New Beginnings Read Free Page A

pressure cuff tightened around Elena’s arm. She twisted her head to read the monitor. The lines were fuzzy. Gibberish. The overhead lights made her squint. Funny how the postsurgical recovery process was so different from a patient’s perspective than that of a nurse. She’d have to remember that.
    Still floating, she closed her eyes. She’d made it safely through the surgery. That hadn’t worried her. She had lots of faith in Dr. Drew.
    It’s what he might find that had her and Cesar both on edge.
    “
Querida
. Sweetheart, you’re all right now. The surgery’s over. You’re going to be fine.”
    She opened her eyes to the sound of Cesar’s husky voice and the brush of his kiss to her lips. She smiled. His eyes were dark with concern and the hint of tears.
    She lifted her hand to touch his familiar cheek, rough with morning whiskers. He hadn’t shaved before bringing her to the hospital. How many hours ago had that been? “I’m fine.”
    He covered her hand with his. “I’ve been praying for you. As hard as I could.”
    “I’m glad.”
    Cesar had lost his faith in the Lord when his mother passed away years ago. Elena’s health crisis had begun to bring him back to God. Recently he’d even begun attending church with her. She hoped, no matter what happened to her, that Cesar would cling to his faith this time.
    “Have you seen the doctor?” he asked.
    She shook her head. “Not yet.”
    “I’m here now.” Dr. Drew slipped past the curtains that separated Elena from the other patients. He glanced briefly at the monitor, then stood beside her gurney opposite Cesar. “How’re you doing, Elena? You awake now?”
    A flutter of anxiety circled through her empty stomach. “Mostly, I think.”
    “Good. Good.” Although he often looked stern, his gray eyes twinkled with excitement. A surgical cap still covered his silver hair, and he wore a set of green scrubs. “The laparotomy surgery went just as we expected. No surprises at all. That oversize cyst on your ovary was giving you all that trouble. It’s gone, and you’re all stitched up again. Neatly stitched, I should add. A few months and you won’t be able to tell that you’ve had surgery.”
    Cesar gave Elena’s hand a reassuring squeeze.
    “What about the lab work?” That was her biggest concern. What the lab would find.
    A broad smile crinkled the corners of Dr. Drew’s eyes. “We had a few glitches with that, which slowed things down a bit. The lab sectioned the ovarian cyst I removed while you were on the table. There’s absolutely no sign of cancer. None at all.”
    Elena didn’t hear a single word after that. She suspected Cesar didn’t either. She heard him sob just before he leaned down to kiss her. Wrapping her arm around his neck she held on to her husband and felt her own tears mix with his, trickling down her cheeks.
    Thank You, Lord. Thank You for Cesar and Dr. Drew and all the nurses and staff at Hope Haven who have helped me. Thank You for letting me stay here on earth with this man whom I adore
.
    After checking on the head-injury patient a second time and switching IVs on his pneumonia case, James stepped out into the hallway. He spotted Cesar striding toward him. From the look on his face and the relaxed swing of his arms, the news was good.
    James met him halfway.
    “She’s fine,” Cesar said, all smiles. “No cancer.”
    James’s sense of relief soared. “Thank God!”
    “I’ll say amen to that. I was afraid—” He waved off the thought. “Anyway, she’ll be in recovery for a while, and I’ll be taking her home by late afternoon. The doctor says she’ll be back on her feet in no time.”
    “Knowing Elena, I’m sure she’ll be on her feet and just as feisty as ever before you know it.”
    “Yeah.” His grin was so wide, it looked like it might split Cesar’s face. “Tell Anabelle and Candace for me, will you?”
    “You got it.”
    “Thanks, buddy. She really appreciated all of you being there for