Page 35 of Spike's Perdition
“Thanks, I needed to hear that.”
She hands me a stack of papers attached to a clipboard. “Fill these out and give them to your nurse when you’re done. You’ll be fine, you’ll see.”
I nod and take the paperwork. I find an empty seat and start filling out the forms. After fifteen minutes, I have to stop and shake the cramps from my fingers.
This could seriously be a new torture method. Who the hell needs all this information?
My breath catches when I reachName of Fatheron the information sheet.The blank linemocks me, daring me to lie. With a shaky hand, I scribbleHunter Long. I don’t have his address, and I’m not about to give anyone his number so I leave the rest of his information blank.
“Ivory Whitman,” a nurse calls. I grab my things and hurry to follow her. “My name’s Paula. How are you today?”
Paula has a calming presence about her that automatically puts me at ease. “Good. Nervous, I guess.”
“That’s normal, but don’t worry. We’ll explain everything to you, and feel free to ask as many questions as you need to.”
“Okay.”
Paula stops in front of a scale. “We need to get a starting weight so we can monitor your progress through the pregnancy, and then we’ll get a urine sample.”
I slip off my shoes before stepping onto the scale. “Another urine sample?” I ask. “Didn’t Dr. Hardy forward my test results?”
“She did,” Paula confirms as she writes. “However, you’re pregnant, and unfortunately, you’ll be peeing a lot. We just need to make sure it’s from the pregnancy and not from a UTI. You’ll be asked to give a sample each time you come in to be sure.”
“Okay.” I slide my shoes back on. “As long as they’re no needles.”
“Oh, we’ll be getting some blood today before you leave.”
I stumble as soon as the word blood leaves her mouth.
Definitely should’ve let Megan come with me.
Paula’s hand shoots out to steady me before I faceplant. “Did you say blood?”
Paula smiles. “I take it you’re not a fan of blood.”
“Blood doesn’t bother me. Needles bother me.”
She pats my arm and leads me to an open room. “I promise our lab tech is very gentle. Is Dad out in the waiting room? We can bring him back.”
I shake my head. “My best friend was going to come, but something came up at work,” I lie.
“Tell you what, I’ll have them tell me when it’s time, and I’ll come back in and hold your hand.”
“You don’t have to.” I blow out a frustrated breath. “I’m gonna be a mom. Time to put on my big girl panties and get over the fear.”
“It’s not a problem.” She slips the blood pressure cuff on my arm. “To tell you the truth, most women who come in here hate needles.”
“Really?”
“Yep. In fact, you’re not my first one today.”
I giggle. “That makes me feel better.”
“Your blood pressure is a little elevated. Do you normally run high?”
“Nope, that’s your fault,” I accuse, and her eyes widen in surprise. “You said the word needle.”
Paula laughs. “Well, if that’s all it takes, we’ll come up with a code word.”
