soul-searching—weighing the possible side effects of the steroids versus the good they might do—he reluctantly began to treat women whose tests revealed that they could not possibly have a child unless the killer toxins were somehow subdued.
As much as possible, he confined his scientific research and worrying to the daylight hours, so that he would not deny Toni her share of his emotional commitment.
Her drive to excel at everything extended to pregnancy as well. By sheer force of will she did not let morning sickness curtail her activities. She never once called Adam at the lab in panic, for she had read enough to be able to recognize Braxton-Hicks contractions as false alarms.
In her thirty-ninth week, Toni went into labor, and expertly breathed her way through the birth of six pound, eight ounce Heather Elizabeth Coopersmith.
Though not the first woman, Toni was, however, the first lawyer to avail herself of the firm’s maternity leave. And then to take advantage of their excellent day-care facilities so she could return to work immediately.
Lisl, who took her job as godmother seriously, felt obliged to express her misgivings. “I know this practice is very much in vogue. But there really is no substitute for the mother in the early months of childhood,” she observed diplomatically.
Toni took this advice as graciously as she could. “What if they have to work?”
“Well yes,” Lisl conceded, “if they
have
to.”
“Good,” Toni replied pointedly, “because
I
have to.”
Afterward Toni complained to Adam about what she regarded as Lisl’s excessive interference.
“Next time you have one of your heart-to-hearts with that woman, tell her I agreed to her being a godmother, not a godmother-
in-law.
”
“She’s genuinely trying to help,” Adam protested.
“She probably is,” Toni acknowledged. “But I can’t help her compensate for not having children of her own.”
At the weekly meeting of his brown-bag staff luncheon, Adam was beaming with joy. He read the information from a computer printout and then crowed:
“We’ve smashed our own record—thanks to the steroids—seventy percent of our worst ‘repeaters’ have finally made it through their first trimester with the pregnancy intact. It’s either a miracle, or we’re geniuses.…”
Len Kutnik, a junior research fellow, grinned. “Can we vote on that, boss?”
“This lab isn’t a democracy, Doctor,” Adam rejoined. “I’ll render my absolute judgment when I see real babies.”
And he did. They then witnessed a surprising development: once these previously unsuccessful women had reached this point, almost all of them proceeded to deliver healthy children on schedule.
But what was the explanation for this happy phenomenon? Why did these patients who malfunctioned so early somehow outgrow their difficulty? The answer might provide a solution to the entire mystery.
As it was, the procedure was far from satisfactory. The pregnant mothers began to resent the side effects of taking steroids: the extra weight, swollen limbs, andbloated faces. Not to mention the risk—in rare cases, to be sure—of glaucoma, diabetes, and functional dependency on the drug. Max Rudolph would never have approved.
Meanwhile, Adam encountered his own unexpected fertility problem. As Heather neared her third birthday he began to rhapsodize about the possibilities of a second child.
“Heather’s a handful already,” Toni countered. “I don’t honestly see how I could manage another little one and my legal practice.”
“They’re not little for long,” he commented.
“I know,” she said. “But I don’t see the need for adding to the world’s overpopulation crisis.”
“This isn’t China, Toni. Besides, it’s a documented fact that only children tend to grow up with more problems.”
“
I
was an only child,” she reminded him. “I mean, I never lived with my brothers. And it didn’t seem to do me any harm.”
I wouldn’t be
As much as possible, he confined his scientific research and worrying to the daylight hours, so that he would not deny Toni her share of his emotional commitment.
Her drive to excel at everything extended to pregnancy as well. By sheer force of will she did not let morning sickness curtail her activities. She never once called Adam at the lab in panic, for she had read enough to be able to recognize Braxton-Hicks contractions as false alarms.
In her thirty-ninth week, Toni went into labor, and expertly breathed her way through the birth of six pound, eight ounce Heather Elizabeth Coopersmith.
Though not the first woman, Toni was, however, the first lawyer to avail herself of the firm’s maternity leave. And then to take advantage of their excellent day-care facilities so she could return to work immediately.
Lisl, who took her job as godmother seriously, felt obliged to express her misgivings. “I know this practice is very much in vogue. But there really is no substitute for the mother in the early months of childhood,” she observed diplomatically.
Toni took this advice as graciously as she could. “What if they have to work?”
“Well yes,” Lisl conceded, “if they
have
to.”
“Good,” Toni replied pointedly, “because
I
have to.”
Afterward Toni complained to Adam about what she regarded as Lisl’s excessive interference.
“Next time you have one of your heart-to-hearts with that woman, tell her I agreed to her being a godmother, not a godmother-
in-law.
”
“She’s genuinely trying to help,” Adam protested.
“She probably is,” Toni acknowledged. “But I can’t help her compensate for not having children of her own.”
At the weekly meeting of his brown-bag staff luncheon, Adam was beaming with joy. He read the information from a computer printout and then crowed:
“We’ve smashed our own record—thanks to the steroids—seventy percent of our worst ‘repeaters’ have finally made it through their first trimester with the pregnancy intact. It’s either a miracle, or we’re geniuses.…”
Len Kutnik, a junior research fellow, grinned. “Can we vote on that, boss?”
“This lab isn’t a democracy, Doctor,” Adam rejoined. “I’ll render my absolute judgment when I see real babies.”
And he did. They then witnessed a surprising development: once these previously unsuccessful women had reached this point, almost all of them proceeded to deliver healthy children on schedule.
But what was the explanation for this happy phenomenon? Why did these patients who malfunctioned so early somehow outgrow their difficulty? The answer might provide a solution to the entire mystery.
As it was, the procedure was far from satisfactory. The pregnant mothers began to resent the side effects of taking steroids: the extra weight, swollen limbs, andbloated faces. Not to mention the risk—in rare cases, to be sure—of glaucoma, diabetes, and functional dependency on the drug. Max Rudolph would never have approved.
Meanwhile, Adam encountered his own unexpected fertility problem. As Heather neared her third birthday he began to rhapsodize about the possibilities of a second child.
“Heather’s a handful already,” Toni countered. “I don’t honestly see how I could manage another little one and my legal practice.”
“They’re not little for long,” he commented.
“I know,” she said. “But I don’t see the need for adding to the world’s overpopulation crisis.”
“This isn’t China, Toni. Besides, it’s a documented fact that only children tend to grow up with more problems.”
“
I
was an only child,” she reminded him. “I mean, I never lived with my brothers. And it didn’t seem to do me any harm.”
I wouldn’t be
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