Baby, Our Baby!

Jake groaned.

Cliff’s voice grew more insistent. “Jake?”

Jake blinked his eyes open and tried to focus. Relief rushed through him as he glanced around the familiar room. Thank God. He’d been able to wake from his dream. Slowly he turned his gaze to the man by his bed. His father. The man who had raised him. The man he’d never really known. Jake’s chest tightened at the sight of the deep lines on his old man’s face.

“How you doin’ son?”

Jake blinked and moved his head. He felt like hell, but he didn’t care. “H-hurt,” he said hoarsely, unfamiliar emotions tightening his throat as he looked up at Ali. “Water, please.”

“Sure.” Ali poured water into a glass from the pitcher on the table.

Jake watched her closely. Her nervousness was apparent as she tried hard to avoid eye contact. But he couldn’t stop gazing at her. He’d thought a lot about Ali over the past months, but still he hadn’t been prepared to see her. He remembered her as the quiet sister, but he had never expected to find the beautiful woman standing before him.

She had golden red curls pulled back from her oval face, the silky strands draping to her delicate shoulders. Her clear green eyes were large and mesmerizing, but there was a hint of shyness in their depths.

His gaze moved down her body, triggering his memory of their night together. Once, he’d thought, she’d been too slender, but not anymore. Her figure had blossomed into nicely rounded curves. Was that because of the child she’d carried? His child? Damn, he still couldn’t get used to the idea.

Ali slipped her hand around the back of Jake’s neck and helped him raise his head. Surprised by the surge of awareness that shot through him, Jake had to concentrate on getting the straw between his lips. He finally managed the simple task. Exhausted by his efforts, he dropped back to the pillow.

“Maybe I should leave,” Ali said as she looked at his dad. “Jake’s pretty tired.”

“No,” Jake protested. “Don’t go.” He’d be damned if he’d let her leave him alone with his father. “H-help me…sit up.”

Ali resisted. “Maybe you shouldn’t, Jake.”

“Yes. We need to talk…our daughter. Please, Ali…”

She nodded stiffly, then reached for the bed control. She brought Jake to an almost sitting position. He thanked her.

“I want to see…my daughter?”

Ali shot a glance at Cliff. “I don’t know. Since you’re in the hospital…”

Jake also looked at his father. “The Hawkins name can open some doors. Right?”

“Sure, son. You want to see your daughter, you’ll see your daughter.”

“Today,” he insisted. “I want to see her today.”

“Look, son. You’ve just come out of a long coma. You had us worried to death.” His voice was shaky. “I think you need rest.”

Jake grimaced as he tried to shift his body. No one was going to keep his child from him. A child who was a part of him, who would give him unconditional love. “I need…my child.”

Cliff started to argue, then changed his mind. “I’ll arrange it.” Relying on his cane, Cliff left the room.

Ali didn’t say anything until they were alone. “It might be better if you wait to see her.”

“For whom, Ali? Not me. You’ve kept my child from me all these months. It’s been too long as it is. I want to see her now.”

Before Ali could answer, the door opened and Jake’s doctor came into the room. “I hate to break this up,” he said, smiling, “but we need to run some more tests on our patient here.”

Jake didn’t want any tests. “Doc, can’t they wait?”

“I’m afraid not,” Dr. Walters said sternly. “I have you scheduled for an MRI in fifteen minutes.” He smiled again. “Count yourself lucky, Jake. It’s a miracle you came out of the coma. You must have a guardian angel looking after you.”

Jake met Ali’s gaze, and awareness surged through his battered body. “Yeah, she had a heavenly voice that kept calling me back. I’ll always be thankful.” He pulled his attention back to the doctor. “Just tell me that my daughter can visit me.”

The older man hesitated, then nodded. “There shouldn’t be any problem as long as she doesn’t have a cold or anything contagious. You need all your strength to heal. As much as your case has been the talk of the hospital, we like to see our patients get well enough to leave. You, Jake, still have a long recovery ahead of you.”

Jake shifted in bed, feeling every ache and pain. He knew it was going to be a long time before he was back to normal. The apparatus that held his leg motionless above the bed indicated he was going to take quite a while to heal. He’d use the time to think about his future. And his daughter’s.

“I really better leave now,” Ali said as she backed toward the door. “I have to go to work.”

“Ali.” Jake had to struggle to call her name.

She stopped.

“I mean it. I want you to bring our daughter as soon as possible.”

Ali regarded Jake for a long time. “I’ll be back with Joanie tomorrow.”

Ali hadn’t realized her hands were shaking until she stepped outside the hospital room. She leaned against the wall and drew a deep breath as the scene with Jake replayed in her head. He’d had an angry look that was unfamiliar to her. His eyes had been cold, distant, and deep lines etched his ridged jaw. He was so unlike the Jake she’d remembered. This Jake would never forgive her for not telling him about Joanie’s existence.

She walked to the elevators, stepped inside and pushed the button for the ground floor. A sudden tautness banded her chest as the car began its descent. Joanie wasn’t going to be just her little girl anymore. From this day forward, she’d be sharing her with Jake…and her grandfather.

Once on the first floor, Ali walked to the cafeteria where Margo had been waiting for her at a table in the corner.

“Well, how’d it go?” Just off her morning shift, Margo was still in her nurse’s uniform.

Ali sank into a chair with a tired sigh. “He’s awake and talking.”

Margo squeezed Ali’s hand. “That’s wonderful. Everyone is talking about the miracle in room 408.” Her friend waved her hand in the air. “What did Jake say?”

Ali shrugged. “He asked to see Joanie. He seems happy about having a daughter….”

“I hear a ‘but’ in there,” her friend said.

“Oh, Margo, the looks he gave me…” Ali ran her hand through her hair. “What if he tries to get back at me for keeping her a secret?”

“What can he do?”

Ali shook her head and drew a calming breath. “I’m not sure. But he told me before I left that he wanted to talk with me about Joanie.”

“Of course he wants to talk to you. You’re his child’s mother.”

“I’m also the one who kept her from him the past nine months. What if Jake tries to take her away? Oh, God, Margo. I couldn’t stand it if—”

“Stop it!” her friend insisted. “Jake’s just woke up from a coma, and to top it off he just discovered he’s a father. That’s a lot to take in. I’d say the man is in a lot of pain, both physical and emotional, and he’s going to need time to sort everything out.”