Hosea said, “No, I guess you don’t. Our baby’s due in a couple of months.”
Brian’s grin went away. He looked at Jasmine. “You’re pregnant?”
She slipped her hand away from Hosea. “No,” she said, protecting her bulging middle.
Hosea frowned. “Darlin’, are you all right?”
Heat rose inside of her and then pushed its way to her skin.
“Darlin’?”
Jasmine blinked. Stood. Reached for Hosea, but her eyes met Brian’s.
She watched as his glance lowered to her belly. He stared and then his eyes reached back for hers. They connected.
“Darlin’?”
She could hear Hosea, but couldn’t see him. Could only see Brian.
“You’re pregnant,” Brian repeated.
And then her world faded to black.
Chapter 48
Hosea!”
“I’m right here, darlin’.”
She felt his hand on her arm, but when she tried to lift up, he gently guided her back down.
“Where?”
“You’re at Mount Sinai. You fainted.”
Her eyes searched the space. Besides the twin-size cot on wheels, only a stool and a counter filled this small room.
“What—” And then the memory rushed back. Brian. “Hosea!”
“I’m right here,” he squeezed her hand, “you’re going to be all right.”
“The baby?”
“The doctor said you’re fine, the baby’s fine. He’ll be right back.”
Jasmine nodded, but still her heart pounded as the memory of Brian stayed. What happened after she fainted? Had Brian said anything?
She glanced again at Hosea. Only concern covered his face.
“It’s all right.” Hosea stroked her arm.
She repeated those same words silently.
“It’s actually better when both cheaters are married.”
She remembered Brian’s words and hated that he’d called her that. Hated who she used to be. Hated that she had to live with this.
“Mrs. Bush, you’re awake.”
Jasmine turned to face the young black doctor entering the room with a chart in his hand.
“Darlin’, this is Dr. Austin.”
“How are you feeling?” the doctor asked.
“Fine, but how’s my baby?”
“Your baby is fine, but there is a slight problem. Your blood pressure is elevated, and we’re going to do an ultrasound to check on the baby.”
Hosea said, “We had an ultrasound a few months ago.”
“That’s fine. It doesn’t hurt the baby,” the doctor said as attendants came into the room.
“I’m going with her,” Hosea demanded.
“No problem.”
As the doctor gave directions to the attendants, Jasmine reached for Hosea.
“It’s going to be all right, darlin’.”
She nodded, squeezed his hand, and with the other she rubbed her stomach.
The doctor turned off the machine and with little more than a thin smile, he left the room.
“I’m scared,” Jasmine said to Hosea.
“No need, darlin’.”
“But did you notice how he didn’t say a word as he did the ultrasound?”
Hosea shrugged. “That’s just his style.” He tried to chuckle, but Jasmine didn’t join him.
When Dr. Austin entered the room, Jasmine pushed herself up. “How’s my baby?” she asked before he could speak.
“The baby’s fine, but we’re still concerned. Your blood pressure is still elevated, in fact, it appears to be rising.”
“Why is that, Doctor?” Hosea asked.
“We’re not sure, but we don’t want to take chances, so we’re going to take the baby.”
“Take the baby?” Hosea and Jasmine said together.
Dr. Austin held up his hands. “We’re going to do a Cesarean. Now don’t worry,” he said when he looked at their expressions. “Almost a third of all babies are born this way. We just want to be on the safe side.”
“But, Doctor,” Hosea said. “Isn’t this too soon?”
“It’s a few weeks early, but—”
“A few weeks? We’re talking almost ten—”
Jasmine squeezed her eyes shut, moaned as loud as she could.
“Darlin’, what’s wrong?”
“My—my back,” she said, hoping that would be enough to keep Dr. Austin’s focus away from how far she was in her pregnancy.
“You’re having back pains?” the doctor asked, his forehead filled with lines. “Where exactly?”
“All over. Hosea, please call Dr. Edmonds. I want Dr. Edmonds.”
