The Commitment Test (The Marin Test Series Book 2)

by Aksel, Amanda

  He put his palm on my cheek and kissed me. “I know. You two take the limo. I’ll go help Will. We’ll see you soon.”

  I smiled and we pushed Telly out to the limo. “I love you,” I shouted to James and he echoed my words back. Telly and I climbed in and told the driver where to take us.

  “Are you okay?” I asked.

  “Yeah, I’m totally fine. I’ve read all the books. I took all the classes. I’m prepared for anything,” she said with confidence and pulled out her phone.

  “Who are you calling?” I asked.

  “Will,” she said in the phone. “Can you also bring my laptop and the files that are on the left side of my desk? It’s probably going to be a long wait.”

  At the hospital, we made it up to the labor and delivery floor. I expected to see a busy floor with screaming women in labor, but that wasn’t the case. Apparently, I watched too many movies. No, this floor was pretty quiet.

  Will and James weren’t far behind us and we all got Telly set up in the hospital room. The nurses got a kick out of the story, with the rest of us dressed in our wedding attire.

  We waited for a couple hours, but Telly still wasn’t fully dilated.

  “It’s late. You should go home,” I told James as we stood together outside of Telly’s room.

  “I can stay,” he said.

  “I know, but you should go. When things get moving, you’re not gonna want to be here anyway.”

  He pulled me in, glancing around. “Why don’t we sneak off to one of those on-call rooms? It’s our wedding night after all.”

  “I think that’s only on TV, baby.”

  “You’re right. It’s been a long day. I’ll see you at home.” His lips touched mine. Soft, sweet, and tasty. I wished I could take him to a room.

  “See you at home,” I said. I couldn’t take my eyes off him as he walked down the wide hallway. A couple of nurses did the same thing, seemingly eating him up with their eyes.

  Sorry, ladies, but he was my husband. All mine.

  I went back in Telly’s room where she sat up, pecking away on her laptop. Manila folders and legal pads littered her bed.

  “You’re still working?” I asked, furrowing my brow.

  “I hope you’re not here to give me shit like that bastard who got me into this predicament.” She barely took her eyes off the computer.

  Will looked up and sighed.

  “Yes, I’m talking about you,” Telly said.

  “I’m going to get more ice chips.” Will left the room.

  “Don’t you want to unplug and enjoy this experience?” I sat on the stool next to her bed.

  “Enjoy this experience? What do you think this is? A trip to Florence?” she snapped.

  Man, she was grouchy.

  “I just mean this is your baby.” I softened my voice, but it didn’t soften her.

  “Exactly, that’s why I have to finish this because once this baby’s here, I have to spend all my time taking care of it instead of taking care of work. So if I could just squeeze in a couple extra hours, I’d feel a lot better.”

  “Okay,” I said, holding my hand up. “So you’re not in the mood for Golden Girls reruns?”

  She raised an eyebrow at me. “Don’t tempt me.” A smile broke through her lips and mine. “Seriously, though. Just keep Will preoccupied. He’s making me so crazy I’ve even threatened to take away his visitation rights.”

  “That’s pretty harsh.” Mean mommy.

  “Desperate times, call for desperate measures.” She typed away on her computer.

  “Telly!”

  “It’s an empty threat, just keep him cool.”

  “We’ll be lucky if he comes back the way you’ve been treating him,” I said under my breath.

  “I’ve seen much worse,” one of the nurses told us.

  I sat with her for a little while longer while she worked. Then, her contractions grew more frequent and more intense. I scooped up her computer and files and set them safely on the other side of the room.

  “Holy shit this hurts!” she yelled. The nurse peeped under her blanket and a second later she announced that Telly was almost fully dilated.

  “Can I see?” I asked, thinking I might as well get an idea of what this was going to be like for myself.

  “No, you cannot see,” Telly growled.

  She was serious.

  “Why not? I’m the only one who hasn’t seen it.”

  Telly shot me a pissy look.

  “You know what I mean, which reminds me, are you ever going to tell me what happened with you and Andy?”

  “Marin, this isn’t the time.” She held her belly and screamed so loud that it made me tremble.

  Uh-oh. This shit had just gotten real.

  “Almost there,” the nurse said. “Just hang in there.”

  I rushed to Telly’s side. “Are you okay? I’m sorry about teasing you.”

  “It’s okay. Can you get Will, please?” She looked so uncomfortable already that I wasn’t looking forward to the next part.

  “Yeah, I’ll be right back.” I stepped out of the room and dialed Will’s cell. My shaking hands made the simple task frustrating. The phone rang and I walked the hall a little ways and found him at the end.

