Mingus answered on the third ring. “You okay?”
“Yeah. Did you find out anything about that woman?”
“Give me a sec,” Mingus said, the sound of papers being shuffled in the background.
He continued. “Vivian Lincoln, age twenty-nine, born in Michigan, was the wife of the late John Thomas Lender, the son of CEO and founder John Mitchell Lender. She’s been with the company since before her marriage to John Thomas. After his death in an automobile accident two years ago, she inherited thirty-five percent of the company. Rumor has it, she and her father-in-law have been consoling each other in a nonfamilial manner over the past year. Some refer to her as John Mitchell’s beck-and-call girl.”
“Eww! Her dead husband’s father? That’s just nasty!”
“Hey, you can’t make this stuff up!”
“So, why is she still doing sales if she owns stock in the business?”
“Why does anyone do what they do? From what I could learn, it looks like Daddy-in-Law is grooming her to take over all the business. She spent a month overseas recently learning their distribution business.”
“Overseas?”
“Yeah, she was in Africa for a few weeks. Morocco, I think. Then she went to Thailand and China before returning here to the US.”
A sudden shiver went up Simone’s spine, and questions had her pacing the floor. Questions she couldn’t ask her brother.
“So, it’s reasonable to think she was talking to her father-in-law when I ran into her in the restroom the other day?”
“Liza hacked her cell records and she did indeed place a number of calls to his corporate office after seeing you two.”
Simone nodded into the receiver. “Okay. I appreciate the info.”
“And because I know you so well, little sister. She’s only called Paul twice. On the day he returned from Africa and on the day you two saw her at the hospital. He has never called her. So, I doubt highly they’re having some illicit affair you need to be concerned about.”
Simone didn’t know if she should thank her brother or cuss him out. She wanted to be angry, but he knew her too well. He knew she wanted to know but would never have asked him outright. Mingus was good like that and she loved him immensely for it.”
“You need anything else?” he asked.
“I don’t think so.”
“What are you two planning?”
“Not sure yet.”
“Just be safe, Simone. Please.”
Simone disconnected the call, not bothering to respond. She was still trying to make sense of Vivian being in Morocco the same time Paul had been, and her possible connection to his sudden interest in moving there. Had he not been totally forthcoming with Simone? Was there something he was hiding? Had he lied outright? Did he even know she’d been there?
She shook her head, all of it suddenly unsettling. Before she could catch her breath and figure out what added up and what didn’t, her stomach pitched, a demon sweeping through her insides. Tossing the phone to the table Simone rushed toward the bathroom, making it just in time to spew her breakfast into the commode.
* * *
Paul was surprised to find Simone on the bathroom floor, a damp towel pressed to her forehead. Her knees were pulled up to her chest as she leaned against the tub, her complexion two shades of green.
“I’ve caught some crud,” she said, meeting his stare.
“Yeah, you’re not looking good,” he said. He instinctively shifted into doctor mode, his mind considering a potential diagnosis as he moved into the space and leaned down to swoop her up in his arms.
“What are you doing?” Simone questioned, starting to protest.
“Putting you to bed. Then I’m going to examine you.”
“I’m fine. I’ll be fine.”
“Is that why you had your head in the commode?”
“Did you know Vivian was in Morocco when you were there?”
Paul’s eyes widened. “No, I didn’t. Who told you that? And I wasn’t in Morocco on my last visit.”
“But you want to move there? Isn’t that why you bought a house there?”
“It’s one of a few places I’m considering, and the house was an investment. It may just turn out to be a vacation spot. I’m not sure yet. What’s your point, Simone?”
Simone shook her head. “I was just asking.”
“Well, it sounds like you were about to go off on a jealous tirade and I’m not sure why.”
Simone didn’t bother to answer as he laid her on the bed. He pressed his palm to her forehead and then to her cheeks. He also gazed into one eye and then the other, gently lifting the lids with the pad of his thumb.
“What did you eat?” he questioned.
“Coffee. And a spoonful of fruit.”
Paul pressed two fingers to her wrist to feel her pulse. “Have you been feeling bad all morning?”
“I was sluggish when I first got up. It’s like my usual energy levels aren’t there but I thought I was doing better until I suddenly wasn’t.”
Oliver suddenly interjected from the doorway. “You’re flushed, too. It’s not that time of the month, is it?”
Simone shot the man a glare. “Really?” She suddenly paused, counting days in her head as she thought about her cycle.
“You couldn’t possibly be pregnant, could you?” Oliver asked, his brows raised.
“That’s ridiculous! You need to focus on your culinary skills and leave the doctoring to your brother.” Annoyance washed over her face.
Paul was staring at her intently. “Simone, are you still on your birth control?”
“Now you? Paul, I am not pregnant.”
“What are you using for birth control, Simone, because we haven’t been very responsible since we’ve been back together.”
