Loving (34 page)

"She doesn't even have an obstetrician yet."

"Well, for God's sake, make sure she gets the right one. Have her talk to other women, other doctors, check the guy out in every way you can. Ollie, it's important. She shouldn't have to go through that again."

"She won't." He sighed softly into the phone. "And, Mary, thank you. I'm sorry to bother you with our problems."

"Don't be silly." And then, with a slow smile, "And Ollie ... I'm so glad."

He sighed again. "So am I. But, God, I hate to put her through this."

"She'll calm down in a while. Just get her a decent doctor."

He took care of that the moment he hung up the phone. He called four of his close friends at the paper, who had recently had kids, or at least in the last few years. And miraculously three of the women had had the same doctor, and they all thought he was a dream. He hastily wrote the man's name down on a piece or paper, called information, and nervously dialed. Three minutes later he had him on the line.

"Doctor Salbert, my name is Oliver Paxton.... " Laboriously he told him his tale.

"Just bring her in in the morning. Say around ten thirty?"

"Fine. But what'll I do in the meantime?"

The doctor chuckled. "Give her a stiff drink."

"That won't hurt the baby?"

"Not if she Just drinks one or two."

"What about champagne?" Oliver had never felt so ruffled and nervous, but the doctor only smiled.

"That'll be fine. See you tomorrow."

"Absolutely ... and thank you. ..." He hung up the phone and ran out the door.

"Where are you going?" Alexander called after him.

"I'll be right back." And he was, with a huge bottle of chilled vintage French champagne. Five minutes later he had put the bottle, two glasses, and some peanuts on a large tray and he was knocking softly on their bedroom door.

"Yeah?" He could hear Bettina's muffled voice within.

"Can I come in?"

"No."

"Good." He opened the door gently. "I love feeling welcome."

"Oh, Jesus." She rolled over in bed when she saw the champagne. "This is not a celebration, Ollie."

"Mind your own business, Daniels. I'll welcome my kid into this world any way I like. Besides which"--he put the tray down and looked down warmly at her--"I happen to be madly in love with the kid's mother." He sat down next to her and gently stroked her hair, but she pulled away.

"Don't ... I'm not in the mood."

But he just lay there and watched her, a lifetime of loving in his eyes. "Baby, I know what you're feeling. I talked to Mary, and I understand what a nightmare it must have been. But it won't be like that again. Never, ever, I swear it."

"You called Mary?" She looked at him with surprise and sudden suspicion. "Why did you do that?"

"Because I love you, and I was worried, and I don't want you to be scared." And suddenly the way he said it brought fresh tears to her eyes.

"Oh, Ollie, I love you ... oh, darling.... " She sobbed in his arms.

"It's going to be just fine."

"You promise?" She looked like a little girl and he smiled.

"I promise. And tomorrow we're going to see a doctor that everyone loves."

"You found me a doctor too?" She looked stunned.

"Of course, I'm terrific. Hadn't you noticed that before?"

"Yeah ... as a matter of fact I had.... How did you find this doctor?" She was smiling at him and she leaned over to kiss his ear.

"I asked some friends whose wives just had babies, and then I called him. He sounds nice."

"What did he say?"

"That you should drink some champagne." He sat up grinning. "Doctor's orders." He opened the bottle and handed her a glass of the sparkling wine.

"It won't hurt the baby?" She looked dubious as she held the glass and he smiled. John had forbidden her to drink while she was expecting Alexander.

"No, darling, it won't hurt the baby." And then he looked at her, glad that she cared. "It's going to be a lovely baby, Bettina."

"How do you know that?" She was smiling broadly, a look of relief slowly coming to her eyes.

"Because it's ours."

"Hey, fatso, ifs for you!" Ollie waved to her from the doorway as she played with Alexander in the backyard. She had just bought him a new set of swings, and with her enormous belly in front of her she was pushing him as high as she could.

"I'll be back In a minute, darling." As best she could, she hurried to Ihe kitchen door with a look of disapproval for Ollie. "Don't cal me that you big-mouthed giant As it so happens, I've only gained fourteen pounds."

