by Q. B. Tyler
No, Charlotte was on time because she genuinely cared about people’s time and not because she had some deep instilled fear of bringing shame to the family name.
God, no wonder I drink.
The sound of a key in my front door snaps me from my thoughts and I stand up as I prepare to see the love of my life for the first time in two days.
Please God, don’t be Drew.
She appears in the doorway like a vision and my heart stops. Her brown hair is wild, like when she showers and lets it air dry, giving her a beachy look. Her skin is completely clear, and free from makeup and I wonder if it’s because she’s worried that she’ll cry. Her eyes are red and already a bit glassy. My eyes trail down her body, fixating on her stomach as if in the last two days there would have been a change to show her pregnancy. Our pregnancy.
“Charley,” I whisper and it’s as if it sparks something inside of her because she runs towards me. I meet her halfway, scooping her into my arms as she breaks down. Her legs immediately wrap around my waist as her face presses into my neck. I wrap my arms around her tight, feeling her sobs against my chest. “Shhh, baby. Please don’t cry. I’m sorry. I fucked up,” I whisper in her ear as I lift her into my arms and carry her to the couch.
She doesn’t say anything just continues to cry against my chest, the sobs wracking her body. I pull her head away and cup her face gently, wiping the tears away despite the constant flow of fresh ones and her continuous hiccups. She’s straddling my lap, and despite this position, there’s nothing sexual about it. I rub her back gently as her sobs subside, before pulling her back to look at her.
I see the love she has for me underneath all of the pain in her eyes. “Thank you,” I whisper at the same time she whispers, “I’m sorry.”
“No. Charlotte, don’t be sorry.” I stroke her face gently. “You did what you had to do,” I tell her. “It knocked some sense into me. I needed a wake-up call. I was spiraling.” I shake my head. “I know the signs. I could see the signs but I ignored them.”
The tears are sliding down her cheeks as she sniffles every few seconds. “I am so proud of you.”
“You are?” I don’t even attempt to hide my shock. Her feelings and opinion of me mean the world to me and hearing her words makes my heart soar.
“Yes. So proud. You’re the best man I’ve ever known, and loving you has been the best thing that’s ever happened to me. I don’t regret one second of our story.”
I narrow my eyes slightly as I recall everything that’s happened in our relationship. “Not even one?” A low chuckle escapes me and she rolls her eyes at my dark humor.
A frown finds her perfect face and I regret being the one who put it there, making her think about the past. “I regret anything I’ve done that’s hurt you.”
“You did what you had to do for all of us. I understand, Charley. I’m sorry about keeping this from you for so long. For my behavior the last two weeks…all of it. I let you down.”
“Don’t say that.” Her words waver, the emotions running through her, affecting her voice. She looks down at her stomach. “We both love you so much.”
I touch her stomach gently, the first time I’ve done so since she told me we were having a baby. “I can’t believe we’re having a baby.” She shivers as I reach under her shirt and stroke her bare skin and the feeling of her trembling in my arms sends a spark to my cock.
She must feel it too because she gives me a shy smile. “I’m assuming we don’t have time for…”
“Maybe if you were on time,” I tease. God knows I want to take her upstairs and have my way with her, but Drew will be here any minute, and I’m due at the facility at nine am. My heart begins to race as I think about being away from Charlotte for another seven days. Not making love to her for yet another week. I can’t wait until this is all over. I feel like the hurdles that Charlotte and I have had to jump over have been endless in our quest to be together.
But it’s worth it.
It is worth it.
“Sorry, I was late. I was…a mess this morning.”
I bring her head back to my chest as her lip begins to tremble. “It’s going to be fine, baby,” I whisper in her ear. “I see you brought your stuff?” I look at the small bag she took with her that first day when she left.
“Yes.” She follows my gaze and clears her throat. “I thought I could…stay here while—.”
“Yes,” I interrupt her. “Stay here.”
