wasn’t born addicted, because you both did the right thing. That’s huge,” he said. “And from what I’ve been told, she just has a cleft palate. Something very, very repairable.”
Marilyn blinked up at him. “You promise?”
“I’ve asked the nurse to bring her, so I can look at her with you in the room. Is that okay? I’ll give you my honest assessment.”
Her hands started twisting together in a way that said she was about to get agitated again, so Clancy cut her off. “I can help her. Your baby isn’t suffering, and I admire you, both of you…” He glanced up at the man. “…for getting help. You have to promise to keep up with whatever counseling sessions you’ve set up.”
“We will.” Her husband reached down and took one of his wife’s hands and squeezed it. He knelt by the bed and looked into her eyes. “Let him show us. She’s our responsibility now. Our little girl. We need to do right by her.”
Marilyn nodded then looked up again, a sudden frown appearing. “What happened to your face?” As if realizing what she’d said, she quickly apologized, but Clancy waved it away.
“I was injured by a piece of shrapnel in Afghanistan.” He smiled. “And, no, that isn’t my work. I promise she won’t look like me when I’m done.”
She laughed. “It doesn’t look that bad.”
“Hey, I have to look at this mug every day in the mirror. I know exactly what it looks like.”
Glancing at the monitors behind her, he saw that her blood pressure was coming down. It was still above normal, but not in the danger zone like it’d been when he arrived.
“Can I ask the nurse to bring her in?”
Marilyn nodded, while her obstetrician came forward. “I’m going to check on another patient. You’ll be in good hands with Dr. de Oliveira. I’ll be back in about a half hour to look in on you.”
“Okay.”
He gave her a smile and headed past Clancy. “Call me if you need me.”
“We’ll be fine,” he said. “Can you tell Hollee to come in?”
Dr. Brouchet shot him a quick look before nodding.
Since Clancy had only been at the hospital for a few weeks, the OB/GYN was probably wondering how he already knew one of the nurses well enough to call her by her first name. But it was too late to try to cover the slip.
A minute later, Hollee came in with the baby swaddled in a blanket that was pulled up on the side of her face. Smart move. That way, the family’s second introduction could be done a little more gently.
He was struck by the soft glow of her eyes as she cradled the baby, murmuring softly to her as if it was the most natural thing in the world. Her hair slid over the side of her face, and she tucked it behind her ear before her glance came up and caught him staring. She bit her lip, color flooding her cheeks.
He swallowed the lump in his throat. She would have made a great mother. Her babies would have been gorgeous and, oh, so…
Cut it out. You’re not here for her. Or for yourself.
He dragged his gaze away and forced himself to do what he’d come here to do, moving closer and studying the baby’s face. The cleft was unilateral. He met Hollee’s eyes, keeping a tight rein on his thoughts this time. “Do you know if it includes the palate?”
“Yes, but it’s not a large space.”
“Good. Let’s bring her over to the bed.”
Marilyn’s husband was again on his feet, a wariness in his demeanor that needed to be addressed. It was really important for him to show support and love for his child, or he would risk Marilyn blaming herself for that as well. He caught the man’s attention. “Your baby is beautiful.” He said it with meaning, hoping that the man would catch his drift. He evidently did, because he gave a slight nod.
“Okay, Marilyn. I’m going to tell you how I normally repair babies with clefts like… Sara, wasn’t that her name?”
“Yes.” The response came as a whisper that was barely discernible.
“I like it. It fits her, don’t you think so, Hollee?”
“Yes. I do.” Her smile was warm and genuine. “I’ve always loved that name.”
Would she have named her own baby Sara?
And here he was back where he’d started: on shaky ground.
He got down to business, detailing how he would go about closing the cleft and repairing the lip. He used general terms so that the mom wouldn’t be more frightened than she already was. “Do you think you can hold Sara so I can show you?”
Marilyn’s throat moved, and she glanced at her husband and then at Hollee and the bundle she held. “I think so.”
Clancy nodded. “Go ahead and help her hold her baby, but stay close in case she needs a little extra support.”
Doing as he asked, she carefully placed the baby in her mother’s arms, keeping the blanket pulled high on the side closest to Marilyn. Then, much to his surprise, the baby’s mom eased the cover down, looking into her newborn’s still face.
“She’s just…sleeping, isn’t she?”
The heartbreaking question threatened to breach the wall of detachment he’d built after years of working in combat areas. “Yes. She’s sound asleep. See? Her lip doesn’t hurt her, but it will need to be fixed so that it’s easier for her to nurse and eat.”
“You’re sure you can?”
“This is an easy fix.” Unlike his mixed feelings about working with Hollee. “We’ll put her under anesthesia so she can’t feel anything, and in an hour or two she’ll be as good as new. She won’t remember a thing. She might have a tiny scar here…” He pointed from the open area of Sara’s lip to her nose. “…but it will be barely noticeable. Not like mine.”
Hollee gave him a sharp look that he ignored.
“Can I nurse her?”
“Let me talk to her pediatrician and see what his thoughts are, but I don’t think that will be a problem.”
Her face showed immense relief. “Can you do surgery today?”
“No. Not today. We want to give her a little time to adjust to her world. You’ll be able to take her home once you’re released, and then we’ll probably do surgery when she’s six to eight weeks old.”
“That long?”
“We want to make sure she’s strong and healthy. It’s not dangerous to leave it for a bit.”
Sara’s mom kissed her baby’s forehead, as her blood pressure continued to drop.
“Do you have any questions?”
