Page 117 of Curveball

I nod. “What’s her name?”

“She doesn’t have one yet. It’s up to Ripley, and she hasn’t met her daughter yet.”

She carefully places her in my arms. More like my hands. She’s so tiny that she fits in my hands. As soon as I touch her and smell her, my heart just about explodes with this immediate feeling of love and protectiveness. How could I have ever doubted wanting this?

I whisper in her ear, “I love you and promise to always be there for you and your mommy, no matter what.”

CHAPTER TWENTY-SIX

QUINCY

Arizona is with the baby, and I’m sitting at Ripley’s bedside as I have for the past two days. I refuse to leave, even when they try to kick me out.

Dr. Berger walks in. “How’s the patient?”

I shrug. “I think her color is coming back.” Her skin is almost back to normal. I see hints of her unique feminine softness and glow.

She nods, flipping through the chart resting at the end of the bed. “Ripley lost a lot of blood. Her counts look fine though. Her organs are finally functioning as they should.”

“When will she wake up?”

“She was sedated to give her body what it needed to recover. It’s worn off now. It will be soon, I promise.”

Dr. Berger checks a few of the machines before placing her hand on my shoulder. “Everything is lookinggood. Don’t worry. You should probably go home and get some rest.”

“I’ll leave when my wife leaves with me.”

She gives me a small smile and then turns and walks out of the room. I’m caressing Ripley’s hand with my fingers, promising to love her if she comes back to me. Something I’ve done about a thousand times over the past two days.

Suddenly her eyelids flutter, and then her eyes start to blink a few times. It takes a few moments, but they eventually focus on me. She attempts to talk but she can’t with the tube down her throat. She grabs for it as she begins to freak out.

“Relax, Shortcake. Don’t pull it.” I press the button above her head. “I just called for the nurse. They said they’d remove it as soon as you woke up.”

She nods as she appears to calm down.

I stare at her and kiss her hand. “I love you. I promise to tell you that every day for the rest of my life.”

She feels her empty stomach and then frantically looks around the room, no doubt searching for our daughter.

“She’s okay, Shortcake. She’s beautiful and perfect, just like you, and getting stronger every day.”

Her face drips with emotion. I’m sure she wants to see the baby.

“They have to keep her here for a few weeks, closer to your due date, to make sure her lungs and everything else are good. But every day that goes by, she crosses another milestone. She can’t wait to meet her mom.”

Tears leak out of her eyes, and I wipe them for her.

“Can I get you anything?”

She gingerly pulls her hand from mine. She’s so weak and frail right now. I’ve never seen her like this.

A nurse appears. I turn when she walks in. “She’s awake.”

The nurse smiles and pokes her head into the hallway. A few seconds later, Dr. Berger returns. “She’s awake?”

I nod.

She walks over to the bed and looks down at Ripley. “Ripley, I’m Dr. Berger. Do you remember me?”

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