Chapter Thirty-One

 

 

 

 

 

Kelly

 

 

 

 

 

“I think it’s a girl,” Adina announced from where she sat across from me in the cafeteria. “I see a lot of pink in your future.”

I shrugged my shoulders and put down the soup I was eating. “I don’t have a feeling one way or another, honestly. Aren’t mother’s supposed to have some sort of intuition at this point?”

“I think that’s a load of bullshit.” Chuck shook his head from where he was sitting next to me. “I think anyone who had a feeling and was right just got lucky.”

Diana was sitting with us while on her break, next to Chuck, but her honey brown eyes were on me as she slowly munched on her chips. I’d come to learn that she wasn’t much of a talker normally.

“Good. So I’m not some sort of abnormal mom already.” I reached for my bowl of soup again and had just brought the spoon to my mouth when I felt a twinge in my stomach. I let out a small yelp and jumped, causing my soup to splash all over my shirt.

“What’s wrong?” Chuck was up quickly, pulling my soup out of my hands and inspecting me before I could even blink.

I put a hand on my stomach and stared at him wide-eyed for a moment as the twinge happened again. “I think… I think the baby is kicking.”

“Have you not felt the baby before?” Adina asked, handing me a towel as Chuck sat back down with a relieved look on his face.

“Not like this. Flutters, yeah, but that was so much stronger.” Tears pricked the back of my eyes as I put my hand on my stomach, hoping to feel the baby again. At twenty-six weeks, my stomach was a lot rounder but not obviously pregnant unless I wore something tight. Well, shirt-wise anyway. None of my pants fit and Megan had dragged me to the mall a couple of weeks before to buy maternity clothes. All of my shirts still fit so far and I’d gone up a size in my work shirts just to keep the conversation at a minimum from clients and for my own comfort. The shirt I had just been wearing, however, was now covered in black bean and salsa soup.

I stood and pulled my polo over my head, leaving me in long-sleeved shirt I’d been wearing underneath. I had another work shirt in my locker that I could put back on once lunch was over. I tugged on my undershirt and dropped my stained polo on the chair between Adina and me.

She grinned at me from her seat. “Look how on display your belly is now.”

She was right. I ran my hand along my stomach and grinned. There were days when I still couldn’t believe that I was pregnant. The reality of having Nick’s baby felt too good to be true. The bigger I got, the more solid it started to feel, especially when it was accompanied by heartburn, the growing need to pee, and the inability to get comfortable at night.

“Have you thought about names?” Diana asked quietly, and I shrugged my shoulders as I sat back down.

“We have a few in mind but nothing amazing. We’ve both agreed not to settle on any one name until we see the baby. I want a name that suits him or her perfectly.”

“That’s so sweet.” Adina reached over and rubbed my stomach, something she’d taken to doing more and more of. “Not too long now.”

I managed to finish my lunch without spilling anymore all over myself. The rest of the hour was spent chatting with the others around me and we all eventually went back to reopen the office at one o’clock. I stopped by my locker and pulled on a clean polo, although it was one of my normal-sized ones and did nothing to disguise my pregnancy.

Zander was my first appointment after lunch and he stood from the chairs when I called his name. Our weekly visits had been pushed out so I was only seeing him bi-weekly anymore but he was still making excellent progress. Gone was the wheelchair and even the cane I’d made him start to use all those months before wasn’t anywhere to be seen.

He strode towards me confidently and I couldn’t help grinning at him. “You’re not walking, Z. You’re strutting.”

“I told you- I’ll never take being upright for granted ever again. This strut it all because of you. Happy New Year, Kelly.” He wrapped his arms around me in a tight hug before stepping back. His gaze immediately went to my belly and his eyes widened when he looked back up at me. “You’re pregnant?”

“Yeah.” I smiled and placed my hand on my stomach. “About six months. I’m due in April.”

After our awkward kiss in the hallway, I had been nervous that things would be weird for Zander and me. They weren’t, though. We’d managed to pretend it never happened and go on like we always had.

“Wow, congratulations. Your husband is a lucky guy.” Zander’s smile was completely sincere as he took his spot on the exam table. “Are you having a boy or a girl?”

I rubbed his calves, almost in awe of the muscle that was there. “We didn’t find out. Sometimes I almost want to but Nick is so desperate to know that I just like torturing him at this point.”

Zander chuckled in amusement but didn’t respond. I worked him hard for the next forty-five minutes, even putting him on the treadmill and getting him up to a four mile-an-hour run. When I stopped it after ten minutes, I just shook my head in disbelief.

“Eighteen months ago, they said you’d never walk again.”

