Eighteen
Andi
The pearl Audi sat there in its parking space while I stared at it, my stomach rolling. My hands were trembling so much, the house key and car fob actually made a small clinking noise as they dangled from my fingers.
I can do this.
Talking myself into getting down to the garage was difficult enough. Walter had been kind enough to show me exactly where my car waited for me. I swallowed, staring at the large beast, knowing it was only an object—a large machine that only did something when I directed it to. The question was if I could even do that.
I pressed the button to unlock it and pulled the door open. The luxurious, beige leather promised to be comfortable, but my legs didn’t want to carry me forward.
Like riding a horse.
Inhaling a deep breath, I wished I remembered how to ride a horse; maybe then the fear of driving again wouldn’t be so terrible. Grabbing my old phone—the one with Cal’s number—from my pocket, I sent him a quick text, as promised.
Me: Leaving now.
The tension in my shoulders lessened a little when I received his worried response. It was enough to even bring a smile to my face.
Cal: Are you sure you’re okay? I can take you over there. Or maybe get a cab?
After seeing his response, I knew I had to do this—for myself, and to prove to him I would be okay. I steeled my resolve and got into the car. The seat felt like it was made for me; it probably was, knowing John’s wealth. Or mine? I still hadn’t found anything to prove that, though.
Me: I’m going to be okay. I can do this!
I wasn’t sure if I was trying to convince him or myself, but it gave me enough courage to push the ignition start button.
Cal: If you need anything, if you’re scared—pull over! I’ll come get you. Call me.
The thought of him coming to rescue me made me smile. John hadn’t said anything of the sort when I had told him I was meeting Mallory at the spa. Actually, he’d seemed angry and told me I really shouldn’t go because the spa might be bad for the baby. I had double checked that already, since I’d had that initial concern, and I’d found out they had special packages for pregnant women, which I was sure Mallory would have told the front desk.
However, he had never once mentioned the car. I wondered if it had even crossed his mind that I would be driving there. Maybe it was because I hadn’t mentioned it, or he had been so concerned about me being at the spa while pregnant that he had forgotten that part.
Quickly, I typed in the address Mallory had sent me and made sure it was hooked up to my car speakers, fiddling with it for probably way longer than it would take any other person—but when it finally worked I was proud of myself. Now, it was time to drive. I can do this. I was set to repeat this mantra in my head over and over again. Several times out loud too.
After adjusting my seat, and my rearview and side mirrors, I grasped the gear shift in my hand and pressed the brake. As I slid into reverse, my heart felt like it would explode. I looked both ways and then lifted my foot off the brake.
Oh God.
My hands shook and I debated backing out of doing it. Cal could come pick me up. Then he’d feel like he had to cart me around town for everything. How would I explain that to John? Or would I leave John? I was frantic now with my thoughts.
“Stop!” It was loud, but since no one was in the car, it was okay. “Get yourself together, dammit. I can do this. It’s a fucking car,” I chastised myself. My car was now backed out of the spot, and I pressed the brake again and slipped the gear into drive. The car lurched forward when I released the brake too fast, and I screamed and slammed on the brake again.
Dammit. I can do this. “I can do this!”
The car rolled forward and I pressed on the gas, jolting it forward. Quickly, I let off the gas and tried to press slowly. Finally making it to the exit of the parking garage, I panicked. Cars flew by and my stomach churned as if I’d throw up. I repeated my new mantra. I can do this. Leaning forward, I saw a lull in cars; no one was coming. I squealed out of the parking garage and onto the main street, the speaker lady telling me to continue forward for five hundred feet before having to make a right-hand turn. A stoplight turned red and I used that to gather more courage. I can do this.
This continued on and on until I finally arrived—as per the speaker’s voice—at my destination.
I couldn’t help the overwhelming feeling of what I had accomplished. Thrilled at what I had achieved, I jumped up and down screaming to no one of what I had done. I did it! I drove! Without actually remembering doing it before, I had arrived safely at the spa! Picking up my phone, I hit Cal’s phone number.
It barely rang.
“Are you okay?” His voice was panicked. He must have expected I’d crashed into someone by then.
I laughed. “I did it!” I squealed. “I drove here all by myself! I didn’t have an accident. Cal! I did it.” I was thrilled, and for what most would think was such a small feat, it was huge in my book.
“Aww, baby! I’m so proud of you! That’s awesome. And I’m glad you’re at a spa now. Tell me you don’t need a massage after that.” He laughed into the phone.
“You’re so right. I’m really going to enjoy this now.”
“Well, have a good time and call me before you leave.”
I nodded even though he couldn’t see me. “I will. But don’t expect it for a while. Mallory made it seem like she wanted to do some girl-time thing, so it might last through dinner or something.”
“Okay, whenever you can.”
I smiled. “I will. But I have to turn off my phone. I’ll put it back into the zipper compartment.”
“Got it. Make sure to let me know before you leave.”
I sighed into the phone, loving how concerned he was for me. “I will, promise.”
It was an awkward end to our conversation and I could tell he wanted to say something else, but his voice stuttered and he hung up after he told me goodbye. I wasn’t sure how we used to end phone calls, but hoped maybe one day I would find out.
