Broken Together (41 page)

*
* * * *

I
pulled the handle down on the toilet. I stared at the mini cyclone of water
with disgust. All that effort to drink a glass of water wasted. There was no avoiding
the hospital now. I pushed off the toilet and swayed.

Rafael
caught me. My feet flew out from under me when he lifted me in his arms. “The
hospital it is then.”

“I’m
still in my pajamas,” I croaked. I’d ruined my voice hours ago.

“They
see naked and half-naked people at the hospital all the time.” He yanked a
blanket from the bed and wrapped it around me.

“Not
me,” I whined. “I don’t want to be naked in front of a bunch of strangers. I
don’t care how many degrees they’ve earned. I don’t want my bottom hanging out
in one of those raggedy hospital gowns. Don’t let them take my panties away,
and don’t make me wear that godawful gown.”

Shae
rose from the couch. “You’re taking her to the hospital?”

“Finally,”
Jase growled.

“I’m
going with you.” Shae grabbed her purse.

Rafael
shook his head. “You should stay here unless you want to be quarantined.”

“Quarantined?”
My head lolled against Rafael’s shoulder.

“We’ve
been exposed to all the same people and places. If this is Cholera or Ebola,
they may quarantine us,” Rafael answered.

“Ebola?”
Shae squeaked.

“There’s
been an Ebola outbreak in Liberia. I don’t know that the virus has spread to
Sierra Leone, but the hospital may take extra precautions since the two
countries border one another.” Jase tugged a leather jacket over his shoulders.

“You’re
going?” Kadyn stood uncertainly.

“Of
course.” Jase scowled. “I’m her bodyguard. I go where she goes.”

“He’s
my healer,” I giggled.

In
three long strides, Rafael collected his jacket, cell phone, keys, and a large
plastic bowl. He opened the door. “We’ll let you know as soon as we hear
anything.”

“Stop
spinning,” I whispered.

His
eyes cut sharply toward mine. “I’m not moving.”

“Hide
under the table,” I pleaded.

His
eyes widened.

“Earthquake,”
I whimpered.

My
body fell limp before he made it to the elevator.

*
* * * *

Death.
I was pretty certain this was death
.

“Sierra
Leone,” Rafael said.

Sierra
Leone? I thought we left Sierra Leone.
I held very still and pretended
like I was dead.

Murmuring
and hushed voices sounded all around.

I
strained to hear.

“Mumble…
mumble… Cholera.”

I
swallowed hard. My throat was parched.

Beeping.
God, I hated that sound.

“Ebola,”
someone groaned.

“Ouch!”
I swatted at the person who lifted my eyelid. The imbecile burned a hole
through my retina with his pen.

“We’re
going to have to draw blood,” the masked man said.

“Well,
you’re not getting it from my eye.” I curled into a tight little ball after
scooting to the other side of the bed.

“We
should take additional precautions,” his sidekick suggested. “Would you like to
be quarantined with her or in a separate room?”

I
started heaving again.

“We’d
prefer to be together.” Rafael pulled me to his chest as he slid next to me in
the bed. “Can’t you give her something for the nausea?”

“I’d
like to know what we’re dealing with,” the man hedged.

Jase
stood to his full height. “She’s completely dehydrated. Order IV fluids.”

I
frowned. Something about this experience felt familiar.

Sleep
claimed me before I could pinpoint what it was.

*
* * * *

Rafael’s
hand brushed soothingly against my forehead. “How are you feeling?”

“Better,”
I acknowledged tiredly. “How long have I been out?”

He
scooted closer, until our noses were touching. “Six hours. They’ve been running
IV fluids and anti-nausea medicine. Do you feel nauseous?”

I
stopped to think about it. “No, not really.”

“The
Zofran must be working,” Jase noted with some relief.

Rafael’s
arms tightened around me. “The infectious disease doctor was here a few hours
ago. The rapid test for Cholera came back negative. He doesn’t believe this is Ebola
since you aren’t vomiting any blood. They’re still running the bloodwork to be
certain.”

