A Side of Faith, Hope and Love: The Sandwich Romance Novella Collection

by Krista Phillips

  He was right. For some reason, the bedroom off the dining room had always had an open doorway. It’d been that way since the house was built. She’d always thought it odd, but never questioned it. It was their normal. “We can hang a curtain if you’d like. But I think it’s better than the alternative.”

  He reached down and traced her cheek with his finger, but withdrew before she could reprimand him. “That, Tilly-girl, is up for debate.”

  With that, he turned and strode back through the house, calling out instructions to move the bed into the office.

  Tilly leaned against the dryer and put a hand to her cheek, still feeling the tingling line his finger had left.

  She needed to think of a way out of this.

  Fast.

  Because if she wasn’t careful, she might fall in love with her husband. And that was something she’d told herself she’d never, ever do again.

  Eight

  Chart in hand, Adam stood in front of the closed exam room door, wishing he could delegate this patient to Dr. Jones. On Monday, he’d seen Maddie's name on the schedule and cringed. Somehow the woman didn't seem the quiet, mind-her-own-business sort.

  As long as they could keep the appointment professional in nature, then it'd be fine.

  Besides, he’d barely even spoken two words with his own wife since last weekend when he moved into the doorless master bedroom. He’d managed to install a curtain so he didn’t have to worry so much about keeping everything nice and tidy for visitors, but they’d had none of those.

  Tilly had gone out every night, leaving him by himself.

  She’d worked on Monday, Wednesday, and Thursday night.

  Bowling on Tuesday. Which still made him laugh. Tilly? A league bowler? He’d wanted to go and watch so bad, but the look she’d given him when he suggested it had made him think better of it.

  And tonight she was working again.

  At this rate, he’d get to see his wife on holidays only, if he were lucky. Maybe they’d have a chance to reconcile by, say, the time they were ninety or so.

  Pushing away the thoughts, he pushed the door open to see the pert brunette sitting on the paper-covered table. He offered her his hand. “Good afternoon, Maddie.”

  She shook his hand with a grip stronger than most males and nodded. “Dr. Davis.”

  Adjusting the chair higher, he sat down and rolled back, then crossed his leg over his knee. “How are you feeling?”

  A protective hand went to her belly. “Fine.”

  “Sick?”

  “No.”

  “Heartburn?”

  “Like Mount Vesuvius erupts in my stomach daily.”

  “Peeing okay?”

  “Like a faucet.”

  “Bowel movements?”

  “Let’s just say the advice Dr. Jones gave me is working perfectly, and the plumbing is currently unclogged.”

  He could see why Maddie and Tilly were friends. “Kiddos moving okay?”

  She nodded, rubbing her large belly that looked like an over-inflated basketball. “The munchkins are already giving me a run for my money with all their fighting. You’d think they wouldn’t have enough room.”

  He laughed. “They won’t soon enough. And, uh, I can recommend some parenting classes if you’d like.” He added a wink to underline his sarcasm.

  She smiled, the first time yet. “Someone’s been talking to Dr. Jones about me.”

  “Guilty as charged.” He stood and grabbed the fetal Doppler. “Now, if you want to lie down, I’d like to take a listen to these rascals’ heartbeats, okay?”

  He helped her back, but halted when she groaned. “Is it your back?”

  The nod and mask of pain that covered her face told him the problem. He pulled out the table extension and helped her prop her feet on it. “Better?”

  She let out a grunt and a sigh. “Yeah. Goodness, these kids like to dance on my spine or something.”

  He just smiled and grabbed the Doppler again. “I’m surprised your husband didn’t come with you.”

  “He wanted to, but I wouldn’t let him.”

  That would have surprised him, except he’d already guessed the reason. “Does he usually come?”

  “Every single time. I wanted a chance to talk with you, though.”

  He was right. “Well, let’s get a listen, then you can grill me about Tilly, okay?”

  Her lips curved into a smile. “Deal.”

