25. Ally
25
ALLY
I ’ve been on cloud nine for the past week despite the morning sickness.
I didn’t know a person could change so much, so fast.
One minute, Ethan is packing his bag and preparing to run. Next, he’s planning a future with me.
I don’t know what changed his mind so quickly, I just hope that it’s because he let go of his past and started looking within himself to see how he feels.
Not much else has changed. The hospital still doesn’t know we’re romantically involved. The plan is to keep things quiet until after I finish my externship and graduate.
I can’t be offered a job until I have a degree, but Ethan promises that an offer will be made. If I accept, we’ll have to stay quiet even longer, waiting until we’re married and there’s nothing the hospital can do. Ethan says he doesn’t think we’ll get into any trouble. He’s close with most of the administration. He says if anything, I might be moved to another floor. I would hate that because I’ve already made such good friends with the nurses I’ve worked with, but I’ll take it if it means keeping my job and the man I’ve fallen in love with.
Since this relationship is rather new to us, we’ve agreed to move as slowly as anyone can in our position. I have no immediate plans to move into his house, but that is the goal by the time the baby is born. We don’t want to act prematurely. This is my first pregnancy, and the odds of losing the baby are higher than I’d like to admit. Neither of us wants to feel forced with anything, especially when it comes to something as serious as life decisions. So, we’ll continue to date quietly, have sleepovers, and take a couple of trips while living separately. Down the road, when it becomes clear that we will be parents, we’ll revisit moving in together.
You’d think that working in a hospital would get you in for a doctor’s appointment sooner, but that isn’t the case. Ethan wants to be involved in every aspect of this pregnancy he can be, meaning we can’t see someone at our hospital. He reaches out to a friend and makes an appointment to have my pregnancy confirmed. On Friday, we take the day off and make the trip outside of the city to see the OB/GYN he set me up with. To say that I’m nervous is a massive understatement.
The ride to our appointment is nice. I always think it’s nice when we get to be alone together. It gives us time to get to know one another. We play silly games on the ride. We even make up our own game called Ask Me a Question. I ask him a question and I guess the answer. If I’m right, I get to ask another. If I’m wrong, it’s his turn to ask. There are no rules to the kinds of questions to ask, but we try to keep them personal, referencing the time of our lives before we knew one another.
I have one final question to ask as we pull into the parking lot of the doctor’s office. “How are you friends with this doctor?” I look over at him. “Is it because you dated when you were younger?”
He smirks as he parks the car. “No,” he answers. “Promise you won’t get mad?”
I feel my brows pull together, and I swallow. “I promise I’ll try not to get mad.”
He chuckles as he turns to face me. “This is the doctor Amelia saw for her pregnancy.” He holds up his hand like he has more to say. “I know a lot of people would say that’s weird to take you to the same doctor, but I promise, I’m only doing it because I know that she’s a very good doctor. She and I worked together on Amelia’s high-risk pregnancy. She’s caring but honest. She will tell you how it is, and she doesn’t let things like money sway her decisions. I want you in the best hands possible, and I feel like that is Dr. Micah.”
I nod. “Okay. I’m not mad.”
His icy eyes widen. “You’re not?”
I shake my head. “No, not at all. You have a past, Ethan. Everyone does. I don’t want you to feel like you have to hide it.”
He breathes out a sigh of relief as he takes my hand in his, moving it to his lips and pressing a kiss to the back. “You’re the best. Has anyone ever told you that?”
I grin. “You. About a million times,” I reply, leaning in to press a kiss to his lips. “Now, come on. Let’s get inside.”
We walk into the office hand in hand. I fill out all the paperwork, and we’re taken back where they check my weight and collect a urine sample before showing us to a room. A little while later, a nurse joins us. She asks a series of questions and takes my temperature and blood pressure. She enters it all in the computer before giving me a paper gown to change into. When she walks out, Ethan looks up at me. I notice how wide his eyes are, how his brows are lifted, and a look of shock is already covering his face.
“What’s that look for?” I ask, taking off my clothes to put on the gown.
“You’re pregnant.”
I snort. “I know, but how are you so sure?”
“The nurse ran your urine before we got in here. If it was negative, she wouldn’t have given you a gown.”
His words settle around me like a thick blanket. Even though I knew I was pregnant, it feels nice having it acknowledged and accepted. It’s almost like this hasn’t been real until now.
After I get changed, Ethan and I chat until someone knocks on the door. It opens, and a woman in a white lab coat walks in. She’s an elegant woman with short blonde hair that’s curled and styled nicely. She’s dressed in heels and dress pants. When I think of a powerhouse doctor, she’s exactly what I imagine. She looks at me first, offering a friendly smile and offering her hand to shake. “Ally, it’s nice to meet you. I’m Dr. Micah. How are you doing today?”
I shake her hand. “Good; it’s nice to meet you.”
She turns and looks at Ethan. “Dr. Cole, what a surprise. How have you been? It’s been a long time since we’ve been face to face.” She holds out her hand.
He shakes it politely. “I’m doing well. How about yourself?”
She moves to the sink to wash her hands. “I can’t complain.” She dries her hands as she turns to face me. “So, the pregnancy test was positive. Was that the outcome you expected?”