"You Sure that guy knows how to read the scale?" But the doctor he had found her could do more than that. In the four months Bettina had been seeing him, be had established a relationship based on trust and confidence, and she was actually beginning to be less panicked by the birth.

"Never mind. Who's on the phone?"

"Norton."

"Whafs he want?"

"I don't know. Ask him."

She took the phone from him and they exchanged a friendly kiss. Their relationship was filled with joking and teasing. Ollie was ecstatic about the baby, and he was infinitely protective of her. Even Alexander had decided that maybe it wouldn't be bad after all, as long as it wasn't a girl.

"What?" Bettina was staring in disbelief at the phone.

Ollie glanced over at her, trying to mouth questions, but she shook her head and quickly turned her back. It seemed hours before she was finally off the phone. "Well, what was it? Don't keep me in suspense."

She sat down, looking pale. "They're going to do my second play. Not only are they going to do it, but he already has a movie deal."

"And you're surprised? I told you that months ago. The only thing that surprises me is that it took this long." It had taken almost a year to sell her second play. And then he looked suddenly worried. "When do they want to start?"

She looked at Oliver in amusement. "They had to be reasonable about it. Norton told them I was pregnant, so it's not for a while."

"What does that mean?"

"October." The baby was due in July. "The contract says I only have to be in New York for three months." And then she looked worried. "Can you take a leave of absence for that long?"

"If I have to." He didn't look concerned. "Can we take a baby that young to New York?"

"Sure. It'll be two months old."

"Not 'it,' 'she,'" he corrected. He kept insisting that he wanted a girl. He kept looking at Alexander proudly, saying that he already had a son. It was one of the reasons why he still wanted to get married, so he could adopt Alexander and give him his name. But Bettina was still firm in her refusal.

"It's more fun this way, we all have our own names, Daniels, Paxton, and Fields,"

"It sounds like a law firm." But she wasn't moved.

Now she sat staring for a moment, thinking of her play and Oliver smiled at her. "How soon will they want to start work on the movie?"

"After Christmas. And figure it'll take six months, so that will bring me through June. All in all, it'll be about nine months of work."

But he still looked worried. "That won't be too much for you right after the baby?"

It won't be 'right' after. I'll have two months to rest. Believe me, afterward isn't the hard part" She still had some fears. But they had gone to classes together and they shared each session at the doctor. Ollie had waited too long for this event to miss even a moment of it now. At forty-four, he called it the event of his life.

Bettina, found herself dividing her excitement between the baby and the new play. It was only in the last month of her pregnancy that her excitement about the play was almost obscured. It seemed as though all she wanted to do was be with Ollie and sit peacefully in the shade, watching Alexander play. She went to bed early, she ate well, she read a little, but it was as though her mind was totally at rest. She didn't want to face any fresh challenges, didn't want to speak to Norton, or worry about making deals. Instead she was preparing for something very Important that took all of her concentration. It seemed to absorb her whole life.

Two days before her due date Mary came down from San Francisco by plane. She had left all of the kids with her mother, and Seth had gone camping with a friend.

"Believe me, I'd much rather be here than out camping. So"--she looked at Bettina happily-- "what's been happening with you?"

"Absolutely nothing. I've turned into a vegetable. I may never write another play." But she didn't even give a damn. All she could think about was the baby and the nursery. She wasn't even that concerned with Oliver anymore. Just with her belly and the soon-to-be child. It was an oddly self-centered existence, and Ollie understood it, because the doctor had warned him that it was like that at the end.

"What does the doctor say?"

"Nothing. Just that it could be any day. I don't suppose it'll come on my due date though."

"Why not?"

"Things just don't happen like that."

"Sure they do." Mary giggled as the three of them got in the car. "What you have to do is plan something fancy, like a nice evening, dinner somewhere or an evening at the theater, then you can count on it happening that night." The three of them laughed at the thought, but Ollie decided that he liked the idea.

"How about dinner at the Bistro?"

"On my due date?" Bettina looked appalled. "What if something happens?"

"If you ruin their carpet, then we never go back." He chuckled and Bettina made a face. But he insisted when they got back to the house that he make a reservation for the following night.

