Twin Surprise For The Single Doc

CHAPTER TWO

CLAUDIA’S WATER BROKE only moments later, confirming she was very much in labour and going to deliver her babies in an elevator unless a miracle happened. As she wriggled uncomfortably on the hard elevator floor with only Patrick’s now soaking wet jacket beneath her, she stared at nowhere in particular and prayed with all of her might that it was a bad dream. One from which she would wake to find herself giving birth in a pretty delivery room in a London hospital surrounded by smiling nurses...nurses just like her sister, Harriet. She always allayed Claudia’s medical concerns with sensible and thoughtful answers delivered in a calm manner, just like the way their mother had always spoken to them.

How she wished more than anything that Harriet was with her. She would know what to do. She always did...but, as Claudia looked at her surroundings from her new vantage point on the floor, she knew it was pointless to wish for her sister to be there. Or for a birthing suite. She would have neither. Harriet was in Argentina to do something selfless and wonderful and she was paying for her own irresponsible behaviour by being trapped in a Los Angeles elevator in the first stage of labour.

Giving birth to the babies of a man who didn’t give a damn.

With the help of another she didn’t know.

The next painful wave of contractions broke through her thoughts. Labour had not come on slowly or gently. And there was no point worrying about dust soiling Patrick’s jacket; the piece of clothing was now past being saved.

The jacket was of no concern to Patrick, who was kneeling beside Claudia. At that moment he would give a dozen of his finest jackets to make this woman he barely knew comfortable if only he could. But he had nothing close to a dozen of anything to make what lay ahead easier. The situation was dire. There was no way around that fact but Patrick intended to do everything to ensure Claudia remained calm and focused. All the while he fought his own battle with a past that was rushing back at him. Fine perspiration began lining his brow but he had to push through. He heard Claudia’s heavy breathing turn to panting and knew he couldn’t give in to his thoughts. Not for even a minute. He had to stay with Claudia.

For the time being at least.

‘There’s no cell reception but if I can get through on the elevator phone, who can I call? Your husband, boyfriend...your family?’

Claudia shook her head, a little embarrassed by the answer even before she delivered it. Harriet was on and off the communication grid for almost two days while she travelled and even if she could contact her it would be unfair to worry her. And she knew there was no point reaching out to the babies’ father. He wouldn’t care.

‘No, there’s no one to call.’

Patrick’s eyes met hers in silence. He was surprised and saddened to hear her answer. While she clearly had her defences up initially, Patrick had not suspected for even a moment that a woman like Claudia would be alone in the world.

Unexpectedly, he felt himself being pulled towards her. He was never pulled towards anyone. Not any more. Not for years. He had locked away the need to feel anything. To need anyone...or to be needed. But suddenly a tenuous and unforeseen bond was forming. And he suspected it was not due just to the confines of the elevator.

Claudia wriggled some more and looked down at the jacket. ‘I’m so sorry...’

‘Claudia—’ he cut in as he looked intently into her eyes, not shifting his gaze for even a moment, not allowing himself to betray, to any degree, the very real risks that he knew lay ahead ‘—you’re in labour and you think I’m worried about a jacket.’

‘But it’s ruined.’

‘The only thing I care about now is finding something clean for the babies. Do you have anything in your bag? Anything I can wrap them in?’

Claudia shook her head. While her bag was the fashionably oversized style, it held very little, other than her wallet, apartment keys, her phone, a thin, flimsy scarf, a small cosmetic purse and a bottle of water. And her ultrasound films.

Patrick couldn’t wait any longer. There would be two babies arriving and they needed to have something clean to rest upon while he tended to their mother. He was not going to put them on the floor of the elevator. Without hesitating, he began to unbutton his white linen shirt and, slipping it from his very toned and lightly tanned body, he spread it out.

Claudia knew she was staring. She was helpless to pull her gaze away. The man about to deliver her babies had stripped bare to the waist. It was overwhelming and almost too much for her to process. The whole situation was quickly morphing from a bad dream into a nightmare. She was about to give birth to the sons of a man who didn’t love her and they would be delivered by a half-naked stranger in a broken elevator. Tears began welling in her eyes as the waves of another contraction came. This one was more powerful than the last and she struggled to hide the level of pain.

