The Winter Wedding

by A. C. Arthur

  Cheyna smiled as she thought of how the ten games of Uno had ended on Thanksgiving Day. Steph had won more rounds than anyone else and the very competitive ex-NBA player made no qualms about living up to his title. He did his victory dance for three long minutes while his siblings, Cheyna and Ms. Joanna laughed until their sides ached. Cassie had finally saved them all by putting on Ms. Joanna’s favorite holiday movie, It’s A Wonderful Life. That began an hour and a half-long critical breakdown of every aspect of that movie and George Bailey’s meaning of life revelation. This was also one of Cheyna’s holiday favorites so she’d joined Ms. Joanna in defending everything from the pool scene to Clarence finally receiving his wings.

  “What are you smiling about? Could it be you’re thinking of spending more nights with that sexy Logan Williams?” Sarah wiggled her eyebrows.

  Cheyna shook her head. Sarah had been walking into the building on the first day that Logan followed Cheyna to work. Since seeing him that morning, Sarah had been insinuating all sorts of things about Cheyna’s relationship with him. Cheyna had been careful not to encourage Sarah’s fanciful thoughts in any way. Even if after Thanksgiving she’d begun thinking a little more about how things would end between them.

  “No. That’s not what I was thinking. Let’s go in here.” Cheyna turned into a baby clothing store and Sarah followed.

  “If I were you I would certainly be thinking about it. He’s so protective of you now. That means feelings are involved. How about you?”

  “How about me, what?” Cheyna had moved to the girls section and was looking at one piece outfits for infants.

  Sarah picked up a gray and pink outfit, scrunched her nose and dropped it back onto the pile. “You know about what? Are you falling in love with him?”

  That word hadn’t crossed Cheyna’s mind. Mostly because she had no idea how it felt to fall in love. She’d been with men before, but sex didn’t have to mean emotional attachments. At least not for her. She chalked that up to the fact that she’d never had emotional attachments before, whether familial or in committed relationships.

  “I don’t really know what I’m doing with him.” It was an honest reply. One she felt comfortable enough making to Sarah.

  Maxie and Cassie had asked her similar questions when the guys had drifted into a conversation about sports during dinner. Ms. Joanna hadn’t chimed in but Cheyna was acutely aware of the fact that Logan’s mother was within earshot of whatever came out of her mouth. For that reason, Cheyna had been as ambiguous as possible about what was going on between her and Logan. The only thing she’d inadvertently mentioned was her inexperience with relationships of any kind. After that embarrassing slip-up she’d pretended to be interested in every football game that had been scheduled to play on television that night.

  “Well, if you ask me, you two make a good couple. And you would make adorable babies,” Sarah said while holding up a pink and white sleeper.

  Cheyna warmed all over at the sound of that, but knew better than to fantasize about anything of the kind. She did, however, snatch the sleeper from Sarah’s hands and drape it over her arm as she continued to shop.

  “Are you shopping for the future or is there something you’re not telling me?” Sarah asked.

  What if she were to get pregnant by Logan? They’d only had unprotected sex that one time in the shower and had both been apologetic first and nonchalant about it afterwards.

  “I’m not pregnant,” Cheyna told her. “Logan’s sister is three months along.”

  “Oh.” Sarah made an “o” with her mouth to further emphasize the word. “Well, I’m shopping for my cousin. We should get something unisex then. Put that pink one down.”

  It made sense, Cheyna put the sleeper back onto the pile but throughout the rest of the day, no matter which store she went into or what she bought in each store, she could not stopping thinking about one day having Logan’s daughter.

  Cassie dreamed of two girl baby names last night.

  Jordanna and Jasmine. Her mother was insistent that she did not want her grandchild named Joanna when Cassie mentioned naming a girl after her. If it was a boy Michael, after her father, was the first and only option. Perry had seemed calmer as she’d talked to him about it on the ride to Logan’s apartment.

