Page 42 of Accidental Doctor Daddy
Leonardo deadpanned, “Yeah. It’s called One Bachelor and a Basil Plant.It’s vegan.”
Gina burst out laughing, and even I chuckled, shaking my head.
The conversation drifted through work, relationships—or lack thereof—and general complaints about New York realestate. With Gina’s budding interior design company growing, she had lots of opinions on the matter.
Then, somewhere between our second round of coffee and Gina stealing the last croissant, she sighed dramatically. “I should lay off of these things. I’m still recovering. Last week, I thought I was dying.”
I glanced at her, frowning. “What?”
She waved a hand. “I was sick for, like, three days. Stomach bug. It was awful.”
Leo smirked. “Sure you’re not pregnant?”
Gina rolled her eyes. “Haven’t gotten laid since last summer, so unless this is some kind of medical miracle, I think I’m safe.”
Leo let out a loud laugh, while I took a slow sip of my coffee, doing my best to keep my expression neutral. Because it had been since last summer for me, too. I hadn’t been with anyone since Ella.
I almost said so out loud—one of those fleeting thoughts that could have slipped past my filter. But I caught myself in time because the last thing I wanted to do was traumatize my children with my sex life. Anytime I had mentioned things like dating or someone staying over, they cringed like they’d need therapy.
Still, my mind caught on that thought.Last summer.
My grip on my coffee mug tightened as I thought. Ella’s twins had been born preterm. If she had carried them to full term, she would have delivered a month from now, give or take.
I did the math in my head. And then I did it again. My stomach sank.
No.No.
It wasn’t possible. She would havetoldme. Wouldn’t she?
I swallowed hard, my brain racing ahead, lining up timelines and medical probabilities. I was a doctor. I knew the numbers. I knew the way pregnancy worked, the window of conception, the way a preterm birth knocked around the expected due date.
And it lined up. It lined uptoo well.
I barely heard Gina and Leo bickering beside me, my mind somewhere else entirely.
Because suddenly, the world felt like it had shifted, and I wasn’t ready.
Chapter 15
Ella
Iwas drowning.
Not in water, but in everything else—exhaustion, spit-up, and a cycle of laundry, feedings, burpings, rocking, and begging for sleep.
I was drowning in the fear that I was already screwing it all up.
The twins were thriving, according to their pediatrician. Me? Not so much.
“Have you slept?” she asked.
I snorted. “When would I do that? It’s just me.”
“That’s exactly why you have to,” she said gently. “They need you at your best.”
“Great,” I sighed. “More guilt.”
“If that’s what gets you to rest, I’ll take it.”
