Through Thick & Thin

by Natasha D Frazier

  Back in the car, Raegan called Caleb to discuss her impromptu meeting with the couple. She knew he wouldn’t be pleased about not being in attendance, but it wasn’t as if she planned to be sitting there with the two of them; it just happened. She felt a rush of relief because Rico didn’t put up a fight about signing over his parental rights. As far as she was concerned, she and Caleb could now live in peace and leave Rico, and all of the drama that came along with him, in the past.

  Raegan drove out of the parking lot and stopped in the left turn lane at a red light. While waiting for Caleb to answer her call, her phone fell to the floor near her right foot. As she reached down to pick up her phone, she heard a car horn. Without paying much attention, she assumed that the car horn was signaling her that she missed the traffic light turning green. Startled, she placed her foot on the gas pedal. Almost immediately Raegan slammed her foot on the brakes, but not before she collided head-on with a four wheeler.

  “Hello? Hello? Cami?” Caleb’s frantic voice echoed into the phone as he heard Raegan scream and the screeching sound of clashing metal. “Are you there?”

  CHAPTER 15

  Raegan drifted in and out of consciousness as the voices around her kept asking, “Are you all right?” Confusion and fear clouded her mind as she tried to figure out where she was and what was going on. The driver in the vehicle behind her called 911 and rushed to her side to see if she was okay.

  “Ma’am, ma’am, can you hear me? Are you okay? Is there anyone that I can call?” the young man asked, leaning over against her shattered window. He was careful not to step into any of the broken glass surrounding her car as he made his way to her. Raegan did not utter a word. Her head rested on the seat as her eyes opened and closed.

  The young man spoke slowly and calmly in a reassuring tone, “Everything is going to be all right. I have called for help.” He wanted to help in some way before the emergency crew arrived but was afraid to touch her. He’d watched enough medical TV dramas to learn that he could possibly put her in a much worse condition if he moved her.

  Raegan’s body hurt so badly that she was afraid to move, afraid to speak. Seeing the air bag deployed nearly sent her over the edge. Her mind raced to thoughts of her baby and Caleb. Caleb! I was calling him, she remembered. She parted her lips and whispered Caleb’s name in hopes that the young man could hear her voice. She was right; it did hurt to even speak.

  Relieved that she was at least responding, the young man squatted near her window once more in an attempt to hear her strained voice.

  “Caleb.” Raegan whispered his name again.

  “Is that who you want to call? Caleb?” he spoke slowly in a loud voice as if she was the one having trouble hearing.

  She blinked in response, praying that he would understand that she meant yes. Hot tears streamed down her face when she thought of Caleb and what may have happened to her baby. Her head hurt more at the thought of it, so she tried her best to relax. The sound of an ambulance and other emergency vehicles compounded the pain and anxiety.

  “I promise to find him for you ma’am. Do you have your cell phone?” the young man asked. Again, Raegan blinked and slightly nodded. The young man thought that it probably wasn’t helping asking her questions right now, and he would just search her car for her phone once they took her from her vehicle. He stepped out of the way when the emergency crew arrived.

  The EMTs worked to remove Raegan from her totaled car while the police officer questioned the other driver about what happened. The driver explained how Raegan pulled out into traffic and he’d done all he could not to collide with her but it all happened so quickly. He walked away from the crash with a few bruises and a dent in the driver side of his truck; but clearly the woman didn’t fare so well.

  The witness who had been trying to help Raegan shared his version of the accident and asked the officer if he could look for Raegan’s phone once she was safely removed from the car. He said, “She wants to contact someone named Caleb. I promised that I would help find him, but I need her cell phone. If it’s all right with you, Officer, I’d like to look for her cell phone to contact him for her.”

  The police officer extended a handshake and thanked the young man for his time. The officer turned around to see that Raegan was being placed on a gurney and agreed to allow the young man to try to find her phone as he stood close by scribbling notes on his pad.

  The young man raced to Raegan’s car. He searched through it, trying not to cut his hands on broken glass. He found the phone on the floor near the gas pedal and began looking for Caleb’s number. He didn’t have to search for very long because her phone began ringing and vibrating in his hands. Caleb was calling.

  “Hello,” the young man answered.

  “What’s going on? Where is Cami?” Caleb asked, fearing the worst. He had heard the screeching sound and Raegan’s scream. He prayed that she wasn’t hurt.

  “My name is David and the woman asked that I contact you. She was just involved in an accident and is about to be transported to the hospital.” Raegan’s car was totaled and she appeared to be in bad shape, hardly able to move or talk, but he didn’t want to alarm Caleb.

  “How is she? Where are they taking her?” Caleb blurted out while racing to his car to meet her at the hospital.

  The young man did not have the answers Caleb was seeking. Instead he walked over to the police officer and handed him the phone. The police couldn’t provide any specific information on Raegan’s condition, only that they were taking her to the nearest hospital—St. Luke’s.

