Love's Fate (Love Trilogy #1)

by Tracey Smith

  She clicked a few more buttons and we could hear the sound of the heartbeat. It made a strange rhythmic whooshing sound, and it was the most wonderful sound I’d ever heard. I held Katherine’s hand as the nurse captured different images of our baby and showed us on the screen. She caught one perfect image of the baby’s profile, which she printed off for us. I stared in amazement at the small picture she handed me, it actually looked like a baby.

  “Can you see if it’s a girl or boy?” Katherine asked impatiently.

  “I’m trying, but it’s kind of hard. The baby is breach right now and I can’t seem to get the right angle.” The nurse told us.

  “Breach? What does that mean?” I asked concerned.

  “It just means that the head is still pointing up. It should be fine, your wife is only 7 months along so the baby still has plenty of time to turn around.” She explained, and although her explanation made perfect sense I still felt a twinge of panic.

  “What if the baby doesn’t turn?” I asked trying to hide the panic in my voice.

  “They usually do.” The nurse assured me “But if not the baby would have to be delivered by cesarean section. But don’t worry, there’s still plenty of time.”

  Don’t’ worry? I thought. I’d been worried from day one with nothing concrete to back it up and now that I had something actually in my head how could I not worry? I tried to hide my anxiety as I looked back down at Katherine. She was smiling at the image on the screen apparently unaware of my internal turmoil.

  “So we can’t tell?” She asked disappointed, still consumed with her curiosity about the sex of the baby.

  “Sorry honey, maybe next time.” The nurse told her putting the probe down and wiping Katherine’s stomach with a towel.

  “We’ll do one more when you get closer to your due date, just to make sure the baby has turned. From the size of the baby I would say your due date is still around mid-April so we’ll schedule you for March.”

  “Okay” Katherine said dejectedly.

  Her lower lip pouted out. She was so beautiful when she pouted.

  “Is that it?” I asked Katherine once the nurse left.

  “Yeah, I don’t have to see the doctor today.” She told me pulling her shirt back down and getting off the table.

  “The girls are going to be so disappointed. The baby shower is in a month and we were hoping to know if we should decorate with pink or blue.” Katherine’s lower lip pouted out even further as she said this and I couldn’t help but smile.

  “Whatever will you do?” I teased and she lightly punched my shoulder.

  “Did you notice what the nurse called you?” I asked as we walked back to our car.

  “What?” she asked confused.

  “She called you my wife.” I reminded her.

  “Oh, well, with the ring and the baby and all I’m sure she just assumed.” She said.

  “I wish it wasn’t just an assumption.” I told her.

  “I know.” She said softly.

  “What are we waiting for?” I asked.

  We hadn’t really discussed setting a date since I first proposed, everything had been happening so fast since then. Once we found out she was pregnant all our conversations were centered on the baby.

  “I guess for me to fit into a wedding dress again.” She joked.

  “You look beautiful.” I assured her.

  “Yeah, but I’d rather not look pregnant in my wedding pictures.” She told me “What’s the rush anyway?” she asked.

  “I guess there isn’t one.” I told her wishing I could push away the inexplicable fear that I might lose her at any minute.

  “So the nurse said mid-April. I figure that means I could work through the end of March.” Katherine said changing the subject. “I think we should hire some extra help now, so I can train someone to master the basic recipes. We won’t take any cake orders for April or May. You’ll only have to keep the shop open on weekdays to keep our regular business flow.”

  Leave it to Katherine to be worried about the bakery.

  “Sounds like a good plan.” I told her.

  I couldn’t argue with the need to keep the bakery going. I sold a few paintings here and there, but it was the income from the bakery that supported us.

  We ended up hiring a girl named Jessica who was just completing her last semester at the Art Institute’s culinary program. She came highly recommended by one of Katherine’s favorite instructors. She had aspirations to become a pastry chef and was thrilled by the opportunity to work at the bakery.

  For the next month Katherine worked with Jessica teaching her all of the basic recipes for the most popular items at the bakery that Katherine hoped to be able to continue offering during her absence. Jessica learned quickly and I was grateful when Katherine began allowing her to take over most of the work at the bakery. Her expanding belly was growing quickly now and I tried to keep her off her feet as much as possible.

  Even still she was exhausted by the end of every day. She began sleeping more again which allowed me to go back to work on her portrait. I studied her face as she slept trying to capture every nuance. The more time I spent painting her the more I appreciated her magnificence.

  I wasn’t sure if I could accurately reproduce her beauty on my canvas: the way the light reflected off her luminescent skin, the way her long dark lashes brushed against her slightly flushed cheeks, the way her chestnut hair contrasted with her fair complexion. I worked frantically through the nights obsessed with making her painting as perfect as she was.

  Finally the day came for the baby shower. If Katherine could have had her way she would have postponed the baby shower another week to wait for that last ultrasound. She was so eager to find out if it was a girl or boy. But Claire and Amy convinced her to go forward with the date as planned since all the invitations had already been sent out. It was the end of March and Claire’s students were out for spring break so she spent nearly the entire week at our house decorating and preparing for the party.

