Chapter Forty-Seven

Brady and Craig stood together outside of Chloe's hospital room. Brady looked through the blinds on the window, and Craig patted him on the shoulder.

"She should be awake soon. I'll uhm... leave you two alone. I've got to go check on the baby."

Brady nodded, but kept his gaze fixed on Chloe's still form lying in bed. "Thank you, Craig. Thank you."

Craig turned around and walked away. Brady paused for a moment and then pushed his way through the door and into Chloe's room. She was lying on her back, her hair spread around the pillow behind her. She looked paler than he had ever seen her, but just as beautiful as always.

Brady pulled a stool up close to her bed and reached for her hand, gently taking it in his own. She was attached to an IV that was sending her medication to ease the pain from the surgery. Other than that, she looked normal. She looked sweet, peaceful and content. Brady leaned forward and kissed her on the forehead, brushing a piece of hair away from her face as he moved away and sat back down.

He probably could have sat there and watched her sleeping for hours. Just the sound of her steady breathing, and warmth of her hand touching his was like a blanket of comfort that wrapped around him.

But, he wouldn't have to watch her for much longer. Her eyelids fluttered slightly and a quiet sound escaped from her lips, a cross between a sigh and an attempt at saying something. It took her a minute to get her eyes to open all the way. Thankfully the lights in the room were dim and not too harsh for her bleary eyes. She weakly turned her head and looked straight up at his smiling face.

"Brady..."

Brady squeezed her hand and nodded. "Hey Diva... Welcome back."

Chloe's voice was quiet, barely above a whisper. "The baby... Where's the baby?"

"He's in the neonatal intensive care. He's pretty sick, Chloe. But, they're doing everything they can to help him."

"A boy?'

Brady nodded, and felt a few hot tears began to spill down his cheeks. "That's right. Our son."

Chloe lifted her other hand towards his face and weakly wiped away his tears. "Brady... you're crying. I've never seen you cry."

"I'm happy."

"You're sad."

Brady nodded in agreement; he never could hide anything from his diva's eyes. "I'm both."

Chloe tried to nod, but she didn't quite have the strength to pull it off. "Because of the baby. Have... have you seen him?"

"Not yet, but Craig says I can soon. Only through an incubator though."

Chloe's face contorted with sadness, and she suddenly burst out in tears. Craig had mentioned on the way up here that her emotions would be very fragile because of her physical condition and because of the medicine she was on. Brady did the best he could to pull her into his arms and hold her as she sobbed into his chest. But, he had to be careful with her, as not to disrupt her incision or cause her any more pain than she was already in.

He gently stroked her hair and let her cry, without saying a word. When her sobs began to subside and her tears slowed down, he finally whispered words of comfort to her. "It's okay, everything is going to be fine. He's a fighter, just like his mother, and he's going to make it."

Chloe lifted her head and looked up into his eyes. "Why did this happen? Did I do something wrong?"

Brady shook his head vehemently. "Chloe, you didn't do anything wrong. Craig said that this was just something that happens in some cases. You took such good care of yourself that nothing you did could have caused this. It's not your fault... it's nobody's fault."

He gently laid her back down on her pillow and leaned forward to kiss the tracks of the tears that had fallen down her cheeks. Chloe sighed softly before attempting to speak, her tears finally stopping altogether.

"Brady... I want to hold him. I want to hold my baby."

"I know. And, you will... very soon. But, you have to focus on yourself for once. Let me worry about our son. You just feel better, so you and the baby can come home with me as soon as possible."

Chloe nodded slightly and made an attempt to smile. "I was so scared. But... I knew you would be here when I woke up. I knew you would be waiting for me."

Brady smiled happily and squeezed her hand. "Of course I would. We made a promise to each other. I'm never going to leave you, no matter what."

"I love you so much, Brady."

"I love you too. You... Chloe... are my everything."

She looked so tired and so weak, but Brady could still see the strength of her spirit shining brightly in her eyes. Nothing could ever keep his Diva down for long, that was for certain. He knew it was hard for her to speak right now, but no words were needed for him to understand what she was thinking and feeling.

The door opened and Dr. Kelly McCormack entered the room. She was smiling, but Brady could tell she was quite tired after a very busy night.

"Hey... I came in to check on my favorite patient."

Chloe coughed slightly, her throat was dried out from her ordeal. "Favorite? Do all of your favorite patients cause this much trouble?"

The doctor shrugged nonchalantly. "I wish all of my patients were as strong as you are, Chloe. You're definitely a fighter, and so is your son."

Brady looked up at Dr. McCormack and smiled in appreciation. "I have to thank you... Whatever happened in that operating room, you saved my Chloe's life, and my baby. Thank you for bringing them back to me."

"You're welcome... But, it's not me you need to be thanking. I'm sure he won't take all of the credit for it, but Craig Wesley is the real hero tonight. He... he's the one that saved your chances of having another baby. It was Dr. Wesley who convinced us that we could save her life without performing a hysterectomy. And, it was Dr. Wesley who saved your son's life."

"But... I thought that doctors weren't allowed to treat their own family."

Dr. McCormack nodded affirmatively. "They're not, and technically, he didn't treat either of them. But, there is no doubt in my mind that Chloe and your baby are still here because of his knowledge and expertise... And, the way he motivated the rest of the surgical team was amazing."

Chloe coughed again and smiled slightly. "That doesn't surprise me at all."

"So, Chloe... How are you feeling?"

"Tired... sore... drugged."

The doctor grinned and nodded in understanding. "Good."

Chloe used all of the strength she had to raise one skeptical eyebrow. "Good? How is that good?"