  Caleb hung up the telephone and raced to St. Luke’s as quickly as he could so that he could see his love. He could not lose her, not when they were finally going to have the life they’d always wanted with each other, not ever. He couldn’t stop thinking about how afraid she must be and her concern for the baby. He knew that had been an area of anxiety for her lately, especially knowing that Rico was the biological father. He promised that he’d do everything he could to make sure that both she and the baby were taken care of. He didn’t want her worrying about anything. He just wanted her to feel loved and safe.

  His thoughts continued to swirl as he pulled up to the hospital. What would I do without her? He had to stop himself from thinking and fearing the worst. He hadn’t even laid eyes on her yet. Whatever the case was, he had to remain positive. Caleb jumped out of his car, running inside to see if there was any news regarding Raegan.

  Amidst his conversation with the nurses at check-in, the EMTs burst through the emergency entrance doors. Caleb spun around to get a look at the body on the gurney—Raegan. Caleb ran alongside the moving gurney, shouting, “Cami, baby, I’m here! I’m here!”

  “Sir, you’re gonna have to step back,” one of the EMTs said, pulling his arm to keep him from going any further, as the other two EMTs pushed Raegan’s gurney behind the emergency doors to receive care.

  Caleb snatched his arm away, running both hands behind his neck. He felt helpless. He knew that he wasn’t supposed to go behind those doors, but that didn’t stop him from trying. He needed her to know that he was there and everything was going to be okay. At least he needed to convince himself, because seeing the blood staining the sheet surrounding the lower half of her body didn’t convince him at all.

  ∞

  “Is this how you treat me, Rico?” Chloe fumed as her nostrils flared. If it were possible, steam would have been blowing through her ears and nostrils.

  “Please Chloe, just let me explain,” Rico continuously pleaded, reaching for her elbow. He requested the opportunity to present his case, although he had no idea what he could say to make the situation better. There really was no explaining his actions. He was an adulterer and that was all there was to it.

  “Explain what?” Chloe screamed, snatching her arm away, causing the few people who were sitting in the coffee shop to stop and stare at them. Lowering her voice to hide the embarrassment that she already felt, she quipped, “What could you possibly s
ay that would make this any better? It was a mistake? You promise not to do it again? It’s over? You gave up your rights to your baby for us? How about not fathering a baby with another woman when you’re already married? Huh? You’re so ridiculous!” Chloe couldn’t stand the sight of him. She grabbed her wristlet and keys, dropped his cell phone in his lap, and walked toward the door as quickly as she could without running.

  Rico jumped up from the table and followed closely behind her. He was afraid of what was going to happen next. He had never seen the fire in her eyes that he was witnessing in that moment, and he never wanted to see it again. He had never meant to hurt her; things just got out of control.

  “Sweetie, please tell me what I can do to make this right?” he called behind her as she raced to her car to make her shift at the hospital.

  Chloe spun around and laughed sarcastically. Tears formed in her eyes and her voice was bitter and cold. “Ha! You can start by packing your things and finding another place to lay your head. I don’t want to see any trace of your lying, cheating behind when I make it home from my shift in two days! Get it?” She took a few steps toward him and pressed her index finger into his chest. “In case you don’t, let me make it plain for you . . . you ended our marriage the moment you decided that you needed to spend time with someone else,” Chloe hissed. She walked away fuming as she slid into her car and slammed the door, not giving Rico an opportunity to respond. As far as she was concerned, there was nothing else to talk about.

  “Ugh!” Rico screamed, kicking his car door in frustration. He had no idea that things would go this far. He was so sure that he was doing the best thing for his marriage when he broke things off with Raegan. Now it seemed as if he had no marriage to save; he had already ruined it.

  CHAPTER 16

  Tammy took the reins on the planning for the vow renewal ceremony and made several key decisions with little to no input from Joshua. She knew what his response would be to some of the extravagant things she was planning for the reception, so she either downplayed them or neglected to mention them at all.

  Even though she’d always wanted to have a nicer ceremony to make up for the simple wedding they had many years ago, she couldn’t believe how much her version of “nice” cost. However, she perceived it as a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity and they could afford it, so she really didn’t think it should be an issue. She couldn’t understand why he was so bent out of shape about costs.

  Tammy didn’t want something as silly as the ceremony and reception details to get in the way of their relationship. Both of them had far too many friends and acquaintances that didn’t even make it to the one year mark of marriage. She didn’t want that to be them again. Besides, it wasn’t as if she was selecting all the most expensive items; she often went with the less expensive version. The costs were still adding up and she hoped that Joshua would give in just this once and allow her to have the wedding she always wanted. I will count the costs and better manage finances in a way that pleases him after the vow renewal, she told herself. That would be her compromise.

  “Sweetheart,” Joshua called to her from the kitchen. She had been sitting in bed searching the internet for bakeries so they could schedule appointments for a cake tasting.

  “Do you need help with something?” she asked, walking into the kitchen. She’d heard the rattling of pans and plates and figured he must have been searching for something. Instead, she walked into the kitchen to find a place setting for two. He had prepared grilled chicken paninis.

  He gestured toward the table for her to have a seat. “Consider this my peace offering,” he said and smiled. He walked over to help her into her seat.

