Consolation (Consolation Duet #1) (8 page)

“Is she conscious, ma’am?”

“Yes, she’s crying and has a high fever. I put her down to get ready to go to the hospital and then she began shaking,” I cry and every part of me feels weak. My heart is racing as I watch her, hoping it doesn’t happen again.

“Okay, what’s your address? I’m sending an ambulance.”

I give the dispatcher the information and she stays on the line as we wait for help to arrive. In minutes, the EMTs arrive and they instruct me to grab her car seat as they take her vitals. I throw my phone back in my bag, grab my stuff, and climb in the ambulance.

“Okay, Aara. Mommy’s got you,” I say soothingly as I buckle her in her seat. “We’ll be at the hospital in a few minutes.”

She cries and I fight the tears threatening to come again. I’ve never been this scared in my life. Watching her shake uncontrollably was terrifying. I couldn’t survive if something happened to my baby.

The lights and sirens blaze as we rush to the emergency room at the children’s hospital.

“Her fever is still high, but we should be at Children’s Hospital of Kings’ Daughters in a few minutes, ma’am,” the young EMT says.

I’m not sure if I even acknowledge him because I’m so focused on Aarabelle. She’s finally stopped crying, but I’m not sure if it’s a good thing or not.

Once the ambulance stops, they rush us into a room where the nurses are waiting.

“Hi, Mrs. Gilcher. I’m Dr. Hewat,” she walks in quickly and heads over to Aara. “What’s going on with Aarabelle?”

I explain what she’s been like during the night and how she’s been extremely fussy. She examines her and explains the course they’re going to take to get her fever down immediately. They need to get an IV started and then they’re going to run some tests.

The nurse comes in and gets the IV hooked up. She makes sure Aarabelle’s monitors and fluids are working and lets me know how to call for help. Once Aara settles a little, the nurse takes her temperature and vitals again. She’s finally fallen asleep from exhaustion and I have a second to think.

“Any changes?” I ask hesitantly.

“Not yet, but the medicine can take a bit,” she says and heads out of the room with a sympathetic smile.

I grab my phone to send a text to Reanell, letting her know where we are and to call me when she wakes. No point in worrying her.

“Sir,” I hear outside the curtain before it flies open.

“There you are!” Liam exclaims and looks panicked.

“Liam?” I stand and he looks at Aarabelle.

“I heard you talking about the hospital. Why didn’t you call me?”

I look at him, his face is ashen and his eyes are wide.

The nurse pushes him back, “Ma’am, do you want me to call security?”

“No, he’s fine.” I step forward and Liam looks at Aara again. “What are you doing here?”

“I heard my phone ring and I saw you calling. You never call me, so I figured something was wrong. I heard you talking about a hospital, but you wouldn’t answer me. I had to drop someone off and then I came running. I didn’t know if she was okay.” Liam barely gets the words out and my heart falters. He looks so concerned.

“I’m sorry. I didn’t realize I called you.”

“Why the hell didn’t you?”

My jaw falls and I see how hurt he is. “Why would I? I can take care of myself and my daughter.”

He closes his eyes and lets out a deep breath, “I never said you couldn’t, but why the hell should you do this alone? I’m your friend, aren’t I? I told you I want to be here for you. I thought . . .” He trails off.

“Thought what?”

I see it in his eyes. He’s holding something back.

“I thought you would’ve called.”

“I’m sorry, I didn’t want to bother you.” I don’t know what else to say. I honestly never thought of calling him. Liam’s been so much help, but I don’t want to rely on him.

“What’s wrong with her?” he questions.

I look at Aarabelle sleeping and I brush her hair back. “I don’t know. She started running a high fever and then she had convulsions. I called emergency services and they rushed us here. They’re running some blood tests and they’re waiting to see what comes back.”

Liam comes around the side of her bed and puts his hand on mine as I begin to cry silently. I pray it’s nothing serious. I can’t handle anything more. Between Aaron’s letter the other day and now Aarabelle, I’m going to lose my mind.

Dr. Hewat enters and looks over the papers. “Hi, Mr. Gilcher, I presume?”