She nods before resting her head against my chest again. I don’t know how long we stay like this, with her in my arms, me stroking her head, and her gripping my biceps like she never wants to let go. But soon, I hear a key in the door, and just like that, our time is over.
The ride to the rehab facility is quiet. Too quiet. I think even Drew feels uncomfortable at some point because he turns the radio on for at least some white noise. Will is seated in the back of Drew’s Mercedes next to me in order to give us our last few moments of closeness. I lift my head from his shoulder when I feel his finger drawing circles on the inside of my palm.
“I’ll call you when I can. And you can come on Thursday…if you want. Apparently, that’s their family day.”
“I’ll be there.” The idea of needing space went out the window the second he told me he was getting help. I smile at him, and he places a kiss on my forehead. He holds his lips there a beat longer than usual and I wonder if he’s putting up a brave front for me.
The rest of the ride is silent, my head on his shoulder and our hands clasped. When the car slows to a stop I feel a full panic attack coming on, but through some deep breathing I manage to stop it. He helps me out of the car and presses a kiss to my lips when I hear a throat being cleared. Will’s lips move from mine, much to my disappointment, when I see a man in a dark brown sports coat and jeans walking towards us. I furrow my brow into a scowl at this man’s intrusion of our privacy while we’re trying to say goodbye. Can you give us a minute? He’s not even on the premises yet, good God.
“Tuck,” he nods at the older man and my eyes widen. His therapist? His eyes seem to be fixed on me and I give him a small smile. “This is Charlotte Pierce, my beautiful fiancée. Charley, this is my mentor, Mitch Tucker.”
He smiles a warm smile at me. “It’s very nice to meet you. Will speaks very highly of you. I am sure you will be the main focus of his time here.”
I don’t know if that’s a good thing or a bad thing given that the main point of this stint in rehab is for him to work through the issues lurking below the surface. Which brings me to a nagging question, am I an issue?
“Being a better man for her is the number one priority,” Will says and I look up at him.
“You’re already the best,” I whisper.
“Well, we want it to stay that way,” Tucker interjects.
At this point, Drew gets out of the car and makes his way to where we are, probably wondering if someone needed to tell Tuck to give us some space.
Which I would not mind in the slightest. I know he means well, but can he give us a minute?
“Drew, just…check in on my girl every once in a while?” Will looks at his brother, and I’m happy to see the start of their relationship being repaired after so long.
“You got it. Everything is going to be fine. You go and get yourself better. I’ll watch out for these two while you’re gone.”
Tuck’s eyes snap to me immediately in question and then back to Will. Drew puts a hand over his mouth and then looks at me and then at Tucker. “Shit, you hadn’t told him? Were you not planning to?”
Will shakes his head at him and rolls his eyes. “I was planning to.”
“Well, we have even more to talk about than I thought.” Tucker looks at me. “Congratulations,” he nods, “on the baby…and the divorce, of course.”
Will looks as if he could ring his neck. My face falls even more hearing the judgment laced through his words, and Will tightens his hold on my hand.
“Watch it,” he gr
owls, and I can sense the tension working through his back and shoulders instantly. “Give us a second, Tuck.”
“Will, the sooner—” he starts, when I feel Will tense next to me.
“ONE SECOND,” he raises his voice. His posture is rigid as he stares Tucker down.
Tucker puts his arms up in defense and takes a few steps back. Drew gets back in the car leaving me alone with Will. “I’m sorry about that,” he whispers as he cups my face, and his lips find my right cheek, then my nose, then my left cheek before he rubs his nose against mine. “I have to go.”
“I know.” My eyes find the ground sadly.
He lifts my chin gently. “I love you.”
A smile plays on my lips hearing his words. “I love you, too.”
