Life Turned Around
Chapter 1
October 5, 1882
"NOW?"
Suzanne couldn't help laughing at Heath's reaction despite the fact that she felt like her insides were being turned insides out. "Now!" she said. It started out with the laugh, but it turned into pure agony by the time she reached the end of the word.
Heath jumped out of bed, pulled on his pants and boots, and ran outside to the bunkhouse. The ten ranch hands who helped him tend his growing spread all jumped straight out of bed at the same time.
"I need somebody to go to town and get the doc," Heath said. "Suzanne is having the baby, now!"
The men had drawn lots, just the previous morning, and the loser quickly climbed into his clothes and ran for his horse even as Heath ran back into his house.
Suzanne was still barely able to hold herself together as Heath came running back into the house. "Aw, heaping gobs of fire!" she screeched.
Heath quickly sat on the bed beside her. "How can I help? What can I do?"
"Stand up and catch this baby, because it's coming now!"
Heath jumped up – and there it was! A tiny little thing, perfectly still for just long enough to worry its father, then suddenly wailing at the top of its lungs and shaking its little fists back and forth.
"What do I do? What do I do?" Heath asked.
"Get the baby blanket, wrap him up, give him to me," Suzanne said, reaching.
"What about the cord?" Heath asked as he fetched the blanket and wrapped the squirming little thing into it.
"Forget about it for now," Suzanne said, breathing hard, covered with perspiration, as she took her baby into her arms.
And then, the baby grew quiet, snuggling into his mother's arms and against her breasts, whimpering just a bit.
"My God, that's it?" Heath asked. "Just like that?"
Suzanne began to laugh again. "They don't usually happen this fast, but yes, that's it. We just need to wait for the doctor – he'll cut the cord and do anything else that we need. Oh – hello, there!"
Somehow, hearing his wife say hello to his baby made Heath suddenly calm and warm all over. He pulled the blankets back up over his wife, leaving everything else to the doctor. Heath sat down beside his wife and his child.
The baby gurgled some more. Heath rubbed the back of its hand with his finger.
Suddenly he thought of something. "I don't know if it's a girl or a boy," Heath said.
Suzanne laughed again. "It's a boy. It's Heath Pearson Barkley. Say hello to your papa, Heath Barkley."
Heath Pearson – Heath's first name, and Suzanne's maiden name for his middle name. Just hearing the name and seeing the tiny face of his son made Heath's head begin to whirl with memories of the past six years – coming to the Barkley ranch, fighting for his place, earning the love and respect of this family, working beside the brother who at first resented him but then grew to love him, caring for the people who had taken him in, meeting this beautiful woman who was holding their baby, marrying her at the same time as Nick married his Nancy, the crazy shivaree after the wedding, the grandchildren now numbering four – J.J., Victoria Marie, Anthony Jarrod and now Heath Pearson. All in six years. A whole life turned around and rebuilt in six years.
Heath didn't feel the tears running down his face until Suzanne laughed and brushed them away for him.
"Hello, Heath," Heath said to his namesake.
Heath Pearson gurgled some more and began making sucking noises.
"Goodness, he's hungry already," Suzanne said and let her son latch on and nurse. "We're in for it!"
Heath laughed and watched his wife nurse their son, and he was never so completely happy in his entire life.
"What time is it?" Suzanne asked.
Heath wasn't sure. He looked to see if the sky was lightening, and it was just a bit. "Between nighttime and sunup," he said.
"So, it's October 5, 1882," Suzanne said, and then laughed. "Heath Pearson and J.J. are going to share a birthday!"
Heath realized that was true. Two years ago the first Barkley grandchild, Jarrod Thomas Junior, was born in this very room at the Grove. "How about that? I wonder what J.J. will think of his birthday present this year?"
"Well, you've seen how enthralled he's been with Victoria Marie and Anthony Jarrod," Suzanne said. "I think he'll be convinced that this is his very own baby."
