Prologue:
Duke found an unconscious woman on the beach who lost her memory. He let her stay with him at The Cape Rouge. They soon found out who she was and what had happened to her. Duke and Liana fell in love. Duke asked Liana to marry him and at the engagement party he found out Liana was pregnant. At the engagement party Audrey and Nathan grew closer together and after a few months their relationship became bigger. Audrey moved in with Nathan. So Duke and Liana moved from The Cape Rouge to The Grey Gull after Duke and Nathan made some changes, like a second room for the baby.
Story:
5 months later. An alarm went off.
"Liana, sweetie time to wake up." whispered Duke softly in her ears while giving her small kisses under her ear and neck.
"Mmmm do I have too? I'm just laying so comfortable." said Liana.
"I can see you're lying comfortable. But yes you have too, you've got your checkup with the Dr for our little one, remember. Otherwise I would love to let you sleep out. I love to see you sleep. " replied Duke.
"Oh yes the checkup, I totally forgot. Thanks for reminding me." said Liana and gave Duke a big kiss.
"Lately my mind has holes in it like Swiss cheese. I keep forgetting things even important ones." said Liana with a sad face.
"Hey sweetie don't be sad, you know what the dr said. That this was normal during the pregnancy to forget things. Beside you should be happy, we're going to see our little boy or girl again. You still don't want to know if our little one is a boy or a girl?" asked Duke.
"No haven't changed my mind about that, I want it to be a surprise. The only thing I want to know is that our little one is healthy." replied Liana.
"Well to find out, you got to get out of bed and get ready. Wait let me help you." said Duke while helping her out of bed.
"Thanks honey. Love you." said Liana and she gave Duke a kiss on his cheek.
"Ok now to the bathroom. Do you want me to help you wash your back?" asked Duke.
"Oh yes please, I can't reach it now that I'm so fat." said Liana while entering the bathroom.
"Sweetie you're not fat, you're pregnant and you're beautiful. You know that." said Duke following her.
"Yeah you keep telling me that but I still feel big. Look at my feet, they're huge. But you know what it'll all be worthy when I have our little one in my arms." said Liana while taking off her nightgown.
"I can't wait to see him or her and have him or her in my arms too. I hope he or she looks like you." said Duke while he let the water in the shower run.
"Actually I hope he or she looks like you. You're way better looking than me." replied Liana when she walked in the shower.
"Thank you sweetie but do you know what's more important than who he or she looks like? That he or she is healthy." said Duke.
"I couldn't agree more honey. Come here let me give you a big kiss." said Liana.
"Oh I would love that kiss sweetie but it's almost time for your checkup. Turn around so I can wash your back sweetie." replied Duke.
"Why won't you let me give you a big kiss? Is it because I'm not attractive anymore? Because I'm too fat?" asked Liana with a sad face and tears started running down her cheeks.
"Oh sweetie please don't cry, I didn't mean it like that, I'm so sorry, of course you can kiss me, I love your kisses and I love to kiss you. Please stop crying. I can't stand to see you cry." begged Duke.
Liana nodded but she couldn't stop crying, so Duke took off his clothes quickly, stepped in the shower, took her in his arms, slowly rocked her and whispered sweet words in her ears. Liana finally stopped crying and sniffed a bit. She slowly pulled her head back and looked into Duke's eyes.
"I'm ok now. Thank you, I don't know what came over me. Probably my stupid hormones going crazy again. You really love my kisses?" asked Liana.
"Yes I really do and you're one hot mama." replied Duke.
"Really? You still think I'm attractive?" asked Liana.
"Yes really, you're very attractive Liana. You're beautiful and the pregnancy makes you even more beautiful. Come here, I want my big kiss." said Duke.
"Won't we be too late for the checkup?" asked Liana.
"A few minutes too late won't hurt. I got to show you first how beautiful and attractive you are." said Duke.
"Oh honey, I'm so lucky with you. How are you going to show me?" asked Liana.
"Well what about kissing?" asked Duke.
"Kissing sounds good to me." replied Liana.
Duke said nothing but gave her a big smile. He placed his hand in Liana's neck and slowly lowered his head. He softly kissed her, pulled his head back and looked at Liana.
"You're so beautiful honey." said Duke and with every word he gave her a bigger kiss.
Liana started to moan with every kiss. This made Duke crazy and he kissed her deeper.
Suddenly the phone rang, this startled them both. They looked at each other and started laughing.
Duke got out the shower and walked in the bedroom and picked up the phone. It was the nurse asking if they didn't forget they had a checkup. Duke told her that their alarm didn't went off and apologized for the delay and that they were getting ready to come to the Dr. Duke apologized again before he put the phone down.
While Duke was answering the phone, Liana took a shower, she just got out of the shower when Duke came back in the bathroom.
"Who was that on the phone?" asked Liana while she took a towel to dry her off.
"It was the nurse asking if we didn't forget about the checkup. Wait let me help you." said Duke.
"Oh thank you honey. Some places are harder to get too. I can't reach so good anymore with my big belly here." said Liana.
