A Touch Of Christmas Magic

‘Has she woken up yet?’ She was having trouble getting her head around the fact that Holly had delivered a baby without being conscious. ‘In ten years of midwifery I’ve never seen a woman labour while unconscious.’ She blinked back the tears that threatened to spill over. ‘Does she have some kind of head injury?’

The orthopaedic doctor glanced at Jacob, then leaned over and touched Bonnie’s arm. ‘It actually might not be as bad as first thought. She almost certainly has a head injury but her Glasgow Coma Scale responses are improving. I suspect Holly’s in spinal shock from injuries sustained in the crash. She wouldn’t have felt the intensity of the labour pains even though her body naturally delivered. Jacob and I were just discussing the fact that we think she might actually have been in labour prior to the accident. We’ve checked the ward call log. She hadn’t called into the labour suite and she didn’t have any bags in her car. We’re wondering if she was going home to collect her things.’

Bonnie nodded. She could only remember a few things about spinal shock from her general nurse training. It was usually temporary but could cause loss of sensation and feeling. It certainly sounded better than some of the things she’d been imagining.

Jacob’s voice cut across her thoughts. ‘I take it the little girl is okay?’ He was glaring and it took her a couple of seconds to realise it wasn’t at her—well, not entirely. His eyes were fixed on the orthopaedic doctor’s hand, which was still on Bonnie’s arm.

Was Jacob this territorial around all his staff?

She gave a nod to the orthopod and walked behind the desk to pick up some paper notes. ‘Baby Burns is doing fine. APGAR was eight at five minutes. The paediatrician was checking her as I left.’ She waved the notes at Jacob. ‘I’m just going to write up some midwifery notes for what happened out there. I’ll get the clerk to put Holly and baby Burns into the hospital admission system.’

There was a bang at the bottom of the corridor as the doors were flung open. Both Bonnie and Jacob jumped to their feet. It wasn’t entirely unusual for people to enter the labour suite in a rush. This time, though, there was no pregnant woman—just an extremely anxious man.

‘My wife, Holly, is she here? They said there was a car accident. What happened? Is she okay? Is the baby okay?’

Jacob and the orthopaedic doctor exchanged glances. Jacob gestured towards his office. ‘Mr Burns, why don’t you come into my office and I’ll let you know what has happened?’

The man’s face paled even more and he wobbled. ‘Are they dead?’

Jacob quickly reassured him. ‘No, no, they’re not dead. And you can see them both. Let’s just have a chat first.’ He turned to the orthopaedic doctor. ‘Dr Connelly, will you join us, please?’

But the man’s feet were welded to the floor. His eyes widened. ‘Both? The baby is here?’

Bonnie walked over, putting her hand on his arm. ‘You have a lovely daughter. I’ll take you to see her once you’ve spoken to the doctors.’ She helped usher him into the office and, once he was inside, closed the door behind him and left them to it.

‘Debbie’ The labour suite domestic was working in the kitchen. ‘Would you mind taking a pot of tea into Dr Layton’s office? I think the man he’s talking to will need some.’

Debbie gave a little laugh. ‘Tea, for Jacob? You’ve got to be joking. The guy drinks his coffee with three spoonfuls.’ She shook her head. ‘You’ll soon learn he usually has a cup from the café across the street welded to his hand. Don’t worry. I’ll sort it out.’

For the rest of the day Bonnie’s feet barely touched the ground. She finished her notes, took over from Miriam for a while, then took Mr Burns along to see his new daughter.

Holly had gradually started to come round. Things were complicated. Midwives really shouldn’t be dealing with a patient with a head injury. But Holly had a few other complications with the delivery of her placenta. She really wasn’t suitable to be on a general ward either. After some careful calls and juggling, Bonnie finally managed to make sure that either a midwife who was also trained as a general nurse was looking after her, or that an extra nurse be called over from the brief intervention unit. After the first twenty-four hours she’d need to be reassessed and other arrangements made.

By the time Jacob came to find her she’d no idea where the time had gone. Opening one store cupboard to have most of its contents fall on her head, followed by finding some out-of-date drugs in one of the cupboards was making her organisational skills go into overload. She wouldn’t be able to sleep tonight with the ‘to do’ lists she currently had stored in her head.

