The Family Next Door(71)
Fran looked down at her. It occurred to her that she didn’t really know whether Rosie liked secrets. She may have thought they were silly. That information was for sharing. Which, when Fran thought about it, was a good philosophy.
But Rosie nodded.
“I can only tell you if you promise not to tell anyone else.”
Rosie promised.
“Okay. There’s a secret stash of Popsicles in the freezer in the maternity section. Some of the women like to have one while they’re in labor. Would you like me to find someone to take you there?”
Rosie broke into a grin. Fran felt appreciative and at the same time suspicious. Why was this person getting rid of them? Were they annoying the staff with all their questions? Or was it that they were going to do something terrible to Ava, and didn’t want them to see? Ava looked so tiny, lying there on the hospital bed. The last thing Fran wanted was to leave her in this room all alone. But what could she do? Fran supposed she couldn’t send Rosie to the maternity section alone.
This was why you needed two parents, she realized.
“Okay,” she said. “Let’s go.”
A few minutes later they were following a hospital administrator to the maternity section. “You can use your cell phone if you have any family or friends to call,” she said to Fran as they walked. Fran tried not to read too deeply into that, but how could she not? If everything was fine, would they be sending her for Popsicles and suggesting she make phone calls?
As they walked, Fran fiddled with her phone. Who could she call? The list of potential people in was worryingly short. She quickly ruled out her mother. She’d probably be at her golf function now, cracks forming in her wide smile as she insisted that everything in her life was perfect. She might have tried to call Essie, but obviously she wasn’t going to be able to help her today. She could call Ange, she supposed. But there was only one person she wanted to call, and it was the one person she wasn’t sure she should call. Still, before she knew it, she was dialing the number.
Nigel answered on the second ring.
“Hey,” he said. “I’m just heading into a—”
“I’m in the hospital,” she said. “It’s Ava.”
Her stomach clenched. If it were Rosie, she knew, he’d already be on his way. With Ava, she wasn’t so sure.
“What happened?” he said urgently.
She filled him in on the details, which were sparse. She was hot. Listless. Her lips were dry. Nigel took it all in with comforting urgency. She felt more reassured than when she was with the doctors. He asked which hospital they were in. He asked if she was all right, if Rosie was. And then he said the words she’d been longing to hear.
“Sit tight. I’ll be there as soon as I can.”
56
ANGE
Ange was driving to Summit Oaks. Polly Walker was strapped into the backseat in Ollie’s old infant car seat. She’d spent the morning looking after Polly. It had been quite lovely, having girl time. It seemed ridiculous now that she’d spent so much time feeling resentful about not having a daughter when there were four little girls right across the street from her. She could have girl time any time she wanted, all she had to do was ask. In fact, if she had asked, perhaps everyone would have been better off.
She would ask from now on, she decided.
Ben had asked her to bring Polly in to see Essie and Ange had been grateful for the task. Lucas was back in the house for now, and while Ange was being civil, every now and again she’d think about Erin and have a bitchy outburst. A classic case of Betrayal Tourette’s. (“Yes, just grab some milk, bread, and an illegitimate child from the supermarket, thanks so much.”) She knew it was juvenile, but for now it made her feel better and that was all she cared about.
When she arrived at the hospital, a nurse pointed Ange in the direction of Essie’s room. She found Ben in the doorway. His face was ashen and his hair was all mussed as if he’d been running his fingers through it. When he caught a glimpse of Polly he grabbed her, cradling her as if she were a much smaller baby.
“Is everything all right?” Ange asked.
For a moment, Ben didn’t answer, just rested his forehead against Polly’s. After what felt like an eternity, he glanced back toward the room. Essie was propped upright, her head on Isabelle’s shoulder. A policeman stood beside them.
“I’m not sure.”
Ange was curious, but she forced herself not to ask. She had enough going on in her own life without prying into other people’s. “Is there anything I can do?” she asked instead.
“I wish there was,” he said, looking into the room. Ange was quiet for a moment. Ben’s eyes remained on Essie. “I just thought it would give her a boost to see Polly. Thanks for bringing her in.”
He gave Ange a nod of thanks, and took Polly to Essie’s side. He was right: the moment Essie laid eyes on her she visibly lifted. She cradled Polly next to her heart, the exact way Ben had. Ben slid in beside them and put his arms around them both.
Ange knew Ben wasn’t perfect. Essie had told her about how he left his sweaty gym clothes on the bathroom floor, how he often worked late, how he rarely did the grunt work of the parenting. Ange remembered feeling quietly smug. After all, Lucas was faultlessly tidy, he was always around, and you’d be hard-pressed to find a more hands-on dad. But Ben had something going for him, Ange realized now, something that obliterated everything else.