"You're welcome sweetie, you know I like to dry you off." replied Duke.
"Oh yes I do know that and I love to let you dry me off and little one in here loves it too. Honey, the baby is kicking again, wow that was a big one. Easy little one. A few more weeks and you may come into the world." said Liana with a big smile on her face while stroking her belly.
Duke dried Liana further off and went to his knees in front of her.
"Easy little one, don't kick your mommy too hard, you don't want to hurt her right? It's ok, you'll be in our arms soon." said Duke while stroking Liana's belly and he gave her belly a kiss.
When Duke kissed her belly, the baby moved a little and it was like the baby kissed him back. This brought tears to Duke's eyes. He looked up and saw that Liana had some tears in her eyes too. They smiled at each other. Duke stood up and took Liana in his arms and gave her a big kiss.
"You better get dressed sweetie, the dr is waiting for us." said Duke.
"Sure honey. I'll be ready in a few minutes. You better get dressed too or do you want to go naked to the checkup honey? Not that I mind you being naked but I don't want anyone else to see you naked." said Liana while looking at Duke with sparks in her eyes.
"Naked? What do you mean?" asked Duke.
Liana said nothing but looked down and Duke looked down too.
"Oh I totally forgot I was in the shower with you. Haha I better get dressed fast. Do you mind drying my back off sweetie?" asked Duke.
"Sure no problem. You know I love to do that." replied Liana.
Liana quickly dried Duke's back.
"There you go honey, your back is done." said Liana and she quickly gave Duke a little tap on his butt before he left for the bedroom.
Duke turned around, took Liana in his arms and gave her a quick deep kiss before he entered the bedroom. Liana stayed behind in the bathroom dazzed and with a big smile on her face. She touched her lips, shook her head, smiled even more. She took all the wet towels and hang them out to dry on the hanging drying rack. Meanwhile Duke quickly got dressed and went to the kitchen to get a cup of coffee.
"Sweetie do you want something to eat before we go to the dr.?" asked Duke.
"No thank you but Honey would you mind making me a toast with some jam please for on our way to the dr?" asked Liana.
"Of course sweetie, what kind of jam would you like on your toast? We've got apricots, the one with four red fruits, strawberry and cherry." replied Duke.
"Mmmmm cherry please, thank you honey." said Liana while she entered the bedroom.
"Cherry is it. Your toast will be ready when you're Dressed. If you need help, just give a shout and I'll be there." said Duke.
"Thanks honey. I will, love you." replied Liana.
A few minutes later.
"Honey, can you help me with my shoes please, I can't get them on. My feet are swollen." asked Liana.
"Sure sweetie, no problem, just sit down on the bed, here's your toast, eat it while I put your shoes on." said Duke.
"Oh honey, thank you so much, I'm such a lucky woman, you take such good care of me. Oh here come the tears again, stupid hormones." said Liana while crying.
"So your shoes are on, oh sweetie stop crying, you know I'll do anything for you and that I'll help you anyway I can. Please stop crying, come here, let me give you a big hug. Wait we'll lay the toast first out of the way. Come here; let me give you a big hug. Stop crying please." said Duke.
"It's just my stupid hormones honey. I'm ok. Thank you for your help, the toast and your hug honey. I needed it." replied Liana while hugging him back.
"That's ok sweetie, I'm always here for you when you need me. Now finish your toast, here it is, I'll put on my shoes and then we're ready to go to the Dr." said Duke.
"Mmmmm this toast is good honey, just love cherry jam, mmmm." said Liana.
Duke just looked at Liana with sparkles in his eyes and a big smile on his face. He quickly put his shoes and took the keys to his car.
"Ready?" asked Duke.
"Yep ready!" replied Liana after eating the last bite of her toast.
"Off we go then." said Duke.
They left the apartment above The Grey Gull and walked to Duke's truck. He helped Liana in the truck and they Drove off to the Dr. When they got there, Duke helped her out of the truck. They walked into the hospital and were allowed to go straight to the office of the Dr.
The Dr was waiting for them. Duke apologized to the Dr again for being too late. The Dr accepted the apologizes and asked Liana to lay down on the examining table and pull her shirt up. He placed a doptone on her belly and they immediately heard the baby's heart rate. The Dr said that the baby's heart rate was perfect as it should be. Than the Dr put some gel on Liana's belly and on the echomachine. The Dr moved it over her belly while looking at the screen of the computer. The Dr said everything looked good and asked if they still didn't want to know the sex of the baby. Duke looked at Liana who looked back at him.
"I really want to know if our baby is a boy or a girl sweetie." said Duke.
"I know honey. You've been so patient and helpful all through the pregnancy. And to be honest I'm curious too so doc tell us if we're having a boy or a girl." said Liana while smiling at Duke.
"Well, I can tell that you're having a little…. girl. Congratulations." replied the Dr.
"A little girl? A little girl? We're going to have a little girl! Honey, we're having a little girl!" shouted Duke out loud.
He was so excited that he jumped up and gave the Dr a big hug. Then he turned to Liana and gave her a big kiss. Liana was smiling and crying.
