And he had to admit, not having Holly here was hard.
He climbed into his SUV and drove back to Downsend. His phone rang and he answered his call through the radio.
“Jake speaking,” he said.
“Hi,” Jane said. “How is that granddaughter of mine.”
Jake smiled. He knew Jane missed Jamie; none of them had expected Jamie to transition so well, but he figured it was because of the story Holly had told Jamie—the one where they were all stuck in a rainbow.
“She’s with Amelia. I was at counseling.”
“I see, how did the session go?”
“Okay, I guess.”
“She still hasn’t said the things you wanted to hear?”
“Nope. She’s not feeling any remorse, Jane.”
“You can’t say that, Jake.”
“Yes, I can. She never should have done anything like that in the first place. I mean, why was it so fucking hard for her just to accept it?”
“I know, but it’s in the past.”
“No. For fuck’s sake. Romy is dead because of her lies. If my father had been there, I would’ve had two little girls running around, and not just one.”
“I know, but life isn’t fair, Jake. But that’s not why I called. Have you spoken to Holly today?”
“No, why?”
“Just… Phone me if you do.”
“Jane?”
The call disconnected.
He didn’t like that she wanted him to phone her when he’d spoken to Holly.
Horrible scenarios went through his mind as he parked the car in Downsend’s parking area and walked up the stairs.
What if it was bad? He couldn’t imagine a life without her, and…whatever it was, they would deal with it.
Once in his office, he stalked over to his computer and opened Skype, desperate to talk to Holly.
Her face popped onto the screen.
“You okay?” He could see she had been crying.
Her lower lip trembled and she covered her eyes with her hands.
“Holly, baby, speak to me.”
She shook her head. “I’ll speak to you in an hour. I have to go, Jake.”
“No!” he yelled but she disconnected the call.
He tried to phone Jane, but she didn’t answer.
Why would Holly have been crying? He knew it was hard on her to be away from Jamie, but this felt like something else.
What if she’d met someone else? What if she’d cheated on him?
The thought was driving him insane and he was itching to buy a plane ticket and check up on her, but he needed to trust her. But if she had cheated on him, he would beat the fuck out of whoever it was. Holly was his.
He sighed. It would fuck him up for sure, but he knew he would forgive her.
A knock came at his door before it opened.
Rod appeared. “You coming?” he asked.
Jake frowned.
“The two consultations.”
“Oh, yeah. Wait, have you spoken to Holly.”
Rod looked at him confused. “Not in the past few days, why?”
“She just hung up on me. She was in tears.”
“Hey, what is going through that mind of yours?” Rod asked, concerned.
Jake smiled. There was no reason to bother Rod with his insecurities. “Nothing. I just hate being thousands of miles away from her.” He got up and followed Rod to his next consultation.
His phone rang during one of the consultations and he left Rod to alleviate the patient’s fear. The patients were always apprehensive when they saw how young Jake was. But he was fucking good at his job.
His heart raced when he saw it was a video call from Holly.
Guilt riddled her face.
“Holly, please just talk to me.”
She sobbed, tears streaming down her face, and he ran to the elevator so he could get to his office for some privacy.
He could feel his heart shattering, certain his worst fear had come true. Don’t cry Jake, just don’t. “Whatever it is, we can work through it, okay. Promise.”
He walked out of the elevator that opened on reception.
“Work through what, Jake?” Holly hissed.
Aggie gave him a stern look.
“Just hold on, I’m almost in my office,” he said and opened his door, closing it behind him as he stepped inside.
He switched the call from his phone over to his laptop and found her glaring at him.
“I don’t know. But you are scaring the fuck out of me. What is it?”
She shook her head, her eyes not making contact with the camera.
“You met someone.”
Her head snapped up. “Oh my word, is that what you are thinking?”
“Then what?” A relieved chuckle blew out of him.
“I’m not a cheater, Jake.”
He cocked an eyebrow.
“You were the person, fuck, that was a total different story, and I wasn’t the one with someone.”
“I didn’t say anything. What’s with you today?”
“I’m pregnant!” She covered her face with her hands and he saw her shoulders shaking.
He froze as the word washed over him. “What?”
“You fucking asshole, I told you to pull out, but you were all, ‘don’t worry, it’s going to take time, you’re your hormones need to stabilize, Holly,’” she mimicked his voice.
“You’re pregnant!” He grinned.
“It’s not funny. I had a fucking bad experience the first time and I’m shit scared.”
“Baby, calm down. It’s not the end of the world, sweetheart. I’m over the moon.”
“Well, I’m not.” She groaned. “I can’t speak to you when you’re like this.”
His screen went blank, and he let out a gleeful laugh.
Jake jumped up and hollered with joy.
The door opened and Aggie rushed in with Sue hot on her heels.
He jumped up and down, still crazy ecstatic.
“Baby,” Aggie had a huge grin on her face.
“She’s pregnant, Aggs.”
Her eyes grew wide and she shrieked. “You’re going to be a daddy again.”
“Yes, and nothing, nothing is going to mess it up this time.”