  After covering the probe with gel, he placed it on her belly. The whooshing sounds of the womb immediately filled the room. He smiled at the sound of new life. He’d heard it a million times, but it still struck him as amazing every time.

  A twinge of regret pinched at his heart. What would it have been like to experience this with his own wife, and their own baby?

  Flicking away the pain and adjusting the probe, he pressed on her belly with his other hand, trying to guess where he could best hear a heartbeat. A moment later, a rhythmic sound filled the air. “Perfect. Heart rate is 152.”

  Maddie smiled. “I love hearing that sound. It’s so—hopeful.”

  He nodded and wiggled the probe around again to find the other. “149, exactly on target. Now, I know we didn’t technically have it scheduled today, but would you be opposed to a peek at these munchkins with an ultrasound? I was going over your twenty-week results from your past doctor and wanted to verify a few things.”

  A crease appeared on her forehead as she sat up on her elbows. “What’s wrong?”

  He shook his head. “Didn’t mean to worry you. They were a few areas they checked and felt were fine, but noted that the babies were turned so it wasn’t optimal viewing. I thought I’d see if they had wiggled around enough for me to get some better pictures.”

  She relaxed and nodded. “A peek at little John and Jane sounds really nice. Do you mind if I text Reuben to see if he can run over here really quick? He’s a few minutes up the street helping his mom at her house.”

  If it got him out of a talk about Tilly and their relationship? “Of course.”

  She tapped out the message on her phone, and they chatted a few more minutes about normal things like weight gain and the birth plan and the joys of pregnancy heartburn.

  A tap sounded on the door, and the nurse popped her head in. “I believe Daddy would like to come in and take a look at his babies.”

  Adam started up the machine that sat next to the table. “Thanks, Charlotte. Bring him on in.”

  Reuben stepped into the room. “Sorry it took me so long. Had to wash up at least a little.” His jeans were half covered in dirt, his shirt a sweaty mess, and his hair shot up in every direction.

  Maddie rolled her eyes. “Only you would come to a doctor’s office looking like that, sweetie.”

  “You know I was helping mom out at the house. Gary’s back is giving him fits, so I told her I’d take the day off and lend a hand with the raking and tearing out her garden for the winter. It was past due.”

  The pregnant woman shook her head and laid back down. “Could have at least changed your shirt and thrown on some deodorant.”

  Reuben leaned down and kissed her on the temple. “Seeing our babies was more important than my smell, dearest.”

  She smiled up at him, love dripping from her eyes.

  Adam tried not to stare, but the scene reminded him too much of him and Tilly, many, many years ago. His heart constricted.

  He braced himself with a deep breath and turned on the ultrasound machine. He had a job to do, and he needed to get on it. He grabbed the wand and covered it in gel, then placed it on her belly. “I usually have a technician do this, but I only need a few pictures so figured I’d do it myself today.”

  The screen blurred to life. “Okay”—he took a moment to ensure which baby he was looking at—“John. Your parents would like to say hi.”

  Maddie giggled. “You do realize his name isn’t really John, right? We’re not telling anyone their real names, so we’re using John and Jane as placeholders
and telling everyone they will both have the middle name Doe.”

  Adam glanced at Reuben, who shrugged. “Her idea. I just go with it. I did, however, get a say in their real names. That’s what counts.”

  Smart man. “Alright, well, here is John’s foot then, and actually, I’m pretty sure Jane’s is right next to it. They’re playing footsy, evidently.”

  Maddie patted the side of her stomach. “More like trying to kick each other.”

  Adam pointed out a few more features, then ignored Mom and Dad and went to work taking measurements..

  Good job, little ones. They were both in great positions to see their organs, unlike the previous photos that were odd angles for most everything. He snapped pictures of their anatomy as he went, pleased with what he saw.

  Until he got to little John’s heart.

  Careful to school his features, he clicked the appropriate buttons and zoomed in on the spot.

  This was not what he was hoping for. He’d seen much worse, but still, telling parents-to-be that their unborn child had something wrong with his heart was the worst part of Adam’s job.