"We're getting a little girl Duke. I'm so happy." said Liana while crying.
The Dr gave a few paper tissues to Duke and Liana so they could Dry their happy tears.
"Do you want some extra pictures from your little girl? So you can show them to your family and friends?" asked the Dr.
"Yes please, I definitely want one for in my wallet and for our album." replied Liana.
"Oh yes I want one too for in my wallet and for in The Grey Gull." said Duke.
"Sure no problem, I'll print some out." said the Dr.
"Now let's see, the baby is right on schedule, she's already laying in the right position, that's perfect. You don't have any opening yet. Now let's get you off the table and on the scale." said the Dr.
Duke helped Liana up and off the table, walked with her to the scale where he helped her on it. The Dr had a look and all he said was that it was good. She gained a bit but that was normal in this stage of the pregnancy told the Dr. Duke helped Liana off the scale and walked with her to the Dr's desk.
"So doc, everything is alright with Liana and our little girl? Our little girl, I still can't believe we're having a little girl. Don't get me wrong, a little boy would have been welcome too." said Duke with a big smile on his face.
"Yes everything is fine, Liana is doing great and so is the baby. I suspect the baby will come on time in a couple of weeks. I suspect there's a little suitcase ready just in case the baby decides to come a little early?" asked the Dr.
"Yes, it's been ready since a few months." replied Liana.
"That's good, do you two have any questions?" asked the Dr.
"Well is there a change the baby will come early than said?" asked Duke.
"Yes that's always possible. But the baby is so far healthy and has a good weight and height so no worries there. And Liana is in good health too, just keep taking it easy, especially now with only a few weeks left." replied the Dr.
"I've got another question maybe not the question you're used to hear Dr but what about love making? Can we still do that? Won't that hurt the baby this far in the pregnancy?" asked Liana.
"Well I've heard this question more than you think. You would be surprised. You're healthy and you have so far no complications during your pregnancy. You can still make love as long as you both feel up to it and as long as your water hasn't broken yet. Actually the love making is good for your hips, your pelvic and your cervix. It keeps the muscles flexible. Sexual activity has also been suggested as a way to prepare for induced labour; which in your case isn't necessary. Some believe the natural prostaglandin content of seminal liquid can favour the maturation process of the cervix making it more flexible, allowing for easier and faster dilation and effacement of the cervix." said the Dr.
"Ah ok and what about after the baby is born? How long do we have to wait to make love?" asked Liana.
"You best wait till after 6 weeks and when you're both ready for it. But by then you'll have to come back for a checkup and I'll tell you if you'll be physical ready for making love." replied the Dr.
"Ok thank you Dr, that's all we needed to know. When is her last checkup Dr?" asked Duke.
"Well that's in 2 weeks, 2 weeks before the birth. I'll make a note in my agenda. Here are the pictures of the echo. Enjoy them and say you two in 2 weeks." said the Dr while handing the pictures to Liana.
Duke stood and helped Liana after she put away the pictures in her purse. They both gave the Dr a hand, thanked him and left the office. They went to the truck and Drove off to The Grey Gull where Audrey and Nathan would be waiting for them. They couldn't wait to tell them the good news and show them the pics of their little girl.
The next few days were busy ones but Duke made sure that Liana had plenty of rest. Duke and Nathan painted the baby room in a beige color that Liana and Audrey had chosen. After the painting they added some wall stickers and they put the baby furniture together. While the men were doing that, Liana and Audrey went to town to get the baby clothes and toys Liana ordered after they found out they were having a little girl.
Audrey was Driving cause they were with Nathan's bronco. They arrived at the store. Audrey helped Liana out of the car and they walked to the store. They went into the store and walked to the counter. Madeline (the owner) saw them coming and was putting Liana's order on the counter.
"Hi Liana, hi Audrey. How are you?" asked Madeline.
"Hi Madeline, just a little pain in my back that I got since this morning but I'm good thank you, round but healthy." said Liana.
"Hi Madeline, I'm good too, how are you?" replied Audrey.
"I'm good, business goes good, can't complain. Looks like you're getting closer to the delivery. When is the baby due?" asked Madeline.
"Well, next week I'll have my last checkup and then it's two more weeks till she's born. I'll be happy when she's born, I can hardly get in my shoes and clothes, Duke has to help me with everything. I'm so lucky with him. Don't get me wrong, I like being pregnant but I'll be so happy when she'll be in my arms. We both look so forward to holding her in our arms." said Liana.
"That I can imagine. Here's your order. All the baby clothes and toys. You choose well. I've put them in boxes, where are you parked?" asked Madeline.
"We're with Nathan's bronco and we're just parked in front of the store." replied Audrey.
"Good choice to come with the bronco, I'll help you with the boxes. Liana don't you dare carrying one of the boxes. Audrey and I will carry them to the bronco. You just wait here and rest on the chair. We'll be right back." said Madeline.
