One Hot Doctor by Sarah J. Brooks
Chapter 35
Thomas
I automatically glance up and down as I leave the therapist’s office and then immediately feel foolish. There’s nothing wrong with getting help when you need it. That’s what I’ve been telling myself. But the feeling that I’m a bit of a wimp for being unable to deal with my issues clings to me. I haven’t told anyone including Cora that I’m seeing a therapist. With her, it’s not shame that stops me from sharing, but I don’t want to raise her expectations of me.
I might decide that it’s not for me after a few sessions like I did after Tessa’s death, and I don’t want to disappoint Cora if I do stop going.
I get in my car and head toward home. I should be tired from a full day at work, but I’m not. I feel pumped. There’s something about working in a big hospital that energizes me. In a single day, I’ve performed a c-section, I’ve attended to patients in the hospital’s outpatient clinic, I saw to a bleeding pregnant woman in the emergency room, and I performed circumcisions on two baby boys in the maternity ward.
I park my car next to Cora’s and hurry into the house in a haste to see her. She’s the best part of my day, and it feels like a treat coming home in the evening knowing I’ll be with her.
The scent of dinner meets me as soon as I enter the house, and after dropping my laptop on the foyer table, I head to the kitchen. It’s still a wonder to see Cora with her big belly, even if I see her every day.
“Hey, Dr. Clarkson.” She turns, and I take her in my arms and inhale her scent.
“Hello, you,” I say as I draw back to kiss her on the mouth.
I intended it to be a quick kiss, but her lips are so soft and inviting that I find myself deepening the kiss. I gather her closer to me and revel in the softness of her body melting into mine. Heat spreads over me as my body reacts to her nearness. A sharp dull kick to my groin jerks me back to the present.
Cora collapses against me giggling. “Sorry, our munchkin doesn’t like it when something presses against my belly.”
“Doesn’t she know that the ‘something’ is her father?” I laugh and step back after planting a chaste kiss on Cora’s cheek. “How is she doing apart from kicking her dad?”
“Making me pee every five minutes,” Cora says.
She’s firmly in her third trimester now, with all the discomfort that comes with carrying a baby preparing to leave the oven. “If it were possible, I’d swap places with you in a heartbeat.” I tell her this almost every day.
Cora gives me her standard response. “You couldn’t hack it. You’re too soft.”
I smack her lightly on her ass as I move away. “I’ll grab a quick shower and come back down, okay?”
“Dinner will be ready by then,” Cora says.
I take the stairs two at a time and undress as I walk so that by the time I reach our room, I’m half-naked. A minute later, and I’m under hot streaming jets of water, lathering myself from head to toe.
My thoughts meander to Cora and how fast her due date is approaching. I should be excited that I’ll soon get to meet my child, but all I can think about is that they’re going to leave. I can’t imagine returning to my old way of life. The house will be so empty without Cora. But we still have time, several weeks in fact, so no point in spoiling the time we have left thinking about that. I turn off the shower, grab the towel, and dry myself.
I put on shorts and a T-shirt and sprint back downstairs. Cora has already set the table, and when she sees me, she starts to serve food onto the plates.
“I’ll do that,” I tell her and take the plates from her. “And tomorrow and the rest of the week, I’ll do the cooking.”
“Yes sir,” she says and pulls out a chair at the table. “But really, I don’t mind. I enjoy it. I have too much energy and sitting still is driving me crazy.”
“I would say that you’re nesting, but it’s too soon,” I tell her.
“Doesn’t it come in like the last week or so?”
“Thereabouts.” I bring the food to the table and sit down. My stomach growls at the sight of food. I hadn’t realized how hungry I was.
“How was work?” I ask her.
“Good,” she says. “I’ve gotten two quotes for the physiotherapy rooms, and next week, we’ll probably zero in on one and start the renovations.”
“No wasting time, huh?” I ask her in admiration. Cora has always wanted to add physiotherapy to the range of services at the gym, but it was never the right time. Being away from her beloved gym has made her want to move forward with her long-term plans.
We discuss the details of the work that will be required before they can start offering the services.
“How was your day?” Cora asks.
“Very good.” I tell her about the cases that stood out for me that day. Working at the hospital means that I always have a few of those to regal Cora.
When we were married, Tessa and I had this rule of leaving our jobs behind when we got home. We never discussed work at all, and at the time, we thought it was a good way to relax. Living with Cora, though, has made me see what we were missing. Tessa and I never got to hear about each other’s work lives. That might have been the beginning of our problems. Not talking about work meant that she didn’t know how important my work was to me, and I didn’t know how she felt about her job.
Seeing a therapist has already made me see things differently. I thought I was done with grieving for Tessa, but it seems that after finding out about her unfaithfulness, I went into grieving mode all over again. Except that this time, it was for our marriage, and it was mixed with anger. Anger I could not release because the object of it was gone. It’s just fucked up, but it’s getting better. I feel lighter, happier, less angry.
