03 The Long Road Home Read online

  "Of course not." Margaret's heart sank, though her tone remained cheerful. She had an idea Gina wanted her to stay with her. To the finish. Not outside in the waiting room either. Right beside her. Margaret felt her palms dampen, her mouth go dry.

  Waiting outside while a doctor examined Gina, Margaret wondered where Matthew Magnum was. She was sure it was the thrust of that determined chin, the glint of authority in the green eyes that had gotten them through the tedious admitting details so quickly.

  "You may go in now."

  Margaret walked into the room. Gina, draped in a hospital gown looked scared, but managed a shaky smile. "Dr. Reddy said it's going to be about three hours before Junior makes his grand entrance."

  "Well," said Margaret, borrowing some of the confidence she had heard in Matthew Magnum's voice earlier. "That will give you a little time to give me a crash course in Lamaze. I don't think they'll let me stay if they know how green I am at all this."

  Gina's smile wavered, "Jack attended the classes with me. We planned it so we would be together when Junior was born. He was going to take two weeks off at the end of this month."

  "It's a good thing you're so well prepared for this baby," Margaret forced her voice to remain cheerful, though her heart ached for the young woman in the bed. Jack should have been here with Gina. As a substitute, she was the worst kind. Unprepared, inadequate, ignorant.

  "We weren't prepared really, not at first. You know Jack and I got married during our last year of school,” Gina’s voice came out slowly. "I was already pregnant, and we were scared because we had no money, no jobs, nothing. We hated living with my parents. Jack wore out his shoes knocking on doors in Garrison, asking for work. Someone mentioned looking for work in Inchwater, and I caught the bus there one day after Jack had left. Luckily, Janet took me on right away as kitchen assistant. I was too scared to tell her I was pregnant, but one can't really hide morning sickness. I thought she'd fire me when she found out, but instead Janet switched me to the cash register, away from the smell of food being cooked and gave me a note for Jack to take to Bedouin Trucking. Matt was in town for a brief visit, and he interviewed and hired him, even paid for him to attend truck driving school in Barstow. It seemed like a miracle. Suddenly, we had everything. Money, a job, medical insurance. I could have regular pre-natal checkups. The best part was finding a place of our own in Inchwater."

  "I'm glad it all turned out so well," Margaret said.

  "Not all teenagers in our situation are so lucky," said Gina soberly. "I went back to talk to the kids at Garrison High and shared Jack's and my story with them. Wish someone had given us the facts, the way I gave it to them. Love doesn't stand a chance, unless you have an education and the means to support yourself."

  Gina looked up at Margaret and said, "Am I boring you?"

  Margaret shook her head, "It's fascinating." Talking was also better than waiting in silence for the next contraction.

  "I'm going to get my General Equivalency Diploma after the baby's here," said Gina, determination in her voice. "Then I've decided to take a computer course. My children aren't going to have a high school dropout for a mother."

  Gina leaned forward as another contraction swept through her. "Ooh."

  Margaret rubbed Gina's back, feeling helpless, wishing she could do more. Time them, the nurse had said, so she looked at her watch. Two fifteen.

  The next one came fifteen minutes later, and it was barely over when the nurse bustled in.

  "How are you doing?" she asked cheerfully."

  "Fifteen minutes apart," said Margaret weakly.

  "Fine," said Gina in a bright, clear voice.

  "Good." Reaching for Gina's wrist to check her pulse, the nurse looked at Margaret, "The hunk that brought you in is outside and wants to see you."

  "Matt," said Gina.

  Matt noticed how pale Margaret was right away. Damp tendrils of hair clung to her neck, and her forehead glistened with the sheen of perspiration.

  "I've brought Gina's things." He smiled as he handed her the bag and watched the color rise in her face. "How is she?"

  "In a great deal of pain, and I have no idea what to do." Margaret's voice tugged at him. It held one part worry, two parts pathos.

  "I can help."

  "You?" He was surprised by the anger in her eyes as Margaret looked at him. "Don't tell me running a trucking empire gave you enough leisure to take a course in midwifery as well?"

