Page 4 (1/2)
The phone rang and she leapt on it, grabbing the hand-set before it had a chance to ring twice
"Hello," she said cheerfully, eager to talk to anyone, even if it was a sales call
"Hi, honey I wondered if you were still at home"
A momentary panic attacked her "Aht you said you were going for a walk this afternoon"
That was so recommended by one of the books they’d read As a result, Carol had decided she should exercisethe day she had plenty of opportunity to spend tirareed upon before she’d left her job
"Right I was just getting ready to head out" She eyed thelunch
"Carol? Are you okay?"
Her husband recognized her est she quit work They were both frightened, since there was a very real possibility that she nancy full-term It didn’t help that they had one last shot with in vitro fertilization The insurance co worked had its headquarters in Illinois, where state law e could pay for three attempts; their first two had failed IVF was the very end of the technological line, the ultimate procedure the fertility clinic had to offer in the quest for a biological child July would be their last attempt, and after that they were on their own financially At the start they’d agreed to linant by then, they’d begin the adoption process In retrospect, it had been a wise decision The emotional devastation of the two failures proved she couldn’t endure this process indefinitely Twice a fertilized egg had been implanted and twice she’d miscarried No couple should repeatedly face this kind of heartache
Carol and Doug never mentioned that this third IVF attempt was the end of their hopes, but the fact loonant--and stay pregnant--this ti to forsake the job she loved, willing to be poked and prodded and hu to withstand all the doubts, confront the ehs and lows of their atte’s baby
"I love you, sweetheart"
"I know" Although she said it flippantly, Carol did know Doug had been with her through this entire process, through the doctors’ visits, the testing, through the tears, the frustration, the anger and the grief "One day you’ll hold our child in your ar orth it" They’d already chosen the nairl She could clearly see their child, could feel the baby in her arms, and see the joy in her husband’s eyes
Carol held on to that dreae of a baby in her arms helped her endure the most difficult aspects of the IVF process
"What time will you be houlated her life by her husband’s cos His routine shaped her own, and his return froht of her day Several ti howwas home
"Usual time," he promised
Her husband of seven years worked as an insurance underwriter Carol was the one who earned the big bucks in the family It was her income that had enabled theot al husband had insisted they adjust their lifestyle to live on his income alone He feared that otherwise they’d co a fa proble because even with insurance, the cost of infertility treat…
"Have I mentioned how dreadful daytio for your walk"
"Yes, sir," she replied in hed "I’ hoht" Life at home wasn’t supposed to be endless hours of boredo cas, adrenaline-fuelled decisions, constant busyness Being at home alone was a new experience and not one she enjoyed
"Do you want me to check in with you later?"
"No, I’ll be fine You’re right, I do need to get outside and it’s a lovely afternoon" No place on earth wasIt was a perfect May day and she gazed out at the snow-topped Olyet Sound below her
"See you around five-thirty," Doug said
"I’ll be here" Before Carol had left the brokerage fir who started dinner Doug who had the local news blaring fro to this role reversal of a role reversal Right now, it was one of the few interesting things in her life
She deposited her lunch in the refrigerator and grabbed an apple on her way out the door They’d lived in the condo four years, and she still didn’t know her neighbors They were upwardly , with both husband and orking long hours Only a few had children and the little ones were rushed off to ultra-expensive day-care centers early in the