THEIR LIES, OUR LIVES

by L. J. Hoffman

Waiting. Waiting in silence. Chad on one side the room, and Luke on the other. Families had shuffled in and out of the Emergency Room waiting area, and still they had no word on Jenna. She’d had a little blood from cut a on her forehead, but seeing for face down and twisted at the bottom of those stairs, instantly struck fear. They hadn’t moved her; afraid she’d broken her back. The ambulance arrived quickly and whisked her here where she could be cared for, and put back together.

  As her husband, Luke had to do the required paperwork and answer the questions he could. When they asked him if she could be pregnant he lowered his head, exhaling a slow breath. “Yes she is. I don’t know how far along she is, I just found out yesterday.”

  The nurse gave him a reassuring smile and in a comforting voice said, “Mr. Timmons we’ll do all we can for your wife, and baby. If you’re a praying man, I’d say send up all those you can, you can never go wrong with that.”

  As Jenna was tumbling he was already praying, but shamefully not for her, as much as for the baby she carried. That child was not to blame. Both babies had been blameless. The one snuggled in her womb now, and the one lost to him forever.

  ~~**~~

  Chad was pissed that he’d turned his back on her and walked away. He tuned her out after hearing the voicemail she’d left for Luke. Had he been Luke, he would have believed every word she said. She was that convincing. But now he wondered if he could believe that this child was his. After all the time they’d been together and he’d released his seed inside her, odds were high he had fathered her child. But maybe, just maybe Luke could be the actual father. His thoughts were broken by an older male voice. “Mr. Timmons, Mr. Timmons.”

  Quickly Luke started toward the man in the long white coat, who by all accounts apparently was the doctor on call that night.

  “Mr. Timmons, I’m Dr. Fielding let’s go over to this room where we can talk privately.”

  “Doc, if you don’t mind, Mr. Wingert should hear whatever you have to tell me. Right now, I don’t trust that I’d absorb everything you say.”

  The old guy glanced over to Chad, and then meet Luke’s determined blue eyes. “Mr. Timmons, is he a family member?”

  Confidently Luke answered. “Yeah. Tonight he is.”

  The doctor turned on his heel and began to walk towards a small room off the main waiting area. He spoke softly as he was in motion. “Very well, this way please.”

  Chad was shocked and thankful, that Luke would let him hear firsthand Jenna’s condition, and the condition of his child. Their child. Chad was the last to enter the room, so he closed the door behind him and sat in the only other empty chair.

  “Mr. Timmons, your wife sustained a very traumatic fall this evening. She has a slight concussion, no internal injuries, and no broken bones. She’ll definitely be sore and bruised, but all in all, she is a very fortunate young woman. I expect her to be released sometime within the next twenty four to forty eight hours. I’d like to keep an eye on her simply as a precaution.”

  Both Luke and Chad looked at each other assuming the worst regarding the baby. It was Luke’s place to inquire, so he did. Leaning forward his heart ached and his voice hushed he asked the hard question. “Dr. Fielding, what about the baby?”

  Flipping through the chart the doctor stopped. Read. Flipped some more pages, and then laid the chart on the desk. “Mr. Timmons I’m sorry...”

  Both men braced to suffer a wounding so deep, that their breath was caught in their lungs, threatening to strangle them.

  “How far along was she Doc?” Luke had to know. Chad deserved to know.

  Studying both men Dr. Fielding leaned back in his chair, and then he leaned forward and whispered. “There was no pregnancy. Our tests were run twice, and both times everything indicated negative for pregnancy. Internally her body gives no indication she was with child. I’m sorry if that’s not what you wanted to hear.”

  NO BABY. Never was, never had been. Jenna had lied.

  Dr. Fielding shook both their hands and said he’d update Luke if anything were to change. He rushed out the door and on to the next emergency patient.

  Luke and Chad were emotionally and physically exhausted. Jenna didn’t need them, and wouldn’t need them. At least not tonight, and she better hope not ever.

  Chad pulled his keys out of his pocket and dejectedly told Luke. “Truck’s outside. Come on.” Luke and Chad exited into the bright sunshine like two dark storm clouds threatening a beautiful summer day.

