“Of course she is,” Gabby says, and bites down on her bottom lip.
The nursing team have finished up and tell us they’ll be back in a few so that Winnie can feed Sophia. Funny, I didn’t even really register that they were still in the room with us. As they filter out, there’s a knock at the door.
“Can I come in?” Chase asks.
“No,” Gabby says, as Winnie and I both say yes.
“Hey,” he says softly, stopping to stand next to Gabby. “You did good, Gwen.” He smiles.
“Hello?” I say, as if I’m offended.
“Come on, Drake, you and I both know that beauty comes from your wife,” he jokes.
“You want to hold her?” Winnie asks him.
“She’s pretty small. Maybe I should wait.”
“Sit down,” Gabby instructs. For the first time ever, I watch as he does what she tells him without giving her any lip. Once he’s seated, Gabby transfers Sophia to his arms. “Make sure you’re supporting her head.” Gabby stands beside him, her hand on his shoulder, watching with a grin tilting her lips.
“Hey, Soph, I’m your Uncle Chase. Daddy and I already talked about it and no dating until you’re thirty,” he tells her. Gabby smacks his shoulder playfully, and it doesn’t faze him.
“Hey, Chase,” Winnie says to get his attention.
I watch as he struggles to pull his gaze from my daughter to address my wife. “Yeah?”
“I’ve been meaning to ask you something.”
“Shoot,” he says, eyes questioning.
Winnie looks up at me and I nod. “We were hoping you’ll be her godfather.”
I watch my best friend as he swallows hard. He opens his mouth to speak but closes it and swallows again. “What?” he asks quietly.
“If something were to happen to us, we want to know she’s loved and well taken care of. That means you,” I tell him. “And you,” I say, nodding at Gabby.
Chase looks up at Gabby, and something I can’t explain passes between them. “I don’t know what to say, man. This is— I’m honored.”
“Say yes,” Winnie prompts.
“Yes.” He lifts my daughter and bends his head to whisper in her ear. We can’t hear what he says, but from the look on Gabby’s face, the emotional side of my best friend, the one he tries so hard to hide, is showing. Gabby’s eyes well with tears.
“All right, Momma. Time to eat,” a nurse says, barging into the room.
“We’re going to give you some time,” Gabby says.
Chase stands and carefully passes Sophia to Winnie, who’s sitting up in bed. I know she’s exhausted. We’ve both been up since two this morning, but it never shows. She’s all smiles as she takes our baby girl into her arms.
Once Gabby and Chase leave, I take the chair next to the bed, and watch as the nurse instructs my wife on breastfeeding. “Don’t get discouraged,” she tells her. “Sometimes it takes a few tries for them to latch on.”
I take in every word, my eyes memorizing every move. The nurse helps Winnie pull down her gown and guide Sophia to her breast. “Look at that,” the nurse coos. “She’s a natural.”
“How do I know if she’s getting enough?”
“That’s trickier.” She goes on to tell us about wet diapers, poopy diapers, if she’s gaining weight, and that Winnie’s breasts will feel less full. “I’ll leave you to it. Press the button if you need anything.” With a final reminder to burp her often, she leaves us alone.
Sitting in this hospital room watching my wife breastfeed our newborn baby daughter does something to me. “You’ve never looked more beautiful,” I say, moving my chair as close as I can get it. One hand cradles Winnie’s cheek while the other rests on Sophia.
“I’m a mess. You can be real with me, Harrison.”
“I’ve never said truer words. We made this tiny human. This little miracle, and to watch you nurture her… it’s a vision that in all my life I’ll never forget. I’ll never forget a single moment of this day.”
“We did it.” She smiles.
“You did it, baby. You did all the work, and I’m so damn proud of you. I’m honored you’ve chosen me for this gift.”
“Gift?”
“This life with you. The fact that I get to call you my wife. I get to live each day with you by my side, and this little one. You gave me another present. I never thought the gift of your love could be topped. It’s a close race.” I grin at her.