Madeline and Audrey took each one box and left one on the counter. They went outside and placed them in the bronco. Liana couldn't help herself and wanted to lift the third box of the counter and suddenly felt a sharp pain in her back. She screamed and Dropped the box on the floor.
Audrey and Madeline heard her scream and ran inside the store. They saw Liana at the counter and the box on the floor. Liana was holding her hands to her back.
"What happened?" asked Audrey.
"I was trying to lift this box and wanted to carry it to the bronco, I know I wasn't supposed too but I wanted to help. Suddenly I felt a sharp pain in my back and I had to Drop the box. I don't get it, it's a very light box, it weighs nothing, why? …. OUCH! That's another one, what's going on?" asked Liana slightly panicked.
Suddenly Liana's water broke and flooded on the floor.
"Oh oh, your water has broken, you're in labor. Your baby wants to be born. I bet that little pain in the back were contractions." said Madeline.
Audrey made a quick call to Duke and the emergencies to tell that Liana's water broke and she was in labor and about the deliver the baby in the store. Duke and Nathan Dropped everything and raced to the store. There they found Liana in the back room of the store lying down on the ground with pillows under her head and a sheet over her legs. Audrey came in the back room too and told that the ambulance would be there in an hour. She asked Liana if she could take a look to see how far opening she has. Liana shook her head she could.
"I don't think the baby is going to wait till the ambulance is here. She's coming now if we like it or not. It's up to us I'm afraid." said Audrey after she had a look.
"You're kidding me! The baby is coming now?! No this can't be, nothing's ready, she can't come now. She…" panicked Liana.
"Easy sweetie, you can do this, we'll help you anyway we can. We're here for you. Audrey how can I help?" asked Duke.
"Well, you sit behind her to support her back. Give her your hands and squeeze them softly. Nathan you wait for the ambulance in the store, so you can tell them where we are. Liana you do the pushing and breathing and I'll be here in front of you to receive the baby. Madeline, you get some towels, scissors and a bowl of hot water." ordered Audrey.
"Ok everybody we can do this, Liana you can do this." said Audrey while sitting down in front of Liana.
Duke sat back behind Liana and squeezed her hands softly. Audrey placed the sheet a bit back so she had a good look when the baby would come out. Madeline brought the towels, scissors and the bowl of hot water and placed it aside on a little chair.
"Oh God, here's another one, I need to push pretty bad." moaned Liana.
"Then push while doing your breathing Liana, you can do this. Push. Help her push Duke by pushing her a little forward." said Audrey.
"Come on sweetie you can do this, push!" said Duke.
Liana pushed and pushed and pushed till she couldn't anymore. She leaned back to Duke who told her she was doing great. Soon she felt another contraction coming and leaned forward and pushed and pushed and pushed again. She felt so tired that she told she couldn't do this anymore. Audrey had another look and she could see the head coming out a little bit. This gave Liana more energy and motivation to keep pushing when another contraction came up. Duke and Audrey encouraged Liana to keep pushing and pushing and pushing till Liana couldn't anymore. She leaned back against Duke again while Audrey had a look again.
"Ok Audrey just one more push and the baby is out. So come on girl. You're almost there, one more push and you hold her in your arms. Come on! Push!" said Audrey.
Liana pushed with everything she's got. When she couldn't anymore, she leaned back against Duke who gave her kisses on her forehead. Suddenly Nathan came in saying the ambulance has arrived when the baby slid into Audrey's hands. Audrey looked at Liana with tears in her eyes.
"Nathan will you give me those scissors and wash them in the hot water so they're sterile please?" asked Audrey while she leaned forward and placed the baby on Liana's chest.
The baby started crying and this made Duke and Liana cry happy tears.
"Our little girl! She's here, OMG she's beautiful like her mommy. Oh I'm so proud of you sweetie, you did great." said Duke while crying.
"Thank you honey, you did great too, without you I don't know if I could have done it. Thank you too Audrey, the same goes for you. I wouldn't have known what to do without you." said Liana also crying.
Audrey sterilized the scissors and gave them to Duke.
"It's my pleasure and honor to have helped you Liana. I'm so proud of you all. You all did great. Now daddy would you do the honors of cutting the umbilical cord?" asked Audrey.
"Oh yes but I don't know if I can do it." replied Duke.
"You can do it honey. Just cut it." said Liana.
Duke looked at her, Dried his tears off, took the scissors and cut the umbilical cord. Audrey made a pic of it and another one of Liana and the baby and Duke. The paramedics came in and took over.
They helped Liana with pushing out the placenta and checked her and the baby out while Duke, Audrey and Nathan were in the other room. The paramedics came out of the back room with Liana and the baby both wrapped in blankets on a stretcher. They congratulated Audrey and Nathan for their good help and Duke with his new fatherhood. They took Liana to the hospital to check her and the baby further out but so far they both seemed healthy. Audrey, Duke and Nathan Drove after the ambulance following it to the hospital.
At the hospital Duke, Nathan and Audrey had to wait in the waiting area. A few minutes later a nurse came for them and showed them the way to Liana's room. Liana was laying there with their little girl in her arms waiting for them. Duke immediately rushed to her side and Liana smiled at him. Nathan and Audrey both stood at the end of the bed.
