Chapter 6 Vega
Vega
“How are you feeling today?”
“There is a bowling ball bouncing on my bladder, kicking me in the kidneys, and keeping me up all night with heartburn so bad I think I’ll forever have scar tissue after this kid is out of me. How do you think I feel?”
Glancing at the woman who was thirty-nine weeks pregnant with her third baby, I could almost feel her misery.
She was obviously uncomfortable, with her swollen feet and a belly that was expanded to the point that her belly button was protruding.
Her hair was twisted into a messy bun on top of her head, and she appeared to be wearing her husband’s sweatshirt and matching joggers.
I’d seen her lifting the shirt a few times to smell it, breathing deeply.
A quick sniff when she’d passed me had confirmed it smelled like the man’s cologne, from what I remembered of their visit the previous week.
He wasn’t present for this appointment, but he brought her comfort, even absent.
From what little I’d interacted with the patient and her significant other in the last month, I’d witnessed how supportive the man was of his wife.
Seeing many of my patients with their partners had been a regular stab to my heart since I’d started working at the women’s center.
Many of them were pregnant, and they appeared to have amazing support systems. Each time a man helped his woman to her feet, put a hand on her swollen belly, or simply looked at her with complete adoration on his face, I felt a pang of longing.
But those were normally short-lived, because with each supportive spouse came twice as many couples who couldn’t care less.
And if I were honest with myself, knowing what I knew at this point, I didn’t know which category Kane and Ryder would fall into if they were with me at my own prenatal appointments.
Every time I took a moment to consider it, my heart broke a little more.
Maybe they would have been mad that I’d gotten pregnant and would have asked me to have an abortion.
After all, I’d unknowingly been their mistress.
They had entire futures planned with their fiancées.
More than likely, they only wanted kids with their wives.
Or maybe they would have called off their engagements and committed to me.
They might have attended every appointment with me, asked a thousand questions of the doctor, treated me like I was fragile and precious.
Maybe they would have put their hands on my barely there bump and talked directly to our baby.
Sadly, foolishly, I’d thought they were already committed to me and us.
Mentally shaking away all the maybes, I gave my patient a sympathetic smile. At first glance, her belly had definitely grown since I’d seen her the previous Friday, but it was also sitting lower. It was a safe bet that she wouldn’t make it past the weekend without delivering.
“You’re almost there, mama,” I told her encouragingly as I helped her up onto the exam table. “Other than being miserable twenty-four seven, is there anything Doc should be aware of?”
“A few mild cramps since yesterday. I wouldn’t call them contractions, though. More like a spasm in my lower back that moves around to my right side. Pain scale?” She lifted one shoulder. “I would rate it at a four.”
I made a quick note in her chart and then started on her vitals.
By the time I was done, our lab tech had already posted her urinalysis.
After a check of the fetal heartbeat, I did a pelvic exam to check her cervix.
She was dilated to three, but that didn’t mean much, given her history.
This patient had gone from zero to pushing in under two hours with her second baby.
With all the other signs, I was sure Doc was going to walk in and tell her to go straight to the birthing center, which was part of the women’s center.
Other than not having an emergency room, the medical center was a full-scale hospital that catered to women only.
There was a trauma-equipped hospital a few miles from the women’s center.
Each wing of the plaza was for a different specialty, like the medical imaging unit for mammograms and other diagnostic testing.
There was an oncology wing, primarily for breast, ovarian, and cervical cancer, that housed a separate section for chemotherapy treatment.
Then there was the OB-GYN that I worked for, with the birthing center right next door.
We even had a surgical floor, the teams ready to go at a moment’s notice, twenty-four seven.
One of the certifications I’d gotten over the years was in midwifery.
Something I’d been incredibly proud of, yet had never used because Ryder had steered me toward the paths he’d wanted me to take.
He and Kane probably didn’t even remember that my passion had been in women’s health, which had worked out perfectly when I’d needed to start over.
This new job wasn’t as fast-paced as my previous one, but I loved what I was doing so much more.
