Page 44 of Not the Bodyguard's Widow
“No, thanks.” Alex scanned the waiting room again. No one was paying attention to them. They’d settled into a routine over the past week. During the day, Alex went to work as normal, only he kept to office assignments. Elle or another bodyguard spent the day with Kimberly at the cottage or over at the big house with Abbie. At night, Alex returned “home.” No one in the Hastings family ever referred to the temporary nature of the marriage. Kimberly hadn’t mentioned it, but when she fell asleep in front of the computer, he noticed she had been researching annulments and insurance fraud.
The FBI had yet to release Leigh Benz’s accounts, but Alex found he wasn’t in any hurry for Kimberly to gain financial independence. Instead, he wanted to be celebrating their one-week anniversary. After all, they’d survived Mother’s Day at his parents’ house with all the crazy looks, which had been as difficult as standing behind her during the press conference instead of at her side.
He probably would not have thought about their anniversary had Abbie not texted him. One-week anniversaries were a thing? Didn’t most newlyweds take at least a weeklong honeymoon? When he searched the internet, he found only ideas for the one-year anniversary: paper or clocks.
“Mrs. Hastings?” A nurse clad in pink scrubs called from the doorway.
Kimberly held on to his hand as she stood, giving him a little tug. He raised an eyebrow, asking if she was sure. Kimberly gave him the slightest nod. Alex followed her back to a bench where the nurse checked Kimberly’s blood pressure and temperature before sending her into a small restroom.
“So, Dad, how are you doing? You look a little uncertain. Is this your first appointment together?”
Alex checked his stance and realized he was in full-alert bodyguard mode. He willed himself to relax. “No, I was there last week when she had an ultrasound.”
“Did you find out the gender or decide to keep it a secret?” The nurse marked something on her tablet.
“We want it to be a surprise,” answered Alex.
Kimberly emerged from the restroom, and the nurse showed them to an exam room.
The nurse checked her tablet. “I see we received your ultrasound results from last week. Since they diagnosed you with placenta previa, the doctor will not do a full exam today.” She looked at Kimberly. “As long as she can get where she can listen to baby’s heartbeat, you can keep those clothes on.”
The tension seeped out of Alex’s shoulders. The room was too small for him to give Kimberly privacy if she needed to change. Thus far they had avoided seeing each other without clothing, other than the baby bump during the ultrasound.
“Dr. Song should be in, in a minute.” The nurse closed the door as she left.
“You don’t need to look so relieved.” Kimberly climbed up on the examining table.
“I don’t want to invade your privacy.” Alex perused the basket of magazines on parenting and Hollywood gossip. One of the magazines had Kimberly’s picture on the front. Out of curiosity, he picked it up. The magazine had definitely doctored the image. He held it up for Kimberly to see. “I think the photographer believes you’re having six or seven children. They must have used the same filter they did when Preston and Abbie announced they were expecting triplets. Those photos were scary.”
Kimberly covered a laugh with her hand. “Yesterday afternoon, Abbie and I had a lot of fun surfing for photos of her. Abbie thinks it’s hilarious so many people are interested in her pregnancy. That photo isn’t even bad. There’s one we dubbed ‘elephant mama.’ Neither of us think it’s humanly possible to get that large.”
“Good thing. I wouldn’t be able to refrain from making jokes.”
“Abbie loves it when you tease her. You shouldn’t worry so much about offending her. Or me. If you don’t crack at least one or two jokes when I waddle, I will wonder if you are fit to be the baby’s uncle.”
There was a tap on the door, and the nurse came in with a box full of equipment to draw blood. “Your twenty minutes is up. It’s time to take the second blood draw.”
Like last time, Alex stood at Kimberly’s side and held her hand. Kimberly kept her eyes on him the entire time. She barely winced as the needle went into the vein.
“All done.” The nurse gathered the tube of blood and put another bandage on the inside of Kimberly’s elbow, then left.
Alex remained holding Kimberly’s hand.
“Thank you. That’s the worst part of these visits. It’s also one reason I want to have a home birth.”
Alex nodded. His knowledge of the different birthing options was almost as big as his knowledge of brain surgery or rocket science. “Another thing you have in common with Abbie. Although she doesn’t get much choice.”
Someone tapped on the door again. An Asian woman with a stethoscope around her neck entered, the embroidery above the left pocket of her lab coat announcing she was Dr. Song. “Kimberly Hastings?” She asked Kimberly for her date of birth before sitting down on a rolling stool. She looked up at Alex. “I watch enough evening news to guess you are not the father of this child. Am I correct?”
“Yes.”
“Will you step out of the room for a moment?”
Alex met Kimberly’s eyes, and she nodded. Alex exited the room, the door shutting behind him. He stared at a painting of a mother and child on the opposite wall. Out of habit, he counted how long the door had been shut.
After what seemed like forever, the door opened and Dr. Song beckoned him to come back into the exam room. “Kimberly is adamant you be allowed in on her appointments.”
Kimberly reached out her hand, and Alex circled the table to take it. The doctor sat down and looked at the computer. “You are considering a home birth?”
