They weaved through the tables to the door. It had been so warm and toasty inside that Harper gasped as the icy winter wind sliced into her cheeks.
‘You okay?’ Willow asked, sounding anxious.
‘Fine.’ Well, as fine as she could be. ‘Just cold.’
They hurried to her car where Willow turned the heating up high.
‘So, tell me about your day.’ Harper said, in an effort to give her head a few moments reprieve.
Willow chuckled. ‘I spent the whole day sitting behind my desk applying for research grants. Riveting stuff.’
They passed the short journey in relative silence. Willow concentrated on the roads—people drove like maniacs in stormy weather—and Harper found her head falling against the passenger window and her eyelids drooping. She must have actually drifted off for a few moments because the next thing she knew, Willow was gently shaking her shoulder.
‘Wake up, Harps. You’re home. Do you want me to come in and talk to Samuel with you?’
Willow’s words jolted Harper right back to her current woes, and as tempting as it was to have her big sister hold her hand while she had this difficult conversation with her husband, she didn’t want to be a coward. ‘No. It’s okay. Thanks for listening tonight though. I don’t know what I’d do without you.’
Willow hugged her hard. ‘Feeling’s mutual. I love you, little sis.’
‘I love you too.’
Then Harper pushed open the passenger door, climbed out of the car and walked on slightly unsteady feet to the front door. She let herself into the dark house, immediately remembered Samuel’s text about being home late and exhaled deeply. She wasn’t sure whether she was relieved or disappointed that she couldn’t have the conversation immediately. After considering calling him and asking him to come home because they needed to talk, she changed her mind and decided to take a bath and wait. He wouldn’t be in a good mood if she tore him from his work and she didn’t want to start this discussion on the wrong foot.
Two hours later she was washed, dressed in her PJs and fighting sleep. Samuel still wasn’t home. Giving in to the urge to climb into bed, she snuggled under the covers and decided she’d talk to him in the morning, when hopefully her head would be clearer than it felt right now.
Who knew? Maybe Willow was right. Maybe she’d wake up and find she’d changed her mind.
Harper slept more soundly than she had since the news of Claire’s death—so well in fact that she slept right through Samuel’s alarm and her own and woke up to an empty bed. She rolled over to face the spot where Samuel slept and wondered if he’d even come home. Only the slight indent in his pillow and the lingering scent of his aftershave in the air said he had, but the house was silent, indicating he was long gone again.
Sighing in frustration, she picked up her mobile phone and glanced at the screen.
‘Oh, shit.’ She leapt out of bed, unable to believe how late she’d slept. She’d be late to work for the first time in her life. As she scrambled to get ready, she texted Lilia:
Sorry I’m late. On way now. Will explain everything when I get there.
Lilia’s reply came almost instantaneously.
No worries. See you soon.
She hated the feeling of starting the day behind. Not having time to peruse the news online would usually irritate the hell out of her, but today her head had little room for anything but Anaya anyway. She smiled as she walked into the studio, thinking of her little girl’s dimpled cheeks and tiny, tiny hands.
‘Morning,’ she said to Lilia. ‘Sorry I’m late.’
Harper was expecting her to ask about her time at the hospital yesterday, but instead she said, ‘You haven’t seen the news, have you?’
Her thoughts went immediately to Anaya. Surely if something bad had happened Jasper would have called. ‘What is it?’ she asked.
‘Bryn wants to speak to you in her office in a moment,’ Lilia said, referring to the station’s senior manager. ‘But I thought I’d warn you. News broke overnight that you are the egg donor of the miracle baby born in the car accident.’
‘Oh God.’ Harper’s relief was short-lived as the reality of what this meant set in. The media would jump on this juicy bit of information. The story of baby Anaya had already worked its way into the hearts of people all across the country, but when they found out Harper’s connection, they’d be even more interested.