"There's daddy, do you want daddy to hold you? Of course you do. Here he is." said Liana softly to their little daughter.
She looked up at Duke and he was smiling at her with tears in his eyes.
"Our little girl. How do I hold her? I don't want to drop her. I…" said Duke while sitting down next to Liana on her bed.
"Just place your right hand under her neck and your left under her bottom and you hold her. Just like that. Here she is, where are you now? In daddy's arms? Yes you're with daddy now. You're safe little one. Yes you are" said Liana to Duke while handing him their little girl in his arms.
"You see, you're not dropping her, you're holding her honey. She's safe with you. You're doing great daddy." said Liana and she hugged them both and gave Duke a kiss on his cheek.
Duke was looking in disbelieve at his little girl, his little girl with Liana, his daughter, their daughter.
"I'm a father now." he thought.
He looked at their little girl and it was like she was looking and smiling at him in a way to let him know she was safe in his arms. She yawned. Duke looked at Liana with a big smile.
"How shall we call her? We talked about it a lot and we had lots of names for boys but not much for girls." asked Duke.
"Well what do you think about Carly Audrey Nathaly Crocker?" asked Liana while looking at Duke, Audrey and Nathan.
"That's sounds perfect to me." said Duke.
"Beautiful! You're giving her our names too? I'm honored." said Audrey smiling.
"I'm honored too. You shouldn't have." replied Nathan with a big smile on his face.
"Yeah why not? They are good names, I like them and they are perfect for her. You both helped us so much, you're true friends." replied Liana.
"I agree with Liana, they're perfect for her. What do you say Carly Audrey Nathaly Crocker? Do you like it?" asked Duke little Carly.
To everyone's surprise little Carly opened her eyes and smiled. Duke softly caressed her little cheek with his finger. This made her move her little head so his finger got in her mouth and she started sucking on it.
"I think she's hungry sweetie." said Duke.
"Yeah I think so too. I better feed her. The nurse showed me how to do that before she showed you all the way." replied Liana.
"We'll leave the room than and let you feed her. Duke can you give us your keys from your apartment so we put the boxes with the toys and clothes in there." asked Nathan.
"Sure no problem, here they are but I need them back when I go pick up Liana's suitcase." said Duke.
"No problem, we'll drop off the boxes and bring the suitcase with us when we come back." said Audrey.
"See you all later! Thank you again so much for all you did Nathan, Audrey. I can't thank you enough. I wouldn't know what I would have done without you." said Liana.
"Yes thank you again Nathan, Audrey for everything. I can't thank you enough either." said Duke.
"No problem, what are friends for? See you later!" replied Audrey.
"See you later!" said Nathan.
Audrey and Nathan left the room. Liana lifted up her shirt and laid little Carly on her breast. Little Carly started to suck on her nipple and drank her milk. Duke sat still and looked at both of his girls. He felt so proud of them. Liana looked up and saw Duke looking at her and Carly. He was smiling and had a few tears in the corner of his eyes.
"Honey what's wrong? Are you hurt?" asked Liana.
"I'm just so happy, I still can't believe she's here, that I just held her, that you're feeding her now. This is so beautiful to see. You're a beautiful woman sweetie and you gave birth to our beautiful little girl. I love you so much. I'm so proud of you both." said Duke.
"Oh honey I'm proud of you too, we both made her, our little girl. You helped me so much from the beginning of the pregnancy till today. You really supported me through the delivery. Thank you so much for that. I love you so much." said Liana.
Duke leaned towards and gave her a big kiss, than he bended down and gave little Carly a kiss on her forehead while she was still drinking from her mommy's breast. Liana let Carly drink from her other breast and gave her a little kiss on her forehead too. Liana and Duke kept looking at their little girl while she drank her milk.
A little while later, Audrey and Nathan came back and they brought the suitcase of Liana with them. Also some baby clothes, the treats for the visitors and lots of toys and balloons. Vince and Dave came along and helped them carry. They had brought their photo camera with them so they can take a beautiful pic of Duke, Liana and the baby.
Nathan knocked at the door and walked in, then he turned around to the others and placed his finger at his mouth as a sign that they've got to be quite. They walked all in the room as quite as they could and saw something beautiful. Duke and Liana laying on bed and in between them was little Carly. All three were asleep. Dave quickly took a few pics of this lovely scene.
Nathan, Audrey, Vince and Dave than softly placed the treats on the table in the room and the drinks in the little fridge. They tried to be a quite as possible but the rattling of the little bottles woke up Duke and Liana while little Carly kept sleeping.
"What are you doing?" asked Duke.
"Well we took the boxes to The Grey Gull and brought along Liana's suitcase. When we just left, a delivery came for you and it was the treats for the visitors. Perfect timing we thought and we brought them along too. When we walked in to the hospital we bumped into Dave and Vince." said Audrey.
"We were here for our weekly update on births and deaths for the Haven Herald. When we wanted to leave the hospital, we saw Nathan and Audrey in the little store downstairs. We went over there and asked them why they were here. They told us what happened and voila here we are!" said Vince.