  "Nothing so interesting," Matt said calmly. "I went to Lamaze classes with my sister Susan because her army husband was away on active duty."

  Seeing the nurse come out, Margaret said, "I have to go back in."

  "I've told her to rest for a while," said the nurse. "Why don't you get something to eat, before you go back in there? I'll watch her on the television monitor in the nurse's station."

  Margaret glanced at the room uncertainly. "I don't want to leave her."

  "She'll be fine," said Matt. "And after we eat, I'll come in with you."

  "Both of you can be with her now, but later the doctor's going to allow only one of you in the delivery room," the nurse warned.

  Margaret stiffened as she felt an arm go around her shoulders, the chuckle in Matthew Magnum's voice as he said, "I know how much you want to be in there Margaret. Stop looking so worried. We'll toss a coin for the privilege after we eat."

  He seemed to know his way around because he steered her directly to the hospital cafeteria. Margaret was beginning to have a suspicion the man knew his way around everything and everyone.

  "The special is roast beef on rye," said Matt looking at the board on the wall. "The alternatives are fish and chips, chicken cordon bleu, or turkey and all the trimmings."

  Margaret hadn't eaten since the morning, but she wasn't hungry. Picking up a carton of chocolate milk, she said, "This is all I want right now."

  "You'll feel better if you eat something," Matthew Magnum said, looking at her with a frown.

  "I'll eat later." When it was all over. When she knew for sure she wasn't going to make a fool of herself by throwing up, or fainting.

  Picking up a glass, Margaret headed for the cash register. The customer in front of her opened her bag to pay; reminding Margaret she had no purse with her, therefore no money. Panicked, she turned to look at Matthew Magnum. "I don't have any money."

  "I have enough for both of us."

  For both of us. The way the phrase linked them together disturbed Margaret.

  "Ring it up together, please," she heard him say as she stared blankly ahead, trying to smother the emotions tumbling inside her.

  Spotting an empty table by the window, Margaret hurried over to it, trying to figure out the compelling need to get as much distance between her and Matthew Magnum as she could.

  "Hi Margaret!"

  She looked up to see Joe Graines. In his long lab technician's coat, he looked very different from the Joe who in high school had traded her repair work on Beelzebub, for doing his book reports for him. She had meant to call and thank him for the ride from the airport but she’d forgotten to do so. "Joe! How nice to see you. Won't you join us?"

  It was the perfect solution. Joe's easygoing ways would definitely defuse any tension, real or imaginary, between her and Matthew Magnum.

  A prickle at the back of her neck warned Margaret Matthew Magnum was close by. "Mr. Magnum and I had to give one of the girls a ride into the hospital. She's in labor."

  "Hi Matt!" Joe waited till Magnum placed his tray on the table, and then the two men shook hands. "The person you brought in wouldn't happen to be Gina?"

  Surprised, Margaret asked, "You know Gina?"

  "Gina and Jack rent the upstairs apartment from me, but I'm going to move there, and let them have the downstairs now the baby's here." Joe stood up taking his soda with him. "I think I'll run up and keep her company for a while, so don't hurry with your meal."

  Margaret smiled, "Thanks, Joe."

  "Anything for you, Margaret," he sai
d good naturedly. "See you around Matt."

  "Known Joe long?" Matthew Magnum asked as he reached for the salt.

  "All my life," said Margaret. "We went to school together."

  "Any romance between you two?"

  "I beg your pardon?" She set her glass down with a small thud.

  "You know the story line," he said patiently. "High school sweethearts reunited. Passion blazes."

  "That's none of your business," Margaret snapped.

  "I just wondered what keeps Joe in Inchwater."

  Margaret immediately jumped to Joe's defense. "Joe's a wonderful person. He's easy going. When he’s not working here he’s always ready to fix everyone's cars, always ready to lend a helping hand. Just because he's content to live in Inchwater, doesn't mean he's a failure."

  Matthew Magnum reached across the table and laid a hand on hers. Margaret snatched hers away.

  "Margaret, stop fluffing your feathers as if I'm attacking one of your chicks. I like Joe Graines."

  "You do?"

