Page 69 of Billionaire Temptations

“Maybe some water?”

He took the cup from the table and brought the straw up to my lips. I slowly took a few sips. He sat down in the chair and took hold of my hand.

“I believe Sarah is going to be just fine. She’s a fighter like her mom.”

“I hope so because if anything happens to her, Max, it’ll destroy me.”

“I know, baby. But she’ll be fine.”

“Don’t you think you should tell your parents?”

“I don’t want to talk about that right now, and I don’t want you thinking about them.”

I turned my head and looked out the window. I didn’t want to talk, period. Lila walked back in and pushed the pain meds through my IV.

“There you go. You should start feeling some relief soon. Try to get some more rest, and first thing tomorrow morning, we’ll get you up and walking around. If you need anything, just press this button.”

I looked over at Max, who was checking his phone. “Is something wrong?” I asked.

“No. I was just looking over some emails.”

“You don’t have to stay, Max. I know you’re busy.”

He gave me a look of disappointment. “How could you even say that? Sarah is my child, too, and I’m not going to abandon her. I don’t care how busy I am. I have people who can handle office work for me while I’m gone.”

He was extremely upset when I said that, and I didn’t intend to upset him. He could do nothing here, and he had a business to run.

“Max, I’m sorry. It’s just that you don’t need to sit here with me. You have a company to run, and I don’t want it to suffer.”

“Don’t worry about my company, Emma. I’m staying right where I belong, and that’s here with you and our daughter.”

I turned away because I couldn’t look at him. I blamed myself for Sarah being born early, and if something happened to her, he would never forgive me, and I would never forgive myself.

Despite me tellingMax to go home last night, he stayed and slept on a cot in the room next to my bed. The morning nurse, Kayla, told me I had to get up and try to walk around.

“I need to see my baby,” I said with desperation.

“Okay. Let me just call down and tell them you’re coming.”

Max took hold of both my hands as soon as she walked out of the room. “Listen, Emma, I want you to be prepared when you go and see her. She’s hooked up to different machines and tubes, and I don’t want you to be scared.”

“I know.”

“No, baby, you don’t. It’s one thing to think about it and another when you actually see it.”

Kayla walked back into the room with a wheelchair. “Are you ready?”

I took a deep, long breath and sat in the chair. Max told the nurse he would take me and return me to the room. We approached the neonatal unit and got buzzed in. My heart began to beat rapidly as he pushed me down the hallway and to the large room where Sarah was. The room was so cold, and the beeping sounds of high-calibrated machines were the only sounds I could hear. The sounds that were keeping all the sick and premature babies alive.

“You must be Emma. I’m Laney, and I’ve been taking care of Sarah.” She gave me a sympathetic smile.

I nodded my head, unable to speak from the lump in my throat that was constricting my breathing as fear swept throughout my body. Max pushed the wheelchair up to the incubator, where my baby girl lay helpless with a tube down her tiny little throat, helping her breathe. I placed my hand overmy mouth as the tears fell down my face, and I began to sob uncontrollably. Max knelt down beside me and wrapped his arm around me.

“I know it’s hard, but she’s going to be okay.”

I felt as if I was hyperventilating. Seeing her so helpless and fighting for her life was too much. I couldn’t take it. I had to leave.

“Take me back to the room, Max,” I cried as I shook uncontrollably.

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