“Congratulations,” Sue said as Aggie wrapped her motherly arms around his waist.
“I can’t say when last I saw you this happy Jake, truly happy.”
“Oh, I am. And nobody, not even my mother, is going to spoil this for me. I need to phone Amelia.”
His sister was overjoyed about the news, and so was his father. Their lives would be filled little feet and baby cream.
They peppered him with questions, wanting to know why Holly wasn’t excited. When he explained that she were scared, Gus assured him that he would be there to monitor the pregnancy, and that she’d be a lot more relaxed than she was the last time.
Later that night, Holly phoned again, ad Jake struggled to contain his joy, but he tamped it down, because he could see Holly wasn’t happy.
He could hear how tired she was as she spoke to Jamie while he prepared dinner, and when Jamie said goodnight, he rushed over to the laptop.
“Are you feeling better?”
“No, I feel sick.”
“Holly, my father is sending you the first dose of his formula. He also gave me some of other meds to give you. It will help. I promise, you are not alone in this.”
“Shh,” she hissed.
“Calm down, Jamie isn’t near.”
She shook her head. “I’ll speak to you later.”
Then the screen went blank. She was really angry with him but he couldn’t be happier.
He couldn’t believe his luck. He’d truly thought it would take months to get her pregnant, but luck had been on his side.
Holly was his meant to be.
HOLLY
* * *
She was livid with Jake. Not because of what happened. Spreading her legs and constantly teasing him,
begging him to fuck her, that had led to her getting pregnant.
She was addicted to sex with Jake, and she couldn’t believe he’d had the audacity to ask her if she’d met someone else.
The man had to have been born under a fucking rock to ask her that. He was one of the smartest men she knew, but so fucking stupid at the same time. Why on earth would she screw someone else when she had him?
It pissed her off.
She wasn’t like that. Obviously, indulging in an affair with him when he’d been engaged to Kate had warped his view of her. She should have known it would happen.
But she would never cheat on Jake.
He was her everything, and if anyone should doubt someone, it should be her doubting him.
He was the sex maniac, not her. He just pulled her into his addiction.
But she’d have to put that thought aside until he and Jamie came. Right now, she needed to concentrate on the coronary bypass surgery she was assisting on. Bypass surgeries were becoming increasingly easy. Almost like breathing, but she still wasn’t allowed to do one on her own.
Dr. Somers had taught her so much and his reputation was world-renowned.
Because of her association with Dr. Somers, Dr. Ahlgren gave Holly many opportunities. She was the head of cardiology here, in her early forties, and an attractive woman with blonde hair and piercing blue eyes.
It seemed like all the women here were blonde and blue eyed, and each one hotter than the other, which worried Holly. She knew the neurology residents were excited to learn from Jake, but there were so many hot girls he could choose from, and she just knew they were all going to throw themselves at Jake. Holly sighed inwardly. Her insecurities were going to drive her insane.
When the surgery was over, Holly was drained, and trudged to the cafeteria. Her stomach churned and she was slightly dizzy, which meant she needed to get some food in her.
Nobody here knew that she and Jake were in a relationship. She struggled to fit Jake in the boyfriend category. It didn’t sound or feel right to call him that. What they had was so much more than what that word implied.
Husband wasn’t right either since they’d never even spoken about it, and she doubted that he would ask her so soon after breaking off his engagement with Kate. But she knew he was special, and she to him because he told her that whenever they spoke.
And then, he had to go and ask her if she’d met someone.
It had pissed her off more than it should have. But she’d blame it on the hormones.
She was just over four weeks pregnant.
With Jamie and Romy, she’d only found out she was pregnant when she was 7 weeks along. But this time, she’d felt the exact same way she had with Jamie and Romy—horribly sick—so she’d taken a test and it had come out positive.
Fuck, Jake.
He was so fucking happy.
But he had no idea what she’d gone through with her first pregnancy. What if Gus wouldn’t be able to help her this time?
Her phone rang and it was like Gus had known she was thinking about him.
“Hey,” she said.
“Congratulations,” Gus said. He sounded just as over the moon about it as Jake had sounded.
“Please, don’t.”
“Too soon?”
“Way too soon.”
“I’m sorry you’re not feeling the same way we do. We’re all super excited and—”
She barked out a woeful laugh. She wanted to cry.
“You okay?”
“Not really. I’m scared shitless.”
“Jake told me as much. Don’t worry, Holly. I’m sending you some medications with Jake. You can try them out and see if they make you feel better. They’re all safe and good for the baby.”
“Yeah, let’s just hope the baby doesn’t multiply like last time.”
“Whatever it is, we’ll all be with you every step of the way. You are not going to do this alone. I promise. Even if I have to work day and night on this formula, you will be okay, Holly.”
“Thank you, Gus,” she said in a teary voice.
“So, my granddaughter really wants this doll house and I said I’ll try to make her one.”
Holly laughed. “You’re turning her into a spoiled brat.”
“It’s my first, Holly. Let me please.”