Zander used a towel to wipe down his forehead and beamed at me. “I knew they were wrong. I just needed someone to believe in me and can never thank you enough for being that person.”

Sweaty body and all, I wrapped Zander in a tight hug. Tears leaked from my eyes and I didn’t bother to try and stop them.

“I’m so proud of you,” I told him as I pulled back, swiping at my face. “Sorry about the crying. Hormones, you know.”

He chuckled and reached over to grab a tissue from the box next to the exam table. “Pregnant women get a pass. Cry as much as you want.”

“Thanks.” I used the tissue to wipe my face and grabbed my clipboard. “I expect everyone to remember what a badass I am when I’m not using every ounce of energy to create a human being. Now, let’s talk about the future.”

I sat down with Zander and went over the results of the assessment I’d done on him for the day. The things that he needed to do no longer required my supervision and instead I wanted to come up with an exercise regimen that he could do independently. He’d still need to see me every six to eight weeks for the next year but I had complete confidence that he’d be discharged from SNPTR at that point. Stories like Zander and Tanya’s were why I’d wanted to go into physical therapy in the first place.

I promised Zander that I’d email him the new workout schedule I wanted him to follow by the end of the week and he wrapped me in another long, tight hug before walking- no strutting- out of the office like a man with swagger.

“That is one great piece of man candy,” Adina murmured as she walked by me to show her client out. My only response was to roll my eyes and force back my chuckle.

I spent the next few hours working with clients and sighed once I’d walked my last one out for the day. Despite the fact that I hadn’t even gained ten pounds so far in my pregnancy, my feet hurt like a bitch after a day of work.

I sat down at one of computers in the back and spent some time printing out things I needed so I could do my charting at home. I was completely behind on my notes for the day and scrambling to get my stuff together so I could at least do what I needed while wearing my pajamas.

Despite my rushing, I was the last one out of our suite shortly before six. I texted Nick to let him know I was leaving and turned off the lights in our little area. The sun had been down for over an hour at that point and I buttoned up my jacket as I stepped out into the dusky night. It was chilly for Southern Nevada, in the mid-fifties, and I shivered as I hefted my bag over my shoulder and walked across the parking lot.

I was almost to my car when the back of my neck began to tingle. The prickle of awareness caused every fine hair on my arm to stand and I stopped abruptly, whipping my head around.

My eyes scanned the dark parking lot but nothing seemed out of the ordinary. I was completely alone as far as I could see but my sense of sight was wrong because I could feel someone watching me.

I made my feet start moving again except faster that time. My fist was closed around my keys and I hit the button to unlock the doors when I got within twenty feet, causing the lights to flash. When I made it to my car, I froze.

My front tire was completely flat. It was so flat that the rubber looked almost melted and I began to panic. I made my feet move and had just reached for my door when I heard a noise behind me. I flipped around quickly, reading to stab someone with my keys, but there wasn’t anyone there.

“Ms. Gold.” I turned to my right and saw a figure approaching from the neighboring building that connected via the walkway in ours. “Is that you?”

I nodded and willed my breathing to settle as recognition settled over me. “Dr. Thomas. Hi.”

As he strolled towards me, I glanced around. The awareness of being watched had disappeared but I didn’t feel any better. Someone had been watching me. I was sure of it.

“You’re here late.” He was smiling when he reached me but his smile turned to a frown when he saw the tire behind me. “Oh, that’s not good.”

“Nope. Not the end of the day I was hoping for.”

“Well, I’d offer to change it myself but I’ve got to pick up my daughter from dance.” He gestured to the car behind him. “Can I give you a ride somewhere?”

“That’s okay. I’m going to head back inside and call my husband. I could change it but,” I pat my stomach and offered him a small grin. “Nick would probably kill me if I did.”

Dr. Thomas chuckled and nodded his head. “Okay. Well, head back in and I’ll see you a bit later.”

With a small wave, I turned and rushed back in. Dr. Thomas had made me feel safe and I didn’t want to be in the lot without him. Instead of going back to my suite, I detoured to the hospital cafeteria so I wouldn’t be alone. As soon as I was sitting at a table, I called Nick.

“Hey, hot stuff.”

I sighed and settled back in the chair. “Hey, Nicky. Are you busy?”

“Kicking Owens’ ass in Street Fighter but otherwise, nope.” The noise in the background stopped, telling me that he paused the game. “What’s wrong, Kel?”

“I haven’t left work yet. One of the tires on my car resembles a pancake. Any chance I could talk you into being my knight in shining armor? If not or if you’re too busy, I can call roadside service so they can do it. I’m just too tired to change a tire right now.”

