Chapter 5

Joey sat in the hospital chair, cradling his newborn baby son. Next to him a doctor was stitching Martina. "Just half-a-dozen external ones luv," he'd announced cheerfully. Still sounded a lot to Joey.

"Here you are duck." A friendly nurse gave him a bottle of milk.

"I've already tested the temperature so you're good to go." She beamed at him.

Joey smiled back, he was still awestruck by it all. Seeing his baby make his entrance into the world had been the most wonderful thing that had ever happened to him.

"Just tickle his lips with it."

Joey gently rubbed it across the baby's lips, he parted them and sucked lazily. At the same time he opened his eyes and it felt to Joey that he was looking straight into his. And oh my word Joey didn't have the vocabulary to describe the feelings that were overwhelming him, he just stared at his son, love-struck at the tiny new life he and Martina had created.

A tap on his head broke the spell.

"Any chance I could see me son for a minute?" Martina was smirking at him.

"Course sweetheart."

He stood up and placed him in her arms, perching on the side of the bed, one arm around her shoulders. He kissed her ear. "How you feeling?"

"Sore." Martina was gazing down with the softest expression Joey had ever seen on her face.

The baby moved his arm and Joey caught sight of the blue tag, baby Delaney written on it. He caught his breath. They hadn't done anything about getting married even though Martina was free to, her divorce having come through very quickly.

"Joey have you rung your mam and my mam?" Martina spoke without taking her eyes off the baby.

"Not yet sweetheart. Would you like me to?"

"Please."

The baby opened his mouth and gave a sudden angry cry.

Joey passed her the bottle. "I'll do it now."

Martina placed the teat in his mouth and his protests stopped.

Joey was nervous, he'd never met or spoken to Martina's mam, so he found the idea of ringing her with the news that she'd become a grandmother daunting.

He rang Nellie first. "Mam? It's Joey. Martina had the baby about half an hour ago and it's a lad."

"Oh Joey, oh Joey luv. That's wonderful. How are they?" Nellie was ecstatic.

"Both fine mam. He was 8lb 12."

"A good weight Joey, especially as he was a fortnight early."

"Mam, can you let the others know for me?"

"Course luv. I'll be down for afternoon visiting, if that's alright?"

"Be fine mam. We'll see you then."

He tried his dad, no answer. Probably at work. He was still pushing his hot dog cart round the streets. Joey didn't want to contemplate the alternative.

He rang off and dialled the number Martina had given him.

"Mrs Delaney?"

"Speaking."

"It's Joey, just calling to let you know that Martina's had the baby, a boy, 8lb 12 and they're both well. We're at Oxford Street."

There was a silence. Joey wondered if he should break it. He knew from Martina that her mam had been disapproving, but it was her first grandchild after all.

"Thank you for calling." Her voice broke the silence then she disconnected.

Joey shrugged and made his way back to Martina.

"What did me mam say?"

"Thanks for letting me know."

"Did she say she'd visit?"

"Er, no sweetheart she didn't. But she's at work, isn't she?" Joey tried to be as tactful as he could.

"Mmm." Martina scowled. She hadn't been expecting her mam to jump for joy but a visit this evening would've been nice.

"And your mam?"

"She asked if she could come in this afternoon. I said it'd be alright." Joey was tentative, hopeful that Martina wouldn't mind, and mindful to downplay his mam's excitement.

"Course, it'll be good to see her." She handed the sleeping baby to Joey, and shifted around trying to get comfortable.

"Any inspiration?" Joey contemplated their son.

"No, but there's no rush. We've got six weeks before we have to register him." Martina was fascinated watching Joey's face utterly absorbed by the baby.

Martina had ruled out choosing names, saying she'd rather wait until the baby was born. She'd gone through the whole pregnancy it seemed to Joey in a daze. She'd barely got anything ready and had been so vague about what she wanted that her colleagues had given her vouchers. Loretta had passed on a carrycot, the linen and some first sized clothes but that was about it. Determined to work until the last legal time, she'd only finished four weeks ago. It'd been Joey who'd had the foresight to get carrycot straps fixed to the back seat of the Jag, and prepare a bag in accordance with the leaflet handed out by the clinic.

Joey broke the silence, "I still fancy Romulus, after all he was conceived in Rome."

