Surgeon Boss, Surprise Dad

Now they were no more and his baby grew inside her.

Adam may not have been willing to love her, but he’d given her something precious. His child.

For the first time in what seemed like for ever, Liz smiled as light-heartedness filled her heart.

“Did you and Adam work things out?” Kelly asked the next morning from behind the nurses’ station where they stood talking during a short lull. They’d both taken notes at shift change, been busy with patients, but Liz had caught her friend staring curiously at her several times.

She shook her head, took a sip of the vitamin-packed drink she’d purchased from a vending machine minutes before, and continued with the chart notation she was working on. “I haven’t seen Adam since that day here at the hospital.”

“You were humming,” Kelly accused, leaning against the desk Liz sat at.

That got Liz’s attention. Humming? Not lullabies, she hoped since she’d not told a soul of her news. Although she’d used the two home kits and both had showed positive, she wanted her pregnancy confirmed by a gynecologist before she told anyone.

Plus, she’d tell Adam first.

Despite everything, he deserved to hear the news that he was going to be a father before anyone else.

She’d had brief thoughts of packing her things and leaving Robertsville, leaving behind the memories and making a fresh start for herself and the baby without him ever being the wiser that they’d made a baby. But the thoughts had been brief.

Ever the fool, her heart belonged to him and deceiving him so cruelly as to hide their child wasn’t something she could do.

And although she should be upset that she was having a baby with a man who’d essentially pushed her out of his life without a word of explanation, she wasn’t.

She hadn’t thought about having a baby any time soon, had even been on birth control, but she must have missed one at some point when Gramps had been having a bad night. Although she had always thought of motherhood as something far off in her future, the idea of having a baby to love, a child to fill the house with laughter, made her giddy with how blessed she was.

Adam had unknowingly given her what she’d needed. Someone to love and be loved by. Not just someone, their baby.

Would they have a son or a daughter?

She didn’t care. Just so long as their baby was healthy.

“Liz? You’re doing it again,” Kelly interrupted her thoughts.

“Doing what?”

“Smiling. Humming.” She arched a brow in question, her gaze narrowed. “It’s good to have you back, but what’s happened?”

Liz shook her head. “Nothing.”

“Don’t tell me that. Something’s up.” Kelly eyed her suspiciously. “Have you met someone new?”

“No.” She wanted to tell Kelly her news, but she had to tell Adam first. But she wouldn’t be lying to say someone new had entered her life. Someone had. Adam’s baby. Kelly had been so worried the past few weeks. She smiled conspiratorially at her friend. “You might say someone’s come into my life.”

“Oh, Liz!” Kelly exclaimed, looking both shocked and pleased while she hugged her. “This is wonderful news. I’m so relieved. I worried you wouldn’t get over Adam. I know how much you cared about him.”

She wouldn’t get over Adam. Not really. But she would go on and she would have happiness. Knowing about the precious gift inside her removed any doubt that she’d have a bright future.

“I discovered there’s room in my heart to love someone besides just Adam Cline, that’s all.”

Which meant the hell Adam had been through for the past few weeks had all been worth it.

Liz was moving on.

Quicker than he’d expected. Quick enough that a sharp sting burned his chest. Just his pride hurting, he was sure. The fact his vision held a hazy green, well, that was the after-effects of too many hours in the OR, worry over Liz, worry over his MS, worry over what he was going to do about May Probst, and not enough shut-eye. Not jealousy.

Adam swallowed the lump in his throat at the thought of anyone kissing Liz’s lips other than him.

“Dr Cline,” a patient’s wife said from behind him, causing the two oblivious-to-his-presence nurses to jerk toward him. “I’m so glad to see you,” the woman continued, unaware of the shock emanating from Liz and Kelly at being overheard. “Herbert’s bled through his bandage, and we really weren’t expecting that much blood after his hernia repair. I was coming to find his nurse so she could check him, but since you’re here, you should.”