Page 78 of Titus

“The amount of blood frightened her,” Mickie continued. “Honestly, it would frighten anyone. These hemorrhages can look dramatic early in pregnancy.”

“What caused the pain?” I asked quietly.

“The bleeding irritated the uterus and triggered significant cramping,” she answered. “Combined with stress, dehydration, lack of rest, and elevated cortisol levels?” Mickie exhaled softly. “It likely amplified everything physically.”

I looked back toward Amelia, sleeping in the bed. “She thought she was losing the baby.”

“I know.”

“Is that still the case? Can it still happen with this diagnosis?”

Mickie paused carefully before answering. “Right now, the baby has a strong heartbeat, her cervix remains closed, and the bleeding has slowed significantly since admission.”

Thank God. Relief nearly weakened my knees all over again.

“But,” Mickie continued gently, “the hematoma itself isn’t small either, which means she’s not completely out of the woods yet.”

I nodded slowly. “So how do we deal with this?”

“Strict pelvic rest,” Mickie answered immediately. “No travel. No stress. No lifting. No exercise. Likely modified bed rest for several weeks while we monitor whether the hemorrhage reabsorbs or expands.”

I almost laughed wearily. “Amelia doesn’t exactly know how to sit still.”

Mickie smiled knowingly. “She’s going to have to learn.”

My eyes drifted toward my sleeping sister again. “She’s really okay?”

Mickie’s expression softened. “She was very lucky Titus found her when he did,” she admitted. “The pain she was in, combined with the blood loss and panic, could’ve made this situation much worse physically and emotionally if she’d sat in traffic for another hour.”

I nodded, grateful that my sister mistook his building for mine and that he had just walked out and found her. He then went through all of this just to keep her safe and bring me back to her without any stress or strain.

“He stayed all night,” she added casually as she reviewed something on her tablet. “John finally forced him to go home about forty-five minutes before you arrived.”

That alone affected me more than it should have, but I needed to stop romanticizing what Titus did and focus on my sister.

“Is this an abnormal thing?” I asked Mickie. “This issue she is dealing with?”

“No,” Mickie answered. “I know the amount of blood and pain terrified her, but this is fairly common in early pregnancy.”

“So how long will she be in recovery?” I asked, relieved that this was common enough for Mickie to seem hopeful.

“I’d like to keep her for two days to continue monitoring her and the baby. Once I feel everything is stabilized and she can go home, she’ll be released with orders, and I’ll have scheduled a follow-up within three days after that.”

“Okay,” I nodded, my mind switching gears to how we would handle bed rest and appointments, with my hectic schedule already threatening to keep me out of the states for the next two months.

Mickie walked closer to me. “I truly believe you have nothing to worry about now. As I said, it was excellent that Titus was there when it happened.”

“Yes, thank God for that man,” I said.

A tiny smile tugged at the corner of Mickie’s mouth. “He’s a really great guy. It’s not surprising he stayed until he knew his driver had picked you up at the airport.”

“How’d he get home?”

“A man like Titus has drivers at his disposal,” she winked. “Listen, she’ll wake up soon to eat, and I’m going to finish my rounds before I go on-call this morning. You can rest easy now. She’s in great hands.”

“Thank you, Mickie,” I answered. “Please tell John thank you as well.”

“I definitely will,” she said, then turned to leave.