In a Book Club Far Away(43)
Somehow, she negotiated Henry out of the town house with a kiss on the cheek, and hoped that it showed her gratitude, despite how she’d blundered the end of their visit.
When she was sure Henry was far enough away, Regina schlepped the stroller out of the hallway closet.
She was the one who needed the walk to the park.
CHAPTER TWENTY-SIX
Adelaide
Adelaide awoke to the sounds of beeping, her vision hazy. She was discombobulated, unsure where she was, with a white dotted tile ceiling above her. It was the complete opposite of how she had fallen asleep the night before, ensconced in the warm blue of her walls and the textured curtains she had painstakingly researched before deciding on the perfect pattern. The bed she was lying on surely wasn’t her Tempur-Pedic, nor was she covered by her luxurious organic cotton sheets.
Then the memories trickled back: the surprise of extreme postoperative pain, her gasping for her breath from it. The drive to the ER at Alexandria General instead of Fort Patriot Community Hospital because they were at capacity. The worried expression of the ER doc on call, who had quickly discerned that surgery was necessary.
She lifted her arms off the bed, where two IV lines ran bags of fluids. A peek downward showed the thick tube of a urinary catheter running from under her blanket to somewhere over the side of her bed. She’d remembered having one when she had Genevieve, for her C-section.
Genevieve.
Her spine straightened at the thought of her daughter. Genevieve had cried out for Adelaide as she was being helped out the door this morning. Her sweet little one was probably worried and all alone.
No, not alone, with Regina.
Adelaide breathed a sigh of relief.
A quiet knock sounded at the door, and then it opened to Sophie, who was carrying a to-go cup. Her face lit. “You’re awake.”
“Yeah.” Adelaide’s voice croaked; she cleared her throat. “Just now.”
“Don’t try to sit up.” Sophie set down her cup on the bedside table, then pulled a chair closer to Regina. She sat. “You need to take it easy for now. And really, you should take advantage of it, because they’re going to walk you soon enough.”
“I feel like I lost a week of my life.”
“Your body went through the wringer trying to right itself. But I just spoke to the nurse, and she said that surgery went well, and your doctor should be here in a bit to let you know more. But let me tell you, your husband and mother are blowing up my phone. They’re both so worried. I do think, young lady, that you should call your mother.”
“What did she say?” She wiggled in discomfort and flushed with an unknown feeling. Her mama was boss and priest and parent all at once.
Sophie was already pulling out her phone. “That I should have you call as soon as you woke up.”
Their conversation was interrupted by another knock at the door, and a man in a lab coat walked in. “Hello, Adelaide. Do you remember me? I’m Dr. Popov. I did your surgery.”
She sat up in bed. “Yes. Thank you, for everything.”
His smile was gracious. “Just doing my job, though it’s really our ER doctor who made the right call to admit you. It was especially wise of your friend to bring you in this morning. It could have been so much worse. May I sit?” He gestured to the chair.
“Sure.” Adelaide said.
“Your surgery went well, and so did your initial recovery. I wanted to chat with you about upcoming follow-up care. You’ll be checked regularly by nurses on the ward, though I’m hopeful the rest of your recovery will be smooth. There will be quite a bit of teaching, especially with diet for the short term. But I’ll be back to check in on you tomorrow, and your discharge should be on Tuesday, with your first follow-up about three days after discharge. As usual, if there’s anything you need at all, please let one of the nurses know and they can always give me a call.” With a nod, he left the room, leaving the space thick with emotion.
Sophie smiled. “That sounds promising. Home in a couple of days.”
“So fast,” Adelaide whispered. Everything had happened so fast. And now that she was up and lucid, the full consequences dawned in slow motion. “You’re supposed to leave on Tuesday.”
Sophie shook her head. “I’m not leaving on Tuesday.”
“But your work?”
“Work will be fine without me, and before you even say his name, so will Jasper. He knows me better than to think I’d leave Regina to take care of it all.”
“I feel bad,” Adelaide said, though she didn’t mean just about Regina or Sophie. It was about everything. She was taking so much of everyone’s time. The worry she caused. She felt bad that her body turned against itself and put everyone through an emergency. She could have died with all these unresolved feelings about her family. She could have died before even verbalizing what she wanted in her life, caught up in what was supposed to be her plan.
“Don’t say that.”
“But I do.” Adelaide scooted up in bed. “Soph, I don’t think I want to have another baby.”
“Whoa. Where’s that coming from?”
“I don’t know.” Adelaide took a deep breath to make way for the avalanche of emotions that had been released by surgery. “While I was in pain at home, I was so scared and so confused. And with everything this morning. All I know… is that I want to do things different from now on.” Adelaide leaned back onto the pillow. “I’m allowed to change my mind, right?”