Page 65 of Choose Me

"She has to be," he responded, quiet and strained.

I tried to steady my breathing, but the image of Ava's lifeless body on the stretcher and blood pooling around her kept flashing through my mind.

I couldn't lose her, not after everything we've been through.

I clenched my fists, feeling the anger and frustration boiling inside me.

A doctor finally emerged from the operating room, his expression serious. "She's stable," he said, addressing the both of us. "But she lost a lot of blood."

I sighed in relief, feeling some of the tension leave my body. Everett placed a hand on my shoulder, his touch grounding me.

"Can we see her?" I asked, my voice trembling.

The doctor nodded, "She's in recovery now. You can see her briefly, but she needs rest."

"And the baby?" I asked, barely daring to voice my question.

"Ava's placenta ruptured, causing the baby to go into distress. We had to perform an emergency c-section, and the baby is currently in the NICU, where we will monitor her until she can go home."

"She?" I asked him.

"Yes," the doctor said, a small smile forming. "Your baby is a girl."

Everett sighed in relief, and tears streamed down his face. I felt my own eyes welling with tears. I hugged him tightly, overwhelmed with emotion.

"Thank you," I whispered to the doctor.

He nodded before walking away, leaving Everett and I alone in the hallway.

We made our way to the recovery room, where Ava was lying in bed, hooked up to various machines. She looked pale and weak, but her eyes opened as we approached.

"Hey," she said weakly.

I took her hand, feeling the warmth of her skin. "How are you feeling?"

"I've felt better," she joked weakly, managing a small smile.

I leaned in to kiss her lips, relief flooding my body.

"Is our baby okay?" She questioned.

"She's fine. She's in the NICU being monitored right now."

She closed her eyes, and tears slid down her cheeks as she sobbed in relief. I wrapped her in my arms as her body shuddered with silent sobs, kissing her forehead and comforting her until her sobs subsided.

"I'm sorry," she said, her voice breaking, "I didn't mean for any of this to happen."

"Baby, it's not your fault," I said firmly, not wanting her to blame herself.

"Will you ever be able to forgive me after what happened?" She asked me, brokenly, between deep breaths.

My eyes flickered over to Everett, who silently watched us in the corner of the room while giving us space. I looked back at her and said firmly, "There's nothing to forgive."

Her brow furrowed in confusion as she looked at me before glancing at Everett.

I sat on a chair beside the bed and took her hand, rubbing my thumb over her knuckles.

"You both did what you had to do to save not only our baby's life but my life, and I would have made the same decision one hundred times over. I understand your love for Everett, and maybe I should be furious about what happened, but right now, I'm at peace with it. I love you and our baby, and nothing will ever change that. Right now, all that matters is you and our daughter. Everything else will fall into place where it's meant to."

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