I stifle a gasp, but Eric hears it anyway, jerking awake.
“Ivy, don’t move,” he says, his voice hoarse. “Dr. P. said you have to keep still.”
Eric gets to his feet and drags his chair closer to the bed. I don’t know how long I’ve been out, but he looks terrible, like he hasn’t slept in days. Not heeding his command, I slide my hands out from beneath the covers and reach for him.
He takes my hands in his, leaning toward me as he gazes into my eyes. I reach for him, lowering my head because I feel like I’m going to start crying and never stop. I hold on to him even tighter. I’m so scared. Having him here is the only thing that’s getting me through this without collapsing into a fit of hysteria.
I try to talk, but I can’t. Seeing my distress, Eric pushes my hair away from my face, letting me know that I don’t have to say anything. Shakily, I choke back the sobs that are threatening to burst forth.
“You had an operation,” he begins, tracing his thumb gently across my cheekbone. “What happened back at the cabin…was too much excitement for the baby. It started moving around a lot and nearly tore through the placenta. You lost a lot of blood…but it didn’t detach all the way. Dr. P. was able to try something in order to fix it.”
My eyes widen in response as Eric takes a shuddering breath.
“Dr. P. had never done anything like it before, but he had been reading up on all of your available options and consulting with doctors who have performed similar procedures. He was able to find a surgeon in the U.K. who used a fiber-optic laser and a tiny camera to operate on twins who were sharing the same placenta. All this time, Dr. P. has been going out of his way, taking all of the necessary precautions in case something like this happened to you…and we didn’t even know. He wanted to be prepared, just in case he needed to be,” Eric reveals, his eyes searching mine so tenderly. “And he was.”
I tilt my chin down, overwhelmed by the lengths Dr. P. went to in order to save our baby’s life. Words will never be able to express the gratitude I feel in my heart. He did this for us. Our child would not be here if it weren’t for him.
“In order to stabilize the baby, they put you under the minute you arrived in the hospital. They couldn’t risk any further movement. After Dr. P. conducted the ultrasound and saw what was going on, he decided on taking an aggressive approach. He wasn’t about to give up.” Eric smiles at me, squeezing my hand. “But since what he planned to do was deemed a clinical trial or a test study or whatever you want to call it, the hospital needed your consent, and being that you were already under anesthesia, that wasn’t possible. Dr. P. thought it was too dangerous to wake you up only to put you under again. There just wasn’t time.”
I raise an eyebrow at him and try to open my mouth to speak.
“Shhh,” Eric urges. “I’ll explain everything. I promise.”
He bends his head with a sigh before meeting my eyes again. I have a feeling I’m not going to like what he’s about to say. I brace myself, preparing for the worst.
“I thought of bringing in a justice of the peace to marry us on the spot,” he laughs weakly. “But seeing as you were unconscious, no one was going to go along with me. They needed the consent of a family member…so I had to track down your mother.”
I pull my hands away and look at him warily.
“Ivy, I had to,” Eric moans. “I didn’t have a choice.”
I reach for the cup of water on the adjacent tray table before Eric can get it for me, and I take a long sip from the straw. I drain the whole thing before I glance at him again. I nestle back down and clear my throat.
“Where is she?” I ask grudgingly. “Did she even stick around?”
“Yeah. She’s out there with my parents,” Eric confesses, looking over at me guiltily.
My cheeks flame in embarrassment. I never wanted him to meet my mother. I didn’t want him to see what she’s really like. How I could possibly be related to someone like her.
“My dad and I went to get her and…” He stops, seeing the stricken expression on my face.
“You saw where I lived?” I ask, feeling unnerved.
“Ivy, it doesn’t matter,” he says, trying to console me.
“It does to me,” I reply sullenly.
“If anything, I have even more respect for you now because of where you came from,” Eric proclaims, resting his hand atop my leg. “Realizing how strong you were to get yourself out of a situation like that. Ivy, that took guts. I know it couldn’t have been easy. But look at how far you’ve come. You should be so incredibly proud of yourself. I know I am.”