Page 21 of His Best Friend's Baby

The nurse smiled. ‘Reckon that makes him averygood friend.’

‘Well, that’s true,’ Polly acknowledged, but her smile was wobbly. The problem was—Seth’s involvement in Summer’s birth was also living proof of how very complicated life could be.

Seth had refused her original request to be her baby’s genetic father, because she hadn’t wanted him to be involved beyond providing a clinical donation. And now, here he was, after all—unintentionally involved in ways neither of them could ever have imagined.

Today, she and Seth had shared a deeply emotional experience that had taken them way beyond the normal bounds of friendship. But Polly knew she mustn’t let that experience overwhelm her. For fourteen years now, she and Seth had happily managed to live totally separate lives and that was how they should continue. She didn’t want Seth to feel under any kind of obligation to help or support her and she would have to make that very clear to him once she was released from hospital.

Perhaps it was a good thing that she was going to be here in hospital for a week, while Summer’s breathing and weight and general health were monitored. It certainly took care of accommodation issues and by then she would be feeling plenty strong enough to head back to Melbourne.

*

‘My goodness, Seth,this is a lovely haul. Has your sister had another baby?’

Bridget Quinlan, manager of one of Wirralong’s longest running clothing stores, was quite agog when she saw the items Seth had piled onto her counter.

He supposed he might have gone a little overboard, but he tried to shrug this off. ‘Nah,’ he said. ‘These aren’t for Mandy.’

Bridget made no attempt to hide her curiosity as she picked up her scanner and found the tag on the nightdress that topped Seth’s pile. ‘You’ve made a lovely selection,’ she said, folding tissue between the lace-edged, white cotton, before picking up another nightie in a shade of blue that perfectly matched Polly’s eyes.

Seth nodded without comment. He was pleased with his choices, especially as he had remembered Polly needed outfits suitable for a nursing mother, but he wasn’t keen to spill the beans on Polly.

‘Oh, these are so sweet, aren’t they?’ Bridget said as she moved on to scan the tag on a tiny pink-and-white-striped sleepsuit. ‘So soft and snuggly.’ Looking up, she narrowed her eyes at Seth. ‘I assume you realise that this is size four zero? That’s very small, Seth, and babies grow quite quickly.’

‘This babyisvery small,’ he countered. ‘Just 2.6 kilos. She was born four weeks early.’

‘Oh.’ Bridget’s eyes were almost popping now. ‘Oh, I see.’

Aware of the woman’s bursting curiosity and knowing that word was bound to get out sooner or later—after all, the gossip chain in Wirralong was still as effective as ever—Seth relented. ‘Don’t know if you remember Polly Martin. Her dad, Tom, used to manage the bank here.’

‘Of course I remember Tom Martin. And Polly. You and Polly were great mates, weren’t you?’

‘Yeah, long time ago, back in our schooldays. Anyway, Polly was in town on the weekend, just for a quick trip, but she went into labour. Had a baby girl. They’re over in the base hospital.’

‘Well, I never.’ Bridget looked quite delighted as she scanned another sleepsuit, this one decorated with tiny koalas. ‘How lovely. And you’re obviously still very good mates with Polly, seeing you’re buying all these lovely gifts for her.’

Seth gave another shrug. ‘She wasn’t expecting to be here for long, so she’s kinda short on gear.’

‘Must have been a shock for her husband.’ Bridget raised an eyebrow in an obvious, questioning challenge.

Cripes. This woman wasn’t going to give up, was she? Whipping out his wallet, Seth selected a debit card and waved it at her. All he wanted was to buy this clothing and leave.

Unfortunately, the shopkeeper didn’t pick up on his cue. She seemed to be waiting for an answer.

Annoyed, Seth realised he would only add to Bridget’s curiosity if he refused to clarify the husband query. ‘Polly’s a single mum,’ he said in a firm tone he hoped would quash further questions.

Bridget blinked several times as she digested this info. Then, to his surprise, she abandoned the counter and hurried over to nearby shelves, where she selected a slim item in cellophane and came back to Seth, all smiles.

‘Seeing you’ve been so generous, this is a little bonus gift for Polly,’ she said. ‘It’s a muslin wrap. She can either swaddle her little one in it on hot days, or use it for modesty when she’s nursing her bub.’

Now it was Seth who blinked in surprise, while Bridget turned her attention to quietly processing his purchases.

She smiled politely as he tapped his card to her EFT machine. ‘Does the baby have a name yet?’ she asked as she slipped the folded clothing into a paper carry bag.

‘Yeah. Polly’s called her Summer.’

‘Oh, how sweet.’ Bridget pressed a hand to her heart as Seth picked up his purchases. ‘Please give Polly my congrats, won’t you?’

*

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