They assisted Tachina to lie back. He found it weird that they were positioning her legs in metal bars that came off the table. It looked as if she were about to have a baby right now.
Vic’s eyes widened at the size of a long probe that the tech covered with a sheath and handed to the doctor who promptly covered it in lube.
“Wait, what is that for?” Vic asked. “And um…where is it going?”
There was no way that thing was going where he thought she was about to put it. Vic swiped a hand along his jawline. He ignored the stubble that greeted him as his gaze remained on the long probe.
“This is how we’re going to see the baby.” Dr. Hanover chuckled.
The young lady assisting the doctor turned down the lights.
Dr. Hanover quietly instructed Tachina to drop her legs open. Tachina calmly did as the physician requested. Vic’s eyes grew even wider as the woman inserted the probe into Tachina. He instinctively took a step backward. Tachina winced, and he was right back at her side.
“Are you okay?” he asked.
She nodded, but her gaze was on the screen. He blew out a deep breath and tried to relax.
Then, on the monitor, gray shapes shifted into something recognizable. A small curve. A flicker of movement.
“There’s your little one,” Dr. Hanover murmured. “And give me one second.”
A galloping noise filled their air through the speakers. A heartbeat. Fast, insistent—strong.
Vic’s chest tightened, then cracked open. He blinked several times, and an overwhelming sensation came over him. Nothing prepares a person for the first sight of their child.
This was really happening.
Vic reached out and took Tachina’s hand. He was ready to drop it if she refused, but she let him. He entwined their fingers and brought her hand upward. He brushed a kiss over her knuckles, not caring that the physician and tech were still in the room. He needed her to feel something, anything that reminded her that they were in this together.
Dr. Hanover narrated measurements, printed a few images, and confirmed development. She went over a few more things with them, offered recommendations and what to expect at this stage of the pregnancy. Vic asked questions and even took notes. The tech handed the photos of their little baby to him. He swallowed hard as he glanced down at the black-and-white photo. He could identify a head, a hand, and a round belly. He smiled andshowed it to Tachina whose eyes were shining with unshed tears.
“Everything looks healthy. Strong heartbeat. Baby is measuring right on time with what your last menses was.” When she was finished, she removed her gloves and handed Tachina some paper towels. She assisted Tachina into a sitting position on the table. “You can make your next appointment at the front desk. I’ll see you again in about four weeks. Congratulations again.”
She washed her hands quickly at the sink in the corner while the tech put everything away on the machine. The two left the room quietly and shut the door behind them.
The silence was heavy.
He had yet to release Tachina’s hand. He didn’t know if he was holding her or anchoring himself.
“Please come to my house tonight. You and Kian. We’ll eat dinner, and then we can talk. I don’t want anything hanging over us,” he said.
She looked at him like she was trying to decide if he meant it and if he was worth believing. After a long pause, she finally nodded. “Okay.”
Relief flooded him. He wanted to pull her into his arms, but he held back. He released her so she could get cleaned up and dressed. As she disappeared behind the curtain, thoughts assaulted him.
If she walked away from him now, he didn’t know what he’d do. He couldn’t go back to the way they were before—just two people co-parenting, living separate lives while raising not one, but two children. He glanced back down at the photograph of their new child.
That wasn’t what he wanted, and he’d be damned if Sydney was going to be the reason that cost him his family.
Vic couldn’t bring himself to go back to the office. Not after seeing the hurt in Tachina’s eyes. He’d heard it in her voice as if she had tried to keep it hidden. She wasn’t someone to lose it over nothing. If she was rattled, it meant something was seriously wrong.
And it was.
That ‘it’ was called Sydney.
He watched until Tachina’s car disappeared from the parking lot. He resisted the urge to follow her. If he went back to work, he’d be useless. If he went home, he’d do nothing but pace. But there was one person who could answer exactly how deep this mess went and exactly who had helped Sydney bury the knife she’d just twisted.
His mother.