“Yeah sure. Make her the biggest dollhouse a kid could dream of. I know you Peters, nothing is too damn much.”
He laughed. “I’m glad you’re starting to make peace with that. Now, stop worrying. We are all here for you, Holly.”
“Thank you, Gus.”
Gus and her father were complete opposites. Where Gus was a naturally happy man, Charles was naturally mean.
She didn’t even want to know what he was going to say when he discovered that she was pregnant again.
Jake tried. Heaven knows he tried to thank Charles Scallenger for being there when he wasn’t, but all her father did was tear up his check and tell him that nothing he did would ever bring Romy back.
It hit Jake harder than she thought it would, because it was true.
Charles didn’t believe that Mara was behind it and the more Jake tried to explain, the meaner Charles became.
But he kept his cool, not losing his temper, until Charles started fighting with Holly about her dumb decisions—deciding to become a doctor, letting Jake into Jamie’s life. Then, he’d threatened Jake with a lawsuit, to make sure Jake never got to see Jamie again. And Jake snapped.
Holly shook that Jake out of her head.
You could trample over him as much as you wanted, and he’d just sit back and take it, he’d even go out of his way to prove that he meant everything he said, but if you trampled on his child, or threatened her in any way, you would end up second.
They settled out of court, it wasn’t even a strong case to begin with, but Jake saw it as a way to pay her father every scent that he should’ve paid.
She’d really thought Charles would change Jake’s mind about being with Holly as it was way too much drama, but it only brought them closer to each other at the end.
And then, she left for Zurich.
And now she was pregnant and hormonal and her insecurities were nagging at her. She was grateful Jake was back in her life, where he always should have been, but she still didn’t trust him one hundred percent. Especially not when he’d have a buffet of beautiful women to choose from here.
Her insecurities stemmed from their affair, from the fact that Jake had cheated on a woman he was committed to, she knew that, and she also knew the coming months wouldn’t be easy—they’d be working long hours, the pregnancy would be trying to kill her, the other women would be throwing themselves at Jake…
No, she had to stop thinking these crazy thoughts.
This was what Jake had meant that night in the car. She would make up her mind because of her insecurities and it might not be the right choice.
She needed to give him the benefit of the doubt that he wasn’t going to do to her, what he did to Kate.
Jake had much more to lose that Holly did—Jamie, Holly, the new baby. She had to believe that he wouldn’t do something to screw it up.
Five
HOLLY
Holly wiped her mouth and sat back on the floor. Morning sickness—freaking all-day sickness in Holly’s case—was a bitch.
Her checkup with her new gynecologist, Bianca, wasn’t for another week, and luckily Jake would be here to help her voice all their concerns about the pregnancy.
Their plane was landing tonight. She would be working, so she’d only see them after work.
Jake had rented a house instead of an apartment for the duration of his and Jamie’s stay, and Holly couldn’t wait to soak in a bath again. She should have taken Jake up on his offer to get her a better apartment, then she wouldn’t have been suffering the way she did every morning. The tiny apartment made her claustrophobic. But she didn’t want to take his money. Mara thought Holly was a gold digger, and Holly wasn’t goin
g to give her the chance to prove that theory.
Holly loved Jake for who he was, not what he had, she didn’t care about his money. Even if he lost every single penny, she would still love him. No amount of money would ever make her stop loving that man.
She pulled herself together, washed her face and went back to the OR. She was up in the gallery, watching doctors perform a heart transplant, among other things.
The patient had cancer, which had caused the deterioration of most of her organs, so they were doing multiple transplants.
There had been cases like hers before, but not as severe.
“You okay?” Lukas asked. He was a head taller than her, with pale blond hair and blue eyes. He was always helping her understand the language. Eve, another resident, teased her, saying that Lukas wanted more than just friendship, but he knew she had someone. And she knew the moment he saw it was Jake, he would back off. Nobody was a match against Jake.
She nodded her head and took out her notebook to take down notes.
The surgery was long, but with the technology assisting the doctors in this hospital, it was more thorough and more successful than it would have been at any other hospital she’d worked at.
This was the future.
She knew that eventually a doctor’s job would be replaced by machines, but for now, she wanted to learn as much as she could.
Technology could fail too, and then it would fall back on humans to fix people.
After hours and hours of surgery, making sure that everything was in working condition, the patient got pulled out and into ICU where she’d get the care and treatment she needed.
Holly looked down at her watch, taking steadying breaths because she was still a bit dizzy. A smile spread on her face. Just five hours before she’d see the two people she loved most in her life.
They all got called into one of the lecture halls. It reminded her so much of home, where the doctors relived a case that didn’t end up a success. That’s where she learned the most, and even though she still struggled with the language, it was an immense help.
They all took a seat and the chief of surgery, one of the doctors that owned the hospital, got up.
“Thank you all so much for being here, I really appreciate it,” he welcomed them. He was very polite and she knew he was one of the best because of his status that kept following him around. Jake had told her plenty of things about him.
Endless Love: The 4Ever series #3 Page 5