‘I think Bryn wants to ask you how you want to handle this,’ Lilia said. ‘We haven’t run the story yet on air, but the network has it online and other stations are talking about nothing else this morning.’
‘I wonder how they found out?’ she asked. ‘Did someone here leak the news? Lucy or the intern?’
Lilia shook her head. ‘They wouldn’t dare.’
‘Maybe someone recognised me at the hospital yesterday and put two and two together.’ Even as she spoke, she realised it didn’t matter. The fact was that their story was out there and she needed to talk to Jasper ASAP.
In some ways, the media identifying her as the egg donor felt like some kind of sign. An omen. On the day she wanted to declare herself as Anaya’s mum, they’d done it for her.
The truth coming out now also gave her a valid reason to return to Newcastle today and speak to Jasper, not just about how to handle the media but about her own hopes going forward.
‘Is it possible to reschedule things so I can take today and tomorrow off?’ Harper asked. ‘After I’ve spoken to Bryn of course.’
Lilia nodded. ‘I think that’s a good idea.’
‘Thanks.’ Harper took a deep breath, then turned and headed down the corridor to face her big boss.
Not one for small talk, Bryn got to the point the moment Harper stepped into her office. ‘It would have been good to hear about this from you, rather than from another radio station on my way to work this morning,’ she said, peering at Harper over the top of the takeaway coffee in her hand.
‘I’m sorry, but when I decided to donate my eggs, it had nothing to do with my work.’
‘I understand that, but it does now. The phones have been going crazy all morning with people wanting to get your side of the story. I don’t think we can bury this. Our only hope would be a double dissolution or a bomb going off somewhere, but it’s been a pretty slow news week so far.’
‘It’s no one else’s business,’ Harper snapped. But when Bryn frowned, she sighed and added, ‘What do you want me to do?’ She knew how the media worked—everything was everyone’s business.
‘I’ve got a friend who works for The Morning Edition. She’d like to interview you—and the father of the baby if he’s willing. They’ll offer you a good fee for speaking to them.’
Harper didn’t give a damn about the money and Jasper didn’t seem the type to love the limelight, but she could use the interview as an excuse for time off to talk to him.
‘I have no idea if that’s something he’d want to do, but I can ask him,’ she said. ‘If you’re agreeable, I’m going to take the next couple of days off and go up to Newcastle to talk to him about how to handle this.’
‘Okay. You do that. Until then, we won’t mention a word about this on air—and I don’t need to tell you that it’ll be better if you and Jasper don’t speak to any other media either.’
‘Of course. I’ll tell him. And I’ll call you as soon as I have an answer.’
When she returned to her office, her phone was going off in her handbag. ‘Good news spreads fast, hey,’ she muttered to Lilia as she retrieved it. The screen listed quite a lot of unknown numbers and a couple of missed calls from Samuel.
She waited until she was safely in her car and called him on speaker phone. He answered almost immediately.
‘Are you okay?’ he asked as she navigated out of the car park. ‘The news about you being an egg donor is all over the internet. Everyone here is talking about it; of course they knew you were doing it but I’ve neither confirmed nor denied your link to this case.’
‘I’m fine,’ she said, heartened that he was concerned about her while at the same time irritated by the way he spoke about the situation as if she were one of his clients.
‘You were asleep when I got home yesterday and I didn’t want to wake you to ask how the day was, but let’s go out for dinner tonight and you can tell me all about it. On second thought,’ he said before she could reply, ‘I’ll bring home takeaway as we might not get any peace out and about at the moment.’
‘Actually, Samuel, I’m just leaving work now. I spoke to Bryn, my boss,’ she clarified just in case he’d forgotten, ‘and she wants me to speak to Jasper about how to handle all this media interest, so I’m heading up to Newcastle again. Not sure I’ll be back by dinner. In fact, I think I might pack an overnight bag and grab a hotel room. I’m exhausted from all that’s going on.’