"Oh, Jesus." Bettina looked at him nervously and took Mary upstairs to unpack her bags. The deal they had with the doctor was that she would be at the delivery, just as a friend. But he was amenable to as many observers as they wanted, within reason. "Just no small children or large dogs."

So the following evening the three of them trooped out to the Bistro to eat. It was as lovely as ever, with soft lighting, cut-glass panels, and elegant decor. Bettina looked radiant, in a floating white summer dress, with a gardenia tucked behind one ear.

"You look very exotic, Miss Daniels," And then he whispered softly, "I love you too."

She smiled and reached for his hand under the table, whispering the same thing. But it wasn't until they had ordered that Mary noticed an odd look on her face. At first she said nothing, but when it happened again five minutes later, she looked across the table and caught her eye.

"Was I right, Betty?"

"You might have been."

Oliver didn't hear them. He was ordering the wine. "Well, ladies? Everybody happy?"

"Absolutely." Mary was quick to answer and Bettina signaled her quickly. She didn't want to say anything yet. But when the dinner came, she only picked at her food. She didn't want to overdo it, if she really was in labor she wanted to keep it light.

"You didn't eat anything, baby. You feeling okay?" He leaned toward her again as they waited for dessert.

But she smiled at him brightly. "Not bad, for a broad about to have a kid."

"When?" He looked at her blankly. "Now?" He looked suddenly panicked and Bettina laughed.

"Not this minute, I hope, but in a while. I started having pains just before dinner, but I wasn't sure."

"And now you are?" He quickly grabbed her arm and she laughed.

"Will you stop that, Ollie? I'm fine. Have dessert and coffee, and then we can go home and call the doctor. Relax."

But it was impossible, and before the coffee had come, she was having trouble relaxing too. As they had the first time, the pains started to crowd her very quickly and grew rapidly intense.

Mary was timing contractions as they stood on the sidewalk, Bettina leaning heavily against Ollie, and she nodded her head. "We'd better take you to the hospital, Betty. You may not have time to go home."

"I should be so lucky." She smiled softly, but from the look in her eyes Ollie knew she was in pain, and suddenly he felt panic clutch him. What if this time was as bad as the first? But Mary saw what was happening to him and grabbed his arm firmly just before she got into the car. Bettina was already lying down on the backseat.

"She's going to be fine, Ollie. Take it easy. She's okay."

"Suddenly I couldn't help thinking---"

"She's probably thinking the same thing. But it's going to be fine." He nodded and Mary slid quickly into the car. "How's it going, Betty?"

The same." And then a moment later as Ollie moved the car away from the curb: "I'm having another one."

He looked at Mary in terror. "Should I stop?"

"Christy no." And with that the two women started laughing. Suddenly Bettina was no longer laughing, and by the time they got to the hospital, she no longer wanted to talk.

A nurse hurried away to call her doctor as two others ushered her gently into a small sterile-looking room. For a moment Bettina looked at Mary with a grim look in her eyes.

"I thought you said things had changed." It was a room just like the one where she had spent fourteen agonizing hours strapped down while she screamed.

"Take it easy, Betty." Slowly she helped her take off her clothes, but they had to stop constantly for the pains. And at last, as she held on tightly to Ollie, they helped her lie down.

"You okay, babe?" Suddenly he felt helpless and frightened, all he knew was that if they hurt her or his baby, he would kill them. He knew that for a fact. But slowly she smiled at him, holding tightly to his hand.

"I'm fine."

"Are you sure?"' She nodded, and then gulped as she felt another pain coming on. But this time Ollie remembered what they had learned together, and he coached her as she breathed. When it was over, she looked at him in amazement with a small smile.

"You know, it works?"

"Good." He looked immensely proud and the next time they did it again. By the time the doctor joined them, everything was in control.

He told her that she was doing beautifully, and only the brief examination reminded her for a moment of the past, but there was nothing else he could do. At least this time no one had tied her down. The nurses were gentle and pleasant, the doctor was smiling, and Mary was somewhere in a corner of the room, Bettina felt surrounded by people who cared about what was happening to her, and through it all Ollie was with her, holding her hand, helping her breathe, and helping her to keep control.