Page 49 of Rude Boss' Secret Baby
Trey’s voice piped up behind me. “Just about?”
The doctor shrugged. “There’s no definitive way to know if this is the only allergen until we flush her system and get her in a dust-mite-free environment, but yes. This explains most—if not all—of what she’s experiencing.”
I slowly stood to my feet. “But—but I clean my place from top to bottom at least twice a month. I-I-I—I wash her bedsheets every week. I even have the carpets cleaned—”
The doctor chuckled. “Ma’am, dust mites have absolutely nothing to do with the cleanliness of your home. They happen as a byproduct of other factors that come into play, such as not moving furniture around enough so you can vacuum underneath and things of that nature. But, Rori isn’t just at your house, correct? She goes to school with other children?”
I blinked. “Yeah, she isn’t homeschooled.”
The doctor shrugged. “Well, then there’s yet another source of dust mites, possibly. You don’t know how clean her fellow students are or what’s being carried around on—and in—their backpacks. Her pillowcase could also have static-cling, so the dust mites are being attracted while she sleeps.”
My shoulders slumped. “You’re making this sound like a losing battle, Doc.”
He walked over to me and shook his head. “It’s not a losing battle. You’d be surprised how common a dust mite allergy is, but it’s the last thing we look for because dust mite allergies also present as more serious issues, such as sinus infections, or ear infections, or migraines, or—”
“Hey,” Rori said as she chewed on some ice, “I’ve had those before.”
I nodded slowly. “A lot, actually.”
The doctor put his hand on my shoulder. “This doesn’t make you a bad mother, and it certainly doesn’t mean your house is dirty. It simply means there are things you’ll have to add to your cleaning regimen to make sure your house is dust-mite free. For example, moving your furniture and vacuuming underneath it. You can also get her some special pillowcases that repel dust and don’t attract dust mites. They also make bedsheets out of the same material, so you might want to pick her up a few sets of those.”
As the doctor continued to rattle things off—all of which cost more money on my part—the situation quickly grew hopeless. Every time I thought I was getting ahead in life, something set us back. The entire situation seemed bleak, and yet I found myself wondering if I was eligible to apply for yet another credit card just so I had access to the money I needed immediately.
“So, here’s the plan. I want to keep Miss Aurora here one more night just to make sure we can get her allergies to calm down. And while she’s here, I want one of you to go back to her home and start cleaning as much as possible. There’s a place in town I’ll jot down for you that sells these sheets. Tell them Doctor Dale sent you, and they’ll give you a bit of a discount on things. Those sheets and a nice clean-down will help tremendously when we discharge her tomorrow. Okay?”
I felt my stomach bottoming out, so Trey took the reins.
“Of course, Doctor. Thank you for helping us.”
The doctor shook his hand. “My pleasure. I’ll also leave my number and email in case any questions pop up. And from now on, if you find yourself here because of another attack, have them call me immediately. Okay?”
Trey nodded. “We will most certainly do that. Right, Leslie?”
I swallowed hard. “Right. Yes. Thank you.”
The doctor’s eyes grew sympathetic. “It feels like a lot now, but I promise you’ll get into a routine just like you do with everything else. Okay?”
I blinked back tears. “Oh, yes. Of course. Always. Thank you.”
I managed to shake his hand before he left, and I walked toward Rori in a haze. I sat on the edge of her bed and brushed her hair back, watching as her eyes slowly fell closed. I ran my finger through her hair, untangling the knots the sheets had already created in her hair. And just as she started slipping off to sleep, I heard the familiar cadence of someone rushing down the hallway.
“Trey?”
“Hmmm?”
I pointed to the door. “Can you get Suri? She’s outside letting the nursing staff have it.”
He chuckled. “On my way, beautiful.”
Somehow, I went from watching my baby girl sleep to standing in the middle of my townhome. And as I stood there, I thought about all of the things I’d have to change. I clocked all of the corners and saw a few cobwebs growing. I looked down at the baseboards and saw that the corners were coated in dust.
This place is gross.
“Yes, uh-huh. Once a week, top to bottom. Yep, dust mites, that’s what they said. By the way, do you guys have any connections with a laundry service in town? Wonderful, I’m going to need their number.”
I furrowed my brow and turned around, watching as Trey stared out the back windows of my living room. He hung up the phone and quickly dialed another number, only this time he lowered his voice so much that I couldn’t make out what he was saying. I crept closer, straining my ear as I slowly approached his side.
And when I caught wind of who he was talking to just before he hung up, my jaw gaped open in shock. “A maid service? Really?” I asked.
