Page 67 of Pieces into Place
“I love you, Blake,” Vera whispered in her ear as Blake savored the feel of being so loved by her parents. “Thank you.”
“I love you, too. Both of you.”
Winking at Alexis, Blake smiled. And for the first time in eight months, she felt fully ready to meettheir baby girl.
Chapter 23
Isla
An April shower was in full force as Isla sat on the front porch swing, watching the rain fall. She had a blanket wrapped around her body along with the same sweatpants and sweatshirt she’d been in all day. Although the weather had warmed up slightly, the temperature was still barely out of the forties. If it was much colder, the steady rain could have easily turned into snow.
The dreary day had done little to help Isla’s worried mind. She’d had Blake on her mind often recently, but it had been more so in the last few days. Blake was thirty-eight weeks along now, which meant, in theory, the baby could be born at any time. Isla knew that first-time moms could go past their due date, but the uncertainty of it all had Isla on edge. In fact, she couldn’t remember being as nervous as she currently was about any of her pregnancies. Or even Vera’s.
There was just something in the pit of her stomach that she couldn’t shake. It didn’t matter that she had seen Blake earlier in the day and she had seemed perfectly fine. Nor did it matter that Avery had told Blake only two days before that everything was looking great for her and the baby. Still, Isla couldn’t shake the motherly instinct that something was going on with her baby girl.
Vera had told her she was being overprotective, but how could she not be? Blake was her baby girl, her firstborn. The one who made her a mom. Isla hoped and prayed that everything would go smoothly for Blake and the baby. And that her nerves would be calm enough by the birth.
Isla had been over the moon when Blake asked her and Vera to be in the delivery room. She’d wanted to ask for so long but had respected any boundary Blake had about that. Thankfully, Blake had made the decision on her own and Isla couldn’t be happier. And even though she knew Vera might have a hard time not stepping into doctor mode, she was glad her wife was going to be in the room, too.
Now Isla just had to hold it together until then.
Taking the last sip of her Diet Coke, Isla set the can on the window frame as she put the swing into motion again. She tucked her arms under the blanket, pulling it tighter around her shoulders as she tried to focus on calming her nerves. The front door creeped open and, even with her eyes closed, Isla knew it was Vera. Her wife had been periodically checking on her all day. Not that Isla expected anything less.
Vera knew her better than anyone. She’d been with Isla through her darkest nights and her brightest days. She was always there to pick Isla up or to help carry the burdens when life got too hard. They were each other’s rocks, and Isla had found herself leaning more into Vera the last few weeks than usual. Isla needed that comforting reminder from her wife that things were going to be okay. That the thoughts she was feeling were valid, but they didn’t need to consume her.
Opening her eyes, Isla took in the sight of Vera standing a few feet away. She had her arms crossed loosely over her chest. Yoga pants and a Taylor Memorial Hospital long-sleeve tee had been her attire all day. Her hair was messily pulled back into a ponytail, with more strands finding their way out of the hair tie than not.
“I don’t think you were this nervous before you had Evie.”
“She was my third. This is Blake’s first.”
Scooting over on the swing, Isla made room for Vera to sit. She put her head onto Vera’s shoulder as Vera put her hand on Isla’s knee. Gently setting the swing back into motion, Isla sighed.
“I just can’t shake it.”
“Feeling like something is wrong?”
“Yeah.”
“Honey,” Vera squeezed her knee, “Blake is fine. The baby is fine. We just saw her earlier and things are going well.”
“I know.”
“But?”
“But,” Isla sighed again, “I can’t shake my motherly intuition.”
“I’m not doubting you. I’ve seen that intuition be right way more than it’s been wrong.”
“I just wish you were her doctor.” Another sigh. “I know they’re different, but this has been so different than when Mason was pregnant. We kneweverything. And you were her doctor, so, yes, I felt more at ease than I do with Avery being Blake’s doctor.”
“Avery is a great doctor.”
“Not as great as you.”
“Well, few are,” Vera chuckled. “But if it makes you feel any better, I did put in a favor that I’m mildly embarrassed to admit.”
“What did you do?”