A
doctor stepped through the sliding glass door. He was gloved, gowned, and
masked to the hilt. “Sorry about the ensemble. The droplet precaution is still
in place until we receive the remaining bloodwork, which won’t be until
sometime tomorrow.” He eyed Rafael and Jase. “How are you two feeling?”

Rafael
climbed out of bed. “I feel fine.”

“Me
too,” Jase answered.

He
approached the bed. “I’m pleased to see you are awake, Ms. Stone. I’m Doctor
Cordeiro, the infectious disease specialist for the Hospital da Luz. How are
you feeling?”

“Better.”
I fidgeted with the blanket, which was tangled around my waist.

“May
I speak freely about your test results?” Amusement danced in his eyes.

“Yes,
of course,” I replied.

“We
have ruled out Malaria, Influenza A and B, and Cholera. We are still waiting on
the lab results, but I don’t believe you have Ebola.” He glanced at the nurse,
who was wheeling in a monitor and a keyboard draped in plastic.

My
brow furrowed while I studied the machine.

“Given
the sudden onset, the intensity, and the fever that accompanied your vomiting,
I believe you contracted food poisoning, but there’s a complicating factor that
aggravated these symptoms. May I?” Doctor Cordeiro tucked the blanket around my
hips after lifting the hospital gown a few inches. “I’ll admit this is a bit
outside my area of expertise.”

I
squeaked when he squirted cold jelly onto my abdomen. My heart was racing. I
didn’t know if he was about to reveal some nasty tapeworm or a….

Rafael
edged closer.

Doctor
Cordeiro flipped the monitor on before pressing the hand held device to my
stomach.

My
heart was pounding so fiercely the room started spinning.

Doctor
Cordeiro smiled. “There’s our little culprit.”

Tears
leaked from the corner of my eyes.

“Where?”
Rafael squinting at the screen.

The
doctor pointed at a bean shaped shadow flickering on the monitor.

Jase
drew closer. “What is that?”

Doctor
Cordeiro’s smile widened. “That, my friend, is a ten week old baby with a very
impressive heart beat.”

Rafael
gaped at me. “We’re having a baby?”

“I…
I didn’t realize I was pregnant.” Between work, school, trips to Portugal, and
Maxim’s pipeline, I’d lost track of time.

He
swept me up in a massive hug. “I love you so much!”

“That
explains the fatigue.” Jase was still scrutinizing the screen.

Rafael
turned around and gave him a hug. “We’re pregnant!”

Jase
laughed. “Well, technically, Kristine’s the one who’s pregnant, which I think
is hilarious. Aren’t you two abstaining from sex?”

“We’ve
been abstaining for all of a week.” His smile widened when he did the math. “We
made a baby during that massive snow storm.” He made that sound like an
insurmountable task.

“Congratulations.”
Dr. Cordeiro chuckled.

“Can
we see him again?” Rafael stared eagerly at the screen.

“Certainly.”
Dr. Cordeiro lubed my tummy. “Zofran is safe to take during pregnancy, so I’d
like to continue that medication through tomorrow morning. The food poisoning should
improve by then. Let’s see how your body tolerates clear liquids and soda
crackers this morning. We should be able to discharge you just as soon as the
remaining blood work comes through. We still have to rule out Ebola.” He tapped
at the monitor so Rafael could see where the baby was hiding. “I want you to
follow up with an OB doctor as soon as you’re discharged from the hospital. You
may still experience some nausea and vomiting over the next few weeks, but it
shouldn’t be as bad as what you’ve experienced the last two days.”

Rafael
stared at the screen. “When can we hear the baby’s heartbeat?”

“If
my estimates are correct, you should be able to hear the baby’s heartbeat next
week.” Dr. Cordeiro wiped my tummy with a towel. “Do you have any questions or
concerns?”

