Page 49 of Wild For You
Him saying that over and over—his firstdaughter, not his firstchild.
Him calling me “son,” which became his nickname of choice for me after that appointment, when before, he always affectionally called me “kid.”
Him telling me I’d now have a very important job, one I’d have for the rest of my life. My job as a big brother, to be his righthand man in keeping the little munchkin on her way to us safe.
Me hanging on his every word, because I loved the idea of being this big, strong, but infinitely kind man’s second in command.
The proud look in his eyes each time I kept Autumn from getting hurt as she learned to roll over… crawl… walk… run… climb….
And it was the same with all my little sisters.
I snapped out of the memory as the nurse asked Kelsey to verify her information. “Also, since you’ve already gotten a positive pregnancy test, we verify by doing an ultrasound, so justremove everything from the waist down and place the sheet over your lap.” She gave a couple more instructions, then turned to leave.
After she stepped out, I managed to keep from peeking at Kelsey by waiting by the door, so I could flip the switch that would turn on the light outside the exam room to let them know she was ready.
Almost immediately, leaving no time for things to get awkward between the two of us, the nurse came back into the room with an ultrasound tech, who introduced herself. While she set up the machine, the nurse helped Kelsey get in the best position for the scan, and she directed me to a chair by Kelsey’s head.
The tech prepped the wand, and my girl startled when the woman squirted lubrication on the plastic-covered tip.
Her legs snapped closed, even while her feet stayed propped in the stirrups, as she asked, “What’s that for?”
“They do the first one as an internal exam,” I explained. “Just because the baby may be too small to see.”
“Oh,” she replied as she relaxed. “How did you know that?”
“I’ve been reading up.”
“You have?” she asked, surprise filling her tone.
“Yeah, you can find everything online. Maybe we can stop by the bookstore on the way home, and you can grab a couple.”
She twisted her head and looked over at me, her eyes shining. “I’d like that.”
“All right, just relax for me, and we’ll get started,” the technician said as the nurse slipped out of the room.
A moment later, without the need for much searching, the room suddenly filled with the sound of those unlocked memories.
The baby’s heartbeat.
And to my happy surprise, Kelsey’s nervous and subdued demeanor of the past few days gave way to the overly excitable chipmunk I begrudgingly grew to adore. She peppered the tech with questions in a language only medical professionals knew, finding roundabout ways to get her to answer things after the first couple of times of being given “I’m only the sonographer. The doctor is the one who had to read the photos I take” as a response.
The entire exam took only a few minutes, and then Kelsey redressed and sat next to me in the padded chairs up against the wall. While we waited for the doctor to come to the room, we looked over the pictures the machine had printed.
I wasn’t sure what I expected, but seeing the shape of a distinguishable head and body in the black-and-white image was not it.
But it was the most beautiful set of pictures I’d ever seen.
“Hi, Ms. Davis, I’m Dr. Heller. I hear we have a baby on the way. Congratulations.”
“Thank you.” Her response was genuine, a smile on her face.
“And you must be the boyfriend,” she pointed out as she extended her hand toward me.
Kelsey and I hadn’t defined anything between us yet. It was too new, but I knew it was easier to just go with the title while I was here.
And the more I said boyfriend in my head, the more I liked it.
“Andrew. Nice to meet you. My little sister, Alex Easterly, had nothing but great things to say about you,” I told her, hoping the praise and referral—the Easterly name carried a lot of weight in Ashfield—would ensure Kelsey got the best care available.