“Okay, darlin’, calm down.” He turned to Dr. Austin. “I’ve paged our doctor. Do you think we have time to wait for him?”
“Yes, there’s no immediate danger.” He glanced over Jasmine’s chart. “But in the meantime, we need something from you, Mr. Bush. If you can go to the lab, we’d like to draw some blood.” Before Hosea could ask, the doctor added, “It’s just a precaution. Did Dr. Edmonds talk to you about your baby’s condition?”
“What’s wrong with my baby?” Jasmine cried.
“Mrs. Bush, please calm down. If you prefer, I can talk to your husband outside.”
“No!” Jasmine couldn’t let that happen. She had to know what was being said.
“Darlin’, stay calm, okay?”
She nodded.
“Go ahead, Doctor.”
“All right. To put this simply, your baby has a rare condition called PKL. In layman’s terms that means that under certain conditions, at birth, your baby could have a problem with bleeding.”
“Like a hemophiliac?”
“It’s the same concept, but this is a condition that is only triggered during birth.”
“That sounds serious, Doctor.”
“It can be. I’m a bit surprised that Dr. Edmonds didn’t discuss this with you, but it’s probably because it can be controlled. I’d just like to have the blood available, just in case.”
Jasmine felt as if she couldn’t breathe. “Doctor, I want you to use my blood for our baby.”
“Mrs. Bush, we need to get you prepped. Mr. Bush will work just fine.”
She pushed herself up straight, needing air to breathe—to think.
“Don’t worry, darlin’, I’ll be right back.” Hosea kissed her, then turned to the doctor. “Let’s roll.”
She had to do something. Do something. Something. But by the time her lips moved, Dr. Austin and Hosea were out of her sight.
She couldn’t believe this was going to end like a bad romance novel. In the middle of surgery, the doctor would pronounce that Hosea Bush was not the father of this baby. And in front of all the staff, she would be exposed as an adulterer.
“It’s over,” she whispered.
“I’m sorry, Mrs. Bush, did you say something?” a nurse asked.
Jasmine shook her head.
“Okay, let’s take off your jewelry,” she said, handing a packet to Jasmine. “We’ll give this to your husband.”
Jasmine felt as if she were moving in slow motion. It’s over, she thought again and again as she took the diamond key from around her neck.
“Now, let’s get you ready to be a mommy!”
The nurse’s cheer was not contagious.
As she was rolled toward the operating room, Jasmine tried to remember the touch of Hosea’s lips as he kissed her. Tried not to think that would be the last kiss they’d ever share.
Jasmine waited for Hosea to hate her.
He rushed into the surgical room and took her hand. “Are you ready, darlin’?” he asked.
She nodded, not understanding. Maybe he just doesn’t know yet.
“Hello, Mr. and Mrs. Bush.”
She sighed with relief. “Dr. Edmonds.”
“I’m ready, Mrs. Bush, are you?”
She nodded.
With Hosea holding her hands, Jasmine squeezed her
eyes shut. When the doctor announced that he’d made the first incision, she opened her eyes. Felt nothing.
Five minutes later, she heard the first cry.
“We have a baby,” Dr. Edmonds announced. “At seven-oh-three, on New Year’s Day, we have a baby girl.”
“Darlin’, it’s a girl,” Hosea said as the doctor held up the squirming infant with almost more hair than size. Dr. Edmonds handed their baby to the nurse, then said to Jasmine, “Now, let’s fix you up.”
“Darlin’, we have a little girl,” Hosea repeated.
“I know,” she said.
Minutes later, while the doctor still worked, the nurse handed the baby to Jasmine.
“Is it safe for me to hold her?” Jasmine asked.
“Definitely. You have a healthy six-pound, two-ounce baby girl.”
“Six pounds, two ounces?” Hosea said. “Are you sure? She’s so early, I would’ve thought she would’ve been smaller.”
Before Jasmine could think, Dr. Edmonds said, “Those prenatal vitamins and Mrs. Bush’s good diet certainly helped,” he explained without lifting his eyes from Jasmine’s abdomen. “It’s actually good that the baby came early. No telling how much she would have weighed if she’d gone full term.” Dr. Edmonds chuckled.