  Our apartment was filled with balloons, streamers, confetti and baby-themed décor. The girls were buzzing around all morning preparing food, adjusting decorations and chattering about the upcoming party. They didn’t even hear the doorbell when it rang. I answered the door and stared apprehensively at the well-dressed man on the other side.

  “Michael Carter?” The man in the suit asked professionally.

  My stomach dropped. This was an all too familiar scene.

  “Yes.” I replied reluctantly.

  He handed me an envelope and turned to walk away without another word. I could hear the girls laughing in the kitchen and quietly closed the door. I knew this was another summons from my father and I didn’t want to damper Katherine’s day.

  I quickly stole away to our bedroom to open the letter. I was surprised to see that a lawyer in San Diego had sent it and he was requesting that I contact him immediately. I folded the letter and put it in my pocket as I walked toward the kitchen.

  “I need to run some errands.” I told Katherine as I entered the kitchen.

  She looked up surprised.

  “The party’s in an hour.” She said her forehead creasing with concern.

  “Don’t worry it won’t take long.” I assured her kissing her forehead to smooth the small furrow.

  She smiled back up at me and kissed me softly.

  “Promise?” she whispered.

  “Promise.” I replied. “You won’t even know I’m gone.”

  I kissed her one more time and then hurried out of the apartment to call the lawyer from the phone in the lobby downstairs.

  I gave my name to the secretary that answered and she quickly connected me with a stern sounding man who requested that I come by his office immediately to discuss an urgent matter. He refused to give me any more information over the phone aside from his address.

  It didn’t take me long to find his office. Once inside the middle-aged secretary quickly jumped up as if she had been waiting for
me to walk through the door and immediately escorted me to the back room.

  “Thank you Gertrude.” An elderly man said abruptly as we walked into the small office. The secretary quietly turned and left.

  “Michael Carter I presume?” The man said politely holding out his withered hand.

  “What is this about? I can’t stay long.” I informed him as I shook his hand.

  “Of course.” He nodded as he sat down and gestured for me to do the same.

  “Your father is William Carter.” The man stated and I nodded my confirmation.

  “He passed away last night. Heart attack.” The man said bluntly.

  At first I didn’t react. I simply stared at the man’s wrinkled face.

  “I am the executer of his estate.” He continued without emotion.

  I continued to stare, still unsure of how I was supposed to react. I wasn’t sure how I felt. Numb?

  “Your father was a man of great wealth.” The lawyer needlessly informed me. “And he left everything to you.”

  His last words sunk in slowly.

  “He what?” I stuttered.

  “Your father owned majority stock in several major companies in the San Diego area.” He continued as if I hadn’t spoken. “The other stock holders have petitioned to buy out his shares for a very reasonable price. Unless you wish to take over his investments.” He paused for my response.

  “No.” I heard myself say.

  I was reeling from everything I was being told, I could barely form a coherent thought.

  “Very well.” The lawyer replied shuffling some papers. “The income from the sale of the companies in addition to his various real estate holdings and savings will come to a total of…” the lawyer continued shuffling through his stack of papers as he calculated the total.

  “18.6 million.” He finished and looked back up at me.

  I stared in disbelief. I couldn’t respond. I didn’t know how.

  “Mr. Carter?” The lawyer was appraising my expression with a slight smile on his face. “I know this all comes as quite a shock, but I assure you your father took care of all the legalities before he passed. All I need you to do is sign a few forms and I’ll take care of the rest. An account has been set up in your name at this bank.” He said sliding some papers toward me. “The funds will be available within the month.” He finished.

  I stared at the papers in front of me. 18.6 million dollars. I had never really considered how much money my father had. I had never imagined I would ever have the need. The lawyer cleared his throat and I looked back up at him. I realized he was handing me a pen. I took it and signed my name where he indicated.

  “Very good.” He smiled as he stood and shook my hand again.

  “Thank you.” I managed to say.

  Slowly I left his office and walked to my car. I was in a daze of confusion. So many mixed emotions my brain could not process them all at once. I didn’t even remember the drive to the beach but suddenly I was there. Automatically I walked out to my cliff.

  The ocean was turbulent. A storm was rolling in. I watched a piece of driftwood being tossed around by the waves. The ocean seemed to be at war with itself. Grey waves crashed against the shore violently smashing the driftwood against the sand and then pulling it back out to sea. The wind whipped against my face and I realized tears were on my cheeks.

  Was I sad? I still felt numb. Why was I crying? I had hated my father since childhood. He had not been a part of my life for many years now; I felt no sense of loss. I almost felt relieved to know that he could no longer wield his control over my life. But shouldn’t I feel some grief. He was my father after all. Weren’t there any good memories I could recall? I searched my mind for any memory of my father that was not tainted with loathing. There were none.

  I watched the ocean confused by my feelings, or lack of I should say. I tried to decide how I felt. Grateful? My father had never done a kind thing for me in my entire life. But now he had. He had left me everything. This realization started to sink in as I thought about the sum the lawyer had calculated. 18.6 million. A smile began to break through my frozen expression. I couldn’t even contemplate how much money that actually was. Was it wrong to feel happy right now?