“I agree with you that she’s a miracle, in more ways than one. I agree in the sense that she was created out of the love that we share. Also, she brought you back to me. It might have taken us a while, and we’ve had some bumps in the road, but we’re finally on steady ground. We have this little angel to thank for that.”
“I’d like to think it would have happened. I was coming for you. However, Soph here had other plans. I wasn’t acting fast enough.” I chuckle softly. I watch as she removes our daughter from her breast and brings her to her shoulder to burp her. It takes a few minutes, but a sound I never expected from my sweet angel echoes in the small room, making us both laugh. Winnie tries to get her to latch on again, but she’s snoozing away and wants no part of it.
“She said we should nap when she does.” I stand and take Sophia from her, settling back in the chair.
“You have to be exhausted too,” she says over a yawn.
“Yeah, but I’m too keyed-up to sleep. Get some rest, baby. We’ll be here when you wake up.”
She nods. “I love you, Harrison Drake.”
“I love you too, and you too, baby girl,” I tell our daughter. She’s sleeping—oblivious—but that’s okay. She’s had a big day just like her momma. I watch as Winnie slowly closes her eyes as exhaustion claims her. “Your momma, she’s a special person,” I tell my daughter. “There aren’t enough words to describe how much I love you. Don’t ever settle, Sophia. When you’re allowed to date at thirty, make sure the man you gift your heart to will cherish it always.” I feel sleep taking hold so I place Sophia in her bed, not willing to risk falling asleep with her in my arms.
A soft cry pulls me from sleep. My eyes pop open, and I see Winnie watching as Gabby changes Sophia’s diaper. “Hey,” I say, my voice gruff.
“Feel better?” Winnie asks.
“Yeah, what time is it?”
“Late, after midnight.”
“I’m sorry I dozed off.”
“We all did. It’s time to feed her again.”
“Is there anything I can do?” I ask, standing to stretch.
“Nope.” My wife grins.
The door opens, and Chase pops his head in. “Is it safe?” he asks.
I look at Winnie, and she tosses a soft pink blanket over our daughter and nods. “Yeah,” I tell him.
He enters carrying a bag from Taco Bell. “Not many options this late at night.” He begins setting everything on the small table in the corner. He turns to face us
, and that’s when he realizes that Winnie is feeding Sophia. “I can go,” he says, his cheeks turning red.
“Aww, are you embarrassed?” Gabby coos.
“No, but this is… private.”
“You’re family,” Winnie counters. “Besides, it’s not like you can see anything.”
“Yeah.” He swallows hard and looks over at me. In a couple of strides, he’s standing next to me, where I’m leaning against the windowsill. “How do you do it?” he asks, just low enough for me to hear.
“Do what?”
“That’s hot,” he says, pointing to Winnie and Soph.
“Fucker, she’s feeding our daughter.” I don’t take my eyes off them. Memorizing yet another moment.
“I know. I get it. I’m also a man. I know,” he says, wagging his eyebrows.
I don’t deny it. He’s right. He doesn’t need me to tell him he is.
“So what happened at the gym?” Winnie asks. “We’ve all been here. What’s going on?”
“It’s out of our hands,” Chase explains. “The fire marshal is performing an investigation. No one is allowed in until it’s complete. It’s a waiting game.”
“Do you have any ideas?” she asks.
“Not one,” I tell her. “However, it’s obvious this is all connected somehow.”
She looks up at Gabby, and something passes between them. “Guys, I have a theory,” Gabby says, turning to look at Chase and me. “You might want to sit for this,” she warns.
We both remain standing.
“Do either of you remember my twenty-first birthday?” she asks.
“Yeah,” Chase says. “You wore those tight-as-hell leather pants, and that sparkly tank top, no bra.” He goes on to describe her hair and shoes.
Gabby looks surprised. “Y-Yeah. Um, so that night, do you remember there was a girl hanging all over you, Harrison?” I can tell by the way that she’s looking at me, she’s being cautious.
I think back to that night all those years ago. “Yeah, she was annoying as hell. I was never so glad to see you,” I tell my wife.