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Another contraction coiled viciously through her and she moaned. This was terrifying.
Max carried her swiftly to his black limousine. White ribbons fluttered on the long bonnet and the JUST MARRIED placard sat proudly on the boot.
Georgia shifted in his arms as she twisted her neck to see. ‘Not this car, Max. The seats.’
‘To hell with the seats. At least we have room and the windows are tinted.’
Max’s chauffeur’s usually impassive expression faltered as Max deposited the wrong woman in the wedding car.
‘Newcastle Hospital ASAP. I’ll pay the speeding fines,’ Max said over his shoulder as he climbed in after her. He pulled shut the door before he sat opposite Georgia and shrugged out of his jacket.
The car accelerated away from the kerb and Georgia fell back in a heap. Max leaned across from the facing seat to help her balance.
‘Can you check and tell me if you can feel the umbilical cord?’ He smiled sympathetically at her and suddenly it was OK. They were a team working together to help save a baby—her baby.
With difficulty she knelt on the soft leather seat, closed her eyes mortified as a rivulet of pink fluid disappeared down the back of the seat, and hitched up the wet satin creation designed by a leading Sydney fashion house.
That morning, when she’d struggled with clipping her thigh-high stockings to the garter belt, she’d thought it a shame no one would see the pretty lace of the belt. What a joke. Once she got to the hospital, everyone would be looking at her.
As she slipped her hand down into her panties she knew what she would find—she could feel it beating like her own heartbeat except slower. Sure enough, a loop of umbilical cord fell into her hand.
Before she could confirm her finding to Max, the next contraction was on top of her and with this pain the urge to push was overpowering. It couldn’t happen this quick! They were supposed to stop the labour until they could get her to operating theatre and do a Caesarean section to save her baby.
‘Ma-ax,’ she wailed and she grabbed his hand, put her chin on her chest and pushed, unable to stop herself.
Still calm, his voice was kind. ‘There’s no time for modesty. You know that, don’t you, Georgia? Let me see.’
Max’s face was composed but in that moment she saw the stressed beat of the vein in his temple and she knew he doubted her baby’s chances despite his calm voice.
The look of surprise on his face made a tiny shaft of hope slice through the pain to imprint on Georgia’s thoughts.
‘First baby?’ His eyes met hers in question.
‘Absolutely. Probably last,’ she gasped.
He smiled at that and sat back. ‘Well, your baby is ready to come and is almost here. Let nature finish the job, Georgia.’
That was all she needed to find the rest of her strength and with the next pain fast on the heels of the last she concentrated from deep within herself and willed her baby to fly out into the world before the lack of oxygen from the compression of the cord could take away her life.
When she opened her eyes Max was unwinding the cord from around the baby’s neck and lifting her towards Georgia, and incredibly a miniature angry red face screwed up to emit a bellow that almost lifted the roof off the car.
Max laughed and she blinked and looked again at this tiny roaring child of immense determination and began to shake in shock.
‘My God.’ Max wiped his eyes on his upper arm and then grabbed his suit jacket and rubbed her baby dry before he leant forward to slip the bodice strap off Georgia’s shoulder to allow one side of her dress to fall to expose her skin. ‘Here, keep her warm.’
Still chuckling, he placed the baby against Georgia’s bare skin, flipped the jacket over to the dry side and tucked it around them both.
‘Congratulations,’ he said, and shook his head in disbelief. ‘I’m afraid her father missed her arrival.’
Georgia shuddered. ‘We didn’t miss him.’ Her baby was still slightly wet and slippery and still roaring her head off and Georgia soothed her little round head that hadn’t even had time to change shape for the journey through her pelvis.
‘Poor baby.’ She ducked her head and kissed her downy cheek. ‘Do you have a headache from your quick trip?’
Max listened to the soft maternal whispers from a woman he barely knew and felt incredibly touched by a scene he’d seen so many times in so many circumstances—but never like this.
‘I think you might be right about her headache.’ Max shook his head again and the smile on his face felt bigger than any he’d had in the last few years. This birth brought back the notion that there could still be immense satisfaction in his chosen profession.
He’d known he needed to get back to the grass roots of it all and away from the consultancy, and board meetings, the constant demand for more hightech medical apparatus and the financial headaches and heartaches that being head of the obstetric department left him with.
This new position promised exposure to the real world of obstetrics again. While a percentage of his duties would remain administrative, there was an expectation he would work in each hospital to gain insight into the obstetric viability of each facility.
If he was honest, that was the carrot that had got him into this marriage mess in the first place. This moment in time had proved how much more rewarding hands-on obstetrics was for him but he’d have time to think of that later.