"Do you mind us taking a few pictures of your little family? It's for the front page of the Haven Herald and I'll make copies for you too." asked Dave.
"Sure I don't mind pictures, just hope my hair isn't a mess." said Liana.
"No problem but don't you dare wake our little girl." replied Duke.
"Off course he won't wake her up. He wouldn't dare. Otherwise he has to answer to me. What's her name?" asked Vince.
"It's Carly Audrey Nathaly Crocker." answered Duke with pride in his voice.
"Liana your hair is perfect, you wouldn't say you gave birth, you look marvelous. Now Duke get a bit closer to Liana and would you mind holding little Carly's head a little bit up so everyone can get a look of that beautiful little face. She really is a cutie. Well done Duke and Liana." said Dave.
"Why thank you Dave. So nice of you to say." said Liana.
"Now maybe a pic of you and Duke looking at each other, then one looking where you're both looking at me and one of you two giving each other a kiss. Oh and one of you two giving Carly a kiss." said Dave.
While Liana and Duke followed Dave's advice for the pics, Vince sat down and took out his pencils and drawing paper and started to drawn the little family. In the meantime Audrey and Nathan were hanging the balloons and the other decoration in the room.
Just when all pictures were taking and all the decoration was hanged, the nurse came in. She made everyone leave the room so she could do a good checkup on Liana and Carly. This only took a few minutes. They all waited in the hallway. The nurse came out of the room and asked Duke if he wanted to see how to change Carly's diaper. Duke followed the nurse back in the room and while she showed Liana and Duke how to change Carly's diaper, the others stayed in the hallway. After a few minutes the nurse came out the room and told them that they could go back in.
Everyone went back into the room and stayed for a drink and a treat till the nurse came back and told she had to take little Carly to run some standard tests to see if everything was ok. Liana immediately said that those tests were already done and that Carly was ok. The nurse said that they couldn't find some results anymore and that the Dr wanted to be sure. So they had to do some tests again. Liana wasn't sure about this and asked if she could come along. The nurse replied that it wouldn't take long and that Carly would be back with her before she knew it. Duke saw that Liana was really worried and said that Liana and he would go along. The nurse saw that she couldn't win this so agreed to let them come along. She said she would get a wheelchair for Liana.
After a few minutes another nurse came in to say that visiting hours were over and that everyone had to leave so mother and daughter could get some sleep.
"Where is the other nurse who was going to get me a wheelchair?" asked Liana.
"What other nurse I'm the only one on duty. Why do you need a wheelchair?" asked the nurse.
"There was another nurse, she went to get a wheelchair so I could go along with Carly. She has to do some tests redone cause results were missing?" replied Duke.
"No there's really no other nurse, I'm the only one here and I know nothing on redoing some tests on Carly. Wait I'll check it out to be sure." said the nurse.
After a few minutes the nurse came back and brought the schedule for today with her.
"See, no redoing on tests for Carly cause everything is ok, all results came back good. So you don't need to worry." said the nurse.
"But who was the other woman then? She was dressed as a nurse, she was wearing the same uniform as you. Why did she say that some tests had to be redone? Are you sure nothing's wrong with our daughter? asked Duke with some anger and worry in his voice.
"Yes I'm sure there's nothing wrong with your daughter Duke, the Dr took a look at the results himself and said she was ok. He never spook over redoing tests cause all the results were fine. You don't have to worry. About the other nurse, I'll call security for that. I'll send them to you. You better all stay here for that but please don't make too much noise for the other patients."
"Ok we'll be calm." said Audrey.
"What just happened? Who was the other nurse? Anybody recognized her?" asked Nathan.
"No, I don't know her but I saw her here before at the hospital when we came for the checkups." said Liana.
"Who is she? And why did she want to take Carly? And why more tests when everything is ok? I don't get it. What did she wanted to do with Carly? …." Liana burst out in tears while holding Carly very close to her.
Duke sat down again on the bed and took them both in his arms.
"I don't know sweetie but we'll find out. I won't leave you two out of my side till this is cleared out. I promise. We'll get through this. I'm staying with you, even if I have to sleep on the ground." said Duke while holding the two most important women in his arms.
"Duke is right. We'll find out what's going on. We'll wait for the security and then go to HPD. " said Audrey.
"Vince can make a sketch of the woman. You can use it for identifying her." said Dave.
"Sure I'll make the sketch now, it won't take long to make it." replied Vince.
At that time two men of security came in. They talked to everyone, took statements and signed a paper to hand those over to Nathan and Audrey. One of the security men made a few copies of Vince's sketch. They promised to keep looking for that woman and keep her with them. When they had any new information they would immediately inform Nathan and/or Audrey. The security men left the room and then the nurse came back in this time followed by the dr.
"I've just been informed by this situation and I would like to express my sincerest apologies that this happened to you. I'm also here to inform you that all tests were fine, the results were excellent, there is nothing wrong with Carly and also everything is good with you Liana. You're so good that I'm willing to let you go home. I think according to the circumstances you might feel better to be at home now. I think Duke will agree with me." said the dr.