I nod. “I took a test.”
“First pregnancy?”
I nervously nod again.
“Okay then. Let’s go ahead and lay you back, and we’ll do your first ultrasound to check on things and see how you’re coming along. Sound good?”
“Sounds good,” I agree.
“Let me get the nurse.” She sticks her head out the door and a moment later, the nurse joins us.
I lay back and put my feet in the stirrups. Ethan stands at my side, holding my hand as the nurse helps the doctor set up. A few seconds later, the lights dim, and I am violated.
“Prior to this, were you up to date on your paps?”
“Yes,” I answer, watching the white wall in front of me where the image is projected.
The picture is very grainy and black and white. Things are moving, and it makes it hard to see anything. I’m not even sure how far along I am or what the baby should look like at this stage.
“Ah-ha. There we are. There’s your baby,” Dr. Micah says, moving a cursor to the little flicker. “This is the heart, and that flicker is it beating. Let’s listen.”
Everyone quiets, and the fastest heartbeat I’ve ever heard plays through the speaker. I’m smiling with excitement but when I look up at Ethan, I find him and the doctor exchanging a serious look.
“Did you hear that?” the doctor asks him.
“Hear what?” I ask, suddenly worried something is wrong with the baby.
“I did,” he agrees.
“What? What is it?”
She moves the wand and there’s the flicker again. She smiles at Ethan. “You know what this is, don’t you?”
He nods. “I do.”
“Well, I don’t. Does someone want to clue me in?”
Dr. Micah looks down at me. “So, this little flicker here,” she says, moving the wand, “is Baby A.” She moves the wand back. “And this flicker here is Baby B.”
My eyes double in size. “Excuse me?”
She smiles and nods. “That’s right. Two babies. Twins.”
“Twins? I can’t have twins! I wasn’t even used to the thought of having one baby, and now you’re telling me that I’m having two?”
She smiles and nods. “That’s right. Congratulations.”
“Congratulations?” I look from her to Ethan.
“Shhh, it’s okay. Everything will be okay,” he tells me soothingly.
“I take it you’re surprised by the news,” Dr. Micah says, still moving the wand around to take pictures. “Do twins run in your family?”
“How should I know? The only family I have is my mom, and she’s never mentioned it.”
“I see.” She removes the wand and turns off the machine. “You can sit up. We’ll leave you alone to get dressed, and I’ll be back in a few minutes.” She and the nurse slip out, leaving Ethan and I alone.
“What the hell?” I whine.
“It’s okay,” he assures me. He steps up to the foot of the bed, standing at my knees. He wraps his arms around me and pulls me in for a hug. “I know it’s overwhelming, but everything will work out. We’ll make it work.”
I frown as I pull back and look at him. “Are you serious? Last week, you wanted to avoid one baby so badly that you were willing to sign your house over. Now, you’re just magically okay with two?”
He chuckles. “It’s a lot; I know. But you helped open my eyes. You showed me what’s important. I’m not going anywhere. I’m going to be by your side, helping to raise these babies.” He gently kisses my lips.
I place my hand against his chest, pushing him back a step. “This is crazy, you know that?”
He grins. “I know. And for the first time in six years, I’m okay with it.”
“You’re okay with it? You’re okay with double the diapers? Double the formula? New parents with one baby barely get any sleep. But when you have two?”
He places his fingers beneath my chin, tilting my head back. “Everything is going to be okay,” he tells me once more. And then he kisses me, but this time, it’s a real kiss. It’s long and deep. It’s intense, the kind of kiss that makes your toes tingle. The kind that leaves you breathless. When he pulls back, I’ve forgotten what we were talking about. All I can do is smile at him with hearts in my eyes.
He chuckles and taps the tip of my nose. “Come on. Let me help you down so you can get dressed. The doctor will be back soon.”
I place my hand in his, and he helps me from the table. Once I’m dressed, I hop back up on the table, and he moves back in, standing between my knees. He cups my jaw as he looks into my eyes. “I can’t even explain how much you’ve changed my life. One day I’m numb, living in a black-and-white world and every day is the same. Then you walked in. You set my world on fire and shook things up. I forgot how good it feels to be alive. I would say I love you, but it’s so much more than that. You saved me from my past, and you’ve given me a future. I don’t know where I’d be without you, but I know I never want to find out.”
I smile. “I love you, too,” I whisper, afraid of talking any louder because I can feel the emotion growing thick in my throat. I’m on the verge of tears.
He chuckles and leans in for another kiss, only he stops halfway like he’s just realized something.
“What?”
“Marry me.”
“What?” I ask, not sure if I heard him right.
“Marry me. I love you. I want to raise these babies with you. I want to know that you’ll be mine for the rest of my life. Will you please marry me?”
I roll my eyes. “Ethan…”
He shakes his head. “I’m not joking, Ally.”
The door opens and the doctor steps in, but she pauses when she sees Ethan and I staring at one another. “I’ll give you a few more minutes.”
“Say yes. Please, Ally. Will you marry me?”
I laugh. “This is crazier than being pregnant with twins.”
He chuckles and rests his forehead against mine. “Is that a yes?”
“Of course, it’s a yes,” I agree, and his mouth meets mine.
So much for taking it slow.