She felt guilty not telling him the whole truth—but that conversation wasn’t one to be had over a phone, and perhaps it would be best to find out how Jasper felt about her being more involved so that when she went to Samuel she had all the facts.
‘Can’t you just call him?’
It was on the tip of her tongue to admit that she wanted to see Anaya, but that would open a can of worms she wasn’t ready for. ‘Some things are easier in person.’
‘Okay then. But don’t wear yourself out. I’m worried about the stress this is putting you under.’
She thanked him for his concern, promised she’d be fine and said she’d call him when she got there.
Chapter Thirty
Jasper pulled his mobile phone from his pocket as he headed into the rest room. It had been vibrating all morning but as phones weren’t allowed in the NICU, he’d ignored it. If there was any emergency with his family, they’d contact the ward directly, so he’d assumed the calls were from people trying to sell him shit or charities wanting money. The number of missed calls from unknown numbers indicated he’d been correct, but in among them was a text from Harper.
He paused to read it:
Hey Jasper—hope Anaya and you are doing well this morning. I assume you’ve seen the news reports online by now and maybe been contacted by a journalist or two. I’m guessing someone saw me at the hospital yesterday and due to my semi-public status they’ve jumped on the story. I’m driving up to see you right now to discuss how we address the situation, but it would probably be best if you don’t talk to anyone until we’ve worked out how we want to handle it. See you soon, Harper.
Jasper blinked as he read the message, which had been sent almost an hour ago. The media? Were all those missed calls from journalists? He’d been living in a bubble this last week and hadn’t seen or heard what had been said about Claire’s accident, but he’d thought it would have been old news by now. The police were keeping him up to date with the driver who’d ploughed into Claire—he’d recovered and had been charged with a number of offences including driving under the influence and dangerous driving resulting in death. They were certain he’d go to prison, although only time would tell for how long. It was easier not to think about that or he found uncontrollable anger welling up inside him again.
Since the funeral, his thoughts had been solely on Anaya and her progress. He hadn’t gone back to the apartment last night, choosing instead to stay by her incubator. This wasn’t encouraged—parents were advised to try to get some proper rest if they could—but due to his situation, no one had tried to make him go home, so he hadn’t heard a news report today or read anything online.
He opened his news app and flinched at the top story: RADIO PERSONALITY MIRACLE BABY EGG DONOR.
What the hell?! The information was scant but obviously someone who’d seen her at the hospital yesterday—maybe even one of the medical staff—must have leaked the news. His fingers tightened around his phone in irritation—this was nobody’s business but his and he planned on telling Harper exactly that when she arrived. It seemed a bit of overkill to drive all the way up here to talk about the media, especially when she’d made the trip only the day before, but then again, Harper knew the industry better than he did. And if they were going to be hounded by the press, he would make his position clear and then take his lead from her. He couldn’t see her wanting all this attention either.
Ok. Drive safely. I’ll see you soon.
After sending his reply, he shoved his phone back in his pocket and continued on to the rest room. He splashed his face with water, shook his head at the sight of yesterday’s suit and then went to grab a coffee from the NICU family room. There was a toaster and bread available there, so he forced himself to scoff a couple of slices and washed it down with the coffee before hurrying back to Anaya.
The nurse was standing over her when he returned.
‘Hey there, baby girl,’ he said, smiling down as he stopped alongside the incubator. He looked to the nurse. ‘Harper will be here soon because we have a few things to discuss. Will it be okay if she comes in again?’
The nurse smiled and nodded. ‘Of course. She got permission for yesterday and your situation is irregular so I see no need to renege on it. I’ll send a message to the desk to make sure they let her through.’
‘Thank you.’
‘Anaya’s doing really well,’ she said. ‘I’ve just done her obs and the paediatrician will be here shortly. I think we might have some good news for you, but in the meantime, would you like to hold her?’
He nodded eagerly. Yesterday afternoon he’d done skin-to-skin again and for the first time he hadn’t wanted to give her back. Only the knowledge that she couldn’t be out of the incubator for too long allowed him to do so.