"Well I would like them home with me so I can keep an eye on them but only if you sure dr. that Liana and Carly are ok and ready to come home." replied Duke.
"Yes I'm very sure and the nurse will check on them twice a day. She's also a midwife so if you have any questions or doubts you can always ask her. So I'll go do some paperwork so you can go home. Don't hesitate to call me any time of the day. You still have my number? Otherwise the nurse will bring it with her when she comes tonight. The nurse will also tell you when to come back for Carly's first checkup. I wish you all the best and see you next time." said the dr.
The dr. shook their hands, stroked Carly on her cheek and left the room. The nurse asked everyone except Duke to leave the room so she could help Liana get ready to go home. Liana and the nurse went into the bathroom where the nurse helped her change her clothes. In the meantime Duke took his little girl in his arms, rocked her gently and gave her a little kiss on her forehead.
After a few minutes Liana and the nurse came out of the bathroom and they saw Duke standing there with Carly in his arms. He was still rocking her. He was talking to her too, telling her he would do anything to protect her and her mom and that they were the most important people now in his life. This view made Liana smile and brought some tears to her eyes. The nurse looked at Duke with Carly in his arms and then she looked at Liana and smiled at her.
Duke felt that somebody was looking at him and turned around. He saw Liana and the nurse smiling at him.
"Isn't she the cutest and prettiest baby you have ever seen?" asked Duke.
The nurse smiled and said: "She sure is a beauty but it's no surprise with such beautiful parents. I'll go get the signing out papers. I'll be right back."
The nurse left the room and let the others back in.
Everyone helped with packing everything while Liana and Audrey dressed little Carly for her first trip home. Nathan, Duke, Vince and Dave carried the treats, toys, balloons and Liana's suitcase to Duke's truck while Liana, little Carly and Audrey waited for the signing out papers. Liana sat down on the bed while holding little Carly in her arms.
"I'm so scared Audrey, what did that woman want from Carly? Why Carly? I don't understand." said Liana with tears in her eyes.
"I don't know Liana but what I do know is that we're doing everything we can to find that woman. So we can get answers to why she needed Carly for tests and why just Carly? But first thing we do is to get you both safely home. So Nathan and I will drive after Duke's truck ok?" answered Audrey and she sat down next to Liana and placed her arm around Liana.
Liana nodded and lied her head down on Audrey's shoulder. The nurse came back with the papers and gave them to Liana.
"So here are the papers, I wrote the number of the dr and mine on it, just in case. You're good to go. I'll drop by tomorrow morning around 10.30 am to check up on both of you. Take care ok? See you tomorrow Liana." said the nurse.
"Thank you for everything nurse. See you tomorrow." answered Liana.
"You can call me Mary, Liana. See you tomorrow." replied the nurse.
"See you tomorrow Mary."
When the nurse left the room she crossed Duke who was about to enter the room.
"I just give the papers to Liana, she's good to go. I'll check up on them tomorrow morning around 10.30. I also wrote the number of the dr and mine on those papers just in case ok? So see you tomorrow morning." said the nurse.
"Thank you for everything nurse, see you tomorrow." replied Duke.
"It's Mary from now on, I told Liana too to call me Mary. See you tomorrow!" replied Mary.
"Ok Mary, see you tomorrow." replied Duke.
"Ready Liana?" asked Duke.
"We're ready, let's go home honey. Let's bring our little girl home." replied Liana.
Liana stood up from the bed with little Carly in her arms. Duke put his arm around her and they walked both out of the room. Audrey followed them.
They all left the hospital and walked to the cars. There were Nathan, Dave and Vince waiting in Nathans bronco. He would follow them to The Grey Gull to see them come home safe. After that Nathan would drop Dave and Vince off at the Haven Herald.
Audrey said to Nathan she was going to ride along with Duke and Liana. When Liana got to Duke's truck, she saw a little car seat in it for Carly in the back. She turned around, smiled at Duke with tears in her eyes and gave him a kiss on his cheek. Duke smiled and opened the backdoor. He helped Liana placing Carly in the car seat. While they did that Audrey stepped in on the other side and sat next to little Carly.
When Carly was placed in her seat, Liana gave her a kiss on her forehead, so did Duke. He opened the front door and helped Liana in his truck. Before Duke started the car, he looked back at Carly than at Liana and smiled.
"Let's go home." Duke said and started the car.
"Yes let's go home" replied Liana smiling at him.
Duke smiled back and drove away. Nathan followed him and they all drove to The Grey Gull.
A few days later.
Nathan and Audrey arrive at The Grey Gull for the baby shower. They were the first ones to arrive. Duke was at the bar storing drinks and making little snacks for the guests to eat.
"Hi Audrey, hi Nathan, you're the first ones, aren't you a little early? The shower doesn't start in an hour." said Duke.
"Hi Duke, I know I couldn't stop Audrey, she wanted to come early to see little Carly." replied Nathan.
