Chapter Thirty-Nine
Images from the evening flitted through my mind while I slept. My rest had been sporadic at best. I woke repeatedly, thinking I was back in the bedroom at Navarro’s. The warmth from Garrick’s chest kept me grounded. Each time I woke with a start, Garrick’s embrace chased away the remnants from the bad dreams.
I stirred against him.
“I wish last night was a dream.”
“Me, too. I was so scared, Knoah. If something happened—”
“It didn’t. You saved me in time.” The thought terrified me, too. I should have been the one dead. If it hadn’t been for Carrie, I’d be dead. But it wasn’t only me who was affected. Through all this, Garrick had to become someone he’d never wanted to be. It was the reason he severed the relationship with Hastings in the first place. “I’m sorry you had to do those things you never wanted to do.”
Garrick let out a slow breath, and his eyes grew unfocused for a second. “Last night was different. Navarro had you. It was them or you. And I was getting you back.”
To get Garrick back, I would have moved heaven and earth. If he was in danger, there wasn’t much I wouldn’t do to save him.
Since last night, Garrick had been tentative when touching me. I knew he loved me, but I wondered if it had affected his feelings. I traced an infinity symbol on his chest. “Do you believe me about Navarro not touching me?”
“Yes. Even if he had, it wouldn’t change how I feel about you.”
Thank goodness. I kissed his chest. “I still feel out of sorts. Vivian is dead. Carrie is dead. How am I going to tell my parents? What am I going to tell my parents?”
“Hastings and I sorted it out last night. We only had a little bit of time to react.”
“What’s that?”
He took a deep breath. “We staged it to look like a drive-by shooting. Carrie’s body has been found by the cops. Soon she’ll be identified. Once that happens, I’ll get in contact with your parents. We’ll officially locate Kimberly and get that ball rolling. It keeps them out of this mess but reunites them with their granddaughter at the same time. At least they’ll have closure now.”
“True. They won’t have to wonder. And I get another niece. I can’t wait to meet her.”
“She’ll be lucky to have you in her life.”
I let out a breath. “That takes away a lot of my worry. Last night I kept wondering how it would all piece together. What are you going to do with Arnold?”
Garrick seemed frustrated, running his hands through his hair. “We haven’t decided.”
“Let him go.”
The muscles in Garrick’s chest stiffened. “What?”
“Let him go. There’s been too much loss as it is. Another child shouldn’t have to grow up without her father.”
For a few seconds, I wasn’t sure if Garrick would agree or not. “I have one condition,” he said.
“What’s that?”
“He can’t ever be allowed to work in the security or law enforcement types of jobs again. He’ll have to start his profession over. If he could be bought once, it could happen again. That kind of weakness puts people’s lives in danger.”
For a second, I thought about the condition. I would never want anyone else to go through what I had. “I agree. Will you make that happen and work it out with Hastings?”
“Yes. I’ll talk to Joe later, as well.”
Hopefully, we had stopped any further loss from Navarro’s biddings.
Garrick’s phone vibrated and he answered. I’d heard it a few times throughout the morning as he got updates. “Yes. Okay. We’ll be in the study in a few.” He turned to me. “The doctor is here.”
I checked the time. It was just after two in the afternoon. “He’s early.”
Hopefully that meant nothing was wrong, but I was worried why he’d rushed over. All the possible things Navarro could have given me swam through my head.
“Let’s get dressed and see what he wants.”
After dressing, we walked into the study, hand in hand. Someone had cleaned in there since earlier that morning. The lemon smell was strong. The doctor greeted us with a pleasant smile. If something were wrong, surely he’d have a more somber expression.
“Good morning, Mr. and Mrs. Shaw. I have the lab results.” I took a deep breath, noticing that Garrick held his, too. The doctor pulled out a sheet of paper. “As suspected, there was ipecac and a barbiturate used to sedate Mrs. Shaw. Nothing else out of the ordinary was found in Mrs. Shaw’s system.”
The air whooshed from my lungs, and Garrick relaxed beside me. “Are there any long-term side effects?”
“I’ll want to continue observing Mrs. Shaw for any adverse effects. However, there was something else I found unrelated to the drugs.”
Oh no. No. No. No. Something was wrong. Something was bad wrong. Beside me, it felt like Garrick had frozen as if expecting the worst. Barely above a whisper, I asked, “What is it?”
“Congratulations. Mrs. Shaw is pregnant.”
Wait. Did he say…What did…Did I hear him right?
No one spoke for a second. Garrick shook his head quickly and said, “Can you repeat that?”
“Yes. Mrs. Shaw is pregnant. Congratulations.”