“So, what about the PKL?” Hosea asked.
Jasmine wondered if his questions would ever stop. Wasn’t it enough that they had a healthy baby?
Continuing, Hosea said, “Will she need a blood transfusion?”
“Not at all,” Dr. Edmonds said. “She made it through just fine.” Dr. Edmonds looked at Jasmine and winked.
She smiled her thank you, then raised her eyes and said, “Thank you,” to God inside. She looked down at her baby and then at her beaming husband. It was official now. She had a baby. Her baby. Hers and Hosea’s.
Jasmine didn’t know where she was when her eyes fluttered open.
But then she saw Hosea, sitting in the chair across the room, his head back, mouth open, performing a snoring symphony just like when they first met.
She pushed herself up, but when she edged her legs over the side of the bed, she moaned, awakening her husband.
“Darlin’, are you all right?” Hosea jumped from the chair.
She leaned back on the bed. “Yeah, I’m just a bit sore.”
“Dr. Edmonds said you would be. You need to take it easy.”
“I don’t know how I’m going to do that,” she said. “We have a baby.”
He grinned, sat on the edge of the bed. “Well, I’m going to take care of both of you.”
“I want to see her. What time is it?”
He glanced at his watch. “It’s late, almost ten, but the nurse said we could feed her when you woke up.”
“Hosea, I can’t wait. Do we have to go to the nursery?”
“Nah, since she’s a normal weight, they’ll bring her to us. The only thing is that she can’t sleep in here.”
Jasmine nodded. “That’s okay, as long as I can see her now.”
Hosea stepped outside, and minutes later the nurse rolled their baby inside the room. She parked the crib next to the bed, then handed the baby to Hosea.
“Wow,” he said as the baby rested in the crook of his arms. “She’s so tiny.”
Jasmine’s cheek almost ached with her wide smile as she watched her husband holding their child. But right after the nurse stepped away, he passed their baby to Jasmine.
“Here, you take this little one. I don’t want to hurt her,” he said.
“You won’t.” Jasmine chuckled. “You’ll be fine.” Then, she looked down, and said, “Our little one.”
After a moment, Hosea said, “Darlin’, we can’t keep calling her ‘little one.’”
For weeks, she’d considered this, but had kept the thoughts to herself. She needed one final way to bond Hosea to their daughter. “I really want you to name her.”
He smiled. “Well, there was one name that we both liked.” He paused. “Little one,” he said to their baby, “the perfect name for you is Jacqueline. Jacqueline Elizabeth. Jacqueline Elizabeth Bush.”
Jasmine repeated the name. “I love her initials. We can call her Jeb. Jeb Bush.”
“I don’t think so,” he said with a lot of bass in his voice.
Jasmine laughed.
“Hey, I have something for you.” From his pocket, he removed the necklace and hooked it onto her neck. “I need to buy one of these for Jacqueline too. Because now there are two women who have the key to my heart.”
Cuddling their baby, Jasmine gently kissed her husband.
Chapter 49
Jasmine never imagined feeling this way.
She expected to be a wife. Expected to have a career. Never considered being a mother.
She stood over the crib in the nursery and peered at her sixteen-hour-old daughter, the little one who had planted herself in the center of her heart. Jacqueline wiggled, stretched, and still she slept. Jasmine kissed the tips of her fingers and placed them on her daughter’s forehead, then, she whispered to the nurse, “I’ll be back.”
As she inched toward her room, Dr. Edmonds came behind her.
“Let me help you,” he said, taking her arm. Once she was in the bed, he asked, “How are you feeling?”
“Good. I’m still sore, though.”
“That’s normal; give it three to four weeks. Take it easy for now. We don’t want anything to agitate the stitches.”
She nodded. “Have you seen Jacqueline?”
He smiled. “Yes, beautiful name.”
“Is she all right.”