Also, I wasn’t as stressed, hadn’t been assaulted by a patient a single time in the weeks since I started, and I only worked eight to five Monday through Friday.
On top of the lighter workload, I was also making double the money because it was privately funded and not a state-run facility.
Once I’d made the choice to leave, I’d thought I would miss my old life.
So far, I’d found very little that I missed.
Except my men. I ached for them, but with each passing day, I realized more and more how little a part of their lives I’d actually been.
Even though I fell asleep every night crying, I was accepting that the future I’d always envisioned with Ryder and Kane had been an impossible dream.
Other than them, I had no true friends or family.
I was no longer sure if that had been my choice or if Ryder had kept me isolated on purpose.
I was sure Kane had as well, but I kind of blamed Ry more.
My old life had revolved around both men, including work.
Instead of accepting an offer to work at a birthing center when I’d first completed my licensing—something Ryder had known I was excited about but convinced me not to accept—I’d taken a job based on being able to set the same schedule every week to meet their needs, not my own.
Every aspect of my world was with the goal of pleasing them.
Well, that wasn’t going to happen ever again.
My new reality was my baby—nothing and no one else.
I’d made a few mommy-to-be friends, I had a small two-bedroom house that I was renting-to-own, and I was smiling more than I had in a really, really long time.
Even though I cried myself to sleep, I was happier than I’d been in years.
“Where is Dad today?” I asked, keeping my tone casual.
Some of the misery on her face softened, and she smiled.
“It’s his date night with our daughter. They spend one Friday a month together.
He takes her to a movie, dinner, then they stop for whatever dessert and bring me home a slice of cake.
Our son…” She paused, rubbing her hand lovingly over her belly.
“Well, soon, plural. Our sons. Boys bond easily. Sports. Occasionally hunting and playing video games. But our daughter is a very girlie girl. He didn’t know how to connect with her, and as she’s gotten older, they began drifting further and further apart.
It was breaking his heart. I suggested the monthly father-daughter dates, and they’ve been closer ever since. ”
Unexpectedly, a lump of emotion filled my throat.
I couldn’t even remember my father’s face, but lately, I’d been wondering what had happened to him.
When I was put into foster care at age five, no one would tell me where he was.
As for my mother, I couldn’t remember a time I had ever had one of those.
A few foster families had tried to make me call them Mom and Dad, but I always ran away before they could enforce that rule.
Swallowing hard to push down the emotions choking me, I gave her another smile. “Sit tight, mama. Doc will be in shortly.”
“Thanks, Vay.”
With a nod, I left her. Doc was just coming out of his office when I shut the door behind me.
He was an amazing, dedicated doctor with a calming bedside demeanor and nonjudgmental tone of voice.
We’d clicked well as a team from the beginning, without that awkward phase when strangers started working side by side.
Doc was a good guy—handsome, single, and most importantly, treated every woman who came into his office with dignity and respect. In another life, one where I wasn’t already jaded by life in general and I wasn’t pregnant with another man’s baby, there might have been chemistry between us.
Without a word, I handed him the tablet. He nodded as he read, adding notes as he went. “Call over and have her suite readied. I’m sending orders for induction now.”
“On it, Doc.”
“Don’t know if I’ve said it yet or not, Vay, but you’re an asset to us.” His eyes met mine, something flashing there that I was too numb to acknowledge. “And to me.”
Another wave of emotion hit me, and I dipped my chin at the praise.
Back at my job in the ER, the only time anyone ever had something to say about my work was related to mistakes, and those were usually from new residents on their emergency medicine rotation.
Those assholes and their egos were too big to work permanently in any emergency department.
Had Ryder and Kane ever said that to me?
No.
Because I hadn’t been an asset to either of them. It hurt to think about that, and I quickly pushed that realization down.
Doc tucked the tablet under his arm and knocked on the door before touching the handle. “Have a good weekend, Vay. Take care of yourself and that little one.”
Touching my tiny baby bump, I gave him a quick smile. “Thanks, Doc. See you Monday.”