CALIFORNIA PARADISE
Chapter Thirty-One
Rose opened her eyes a slit and smiled.
Jack pulled the nightgown she had been
changed into the second she got home off, practically twenty-two hours ago, and
slipped her into a new, crisp one. He took the hairbrush in a night table
drawer and brushed her hair until it shone.
For the next two days, he took care of her
tenderly, bringing the baby to her every hour Rose was awake.
At first Rose didn’t want to hold her, or
feed her, for that matter. But after she looked into the tiny, angelic face
with the ocean blue eyes staring at her, the little nose sniveling, and the
perfect red mouth, she fell in love with the child.
Jayvelin was beautiful from the day she was
born. As the weeks passed, her golden hair appeared in thin wisps across her
head. The people closest to her were amazed at how the pretty blue eyes
sometimes turned almost violet. Anyone who met her anew instantly had to gently
stroke the little baby-button nose and perfect red lips. She was a tiny baby,
weighing in at just five pounds, one ounce the day she was born. But she was
perfect. Anyone that got close to her or saw a picture of her could only
describe her as perfect.
*****
Two weeks after her birth, Jayvelin was given
a nursery fit for a princess. The walls had been painted a light lilac color,
turning into dark purple as it went higher up the wall. White stars were left
blank. In the center was a circular, amazingly tiny bed with pillows all around
the sides and soft textures strewn along the bottom, just in case. It had warm,
blue-violet bedding. The large window on the far wall was securely locked and
heavy, dramatic purple drapery covered any harsh light showing through.
The first night she slept without the baby,
Rose got up every five minutes to check on her. But she soon found Jayvelin to
be a peaceful sleeper. She never closed her eyes until at least one in the
morning, and then she slept like an angel for thirteen hours, only waking for
feeding.
Rose never understood how odd this was until
she began talking with some of the other moms that lived in the area.
It was three weeks after the birth that Rose
put on a simple black dress and flats. She put Jayvelin, adorned in a lacey red
dress, in the roomy purple baby carriage and swung the front door open to
expose them to the beautiful August weather.
"You’re taking Jayvelin out?" Jack
was instantly at her side, tugging on her sleeve to get her back in the house.
"Yes," she coolly replied.
"Why?"
"Jack, Jayvelin weighed five pounds when
she was born, but during the pregnancy I gained fifteen. Do the math. I’m going
for a walk. Besides, I want our daughter to be acquainted with nature and in
love with summer."
He smiled at the words our daughter.
"Then I want to come, too."
"Excuse me?"
"I’m going, too."
He put one arm in hers and put his other hand
on the carriage. "Let’s go."
*****
They roamed the neighborhood with their heads
high. Isabella peeked through the lace curtains of the closed-in front patio.
"Thelma, Francesca, Gertie, come look at
the Dawsons!"
"What are they doing?" Gertie
asked.
"I believe they’re taking a
stroll!" Isabella opened the glass door.
"Rose!" she called.
"Yes?"
"Might we join you?"
"Of course."
*****
So that was how the walks started. Every
morning, each wife would put her child in a carriage, or if they were older,
give them candy to keep quiet as they held onto her hand. Then, the more
difficult task of dragging her husband along would begin. But each morning they
all showed up. And as time passed, the walking group grew and grew. After a
week, there were a total of twelve families taking the stroll together.
Rose, being the newest mother, was adored and
fawned over, which is how she came to know the strange habits of little baby
Jayvelin; calm sleeper, tidy eater, and seldom fussy.
*****
On the fourth week, Ruth arrived on the
doorstep. She had been told long ago of the pregnancy, but she had just
received the twenty-page letter from Rose telling her about the baby and gotten
on the first train she could reach.
She rang the bell and was surprised to find
Rose herself answer the door.
"Why do you look so shocked to see
me?" Rose laughed.
"I just thought you would have mastered
the art of servants by now."
Rose rolled her eyes and led her inside. It
was then that Ruth got a good look at her daughter. She looked more beautiful
than beautiful. Her hair fell across her shoulders and in back untamed, the
strands gently curling at the ends. She wore a plain white dress and the
largest smile she had ever seen on Rose’s face since...ever.
"Mother? Are you okay?"
"What? Oh, yes! I just can’t believe how
good you look. Four weeks after having you, I had bags under my eyes the size
of England, I had actually gained weight since the pregnancy, and my
hair hadn’t been combed in a week. You must have some nanny working for
you."
"Actually, we don’t have a nanny."
"Oh, my God, Rose! What? Do you have any
idea what kind of responsibility it is to care for a child?"
Rose laughed again. "Yes. And it’s
wonderful. I’ll take responsibility any day over my daughter growing up in the
arms of a stranger." She didn’t say it, but Ruth heard the like me nevertheless.