Jasper sanitised his hands, then sat in the chair and opened his shirt for his baby girl. Once she was settled against his bare chest with a baby blanket tucked over her, the nurse patted him on the arm and moved on.
He glanced down and marvelled at Anaya’s tiny perfection. He stroked his finger gently over her head and smiled at her little hand resting against his chest. He felt like a giant in comparison to her. His pinkie finger was almost twice the size of her hand.
‘Hey, my sweetheart,’ he said. ‘Daddy loves you.’
At the sound of his voice, her little eyes peeled open and she blinked up at him. Their gazes met, his heartstrings tugging and a tear slipping from his eye. How he longed for Claire to be able to see Anaya, to feel what he now felt for their little girl. Barely registering the goings on of the NICU around him, Jasper sat there cradling Anaya and telling her about Claire—about how they met, the home they’d built together, the garden she’d one day play in, the cats that would probably take a while to warm to her. ‘You are not to pull their tails,’ he said with faux sternness. ‘Be gentle with them, and they’ll learn to love you.’
The more he talked, the easier he found it; chatting to this little person who couldn’t yet talk back felt like the most natural thing in the world. He couldn’t wait for the day she’d be able to respond.
‘I wonder what your first word will be?’ he whispered. ‘Maybe balloon. Bal-loon.’ He repeated and lengthened the word for her like she were a budgie he was trying to teach to speak. Then he chuckled. It would be a while before Anaya would even smile, never mind speak, and longer still till he’d be able to take her up in the air with him, but he couldn’t wait. Although his world had dimmed without Claire in it, he suddenly found himself once again able to look forward to things. He felt as if he could breathe again.
When a shadow fell over them half an hour later, he looked up and was surprised to see Harper standing there. He’d almost forgotten about her visit.
‘Hi, Jasper,’ she said, but her eyes went straight to Anaya. She lathered up her hands with the sanitiser and then stroked her finger down the baby’s face, brushing her fingertip against his chest as she did so.
It irked him a little that she didn’t ask—this was his and Claire’s baby, not hers—but he swallowed the irritation. ‘How was the drive?’ he said instead.
‘It was fine. How’
s Anaya this morning?’
‘She’s been quite wakeful. We’ve been having a little chat, but I think I exhausted her.’
‘Little darling,’ Harper whispered, again stroking her finger over Anaya’s tiny head. Then she finally met his gaze. ‘Have you been here all night?’
He nodded. ‘Couldn’t bear to leave her.’
‘You must be exhausted.’
He shrugged. ‘I dozed a little.’ That was a lie; he’d barely slept a wink but strangely he felt less fatigued than he had in almost two weeks.
‘Do you want to go get some lunch and I’ll sit with her?’ Harper asked.
‘I had some toast in the family room here. And a coffee,’ he said. ‘So, the media? Do you want to fill me in? I hadn’t seen anything until I got your message.’
‘Oh.’ She blinked as if she too had almost forgotten the whole debacle.
‘What’s going on, Harper? Quite frankly I don’t see why Anaya—and how she was conceived—is anyone’s business but mine.’ He hesitated. ‘Ours.’
Harper glanced around them and then looked back at him. ‘I agree, but we probably shouldn’t discuss it here. As much as I don’t want to leave Anaya, there’ll be people listening to whatever we say now, so we should probably go somewhere private to talk. Maybe a quiet corner of a café down the road or something?’
‘There’s a meeting room here that families can use if they need some privacy,’ he suggested. ‘We can ask the nurse if we can have that for a few minutes.’
‘Okay. Good idea, I’ll go talk to her.’ She turned and walked over to the nurses’ desk.
He watched the exchange between Harper and the nurse manager and when she returned, she said, ‘The social worker is talking to a couple in there right now, but we can have it when they’re done.’
The Greatest Gift Page 28
