Starting Now (35 page)

“Hello, Peter,” she whispered.

He turned abruptly. “They won’t let me see her. I’d like to at least look at her.”

“She’s beautiful,” Libby whispered. “Let me see what I can do.”

Libby found a staff member she knew and explained the situation so that Peter would be allowed in the nursery area.

“I didn’t know Ava was pregnant,” he said as they rode the elevator up together.

That didn’t shock Libby, seeing as how Ava hadn’t known herself until she was eight months along.

“She should have told me.”

“It wouldn’t have changed anything,” Libby said, feeling sorry for the youth.

“I suppose,” he murmured, but he didn’t sound convinced.

The elevator doors opened and they stepped out. Peter went right away to the nursery window. His hands remained in his pockets. Libby noticed the sheen in his eyes. “Would you like to hold her?” she asked.

Peter looked away from the nursery and then slowly nodded.

Peter Armstrong, dressed in a protective gown, looked strangely out of place in the nursery. He wore ragged jeans and beat-up tennis shoes with untied laces. Tall and lanky, the fifteen-year-old’s prominent Adam’s apple wobbled up and down as Libby had him sit down and then handed him his daughter.

The teenager looked down at Amy Jo for several seconds before he spoke. “She’s so tiny.”

“She’s a fighter; she’s already gaining weight.”

“How come she’s still in the hospital? Ava’s at home.”

Libby stood behind him and looked down at her daughter. “Amy Jo had a few problems breathing on her own at first; that’s why the doctors are keeping her, to make sure her lungs develop more before she goes home. We can take her out of the incubator for short periods of time.”

He twisted around to look up at Libby. “She won’t die, will she?”

Life held few guarantees, but according to all the information
Libby had received, the baby should do well. The fact that Amy Jo was an enthusiastic eater encouraged Libby. “She’s doing great, so you don’t need to worry.”

Peter continued to hold the infant, although his arms were stiff and his back unnaturally straight. “I saw Ava. We didn’t talk. I didn’t know what to say.”

“In time you’ll find the right words.” Libby hardly knew what to tell him.

Peter rocked for a bit longer. “You named her Amy?”

“Amy Jo. Ava liked it, too. How do you feel about her name?”

Peter shrugged one shoulder. “It’s all right, I guess. I heard … you’re going to adopt her?”

“I already feel that she’s part of my heart.” Libby placed her hand on his shoulder. She knew that the attorney she’d hired had already contacted Peter and his family.

“I … I didn’t think I’d feel anything for her … but I do,” Peter whispered. “I want her to have a good life with a family who will love her.”

“I love her, Peter. With all my heart I love her. She’ll be my daughter but she’ll always be part of you, too.” Libby felt it was necessary to assure the youth that she would tell Amy Jo one day about her young father and how she’d wrapped herself around his heart, too. Libby gently squeezed the teenager’s shoulder. He held Amy Jo for several minutes, and then very sweetly bent down and kissed her brow. He lifted the newborn up and Libby took her daughter and gently set her back inside the incubator. When she looked up she saw that Peter had tears in his eyes.

Reaching out, she hugged him and patted his back several times.

“I … I should go,” he said, sniffling. They broke apart and he ran his forearm below his nose. “I didn’t tell my parents where I was going and it’s past my curfew.”

The irony of that caused Libby to smile. This young man was old enough to father a child and he had to hurry home because of a curfew. “I’ll drop you off,” Libby told him.

“You don’t need to do that.”

“I’m headed that way myself.” Not true, but she wanted to see him home.

Once in the hospital parking garage, Peter climbed into the car and closed the door. Libby sat beside him and started the engine. They rode in silence for a couple of blocks before Peter spoke again.

“Before Ava could even tell me about the baby, her grandmother came over and started shouting at my mom and dad and said she was going to have the police arrest me.”

“You don’t need to worry.”

“I know. My dad called a friend of his who works on the police force and he assured my parents that Mrs. Carmichael could threaten us all she wants but she can’t legally do anything against me.”

“Were your parents upset?” Libby asked. She could only imagine how they must have felt, finding out this way that their son had fathered a child at fifteen.

“My mom started to cry and my dad sat me down and we talked, you know, about really serious stuff. He said he regretted the fact that we hadn’t talked like that a lot sooner.”

“That’s important.”

“Yeah,” Peter agreed.

“How’s your mom doing now?”

He shrugged and lifted his shoulder in a halfhearted shrug. “She’s still pretty upset. Most of the time she’s been on the phone with her mother and older sister.”

“Moms need time to process things,” Libby told him, knowing how important it’d become to discuss matters with her own support system, especially with all the life-changing decisions she’d made lately.

“I guess. Her and Dad have been talking a lot, too, but they haven’t said much to me. I guess I should be glad they didn’t ground me or send me away to live with relatives, but, you know, I sort of wish they had.”

“I imagine they have a great deal to think about. This news must have hit them pretty hard.”

Peter kept his head down. “I never knew how bad I’d feel disappointing
my parents. I … I feel like I let Ava down, too, but I honestly didn’t know. I would have helped her if I had. I mean, I would have tried to help her.”

“I know you would have.”

She turned down his street and pulled up in front of his house. The porch light was on, while Ava’s house was completely dark. Libby would have stopped to check on her if there’d been any indication anyone was awake. Ava and Libby had talked several times since Ava’s release and the girl had revealed amazing resilience. She planned to meet Casey at the yarn store the following day.