  “It’s almost time,” I said. “You’re going to be a father.” What could be more exciting? I couldn’t quite figure out the expression on Will’s face. It was part emotional, part proud, and part terrified. We went back to Telly’s side and waited a short time longer until she was fully dilated. The doctor was ready to deliver, giving orders to the nurses, and saying encouraging words to Telly.

  Will hunkered in next to her on one side, while I was on the other. My curiosity got the best of me and I wandered over to get the full view. I blinked a couple of times not believing my eyes. It was one of those horrific, but amazing moments when you want to look away but can’t. How was her vagina ever going to go back to normal size after that? Wait? How was my vagina ever going to go back to normal size when I had a baby?

  I shook off the horrendous thought and went back to Telly’s side.

  She pushed and grunted, whining a little in between, but overall she gave birth like a champ.

  “Almost done. One more push,” the doctor said. Then, the sound of a teeny tiny baby crying filled the room. Telly’s head fell back, while she caught her breath. “It’s a boy!”

  Telly looked over at Will and the two looked at each other as if they were telepathically speaking, maybe making a silent promise to be good parents to their new son.

  “Oh, my God! It’s a boy, Telly! You have a son.” I choked on the words as my eyes filled with tears and I squeezed her hand a little more.

  She glanced over at me and smiled. “I have a son.”

  The doctor pulled Will aside to cut the baby’s cord. After that, I watched him hold his son in his arms for the first time.

  “I want to see him,” Telly called and Will carried the baby over, gently taking one step at a time. He placed the little one on Telly’s chest and she pushed the blanket away from the baby’s face to see him better.

  I also snuck in a peek. He was beautiful, truly beautiful.

  “Hi, baby,” Telly said in a soft tone. “I’m your mommy.” She began to cry in the happy sort of way, like she knew this was going to be the best part of her life, no matter what it took from her. From here on out, she’d always be his mommy. I took a mental photo of the three of them there as a happy family, knowing the circumstances were unconventional but that the love was there.

  That’s when I realized that a happy life could come in many forms. Sometimes it was with a husband and a house. Sometimes it was an unexpected bundle of joy. Sometimes it was taking a chance on something or someone you loved. But in all cases it came down to courage. The courage to be honest with yourself about what you wanted, what you needed, and what you’re willing to give.

  I had found my happiness in an unexpected way. And I think I liked that better.

>   “What’s his name?” one of the nurses asked.

  Telly looked up and smiled. “We’re calling him Leo.” She held the baby a while longer then offered to let me hold him.

  Finally. I beamed.

  I tenderly took him from her and held him close.

  “Hi, little Leo, I’m your aunt Marin.” Everything about him was so little, his little face, his little nose, and his little fingers and fingernails. Suddenly I was in love and I couldn’t wait to have one of my own.

  AMANDA(ah-MAHN-dah)- Latin- Meaning lovable or worthy of love.

  Fitting. I've always had an affinity for love.

  Being born in sunny San Diego in the mid 80s to a young military couple gave me plenty of insight into the dynamics of a romantic relationship. Somewhere between moving coasts every three years, I found myself engrossed in fairytale romances and dressing up like a bride.

  My first real love was writing. By my sophomore year in a new high school in Virginia, I had a slew of short stories, songs, poems, and articles to my name. Writing was fun. It was a way to get the emotions, dialogue, and pictures out of my head, and create a destiny for my characters.

  I had no intention of making a career in writing, because it wasn’t what I did, it was who I was. In reality, I wanted to be an actress. Ah, to be the face of someone else’s authored story. The plan was to move in with my aunt in L.A. after graduation, but I had a change of heart.

  Instead, I stayed with my high school sweetheart (now husband) and attended a film school in Norfolk, VA. It was at this school that I discovered my love for writing screenplays and felt compelled to follow that path. But . . . as the practical girl I was brought up to be, I decided to go to a real university. While working full time, I completed my BA in Psychology in four and a half years. Becoming a couples therapist had always been my “backup” career and there I was on my way to solving love's most complicated quandaries one couple at a time.

  With all my new free time after graduation, I decided to turn my full-length screenplay into a novel in hopes it would help my screenplay sell. I think I was in the middle of writing chapter two when I realized that everything I had ever written was to prepare me for that moment when I knew I was a novelist. Talk about the affirmation of my life. Now my plan is to solve love's most complicated quandaries one novel at a time.

  Check out Book One in The Marin Test Series- The Man Test

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