“Dr. Cantabella,” said Alessandro, and their embrace was warm and familiar.
The doctor shook Ann-Sophie’s hand. “I received your medical charts from Stockholm, and I noted the high-blood-pressure readings. Your doctor reported no other complications.”
Out of the corner of her eye, Alessandro seemed to stiffen at the mention of her high blood pressure.
“That’s correct,” said Ann-Sophie, “if you don’t count the problem getting in and out of chairs.”
Dr. Cantabella smiled.
“I’m hoping a few weeks in Italy have helped to bring my blood pressure down,” she added.
“Let’s check.” Ann-Sophie could feel herself tense the way she always did these days when thinking about her blood pressure…likely triggering higher blood pressure. The doctor seemed to recognize this problem. “Try closing your eyes and imagining yourself somewhere else, a favorite place.”
She loved to travel so her favorite place changed all the time, but right now, the place that came to her was her favorite alcove in the library with two velvet seats. She pictured it in detail, the light filtering through the stained glass, the scents of thousands of books, all waiting to be explored. But she wasn’t alone. In this vision, Alessandro was there, so close, leaning over her to kiss her and then…
“Your blood pressure looks good,” said the doctor with a note of surprise in her voice. “I’m not sure what you imagined but your heartbeat went up at the end of the reading.”
Ann-Sophie flushed, but the doctor smiled at her. “Whatever you’re doing, it’s working.”
She let out an audible sigh. She glanced over Alessandro and saw glimpses of relief and happiness.
“Let’s check on the little one,” said Dr. Cantabella, then rolled the ultrasound machine from the corner.
Ann-Sophie exposed her growing belly, and she could see the way Alessandro’s eyes were drawn to it. His expression stayed neutral, but she could’ve sworn that she saw a flash of desire in his eyes before it shifted into something more appropriate.
As the doctor moved the wand over her stomach, images took shape on the monitor. A nose. Lips. A foot with tiny toes. Their baby. It was there, moving, its tiny body curled, protected inside her. A burst of joy took over, and she turned to meet Alessandro’s gaze, to share this moment with him, but all the lightness of the past few moments had disappeared.
His expression was stark, and the haunted look in his eyes cut a hole in her own happiness. The bubbling joy that had run through her just moments ago was leaking out of her so fast she didn’t know what to do with it.
“The baby looks wonderful,” gushed Dr. Cantabella, startling Ann-Sophie out of her thoughts. She tried to focus on the monitor, but the feeling this visit had just taken a very bad turn stayed with her. The doctor seemed oblivious. “Please continue with your blood-pressure monitoring and come back in a week, but don’t hesitate to call or come in before that with any questions.”
Never once had a doctor or midwife been this solicitous, and yet Ann-Sophie barely heard these generous offers. All she could think about was the haunted look in Alessandro’s eyes.
They exited the modern insides of the doctor’s office and started down the steps to the cobblestone street. As they walked across the palazzo, he asked, “Would you like to walk home, or should I call for a car?”
“Walk,” she said. A ride involved a driver, and right now, she wanted to be alone with him.
As they started up the hilly streets, he slipped his hand in hers, but there was no connection. It was as if he had simply turned it off.
Finally, she pulled her hand from his and came to a stop. “What happened in the doctor’s office?”
Alessandro was wearing sunglasses, but she was almost sure he wasn’t looking at her. “I don’t know what you’re talking about.”
She was sure he did. “When you saw the baby, something happened.”
He shook his head and began to walk again. As they continued along the street, Ann-Sophie could feel her frustration growing. They were on the edge of town with a few scattered buildings, and the gate into the villa wasn’t far ahead. She stopped again. He looked up at the gate, then back at her.
“Let’s continue.” His voice was now filled with warning.
“No.” The word came out stronger than she had expected. “Something happened and it was about the baby.”
He grimaced, as if she had slapped him.
“You need to think about your blood pressure,” he said. She could see the way his jaw clenched as he spoke these words in a low voice.
She threw up her hands. “Is this a version of telling me to ‘calm down’? Because that doesn’t work. You need to think about the child.”
The words slipped out of her mouth before she thought about how harsh they sounded. She closed her eyes.Deep, calming breaths.When she opened them, Alessandro had removed his sunglasses, and his expression was stark. In his eyes she saw fury and pain. “I’malwaysthinking about the child. I can promise you that.”