Patrick reached for her hand. ‘I want you to squeeze my hand when the contractions happen.’

‘I’ll be fine,’ she told him as the contraction passed and she felt uncomfortable getting any closer to the semi-naked stranger than she already was. His arms looked lean but powerful. And she could smell the light tones of his musky cologne.

‘I know you’ll be fine but if you squeeze my hand each time you have a contraction I’ll know how close together they are.’

‘I think you will be able to tell without me squeezing your hand.’

Patrick nodded. ‘Have it your way, but my hand is here if you need it.’

Still feeling wary, Claudia eyed him suspiciously, wondering who this man was, this man who was so willing to come to her aid. Only a few minutes before, they had exchanged less than friendly words. Now the man she had initially assumed to be a lawyer hiding a hangover behind dark glasses was in fact a doctor literally on bended knees helping her.

‘The contractions seem to be evenly spaced at the moment,’ he said, breaking through her thoughts.

‘But they’re awfully close and awfully painful. Does that mean the babies will be here soon?’

‘It could but it’s impossible to tell.’ Patrick hoped that it would be a prolonged labour. Prolonged enough to allow the technical team to open the elevator doors and bring in help.

‘Do you think there’s any chance they will get us out before my babies arrive?’

‘They’re doing their best.’

* * *

Ten minutes passed with no news from outside and two more contractions. Claudia caught her breath and leant back against the cold walls of the elevator. It was soothing on her now clammy skin. The air was starting to warm up, and she imagined it would be stifling in a short time if the doors were not opened soon. But they would be. She had to hold on to the belief that any minute paramedics would burst through the steel barriers and transport her to hospital.

Patrick stretched his long legs out in front of him and rested against the adjacent cool wall. ‘So which London hospital had you planned on having the boys?’ he asked as he looked up at the ceiling for no particular reason. All sense of reason had left the elevator when Claudia began labour.

‘I thought the Wright Street Women’s and Children’s Hospital. I checked in online a few months back and it has a lovely birthing centre with floral wallpaper and midwives and everything my babies and I would need. I’ve booked an appointment with a midwife there next week.’

‘Well, you won’t be needing that appointment. Not for this delivery anyway, but perhaps you could book in for your next baby.’

‘I’m not sure there will be a next,’ she replied quickly with raised eyebrows, still not forgetting the pain of the contraction that had barely passed.

‘Perhaps you will change your mind and have more but these children will definitely be born in LA. With any luck, the paramedics will have us out soon and they’ll be born at the Mercy Hospital.’

Claudia felt her pulse race a little. ‘What if that doesn’t happen?’

Patrick turned to her and took her hand in his. Suddenly the sensation of her warm skin on his made him feel something more than he had felt in many years. It made him feel close to being alive. He swallowed and pushed away the feeling. That sort of intimacy had no place in his life. For the last decade, whenever he felt a woman’s body against his, there was nothing more than mutual pleasure. It didn’t mean anything to either of them. They served a purpose to each other and walked away. Feeling anything more was not worth the risk.

He couldn’t get attached to a woman he didn’t know who was about to give birth to the children of another man. The idea was ridiculous.

‘Let’s not go there, Claudia. The medical team will be here soon.’

‘But they may not...’ she argued.

‘Then we’ll bring two healthy boys into the world on our own.’ He said it instinctively but as the words escaped his mouth he prayed it would not come to that.

Claudia took another deep breath. There was a chance they weren’t going to be rescued. And she had to prepare herself for the imminent wave of the next contraction and then worse. She closed her eyes.

Patrick studied her. ‘Now don’t go closing your beautiful eyes on me,’ he told her. ‘I need you to listen to me and work with me. You will get through this but you have to stay strong. You have your children to think of.’

Slowly she forced her lids open and found herself looking into the warmest eyes she had ever seen. Her stomach did a little somersault and it wasn’t a contraction.

‘That’s better,’ he told her with a smile filled with so much warmth she thought her heart would melt. Everything he was making her feel was unexpected. And the feelings seemed so real. Was it just the intense situation they were facing or was there something about the man that was very different from anyone she had ever met?

She wasn’t sure.

But his nearness was affecting her. She doubted he was trying to affect—he just was.