“Sweetheart.” Nick’s voice was firm. “Do not call roadside assistance and do not even attempt to change that by yourself. I’ll be there in twenty minutes. Get back inside.”

Tears pricked my eyes and I cursed my stupid hormones. “I’m the cafeteria. Thank you, handsome.”

He told me he loved me and then rushed off the phone. I went through the line and bought myself an orange juice to drink while I waited.

I was expecting him to text me when he was there so I was surprised when Nick appeared in the cafeteria twenty-five minutes later. A wide grin filled his face and he closed the distance between us quickly. I stood and fell into his chest when he wrapped his arms around me. He smelled amazing- like a mixture of mint, the cologne he wore, and a hint of smoke.

“I’m sorry your day ended with a flat tire,” he murmured, kissing the top of my head before pulling back. “Are you okay?”

I nodded and looked up at him with a smile. “I’m just tired and ready to go home.”

With my hand in his, we walked out of the cafeteria and towards the exit. We stepped out into the night air and I suddenly stopped us both.

“Wait.”

Nick looked down at me in alarm as I put my hand over my stomach. “What? Are you okay?”

“Give me your hand. Hurry.” Nick obliged and I put it over the spot I’d just touched. The baby kicked again and I looked up to watch my husband’s face. “Did you feel it?”

“Is that…” His voice was a whisper and his eyes were full of wonderment. “Is that the baby?”

I nodded. “She’s so strong.”

Nick wiped a tear that was trailing down my cheek and then bent to press a kiss to my stomach. “Like her mama. C’mon, sweetheart. Let’s get you both home.”

Simon and Megan were at my car and Simon already had it jacked up so he could work on the lug nuts. I walked over to the truck and sat with Megan, letting her feel the baby kick, too.

The guys got the tire off and took it to the trunk but instead of putting the new one on, they both stared at the old tire and spoke in quiet ones. Finally, the two of us walked over there and Megan strained her neck to look in the trunk.

“What’s wrong?”

Nick’s eye met mine and he cleared his throat. “It’s not a nail or anything, Kel. There’s a big, gaping slash in your tire.”

My sister tightened the hold she already had on my hand. “Someone slashed her tire?”

“Yeah.” Simon nodded and pulled my spare from the trunk. We’re going to have to replace the whole tire. There’s no patching that up.”

I didn’t say anything at all. I just watched as they got the tire back on. It wasn’t until I thanked my sister and Simon that I finally spoke again. They hugged me tight and went to get into Simon’s truck, leaving me and my husband at the car.

“I’m going to drive, okay?”

I nodded and handed him my keys without hesitation. Nick led me to the passenger side of the car and helped me in before going around to get in behind the wheel. He adjusted the seat to accommodate his long legs and started the engine. He didn’t say anything until we were on the highway and heading towards Canyon City.

“Talk to me, sweetheart. What’s wrong?”

“Who would do that?” I asked, turning to look at his profile in the dark cab. “Who would take my underwear? Leave that picture? Hang out in the parking lot and slash my tire?”

Nick reached over and gripped my hand. “I don’t know but we’re going to figure it out. We don’t even know if everything is related, though.”

It was. I could feel it. I didn’t say that to Nick, though. I just squeezed his fingers and let my head fall back against the seat.

When we got home, I ate some of the pasta my husband had made for dinner. His dishes were getting better and better and I was extremely grateful that he didn’t see my lifestyle as any sort of hindrance. Devin had always joked that he’d get me to eat meat one day and Mason was constantly scoffing at my food choices, saying I was being ridiculous.

Not Nick, though. He supported my decisions and even adopted a lot of my same practices himself. I was so lucky to have him.

After dinner, we sat on the bed and googled different ways to get the baby to kick. After a bowl of ice cream, we were able to feel several solid movements and Nick was enchanted by every single one. After the baby had stopped kicking, he laid next to me and stroked my bare stomach while speaking to the baby in low tones.

“And if you are a little princess, then I’m going to show you exactly how you should expect a man to treat you. You are going to be spoiled beyond belief. Ponies, castles, the moon… you name it.”

“Oh, geez.” I chuckled and shifted until we were face to face. “You’re going to be trouble, Christos. You can’t promise ponies and shit.”

“What if I promise you a pony, too?” He was close enough that I could feel his warm breath on my lips. His deep brown eyes stared into mine and they sparkled with happiness. I rubbed my nose against his and kissed him once.

“I don’t want a pony, but I’d take a ride right now.”

He chuckled and wrapped his arms around me. “That was terrible, hot stuff, but who am I to deny my girl what she wants?”