Chapter Twenty-Six

 

Darius hovered near the hospital bed. His stomach bounced like a truck on a road full of potholes. By now, the disappointment over her betrayal should have faded, but the eternal roller coaster was still riding him. If she wasn’t dressed in hospital clothes and as pale as snow, he would have lashed out at her. Instead, he checked his emotions to deal with the current situation.

At first, not taking her calls was a way to punish her for keeping the secret. But the treatment had backfired on him, allowing his anger to grow. Seeing her now, he knew his behavior wasn’t any better than hers, but he was justified in his reaction. The way she avoided his eyes said there was something blocking them now. Her ire rankled his rage and they were at an impasse.

He shifted his weight from one foot to the next. She was going to dig her claws in and make him pay. The constant tit-for-tat needed to end or what remained of their life would be shredded beyond repair.

Waiting for the doctor only added to the tension. Melissa kept dozing off, but he’d seen the alarm on her face. She opened her eyes to look at the door again.

“How are you feeling, Melissa?” He reached for her hand. Her smooth, warm palm felt limp.

“Darius, you don’t have to stay. I know you must have something you need to do.” She pulled her hand away.

“Okay. I deserved that. But, I’m not going anywhere until we find out what’s going on.” He sat in the nearest chair. “I thought you were going to see a doctor right after my last visit home.”

She sneered at him. “Well, something more important came up, didn’t it?”

He ignored the jab. “How long have you been sick?”

“I’m not sick. I haven’t had much of an appetite since my husband left me, so I missed breakfast this morning. As soon as I get some food, I’ll be fine.”

“Oh, so, now, you’re a doctor too. Nobody passes out because they missed breakfast, Melissa.”

“Why don’t we just wait and see what the doctor has to say?”

“Fine. Let’s wait.” He sat back in the chair.

She pushed up to a sitting position and placed her hands in her lap. “Darius, I hope we get to talk about our marriage one day. One day soon. But, until we work out whatever is going on with us, I really would like to handle this situation alone. And I want to be very clear with you from now on. I moved to Philly a few weeks ago and I’ve seen a lawyer to file for divorce. Before I was unsure and deep down inside I really wanted us to work out our problem, but you didn’t seem to have the time or the inclination. This time you abandoned me, walked away. So, I’m sure it’s the right thing for me.”

Her words felt like cold water being poured on his head. The shell she was so good at erecting to protect herself was back in place.

“I figured you had something more important you wanted to get on with. Or, should I say, someone.” His voice was as rigid as his shoulders.

She made a show of taking a deep breath. “Darius, I’m not angry or upset. I’m being a realist. We’ve got more reasons to be apart than we have to be together. Loving someone is not supposed to hurt this much. I’m freeing you and I’m freeing me. I’ll have the papers delivered to Dan’s office since I don’t even know where you’re living.”

She punched the pillow and turned her back to him as the doctor walked in the room.

“Ms. Conroy, I’m Dr. Carlton. How are you feeling now?” The doctor was overweight and appeared competent. His hair made him resemble Santa Claus. Maybe he could bring them some cheer.

Hearing the doctor use her maiden name was like a whip across his face.

“Better. Can I go home now?”

He glanced down at the chart in his hand, flipping the pages and scanning them much too fast. He lowered the papers and turned to Darius with a questioning look.

“Hi, I’m her husband, Darius Bellamy.”

“Soon to be ex-husband,” she said.

Darius moved to the opposite side of the bed, across from the doctor. “What’s wrong with her?”

“There’s nothing wrong. She’s pregnant. Soon, there will be an addition to your family.” The doctor grinned.

Melissa’s face was unreadable.

“A baby.” He coughed. “Are you sure?” He spun around to face her while trying to manage his stomach in free fall. He grabbed the railing on the side of the bed. No wonder she didn’t want him to stay around. She’d done it again, made him appear foolish.

“Yes, I’m sure.”

Melissa ran her hands through her hair. “Pregnant? How can I be pregnant? I haven’t missed a period.”

“Well, it happens sometimes. But trust me, you’re going to have a baby. However, you’re severely dehydrated and we need to get some fluids back in your body. And you need to eat. Even when you don’t think you’re hungry, eat something, several small meals are better than one large one.” He flipped through the papers again.

“Can I go home now?” Melissa jerked the sheets off her legs, exposing her thighs.

“Not today. We need to keep you overnight, monitor your fluid levels until they are back in the normal range. Maybe tomorrow you can go home.”

“I…I… this is too much.” She rubbed her hand against her forehead.

“Let’s take it slow. First, you just get some rest and let us take care of you tonight. Tomorrow, there will be plenty of time to figure out all the details. We need to find out how far along you are.” The doctor’s reassurance seemed to help her relax. She took a deep breath.

The doctor gave her a smile that extended to Darius before spinning around and leaving the room.

Darius observed her for several moments. She resembled the vivacious woman he’d married and wanted a life with, but all the secrets and deceit were new characteristics. Ones he expected from the groupies hanging on the fringe of the tour, not from the woman he thought he cherished.

“Melissa, did you know?” He bit down on his tongue. All he had to do was to get from this moment to the next one without letting her see the pain consuming him. There was a small chance he could retain what little manhood he still held precious.

“A baby never crossed my mind.” She released a nervous chuckle. “But, nothing’s changed with us.” The cold stare she gave him backed him up.

“I’m going to ask you a question, and I know you’re going to get mad, but I need to know the answer.” He cleared his throat. He tightened his hold on the bed and closed his eyes for a moment. “Is the baby mine, Melissa?” Asking the question was like stabbing himself in the heart, but he wanted to hear her say the words. If his world was going to fall apart, then let it happen before he started chasing dreams.

She turned her body in the bed to face him and he braced for her reply.

“Darius, you know me. Regardless of what we’ve been through, you know who I am. If your insecurities require you to hear the words, then yes. The baby is yours. Regardless of what images you’ve created in your imagination, rest assured this baby is yours.”

He tried to hide the relief flooding his body, but the euphoric feeling was hard to control.

“Melissa, we both made mistakes. I had every right to be mad at you. How could you let me believe we were fat, dumb, and happy, and you were talking to a divorce attorney? And I hear about it on television. And the pictures, I saw the pictures, Melissa.”

“Your behavior wasn’t any better. You discarded me and nothing has changed because of an accidental run-in at a hotel.” She folded her arms over the white hospital gown and stared at the door. “What would have happened if I’d decided to have my gallery opening at another hotel and I’d never bumped into you? Were you ever going to try to reach me, Darius?”

Her words cut him. He’d been a coward. Instead of addressing their problems, he’d tried to ignore them. It was much easier to massage his hurt by pretending it didn’t exist. At some point, he knew he’d have to face her, but he imagined it would be to put an end to their marriage, so he’d stayed away. Delaying the inevitable. He’d tendered the idea their marriage was over and avoided facing the truth much like his father had done. All along, he thought he was different, so much more in control of his life. But the reality was he only controlled a small portion. She held the power.

“We’ll have time to talk about this. I don’t think this is the right place or the right time to talk about our future.” He needed to clear his head. His thoughts were playing a game of bumper cars, colliding into each other.

Her eyes filled with tears, but she didn’t speak.

“Please don’t cry. I’ll be here first thing in the morning and we can discuss what we’re going to do. We are a long way from being done.”