The Memory Child Read Online Free PDF Page B

furiously. This was it! Everything Diane had worked so hard for. They’d expected Walter to announce one year of training where Diane would work side by side with Walter before she took on the role of president. But this was more. More than expected. More than anticipated. He couldn’t be prouder of her in thi s moment.
    No wonder Walter had insisted on the media being present.
    From the brightness of her smile and the way she reached for the edge of the podium for support, Brian could tell she hadn’t expected this either. He mouthed his love to her and saw it reflected back in her eyes before she turned back to Walter and placed her arms around him and hugged h im close.
    Tonight, with this announcement, all of Diane’s dreams had c ome true.
    So where did having a baby fit into the picture for them?

CHAPTER FIVE
    Diane
    Present–March
    M ozart played in the background as I sat in the rocker we’d bought for Grace’s room. I stared down at her in my arms. It seemed like that was all I ever did. I could stare at her for hours on end, and in realit y, I did.
    It was hard not to. She was the most perfect baby I had ever seen in my life.
    I grabbed my phone and snapped a picture to send to Brian. I must have sent him more than a hundred photos since we’d come home from the hospital. I didn’t want him to miss out on a sing le moment.
    “Your daddy will fall in love with you the moment he holds you in his arms. I know it.”
    I held her in the crook of my arm and waited for her to smile. Her smile reminded me of Brian, which made me miss him all the more. This morning I’d worked on a word search puzzle he’d made for me, a love puzzle. It made me smile to circle words like sweetheart and ice cream sundae , knowing that he picked each word with a specific memory in mind.
    “Diane?” Nina poked her head into the room. “Why don’t you come out and join me for a cup of tea?”
    “I’d love that.” I pushed myself up from the chair, careful not to bump Grace while I did so.
    Little by little things were getting easier. Being a mother wasn’t as easy as I thought, even with a nanny in the house. When I was home, I wanted to be the one to take care of my daughter; at least, that was what I thought I had wanted. But more and more, I’d come to depend on Nina to help me, even with the little things like heating up the bottles or figuring out why Grace cried when there seemed to be no reason.
    “Why don’t you put her down for a nap?” Nina came in and placed a fresh blanket down in the bassinet I had set in the crib.
    I bit my lip. I really didn’t want to put her down. I loved hol ding her.
    “The little angel will be fine. The monitor is turned on so you’ll hear eve ry sound.”
    I still h esitated.
    “We should set up a playpen or something for her to sleep in downstairs.” I preferred to keep her close.
    “Trust me?” A few wisps had escaped from Nina’s ponytail and dangled in front of her face. She reached for Grace and I relinquished her without thought. The moment she left my arms I winced. I shouldn’t have done that. I could have put her down. I needed to learn to do things on my own more and more. Nina wasn’t going to be her e forever.
    “I do.” I sighed. “Will I ever get the hang of this?”
    Nina placed Grace down in her bed. I stood beside my baby and straightened her dress. I loved this outfit. It was one I’d picked out online just a few weeks ago. A soft cream dress with a dark pink ribbon on the hem, sleeves and neckline. The dress was quite long, down to her toes, so I didn’t have any leggings on her. I found them quite tiresome to get off when I needed to change her. Instead, I found some knitted booties in the dresser drawer, a gift from Walter while I’d been on bed rest. That hadn’t been the only thing he’d sent either. Almost daily, either a package would arrive or he’d come over in the evening and bring me something, a blanket, an outfit, or something special