Chapter 140 Part 140
Emerson
She’d remained sitting at her kitchen table long after Asher left. His words hurt more this time than when he had asked her to leave with Mark. It definitely hurt more.
Maybe Shirley was right. How could she live here, so close to him, and see him knowing that she wasn’t worth the fight? When he moved on, and she knew he would, how would that work?
Would she hand her son over to him for the weekend with his girlfriend waiting in the truck? She wasn’t that good of a person. She already hated this woman who wasn’t even in his life yet.
What the hell was she thinking when she moved here? How stupid could she be? Had she really thought Asher would be waiting for her? Open his arms, and never let go of her once he found out about the baby?
She shook her head to clear her thoughts as she sat in the waiting room. She had an ultrasound scheduled, and would meet the doctor who would perform her C-section in about four weeks.
Asher hadn’t reached out to her at all, and she’d deleted his number from her phone, knowing that at some point she was going to lose this battle and call him; beg him if she had to. It was the last thing she wanted to do. She wasn’t going to humiliate herself further.
Her appointment was in five minutes, and she felt hurt that he wasn’t there. Maybe he forgot about her appointment, or maybe he just didn’t want to be there.
The nurse appeared from the hallway that led to the examination rooms, and smiled as she looked at the clipboard in her hand. “Emerson Reid?”
She got to her feet and clasped her purse tightly in her hand. “Hi.”
The door opened and it was like her whole body just recognized his presence. She turned to look at him and he smiled. “Sorry, I’m late.”
“You can follow me to the exam room,” the nurse said.
Asher’s hand was on her lower back, letting her walk in front of him. The nurse opened a door, and Emerson walked inside, Asher following close behind her.
“The doctor will be here, momentarily. You can make yourself comfortable on the exam table.”
Emerson moved to the exam table and sat down on the edge. Asher took her purse, and watched as she laid back, lifted her shirt, and pulled her leggings down to expose her stomach.
“Emerson, I want you to know that I—”
The door opened and Asher turned away from her. “Hey, Asher! I didn’t know you were almost a dad!”
“Hi, Jeanette, this is Emerson Reid,” Asher said, and turned back to look at her.
“Hi, Emerson. I’m Dr. Blackwell, but please, call me Jeanette.”
“It’s nice to meet you,” Emerson said, as she kept glancing between her and Asher. She looked to be in her 40s, but her smile was warm, and her eyes looked kind.
“I see from your file that you’re 34 weeks pregnant, and that so far, your baby has been healthy,” Jeanette said. “Let’s get started, and after the ultrasound, we’ll discuss the C-section.”
“The C-section?” Asher asked.
Jeanette smiled at him. “It’s the safer option for both Emerson and the baby.”
Asher frowned, and he opened his mouth to say something, but Jeanette squirted the gel on her stomach, and started the ultrasound.
Jeanette pressed another button, and Emerson smiled as she listened to her baby’s heartbeat. Asher’s hand engulfed hers, and for a moment, she let him hold it. She remembered his last words again and pulled her hand free.
“Emerson,” he said softly, but she shook her head, and looked at the screen instead.
Jeanette took measurements, showed them the baby’s heart, his lungs, spine, and legs, and Emerson could make out little features on his face. Every time she had an ultrasound it was an emotional rollercoaster.
When the ultrasound was done, Jeanette wiped her stomach, and got to her feet. “We can move to the chairs so we can discuss everything.”
Emerson pulled her shirt over her stomach, and slowly got off the table. Asher’s hand was at her back again, and she resisted the urge to slap his hand away. Anger was slowly replacing her sadness.
“We can schedule your C-section in exactly four weeks,” Jeanette said. “I’m going to give you my personal number. If you get any cramps, any spotting, or anything out of the ordinary happens, I want you to call me.”
“I had Braxton Hicks two days ago,” Emerson said.
Jeanette smiled, and made notes on a piece of paper. “You’ve got a level head, figuring out it was just Braxton Hicks, but even if that happens, I need you to call me, because next time it might not be. We can’t take the chance of you going into labor.”
Asher seemed to stiffen. “Why not?”
Jeanette frowned as she looked at Emerson. “Because of the—”
“Because I want a C-section,” Emerson said quickly.
“You need to be at the hospital at 6 a.m., and we’ll take you to the operating room at 8 a.m. Do you have a list of everything you need to pack?”
“Both bags are already packed. I’m ready,” Emerson said, with a smile.
“Do you want Asher with you during the C-section?”
“Yes,” Asher said.
“No,” Emerson added.
Asher clenched his jaw. “I’ll be there with her, Jeanette.”
She closed the folder on her desk, and interlaced her fingers. “You two need to be on the same page. Asher, Emerson will need support while we cut her open. Emerson, the birth of your child is something he won’t want to miss. Do you really want to take that away from him? Go home, talk it out, and let me know what you want to do at your next ultrasound. If you have any questions, call me.”
Emerson nodded her head, and got to her feet. “Thank you, Jeanette. I’ll see you in two weeks.”