"Because, that's exactly how you should be feeling right now. But, after lots of rest, you'll be just fine. The incision will hurt for a while, but it won't take long for you to be back to normal again."

The door opened again and Craig peeked his head around it. "Hey, Brady... why don't you come with me for a minute?"

Brady nodded and leaned over to kiss Chloe, giving her a hand a squeeze before he let go. "I'll be right back, Diva."

Chloe smiled slightly and rasped out an answer. "Alright... I'm not going anywhere."

He winked at her and went outside the door, where Craig was standing with Nancy. Nancy was fidgeting nervously and she looked up at Brady anxiously.

"Well, how is she? How's my little girl?"

"She's tired, and still pretty drugged out from all the medication. But, she's okay. She was scared at first when I told her about the baby, worried that it was because of something she did. But, I reassured her that it's not her fault... I think she's okay."

Nancy nodded and smiled with relief. "Well, if she'll believe anyone that everything is okay, I know it's you."

Craig wrapped his arm around her shoulder and kissed his wife on the cheek. "I know you're about to explode Nanc, so go on in and see your daughter."

Nancy kissed him back and practically squealed with delight. She quickly let go of Craig and headed into Chloe's room. Brady looked at his father-in-law with his eyebrows raised curiously.

"So, what exactly do you need me for?"

Craig grinned slightly and gripped Brady's arm with his hand. "You ready to meet your son?"

Brady took a step back in surprise, his jaw dropping as he stared at Craig. "Right now?"

"If you want to."

"I... I do."

"Alright then, follow me."

Craig led him to the NICU and into a room off to the side. He handed Brady a set of dark blue scrubs and a surgical mask. "Here you go. Just put these on, wash up as good as you can, get a pair of gloves out of the box, and the nurse will let you in when you're ready."

Brady smiled in appreciation and nodded. "Thank you, Craig."

"You're welcome. I'm going to go back and see my daughter. Congratulations, new dad."

Craig winked at him and walked away, leaving Brady in a haze. He was a father, and now the life of a human being depended on him. It was the greatest responsibility a person could ever have, but he wasn't afraid of it, he was excited and proud.

Brady quickly cleaned himself up and followed the instructions for visitors to the NICU. When he was finished and ready to go, he tapped the window with his elbow and the nurse on duty came over to open the door.

"Mr. Black, right?"

"That's me. I'm here to see my son."

She nodded and smiled at him politely, motioning towards the middle of the room where his son was attached to monitors, and sleeping peacefully inside his incubator. He followed her over to the incubator and she gave him a stool so he could sit down.

His first glimpse of his newborn child nearly made him topple over in amazement. He was so tiny, but he looked very good, especially considering his fragile condition.

The nurse gave him a few last minute instructions before walking away. "You can put your hands in through the holes on the front, just be very gentle. We don't want to disturb any of the equipment. You are wearing gloves, correct?"

Brady held up his hands for inspection and she nodded approvingly. "Good... I'll leave you alone now. Congratulations, Mr. Black."

Brady nodded and waited until she walked away before looking back at his son, guarded by the clear walls around him. Brady had thought that falling in love with Chloe was the most powerful thing he would feel in his entire life, but he was wrong. Staring at his son for the first time was just as amazing, if not even more so.

He carefully inserted one hand into the left hole of the incubator, and brushed his gloved fingers over the baby's feet. Ten perfect little toes. He moved up to his fingers and smiled. Ten perfect little fingers.

During her pregnancy, Brady and Chloe had always argued over who they thought their baby would look like. Brady swore it would be dark-haired like it's mother, but Chloe had bet him twenty bucks that the baby would be a blonde like it's father. It looked to him like Chloe had won this bet. Their son had a swirl of blonde hair surrounding his head that was exactly the same color that Brady had when he was first born.

He reached his other hand in and gently brushed his baby's head. "Hey, son... Do you know how lucky you are?"

Brady sighed deeply, yearning to be able to hold his son, but unable to until his heartbeat and breathing improved. "You have been born to the absolute best mother you could ever ask for. You're really going to love her. She's the most beautiful woman I have ever seen, and she's got the kindest heart. She's so smart, much smarter than me really, although I'd never admit that to her. So don't you ever tell her I said that."

Brady chuckled softly and continued to stroke his baby's sweet, adorable face with his index finger. "She's so strong. She saved my life, and because she did, we created you together. Our love brought you here, and it's going to keep you here too. Your mom is the most stubborn person, and she fights and never gives up until the bitter end. You just have to fight too, and I know you will. I just thought I'd tell you a little bit about her before you get to meet her. That way you know exactly what you're getting into... being born into this crazy family of ours."

The baby sighed softly, and Brady was sure he was going to melt at the sound of it. As tough as he always acted, he had realized recently that inside he was just a big softie. "Our family, all of them, is a little crazy sometimes. But, they are the most amazing group of people on the planet. You have aunts, uncles, cousins, grandparents and great-grandparents who already love you so much. So, no matter how weird you think your family is, remember how much they all love you."

Brady paused and looked at his son intently. He knew that his love with Chloe must be some sort of magic, because it had created something so perfect out of just one night together. "I love you so much... and your mother loves you too. Please be strong, and hold on because we need you."

Brady held back his tears this time, already having cried enough tonight to last a lifetime. "I may not always be perfect, kiddo, but I'm going to love you and take care of you as best as I can. I'm going to make sure you have the happiest life I can give you."

He sat there and watched him for a long time, watching every tiny movement that he made in his sleep. IF there was such a thing as a miracle, then the new life before him was solid evidence that a miracle had taken place in his life tonight.

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