Heath smoothed his wife's hair. "If you're all right for a minute, I'm gonna send someone over to tell Mother and Maggie and Nick and Nancy we have a new member of the family."
"Go ahead," Suzanne said.
Heath hurried outside and back to the bunkhouse, where the men were already getting up. They all looked at him, startled.
"He's here!" Heath said, beginning to laugh. "Heath Pearson Barkley is here!"
"Already?" his foreman, Kelly, said, giving voice to everybody else's surprise.
"Already," Heath said. "Send somebody over to my Mother's to tell everyone, will you?"
"How is everything? How's the missus?"
"Fine. Everything's fine."
"Impatient little bugger, wasn't he?" one of the other men said, and laughter went around, and then handshakes and backslapping between them and Heath and amongst each other. For a lot of the men, it was like their own son had just arrived.
"Majors, go," Kelly motioned to the youngest and biggest of the hands. "Heath, you just stay with your family today. We'll take care of the ranch."
Heath smiled, nodded, and said, "Thanks, thanks," to everyone.
Then he hurried back into the house, and found his wife asleep, and their son at her breast, but still nursing. Half an hour ago Heath had been sound asleep, and it was just him and his wife here together. Now, in only minutes, they were three, not two, and it was so beautiful to see. He'd never been happier in his life.
XXXXXXX
The doctor arrived in an hour or so, took care of the baby's umbilical cord and gave the child to his father while he saw to Suzanne. Heath was walking the baby around the living room when he heard horses come up to the house. When he saw Nick quietly peek through the front door, Heath broke into a big grin.
"Oh, my gosh," Nick said, came in, and Victoria and Maggie were with him.
Then there were ooohs and aahhs and cooing and tears and so much happiness the room nearly burst at the seams. "Give me that baby," Victoria said as Heath began to put Heath Pearson into her arms. "Oh, my, and who is this little one?"
"This is Heath Pearson Barkley," Heath said proudly. "About nine pounds, according to the doc. He's in there with Suzanne."
"My goodness, he's beautiful," Maggie said, and she began to cry. She was remembering giving birth to J.J. exactly two years before in this very house, but she did not want to say anything about it, at least not yet.
But then Heath reached for her and wiped her tears, saying, "Best birthday present we could come up with for J.J."
Maggie laughed then. "He'll love it. But don't tell him Heath Pearson is his present, or he won't give him back."
"Nancy's staying with J.J. and Tony," Nick said, "but you can bet she'll have me back over here as soon as the rest of us get home."
Heath looked up at his older brother, his best friend, the man who had had his own son earlier in the year under difficult circumstances. He was worried for a moment Nick might be envious that Heath Pearson had been such an easy birth, but one look at the grin that grew on his older brother's face put that concern to rest. Heath reached for Nick at the same time Nick reached for him, and they slapped each other on the back.
The doctor came out then, all smiles. "I thought I heard more Barkleys arriving. Heath, your wife is just fine. Ladies, you might want to go on in and help her get into some fresh bedclothes. Frankly, I think she can be up and around tomorrow or the next day, she's doing very well."
Victoria handed the baby back to Heath, and she and Maggie went in to help Suzanne.
"You know what I want to do for Mother for Christmas?" Nick asked.
"What?" Heath asked back.
"We need to get you and me and Nancy and Suzanne and Maggie and the kids and have a big photograph taken, with a big beautiful frame," Nick said. "Don't tell her. I want it to be a secret."
"Well, I expect you can have that done," the doctor said. "This little man will be in fine fettle by December. Congratulations, Heath." Then the doctor heaved a big sigh and looked around. "Something about this house seems to breed October babies."
"October 5th babies," Heath reminded him.
"You're right!" Dr. Merar said. "How about that?"
Nick back-slapped Heath again, thinking about that day two years earlier when they welcomed J.J. into the clan, watching their older brother walk his son around this room the way Heath was walking Heath Pearson now. They wished Jarrod were here with them now, but somehow, just watching the way life unfolded over and over again made them smile anyway. It was wonderful.