  ~~**~~

  Worry was scratching at David. He & Linda had been home several days, and still no call from Luke. Randi had checked in with them and was thrilled to confirm she’d been selected for a second round of interviews. She was on her way home for now, but she anticipated moving to North Carolina soon if all went well this next time. Not a word was uttered by her regarding Luke. It was as if he’d never existed.

  Linda asked a couple of times if Luke called. When David said no, she shook her head in disgust and would focus that much harder on the task she’d been doing before she asked him about Luke.

  Antsy and worried, David decided to drive out to the lake. Maybe fishing would help, and just maybe he’d go by Luke’s houseboat to see if he was there. He kissed Linda soundly and told her he’d be back in about four hours.

  “If you see him, bring him back home with you. I’m having meatloaf for supper and I know he loves it.”

  David walked back to his wife and kissed her again. “Thank you.”

  “For what?”

  “Nothing, everything, and anything I might not have realized. I love you Linda Dupont.”

  Stroking her hand down the side of his face she smiled. “Get your butt outta here while you still can. Vacation spoiled me.”

  “I could stay…..” David teased.

  “No way! You were leaving to do some reconnaissance on our wayward friend using the pretense of fishing. That is more important. Get. Get going.” Shooing him on his way Linda smiled lovingly at the man she married. He was her everything.

  ~~**~~

  A tall, muscular figure was standing in the frame of her bedroom door. Shadows danced along her bedroom walls from the lights of passing cars on the road outside her apartment. Why isn’t she frightened? Why couldn’t she scream? Blinking hard she tried to make out his face. Did she know him? Would he harm her? Raising her hand to touch her lips she could feel him. So close and so warm. Waves were playing a familiar melody in the distance, and sea oats heavy with seeds could be heard clicking softly as they were brushed by the breeze. She could feel his arms around her as he pulled her close aligning their bodies. This moment. Here. Now. You. Me. Shattering glass and a car alarm blaring in the distance jolted Randi upright in her bed.

  The horn was still sounding, invading the stillness of the night. That was the only thing real. Everything else was just a dream. Her stolen moment with a man who would forever and always, be out of reach. Unattainable. Warm tears began to well in her eyes. She didn’t want to think about Luke, and she tried to forget. But her dreams were cruel reminders of a man that would never be, and a love she would never possess.

  CHAPTER TWENTY

  The coffee shop was alive and buzzing with activity. Randi had stopped by to get her fix of caffeine, and use the free Wi-Fi to check her e-mail. It was the end of September, and she still didn’t know if she’d landed the job in North Carolina. Opening her e-mail she was thrilled to see the e-mail she’d been anticipating. Dropping her head into her hands she was relieved and terrified. The job was hers. She was officially hired and expected to start as soon as possible.

  Randi began to run through her mental checklist of everything she had yet to do in order to move. She’d been proactive on some things, but she didn’t want to assume too much and then have to backtrack any decisions. Sipping the last of her coffee and closing out of the computer, she was ready to head out. As she reached the door to exit, piercing blue eyes connected to hers. Hurriedly, she moved past him. Maybe he’d just ig
nore her, she hoped so. He’d been doing a damn fine job of it so far. Slipping around to the side parking lot, she frantically reached for her car door handle, when suddenly his hand covered her. His lips were a breath away from her ear. “Randi, please wait. I know I shouldn’t ask, but I am. Give me a few minutes. Please.”

  Heat from his touch was surging up her arm and his breath was making her tingle down to her toes. She hated that she reacted to him this way and she couldn’t afford being this near to him. He was too much of a temptation and he’d been thoughtless towards her. The gates to her heart and soul slammed down. Without moving or facing him, she calmly answered his request.

  “No, I’m sorry but I’m very busy. I have to go”

  “You’re running.”

  Turning to glare at him, she couldn’t help but snarl. “Well isn’t that rich Officer Timmons. You’re accusing me of running. Seems to me you did a spectacular job of that some weeks back. Apparently I learn from the best.”