Pregnant. I’m pregnant. For the second time in a minute, the air whooshed out of me. “Are you serious? I’m pregnant? Like with a baby?”
Of course. I mean, what other kind of pregnant is there?
“Yes, with certainty. Here are the results.”
He turned paper our way.
Pregnant: Positive
Beta HCG Range: 4,000
“What does this mean?” I pointed to the “Beta HCG Range.”
The doctor gave a pleasant smile. “You’re two to three weeks pregnant, I suspect. You’ll need to schedule an appointment with a doctor as soon as possible to begin prenatal care.”
I grabbed Garrick’s hand, still unable to comprehend the news. Of course, we weren’t preventing, but I never really expected to get pregnant. I mean, I hoped. “I wasn’t supposed to be able to get pregnant again.”
“Yes, I saw your chart. You’re going to want to take it easy. No additional stress. Lots of rest for the next couple of days. Get an appointment with a high-risk ob-gyn.”
The tranquilizer. The ipecac. All the stress. My mouth dried up with the fear that I might go through losing another baby. I must remain calm. The last time, I’d been about two to three weeks when I lost the baby. “Will what they injected me with or the ipecac hurt the baby?”
“You don’t abuse them, so everything should be fine with daily monitoring.”
That wasn’t a no. There was a chance that even from the grave, Navarro still would wreak havoc on my life and take the one thing I wanted besides Garrick. Please don’t let me lose the baby. It was still hard to believe. I had to double-check. “I’m pregnant?”
Chuckling, the doctor nodded. “Yes, you are. Congratulations.”
I turned to Garrick. “We’re pregnant. We’re going to have a baby.”
Garrick hadn’t said much. Is he okay with this? I knew he wanted children, but what if he never really expected it to happen? A huge grin suddenly spread across his face—a smile of pure happiness. “Yes, we are. We’re going to have a baby.” Leaning down, he kissed me and then smiled against my lips. “We’re pregnant!”
I echoed it again. No matter how many times I said it, I couldn’t believe it. Turning to the doctor, Garrick asked, “What do I need to do? Whatever needs to happen will happen.”
“Mrs. Shaw needs bed rest. No stress. A proper diet. At some point, she’ll be able to return to her normal activity. I’m being cautious considering the stress she’s been under. Schedule the doctor’s appointment and follow their advice. I have a recommendation for the top high-risk doctor in the area, if you’d like.”
“Done. Yes, please give it to me.”
High-risk. Yes, I knew this, but still it left me with an uneasy feeling. As the doctor gave Garrick the contact information, I touched my stomach. Inside me was a baby…our baby. I would be a mother…Garrick a father…We would have a family.
I was pregnant.
In a daze, I sat on the couch, thinking about how incredible this was, while Garrick escorted the doctor out.
A true miracle. Our miracle.
Garrick gently brought me into his lap and touched my stomach. “A piece of us is in there.”
“Our baby.” I placed my hand on top of his. “You’re going to be a daddy.”
It was hard to believe. I’d conditioned myself to not believe I would ever have this feeling again. Everything felt surreal.
“To bed for a few days. You need your rest.”
There was so much to do. So much I wouldn’t be able to do for a while. “What about the events? My job?”
After all the time I had been confined to the apartment, and just as I got my freedom back, part of it was yanked away again. However, if it meant the baby would be okay, I would make it work.
“I’ll handle it. The doctor said rest for the foreseeable future. No stress. Understood?”
“Absolutely.” For the baby, it was worth it. Anything was worth it. “Thank you.”
He picked me up, and when I attempted to move, he held me tighter.
“I can walk.”
“Rest. Let me spoil you.”
I touched his cheek. “You spoil me so. I will do everything to make this a safe pregnancy. No more stress. I can do this, Garrick. I’ll do anything to keep our child safe.”
He stopped in the hall and grazed his nose against mine. “Nothing will happen. I won’t let it.”
I cuddled into his chest, hoping he was right. But it was still considered a high-risk pregnancy. The first three months would be critical. He set me down and fluffed my pillow. On a laugh, I said, “You’re crazy.”
“Crazy in love. What else do you need?”
On cue, my stomach growled. “I probably need to eat something. Something easy to eat. Nothing heavy. I’m still feeling off.”
Maybe it was the pregnancy causing me to feel off and not the drugs. I hoped so.
“Coming right up. Try to rest while I get you something.”
I yawned. “Will do.”
Garrick pressed his lips against mine and then said, “You have made me the happiest man alive. All I’ve ever wanted you have given me.”
“I feel the same way.”
“I’ll be right back with your breakfast.”
As he walked away, I placed my hand on my stomach.
Please let me be strong enough to keep the baby.