  He captured an image that displayed the issue the clearest and withdrew the probe from Maddie’s belly, wiping off the excess gel.

  Reuben cleared his throat. “Everything alright, Adam?”

  He knew the best way to handle this was to be blunt but positive. “Well, both babies look very healthy. On target for their gestation and growing great. I have no concerns except—” He sat back on his chair and rolled to the side, tilting the screen of the ultrasound machine toward the expecting parents. “This is baby John’s heart. It’s pumping great from what I can see, but do you see this little spot right here?”

  He pointed just below the area in question.

  Both parents nodded, but Maddie’s hand clung to Rueben’s, her knuckles white.

  “This is the ventricular septum, or in other words, the wall between the ventricles of his heart. But from what I can see, there looks to be a hole in it, allowing blood to flow between his ventricles. We call it a VSD for short, or a ventricular septal defect. You’ve probably heard people refer to it as simply a hole in the heart.”

  Maddie’s free hand began to flutter, but Reuben brought it to his chest and supported her. “Okay, so what does this mean?”

  “Well, a few things. First, I’m not a cardiologist, so I can’t tell you a lot of details. We’ll set up an appointment with a pediatric cardiologist at the Children’s hospital in Chicago to do a fetal echo. Hearts are their specialty, so they'll be able to give you more details. Second, VSDs are one of the most common heart defects. One in a hundred babies are born with some form of a heart defect. Some holes close before the baby is born, and others have to be surgically closed eventually, maybe even years down the road. It depends on the size of the defect and the other details they see on the detailed fetal echocardiogram of the heart. Baby John has every chance of—”

  “Stop calling him that.” Maddie pushed Reuben away and straightened as much as her large belly allowed.

  Adam stilled, looking from Reuben to Maddie, then back to Reuben, trying to figure out what he’d said wrong. “I’m sorry, I—”

  She shook her head. “No, it’s not your fault. His name is Matthew Reuben Callahan. After Reuben’s dad. We call him John for fun, but now—I can’t stand calling him something other than his name when we’re talking about this. Please. Matthew. That’s his name.”

  He nodded. “I understand. Matthew has every chance of being a healthy, normal little baby boy. It’s just something we need to keep an eye on.”

  Maddie wiped tears from her eyes. “What about Lucy? How's her heart?”

  He smiled at the use of the baby girl’s real name. “Lucy’s heart, from what I can tell, looks perfectly whole and healthy. The cardiologist will check her while they're looking, though.”

  They spoke for a few more minutes, answering questions and setting up the expectations for follow-up the rest of the pregnancy. Adam promised he’d send the referral to a cardiologist he personally knew and recommended, and let them know they’d get a call soon to set up the appointment.

  As he escorted them out, Maddie turned, her mouth offering a tight smile. “We never got to talk about Tilly.”

  He shrugged. “Matthew and Lucy are much more important at this point.”

  She nodded but didn’t turn to leave. “Do you love her, Dr. Davis?”

  Reuben tugged on her arm. “Maddie, now is not—”

  Adam held up his hand. “No, it’s okay.” He looked down at Maddie, her gaze digging into his. Her expression demanded honesty, and his heart couldn't lie even if he wanted it to. “Yes. I do. I’ve never stopped loving her.”

  A second later, she nodded. “Good.” And with that, she turned and waddled off, clinging to Reuben’s arm.

  Adam walked back to his office, his heart heavy with the weight of the world, or at least the weight of a tiny sick baby, two confused and scared parents, and unrequited love for his wife.

  He flopped into the chair and closed his eyes. The only positive thought he could drum up was that the week was finally over.

  The evening held no promise though, only a quiet house waited for him. Maybe he’d order pizza…

  On second thought, he had a strange urge to eat a really good sandwich.

  And he knew just the place to satisfy his craving.

  Nine

  Tilly grabbed the plate from Garrett and smiled. “You’re amazing. Have I told you that lately?”

