Best of Women

Pippa

Eva had stolen most of the covers during the night. I gently stole some back as I sat up in bed to feed Amalia. We'd been so busy with the baby lately that I didn't always feel we were giving enough attention to the other kids. Babies were a lot of work.

As Amalia fed, Eva began to stir. She rolled over onto her side, facing me, and reached out to touch her little sister.

"Morning," I told her gently.

"Morning," she croaked, giving me a small smile. I could hear Lin already up, along with a few other people. This was the first time Eva had ever ended up sleeping in our bed. She must really be struggling because she wasn't overly affectionate. She'd been attached to Lin at the hip.

"How you feeling?" I asked her.

"Okay," she said quietly. I reached out with my free hand and gave her arm a squeeze.

"I bet your dad will fix you breakfast if you head out there," I urged her. She nodded and pushed herself up to sitting. She grabbed her pile of blankets from the floor and headed out. I looked down at my baby daughter as she fed. I loved these little moments with her. Just me and my baby. I gently clasped her tiny fist, letting her fingers wrap around my pointer.

Lin came in as I was burping her, laying on his side with his head propped up. "Morning," he said, reaching out to touch Amalia's feet.

"Hey," I smiled at him. "How was the couch?"

"I woke up with a crick in my neck, thank you," he grinned. "Did you get smacked during the night?"

"Nah, just had the covers stolen, but that's pretty standard."

"Ha ha," he deadpanned as he leaned over to kiss me. "Need a shower?"

I nodded and he sat up to take Amalia away. I undressed and got in a nice shower before joining the rest of the family out in the living room. Carmen and Mia were each holding Paco and Amalia between their legs, singing songs. Lin had set out a cup of coffee for me, ready to go.

Mia handed off Amalia to Rio as she headed to the bathroom. A few minutes later, she came out and tapped me on the shoulder.

"Pippa?" she asked hesitantly. "Uhhh...Eva needs you."

I set my coffee cup aside and followed Mia down the hallway. We went into the bedroom and I found Eva on her bed, holding her wrist tightly. I saw blood.

"Eva, what happened?"

"Don't tell Dad!" she begged me as I walked over. Mia closed the door as I sat on Eva's bed.

"Let me see," I asked her gently. She moved her hand away, which was covered in blood, to reveal a deep cup on her wrist. "Shit, Eva. We need to get you to a doctor. This is deep."

She was crying, obviously upset by what she'd done.

"Mia, will you go get another towel from the closet?" I asked her as I stood Eva up. Mia nodded and disappeared to get a fresh towel. "Oh, sweetheart."

Eva let me guide her towards the door as she sniffled. Mia returned quickly with a new towel, and I immediately started applying pressure to her wound. I guided Eva out the door and towards the living room, where Lin was sitting. He could immediately tell something was wrong and sprung up.

"What's wrong?" he asked.

"I need to take Eva to the clinic," I told him. "Stay here."

Lin looked at his daughter with concern. "Eva?"

"Daddy, I'm sorry!" she told him tearfully.

"It's okay," he assured her, not wanting her to worry. "Go with Pip. Mia, stay here."