Hey sorry it's been a while since updating. I've been so busy recently and have had a bad case of writer's block! This isn't the best chapter but it's basically about Connie's decision. Please read and review! xxxx

Chapter Four

Grace lay sleeping in her bed, her long brunette locks sprawled across her pillow and her mouth was slightly open as she snored gently. Her mother sat on the edge of the bed, gazing at her. Connie's mind was racing, she thought about this baby in front of her and the one growing inside of her. She couldn't abort the baby, it didn't feel right but neither did raising the baby. She'd failed with Grace, so she'd definitely fail with this one. So why not give somebody else who deserved and desperately longed to be a parent, the chance to be one? But then how could she let go of something that would feel so much like a part of her? She thought about the first night she brought Grace home and how lucky and wonderful she felt that Summer's evening back in 2007.

Connie gently placed Grace in her Moses basket beside her bed. Her eyes didn't leave her daughter for a second, she couldn't stop gazing at her. How could this perfect bundle of joy really be hers? She'd never felt such love for anything or anyone ever before in her life.

"You're so beautiful." Connie whispered gently as her baby lay sleeping, her eyes tightly shut and her mouth slightly open. "I thought I was going to lose you. I was so scared, Grace." The heart surgeon stroked her daughter's cheek with her thumb as her soft toned voice filled the air.

"It felt like I'd been given the entire world. But then to be told it was going to be snatched away from me, the moment I got it." She paused, a sad smile gracing her face as she thought back to the previous weeks of worry, "But luckily, my world is you. And my little girl doesn't give up easily. So you have made me the happiest person on this planet, I'm never letting you go. I love you baby."

"Mum?" Grace sat up sleepily, rubbing her eyes, woken by her mother dropping her phone on the floor as she had tried to quietly get up off of the bed.

"Sorry, darling. Shh, it's ok. Go back to sleep." Connie whispered, gently laying her daughter back down and stroking her cheek.

"What were you doing?" Grace asked, her eyebrow raised, wondering as to why her mother wasn't in her own room. "If you was looking for my diary, it's not in here, it's at Dads so you're not going to have any luck."

A stifled laugh escaped Connie's lips, "No, no Gracie. I wasn't looking for your diary, sweetheart. I was just checking on you." She whispered, before placing a kiss on her forehead.

"I'm not a baby, I don't need checking on." She sighed, rolling over, "God. You and dad think I'm about five."

"You'll always be my baby." The mum whispered, a hint of sadness in her voice, "Grace?"

"What? I want to go back to sleep. And if it wasn't for you treating me like a baby, I still would be asleep!" Grace sighed, rolling her eyes.

"I know, I know, and I'm sorry. But I really just need to tell you something. And then you can go back to sleep, I promise." Connie sat back down on the edge of her daughter's bed, and patted her arm gently, "I can't leave without telling you. But I don't want you to be sad, ok?"

The little girl slowly sat up again, a frown stitched across her brow, "What?"

The 45 year old braced herself, trying to think of the right words before she hesitantly opened her mouth and let the words spill out.

"I'm having a baby, Grace."

It was Connie's first day back at work after her holiday, and as she walked briskly through the corridor with a decaf coffee in one hand and a bundle of papers in the other, Zoe spotted her and raced over with a huge grin on her face.

Zoe began to open her mouth to speak and Mrs Beauchamp didn't even glance at her before saying bluntly, "Silence is golden. Duct tape is silver. Thank you DR. Hanna."

"I see the hormones are raging already then." Zoe rolled her eyes before stopping and placing her hand gently on the clinical leads arm, "Connie, I just wanted to congratulate you."

Connie lowered her voice, and frowned, causing lines on her head to appear and almost ruin her beautiful face, "How do you know?"

"Grace. She emailed me yesterday, bless her. She's so excited, I bet you are too. Have you told Henrik yet?"

She shook her head, "I'd really appreciate if you could keep this to yourself. I wasn't planning on announcing my personal life to the whole of the ED, I'm not even 12 weeks yet, Zoe."

"Relax! Grace just emailed me, she didn't put a massive poster up in the staff room announcing it." Zoe whispered, looking down at the clipboard in her hand, "Right I best get on, anyway. It's been a nightmare today. I'll see you later, Connie."

The clinical lead watched as the consultant wandered off into the busy emergency department, and considered herself lucky that Grace had emailed probably the most trustworthy colleague she had. Connie carried on walking down towards her office, only to be stopped again, this time by Cal.

"Ah Mrs B! Looking very tanned. Did you have a good holiday?" He asked, walking along beside her.

"Dr. Knight, was there anything specific you wanted? Or have you simply graced me with your irritating presence just to agitate me?" She snapped, glancing at her watch.

"Fortunately for you, Mrs Beauchamp, not the latter. No, I was wondering, with regards to next week, could I possibly-?"

"No." Connie's icy tone, cutting him off before he even had chance to ask for the week off.

"How could you possibly know what I-?"

"Because you are as predictable as a Saw film. If you had gone through the correct procedure and requested holiday 3 weeks ago, I maybe could have authorised it, Dr. Knight." She interrupted him again before turning the door handle of her office, "Now if you do excuse me, I have more pressing things to attend to."

Cal stormed off annoyed, he stomped over to reception where Charlie, Lofty and Dylan were stood.

"That woman really does need to re-evaluate how she communicates to people!" Cal huffed, throwing his notes onto the side.

"Who?" The white haired nurse, asked, his eyebrow raised.

"Who do you think?" Cal snorted, shaking his head.

"Evidently the ice queen." Dylan mumbled, picking up the phone and tapping some numbers into it.

"She practically bit my head off from the moment I said hello to her." Dr Knight ran his hand through his hair as Dylan glanced up from the phone.

"Menopausal."

"What? Mrs Beauchamp is menopausal or Cal is menopausal?" Lofty joined in the conversation as Connie slowly walked up behind them all.

"Mrs Beauchamp. God that woman's been menopausal most of her life." Dylan carried on, unaware of his boss's presence.

She tapped Dylan on the shoulder, "Are you quite finished Dr. Keogh? Good. Please come and join me in my office in 5 minutes, thank you."