Chapter 16 #2
Louie had brought a hamper of organic mother and baby treatments from Neal’s Yard and a huge bag of coffee beans to help Charlie through his share of the night feeds.
When Louie had explained that Joe and Charlie were both coffee aficionados and that Joe had brought some of their favourite brand of coffee beans into work to use in the machine in his office, Hope had experienced a stab of what felt suspiciously like envy.
It made complete sense for Louie to know what Joe’s favourite kind of coffee was, given that they worked together, but she didn’t know any of those sorts of little details about him.
She didn’t know them about Laura either, but the door was open to ask those kinds of questions of her if she ever wanted to.
With Joe it was different and she was like a magpie, seizing on every shiny new detail she could lay her hands upon.
Hope had wanted to buy something really special for both the baby and Caleb, but pouring too much money into it might have looked odd.
So she’d decided to personalise something instead.
Even though she’d always wanted to be a midwife, she’d had a talent for art for as long as she could remember too.
She’d bought a plain wooden train for Caleb, painting his name and some patterns along the carriage it was pulling, and the words ‘Best Big Brother’ on one side of the train itself with the year painted on the other.
She hadn’t been able to personalise anything for the baby, because Danni and Charlie hadn’t said what they’d be calling her.
Instead, she’d bought a white wicker basket and filled it with things that would come in useful for the baby, hand painting a panel she’d attached to the front with the words ‘Little Things’.
She’d also created a tiny replica of a washing line, strung between two small bamboo poles, that stretched from one side of the basket to the other, adorned with socks, baby bootees and gloves.
Even she had to admit it looked lovely and it felt a bit more special than just picking up an outfit in the supermarket.
Caleb and the new baby were her cousins and, even if no one ever discovered that, she wanted to mark the occasion in a way that felt memorable, because she knew she’d never forget this day, whatever the future held.
The garden at Caroline and Patrick’s house, Esther’s parents, had been divided into two halves.
The first was set up as a paradise for younger partygoers, with a teddy bears’ picnic that wouldn’t have looked out of place in a storybook.
The second was more for the adults, with party games, cocktails and mocktails, and an array of food that would put most wedding buffets to shame.
Esther, Joe and her parents had pulled out all the stops for the baby shower and had made sure that Danni, Charlie and big-brother-to-be, Caleb, were the centre of attention.
‘Thank you so much for coming,’ Esther greeted them as soon as Hope and Louie entered the garden, and Joe followed on behind.
‘Let me get you both a drink. You can leave the presents for Danni and Charlie over there, or so I’m told.
’ He gestured towards a table covered by a white linen tablecloth, adorned with tiny pink roses.
‘My wonderful wife had this all planned out perfectly and my only job as uncle is to make sure no one is left in need of a drink at any point. Although if truth be told, my plan is to make sure everyone is given their first drink, and then show them where to get their next one from when they want it.’
Joe winked at them, grinning as his wife rolled her eyes. ‘No slacking off, Joseph Carter. If you want the title of favourite uncle, you’ll have to earn it.’
‘Even if I am the only uncle!’ he quipped back and Hope’s heart lightened a little.
He and Esther might not have been able to have a baby yet, but that didn’t mean they didn’t already have a family of their own.
They were obviously incredibly close to Danni and Charlie, who Hope knew was an only child like Esther.
It provided the opportunity for Esther and Joe to have a central role in the lives of Danni and Charlie’s children if they wanted it, and it was clear they did.
‘Just get Hope and Louie a drink, before I put you on pinata duty, or you’ll only have yourself to blame when you get whacked in the face by an overly enthusiastic child wielding a big stick.
’ Esther couldn’t keep a straight face as she said it, even before Joe picked up her hand, kissing it like he was auditioning for a part in Bridgerton.
‘Your wish is my command.’
‘It had better be.’ She grinned again, ushering him in the direction of the makeshift bar, as she turned to greet the next group of arrivals.
Hope wanted to soak in every element of the brief moments they spent with Joe, listening to his back and forth with Louie, the exchange filled with the same kind of warmth and humour she’d witnessed from him every time they met.