“Yes, again,” he said and eased onto the stool. “She was only a few weeks premature. Actually, she was within the normal range. She’s fine.”
“What about that…PKL thing Dr. Austin mentioned?”
“That’s only a risk at birth.”
“So,” she looked down at her hands, “there won’t be any need for Hosea’s blood again?”
“No, in fact, there was no need for his blood yesterday. Once I found out what was going on, I had a nurse…take care of it.”
She nodded. “I’ll never be able to thank you enough.” She felt the need to add, “I do love my husband,” and glanced at her ring.
“Not that it’s any of my business, but Mae Frances told me that.”
She smiled at the thought that her neighbor would have spoken those words.
“I’ll check on you in the morning around ten. If all goes well, you’ll be going home if not tomorrow, the next day.”
As the doctor walked away, Jasmine marveled at her miracle. She had made it—Hosea would never find out.
The door creaked open.
“Hey,” Malik grinned. He kissed her cheek and handed her a basket of flowers. “How’re you feeling?”
“Wonderful. Ready to get out of here, though. I want to take Jacqueline home.”
He smiled as he sat in the chair. “I got a peek of her in the nursery.”
“Isn’t she beautiful?” Jasmine gushed.
“Spoken like a new mother.” Malik chuckled. “Who would have imagined this? Jasmine Larson, a mother and liking it.”
“Jasmine Larson Bush,” she corrected, “a mother and loving it. And you should see Hosea,” she said. “This morning he came here with cigars. I didn’t even know men still did that.” She chuckled.
Malik let go of his smile. “I still wish—”
Jasmine held up her hand. “Malik, please don’t go there.”
“Where’s Hosea now?”
“He had to go to the studio. He’ll be back this evening.”
The look on Malik’s face made Jasmine say, “You are just not going to let this alone, are you?”
“Jas, I’m never going to say anything, but I just can’t—as I was looking at Jacqueline, it was hard not to think about what I know.”
“What you know is that she is my baby. Mine and Hosea’s.”
Malik shook his head.
She said, “Would i
t make you feel better if you knew that God wanted it this way?”
He frowned.
“God’s been all up in this, Malik. Yesterday they took blood from Hosea for Jacqueline. But by God’s grace, we didn’t need it.”
“That wasn’t God’s grace, that was just luck.”
“I thought Christians didn’t believe in luck.”
“We don’t, not when we’re walking in God’s word.”
Jasmine folded her arms. “Like I’m not?”
He shrugged. “Look, the only reason I keep harping on this is that I know the longer this secret goes on, the worse it will be when he does find out.”
Jasmine sighed deeply. “Why do you keep insisting that Hosea will find out?”
“Because secrets never stay silent.”
“Stop it,” she hissed. “I’ve done everything I can and I’ll do everything I have to. Hosea will never find out that he is not Jacqueline’s father.”
The hospital door creaked open. A second ticked by. Then another. And another.
Reverend Bush walked in.
Seconds ticked to a minute.
All that could be heard was the thumping beat of Jasmine’s heart.
Finally, “Malik, I need to speak to Jasmine, alone.”
For the first time Malik moved. Turned his head, glanced at Jasmine.
Although she sat rigid with terror, she nodded. Tried to put an “I got this” smirk on her face, but she fooled no one.
Her heart continued its assault as Malik picked up his coat, glanced at Jasmine again, and then stepped slowly from the room.
More silence.
More fear.
Maybe he didn’t hear, Jasmine prayed. She repeated that hope in her head.
“I came to see my granddaughter.” Only his lips moved. He stood as stiff as she sat. “But first, I wanted to see how you were doing.”
She wanted to tell him that she was fine. Start a normal conversation. Make him forget what he may have heard. But she couldn’t find her voice.
“You said…” He paused as if he didn’t want to speak the next words. “Hosea is not Jacqueline’s father.”
It’s over. “Reverend Bush—”
He held up his hand. “Jasmine, don’t say a word unless you’re going to tell the truth.”
A Sin and a Shame Page 29