  “I dated a girl named Jasmine once,” he’d said when she’d told him about the names.

  “At the rate your love life soars, you’ve probably dated more than one girl named Jasmine.”

  “Don’t be dramatic,” he chastised.

  Cassie had rolled her eyes at his words. Perry had been a playboy since he was sixteen years old and the first semblance of a mustache appeared. He’d been athletic, playing multiple sports in high school and at the recreation center near their house. Combine that with his height, rich cocoa complexion and brooding good looks and he was every woman’s dream. And most times he acted as if he knew that and planned to take full advantage of it.

  “What does the father say about these names? Shouldn’t he be included in this decision?” he’d asked.

  Cassie had gone quiet then. She did not want to talk about her baby’s father. Why her brothers could not understand that she had no idea. Well, that wasn’t true. Her brothers were overprotective of her, Maxie and their mother. They felt the women in their family were their responsibility. Cassie had never really been bothered by that fact. Not until they found out she was pregnant. That had changed the game for all of them.

  “He doesn’t have a say if he doesn’t want one,” she’d replied.

  “Why doesn’t he want one? Is he married?”

  She’d immediately punched him in the shoulder for that last question.

  “Ow!”

  “Don’t insult me like that. I’m no homewrecker,” she’d snapped.

  “A lot of women don’t know they’re wrecking a home until it’s too late. So I’m just asking a question. Is the guy married?”

  “Not that I know of. Which means I don’t know if that’s the reason he doesn’t want to be involved. To be honest, I like to take people’s word as their bond. If he says this is not the situation for him, then so be it. I move on with my life. I’m not into forcing myself or my child on anyone. Including you, so you can stop poking at me for answers.”

  By that time Perry had pulled the car up to the curb in front of Logan’s building. He got out and helped her to the front door with the tray of food that had been on the back seat.

  “I love you, Squirt,” he’d said after she’d taken the tray from him. He tugged on her hair and Cassie’s heart warmed at both the familiar gesture and the sound of the nickname he’d always called her.

  “And I’m going to love Squirt, Jr. whether it’s a boy or a girl. I guess that’s all that matters.”

  “It is.” She’d told him and stood on the tips of her toes to kiss her brother’s cheek. “That’s definitely all that matters.”

  Minutes later, Cassie entered Logan’s apartment. It was after five in the afternoon so she’d thought he would be home, but he wasn’t. That actually worked out better than planned. She was meeting someone in the city at seven. If Logan had been home she would have spent the next hour hounding him about his future plans with Cheyna, before leaving to catch the train to her meeting. But since he wasn’t, she could lay on his couch and watch television uninterrupted. That really meant she was going to take a nap because the fatigue that came with the first and second trimester of pregnancy was a lot to get used to.

  An hour later when the alarm Cassie had set on her cell phone sounded, she went to the bathroom. When she was finished Cassie checked her make-up and went back to the living room to put on her coat. She left Logan’s apartment at twenty minutes after six. She would be on time for this meeting. She was so ready to get it over with, now she wished she’d just agreed to talk on the phone. But she was here now, so Cassie stepped off the elevator and headed to the front door. She stepped outside to see that it was full dark and at least ten degrees colder. P
ulling on her hat, she turned to her left and headed to the corner. The light turned red just as she arrived at the curb. Cassie retrieved her gloves from the side pocket of her coat and was just putting them on when she heard the blare of horns. She looked up to see what all the ruckus was about and heard her own scream seconds later.

  Cheyna had just walked into her apartment. She dropped the many bags she’d been determined to carry from her car in one trip to the floor just inside the doorway. Kicking the door closed she hurried over to the control panel that operated the security system she’d also had installed in the past couple of weeks. When the beeping signaled the alarm was once again engaged and that there would be no signal sent to the police for an intruder alert, she ran through her living/dining room area and into the bathroom. She’d had to go for the last forty minutes that she’d been sitting in traffic.