  He shook his head affirmatively. “I deserved that, and you’re right, I did run. But you don’t know all the facts. Things were complicated.”

  Disgusted she huffed, “So I’ve been told. I have to go.”

  Before she could turn away from him, he firmly grasped her upper arms, and bent his head to force her to connect with his eyes. She put her head down and refused.

  “Damn it Randi, look at me! Give me a chance to explain.”

  “Unhand me, NOW!” Loudly she voiced her request, and Luke immediately removed his hands and took a half step back from her. He knew he’d hurt her, but given some time he’d hoped he run into her and she’d let him explain. This chance meeting was quickly going to end, so he had to get her attention. He had to make her want to listen to him.

  The words rushed out. He had to make her hear him, and he had to make her understand. It might not change anything, but she had to know.

  “I know you knew about Chad and Jenna. You’d never be able to prove it, but you suspected. She was the woman you caught Chad with in his kitchen. That’s what had you so upset the morning I first met you. I never knew about them. Hell, I never even suspected! I left that morning because she told me she was pregnant with my child.” He had her attention now; she couldn’t take her eyes off him. Maybe after all these weeks he could make this right with Randi Shaw.

  “What you didn’t know was that this would have been our second child.”

  Randi gasped. “You have a child already?”

  Pulling her hands up to his chest he stilled her. “No, no I don’t have any children. A car accident terminated her pregnancy the first time. Before I went with you all to the Outer Banks, she’d flaunted the possibility that the child I never knew may not have been mine at all. Our marriage was crumbling. She wanted a baby to fix things between us, and I refused. We used protection always on the rare occasions we had sex. I couldn’t take losing another child. But, when she told me she was pregnant again I panicked. I’d been careless once and had sex with Jenna unprotected. I hated myself after, but after was too late. Maybe I had fathered this child. I just didn’t know.”

  Randi wanted to know the whole story, but the parking lot of the coffee shop was not the place to have this conversation. Pulling him towards her car, she unlocked the doors and he knew she was inviting him to sit. She was finally willing to listen.

  Resting his head against the headrest, Luke exhaled and continued. “Jenna was jealous of you. She knew we’d left town together. She was thrilled when you dumped Chad, but she was pissed when she made the connection between us.”

  “Chad sent me a text at the beach. It was after you left. He said he knew I was with you, and that Jenna was pregnant. I’d never have you. I’m sure he took great joy in sending that.”

  Luke reached across the car and turned Randi’s face to meet his. “Chad never sent that message. Jenna did.”

  Randi was puzzled. “What are talking about? It was from Chad.”

  Sorting through the lies of their lives was grueling, but they had to do it. The air had to be cleared. Their lives had to be set right.

  “When I got home Jenna wasn’t there. I sat in the living room and waited. I’d fallen asleep in the dark when I heard Chad & Jenna enter my house. I saw with my own eyes what you suspected. What I hadn’t anticipated was that Chad would claim the baby as his own. He’d fallen in love with Jenna and intended to start their family, together. She played us both, using the baby as bait. We’d all argued, and finally to convince Chad he’d been deceived, I played the voicemail for all to hear. He was devastated. Chad left, she followed, and before either of us could stop it she fell down the deck stairs.”

  “OMG,” Randi cried. “The baby! What about the baby?”

  “You can’t lose what never was. There had never been a baby. You might say the fall was a blessing, because both Chad and I learned at the same time she had lied. Lied about something so personal, so life altering for her personal gain. Her plan was to snare Chad and go along with a divorce from me. If that didn’t work, and he slipped through her fingers, she intended to guilt me out of divorcing her and abandoning my wife and child. Failure was not an option in Jenna’s plan.”

  “I was a problem that ultimately ended up being a major wrinkle to her plan wasn’t I?” Randi’s realization was dead on.

  Bringing her hand to his lips, he kissed it softly. “That you were. A huge problem for her and Chad. But without all this, I never would have met you. I’d never give that up.”

  Randi appreciated that Luke had poured his heart out giving her the explanation and answers she deserved. His honesty was plain and unvarnished. Jenna was heartless and vindictive, ruining so many lives in her wake.