He leans in to kiss me and what I expect to be a short, sweet kiss, turns into a kiss that I feel in every bone in my body. His hand finds the car behind me, effectively boxing me in as his other hand weaves through my hair, and his tongue strokes against mine. I know this kiss, I love these kisses. These are the kisses that come just before we make love. The kisses we have while we make love. As much as I love this kiss now, I’m disappointed that this one in particular is leading to nothing. Space actually. It’s leading to a week of space.
When I pull apart, his pupils are dilated, and his mouth a bit swollen from my nibbling on his lip. I stroke his jaw, and he kisses my open palm. “Get in the car, Charley. If you don’t, I won’t be able to walk away from you.”
“But…”
“Please,” he pleads.
I want to tell him that it’s just as hard for me to walk away, but I know between the two of us I have to be the stronger one right now.
I give him one final peck before I slide into Drew’s car. He waves at me once and I wave back, the feeling of devastation and an overall sense of dread creeping through my body by the second. I stare out the window as we pull away from him and Tucker. I keep staring as we pull out of the parking lot. Finally, when the facility is completely out of sight, I pry my gaze away from the window and face forward. We are barely back on the highway before the tears that I had been holding in since we got in the car start moving slowly down my cheeks.
* * *
Tuesday: Day Two
IT TOOK EVERYTHING OUT OF me not to call him last night. I wanted to talk to him, reassure him that everything would be okay. I wanted him to reassure me that everything would be okay. So then, I wrote him a letter. A really long letter. A letter that pushed me to tears as I wrote the words of how much I loved him, how happy I was that I had found him despite the circumstances.
The sun had barely risen on Tuesday before I had the phone to my ear dialing the facility. I wasn’t sure when the hours were, but I figured at very least someone could tell me when I could call back.
“Yes, I do see that you are at the top of Dr. Montgomery’s emergency contacts. We will call you if anything happens. Don’t worry,” she’d said, her voice chirpy and perky.
“Wait wait wait, that’s not why I’m calling. I’m calling to talk to him.”
“Oh, I’m sorry Ms. Pierce, he is not permitted to use the phone at this time.”
“He’s voluntarily admitted!”
“Yes, but he still has to adhere to the rules whilst he’s here.”
“Fine. When can I speak to him?”
“The times that they are permitted to use the phone are between four and six pm.”
“Great.”
“But I suggest that you wait for him to call you, Ms. Pierce. They aren’t always available to talk during that time if they’re in a session.”
“I’ll call at four,” I’d said, not bothering to wait for her reply before I angrily hit the end call button.
It’s now, finally, four in the afternoon and I’m calling again in hopes that I can talk to him.
“Yes, I see you called earlier as well,” a new woman says, her voice riddled with condescension. “Dr. Montgomery is not taking any phone calls right now.”
“What? That’s impossible. He will want to talk to me.” What if something is wrong…? Will would never just not take my calls. The thought makes me panic. What if they’re doing something to him like some batshit crazy, insane asylum, scary movie nonsense?
“Ms. Pierce, there’s a note in his file that explicitly says he’s not taking any calls today.”
“Today?”
“Yes, ma’am.”
I sigh. “Fine, when should I call back.”
“Phone calls are allowed between four—”
“Bullshit!” I exclaim.
“Ma’am…”
I pinch the bridge of my nose, feeling my pressure rise slow and steadily. “Stop ma’aming me! Tuck…is Dr. Tucker there?”
“I’m not authorized—”
“THEN LET ME SPEAK TO SOMEONE WHO IS AUTHORIZED!”
“Please don’t yell at me, ma’am. I really can’t help you.”
“Then what are you there for!? Listen, I’m pregnant,” I bark into the phone. I hate that I have to pull this card, but I need answers and I need them yesterday. “I am pregnant and I know Will would very much like to speak to the mother of his child. Can you please…” I sigh feeling utterly defeated. “I just want to make sure he’s okay.”
There’s silence on the other end before she begins to speak. “I can page one of the on-call doctors and have them call you. My eyes widen as I feel like I’m finally getting somewhere. “Tonight?”