‘Just thought I should check how you are.’

She picked her way back through the untidy contents of the store cupboard. ‘I’m fine, thanks.’ She glanced at her watch. ‘Is that the time already? The childminder will wonder where I am.’

She let out a groan. ‘Darn it. I haven’t found us somewhere else to stay.’

‘What do you mean? You don’t know where you are staying?’

Bonnie sucked in a deep breath. ‘That’s the thing about agreeing to start at short notice. I haven’t managed to find somewhere to rent. I haven’t even had a chance to view anywhere. The motel I booked is awful. We got in last night and it’s damp and I’m pretty sure there are signs of mildew. It’s going to play havoc with Freya’s asthma. I need to find somewhere else as soon as I can. I had a quick look online last night and most places aren’t available for rent until after Christmas. I’ve obviously come at the wrong time of year.’ She kept shaking her head. She sighed and leaned against the doorjamb. ‘I need to find somewhere quick. I just assumed that I’d be able to find somewhere without any problem. It is a city, after all.’

Accommodation wasn’t something Jacob had even considered for their new start. As a mother she wouldn’t have the option of staying in the hospital flats. They were only designed for singles.

He shook his head. ‘Cambridge isn’t like most cities. We don’t have a huge turnover except when the university year starts. Most students find accommodation and stay in it for four full years.’

She shrugged. ‘I’ll just need to try a bit harder, I guess. More importantly I’ll need to get a car. Relying on public transport is a bit of a nightmare. The sooner I get home to Freya, the better.’

He spoke before he thought. ‘I’ll give you a lift home.’

She blinked. The shock on her face was apparent. Had he really been that unfriendly to her earlier?

‘You don’t have to do that.’

‘I know. But I will. You’ve had a bit of a baptism of fire today. I know you want to get home to Freya and the buses will be busy this time of day.’ He shrugged. ‘It’s only five minutes out of my way. We’ll go in ten minutes.’

The phone rang further along the ward and Hope Sanders, one of the other midwives, stuck her head out of one of the rooms. ‘Jacob? Can you come and take this call?’

He didn’t even give her a chance to respond before he walked swiftly along the corridor. He was impressed. Bonnie was doing a good job. He hadn’t even given a thought to where she might be staying. If she was worried about that—would she be able to focus on her work?

Hope handed him the phone. ‘It’s Sean Anderson. He wants to know if you can help in Theatre tomorrow.’

The call only took a few minutes. Jacob liked Sean, the new Australian obstetrician, and he was happy to scrub in on a complicated case. Hope waited for him to finish the call, her arms folded across her chest, leaning on the door.

‘What?’ he asked as he replaced the receiver.

‘How are you?’ she asked steadily.

He felt himself flinch. Hope was one of the few people he classed as a friend. She knew exactly what kind of year he’d had. ‘I’m fine.’

She nodded slowly. There was no way he’d get away with that kind of answer with Hope. ‘When do you get your test results?’

He shifted uncomfortably on his feet. He hated being put on the spot. ‘A few weeks.’

‘And you’re feeling well? Anything I can do?’

He shook his head and picked up some paperwork from his desk. ‘I’m fine, Hope. There’s no need to fuss.’

She gave him a tight smile. Hope was never bothered by his short answers or occasionally sharp tongue. She just ignored it and asked the questions she wanted to ask.

‘Did you reconsider my suggestion?’

‘What one?’ Hope made lots of suggestions. He should socialise more. He should do less hours at work. He should eat better. He should be more pleasant at work.

She raised her eyebrows. ‘About renting out one of your rooms?’ Oh. That one. Her latest suggestion was a bid to encapsulate all her suggestions: it would force him to socialise, he might work less if he had someone to go home to, someone who could cook, maybe.

‘Haven’t had a chance.’ He walked from behind the desk and gave her a cheeky wink. ‘Been too busy at work.’

‘Jacob...’ Her voice tailed after him but he was already halfway down the corridor. Hope was about to go into interrogator mode. He could sense it. It was time to make a sharp exit.

Bonnie was just finishing at the desk and he welcomed the distraction. If Hope saw him talking to another woman she was bound to leave him alone.

‘Good first day?’ he asked.

* * *