  His life was still complicated, but she knew he was working through it. He was a survivor and he was definitely a good guy. At a different time, and under different circumstances she could see him being a man she could love, and a man she would be proud to share her life with.

  Deep thoughts were dancing around in Randi’s beautiful blue green eyes and Luke longed to kiss her just once more. Would she permit him that one luxury after all they’d been through? Could he stop at a kiss? He thought about her every day and at night, when the world around him would go still, his dreams would carry him back to one perfect moment on the deck of a beach house. Moonlight drenching her body and the taste of her lips, and just the feel of her would burn in his veins. His body ached to know her, but she was lost to him. For now.

  “Thank you for this. Listening. If I call you sometime, can we have dinner? Start fresh.” He hoped she’d say yes. He prayed she’d say yes.

  Hesitantly, she turned away to wipe a tear from her eye and add to his disappointment. “That’s not going to be possible, unless you live in North Carolina Luke.” She had to look him in the eyes; she had to see if he hurt as much as she did. Face to face she felt his hurt, and saw the loss cloud his eyes.

  “I took a job near Charlotte; I’ll be gone as soon as I can get things finalized here. It was an unexpected opportunity and I had no reason to turn it down. It was my door.”

  She was leaving. His life was moving in a good direction, but he still had complications that needed to be resolved before he would consider starting fresh. He wanted to be selfish and beg her to stay, but the best thing he could do was let her walk through that door and out of his life.

  “That’s great, really great. Maybe if I’m ever down that way you’d go have coffee with me.”

  Her heart hurt to see him encourage her. His words and his eyes were saying two different things. But she’d help him as much as she could. Easing his pain as much as she dared, “You bet. Anytime. Once I’m settled David and Linda will know how to reach me.”

  “Keep my cell number Randi. Sometime you may want to hear a friendly voice, or maybe you just want to know that there’s someone on the other end of the line. A connection.” He wanted to pull her into his arms and never let her go, but common sense demanded he do the right thing. A
s he raised he hand to grasp the nap of her neck he pulled her slowly to his lips and gave her fair warning of his intent. “I’m gonna kiss you now, just because. Not a good bye kiss, just a kiss. We both need it.”

  Their lips zinged with electricity, and he stroked her lips with his tongue asking to deepen the kiss. She parted her lips and welcomed him. Time slowed and came to a complete stop. They were connected heart and soul, tethered by friendship instead of bound by lies. Neither of them wanted to end the connection. She made him buzz with anticipation and desire... He made her heart race frantically and her core heat with desire. Breathlessly he broke their contact, and rested his forehead against hers.

  “I’m definitely gonna meet you for coffee. Count on it.”

  “What just coffee, no dinner Officer Timmons.”

  Luke placed his index finger against her lips contemplating her words. “We’re just getting started Ms. Shaw.”

  EPILOGUE

  Clicking through the on-line dating sites had become a daily routine. Life frustrated her, and restless energy plagued her every hour of every day. She lived in a beautiful home. She had a new car parked in the garage. She had new clothes bursting from her closet. She was flawless on the outside.

  A knock at her patio door, followed promptly by the slide of it opening and the swoosh as it closed. She never looked up, she knew who it was. Pushing herself up from the sofa she unhappily trudged up the stairs and her visitor was hot on her heels. Stripping off her clothes and letting them fall into a crumpled heap, she lay on the bed naked and exposed. Waiting.

  He undid his jeans and pulled off his boxers. Urgently he crawled into her body, hurried and quick he’d be in and be gone. His wife worked days and he worked nights, so moving into a house next door to a whore was a bonus. He got what he wanted and she gave what she must. He was gone and she’d wait.

  When the front doorbell rang, she wrapped herself up in a blue silk robe and headed down to greet her visitor. Her invitation to strip was repeated once more as she untied her robe and left it glide to the floor. Intently, he inspected her as he took off his clothes. He’d do as he pleased with her, and she’d never utter a protest. She feared his touch, yet craved his touch. Jenna waited.