  “Peace offering? Were we at war?” She glanced up at him with raised eyebrows as she took her seat.

  “Yeah, something like that. I know we’ve been disagreeing a lot lately when it comes to renewal ceremony details, so I think we should talk about it.” He would be fine skipping the ceremony altogether, but he knew that Tammy desired much more and he wanted to give her that as long as it was within reason. He definitely didn’t want finances to be an area of strain in their relationship and felt like it was very important that they talk openly about what their expectations were now that things were much different than they were when they were two college students.

  “Okay.” Tammy hesitated. She extended her hand to him and waited for him to speak first since he brought it up.

  Joshua paused to pray for their food. Afterward, he explained that he wanted her to have the wedding of her dreams but he didn’t want her to be misguided about what was more important—their relationship, not the ceremony.

  “Sweetheart, I don’t want you to think that I’m trying to control you when it comes to money, but I do want to make it clear where I stand on the issue. Even though we’re in a pretty solid financial position, we still need to make good choices, even when it comes to this ceremony. I would never deny you the opportunity to have the ceremony you’ve always dreamed about, because I love you, but we just need to be reasonable.”

  Tammy chewed a piece of her sandwich as she thought about what he was saying. To her, although he said he wasn’t trying to control her, it surely felt like it. If he didn’t want to control her, he would let her plan the festivities the way she wanted, although she was doing that anyway. He just didn’t know it.

  “And that’s just it. You’re saying that you don’t want to control me, but that is exactly what you’re doing. It’s almost as if you’re holding it over my head. We both know that you have millions of dollars. It’s like you think I want to spend it all. Remember that I loved you before you went to the NBA; I am not interested in you because of your money,” Tammy said defensively.

  “Hold on. Calm down. Let’s take a step back. I never said that you were interested in me because of my money.”

  “You didn’t have to. But that is exactly what you meant.”

  Joshua was getting frustrated again. It was just like Tammy to hear what she wanted to hear and flip things around. He knew very well that she wasn’t interested in him for monetary reasons. But what he wanted her to see is that he’d managed his finances well over the past several years and he wasn’t about to change that and give in to her extravagant wants just because she was ready to wear his last name again.

  “Tammy, listen to me,” he called to her, leaning back in his chair. “I love you. The only thing I want you to see here is that I want us to manage our finances well, and I’ll be in charge of that. I just need you to be on board with me and allow me to do my job. As the head of this family, it is my duty to make sure that we’re always taken care of. You must understand that I can’t do that effectively if we can’t agree on how our money should be spent.”

  Tammy’s eyes widened the moment he stated that he’d be in charge of their finances. She was certain that he meant only his income. There was no way she was going to allow him to manage what she earned. She knew that he would think that implied that she didn’t trust him. That wasn’t true. It’s just that she’d always managed her own money, just as he had managed his, and she’d done well also. She managed to buy a house. She paid her bills on time. She even had a little savings and could purchase a few of the things she wanted.

  “What do you mean you’ll be in charge?” she questioned. She couldn’t figure out any other way to ask without him getting offended. Did he expect them to get joint accounts? Was she to get her paycheck deposited into this account? Was that even necessary considering the amount of money he earned?

  “It means that I will take care of our household bills and necessities, including food. For major purchases, we will have to discuss them first, but ultimately, the decision of when and whether or not we’ll make the purchase is up to me. Now don’t get me wrong, we will both agree to a budget, I’ll just be making sure that we stick to it. Think of me as the treasurer,” he stated as if that was the end of the discussion, leaning back in his chair with his arms folded across his chest. His demeanor
spoke volumes; that was the way it was going to be and no challenge she could come up with would change his mind.

  Tammy had to admit that he made sense, but she still wasn’t quite comfortable with the idea just yet. Every partnership needed someone to manage the finances. She knew that most businesses and relationships worked well when the parties involved employed their strengths. She knew that he was good with money. When they first met and they both had very little, he managed what little he had. He saved to take her on dates and buy her things for special occasions.

  However, she had a hard time relinquishing control. It would take time for her to get used to the idea, but she agreed to work on it. But that was for some future day. Right now, the issue at hand was the celebration of their vow renewal. In her mind, that was something different. She wanted to have her day; she believed she deserved that much.

  “You’re right and I totally understand everything you’re saying. I agree with you.” Pausing, she challenged, “So treasurer . . . what are your thoughts about this ceremony we’re planning?”

  “Start with showing me what you’ve planned so far.” He smiled. He knew that Tammy was probably going overboard. He wanted her to be happy, but he needed to be sure that she understood that this was only one day. He was willing to make a few concessions but not many.

  Tammy excused herself from the table and returned with a planning binder. She’d already done most of the work in hopes that it would be too late for Joshua to make her scale things down.

  After seeing her selections, he was actually quite impressed. She didn’t choose the most expensive items, but she teetered along a fine line.

  “All of this is nice, sweetheart; you’re doing a great job. And your dress–you can buy whatever dress you want. Consider it an early gift from me.”