  Coming out of the bathroom and feeling great relief Cheyna was about to head into her closet to find the small box of Christmas decorations she used every year. She’d bought a few new things while she was out and wanted to put them up and get started on her gift wrapping. But the sound of her phone ringing interrupted the process. Cheyna turned in circles looking for where she’d put her phone then chuckled as she remembered ripping her coat off while she was doing the pee-pee dance in the bathroom.

  “Cheyna, girl, you are a goof.”

  She talked to herself as she went back into the bathroom, retrieved her coat and dug her phone out of the side pocket.

  “Hello?”

  “It’s Cassie. She’s hurt. We’re at the hospital so I won’t make it over for dinner.”

  “Logan? What do you mean she’s been hurt? What happened?”

  “I don’t have all the details. I just got here myself. She’s back with the doctors and I haven’t seen her yet. But if she…if the baby…I don’t know…”

  “I’m on my way. Tell me exactly where you are.” Once she had the information Cheyna was pushing her arms back into her coat and heading for the door.

  * * *

  An hour and a half, and too many curse words to count later, Cheyna arrived at the hospital. She almost knocked down a woman in the emergency room, yelled at a nurse who acted as if the last thing she wanted to do was offer help to someone, and almost slipped on the just waxed floor while running to catch the elevator before the door closed.

  When the elevator arrived on the designated floor, Cheyna decided it would be safer for her and everyone else in the hospital if she didn’t run anymore. Instead, she fast-walked down yet another long hallway before finally coming to the trauma center waiting area. As if he somehow sensed that she was there, Logan turned from where he’d been standing in a circle with his brothers and saw her. He took the first few steps toward her and Cheyna said to hell with her no-running rule. She ran to him, hugging him tightly as she asked again, “What happened? Is she going to be okay? Where is she now?”

  “I’m so glad you’re here.” He breathed and sighed the words into her hair as he hugged her close.

  “We still haven’t seen her yet, but the doctor came out a few minutes ago to say that she’s going to be alright.” He’d pulled away from her then but still held her in his arms.

  “Oh good. I’m so happy to hear that. But what about the ba—”

  Logan nodded before she could complete her next question. “The heartbeat is still strong so they don’t believe there was any harm to the baby.”

  Cheyna let out the breath she knew she’d been holding since the time of Logan’s first call. All she’d thought about while she was stuck in traffic was how young Cassie was and the baby. She’d never once wondered when she’d begun to care for Logan’s sister as if she were her own.

  “That’s terrific, Logan. So do you know what happened yet?”

  Maxie joined them. “I got a call from Cassie’s phone, but Logan’s doorman was the one calling. He said Cassie had just left the building and walked down to the corner when this guy lost control of his car an up on the sidewalk.”

  “Oh my goodness.” The image that appeared in Cheyna’s mind at those words was horrific.

  “The doorman—”

  “Ralph,” Logan interjected. “His name’s Ralph.”

  Maxie nodded and blinked her red-rimmed eyes. “Ralph heard the horns and saw the car speeding through traffic. He got to Cassie just in time, pushing her out of the way seconds before the car jumped the curb.”

  Perry joined them, wrapping an arm around Maxie’s shoulder. “Her arm is broken from the fall and she has a gash on her head. They’re doing a CAT Scan now, just to be on the safe side and she’ll probably stay overnight so they can monitor the baby and make sure Cassie doesn’t have a concussion.”

  “I just can’t believe this happened. Was the guy drunk? Did he get arrested?” Cheyna wanted him jailed for the rest of his life for putting Cassie and the baby in danger.

  “According to Ralph, the driver got out of the car and ran before the police or the paramedics arrived,” Perry stated.

  “Bastard,” Maxie snapped.

  Steph had gone over to sit next to Ms. Joanna and Cheyna felt another stab of sadness as she saw the tired and frightened look on the woman’s face. Although she was a nurse and most likely had experience with this type of trauma, having her daughter as the patient would have been a totally difference scenario for Joanna.