My
fingers skimmed my sunken stomach. “Will the food poisoning affect the baby?”

He
shook his head. “As long as you stay hydrated and the baby receives adequate
nutrition, your baby should be fine.”

“Should
we avoid travel?” Rafael inquired worriedly.

Dr.
Cordeiro looked thoughtful. “I would avoid West Africa, and I’d wait until you
were fully recovered from this food poisoning before boarding another airplane.
Aside from that, travel should be fine.” He offered me an encouraging smile.
“I’ll stop by tomorrow.”

There
was a long stretch of silence while Rafael gazed into my eyes. Tears spilled
onto my pillow when he dropped to his knees and prayed.

*
* * * *

Rafael’s
hand tightened around mine. A look of sheer bliss settled over his face as a
loud swooshing noise sounded through the Doppler. “That’s our baby,” he murmured
in awe. “His heart is beating really fast. Is that normal?”

“One
hundred and fifty-four beats per minute is perfectly normal for eleven weeks,”
Dr. Barreira assured him. She scribbled a few notes onto my chart. “Based on
the baby’s measurements from the ultrasound, the dates you were together in
January, and your hormone levels, your due date is October eighth.”

A
smile spread like wildfire across Rafael’s face.

She
tore a slip of paper from her prescription pad. “I’d like you to start taking
prenatal vitamins with extra iron. Avoid sushi, deli meats, undercooked meat,
unpasteurized dairy products, sprouts, caffeine, and alcohol.”

“She
drank wine while we were in Obidos and sangria for my birthday,” Rafael admitted
worriedly.

Dr.
Barreira bit her bottom lip as she tried not to laugh. “One or two glasses will
not hurt your baby, but do try to avoid alcohol from this point forward.”

My
shoulders relaxed. Thankfully, those were the only two incidences where I drank
alcohol that I could recall.

“You’ll
need an OB doctor in the United States since you’ll be living in both countries
over the next few months. Where do you plan to have the baby?”

I
glanced at Rafael questioningly.

“We
should be back in Virginia by then,” he assured me.

“Very
well. I’m here if you need me. It’s best to have a physician in both places
just in case your little one makes an early appearance. We’ll be able to
determine the gender of your child in nine weeks, sometime around May 28
^th
,
if you’d like to make an appointment with my receptionist.”

I
pushed off the exam table. “Can we purchase a Doppler to use at home? I’d like
to share the baby’s heartbeat with Rafael while we’re apart.”

She
tucked my chart under her arm. “Yes. My receptionist can help you with that as
well.”

“Thanks,
Dr. Barreira.” Rafael shook her hand.

We
left the doctor’s office with said Doppler in hand. I set the device on the
floor inside the Porsche. “Can we eat at the Confeitaria Nacional?”

“Sure.”
Rafael buckled me in so gently, you would have thought he was securing a Ming
vase.

We
were seated inside the toasty warm bakery within a matter of minutes. I dove
into the savory
croquette
. I was so thrilled about the baby, I didn’t
even miss the
bica
.

Rafael
ignored his food. “How are you feeling about all this?”

“Ecstatic
but scared.” I took a sip of orange juice.

He
dragged his chair next to mine. “You’re worried about having another
miscarriage.”

Tears
filled my eyes.

“Me
too.” His arm slid comfortingly around my back. “When do you want to make the
announcement? Do you want to wait until we’re a little further along?” Aside
from Jase, we hadn’t told a single soul.

The
tension eased from my shoulders. “I’d prefer to wait until after the wedding.”
I lost Genevieve at eleven weeks. Although that miscarriage was triggered by a
traumatic event, I was afraid I might lose this baby too. Our wedding marked
the midway point in the pregnancy. That seemed like a safe time to make an
announcement.

Thin
flakes drifted toward his plate when he bit into the ham and cheese croissant.
“Will you be showing by then? We could pursue a civil ceremony…”