“I...well...it’s...” She was suddenly stammering. “Damn it,” she finally cussed, because with everything that had been going on, she hadn’t thought about protection. And she had stopped taking her birth control pills the week she and Paul had called it quits. Panic suddenly swept in and consumed her. She was suddenly petrified because a baby had not been on her short list. She hadn’t even considered motherhood! But there was no way possible she could be pregnant and definitely no way she’d be feeling the symptoms of it so soon!
Paul tossed his brother a look. “Will you please run to the lab and grab a venipuncture kit? I need to get a blood sample.”
“For what?” Simone asked, eyeing him curiously as Oliver dashed out of the room.
“A pregnancy test, why else?”
“But it’s barely been seven weeks since we’ve been back together. If I am pregnant, which I’m not,” she emphasized, “it’s too soon for any test.”
“It’s been more than ten days since the first time we were together. If you conceived then, a blood pregnancy test will let us know.”
“We can go to the pharmacy and get one of the sticks I can pee on, but it’s going to be negative.”
“A blood pregnancy test will be more accurate. It can detect the presence of HCG as early as six days after the egg implants.”
“HCG? What’s that?”
“It’s a hormone produced by the placenta in pregnancy. We’ll take a sample of your blood and then get a measurement of the hormone in your body.”
“And if there isn’t any?”
“Then you’re probably not pregnant.”
Oliver raced back into the room, passing his brother the medical supplies he needed. “This is so exciting!” he gushed, his excitement palpable.
The duo shot him chilly glares in reply.
“I’ll just give you two some privacy,” Oliver said as he backed his way out of the room, still grinning like a Cheshire cat.
“I’m not doing this. It’s a waste of time,” Simone snapped. “Just b
ecause I’m a little nauseous doesn’t mean I’m pregnant. Besides, don’t you get morning sickness, like, in the second trimester?”
“Most women experience morning sickness in their first trimester and it typically starts around week six and stops around week twelve. It’s caused by the increased hormones in a woman’s body and it might be the first indication of pregnancy. But you know women who have had morning sickness throughout their entire pregnancy and women who never had morning sickness. Every woman is different. Your body is unique, and you may be one of the lucky few who don’t follow what others consider to be medical norms.”
Simone’s jaw tightened. “I still think this is crazy and I’m not doing it,” she muttered.
“Yes, you are,” Paul replied firmly. He moved to the bathroom and washed his hands. When he returned, he laid out the supplies he needed on the nightstand and slipped on a pair of white rubber gloves. “Extend your arm for me,” he said, laying a white towel down for her to rest her arm against.
“You can’t make me.” She snatched her arm from his reach.
“Take the test, Simone!” Paul’s voice had risen slightly as he held up a cotton swab saturated with alcohol.
“I’m not taking that test.”
“Take the damn test, Simone,” he said, louder.
She flung her arm toward him. “Fine! But you’re going to feel really stupid when you find out it’s just a stomach bug or some bronchial infection thing.” Because she couldn’t be pregnant, she thought. There was no way in hell life would play such a cruel trick on her. She wasn’t ready and the mere thought left her panic-stricken.
Paul inspected her arm with the pads of his fingers, looking for a sizable vein to draw blood from. He disinfected the site, swabbing her inner elbow. He tied a tourniquet on the upper part of her arm to apply some pressure to make the vein enlarge with blood.
“Make a fist for me,” he said. “Now open and close your hand a few times.” He pushed against her skin with his finger then inserted a needle gently into her vein. He attached a small vial for the venipuncture and as it began to fill, he untied the tourniquet. The process took a few quick minutes and then it was over.
“Now what?” Simone snapped as she folded her arm upright, her finger pressing down on a gauze pad to stop the bleeding.
Paul leaned in and pressed his face to hers, his cheek gently settling against her cheek. He whispered into her ear, his breath warm against her skin, “No matter what happens, Simone, it’s all going to be okay. I promise.” He gently kissed the side of her face. Gathering the vial and the remnants from the medical supplies, he headed out of the room.
Despite the gesture, Simone knew that for all his calm, this had thrown Paul for a loop even more so than it had thrown her. And truth be told she couldn’t begin to fathom what would come next if the test came back positive. They had once talked about marriage and children, both deciding that such was light years down the road for them. Then they broke up, their relationship disintegrating, and they’d been grateful there was nothing for them to divvy up or fight over for custody. Neither she nor Paul were prepared for parenthood. They could barely hold their relationship together. Tossing a child into the mix would be like throwing lighter fluid onto a raging fire. No kid deserved that.
Simone took a deep breath. She felt a thousand times better. Her stomach no longer seemed like a rollercoaster gone awry and she felt halfway whole again. There was simply no way she could be pregnant. Not when everything seemed to finally be falling into step for her and Paul.
Rising from the bed she moved to the bathroom to brush her teeth and wash her face. When she felt completely refreshed, she headed to the kitchen for that last slice of orange sponge cake.
* * *
Oliver had changed into a lab coat and had taken the blood sample. Paul stood off to the side and watched as his brother prepped the specimen.
“Do you want to know my methodology?” Oliver questioned.