Georgia’s baby finally quietened and after a quick glance to ensure all was well he suggested to his driver that he slow the car to a reasonable pace as they finished the forty-minute drive to the hospital.
This Georgia, she was something special to have come through this with a calmness and serenity that should have been shattered, especially as, being a midwife, she’d known the complications that could ensue.
Unexpectedly the loud sound of rhythmic sucking could be heard and Max felt the smile widen on his face again.
‘Umm. Isn’t breastfeeding supposed to be noiseless or does this child of yours do everything spectacularly and with high volume?’
‘I think she’s loud. I should call her Thor—or Thoreen.’
‘Speaking of “thor”, are you?’
‘Very funny.’ She shook her head at him and for the first time in many years he felt like a child rebuked by an adult and his lips twitched.
She got over it quickly, though. ‘Now you mention it, what are we going to do with the disaster down here ruining your upholstery? I don’t suppose you have two cord clamps and a pair of scissors?’
He stripped off his elegant neckpiece. ‘I do have a cord tie.’
She giggled and then covered her mouth. ‘I’m sorry. I’m feeling light-headed with relief and I’m being silly.’
He pulled a snowy white teatowel from the bottle compartment and folded it. ‘Pop this between your legs.’ He handed the towel to her. ‘Let’s just settle for that one knot in the cord with the tie and we’ll bundle it all up still connected and they can sort it out at the hospital. Are you bleeding?’
She shook her head. ‘Not since she started to feed.’
He marvelled at the wonders of nature without the usual drugs given at the end of labour. ‘Thor looks about five pounds. How early is she by your dates?’
‘Four weeks and two days.’ He’d hazard a guess she was counting days from conception.
‘Did ultrasounds confirm those dates?’
She lifted her chin at him. ‘Ever the doctor. Why do so many obstetricians think ultrasounds know more than the mother?’
He chuckled at that. ‘True. Sometimes ultrasounds can cloud issues that don’t need clouding. And other times an ultrasound can clarify things.’
‘Hmmph,’ Georgia said. ‘You can’t beat good clinical skills. Technology is one of the things I won’t get bogged down in when I start to practise again.’
He couldn’t remember the last time he’d heard someone hmmph. ‘We won’t get into that discussion or maybe we’ll save it till later.’
‘And my baby’s name is not Thor.’
‘Wowser.’ He settled back into the seat as all the chores that could be done had been done. The rest could wait.
He was a mess and her dress had seen better days too. His shirt was unbuttoned at the neck from when he’d pulled his tie off. The long sleeves had been hiked unevenly up to his elbows and he cupped his hands on one knee and decided he’d definitely have to throw out the suit.
He looked across at her. Actually, she looked pretty good. ‘So what are you going to call her?’
She laughed at that and he loved the way she threw her whole face into the laugh. No attempt to save on laughter lines and she did have a lot to be thankful for.
‘What do you call a child that arrived like this and roared so vigorously at birth?’ She looked down at the now content baby. ‘I could call her Maxine.’
She was delightful and with a thud he remembered he was almost married. ‘That would really set the cat among the pigeons,’ he drawled.
He saw the moment she remembered Tayla. ‘Oh, my God. Your wedding. I’m so sorry.’
‘Later. It will be a drama in due time. No use thinking about it now.’
CHAPTER TWO (#ulink_09f99b20-3ff4-5225-8dba-d48ee0de0561)
TAYLA’S wild eyes were slitted shafts of fury in her narrow face as she stormed into Georgia’s hospital room. Anger vibrated off her in waves and even the baby stirred in her sleep with the malevolence emanating from Tayla.
Max thought it all lost a little credibility with the feathers.
Normally Tayla was a very attractive woman but in this instance he decided he might have had a lucky escape. He stayed motionless, leaning up against the wall with his arms crossed, and waited for his fiancеe to see her cousin was not alone.
Tayla saw no one except Georgia. ‘You had to do it. Had to ruin everything. If anyone could do it, it would be you! I knew you shouldn’t have been my matron of honour but my father had to have his way. Well I’m not the only one who’s a laughing stock. Serves him right.’
‘I’m so sorry, Tayla.’ Georgia wilted against the pillows and closed her eyes, and Max realised that the ridiculous behaviour of Tayla was upsetting the new mother.
‘You will be!’ Tayla spat, and Max stepped away from the wall.
‘That’s enough.’ His voice was very quiet but sliced off Tayla’s words as if he’d swathed his arm through the air like a conductor. Tayla froze before turning slowly to face him.
‘Max?’ She stamped her foot and another tiny white feather puffed into the air. ‘I knew you must have stayed with her.’
‘Obviously,’ he drawled, and then regretted his provocativeness for Georgia’s sake. Outside work interference it was probably the first time he’d made the effort to check Tayla. Maybe he had let everything slide too much in his obsession to land this job.
