Chapter 24
Gemma
I didn’t know what had happened to me when I roused in the bed and felt Whitt leaning over me. I’d caught the crinkle of the paper and figured he was looking at the sketches I kept by my bed. It had been my nightly ritual to sketch a design, and as of late most of mine had been in reference to hotels and resorts.
As soon as Whitt’s weight had shifted around me, it was like I’d suddenly lost my balance only I was lying down.
I’d been so queasy, and though I was alert when I’d heaved, nothing had come out. I’d already expelled all I had in me, and there was nothing left. My mouth was dry as a bone, and I coughed, and my throat felt like I’d swallowed sand.
I remembered the moment Lila had arrived and how I’d heard them arguing, and it was all so hazy and hard to tell what was a reality. By the time I heard something about a baby, I couldn’t tell what was being said or comprehend, but I thought that Lila knew all about me being pregnant.
In the car when I tried to apologize, I knew she was disappointed in me and if I hadn’t been in such terrible shape, I knew that burning in her eyes would have been anger against me.
I never wanted to disappoint her, and I’d been so selfish in my actions that I couldn’t blame her if she decided that we couldn’t be friends anymore. She deserved better than a friend like me. I’d targeted her father since we were younger, and though I loved him dearly, I should have stayed away.
I felt the car lurch as we stopped and then everything was moving very quickly. Whitt reached in the backseat to scoop me up, and Lila hurried out of the opposite side to find a wheelchair which they quickly put me in and wheeled me inside. Lila pulled me to a stop in front of the front desk, but Whitt did the talking.
“Yes, she collapsed at home. She’s been sick with a stomach flu.” He waited until Lila stepped away and leaned in closer to the nurse. “She’s in the early weeks of pregnancy as well.” The nurse’s eyes lit up and her lip curled in disgust, but she didn’t react.
“Whitt?” My voice was gravelly from the heaving and lack of something to drink, but Lila stepped in and gave me a bottle of water.
“Here drink this slowly.”
I did as she said, not wanting to create an argument, as the nurse came around and waved us into a triage area.
“Daddy, stay with her. I’m going to make a phone call. Daniel will want to know that I’ll be a while.” I glanced to Whitt expecting him to say something, but he nodded and placed his hand on my shoulder.
“I’m not leaving her side. I’ll have you go home and grab a few of her things later if you will?”
“Of course, I will. Gemma is my best friend, remember?” She gave her father a hard glare and disappeared down the hall.
“I’m just going to get your vitals, and I want to draw some blood.” The nurse moved her hands quickly to her blood pressure cuff and strapped it on, and in two shakes she had it pumping. She poked at my arm and then had me open up for a thermometer. I had taken my temperature so many times in the past few days, that the underside of my tongue was raw.
Whitt cleared his throat. “She’s had morning sickness, and we’re afraid she might have dehydrated.”
She felt around on my arm and then glanced up to my lips, which were dry too. “Yeah, I think you’re right. I’ve got a room ready for her, and we’ll start her an IV and get her some fluids going.
“Why can’t I just drink more?” I didn’t want to have a shot or especially an IV in my arm.
“This is much better, and besides, with you being pregnant, you don’t want to put you or the baby at risk. Dehydration is very dangerous, and it takes over very quickly. She pulled some supplies out of the drawer and Whitt pinched my chin and had me look at him.
“Don’t think about it, baby. It will all be over soon.” It was sweet of him to try and make it all better, but nothing was going to do the trick. Not until that needle was away from me.
The nurse chuckled. “Honey, you should get used to needles, especially since you’re having a baby.” Whitt narrowed his eyes and turned his nose at the woman.
She changed the subject, and I could only think it was to take my mind off the needle. “Once we get you back, we’ll do a pelvic exam and make sure that everything is okay with the pregnancy.”
Whitt’s hand came down on mine as tears filled my eyes. “It’ll be fine.”
It was strange how quickly I’d gotten used to the fact that I was responsible for a tiny life inside me, how much I cared for the little person I’d never met, simply because it was a part of me. I held out my arm and let her put the IV in, and I didn’t even cry.
Lila returned about the time they brought me into the room, and she let out a long breath as she saw her father put his arm around me. He didn’t seem to care if it offended her, and though I didn’t want to upset her, I was proud that he’d at least been there for me without letting Lila’s opinion of him change the way he’d treat me.
The two were sent out while I was examined and though Whitt offered to stay if I needed him, it was something I wanted to do without an audience. I couldn’t imagine Whitt seeing me on a table with my legs in stirrups and it not be for some sexual reason, and I tried not to think that the doctors might see I had just had sex not more than a couple of hours earlier. Whitt’s cock usually stretched me too much.