  "What makes you think I'd feel anyone who chose to live in Inchwater is a failure? Success isn't making a million, or being approved of by the world. Its self-approval and contentment. Joe's at peace with the world because he has both these qualities. Too many people have to pay a therapist to teach them how to handle life."

  "Oh!" Matthew Magnum's words took the wind out of Margaret's sails. After a moment, a thought occurred to Margaret. "Why are we having this conversation about Joe?"

  Matt looked at her. The urge to make her aware that she had a life of her own to live was stronger than ever. It was time for part two of his plan.

  "I just wanted to know I'm not stepping on anyone's toes."

  "Doing what?" She raised her glass to her mouth, wanting to hide from the intensity in his gaze.

  "Courting you."

  Margaret choked, coughed, and spluttered, as the chocolate milk went down the wrong way. "Excuse me?"

  Matthew Magnum chewed, swallowed, and then stated very calmly, "You're an old-fashioned girl, Margaret, and so I've decided to court you the old fashioned way."

  "Co...co...co....” she coughed again.

  "Drink some water," he said kindly. "Yes, Margaret, my first impression of you was wrong. I don't think an affair will suit you so I've decided to court you." His eyes, alight with laughter, belied his serious expression.

  He was laughing at her again. Margaret's temper blazed. "Why you male chauvinistic..."

  "Paging Ms. Browning. Paging Margaret Browning. Please return to Maternity."

  The well-modulated voice cut through the red fog of her anger. Margaret reached the door before she realized he was at her elbow.

  "You don't have to come," she flung at him. "Finish your meal."

  "I can eat later," he said, matching her pace. "I told you, I've had training in Lamaze. I can help."

  "Gina's water broke, and she's getting nervous," said the nurse, meeting them at the door of the room. "We have two women about to deliver at any time, and the nursing shortage means I can't spare anyone to stay with her all the time. That's why I paged you...."

  "Thanks," said Margaret.

  "Nurse, I went to Lamaze classes with my sister last year. If I could..." The voices faded as Margaret entered the room and shut the door behind her.

  Joe stood up, his face awash with relief, "Margaret's here."

  Another scared soul? Margaret wondered.

  Gina turned frightened eyes to her. "My water broke, but the nurse says it's still going to be about two hours from now."

  "You're lucky," said Margaret, picking up a damp washcloth and smoothing it over Gina's face and neck, with a hand that shook slightly. "An article I read recently stated most first time mothers are in labor for longer periods."

  "I'll see you later, girls. Don't have too much fun. If it wasn't for the call of duty, I would love to stay." Joe retreated hurriedly.

  Margaret fluffed up Gina's pillows and smiled, "You're doing fine."

  "Gina, did I ever tell you about the time my sister, Susan, found out she was pregnant?" Matthew Magnum positioned himself on the other side of Gina's bed. He picked up the girl's hand, and Margaret had to admit touching came as naturally to the man as breathing. Admit too that some of the tension left her because he was there.

  "No."

  He smiled, and nothing could disguise the male vitality he oozed. The cleft in his chin should be cited a hazard. Margaret shook her head slightly to throw off the ridiculous impressions her mind registered.

  "Pete, my brother-in-law, was stationed abroad when Susan found out she was pregnant. She called Pete up right away, and told him he had to come home at once. There was no way she could have this baby on her own. When Pete told her he couldn't because he was on active duty, Susan sat down and wrote a five page letter to his commanding officer, telling him what she thought of rules that kept couples apart at times like this. If he couldn't send Pete home on paternity leave, she concluded, she was coming there to have this baby."

  Gina burst out laughing. Matthew Magnum smiled, and Margaret had to force her gaze away from the deep cleft in his chin again. "She finally got used to being pregnant," he said solemnly, "but it took her the complete nine months. Luckily for Susan, Patricia my other sister, and myself, Pete arrived a month before the baby was born."

  "Ooh!" Gina doubled over, and before Margaret could move, Matthew had an arm around her shoulders. "Easy now. Little breaths. One, two, three, four. That's it. Now again. One, two, three, four. You're doing great."

  His gaze was fixed on her, and Margaret had the strangest sensation the last words were meant for her as well.