‘Look at your suit!’ Tayla was slow to see the dangerous glint in Max’s eye. ‘And why did you have to be the one to go with her? There were half a dozen obstetricians there but, no, you had to leave me at the altar like a fool.’
Max glanced across at Georgia and the sleeping baby. ‘I’m sorry about your wedding, Tayla,’ he said. ‘But perhaps in private and later.’
Tayla faltered and stretched her face into a smile, finally connecting Max’s displeasure. ‘It was your wedding, too.’ The plaintive note sounded clearly. ‘And the magazine was there taking photos. No wonder we couldn’t find you when the ambulance turned up. When it was called off my father searched everywhere for you.’
‘Your father would have done better to spend his time checking on his new great-niece.’ Max raised his eyebrows. ‘I’m sure you, too, were concerned that Georgia’s baby almost lost her life.’
Tayla glanced at the baby in Georgia’s arms with barely concealed disinterest. ‘Of course.’ She dragged her arm across her face. ‘It’s been such a horrible morning. I think they will still print the photos from the church but as a disaster now. I’ve been quite distraught.’ And quietly she began to sob.
Max dropped his jaw in amazement and Georgia shifted her baby up to her shoulder and slid to the edge of the bed.
In sudden clarity Max realised if he didn’t step in Georgia would rise from her bed to comfort her cousin and take all the blame for something that no one could have prevented.
‘Stay there, Georgia. Rest. You’ve had a big morning, too. I’ll take Tayla away and calm her down.’
Tayla lifted her head and he admitted she cried very prettily but some of the sterling reasons he’d had for marrying her had strangely seeped away.
‘Come on, Tayla,’ he said more gently. She really had been excited about the magazine shoot and he needed to be more patient. ‘I’ll make you a coffee in the consultants’ tearoom and we can talk.’ He turned her towards the door and glanced over his shoulder at the woman in the bed.
‘Look after Thor.’
The sweetness of his smile made the lump of tears in Georgia’s chest swell even more and she nodded stupidly and watched him leave.
She’d have to name her daughter or she’d begun to think of her as Thor. The problem was she’d only chosen boys names. More reason to dislike the inaccuracy of ultrasounds.
Actually, she would like to call her Maxine but no doubt the affinity she felt towards a certain obstetrician would pass. She was never falling for that again.
She wouldn’t be calling her daughter after her father because the memories of Sol’s dangerous possessiveness left her quivering in her bed. She shuddered and forced her mind back to the present.
Her daughter was like a little lioness with her roar and her power and her aggressive hold on life. No man would try to run her life. She should call her Elsa after the lioness in Born Free. Actually, she liked that. She liked it a lot.
‘Hello, Elsa.’ Elsa opened one dark blue eye and glared at her mother before thick black lashes fluttered down again and she drifted back to sleep.
Well, that was settled. She looked up as a knock sounded at the door and her uncle poked his head around it.
‘You available for visitors?’
‘Come in, Harry.’ She gestured to the seat beside the bed and her nearest living relative sank onto the hard plastic with relief. He peered at the baby in her arms.
‘So she’s well? No ill effects from her dramatic entry into the world?’ He lifted one finger and stroked the baby’s soft hair.
‘The paediatrician said she’ll be fine. Because Elsa was so vigorous at birth, we’re sure she coped with whatever fall in oxygen she suffered.’
Harry raised his bushy white eyebrows. ‘Elsa. Strong name. Still, you must have been terrified. I’m glad you’re both well. I gather Max did a great job.’
‘He was very calm and caught her beautifully.’ She leaned towards her uncle. ‘I’m so sorry about Tayla’s wedding.’
‘Water under the bridge.’ He looked at her and they both smiled at the poor pun. ‘Tayla threw hysterics in the church when the limo drove off. I was glad to get out of there.’
Georgia bit her lip. She felt too guilty to smile at her uncle’s dry amusement. ‘She’s with Max now. I’m sure he’ll calm her down.’
‘She’d better show a more attractive side than I saw this morning or it won’t matter how much he needs a wife.’ Her uncle looked at Georgia quickly and then away.
‘I did not say that.’ Distressed, he rubbed his gnarled hands together. He was a self-made success and proud of his hands, but he wasn’t proud of that slip. ‘I’m an old man and get mixed up sometimes.’
He looked around the room—anywhere but at Georgia. ‘You look after young Elsa here and I’ll see you soon.’ Harry bent down and kissed her cheek before he lumbered out of the room as fast as he could.
Georgia stared after him. ‘Good grief,’ she said out loud. ‘What do you make of that, Elsa?’