"Oh yes blame me Nathan, you wanted to see her as much as me, just admit it, she's got you wrapped around her little finger." said Audrey.
"Who's got who wrapped around her little finger?" asked Liana with little Carly in her arms when she walked in The Grey Gull.
"Oh I was just saying that that little angel in your arms has wrapped uncle Nathan here around her little finger." replied Audrey while she leaned forward and tickled little Carly cheeks.
This made Carly giggle and laugh and that little laugh and giggle made everyone smile and laugh.
"Yes she sure has uncle Nathan wrapped around her little finger but not only uncle Nathan but also auntie Audrey and daddy and mommy." said Liana while hugging and kissing Carly.
"Oh I agree she's got us all wrapped under her little finger cause she's such a cutie." said Duke.
"Oh I have to change her, Audrey could you help me please, she can be a hand full cause she doesn't like to be changed. Nathan could you please help Duke with loading the beer in the storage room? The brewer just delivered it at the back. Thanks Nathan." said Liana while she walked towards the stairs to the apartment.
"I'm right after you Liana. Let's get miss cutie here changed. See you later guys." replied Audrey while she followed Liana.
"Sure no problem sweetie, come on Nathan, the sooner we start, the sooner it's done." said Duke.
"Ok but you owe me at least a few beers for helping you." replied Nathan.
A half hour was all the beer stored in the storage room and Nathan and Duke went back to the bar. Duke gave Nathan a beer and took one for himself too.
"So what's up Nathan?" asked Duke.
"Why do you ask that?" replied Nathan.
"You always have a certain look when something's up." said Duke.
"Well I've got some news about that nurse in the hospital but I better wait till Audrey and Liana are back. They need to hear this too." replied Nathan.
"We're here Nathan, what news do you have?" asked Liana.
"Well it's about the unknown nurse from the hospital. We found more information. Apparantly she's not a real nurse but a woman who lost her child at childbirth a few years ago. She never got over that and she tried several times to take a baby away in different hospitals luckely she never succeeded but sadly enough the police never got her apprehended till a few hours ago." told Nathan.
"Oh they got her? Who is she? That poor woman." said Liana.
"That poor woman? She tried to kidnap our little girl." said Duke.
"Yes I know but she lost her child, that's so sad. I know still it's not an excuse for trying to take somebody else's child. Still I feel sorry for her." replied Liana.
"Our collegues at Lunenburg stopped her cause she was speeding. They had a copie of the drawing that Vince made of her and they saw it was her, so they took her to their police station. When they took her fingerprints and saw that she was wanted in the USA for the same facts. The FBI is on their way to talk to her and take her back to the States. That's all we can say, we can't tell you her name cause we're not allowed to give additional information as long as the investigation of the FBI is still going." said Audrey.
"But from the moment we know more, we'll tell you but now you can be sure she's not coming back anymore." said Nathan.
"Thank you for telling us this. This is such a relief." replied Liana.
"Well this sounds for a double celebration." said Duke.
"Oh a double celebration, what else are we celebrating besides the baby shower?" asked Dave and Vince when they walked in.
"Well we're not only celebrating little Carly here coming into our lives and we just received some good news. The fake nurse is in custody. Nathan and Audrey can tell you guys all about that." replied Duke.
"Really? That's interesting and very good news! Nathan? Audrey?" asked Vince.
"We'll tell you everything we know tomorrow. Just come by the police station in the afternoon. Cause we took the morning off." replied Audrey.
"Sure no problem, we'll be there around 15 pm, is that ok for you two?" asked Dave.
"We'll be expecting you two then." said Nathan.
"Now where's that little star that came into our lives?" asked Vince.
"She's with Duke and Liana, they're so happy with her. I'm happy Duke found somebody like Liana. She's good for him and he's good for her. And Carly is a blessing, she makes them both so happy." replied Audrey.
"Ok let's go see if we can give her our little present, come on Vince." said Dave.
"Yes I'm with you Dave." replied Vince.
"Those two are hilarious sometimes. They're so sweet with Carly like grandfathers. That's so nice to look at." said Audrey.
"Yes they are and they can be a pain in the butt sometimes too. Be warned for tomorrow afternoon." said Nathan.
"Oh yes I know. So no better reason to drink a few beers." replied Audrey while winking at Nathan.
"Come on let's join everybody and by the way you still owe me a dance and Duke just put up the right song for a slow one." said Audrey and she pulled Nathan with her to the dance floor.
"Oh no Audrey you know I can't dance." replied Nathan with a big grin on his face.
"It's not dancing, just holding me in your arms and we'll move together on the rhythm." said Audrey.
"Look at Audrey and Nathan, they look so good together." said Liana.
"Yes they sure do, let's dance too." replied Duke.
"Sure but what about Carly? Oh wait I'll hold her like this and we can dance with the three of us." said Liana.
"Perfect idea!" replied Duke.
And they walked to the dance floor and Duke took them both into his arms and they danced like this for a while, just enjoying the moment together while Dave and Vince made lots of pics of them and the other guests.