‘What about you—do you have any children? Did your family move here to LA too?’ She rattled off successive questions, trying to deflect the blush she suddenly feared he had brought to her cheeks. She could see there was no wedding band on his hand but, as she knew first-hand, the lack of a ring on a man’s finger did not bring any certainty there was no wife. It was out of character for her to be so direct but nothing about the situation was normal.

‘No, I’m not married, Claudia, and the rest of my family...well, they’re back in the UK...’ Patrick’s words trailed off. He wasn’t about to tell Claudia about his life, his past or his loss. After twelve years it was still raw at times but now focusing on Claudia removed his desire to give any consideration to his own pain. He had to be in the moment for the woman who needed him. He couldn’t think about what had happened all those years ago or the price he still paid every day.

He had to let something go.

And that had to be the past—for the time being. But he knew that it would come back to him. It always did.

‘Do you want children one day? I guess if you’ve done this before, bringing them into the world would make you want a brood or run the other way,’ she cut in again. As she felt the warmth in her face subside she was slightly relieved on that front but the need for the banter continued. Any distraction would do.

He felt a muscle in his jaw twitch. She was unwittingly making it very hard to stay in the moment. ‘No,’ he said, not wanting to go into any detail. The answer was not that he didn’t like children; in fact it ran far deeper than that. Children meant family and he never planned on being part of a family again. The pain still lingered, twelve years after he had been forced to walk away from his own.

‘So am I right—you don’t want to take your job home?’

‘You’re full of questions, aren’t you?’

Claudia didn’t answer. She felt the next contraction building and as it rolled in she couldn’t say anything. She dropped her head to her chest and took in shallow breaths.

Without prompting, Patrick’s hands gently massaged her back. Instinctively, he knew what was happening and he kept up the physical therapy until it passed. And then a few moments longer.

She felt his hands linger, then shook herself back to reality. He was a doctor doing his job. Nothing more.

‘Why did you move to LA?’ she piped up, then bit her lip as she realised it was none of her business and she had no clue what had driven her to ask him such personal questions. She felt as if the pain had taken over her mind. She was acting like a different person, someone who suddenly wanted to know everything about Patrick. Perhaps it was to distract herself. Perhaps not. But she knew the moment the words fell from her mouth that she had overstepped the boundaries of polite conversation. ‘Please forget I asked. Blame it on the stress. I really am exhibiting the worst manners today. I’ve asked the most improper questions and ruined your jacket...’

‘Forgiven for both.’ Patrick hesitated. ‘I guess I’m just a private person, Claudia. I’m happy to answer any medical questions, anything at all, but I’d prefer to leave the rest alone. Suffice to say, my family and I didn’t see eye to eye about something that happened and this opportunity came up. So I left London and headed here.’

‘Oh, I’m sorry.’ Claudia suddenly felt even more embarrassed that she had asked but she also felt a little sad for him. She barely knew the man but, with the way he was taking care of her, she suddenly felt that she wanted to be on his side in a situation she knew nothing about.

Patrick knew it sounded as if they had parted ways on something insignificant. He thought it was best to leave it at that. There was no need to mention that he’d made the opportunity to allow him to move to the US. It was something he’d had to do to help everyone with their grief. To not be there, reminding them every day of what had happened.

It was not the time or place to tell a woman he had just met that his sister had died.

And he had taken the blame for her death.

An unspoken agreement not to revisit the conversation about his family was made in the awkward silence by both of them.

‘I’ll need to examine you in a few minutes and assess whether you have begun to dilate and, if you have, if the first baby is visible,’ he told her as he pulled himself from the past back to where he belonged.

Suddenly the elevator lights began to flicker. Claudia bit her lip nervously. She felt her chin begin to quiver but was powerless to stop it. All questions disappeared. She didn’t want anything from Patrick other than reassurance that her babies would survive.

Patrick drew a deep breath but managed to keep his body language in check. If they lost the lights, then he could not convince himself there would be a good outcome but he would never let Claudia know that. He even refused to admit it to himself.

‘I need to do the exam while we still have some lights to work with; if we lose them it will be challenging as I’ll have to work by feel alone. But, whatever happens, I’m here for you and your babies, Claudia, and together we’ll all get throughout this,’ Patrick told her with a firmness and urgency that did not disguise the seriousness of the situation, but he also managed to make her feel secure in the knowledge that he was with her all the way. He filled his lungs with the warm air that surrounded them, determined he would do his damnedest to make his prayers a reality.