After the exam, they brought Lila and Whitt back into the room, and the doctor explained the findings. “Everything looks good. Sometimes during this phase of morning sickness, women will lose too much fluid, and when that happens, it’s easy for to get dizzy when you get up too fast. She’s in a lethargic state, and I’d imagine if she’d done anything rigorous, she might have made things worse.” The doctor stared at Whitt, and he gave me an apologetic look.
I glanced over at Lila who was glaring at her father. She slapped on a big smile for the doctor when he said goodbye and then when the door was shut, she spun around and flipped out.
“She’s pregnant? How could you not tell me? Did you think I wouldn’t find out?” She looked at me. “You could tell me anything, Gemma. We’ve always been friends. And you, when I said to find a nice young woman, well, I didn’t mean Gemma!” She let out a long breath, and I choked up. I was barely producing tears as I cried.
“It happened about as planned as your own, I’d guess.” Her face reddened, and she looked at me and shrugged.
I cleared my throat. “Wait, you just said yours. You’re pregnant too?” I closed my eyes and smiled.
“Yeah, when I said I wanted to grow up and raise our kids together, I didn’t think yours would be my siblings.” She shook her head and then closed the distance between her and my bed.
“I’m sorry, Lila. It just happened. I love him.” I couldn’t expect her to understand or accept it. To her, it probably seemed unnatural.
“I know you do. You’re the most genuine person I know, but.” She looked me in the eyes and shook her head, and I thought that was it, the moment when she’d tell me how horrible I was. How I’d taken advantage of her friendship and that things would never be the same. But she just laughed. “Aren’t we a pair?” She sat on the side of my bed. “We’re going to be mothers. Look out world, here comes our children.”
“You don’t hate me?” I felt the sting of my tears wanting to produce.
“No, I am a little jealous. But only because I’m going to have to vie the little brat for my father’s attention. I mean, I always wanted a brother or sister, but I’d wanted one I could pick on, not one that was young enough to be my kid.” She was pulling a classic Lila; making jokes to lighten the mood.
“You’re always going to be my little girl.” Whitt reached across the bed and touched her shoulder. “It seems our little family is growing by leaps and bounds, and I guess if you can accept all of this with Gemma and me, then the least I can do is accept Daniel.”
“I’m sorry I blurted it out that way in anger, Daddy. I’d wanted to tell you at the gala but then everything happened and just didn’t think it was the right time. I was angry that you couldn’t just accept us, so it really means a lot to me that you’ll give us your blessing.”
Whitt gave his daughter a warm smile. “Anything for the father of my grandchild. Have you set a date?”
“We’re thinking about New Year’s Eve in the Bahamas. Something different. I don’t know though; I don’t want to be huge in my wedding dress. What about you guys?” She looked back and forth between us, and my cheeks burned with a blush at the thought.
He’d never asked me to marry him, and I didn’t expect it. Starting a family didn’t mean we had to be married to be happy and I imagined that marrying a woman so close to his daughter was something that might not look well for his reputation.
“Um, we’re not getting married,” I shrugged. “I mean, we haven’t talked about it.”
“No, it’s all happened too fast to think about it. We’ll talk about it once Gemma’s feeling better, but I’m sure she’ll agree, it’s no rush.” I nodded, and he patted my hand as if to comfort me. I was content with him to care for me, and at that moment, I didn’t need more.
“Well, I know you’ll take good care of her, Daddy. And likewise. We’re going to be big, happy family. Not conventional, but special.” She gave me a nudge and her smile was contagious.
Whitt stood and walked around to hug Lila. “I’m sorry I gave you a hard time, honey. Thanks for understanding.”
“Well, it does help that I get my way, and with me being pregnant, it was going to happen, but at least you and Gemma will have the house to yourself.” She giggled. “I’d rather play nice than lose to two of you.”
She hadn’t noticed that Whitt and I were staring deep into each other’s eyes. She’d insinuated that I’d be moving into the house, but that wasn’t set in stone either. The truth was, Whitt and I hadn’t talked anything about living arrangements, and I’d assumed that the two of us would continue seeing each other with the same addresses.
“Speaking of leaving you two alone, I think I’ll step out and call Daniel again. He’s going to flip when he hears the news. Oh, and I’d still like to get together for dinner and nice long discussion soon.” She tiptoed out and pulled the door closed behind her.
Once her footsteps faded down the hall, Whitt leaned in and kissed me. “I think we have a lot to talk about.”