After dinner, I make Cora relax on the couch while I clean up. Then I join her, but it’s clear that she’s exhausted.
“Come on; let’s go to bed,” I tell her.
I carry a book with me. It’s only half-past eight, and I’m not an early sleeper, so as Cora snuggles up against me, I read. Her nearness has the expected effect, and my cock is soon as hard as steel, but I ignore it. Cora is at the stage of pregnancy where she’s tiring easily. She needs her rest more, and my sexual needs have to take a back seat.
An hour later, my phone vibrates, making her jump. She raises her head and looks about in confusion.
“It’s okay; it’s just my phone.”
Understanding dawns and she lies back down. I reach for my phone, and my heart skips a beat when I see Martin’s name on the screen. I swipe to answer, and even before I say anything, he starts talking.
“I think Fran is in labor,” Martin says, his voice panicky.
“That’s wonderful,” I respond. “Have you taken her to the hospital?”
“No, I’m not sure if it’s the real thing.”
I shake my head, unable to believe that I’m talking to a doctor. I’ve heard of doctors going into shock when their wives go into labor, but I didn’t expect it of Martin. He’s the most level-headed man I know.
“You had better take her unless you want to deliver the baby yourself.” That seems to rouse him.
“You’re right. I don’t even know why I called you,” he says, sounding like himself.
I chuckle. “To bring you back to your senses. Do you want me to meet you at the hospital?”
“No, of course not. Swing by tomorrow when you’re free to meet the baby.” I can hear the grin in his voice.
We say goodbye, and when I look down at Cora, she’s completely asleep. Not even a conversation near her ear can wake her up.
***
“Tell me again what he said,” Cora says as we’re driving to the maternity hospital.
I laugh and recount my conversation with Martin the previous night.
“We shouldn’t laugh,” Cora says. “We don’t know how we’ll behave when it’s our turn.”
I glance at her. “Do you see me losing my cool when you go into labor?”
“Honestly, no, but you didn’t think Martin would either. I can’t believe I slept through all that,” she says.
“You must have been very tired, but that’s expected at this stage of pregnancy.”
At the hospital, we are given Fran’s floor and room number at reception, and we ride the elevator up. I take Cora’s hand as we leave the elevator and walk down the hallway until we find Fran’s room.
We hear an excited chatter even before we enter the room. There are my parents, Martin’s parents, and Martin himself. Luckily, it’s a large room and accommodates two more people comfortably.
“Thomas,” Fran cries out when she sees me and does the same with Cora. The baby is not visible as she’s snuggled in her mother’s arms. We enter the room and hug and greet until we reach Martin. I man hug him and pump his hand.
“Congratulations, man,” I tell him.
His grin almost splits his face. “Thank you. Your niece is gorgeous. She looks just like her mother.”
“Can’t wait to see her.”
Behind me, I hear my mother exclaiming Cora’s pregnancy and how they can’t wait to meet the baby.
“Hey, you. Whoever thought that one day you’d be a mother?” I tell my sister as I kiss her on the cheek. “I’m proud of you.”
“Thanks,” she says and pulls away the blankets covering my niece. “Meet the latest member of the family. Her name is Willow.”
My niece’s little face is scrunched up, and she makes a face of displeasure as soon as her mother pulls down her blanket. I laugh. “She’s your daughter, all right. She has no qualms about making her feelings known.”
Fran laughs, and I move away to give space to Cora.
Later, Cora and I leave the hospital and head downstairs to the car. She’s uncharacteristically quiet, and I wait until we are in the car.
“Are you okay?”
She glances at me with a worried look on her face. “Holding Fran and Martin’s baby made it feel so real. Soon it’ll be us, and I’m not sure I’m ready to be a mom. That responsibility is too huge. We have to teach the baby everything.”
My first instinct is to make fun of Cora, but luckily, I curb it and realize that she’s having an anxiety attack. “Will it make you feel better to know that a lot of parents-to-be have voiced this same worry to me? Most people think the hospital has no business entrusting them with their own baby.”
Cora laughs, and her lines of worry disappear. “That’s exactly how I feel. I think they should let me stay in hospital until the baby is two years old.”
I laugh too. “As soon as you set eyes on the baby, your motherly instincts will kick in, and you’ll be okay. We’ll be great parents.”
I start the car.
“Thanks, I know we will. It’s just that I haven’t seen a newborn in years. I forgot how little and dependent they are.”
“Hey, have you given some thought to attending a few parental classes?” I ask her.
“Yeah, I have, and I think I will,” Cora says.
I drop her off at the gym, kiss her goodbye, and head back to work. I hope that I’m managing to look like an excited dad, but I’m afraid that I sound like a doctor instead. It doesn’t seem to bother Cora. Either that, or she doesn’t even notice it.
