Against the Odds: A Love Story (20 page)

Nothing in this life is sure, except love.

Twenty-eight

T
he first half hour was a complete blur for me because the contractions were constant now. I was immediately checked by a nurse and an IV was inserted. When Dr. Salem arrived, he ordered an epidural for me. I squeezed Hayden's hand so tight while it was being administered, I was sure I left bruises.

As soon as the pain eased and I began to relax and breathe easier, the baby started coming. This was the moment we had anxiously waited for. I felt scared, thrilled, and excited at the same time.

Hayden's voice was soothing against my ear as he echoed the doctor's commands telling me to push. Filled with a sudden burst of energy, I did push. It only took a few hard pushes to bring our son into the world. At that moment, I experienced a joy that could not be put into words. I was actually a mother. I had a son. A son by the man I loved more than life. We both laughed and cried. Hayden repeatedly kissed my brow and told me how proud he was of me.

Then he pressed his tear-streaked face against mine as we gazed at our son when the doctor placed him in my arms.

“He's so beautiful,” I whispered.

“He is,” Hayden said against my face. “And so are you,” he added.

I turned and kissed him softly. “I love you.”

“I love you too, baby.”

I sighed, feeling that my life couldn't be any more perfect. I had everything I could ever want. My happiness was complete.

“Let's get this little guy weighed,” Dr. Salem said. I handed our little Dane back to the nurse. The doctor came over and rested a hand on my shoulder. “You did great, Raine, really great. But I honestly haven't seen a first time birth happen that quickly in a long time. And believe me, that was quick.”

Hayden grinned and squeezed my hand. “I guess he was anxious to get out here and see the world. He's just like his mama.”

I smiled at him, or at least I tried to smile, and at that moment I realized something was wrong. I couldn't seem to get my face to cooperate. When the right side began to twitch suddenly, I looked at the doctor, then at Hayden.

The last thing I heard was the sound of Hayden's frantic voice calling my name.

Just as you begin to feel all is lost,
God in his heaven smiles.

Twenty-nine

Hayden

H
ayden sat beside the bed holding his wife's hand and wiped repeatedly at the tears  streaking his face.

Hours.

It had been hours since their son came into the world. Hours since the powerful seizure shook Raine's body, causing her to lose consciousness. Hours since he had been gifted with the teary gaze of her beautiful brown eyes.

He pressed his head against his free hand as the doctor's words again ran through in his mind.  Returning his gaze to his wife's still form, his heart and soul were immediately hit with renewed agony.

Raine was in a coma.

When Doctor Salem had given Hayden the news, Hayden had immediately fired a string of questions at the man. How could it have happened? Why had it happened? When would she wake up?
Would
she wake up? He had struggled with the doctor's straightforward answer.

“I don't know. All we can do is wait.”

Wiping his face once more, Hayden moved closer to the bed and laid his head against his wife's shoulder, fingering a curl that lay against the side of her face. Then he softly spoke to her.

“I'm here, darlin'. I'm right here. And I ain't going nowhere.” He sighed and fresh emotion filled his voice. “You gotta wake soon, baby. I need you. So does our little boy. We need you so much, Raine.”

He raised his head slightly to look at her face. “Come back to me, baby,” he pleaded. “Please come back to me.” He pressed his face to her shoulder again and the tears began anew.

It was a nightmare, one he couldn't seem to wake up from. His beautiful, sweet wife might be taken from him. They hadn't even been married a year, and he could lose her. He couldn't bear the thought.

Surely God hasn't brought us this far to take it all away.

The pain was threatening to tear him apart. If he had been a drinking man, he would surely be sitting in the corner of a bar somewhere completely wasted, trying futilely to numb the pain. But if he did that, he wouldn't be where he should be, which was at his wife's side, being the kind of man, and husband she deserved. Not that he felt he really deserved her anyway. He'd tried to be worthy of her, though, and if she made it through this,
when
she made it through this, he would try even harder.

* * *

That afternoon, Caroline and David brought Hayden a couple of changes of clothing and his toiletry items because he refused to leave the hospital without Raine. He cried in their embrace and accepted the comfort they offered. He had asked them to call Raine's mother, which they did. They told him she would be flying in the next day.

A while later, the nurse brought little Dane in to Hayden and he held his son for a long while. He talked to Raine the entire time about their baby.