Nineteen
Cal
To say I was relieved was an understatement. Andi remembering how to do things, like driving, but not being able to remember wanting to divorce the jackass, seemed crazy to me. After I had researched who he was, I needed to know more about amnesia and how I could help Andi. It blew my mind that routine things, like driving, would come back to her with no problem. But remembering how much she loved me, or I had hoped she loved me, was lost, possibly forever. Or it could come back tomorrow. Who the hell knew?
One day at a time was how the article said to handle it. And with everything happening lately, that was going to have to be my new motto. Or I guess it had always been my way of doing things since Laura’s death.
I stared at my laptop, not really wanting to get back into work; but with Andi safe at the spa, I needed to try to get some things done. I’d be worrying about her again later for her drive home.
“Cal!” Marge called from the other room several hours later. I hadn’t realized how dark it had gotten; I had been so caught up in all my work. The trailer we worked in was small, nothing compared to our real office in the main building. In about six months I could be back there, but for the time being, to get things underway, I was needed onsite.
I hadn’t realized how time had flown by and briefly thought about Andi and hoped she was having fun. I was pretty sure her spa time should be over, but she had said it might go into dinnertime, which…was right about now. I double checked my phone to make sure I hadn’t missed a call somehow.
“Yeah?” I answered as I noted that Andi hadn’t called my cell phone.
“Call on line one. It’s Jay. Says it’s urgent.”
Scrunching my eyebrows together, I picked up my phone. “What’s up?”
“Dad. His darn kidney stones flared up again. Nicole called and is taking him to emergency. Would you mind going this time? Last time he wanted to grill me
about the company and everything I was doing wrong.”
I chuckled and enjoyed hearing him squirm a little. Seeing as he was the oldest, he’d played his part of being the relentless jerk really well to both me and Alex, but he also got the brunt of it from Dad. “Yeah, I’ll take the hit this time.”
He sighed. “Thanks, man. I appreciate it.”
“Hah, you owe me,” I said right before I hung up. I’d make sure to keep this favor in mind for next time he went off on me.
Grabbing my backpack off the floor, I closed my laptop and shoved it in the bag.
“Hey, Marge. Pops is going in again for his stones. I’m gonna head out.”
I shoved my wallet in my back pocket, grabbed my keys, and slung my backpack over my shoulder. I passed by Marge on the way out, giving her a quick wave.
Because of my dad, I had been to the hospital several times since Laura’s death—yet the stench of antiseptic always hit me hard and immediately brought me back to that horrible day. Smelling that harsh chemical odor made my stomach drop. I’d never forget Laura, never forget what happened to her, and being at a hospital always put a lump in my throat.
Walking into the emergency waiting room, I could hear that Dad was already giving everyone a hard time. Which was good for me in a sense: it took my mind off Laura. Especially when I heard him complaining. Nothing was ever good enough or fast enough for him, especially when he was in pain.
Nicole was Dad’s…fourth—no, wait—fifth wife. She was probably only about ten years older than me. I wasn’t sure how long this one would last. It was obvious how Jay, Alex, and I each had different moms. Hell, we were taking bets on when his next wife would get pregnant…unless he’d finally realized he needed to get snipped, but that was something I wasn’t going to ask about.
My dad was actually in great shape—well, except for this problem. But I could see why women might find him attractive. He kept fit and still was the largest shareholder in our company. He had money, and I was pretty sure the women he was attracted to saw the dollar signs. My mom was one of the few who actually hadn’t. I guess that was one of his phases he went through too.
Regardless, there he was doubled over, with Nicole next to him rubbing his back while staring at her iPhone. Her long blonde locks were swept to one side, and her huge gold earrings dangled back and forth as she swept her hand over Pop’s back. She looked up and rolled her brown eyes, and I was pretty sure she’d be divorcing him soon.
Immediately, she stood when she saw me. “I’m getting some air. Hey, Cal.”
My dad looked up as she said that, watching her walk off in her tight jeans. I took her seat next to him.
“Hey, Pops.”
“Cal, will you go talk to someone, please? Find out when the hell they can see me? I need pain meds. Something. This is killing me.”
Inhaling deep, I stood, quickly checking my phone again and wishing Andi would call me. I was trying hard not to get nervous wondering where she might be. Yet she promised she’d call me before she left. The anxiousness I had wasn’t going to go away, but I knew it was something I had to deal with. I couldn’t be the overbearing, weird boyfriend calling her every five minutes.
I walked over to the nurses’ station hoping someone would have some information that would help take my mind off worrying about Andi and keep me from having to hear my dad go off on me about anything and everything regarding our business. Or his kidney stones.
An hour and fifteen minutes later, I was still listening to my dad complain and bitch. As excruciating as that was, my mind constantly wandered to Andi. I frantically texted her phone. Where the hell was she? I was now turning into that weird, psycho boyfriend, and I couldn’t care less. Meanwhile, Pops had felt the need to lay into me about the company not performing where it should have been and, of course, it was my fault this time. Between waiting for Nicole to come swap out with me and checking my phone for anything from Andi, the early evening was long and drawn out.