“I know the process,” Paul answered. And he did. He could recite verbatim the technical steps from start to finish. The science spun in his head because that was all he wanted to focus on and it would be a few hours before they knew for certain. But he wasn’t prepared to think about what he would do if Simone were pregnant. Just the prospect of such a thing being possible had him in knots, fear settling in too comfortably. One more concern to add to his worry list.
“What are you going to do if the test is positive?”
“I’ll do whatever I need to do.”
“My little brother is going to be a father!”
“Foreshadowing, are you?”
“Wishful thinking. You and Simone will make beautiful babies and I can’t wait to be an uncle.”
“I don’t know if I’m ready for fatherhood.” He began to pace the floor, then sat back down staring as his brother worked. His nerves were frayed and he was anxious. He was also conflicted, not quite sure how he honestly felt about the situation. But mostly he was terrified that Simone would break under the pressure, almost guaranteed to not take the news well. Deep down he knew it would break his heart if Simone didn’t want to mother his children.
“Hell, I don’t think anybody is ready for it until it happens.”
Paul shrugged. “Probably not. How long before we know?”
“You know how this goes. I’m going to test, retest, then retest again. You’ll know before the day is done. So, why don’t you go check on Simone. Make yourself some lunch. Take a walk. When I know, you will.” Oliver tossed him a look over his shoulder, his expression smug. “Maybe even go buy you some cigars to celebrate.”
“You already think you know, don’t you? You are so not funny!”
Oliver grinned. “Congratulations, Dad!”
Chapter 12
When Paul entered the kitchen, he looked like death warmed over. They had successfully avoided each other for most of the day, and outside the sun was beginning to set. Simone stopped eating in midbite, her fork hovering above the last of her cake, finally getting around to that sliver Oliver had saved for her. She knew before he could begin to tell her. That cake was suddenly doing flips in her midsection and something like genuine fear pierced her spirit.
Paul slid his fingers into the short length of her hair as he leaned to press a kiss to the top of her head. “As soon as we get back to Chicago, you need to make an appointment with your ob-gyn. They may want to run the test again, as well as give you an ultrasound. It’s still very early. I’m thinking we probably conceived that first night we were back together.”
Simone dropped her fork to the plate, the silver rattling awkwardly against the china. “This can’t be happening! There has to be some kind of mistake. There’s no way I’m pregnant. We haven’t been back together long enough! I remember sex education,” she quipped.
“Then you remember it only takes one time!” Paul snapped back.
“But it takes weeks for that damn egg to implant. It has to! So the test is wrong,” she said, pouting profusely.
Paul sighed. “Clearly, you failed sex ed. Implantation doesn’t take weeks.” He shook his head as he continued. “Oliver will run the test again, but he’s very thorough.”
Simone pulled her knees to her chest, wrapping her arms around her legs. She dropped her forehead against her thighs. She felt like she’d been slapped with a sledgehammer. This was not supposed to happen. She had always imagined the point in her life when she would share with a partner that they were expecting a baby, romanticizing the moment. But there was nothing romantic about her current situation. It actually felt instead like the two of them were being punished for something horrific they had done. Because a baby clearly wasn’t what either needed. They weren’t at that place in their personal relationship, barely holding what they shared together by a thin thread. They had made mistakes they were still trying to atone for. Were still struggling to get i
t right. Tossing a baby into the fray was just wrong on many fronts.
She suddenly thought about the adage her father often invoked. That if you wanted to make God laugh, tell Him your plans. She imagined the good Lord was having Himself quite a snicker.
Paul dropped to his knees beside her, reaching to wrap his arms around her body. He hugged her tightly, then slid his hand beneath her chin and lifted her head so that he could stare into her eyes.
“I know it’s a shock, and not at all what we were expecting, but I don’t want you to have any doubts about how much I love you. We have plenty of time to think about this and decide what we want to do. I’m sure you need to get used to the idea, just like I do. But no matter what, Simone, you and I are going to be fine. I hope that you trust that.”
Simone leaned forward and pressed her lips to his. In that moment, she wished she had half of his confidence. But truth be told, she was scared, and she didn’t know if she even wanted to proceed with this pregnancy.
“So, you want this baby?” she questioned, the words coming before she could stall them.
“Why wouldn’t I, Simone? This baby was conceived in love. Our love. Of course, I do!”
She nodded her head slowly. Uncertainty and doubt rushed through her like a tidal wave through a calm ocean. Her confidence had taken a hit and she was feeling so completely lost, most especially when Paul was standing rock solid in support. Because she wasn’t feeling as convinced about this pregnancy as he was.
She kissed him again. “Why don’t we table this conversation until later? I need to make a few phone calls and get some work accomplished before the day’s done.”
Paul stared at her intently. A moment passed between them and both knew the dynamics of their relationship had taken another shift. He nodded. “Whenever you’re ready,” he said. “Oliver and I still have some work to do in the lab, so I’m going to run back to the barn and see what I can get accomplished, as well. And I would really like it if you took it easy. You need to put your feet up and relax.” He kissed her one last time, then disappeared out the back door.
Reunited By The Badge (To Serve & Seduce Book 3) Page 14