The Dark Side - Danielle Steel Page 0,19
on next to their bed. He would have been crippled the next day at the office. He had tried it, but it just didn’t work. He missed sleeping next to her, but only did that now on weekends, and they hadn’t been able to resume their sex life with Jaime either in Zoe’s arms, or between them in bed.
They no longer sat down to dinner together either, she was too busy tending to the baby, so he either bought food from a deli or nearby restaurant on his way home from the office, or cooked for them himself, something his brothers hadn’t had to do either. But none of their children had apnea, and they had au pairs who took care of the children and lived in. He had suggested it to Zoe for when Jaime got a little older, but Zoe pointed out that his brothers’ au pairs had no formal training, were usually foreign and around twenty years old, and she would never trust Jaime with someone like them. He didn’t argue the point, and wondered who Zoe would find that she would trust with Jaime. It was going to be hard to fit the bill, and it would have to be someone who respected all her theories and rules. She wouldn’t even let Austin hold Jaime now after a feeding. She held the baby upright herself, and never took her eyes off her. And she was planning to nurse for at least a year, which seemed like a long time to him.
He couldn’t help wondering at times if the peaceful, happy, stress-free life they had shared for six years before Jaime was born would ever be normal again. A new, constantly tense, hypervigilant side of Zoe had emerged. She was not the same woman she had once been, but he loved her just as much, and forgave her quirks. After all, they were both committed to giving their daughter the best life they could. Who could fault Zoe for that? And he was sure that she would relax as Jaime grew older. It was just a bumpy start. His brother had said that to him too. His brothers and their wives had been younger when they’d had children. At thirty-four, in her line of work with abused children, and with two years of medical school, Zoe approached it more intellectually. And she had enough knowledge of the risks and downsides and medical dangers to fuel her fears. But he was sure that in time she’d relax.
His mother had suggested to her that Zoe be careful about what she ate while she was still nursing, and try to avoid onions, garlic, spicy food, cabbage, some dairy products, and even chocolate. She didn’t think that alcohol would do any harm, and might even make the baby sleep better. And although Zoe liked Constance, she found her suggestions offensive and intrusive, and said they were all old wives’ tales and would have no positive impact on Jaime’s gastric disturbances, which Cathy Clark still said were in the normal range. Jaime threw up a lot, but Cathy said some babies were just vomiters and spat up a lot of their milk.
Austin didn’t comment when he saw Zoe eat the forbidden foods mentioned by his mother and thought it might have been worth a try to avoid them, which Zoe flatly refused. She loved chocolate and spicy food, garlic and onions, and continued to eat them liberally despite her mother-in-law’s advice. She rejected all of it as myths. It annoyed Austin, but he thought it best not to engage in battle with Zoe over it. Things were tense enough about Jaime’s feedings as it was. And he didn’t think she vomited unduly, no more than his nephews had at the same age, but Zoe insisted that Jaime threw up all day long, and less at night, so he didn’t see it, and he assumed she knew what she was talking about.
Jaime was all smiles when he came home from work, and he loved playing with her. She was progressing at normal ages for infant development, and learned to smile and roll over when she should, and she laughed uproariously when Austin played with her. She had a deep, wonderful giggle that brought a smile to her parents’ faces. Her happiness was contagious, and she loved it when her father blew raspberries on her stomach and she squealed with delight.
Everything was going smoothly and starting to get easier, even Zoe’s