  The new chef didn’t look up from arranging another sandwich, ever focused on his job. He’d replaced the fabulous Ricardo who had requested a transfer to the new Naperville location. So far, Tilly was very pleased with the new hire. “Only a few times in the last hour. Now go on. The customer is already mad about her chicken not being burnt. Don’t give her more to yell about.”

  “Seriously, you do realize this chicken sandwich is the grossest thing I’ve ever seen, right?” She glanced down at the charred chicken that wouldn’t even look appetizing to a dog. But the customer had already sent the piece back three times, claiming it wasn’t done enough, that she liked it almost black.

  Well, she’d have her wish, minus the almost.

  Garrett shook his head as he topped another sandwich with a garnish leaf and slid it to a waitress. “You know you’ll be back here in two minutes asking for one cooked less, right?”

  She sighed. “Yeah, probably. Go ahead and put another one on the grill just in case.” She turned around and walked out, plate in hand, and took a deep breath. The customer is always right, the customer is always right, service with a smile. She plastered on a grin she hoped looked real and approached the table. “Ma’am, here you go. I’m so sorry about—”

  The woman grabbed the plate, flicked off the homemade bun and examined the poultry. “Finally. This is perfect.”

  Tilly blinked. How about that. “Well, I’m glad. I’m sorry it took us a few tries. Enjoy your meal, and please let me know if there’s anything else we can do to be of service.”

  The woman didn’t respond as she crunched into her charred sandwich.

  Tilly turned to go tell Garrett the good news, but as she passed a booth, she stopped short when she spotted him. His head was bent, looking at the menu he held in his hands. The long ago memory of those strong arms holding her caught her breath. Her traitorous heart fluttered. “Adam.”

  He looked up and smiled, then shrugged his shoulders. “Didn’t feel like cooking.”

  Something about seeing Adam sitting by himself in the booth made compassion tug on her. Was he lonely too?

  Not that she'd been lonely. Not at all.

  Brushing away the thought, she lifted her mouth in a grin. Adam was a customer just like the rest of the people who filled the restaurant, and she determined to give him the same, cheerful service. “The blackened chicken is to-die-for tonight.”

  He raised an eyebrow. “Is that what you gave the lady ov
er there? If so, no thanks. I saw her lift that bun. Brings a new meaning to flame-grilled.”

  Glancing back to ensure the lady wasn’t listening, she leaned down and whispered, “I promise yours would be slightly less crunchy.”

  He snapped his fingers and winked, a spark of humor in his eye. “Aw shucks. I already ordered the ham and cheese. A little pricier than I’d normally pay for a sandwich though.”

  He’d obviously not dined at the Emporium since coming back to town. Two decades ago, a ham and cheese would have been Velveeta and some sliced deli meat on white bread. Today, it was fresh-off-the-block cheddar melted over a chunk of smoked ham, on a fresh homemade bread. “Just wait. It’s worth it.”

  “I hope so. Hey, listen—”

  She glanced back toward the kitchen. No way did she want to have a personal conversation in public. For that matter, she was trying to avoid talking with Adam at all lately. “I, uh, have to go. Working and all.”

  He reached out and grabbed her hand, his warm touch sending shivers up her arm. “Tomorrow. You said you only work in the evening. Can I steal you away for the afternoon?”

  Shaking her head, she pulled her hand away. “No. Sorry. I have plans.” Well, kinda. She would have plans as soon as she got to a phone and found some to make. She’d planned to clean house, but maybe she’d hire a housekeeper or something for now. She couldn’t stay away from him forever, but she’d sure try.

  “Cancel them. Please, Tilly. Just give me tomorrow, and then I’ll quit bugging you. I promise.”

  A waitress stood just beyond the booth, motioning across the dining room to a table with some clearly unhappy customers.. “Fine, tomorrow. But this won’t be a weekly thing, okay? I have my own life and you have yours.”

  “Deal.”

  But the wink that followed his agreement wasn't encouraging.

  She stalked off and went to douse another fire, but crud. The fire that really needed to be doused was the one smoldering in her heart. Spending a whole afternoon with her husband? She would need to keep an extinguisher handy.

  ***