Page 8 of Double Kisses for the Omega
Finally, sniffling, I stopped talking.
Eleanor was silent for several seconds, then spoke. “Rick, dear?”
“Hmm?”
“What will make you happy?”
“What do you mean?”
She let out a long breath. “No parent ever prepares for this. Our children are supposed to outlive us, and that’s not taking into account everything that’s happened. But…” she paused, and sighed. “Rick, dear. I know that Brian is watching over you, and missing you as much as you miss him. What your parents did was cruel. Mates aren’t supposed to be separated like that. But he would also want you to be happy, and to live out the best life for yourself possible.”
She took another deep breath. “Why have you fought so hard to keep your womb if you didn’t plan on at least settling down with another alpha, even if he couldn’t bond you?”
The question hit me like a ton of bricks. Did it really matter if I kept it if I never planned to have more kids?
“I don’t know…” I admitted.
“I do,” she said. “It’s because Brian’s still with you on some level, telling you to make the most of this life. He wants you to be happy, and loved. He’ll wait for you, I know that for sure. But you shouldn’t spend your life in solitude either.
“You may not be able to move on yet. I know there are still days where I just want to cry. But maybe, just maybe, you can help somebody else out while you search for a path forward.”
“You’re saying I should become a surrogate?” I asked.
“I’m saying that, maybe you can look at the problem another way. You’ve fought this long, so don’t give up. If you don’t think you’re ready to be a single father, then maybe help somebody else with their dream. You’ve fought for a reason. Maybe this is it.”
I thought about Brian, and all the kids we’d talked about having. Would I be able to give that dream to another family?
“Rick?”
“Yes mama?”
“Think about what I said, ok? Brian would want you to be happy. So do what will bring you the most joy, ok? I know he would approve. That’s how much he loved you.”
“Thanks mama,” I murmured.
“You’re welcome. And I’m glad you called.”
“Me too.”
“Bye.”
“Bye.”
I started crying again as I hung up, but my heart felt lighter too.
It wasn’t going to be easy, but maybe this was my path. I’d fought, and maybe it was so that I could give to somebody else what had been ripped from me so long ago.
Chapter 5 - Nate
Ilooked through my patient’s history and nodded. I then made a few notes on a tablet and handed it off to a nurse. “She’s responding well. Keep an eye on her for the next few hours just to make sure, then this round will be over.”
She nodded and walked off to continue her rounds.
I was still getting used to all my new patients. Luckily the hospital had fantastic records practices. I was able to track all the regimens, knew who was on standard care practices and who was on clinical trials at a glance. It made taking over easy, which was critical when a new oncologist came into a hospital.
I’d heard horror stories about hospitals where standard practices weren’t followed, or weren’t recorded correctly, and lost patients because of it.
I was glad that I hadn’t walked into such a place. My patients, and everybody on the team, knew where we were, what steps had already been completed, and which were still upcoming.