Martina started laughing. "Don't be ridiculous. He can't go through life called Romulus Boswell, he'd get ripped."

Joey tried hard not to show his delight. They'd not discussed whose name he'd carry, but it seemed like she was agreeable to his. He couldn't begin to say how much that meant to him. After all he had no legal status whatsoever.

"Mrs Delaney, we'll be moving you onto the ward now." An orderly appeared with a wheelchair for Martina and a plastic bag for her things, which he gave to Joey.

Joey glanced around the ward, it seemed full and noisy but Martina had refused his offer of Sandfield Park and had insisted on The Liverpool Maternity. Nellie had been outraged, but Martina had just laughed and said if it was good enough for John Lennon to be born in it was good enough for her. Martina was a vociferous trade unionist, there was no way she'd agree to go private. Although Nellie liked her own way she sensed that Martina was her own woman, who wouldn't back away from her principles. And like Joey she was aware that contact with this baby depended on Martina's goodwill. She'd been haranguing Joey to marry her, unable to comprehend their reluctance.

They were in a corner bed, that was something thought Joey. "Er sweetheart, when we get some visitors I'll slip out and get some bits so can we make a list?"

"Oh, yeah right. I suppose we need bottles, milk, steriliser thing, and the liquid stuff. Um, nappies, bath stuff, bath, towel, nappy cream." She paused. "Bibs, I remember Loretta saying that was the only thing not in that bag."

"Pram?"

"No, the carrycot fits onto a chassis, it's upstairs."

"Cot, highchair?" Joey was racking his brain, trying to think of baby things.

"Not yet, he won't need them straight off, we can choose them together. I'm sure your mam will see to him while we go." Martina had serious misgivings about Joey's somewhat flamboyant taste.

"Course she will, try stopping her. Julie's never let her do anything with Francesca, so she'll be over the moon to be asked."

Joey felt better, he'd been worried about Martina's state of mind. It was like she'd been unwilling to accept her pregnancy, now he was here she seemed to have snapped out of it.

Joey's phone went. It was Adrian.

"Oh Joey it's wonderful I'm, I'm," he sounded near to tears.

"Pull yourself together Adrian." Joey didn't want to hear which of his neuroses was hanging by a thread.

"It's great being a father isn't it?"

Joey winced as Billy's less than dulcet tones came through the earpiece.

"Er, I expect so Billy. Is dad there?" Nor did he want his good mood shattered by a tirade of complaints about Julie.

"No."

"No sweat. See you later." He put the phone back in his pocket, nothing yet from Aveline. He wondered how she was going to cope, nearly a year married and no sign of pregnancy even though her and Oswald were desperate for a baby. Well Aveline was, he wasn't so sure about Oswald.

He looked down at the baby, sleeping in the cot next to Martina.

"What about Romeo?"

The look Martina shot him gave him the strong impression that it was a no go.

"Pearse." Martina spoke nonchalantly.

"Bit political Martina." Joey frowned, he wasn't sure about saddling his first born with such a charged name.

"Michael then." She responded with a smirk.

"As in Collins?" He was still frowning.

"Does it matter?" Her smirk widened.

"Can I think about it? I mean Michael will think we've named the baby after him." Joey was going to hedge his bets on this one.

"Who said I hadn't?" She was close to cracking up now.

"Martina!" Joey had to laugh. "I know how you're thinking, you'll be telling me Patrick next."

She joined in his laughter, "Joey, there's no rush to decide. Anyway surely it'd be Padraig?"

He shook his head, smiling fondly at her.

A nurse bustled in to check Martina's blood pressure. "That's good Mrs Delaney. We'll be serving lunch soon. Try to get some rest afterwards."

She nodded towards Joey. "There's a canteen available if you need anything."

"Difficult to get rest in here sweetheart, its like Piccadilly Circus, all the comings and goings."

"It's only natural they want to check up on their patients Joey. Anyway it's only a 48 hour stay unless either of us develops complications."

"48 hours? Is that all?" Joey was shocked. Sandfield Park had kept Julie in for a fortnight when Francesca was born. "Hardly worth coming in."

"Course it is Joey. If there are any complications you're in the right place."

"What's your dad's name?" Joey was back thinking about names.

