Part 160

"Rebecca Carter?" The young woman in the crisply starched uniform looked around the waiting room, smiling as Becca struggled to her feet. "Right this way please."

Nick stood with her, but Becca motioned him back to his seat. "Stay here, they'll come get you when we're ready for the ultrasound."

"I can't come with you?"

"No," Becca blushed. "This is one examining room I DON'T need you in, Nick. It's undignified enough without you there watching."

The nurse laughed. "She's right. It'll just be a few minutes and then I'll come back for you. Here." She handed him the latest copy of Modern Parenting Magazine and followed Becca inside. "How are you?" she asked Becca, opening her chart.

"Not bad," she replied noncommittally, stepping up on the scale. "Can't you weigh me after the ultrasound? I swear, I must have drunk ten pounds of water this morning."

"It wasn't that much, it only feels like it." She made a note on Becca's chart and took her into the exam room to prepare for the tests.

Becca was gowned and in position when Dr. Warren finally came in. The brown-haired, soft-spoken woman was in her early forties and had been Becca's doctor for years. "How's my favorite patient?" she asked cheerfully.

"Fine," Becca answered automatically.

Dr. Warren peered over her glasses and smirked. "Really? We'll see," she said, wrapping the blood pressure cuff around Becca's arm.

"It was up last night," Becca mumbled.

"A lot?"

"No, not as much as last time."

"Let's see how you're doing today." Silently she squeezed the bulb to inflate the cuff, ignoring Becca's wince of discomfort as it tightened, all the while listening to the steady beat of her heart. The mercury rose steadily, stopping mid-point on the gauge. "Not bad, Becca. You've been watching your diet? Getting plenty of rest?"

"As much as I can, I guess."

"How did your husband react when you told him?"

Becca silently plucked at the edge of her examining gown, averting her eyes.

"You DID tell him about your blood pressure, didn't you?"

"No, not exactly."

Dr. Warren snapped her chart closed and sat down on the stool next to Becca. "Becca, he has to know."

"I can't," she whispered. "He'll make me come home."

"It's probably for the best, you know."

"Please, I don't want to be here alone, can't you understand that?"

"Of course I can," she said sympathetically, "but we have to consider what's best for the baby. Your pressure was dangerously high the last time you were here. When Nick called me on Tuesday I almost had you admitted to the hospital in Baton Rouge." She watched as Becca paled. "With your recent history, fainting is not something to mess around with. And your ankles are puffy, too."

"It's all the water I drank," Becca said stubbornly, eliciting a hearty laugh from the doctor.

"That's classic, Becca. I give you points for creativity on that one." She patted her knee and continued in a more soothing tone of voice. "Becca, I understand what you're going through, truly I do, but you have to be careful. You only have a few weeks left before delivery and your pressure could spike with little or no warning, and over something as trivial as your pizza delivery being late. I'd hate to think what could happen if you were truly upset over something major."

"I promise to be careful," Becca said.

"I want you to take your pressure daily, and I want you to check in with the support doctors I've already set up for you, do you understand?" She waited for Becca to nod in agreement before continuing. "You'll be here for two weeks, so I need to see you at least once more before you head back out on the road. I'm going to give you something for your pressure, but I don't want you to take it unless either I or one of the other doctors instructs you to." She wrote her instructions in Becca's records before handing her a prescription. "Keep this with you just in case, that way you have it if you need it. And Becca?'

"Yes?"

"Please tell Nick what's going on. It's harder on you and a lot more stressful when you keep things from him."

Becca sighed and nodded, thinking how much she sounded like Sarah.

"Let's get on with this and get a good look at that baby, shall we?" She smiled, sending the nurse to bring Nick into the room.

 

* * * *

"Okay, this is going to be cold."

"God!" Becca exclaimed as the icy gel was dribbled over her belly.

"It'll warm up soon," the doctor laughed. "We have to use it to conduct the sound waves."

"What about the sound?" Nick asked. "Doesn't it bother the baby?" he watched in fascination as unidentifiable shapes began to appear on the screen.

"No, the frequency isn't high enough. And besides, the amniotic fluid diffuses the sound just like it does your speaking voices and all that racket you make at your concerts." She smiled wickedly as Nick bristled.

"Racket?!"

"Relax Nick," Becca laughed. "She and her daughter were in the fourth row when you performed here in June. She's teasing."

"Well, here we go …" Turning the monitor so Nick and Becca could both see, she smiled as the distinct outline of the baby appeared.

Nick gasped and Becca smiled as they watched the tiny form twist and turn in an effort to escape the probing of the wand.

"That's our baby," Nick whispered, awestruck.

"Yep, that's her. Or him. Kind of hard to tell, actually." Doctor Warren did her best to make the baby turn in a different position, but to no avail.