My eyes shift to Liam.

“No, just a friend,” he says with an easy grin.

“Sorry, my mistake.”

“Is she okay?” I ask, needing answers.

She looks to me and then her eyes move to Aarabelle. “Right now I’m ruling out a few things but I need to run an additional scan. With her fever still not coming back to normal, I need to be sure. Her counts are elevated indicating an infection. They’ll be here in a few minutes to take her for the test.”

“What are you testing for?”

“Let’s rule out a few things and then we’ll know the best course of action,” Dr. Hewat replies and walks out.

Liam is by my side in a heartbeat. “It’ll be fine.”

“Right. Like Aaron would be right back.”

“Lee,” he chides and then stops.

I wish I had the confidence he does. It must be nice to be the one who doesn’t have to sit around and worry. They go and do. They fight and live off the high while the families sit around and wonder. We don’t know if they’re okay. We just suffer through it. Now, I sit here months after my last tragedy and wonder if my daughter is going to be okay.

He sits beside me and I lean on his shoulder. I’m exhausted both physically and emotionally. What the fuck else is life going to throw at me? Once again, I have to be strong though.

Aarabelle rests and I close my eyes. Liam’s strong arm wraps around me and I take the comfort he offers. I inhale his sandalwood and musk scent, and it calms me. I love the smell of a man. I miss the smell of a man. Especially this kind of man—one that exudes strength, confidence, and dominance. They command the space around them.

I focus on how secure I feel in this moment. The way I used to feel when Aaron would hold me. I think of the letter he wrote urging me to love again. Could I give another man a chance to hold me like this? Right now . . . I don’t know. But being in Liam’s embrace makes me want to be open to the idea.

Something shakes me gently and I open my eyes. The hospital smell hits me first and I realize I must’ve drifted off to sleep. Rubbing my eyes, I sit up and Liam stretches. His shirt lifts and I see the ripples of his abdomen.
Look away, Natalie.

“Mrs. Gilcher?”

I nod and head over toward the nurse. “Yes.”

“We’re going to take Aarabelle for her scan. She’ll be about forty minutes. You can wait here or you can come up and wait outside. It’s totally up to you.”

“I’ll come with,” I say matter-of-factly. There’s no way in hell you’re keeping me away from her.

Liam places his hand on my shoulder. “I’m going to run and get some coffee. Need anything?”

My heart swells at his concern. “No, I’m good. Thank you for being here.”

“I’ll always be here for you, Lee.”

“I know. You promised him.”

His thumb grips my chin and he forces me to look at him. Blue eyes shimmer with some unnamed emotion. I want to look away, break the connection, because I feel it. I feel something and I don’t want to. I’m not ready. It’s way too soon, but it’s there, starting to make its way through me, and I’m terrified he’ll see it. The need to close my eyes becomes intense, but I can’t, or maybe I really don’t want to. Maybe I want him to see it, but God, if I’m not scared. “Go with Aarabelle,” he says as his hand drops.

My cheeks paint red and I close my eyes finally. Shit. I was wrong. Maybe he doesn’t feel anything for me.

“Ma’am?” The nurse calls to me as she unlocks the wheels on Aarabelle’s crib.

“Ready,” I say, knowing I feel anything but. This is all too much and my feelings couldn’t have come at a worse time. I need to focus on my baby and then I can worry about myself and my stupid feelings.

Waiting is agony. Waiting sucks. Waiting is all we seem to be doing.

“You should head home,” I grumble as I snuggle into Liam’s chest. I want him to want to leave. Which is stupid because he’s my pillow right now, but if he wants to go, this nagging, festering feeling inside might leave me alone.

Liam sags in the chair so I have a more comfortable position, and the rumble of his laughter vibrates through his chest. It’s now 5
A.M.
and no one but Aarabelle is sleeping. “I’ll leave right now if that’s what you really want.”

Butterflies stir in my belly. What do I want? I wish I knew.

“Nah,” my reluctant reply falls out. “I need my pillow. I’m going to keep using you for now.”

“You can use me anytime, Lee.”