That evening the same nurse brought Hayden a pillow and blanket to use in the recliner when he was ready to sleep. He didn't think he would be able to, but once he slid the recliner as close to the bed as possible, he eventually gave into exhaustion and drifted to sleep with his wife's name on his lips and a prayer in his heart that he wouldn't lose her.

A new day is never promised, but is welcomed beyond words.

Thirty

A
s I slowly began to awaken, I groaned from the pain of my sore muscles. Feeling something over my nose, I reached up and felt the oxygen mask. I pushed it away and slowly opened my eyes. Feeling a gentle pressure on my hand, I turned my head to the side, letting my eyes rest on Hayden's face.

“Welcome back, baby,” he said for the second time, his voice cracking, and his red-rimmed eyes filling with tears. He pressed a hand to my face. “Baby . . . I was . . . I was so scared I was gonna lose you.”

I looked at his face. His handsome features were haggard, and he looked as if he had aged several years. “Hayden,” I whispered hoarsely, “what's wrong? Is the baby all right?”

He nodded and swallowed. He answer came out in a sob. “The baby is just fine, darlin'. He's eight pounds, and he's beautiful.”

My eyes roamed over his face again and I squeezed his hand, startled by his emotion. “What's wrong?”

He again swallowed hard and continued to caress my face. “Baby, you have been in a coma for a week.”

I was completely stunned. “What do you mean?”

He sniffed and wiped his eyes. “You had a seizure and you just went unconscious. The doctor said there was a chance you might not wake up. He said that it happens sometimes with preeclampsia patients.” His eyes were full of pain.

I loosened my hand from his and pressed it to his face, suddenly understanding why he looked so worn. “I'm so sorry,” I said

He pressed a kiss to the palm of my hand. “I was so scared, Raine. I was so scared. Just when I had everything I could ever want, I thought you were gonna be taken from me.”

I pulled him to me and held his face against mine, pressing my hand in his hair. “I'll never leave you, Hayden,” I breathed against his ear. “I'll be with you forever. I'm pretty stubborn that way.” I felt the sob that shuddered through him and choked back one of my own as tears stung my eyes. “I'm all right,” I continued to whisper as I stroked his hair. “I'm all right.”

Hayden finally raised up and looked at me. “I'm gonna be thanking God for that every day for the rest of my life.”

“So will I.” I sighed. “Hayden, I want to see our baby.”

He smiled and pressed his hand to my cheek again. “I'll go and let the nurse know you're awake. Then I'll get him.” He stood.

When he hesitated, I could tell just by looking into his eyes that he was afraid to leave. I squeezed his hand and again urged him closer. “I promise I'll be here when you get back.”

A sheen of renewed tears appeared in his eyes. “I know.” He smiled and a look of melancholy crossed his face. “We've beaten the odds so far, haven't we?”

“We have, and I have faith that we always will,” I whispered just before he softly touched his mouth to mine.

As the warmth of his love washed over me, one solemn truth burned brightly in my mind and heart that would forever be a testament to me of the impact of the choices we make in life. At one time, all had looked bleak for Hayden and me, and I made the choice to take a chance on him and his love. I made the choice to stay. And because of that choice, I was blessed with the deepest love and the most wonderful life I could ever ask for. I had gone through some hard trials, but the end results were priceless. I had my husband and I had our baby.

Now I knew without a doubt that whatever trials life brought my way, God would help me see them through.

Family is the gift that is always beautifully wrapped, and you never want a refund or exchange.

Epilogue

I
smiled contentedly and waved to Hayden as he walked beside the spotted pony with three year old Dane in the saddle. Our son's wavy, dark brown and auburn-highlighted hair shimmered in the sun. I could hear his giggles from the stable door where I stood holding our little Maggie, who had just turned a year old two weeks before. Her fluffy little curls billowed in the breeze and tickled my nose when I pressed a kiss to her forehead.

As Hayden slowly approached holding the reins, butterflies consumed my stomach. As usual when he was around the ranch, his shirt was hanging open, exposing his tanned muscular chest and stomach. I saw him either that way or shirtless almost every day, and it still never failed to make me feel warm all over.

“There are my two favorite girls,” Hayden said, pulling me close and kissing us both.

“How was your ride?” I asked Dane as Hayden helped him down.

“It was fun, Mama,” he said grinning just like his daddy.

“Well, your daddy is determined to turn you into a cowboy already.”