  Feeling as limp as the washcloth in her hand she wiped the sweat from Gina's face. The last contraction had been a big one. How much more of this was there?

  A bustle at the door proved to be the arrival of the nurse. "I need to be alone with Gina for a few minutes," she said.

  "We'll be right outside."

  Margaret stalked to the door ahead of Matthew. When she heard it close, she turned on him. "Jack would have been here if he wasn't a trucker."

  "Hey!" Two hands came down to cup her shoulders. "I know this is rough and scary, but that's no reason to hit below the belt. There are a great many men whose jobs prevent them from being with their wives at important times. What about those in the armed forces?"

  "Jack should have been here," repeated Margaret stubbornly. "He's not defending our country or human rights; he's just driving a stupid truck somewhere." It was all back...the old pain and bitterness. The time her parents hadn't been home when she'd fallen and had to have three stitches in her knee, the night she'd burned up with a high fever and wanted them to hold her.

  The pressure on Margaret's shoulders increased slightly, forcing her mind back to the present. "Do you think Gina would rather have a husband beside her with no job and no money, or one who's able to provide for her and the baby, but who can't always be with her?"

  He was right of course. As usual. Unable to say anything more, Margaret simply leaned against the wall. She was going to save her strength for what was yet to come. The back of her top was damp, and her knees felt as if someone had replaced them with cotton wool. Closing her eyes, she forced herself to take deep breaths, conjure up a calm scene. All she could see was Gina's face contracted with pain.

  "So much fire," Matthew Magnum said. "I wonder if it's only in your hair."

  Her eyes flew open to see him rubbing a lock of her hair between thumb and forefinger.

  As their gazes meshed, Matt felt the electricity between them. The panic in Margaret's eyes told Matt she was aware of it too. She might not want it, but it was definitely there. He looked at her mouth, and Margaret's lips parted slightly.

  "You try to appear as if you're always in control, don't you Margaret?" Matt asked. "But your eyes and hair give you away. The former tells me your sophisticated air is not even skin deep, and your hair hints at hidden fires within you."


  He watched the confusion in her eyes deepen.

  The door opened, and the nurse said, "You can go in now. She's doing fine."

  Matt moved away, wondering about the attraction he felt towards Margaret Browning. She had shown very clearly that she wanted nothing to do with truckers and trucking. To let himself become involved with someone like her was as smart as touching a plugged in iron to see if it was hot.

  "Mr. Magnum!"

  Margaret turned to see a husky, young man hurry down the hospital corridor to them and cling to the strong hand outstretched toward him. "How is Gina?"

  Margaret stared at the newcomer. This must be Gina's husband. Where had he come from?

  "Fine...see for yourself." Matt pushed open the door of the room behind them.

  Jack went through the door, as the nurse asked, "The husband?"

  Matthew Magnum nodded. "Yes."

  They heard Gina say, "Jack! Oh, Jack!"

  "Baby, are you all right?" There was no mistaking the love in her husband's, hoarse voice.

  Matthew Magnum shut the door gently, giving the couple the privacy they needed.

  The nurse beamed at him, "Now, which fairy godmother managed that? We love happy endings here at Garrison Community."

  As the woman walked away, Margaret asked, "How did he get here?"

  She continued to prop herself up against the wall, unable to believe the suddenness with which she had been relieved of her task.

  "I called the truck stop, and the men contacted him on the Citizen's Broadcast radio. I'm not sure yet but I guess another trucker must have offered to give him a ride back here. I hope you're not too disappointed that your help is no longer necessary?"

  She glared at Magnum ignoring the teasing light in his eyes. "What about Jack's truck?"

  "Parked somewhere safely till another driver can get to it."

  "What about his driving schedule? Won't he get behind and lose money if he doesn't make his delivery on time?" In her father's time, a man had been fired for being too ill to go into work.

  "Why the sudden change of heart?" His smile told Margaret that Matt wasn't angry, simply curious.

  Margaret wet her lips. "I may not like the fact Jack is a trucker, but I'm concerned about him as a person. He can't lose his job now, with a baby to support."