He was a good man. That fact hit home in every encounter they had.
If she didn’t already have a father who was also an incredibly good man – perhaps the best there was – that might have been enough to sway her decision.
But Esther was a wonderful person too and, no matter how many times Hope went over and over it in her mind, she was still no closer to knowing whether she could justify the pain it might cause Esther to hear that Joe had got someone else pregnant, even if it was decades before they had married.
Instead, she tried to content herself with making the most of the time she spent in his company, until he had to move away to mingle with other guests and fulfil the responsibility of making sure no one was without a drink in their hand.
After all, everyone would need one when it was time to toast Danni, Charlie and the latest addition to their family.
The baby shower had been in full swing for almost two hours before Hope had the chance to spend any more time with Joe. She was sitting with Louie, some of the other midwives and their partners, and Louie’s aunt and uncle, Gwen and Barry.
‘How’s everyone doing, can I get anyone another drink?’ Joe offered, still working hard to fulfil his duties, despite his earlier jokes about leaving people to get on with it.
‘We’re all having a great time. Why don’t you sit down for five minutes, I’ve not seen you stop since we got here,’ Gwen instructed, patting the empty seat beside her, where Izzy had been sitting until a few minutes beforehand.
Most of the children were busy at the teddy bears’ picnic, which was being overseen by Esther and a few of the staff from A&E, but Izzy had gone to take some photos, leaving her youngest child, baby Delilah, snuggled up in her father’s arms.
‘How could I resist when I get an offer from you, Gwen? Although, if Esther spots me sitting down, you’re going to have to tell her you made me do it.’ He smiled, but it didn’t sound entirely like he was joking.
‘Cracking the whip, is she?’ Gwen said, matching his smile with her own. ‘That’s what I like to see, us girls keeping you boys on your toes.’
‘I’ve got no objection to that at all.’ Joe suddenly sounded incredibly tired, but his concern wasn’t for himself.
‘It’s just that she’s been pushing herself so hard with this, wanting to make everything perfect for Danni, but I know my sister would hate the idea of Esther running herself into the ground.
Work has been pretty-full on lately too, and she seems to be finding that the transition between day and night shifts takes a lot more toll lately.
I just don’t want her to push herself too hard and, if I’m completely honest, I’ll be glad when today’s over. ’
‘I find the shift changes harder and harder the older I’ve got,’ Jess said.
‘Oh God, me too,’ Anna agreed. ‘And hitting forty was like hitting a brick wall, but Esther has got a good few years on all of us.’
‘Maybe you all just need to learn to nap anywhere, like Delilah.’ Izzy’s husband, Noah, stroked his baby daughter’s forehead.
‘We were at a wedding reception last weekend and she was in her buggy sound asleep, while the disco was blaring out about ten metres away. Although, to be fair, you could drop a packet of wet wipes on the wrong day and she’d be instantly awake and screaming before you even had the chance to pick them up again. ’
‘Do you think she’ll wake up if I give her a cuddle?’ Joe asked. ‘I’m dying to.’
‘Go for it.’ Noah placed the baby into Joe’s arms. ‘She’s due a bottle now anyway, so it won’t hurt, even if she does wake up.’
‘She’s so beautiful.’ Joe’s voice had taken on a tone that Hope hadn’t heard before, and she couldn’t quite pinpoint the emotion behind it. Was it wonder? Or sadness? Or maybe she was just projecting her own emotions onto him, and making this moment out to be far more than it really was.
‘I think she is, but then I’m bound to be biased, aren’t I?’ Noah acknowledged with a smile, but Joe shook his head.
‘I think anyone would say the same about Delilah. Although I’m pretty sure I’ll feel that way about my child too, whatever they look like.’
‘Is there something you haven’t told us?
’ Gwen leant forward in her seat, not missing a thing.
In the short time Hope had known the older woman, she’d quickly learned that Gwen was never afraid to ask the kind of questions other people would shy away from.
Hope desperately wanted Joe to say yes, but instead he shook his head.
‘Not yet, but we’re starting to consider adoption as a serious option.’