"Bernie, not a chance and not Freddie either." Martina spoke with an air of finality.

The lunch trolley came round.

"I'll go down to the canteen out of the way."

Joey took himself out of the ward, but instead of the canteen took himself over to The Oxford where, Jack being away and unable to track down his dad, he rang Michael to join him in wetting the baby's head.

Martina set the machine's controls and turned round as she heard Nellie's greeting.

"I'll put the kettle on Nellie luv."

Nellie looked shocked to see Martina in the kitchen.

"Let me, you sit down." Really she thought crossly what was Joey doing leaving her to tend to domestic things three days after giving birth.

"Where's my gorgeous grandson then?"

"Sleeping." Martina held onto the worktop for support, an action not missed by Nellie who narrowed her eyes.

"Ah. And Joey?"

"Reading the paper when I left him."

"Hmm." Nellie pursed her lips, "well go and join him and I'll bring the coffee through."

"Thanks."

Martina was grateful for Nellie's help. Her mam had paid a brief visit, held and smiled at the baby, handed over a card with some money to her and left. She had barely acknowledged Joey, much to Martina's embarrassment. She was feeling exhausted and sore. It was hard in reality to follow the hospital advice to take plenty of rest for a few days, and she'd been up and down more than she should have been.

"Joey, can you come in here a minute?" Nellie called through.

"Mam?" He stuck his head around the door.

"Right in Joey, I'd like to see the face has a body." Nellie had her 'voice' on, the one she used when she was about to bawl out one of her children.

Joey came through and shut the door as Nellie indicated.

"Just what," she demanded, "do you think you're doing Joey Boswell? Allowing that poor girl to be up and doing a couple of days after giving birth, while you sit around reading newspapers."

"But mam," Joey tried to get a word in.

"Don't you but mam me, you should be ashamed of yourself." Nellie's lips had got thinner and thinner until they almost disappeared.

"Take her tray and I'll see to the washing."

Martina couldn't help smiling to herself as she heard this exchange. Nellie had so pampered her children that they were hopeless when it came to everyday chores. She had often wondered how Aveline was managing in a home of her own. Or not as the case may be, given the argument that she'd overhead one time between her and Oswald.

It seemed a bit late for Nellie to be nagging Joey for his shortcomings now, though it was amusing listening to Joey feebly trying to defend himself against his mam's lecture. To be fair he'd tried, done some shopping, although she'd had to write everything down for him, attempted dinner, the resultant mess had been binned and a takeaway ordered yet again, and managed a bit of haphazard cleaning and tidying. Martina made a pledge to herself that their son was going to learn a few domestic survival skills along the way to adulthood.

Joey and Nellie came back in, Nellie fussing round Martina and plumping up her cushions.

"You need to take it easy Martina, and you," she leant forward and poked Joey, "need to pull your weight a bit more. That's why they should keep you in for longer, all this letting you out early."

"Ok mam, ok now." Joey decided to humour his mam, aware that Martina was doing her utmost not to laugh.

The baby opened his eyes, stopping Nellie in her tracks. "Can I?"

"Course luv."

Nellie lifted him up tenderly and nursed him. For once words failed her. She sent a silent prayer of thanks heavenwards. Thanks for his safe delivery, thanks that it wasn't that Roxy that Joey'd got pregnant, thanks that Martina was warm and welcoming towards her.

"Have you thought of a name yet?"

"No, not one we can agree on. I want Pearse and he wants Romulus. We'll have to compromise." Martina poked her tongue out at Joey.

"Ye-es." Poor little soul thought Nellie. "And are you having him baptised?"

"Yeah, course."

Joey looked up surprised. He'd never seen Martina go to mass.

"Do you have an issue with that Joey?" Martina demanded looking at him with her frostiest DHSS lady face.

"No, not really." He was aware of both his mam and Martina looking askance at him. "No, not at all." He corrected himself.

"Which parish are you luv?"

"St Phillip's in Catherine Street."

"I know, lovely church, has the Spanish Garden."

Nellie beamed, her first grandson and a proper baptism, not like that farce of a ceremony they'd had to endure for Francesca.

She sat back in her chair ready to give him his feed as soon as he wanted it, and felt, for the first time in a long, long while, probably since before Freddie started up with that tart, at one with the world.