the things he’d asked for. He thanked her and closed the door. Then he handed a bottle of formula to Ben.
Ben sat down on a chair and said, “I’ve never fed her. Is there anything I need to know?”
Vic grinned. “Keep her head elevated and watch her. She’ll guide you.”
Ben looked at Aurelia, as if he could somehow learn from her silent guidance, and she took a little guilty pleasure in being so important to him. The smile that appeared on Ben’s handsome face when the baby stopped crying and nursed the bottle made her warm all over, but when that smile reached his eyes and he turned that prideful glow on Aurelia, her knees weakened. She lowered herself to the chair beside him, and without thinking she squeezed his thigh in a silent Way to go!
“So, what’s this little lady’s name?” Vic asked.
Ben flashed a secretive smile at Aurelia and said, “We don’t know. We call her Baby B.”
“That’s cute,” Vic said. “Like Beatrice, but shortened?”
“Something like that,” Ben said.
Vic handed the bag of supplies to Aurelia and said, “You’ll find diapers, wipes, formula, pamphlets, and a few other things you’ll need in there. Read the pamphlets. They’ll help you over the next few weeks.”
“Few weeks?” Ben glanced at the baby and asked, “How long does a paternity test take?”
“Depends on the lab. Normally it can take anywhere from a day or two to three months or more.”
“Are you fu—” Ben winced and said, “Freaking kidding me? I’ll pay whatever it takes to get the results fast.”
“Duly noted. I figured you’d want to fast-track it, and I’ve already made a few calls. I’ll finalize the arrangements and we should have the results within the week.”
As Ben fed the baby, Vic asked a host of questions, most of which they couldn’t answer. Then he examined the baby, and he didn’t even flinch when the baby pooped as he was examining her, though Ben looked mortified. Vic cleaned her up, cooing and tickling her the whole time. When Vic swabbed the inside of the baby’s cheek, Ben kept his face beside hers, soothing her with sweet words. When B cried, Aurelia thought Ben might cry, too, but he scooped her into his arms, clutching her against his chest like he was protecting her from the big, bad doctor.
“Well, Ben, from what I can see, you’ve got a healthy little girl,” Vic said. “I could do blood work, but I don’t see a reason to poke her if we don’t need to.”
“No needles,” Ben said, turning and shielding the baby from Vic with his big body, which made Aurelia get all warm and fuzzy inside again.
Vic laughed. “If you are her father, you’re going to have to get used to needles. Babies get a lot of shots. They’re like puppies that way. Anyway, my guess is she’s three to six weeks old. It’s hard to tell. She should have gotten her first hepatitis B shot in the hospital, assuming she was born in a hospital. Since we have no immunization records, we need to discuss how to handle the shots she should have. For obvious reasons, I don’t want to repeat immunizations, but we want her protected. Assuming she’s had her first shot, she’ll be due for a booster within a few weeks, along with a number of other shots. There’s a schedule of shots in the bag I gave you.”
“We’re looking for her mother,” Ben said, glancing guiltily at Aurelia.
“You mentioned on the phone that you were tracking down two women? Hopefully you’ll find them and figure this out sooner rather than later. We should have the paternity issue worked out quickly enough, but paternity is only a small portion of the equation.” Vic leaned against the desk and crossed his arms, setting a serious stare on Ben. “Ben, before I swab you, fatherhood is a major commitment. It takes dedication, and it’ll put a serious damper on your spontaneity.”
Aurelia felt her cheeks burn. She was thankful Vic was looking at Ben and not her.
“Are you sure you’re ready for the results?” Vic asked.
“As ready as I can be. I wasn’t ready to find her on my porch this morning. If it weren’t for Aurelia, I don’t know what I would have done.”
“You would have sent me a nine-one-one text,” Aurelia said with a laugh. “Like you did when that awful woman who works with Talia tried to pick you up at that club.” And I would have come running, just