  “Cassie’s going to be fine. She’s a fighter.” Logan sounded a lot more confident than he looked.

  “That she is,” Perry added.

  “I’m gonna go and find your mom a cup of coffee. Can I get any of you something?” Cheyna didn’t really know what to do. This was the first time she’d been to the hospital for a family crisis. But she wanted to do something.

  “I’ll go with you,” Logan told her and took her hand in his.

  They were just about to walk out of the waiting room when a nurse stepped in.

  “You can see her now. I’ll take you back.”

  The family followed the nurse but Cheyna hung back. “I’ll just wait for you out here,” she told Logan when he looked at her in question.

  He immediately shook his head. “No. You’re with us. Cassie would want to see you.”

  Cheyna did not want to argue with Logan but she’d suddenly started feeling really strange. From the moment he’d called her to say Cassie had been hurt Cheyna had wanted nothing more than to get here and see that Cassie was okay. She’d finally arrived and witnessed each member of this family on the brink of breaking down at the thought of how injured their sister and child were. Joanna hadn’t even been standing. She’d sat in that chair as if her fear for her daughter’s well-being was too heavy to do both. So many emotions were swirling through her that she couldn’t grab hold of them and put them away as she normally did. This time they made her feel nervous and out of control.

  Still, she walked into the hospital room holding Logan’s hand. The remaining brothers had entered before them and stood on one side of the hospital bed while Maxie and Joanna stood on the other. Joanna held her daughter’s hand. Cassie, with a bandage over her right eye and her left arm in a sling, looked directly at Logan.

  “I’m so glad you’re here,” she said to him. “And you too, Cheyna. I couldn’t wait to tell you.”

  Logan led them to stand at the end of the hospital bed.

  “Tell us what? Is that why you were at my place, because you wanted to tell me something?” Logan asked.

  “No,” Joanna said with a shake of her head. “I sent her over with some of the leftovers from the things I cooked for the church winter festival. You eat way too much fast food.”

  “No,” Cassie spoke up. “I wanted to tell you what happened before the accident.”

  Cassie’s hair was a bushy mass around her face and her skin looked a little pale to Cheyna.

  “I’ve got a call in to the police, Cassie. You can wait to give them your statement. I don’t want you overtaxing yourself trying to rehash details over and
over again,” Logan told her.

  Cassie shook her head.

  “No. I want to tell you now that the guy in the car, he called out to me as he was driving. At first I could barely hear him over the horns, but when I looked up I saw him behind the wheel and then I heard him yell out your name.” Cassie was looking directly at Logan as she spoke.

  “He yelled out my name before he lost control of the car?” Logan asked.

  Cassie tried to sit up straighter but the movement caused her pain and she grimaced. Joanna immediately pushed lightly on her daughter’s shoulders.

  “You have to keep still, Cassie. They haven’t had a chance to set and cast your arm. Moving is going to be painful until they do. And they can only give you so much pain medication without harming the baby. So just relax, honey. Wait until the police arrive like Logan said, to talk about the accident.”

  “No.” Cassie was insistent. “He didn’t lose control of the car. He turned the wheel and headed straight toward me. And he called your name, Cheyna. He said your name over and over again until I couldn’t hear him or anything else anymore.”

  “My name…why would he call my name?” Cheyna heard herself asking the question at the same time as the answer flitted through her mind.

  No. No. No.

  She didn’t realize she’d released Logan’s hand and began backing away until she heard him call after her. By then it was too late, Cheyna had turned and was once again running through the hospital hallway.

  Chapter 13

  Logan caught Cheyna’s arm just after she pressed her palm immediately to the buttons that summoned the elevator.

  “Where are you going?” His question was out before he turned her to face him and his breath caught when he saw the look on her face.

  No, it was the tears that were like a dagger to Logan’s already bruised heart. He dropped his hand from her as if he’d been burned for fear that his grip had caused her some type of pain.