“This reminds me of Umbria,” she whispered. “On our first trip to Italy, you washed me in the shower.”
Gabriel’s eyes smoldered. “I remember.”
“I was awkward.”
Gabriel frowned and withdrew his hand. “I never thought of you as awkward. You’d been hurt, Julianne. It took time for you to get used to me.”
“I don’t know how you put up with me.”
Gabriel looked pained. He washed his hands quickly before taking hers. “It’s you who put up with me, Beatrice. Never forget that.”
He pressed a kiss to the center of her palm. “I’m the one who left you in the orchard by yourself. I’m the one who forgot you and treated you abominably until I remembered. And still, you think . . .” He shook his head. “I was haunted by my share of ghosts our first trip, and then after, when we returned to Selinsgrove.”
Julia winced, remembering a particularly painful conversation they’d had in the woods behind Richard’s house.
“You’re still here.” Gabriel’s eyes met hers. “And so am I, which is why you have to let me take you to the hospital. You burst into tears yesterday and you fainted this morning. It may be postpartum hormones, but it may be something more.”
“I just got home.” She pressed her cheek to his chest. “Don’t make me go back.”
He placed his hand at her lower spine. “Will you at least speak to Rebecca? She’s a mother. I want to hear what she thinks.”
“All right.”
“Also, I’d like you to consider taking a maternity leave from Harvard, effective immediately.”
Julia stepped back. “No. I’m starting my maternity leave in January.”
r /> Gabriel gazed down at her intently. His jaw clenched.
She removed her hands from his hips. “I’ve already missed a week of classes. I told Greg Matthews I’d be back as soon as possible.”
“Julianne,” he murmured. He was trying hard, desperately hard, not to tell her what to do. It was obvious she should begin her maternity leave immediately. She would be in no shape to take classes.
But he was trying to convince her to go to the hospital, which was more important at the moment than the timing of her maternity leave.
Julia looked at his somewhat grim expression. She knew he was biting his tongue. “If you take me to the hospital, who will look after Clare?”
“I’ll ask Rachel to look after her while we’re gone.”
“I haven’t pumped any milk.”
“You can feed her again before we go and if we aren’t home in time, we’ll have Rachel and Richard bring Clare to the hospital.”
Julia gripped his arm. “I’m not leaving her.”
Gabriel arched his eyebrows. He began formulating a series of arguments calculated to convince his wife of the foolishness of her demand but abruptly stopped. “Fine. We’ll take her with us.”
“Good.”
“Good,” Gabriel repeated, rather woodenly. He reached for the soap and carefully turned Julia around. Then he continued to care for his wife, trying as hard as he could to mask his anxiety.
Chapter Nine
You should see a doctor.” Rebecca’s face was creased with concern. She and Julia were speaking privately in the kitchen.
“Gabriel is overprotective.” Julia peered across the room at her husband, who was holding Clare.
“In this case, with good reason.” Rebecca placed a pair of oven mitts on the counter, next to the stove. Her Bostonian accent became more pronounced as the creases of worry in her face deepened. “Fainting isn’t normal postpregnancy. You don’t want to be holding the baby and pass out.”