She nodded her consent as the contraction began to subside, along with her uncontrollable need to push.

‘Breathe slowly and deeply,’ he said while he stroked her arm and waited for the contraction to pass before he began his examination. Twins made the birth so much more complicated, along with his lack of equipment and the risk of losing the lights.

‘Have you delivered many babies?’

‘Yes, I’ve delivered many babies, Claudia, but never in an elevator and not for...’

The elevator phone rang and stopped Patrick from explaining how long it had been since his last delivery. Instinctively, he answered the phone. ‘Yes?’

‘This is the utilities manager. We’re working to have you out as soon as possible but it may be another twenty minutes to half an hour. Our only rostered technician is across town. How’s the young woman?’

‘She’s in labour.’

‘Hell... Okay, that’s gonna be brutal on her.’ The man’s knee-jerk reaction was loud. ‘I’ll put the tech to get here ASAP or get an off-duty one over there stat. We’ve already got an ambulance en route.’

‘That would be advisable,’ Patrick responded in an even tone, not wanting to add to Claudia’s building distress. ‘I’m about to assess her progress but you need to ensure there are two ambulances waiting when your technician gets us out. We’re dealing with the birth of two premature infants so ensure the paramedics are despatched with humidicribs and you have an obstetrician standing by with a birthing kit including cord clamps and Syntocinon.’ Then he lowered his voice and added, ‘And instruct them to bring plasma. There’s always the slight risk of a postpartum haemorrhage.’ With that he hung up the phone to let the team outside do their best to get medical help to them as soon as possible.

He immediately turned his attention back to Claudia, who lay against the elevator wall with small beads of perspiration building on her brow and the very palpable fear of what lay ahead written on her face.

‘I don’t want my babies to die.’

‘Claudia, you need to listen to me,’ he began with gentleness in his voice along with a reassuring firmness. ‘We are going to get through this. Your babies will be fine but you need to help me.’

Claudia couldn’t look at him. She couldn’t lift her gaze from her stomach and the babies inside of her. Fear surged through her veins. It was real. They weren’t getting out of the elevator. No one was coming to rescue them. No one was going to take her to the hospital. The harsh reality hit her. Her babies would be born inside the metal walls that surrounded them.

And they might not survive.

‘I am going to have to cut your underwear free. I don’t want to try and lift you and remove it.’

Claudia felt her heart race and her mind spin. She was losing control and the fear was not just physical. Deep inside, she knew the odds were stacked against her and her boys but she appreciated that Patrick hadn’t voiced that. The man with the sunglasses wasn’t anything close to what she’d thought. He was about to bring her sons into the world.

And she suddenly had no choice but to trust him.

Her hand ran across her mouth and tugged at her lips nervously. ‘Fine, just do it,’ she managed to say as she steeled herself for what was about to happen to her, her boys and Patrick as the urge to push and the pain began to overtake her senses once again.

Patrick ripped off the gloves that had handled the elevator telephone, covered his hands in antibacterial solution and slipped on another pair of gloves. Carefully using sterile scissors, he gently cut her underwear from her and checked the progress of her labour.

‘You are fully dilated and your first son’s head is visible,’ he told her. ‘Labour is moving fast and you’re doing great. Just keeping breathing slowly...’

His words were cut short by the cry she gave with the next painful contraction. More painful than the previous one.

‘I can’t do this. I can’t.’

‘Yes, you can.’

‘Should I be as scared to death as I am right now?’

‘No,’ he said, leaning in towards her. ‘Just remember, Claudia, you’re not alone. We’ll get through this together. You and I will bring your babies into the world.’

He prayed, as every word slipped from his now dry mouth, that he could do what he promised. He had the expertise, he reminded himself. But he also knew that was not always enough. There were some situations that no skills could fight.

Steeling himself, he knew he was prepared to fight for Claudia and her boys.

She closed her eyes and swallowed.

‘I need you to try and get onto your hands and knees...’

‘Why?’ Her eyes opened wide. ‘I thought you have babies lying on your back. Is there something wrong?’ Panic showed on her face as she stared into Patrick’s eyes, searching for reassurance but frightened of what he might tell her.