Page 41 of Doctor’s Surprise Twins

Dad came right to my side and sat on the edge of my bed, taking my hand in his. “Are you okay? You look exhausted.” Leave it to Dad to focus on me and how I was doing while Curt was more interested in the story behind the secret I’d been keeping. I sighed. Coming clean would have been difficult no matter when it happened. Getting it all out of the way at once was at least a relief.

“I’m okay, Dad.” I tried to smile, but I was too tired. It probably came out looking like a wince or a grimace. Dad leaned forward and looked at Baby B.

“Who is this little guy?” His eyes sparkled with joy. I could see the emotion gathering there in his gaze. “Does he have a name yet?”

I shook my head. In the chaos of the move, the new job, and the stress of being alone, I hadn’t even thought of names other than the fact that I was not even good at naming pets. My cat’s name as a kid was Cat.

“Maybe you guys can help.” I offered Baby B to Dad, who took him eagerly. I saw a tear sprout at the corner of his eye, which he swiped away quickly.

“Your mother would be so in love right now.” He stood and started pacing, whispering sweet nothings to my little boy. I straightened in the bed and nodded at Curt, who gestured at Baby A. Watching Dad hold one baby and Curt hold the other, I started to realize how much work it would be to do this on my own. I was hardly ready to be a mother, and now I had two children to care for.

“Why didn’t you tell us? We could have helped you.” Curt bounced the baby and walked closer to me. I could see in his expression that he was concerned and sympathetic, not at all angry. I had no way of explaining why I had kept the secret other than shame or embarrassment. But that was only half of it.

Derek deserved so much better out of his life than to end up losing everything because he got a staff member pregnant. The rumors that would start, the gossip. His ethics would be questioned, as would his professionalism. I learned the hard way why he made that godforsaken rule about not dating someone he worked with. I only wish I had understood it before we got to this point. Before we got to the point where I was helplessly in love with him and he was telling me it was “sex and friendship”.

I didn’t dare say anything now. With the way he was forced to come to my aid during birth, he was jeopardizing everything doubly. The ethics board would have a field day. He’d lose both offices, his job as head of obstetrics in Yellow Springs, and whatever job he was doing here in Evansville. No, it had to stay my secret.

“I was afraid.” I shrugged and looked down, picking at my fingernails. They’d never buy it, so I had to sell it outright. “Yellow Springs is a small town. I didn’t want people to talk. I just felt ashamed.”

“Well, you know I’d shut them all down anyway.” Curt’s tone took on a protective tone.

“Magnolia, I’ve taught you to own your mistakes and prove to the world that you’re not the choices you make. Haven’t I?” Dad stood at one side of my bed, Curt on the other. It felt good having them with me. Being alone for the past five months had been difficult. I skipped Thanksgiving because I would have had to explain. I had no idea what I would have done for Christmas if the babies hadn’t come and my secret hadn’t been exposed for everyone to find out.

“So this is why you didn’t come home for Thanksgiving?” Dad raised an eyebrow at me, and I nodded sheepishly. “You weren’t intending to come for Christmas.”

“I don’t know.” The shame kept piling up. I wanted to cry, whether from the pressure being put on me or the fatigue of having given birth less than two days ago, or maybe it was just hormones.

“So who is the father?” Curt looked at me with intense curiosity. His eyes searched my face like a human lie detector. He was going to pry until he got his answer, but I wasn’t in the mood to deal with it.

“You don’t know him.” I hated that I had to outright lie to my own brother, but it was the only choice I had. “Okay?”

Dad laid Baby B into his bassinet and came back to stand by me. I yawned. The nurses told me to sleep when baby sleeps, but which baby, and how often? I knew I was only a few days in, but if this was how exhausted motherhood made me, I knew I would need more help.

“I want you to come home, Maggie. Come stay with me.” Dad took my hand again. “There is no more shame, no need to hide. I have your bedroom still as it was when you moved out. A little dustier, I think. And we can turn Curt’s bedroom into a nursery. He won’t mind.” Dad’s gesture was very kind, and it did appeal to me. Evansville was a great place, but I hadn’t really settled in. If Derek was here, then I didn’t want to be.

I had already lied to him too much. He would start prying, and things would get too personal, maybe ugly. If going home to stay with Dad meant getting me away from him so I could just bury this shame and never let him feel an ounce of it, that is what I had to do.

“You mean that?” I watched Curt lay Baby A back in her bed and smiled. “It wouldn’t be a burden?”

“Are you kidding? Having my two beautiful grandchildren living with me would be a dream come true. And imagine the Christmas presents.” He winked at me and patted my knee. “Curt, we need to let Maggie rest. Mags, Curt and I will get a hotel, but we’ll be back in the morning.”

“Are you sure? You can stay at my place.” Dad kissed my forehead and then pulled my covers up over my chest.

“I’m sure. We’ll be here bright and early to take you home. Then we can discuss moving.”

Curt hugged me gently, and I winced because of the huge incision across my stomach. He grimaced. “Sorry.”

“It’s okay. I’ll see you tomorrow.” I waved as they walked out, my eyelids feeling heavy. I lay back in the bed and watched them walk past the mirror. Sleep tugged at me until I started to drift off. Before I fell into a deep sleep, I swore I saw Derek standing outside my hospital room window, just staring at me.

Maybe it was a dream, but I thought he looked sad, like he wanted to say something he couldn’t put into words.

CHAPTERTHIRTY-THREE

Derek

Wednesday afternoon,I finally worked up the courage to visit Maggie’s hospital room. I had waited, knowing she had requested no visitors—probably to keep me out. I wanted to respect her privacy, but after forty-eight hours of waiting, I couldn’t take it anymore. I had been searching for her for five months to tell her I loved her. I wasn’t waiting any longer.

I picked up a teddy bear at the gift shop, a vase of flowers, and a card. After scrawling a short note in the card, I headed to the maternity ward. I wasn’t nervous about what she would say. I knew in my heart that this had all been my fault. I had treated her like a common whore, forcing no-strings-attached sex on her without even stopping to ask if she had feelings for me. Judging by her responses to my rejections, she did. I had just been too stuck up to notice it.

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