I can reply or choose to pretend. I’m going with pretending. The nursing staff has the world’s worst or best timing, depending on how I want to look at this, because she strides in to check on Aara. My head rises and I head over to be close to her.

“We’re just checking her fever again,” she explains and begins to assess her vitals.

Standing next to my daughter while they check her again, the fear gnaws its way up. Wondering whether the fever has come down any lower, and if not, what’s the next step? She looks at the thermometer and shakes her head no. She’s still running around 101, but at least we’re out of the danger zone.

“Are the test results back from her scan?” I ask.

“I’ll check on it, but the doctor will be in as soon as we know anything.” She smiles and grips my hand. “It’s a good thing the fever isn’t rising.”

I close my eyes and nod. I guess it’s good. I wish she wasn’t sick at all, but I’m happy Liam is here. The waiting has been agony and I can’t imagine not having his support. I look over at him as he rests in the recliner and fight the urge to giggle. This six-foot, bulky man is spilling over this tiny chair. His legs almost touch the crib Aarabelle is asleep in and his arms practically touch the ground. It’s comical. His hair is a mess and his three-day-old beard only makes him look more adorable. He was always handsome, but the more I look at him, I see the small things. The crinkle around his eyes and the scar on his forearm that add to his appeal. He’s going to make some woman very happy.

“Are you done staring?” he grumbles with one eye open.

Shit.

“I wasn’t staring. I was trying to figure out if you were dead since you weren’t moving,” I lie and turn so he doesn’t see my cheeks redden.

“Sure you were . . .” He gives a low chuckle.

“Whatever, you’re old and fat.” I wave my hand at him.

Liam’s large frame rises and casts a shadow over me. He takes a step toward me with a smirk on his face. My eyes stay locked with his. He’s out of his mind if he thinks I’m going to back down.

With a measured step he comes closer. Neither of us breaks our gaze.

I read the hesitation behind his eyes. He’s as unsure as I am, but we’re both too stubborn to give in.

“Aaaaaa,” Aarabelle cries out, and I break and look at her.

“Hi, baby girl,” I say softly and lift her carefully so I don’t disconnect anything. She still feels warm and begins to fuss. Why isn’t the fever breaking?

Liam’s firm hand squeezes my shoulder as if he can read my distress. “I’ll call the nurse,” he declares and goes to press the button.

Before he can, Dr. Hewat walks in, lifting papers in the chart. “Okay, we got the results back from the scan and her blood screen.” She looks at us both with empathy swimming in her eyes. “She has a urinary tract infection that spread to her kidneys, which is what caused the fever. We need to treat her with antibiotics and make sure her kidneys are functioning properly. Also, I want to watch the fever since she did have the convulsions. But she should be fine. I’m going to order the medicine now.”

I release a breath with relief. She’s going to be okay. Thank God.

“Will the fever come down?” I question.

“It should. Can you place her on the bed for me?”

I lay her down and the doctor comes around the other side. She begins to listen to her heart and abdomen. “She’s doing well, and I think once we get the antibiotics working, the fever will break and she’ll be back to normal,” Dr. Hewat explains and pats my hand. “In the meantime, we need to keep her hydrated and watch her closely.”

“Okay,” I nod and Aarabelle lifts her arms for me to pick her up.

Scooping my baby in my arms, I pull her close and say a silent prayer of thanks that this was not anything serious. She’s my world and I don’t think I could survive burying my husband and my child in the same year. I can’t even allow my mind to drift there.

Liam’s eyes gleam as he rubs the side of her face with adoration in his eyes. He’s a good man and he cares about Aarabelle and me. He could’ve been at a bar or doing whatever else he wants, but he came to us. I’m grateful that he’s here. I place my hand over his and a charge runs from my fingers to my shoulder. We both look at each other and my body locks. I see the catch in his breath as he feels it too.

Moving my hand away quickly, I take a few seconds to calm my racing heart and walk to the other side of Aarabelle’s crib. Distance . . . I need to keep my distance. I don’t understand what’s happening. Liam is my friend, he’s Aaron’s friend . . . it’s wrong to even think about him.