“Yes, ma’am, tonight.”
“Thank you…and…I’m sorry I yelled at you.”
“Not a problem, ma’am. You aren’t the first and I’m sure you won’t be the last.”
I hang up the phone and let out a breath. The feeling that I’ll finally get to talk to Will has me the most relaxed since before I dropped him off and before I know it I’m asleep.
Sometime that same night, I shoot up in bed, the feeling of anxiety coursing through me at lightning speed.
What time is it? What day is it!?
I look at my phone that has a text from Drew and Lauren both, but no missed calls. I’ve been out for five hours? It was now nearing ten pm and I still haven’t heard from anyone.
Should I call again?
I shake my head, knowing that I’m clearly not getting anywhere so I call probably the only other person he’d willingly take a phone call from.
“Drew,” I say into the phone before he even says hello.
“Hey lady. I was just about to call you. How are you doing?”
“Terrible. Listen, have you talked to Will?”
“No…I haven’t. But I figured he was using up all his free time talking to you.”
“No! He’s not calling me. I can’t get him on the phone. Drew, what if something’s wrong?” The panic is evident in my voice, bordering on shrill.
“Okay okay, breathe. Stress isn’t good when you’re pregnant, right?” My hands instinctively go to my stomach and I stroke the skin. It’s going to be okay, little one. Daddy is fine.
“Not being able to get in touch with the father isn’t good when you’re pregnant, Drew.”
“Touché, okay let’s just call.”
“I keep getting the Goddamn runaround.”
“God Charley, how many times have you called?”
“Just…twice.”
“Alright, do you have the number? We can three way call. Just don’t fly off the handle.”
I breathe a sigh of relief. “I won’t!”
“Right. I can hear the anxiety in your voice.”
I make a face at the phone as I hear him click off of our call to dial the facility. The next thing I know I hear the phone ringing.
“Atlanta Rehabilitation Facility, this is April.”
“Hi, April, my name is Andrew Montgomery, my brother was admitted there yesterday, and I’m just checking on him. Is there any way I can speak to him?”
“Unfortunately, sir, it’s after hours.” I clench my hand around my phone, squeezing it ha
rder. I am going to fucking lose it.
“I know, I know the hours are from four to six, but I was hoping you could help me out? His pregnant fiancée is here with me and she’s about losing her mind that no one is letting her talk to him. Five minutes that’s all I’m asking.”
“Well…” April trails off.
“Come on, April…you sound like a nice lady. Help us out.”
I can almost see Drew’s flirty grin through the phone and I roll my eyes. Do what you gotta do, just let me talk to my man.
“Okay let me see what I can do. Can I place you on hold?”
“Yes, ma’am. I do appreciate you. William Montgomery is his name.”
I definitely hear a giggle before hold music comes over the phone. “Okay, well I can’t do that,” I say into the phone referring to his ways of getting what he wants through flirting with women.
“You probably sounded like a crazy person when you called too, didn’t you?”
“Did not!”
“Did you yell?”
“Once. But she deserved it. And I apologized.”
I’m sure Drew is about to say something smart back when April returns to the line. “Hi, Mr. Montgomery, it appears that Dr. Montgomery has gone to bed.”
“Okay…April, is there any way we can wake him up? His fiancée is very worried…she might go into labor soon.”
Smart! Way to go, Drew!
“Umm…Mr. Montgomery, his file says that his fiancée is newly pregnant and emergency calls outside of the permitted times can only be as a direct result of the hospitalization of Ms. Pierce, or any members of the immediate Montgomery family. Is…Ms. Pierce in the hospital?”
I hear him sigh in defeat. “No, she’s not.”
“Then…I’m afraid I can’t help you, Mr. Montgomery.”
“Someone told me that they were going to call me….I think her name was Betty?” I interject, completely fed up with this bullshit.
“Umm, who is this?”
“Ms. Pierce, obviously,” I growl.