Page 189 of Always Us

She smiles. “You’re young. Healthy. Didn’t have any drugs. The delivery was smooth. No complications. So you’ll be sent home. Unless you want to stay another night.”

“No, I’d rather go home. But you’re giving us the baby?”

The way Jade says it is so damn funny. Like she can’t believe they’d send the baby home with us.

The nurse is trying not to laugh. “Yes. She’s all yours.”

“But is she ready? I mean, don’t you need to check her over? Make sure she’s okay?”

“She’s already been checked. And she’ll be checked again before you leave. She’s a very healthy baby. I’ll give you some time with her, then I’ll come back and get her.”

“Thank you,” I say to the nurse.

She nods, and walks out of the room.

I’m still holding the baby and Jade points to her and says, “Garret, they’re sending her home with us. Today!”

Now that the nurse is gone, I laugh. “Yeah. She’s ours, Jade. We have to take her.” I bring her over to Jade.

“I know. It’s just that she’s so tiny. We might break her.”

“We won’t break her. I read all the books. I’m ready for this. And so are you. You just need to get home and practice.”

Jade looks down at Abigail. “I’m nervous, Garret. What if I screw up?”

I sit on the side of the bed, lifting her face up to look at me. “Everyone screws up. It’s part of parenting. We’ll just do the best we can. And you’re going to be a great mom. You already are.”

She gazes down at Abigail again. I know Jade’s going to be a great mom. She just needs to convince herself of that.

We leave the hospital at six that night. Karen and Frank are waiting for us at the house. Karen had dinner ready for us, which was good because we were both starving. The hospital food was really bad so we didn’t eat much while we were there.

After dinner, Karen gives us some tips on taking care of a newborn since she’s an expert in this area. It’s great having Karen here. She and Frank are going to stay another week to help us out. And Grace lives in the guest house, so she’ll be a big help with the baby after Frank and Karen go home.

Grace is 76 now but you wouldn’t know it if you saw her. She’s young for her age. She doesn’t have any health problems and she’s in good shape. Probably because she stays active, gardening and taking walks. Sometimes I think it’s also because she still has access to the clinic. Since Arlin was part of the organization and William still is, Grace will always have access to the clinic.

By nine o’clock, Jade and I are both wiped out and ready for bed. The baby’s sound asleep in the bassinet, which is by Jade’s side of the bed. Jade’s lying there, just watching her.

I lie down beside her, my arm around her middle. “I thought you’d be asleep by now.”

“I just like looking at her. Now I know how my mom felt when she wrote me that letter. She said that after I was born, it was like nothing else mattered. I get it now.” Jade turns to me. “Garret, if they ever come after us again. If they ever even try to get near her, I’ll kill them.”

Jade and I never talk about this anymore. We don’t talk about the organization at all. I know we both think about it, especially when William’s visiting and he suddenly has to leave. He doesn’t say where he’s going, but we know he’s off doing something for the organization. We just don’t talk about it.

“Jade.” I sweep my hand over her cheek and lock my eyes on her. “They will never come near her. And if they even tried, I would kill them myself. Nobody will hurt her or try to take her from us. I promise you.”

Maybe it’s too bold of a promise. Maybe I shouldn’t have made it. Given our history and what we’ve been through, I never completely trust that we’ll be safe. But what I said to Jade is true. If they even attempted to harm my family, I would kill them. Not just members of the organization, but anyone.

I haven’t forgotten the rules my father taught me all those years ago. Rule number two. Protect your family above all else.

I shouldn’t even be thinking about this. They’re not going to come after us. And if they did, I know William would take care of it. Or my dad would. They’d never let anyone harm us. And I wouldn’t either. I was already protective of Jade, and now that I’m a father, that protective instinct has kicked into overdrive. I would do anything to keep my wife and my daughter safe.

“She’s so tiny,” Jade whispers, her eyes back on the baby. “And sweet. I can’t stop looking at her.”

“I know. She’s pretty damn cute. Just like her mom.” I pull the blanket over us. “We need to get some sleep. She’ll probably be up in an hour.”

Jade falls asleep, but I stay awake, watching the baby. Our baby. We have a daughter. I’m a dad.

I tug Jade closer and kiss her head. God, I love her so much. And I love my baby girl. I love my whole damn life.

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