And so it was that, less than half an hour later, the whole procedure had been completed.
Lottie hadn’t wanted Rafael to be there—had tried to persuade him that he might prefer to stay in the waiting room, suddenly feeling ridiculously shy in front of him. But, fastening the green scrubs behind his back, he had merely given her a contemptuous look that had needed no words to clarify it. And she had to admit his presence had helped; like a towering wall of determination, it had felt as if his will alone was enough to make this work.
And when he had reached for her hand she had found herself gripping it as if her life depended on it. Or at least their baby’s life.
Now he stood behind her as they stared at a computer screen and the doctor ran the scanner over Lottie’s stomach, pointing out the tiny bubble of air showing where the embryo had been placed. Lottie stared at it, sending out all the positive vibes she could, willing it to do what it had to do.
‘Now...’ Dr Oveisi turned to look at the prospective parents. ‘There are a few rules you will need to abide by for the next couple of weeks.’
From her prone position, Lottie nodded.
Rafael waited, sharp and alert.
‘I am a firm believer that stress is the body’s worst enemy when it comes to successful embryo implantation, and as such it should be avoided at all costs. Research is only just beginning to discover how important the right mental state of the recipient is. By that I don’t mean that the Contessa should take to her bed and do nothing—far from it.’ He looked directly at Lottie. ‘I want you to use the next couple of weeks to do the things that give you pleasure—activities that will take your mind off the outcome of the procedure. So moderate exercise, mental stimulation and full marital relations are all advisable.’
Marital relations? The very air in the room seemed to gasp at the thought of it. That was the one thing Lottie could guarantee wasn’t going to happen.
The sad absurdity of the situation forcefully struck her once again.
Finally Rafael and Dr Oveisi left the room, leaving Lottie to stay in bed for the requisite fifteen minutes. Gazing into space, she felt a myriad of conflicting and confusing thoughts crowd her mind. Had that really just happened? Was she really lying here with their embryo implanted inside her?
Up and dressed, and feeling a bit more in control, she went down to the reception area. The twin stares of the two receptionists alerted her to where Rafael stood, leaning against the wall, one long leg crossed over the other, talking into his mobile phone.
Seeing Lottie he gestured her towards him.
‘Oui, oui, d’accord, deux semaines.’ He raised his eyebrows at her before returning to his call, speaking in rapid French.
Lottie had always been confounded by the way he could do that—switch from one language to another with seamless ease. Fluent in English, French and German, as well as his native Italian, it seemed to be as natural to him as breathing.
As she waited for him to finish she suddenly had a vivid flashback. The two of them snuggled up together in the ridiculously narrow bed of the tiny student flat she had been renting when they’d first met, with the diffused afternoon sun filtering through the cheap cotton curtains. Rafael had been teasing her about her schoolgirl French, making her repeat words after him as he trailed his fingers down her naked skin, following them with a line of feather-light kisses. As each word had become more erotic than the last he’d finally claimed her pouting lips with his own, and the lesson had ended with something that was certainly never taught in school.
‘Bene—everything is sorted.’ Slipping the phone into his trouser pocket he turned, frowning slightly as he noticed the flush on Lottie’s cheeks. ‘I’ve arranged a little trip away for us.’
Lottie readjusted her face. ‘What do you mean?’
‘We are going to Villa Varenna. I thought you might like that.’
‘Well, yes...maybe.’
Now it was Lottie’s turn to frown. The Revaldis had property all over the place, but this was her favourite—a beautiful villa, perched on the side of a stunning Italian lake.
‘When were you thinking of going?’ It seemed a strange time to be considering a holiday, when their lives were on hold until they knew if she was pregnant.
‘Now.’ Rafael’s beautiful dark eyes regarded her calmly.
‘Now?’ Lottie repeated incredulously. ‘How could we possibly go now?’
‘Easy. I’ve already got the helicopter here. We can be there in a couple of hours.’
‘But we can’t. I mean—not now. I don’t have any things...clothes, toiletries.’
‘You’re not seriously telling me you can’t go because you don’t have a toothbrush?’