After a two-hour wait, they finally got him back to a room and began to prep him. Nicole finally returned, and since I had spent way too much time with Pops, I needed air badly. I walked outside to stretch my legs. The air was crisp and I double checked my phone to see if Andi had called. How long did it take at a spa? I thought about asking Nicole, but she would want to know why I would ask such a question and I wasn’t about to go there with her. We barely spoke as it was.
That’s when I saw the asshole. Or really Jackass, as Lana liked to call him. I’d seen his picture enough times during my research to know it was him. He looked frantic and immediately my stomach felt like it was sucker punched. Something had to be wrong with Andi. Unless he was there for someone else. Maybe his mom or dad was sick? Whatever it was, I turned and followed him inside, staying not too far behind.
“My wife. She was brought in not long ago.” He looked like I felt. There was barely any color to his face, and I was sure if he really cared about Andi like he seemed to, his heart was beating so fast that if they hooked it up to a monitor it’d make the machine malfunction. I knew because that’s exactly how I felt.
The woman behind the desk sat calmly, the complete opposite of what Jackass and I were feeling. She began typing on the keyboard, barely taking her eyes off the screen as she asked, “What’s your wife’s name?”
“Andrea Vasslor,” Jackass responded, his hands pressing on the counter as he leaned over.
Hearing her name shot fear straight through me. Flashes of panic and anger shook my core that this asshole had known to come here, while I was wondering why she hadn’t called me.
The woman tapped her fingers along the keyboard while I watched from a short distance, waiting for the information so I could also go see how she was.
“Please hurry. She’s pregnant and I want to make sure they know that.”
What? …Pre…My stomach now had a huge sucker punch to it, and if the wall hadn’t been holding me up, I’d have been on the floor that very moment. Holy fuck. I’d have never let her…It was Laura all over again. Except…
“Shit.” I said it out loud and slumped harder against the wall as I tried to process all of it. Accident. Pregnant. Laura’s pale face flashed before my eyes. Hearing the same words from the doctor, that she had been pregnant, only stabbed my heart all over again.
“Are you her husband?” the woman’s voice asked somewhere in the distance, bringing me back to where I was. Andi. Not Laura. Pregnant. With whose child?
“Yes.” He pulled out his wallet and flipped the cover. Of course they’d let him in. He really was her husband. They’d never let me in to see her, since I was only the guy who was dating her. The reality hit me way harder than it had in the past couple days. It felt like Andi loved me, but now that I knew she was pregnant, of course she’d pick her husband. What the hell was I thinking?
But the possibility of it being mine was huge—especially after what happened on our first drunken night together. Hell, right then I felt just as sick as the day after I had drunk all that tequila with her. The condom had slipped off and I could vaguely remember her laughing, her words slurred by the alcohol, but she had assured me it wouldn’t be a problem because she knew she was unable to get pregnant. Several weeks later, I brought up the issue in one of those falling-for-her moments. I had held her in my arms as she cried, letting me know she wouldn’t be able to conceive, but that she really wanted children. I had reassured her it wouldn’t be a problem and that we could always adopt if things didn’t work out. Pretty heavy conversation for a short relationship, but that’s why I really felt things were so great between us.
And now…now, she was pregnant.
Shit. Did she know she was pregnant? She had to, right? They wouldn’t keep something like that from her. Would they? That would be a reasonable argument for why John didn’t tell her they were divorcing—so he could be with her for their baby. But if she did know, why wouldn’t she have told me? Had she planned to…?
“Second floor, Room
208,” the woman said, bringing me back to where we were as I watched Jackass take off through the doors. I stayed close behind, ready to tell the woman I was going back to see my dad, but the woman never asked, so I kept going.
I took the stairs instead of getting in the elevator and then followed him down the corridor, thankful it was busy so I wouldn’t be as noticeable. Whatever happened with Andi, I didn’t want to ruin whatever plan she had; but then again, it would at least get the ball rolling for her to go ahead with the divorce. Or was she going to now?
Leaning against a nearby wall, I tried to listen to his conversation with the nurse as they discussed it right in the doorway.
“We already knew she was pregnant from her last hospital stay, so that was in the notes. We’re unclear of what really happened, but we suspect carbon monoxide poisoning. The person who found her opened the door to check on her and swore he smelled what he thought to be a noxious odor, saying it smelled like car fumes. We have her on oxygen right now.”
“The baby. How is the baby?”
“There’s no real way to tell. Mrs. Vasslor didn’t have high levels. The couple that stopped their car opened the door early enough so she shouldn’t have severe damage. You’re very fortunate she pulled over to the side of the road before she passed out while driving.” She put her hand on his arm. “She’s going to be okay. You should be able to take her home once the doctor signs off on the paperwork.”
I exhaled and sank against the wall, unable to fathom what she was going through. I wanted to go in and hold her, but her husband was there first.
I looked down at my hands, wondering what my next move should be. I didn’t want to cause a scene and upset Andi, yet I couldn’t sit there doing nothing. There had to be a way—
Accidents Happen (Forever Happens Book 1) Page 12