  I sorted through my mixed emotions as I drove back home, and decided that for this one last gesture I could be grateful that I finally had a good memory of my father. I walked into the apartment smiling, excited to tell Katherine the news. The apartment was empty and the phone was ringing. I wondered where everyone was as I picked up the phone.

  “MICHAEL! IT’S KATHERINE! SHE’S GONE INTO LABOR!” it was Claire’s panicked voice on the other end of the line.

  “Where are you?” I asked urgently.

  “We’re at the hospital, you need to hurry.” Claire sounded completely unnerved which wasn’t like her at all.

  “I’m on my way.” I told her “Tell Katherine I’m on my way!”

  Immediately I was running full speed toward my car. All other concerns and thoughts left behind. I had only one focus now. Katherine was in trouble.

  I ran several stop signs and almost rammed a passing car, swerving so hard to the left that I almost flipped my truck.

  I made it to the hospital in minutes and left my truck in the loading zone as I ran through the automatic doors. I didn’t stop running until I reached the maternity ward. Immediately I saw Claire, Charlie, Amy and Dan all huddled near some double doors.

  “Where is she?” I demanded as soon as I’d reached their sides.

  “They won’t let us in!” Amy cried, tears streaking down her face as she spoke.

  Dan put his arm around her comfortingly and she turned her face into his chest as she cried. I looked frantically at the others.

  “She collapsed at the house.” Charlie explained somberly. “We rushed her to the hospital and as soon as we got here they took her away. The nurses won’t tell us anything.”

  I turned away from them and ran to the nurse’s station.

  “Katherine James?” I said to the desk nurse. “Where is she? Is she ok? Is the baby ok?” The questions poured out so quickly I wasn’t sure if she’d understood.

  “Are you her husband?” She asked indifferently

  “Yes.” I snapped.

  Semantics were unimportant at the moment.

  “I’ll see what I can find out.” She replied dryly and walked toward the doors where our friends waited.

  A few unbearable minutes passed while I waited. I paced frantically all of my fears coming into sharp focus. Finally a different nurse emerged and came over to me.

  “Mr. James?” the nurse asked kindly.

  “Yes?” I didn’t feel the need to correct her on my name.

  The only thing that mattered right now was Katherine.

  “Your wife has gone into premature labor. Her water has broken, so the baby must be delivered. The baby is still breach so they have taken her into the O.R. for an emergency c-section.” She informed me in a kind but professional manner.

  “Is she okay?” I asked helplessly.

  My legs felt weak and my head was spinning. This couldn’t be happening.

  “They are delivering the baby now. I will let you know how they are doing as soon as I can.” She smiled briefly and then turned and retreated back through the double doors.

  My legs finally gave out and I collapsed to the floor.

  Someone must have helped me to a chair. I was in a fog. People were talking to me but the words couldn’t break through. I couldn’t breathe. This was it, I thought. My Katherine. I was losing my Katherine. I saw her face in my mind. Her perfect face. Would I ever see it again? The question crippled me with fear.

  Everything was in slow motion. It could have been hours or minutes I couldn’t tell, but finally the nurse reemerged and walked over to me. The fog lifted and I stared at her intently, expectantly but I still couldn’t speak.

  “You have a daughter.” She smiled, relief washed over me for the briefest second.
Only to be replaced with fear. What about Katherine?

  “She is in the neo-natal intensive care unit for observation but she seems to be stable. You can see her soon.” The nurse continued.

  Why hadn’t she said anything about Katherine?

  “And my wife?” I asked feebly, afraid of what her answer would be.

  “She’s hemorrhaging.” The nurse said gravely “She lost a lot of blood. The doctors are doing all they can. I will let you know as soon as I know something.”

  I only nodded in response.

  The relief that our baby was okay was overshadowed by the fear that Katherine was not. The thought of losing Katherine was agonizing. The thought of our daughter never knowing her mother was excruciating. I sobbed uncontrollably and ignored the attempts my friends were making to comfort me. Nothing could appease the anxiety I was feeling.

  An hour passed. It felt like an eternity. My eyes never left the double doors. The doors that held the answers to my Fate. Finally the nurse came back out.

  “I can take you to a room to see the baby now.” She told me

  “My wife?” I pleaded.

  “She’s still in surgery.” The nurse replied. “Would you like to see the baby?” she asked.

  “Yes.”

  I found the strength to stand and followed the nurse down the hall to a small hospital room. She led me to a rocking chair in the corner and told me she would bring the baby. I stared at the empty hospital bed. The bed Katherine should be lying in right now.

  I thought of all the nights we had envisioned this day together. I was supposed to be in the delivery room when our child was born. Katherine was supposed to be lying in that bed recovering now. I imagined how she would be smiling at me, holding our child. This was supposed to be a happy day. Nothing was as it should be.

  The nurse returned pushing an incubator into the room. I stood and looked down at the small helpless infant wrapped in blankets inside the plastic case. She was so tiny.

  “She’s doing very well.” The nurse assured me. “Her temperature is stable and her vital signs are good. You can hold her if you’d like.”

  “Yes.” I nodded.

  Single words were all I could manage.