“Thanks for the ride,” Peter said, before closing the car door.

“Not a problem.”

Libby drove away and headed home. It’d been a full, exciting day for her, filled with promise and potential.

First thing in the morning, Libby would schedule an appointment with the Buckleys and see how she might best serve them. She’d contact Martha Reed, too, and thank her for the referral. While she had the older woman on the phone, Libby would make sure Burkhart, Smith & Crandall had held up their end of the bargain and that Mrs. Reed’s expectations had been met.

The following morning Libby woke with a feeling of expectation. She worked out at the gym, but Phillip wasn’t there, which disappointed her. The slouch had either slept in or been called to the hospital on an emergency. She’d find out later. Robin didn’t show, either, but she generally exercised only three times a week. Later, when she had a spare moment, Libby would catch up with Robin and find out how the rest of her evening had gone with the judge. From all outward appearances—at the fund-raiser and afterward—it seemed to be going very well. Very well indeed.

Libby arrived at her office and contacted the Buckleys and set up an appointment for later that same day. She was psyched. The Buckleys were eager to hear what she had to say and had already given her contact information for the friend they’d mentioned the night before.

Libby buzzed by the hospital an hour later and the first person she ran into was Phillip. He looked happy to see her, but no more happy than she was to see him.

“Hi,” she said, and hated how her voice sounded whispery and out of breath. “Missed you this morning at the gym.”

“You were there?”

She didn’t want to admit that her main motivation for gym time these days was that he might be there, too. “Yeah, where were you?”

“I overslept.”

“Likely story.”

Phillip glanced at his watch. “Got time for coffee?”

“Sure. When?” She probably shouldn’t sound so eager or so agreeable, but she couldn’t help it; she was eager and he appeared to feel the same way.

“A half hour?”

She smiled. “See you then.” Libby started to walk away when Phillip reached for her hand. He seemed surprised, as if he hadn’t realized what he was doing. Then he smiled, and raised her palm to his lips and kissed her there.

He shook his head and grumbled under his breath, “Some Heart of Stone I am.”

Libby stood in the middle of the corridor, paralyzed, staring at him. When she looked away she found Sharon Jennings studying her with her crossed arms. “I’m telling you, just seeing you two makes my heart beat faster. I’d forgotten what it was to be in love like that.”

Libby opened her mouth to deny everything and found she couldn’t. She was falling in love with Phillip. The problem was how busy they both were. They had to carve out a few minutes here and there when they could. Fifteen minutes for coffee, a late-night phone call, sailing when the weather permitted.

Even so, their relationship was moving forward, growing deeper every day. Up until now they had both been cautious, careful for fear of getting hurt yet again, of making a mistake. That had changed.

At the prescribed time Libby met Phillip in the cafeteria. He’d already taken a table and bought their coffees, waiting patiently for her to join him. Libby slid into the chair and reached across the table for his hand.

“I’ve had the most wonderful morning,” she said, still on an emotional
high. The latest word was that it might be possible to bring Amy Jo home over the weekend. Libby could hardly wait. She was more than ready to be a mother.

“I’m meeting with the Buckleys at three,” she told him and glanced at her watch, making sure she’d allotted herself plenty of time to get ready for the appointment.

“Anything else happening I should know about?” he asked, his mouth quirking sideways in an off-center grin.

Libby realized she’d been chatting nonstop for several minutes. “Oh, Phillip, I’ve done it again. I just can’t seem to stop talking. I’m so sorry. How’s your day going?”

He broke into a wide grin that made him look almost boyish. “Much better now that I’m with you.” He squeezed her fingers. “Seeing how happy you are makes me happy.”

“Can I call you later?” she asked. “After I see the Buckleys?”

“I’d be disappointed if you didn’t.”

“Can I fix dinner for you tonight?”

“You’re on, sweetheart.”

“Call me if you’re going to be late.” She took one sip of the coffee and hurried to her feet. Kissing his cheek, she rushed from the cafeteria and noticed that nearly everyone in the room had stopped to watch her go. It flustered her until she realized she wasn’t the one who interested them. It was Phillip. Seeing Phillip with her.

The meeting with the Buckleys couldn’t have gone better. Libby was thrilled to accept their retainer. The appointment with their friends was scheduled for the following week. Life was certainly on the upswing.

She had just gotten into her vehicle when her cell rang. It was Mark Williams, the attorney she’d hired to complete the adoption. “Where are you?” he asked.

“In my car, why?”

“I think it might be a good idea for you to head over to the hospital.”

Libby swallowed hard and alarm gripped her. “Is everything all right with Amy Jo?”

“Yes, she’s fine.”

“Then what’s this about?”

He hesitated. “I got a call from an attorney representing the Armstrong family.”

“Peter is going to sign the paperwork, isn’t he?” He’d certainly given her that impression the night before. Naturally he was confused and uncertain. What fifteen-year-old wouldn’t be?

“That’s what they want to talk to you about,” Mark said. “It would be best if we talked once you get here.”

Libby’s heart slowed almost to a standstill. “I’m on my way.”

Within a matter of minutes she pulled into the hospital parking lot and then rushed up to the maternity ward. Sharon caught her eye and then quickly looked away. Libby’s pulse was already racing double time, as if she’d climbed three flights of stairs instead of taking the elevator.