. Your blood pressure is high because you sat in your car for too many hours. How far are you from home?”
Ryan helped her into a sitting position on the table.
“Two hours away in Whitefish,” she said. “I really want to spend Christmas with my family. They don’t know about the baby. And I want to have her there with my mother beside me.”
She glanced at Ryan hoping he would want to be there. “And you as well. It’s just I had planned on being with my family.”
The doctor smiled. “Well, until this storm passes, you’re not going anywhere. The highways are closed. And I don’t want you driving to Whitefish alone. If the roads clear and if Ryan takes you and you make frequent stops, I’ll agree to it. But first, your blood pressure has to come down and your feet can’t be that swollen.
“So here’s the plan. If your blood pressure is normal. If your feet are not swollen and if Ryan agrees to drive you, then I’ll say you can go. But don’t plan on coming back to Missoula. Have the baby there.”