"Look, there's a hand," Becca said, "and another one!"

"If you follow this line right here," the doctor outlined with her cursor, "you can follow the spine, and all the way down to the feet."

"Can you tell if-"

"Boy or girl? Sometimes, but it doesn't look as if your little one wants to reveal that information today."

All three laughed as they peered closely at the screen. The baby was turned sideways, legs firmly crossed and covering its privates.

"Modest, just like its mother," Nick snorted.

"Nick!" Becca was red with embarrassment.

Nick squeezed her hand and kissed her fingers as they watched in fascination. After a few more clicks of the keyboard, they had dated printouts for the baby book and a video to take home. Becca finally got to clean up and use the bathroom and then practically floated to the car.

"What?" Nick asked, grinning.

Becca giggled. "We got to see our baby!"

"Yeah, wasn't it cool?" he agreed with a matching grin. He hugged her tightly as he opened the door and helped her in. "All right woman, onward."

As he started the engine, Becca watched him in silence. He was changing right before her eyes and she loved him to death.

He caught her watching him and shot her a questioning glance. "What?" he asked, trying to keep his eyes on the road and also figure out what she was thinking.

"Nothing, I just like watching you." She smiled, resting her hand on his knee as he navigated the downtown traffic.

It was late afternoon as they pulled into the driveway, the Durango laden with boxes and bags. True to his promise, they'd gone baby shopping and damn near bought out the place. Nick made Becca sit in the rocking chair and supervise, her feet propped up, as he carried everything upstairs to what would become the nursery. Dinner turned out to be pizza out of a box, in the middle of the nursery floor surrounded by pieces of the enameled white crib and assembly instructions that only a master carpenter could read.

"Voila!" Nick exclaimed as Becca applauded. It was 10:30 and the crib was finally assembled, only two small screws and bolts left over.

"Oh, god Nick …" Becca laughed until tears streamed down her face.

"What?" he asked indignantly, hands on his hips.

"I really think you should stick to singing."

"In other words-"

"Don't quit your day job!" She laughed again, never noticing Nick sneaking over to scoop her up in his arms and carry her out of the room.

She shrieked, still laughing. "Put me down!"

"Nope."

"Niiiick!"

"Don't whine, I hate it when you do that." He stopped at the top of the stairs, indecisive.

"What?" Becca held onto his neck.

"Trying to decide whether to toss you in bed and have my way with you or throw you in the pool."

"You wouldn't dare!"

"Nah, you're right. Howie says no sex, so …. In the pool!"

Becca shrieked again as he turned toward the stairs. "Stop!" she cried, laughing.

Finally Nick had to put her down. He was laughing so hard he was afraid he was going to drop her.

"You, Nick Carter, are a goof."

"Goofy about you," he retorted, winking at her.

"Mercy, not only is he giving you advice about sex he's also teaching you how to wink?"

"I need NO advice about sex, sweetheart. Surely you know that by now?" He smirked at her, pulling her into the bedroom.

"Nick-" she resisted, not sure she wanted to give in just yet.

"Relax, Bec." He stopped next to the bed, kissed her gently and left her standing there, all alone, a puzzled expression on her face. "Take your clothes off," he called out from the bathroom.

"Excuse me?" she called back. "Demanding tonight, aren't you?"

"Bec, really." He sighed in exasperation coming to stand I the doorway of the bathroom. "You don't think I have any self-control, do you?" He saw her smile and continued, shaking his head. "Never mind, don't answer that."

Becca started to say something, but stopped when she heard water running.

"Come on, mom, into the bath with you. Relax while I clean up the mess."

Becca sighed as she stepped into the bathroom and saw the tub filling with flowery scented bubbles. "Carter, you're too much."

"I know," he said, winking again as he sprinted from the room.

The water was ice cold when Nick helped Becca from the tub and dried her off with a huge fluffy towel. While she'd been soaking, he'd set up a treat in the bedroom.

"Oh god," Becca moaned. "Strawberry ice cream?" Her mouth watered as she looked at the twin bowls resting on the bed.

"Come on, into bed with you little girl, it's been a long day." He pulled back the covers, tucked her in and handed her a bowl and spoon. Grabbing the remote control for the VCR, he stripped to his boxers and joined her. As they sat propped against almost every pillow Becca owned, he hit the 'play' button and images from the morning's ultrasound began to play.

They laughed together over every little twist and turn, rewinding and watching over and over again until the ice cream was long gone and Becca's eyes began to drift closed. Nick scooted down beneath the covers, Becca's head pillowed on his chest. The lights were already off and as he turned off the TV, the room was blanketed in darkness. He fell asleep feeling more relaxed and secure than he'd ever been.

Part 161        The Dance Index(2)