Page 77 of Lyrical

I jogged back, nearly tripping over a fallen log and faceplanting into the brush. I quickly righted myself from the stumble and made it back to the car. I sighed. It was also Chase-less.

Now I was just plain old frustrated. I still had concern about Candace, but if it was a serious pregnancy-related issue, wouldn’t she be admitted?

I pushed through the lobby doors once again and took another jaunt around the first floor. I finally found him, sitting in the TV lounge area, head down to his phone.

“Mike?”

“Jillian.” He stood up. “I’m so glad to see you.”

“Oh my God, Mike. What’s going on with Candace? Is she okay?”

“I need you to talk to her. She’s been in the car for hours and won’t come out and—”

“What do you mean in the car? What is she doing there?”

“I’ve been trying to tell you. She won’t come out. She’s scared, won’t talk to me, won’t listen to me. I don’t know what to do. I need you to try getting through to her.”

I was trying my damnedest to follow along. “Did something happen… to the baby?”

“The baby? Oh no, the baby’s fine. It’s Candace who’s freaking out. She refuses to give me back the car keys, and what am I supposed to do? Wrestle them away from a pregnant lady?”

“You said she’s in pain, Mike. What’s going on?”

“Yeah, emotional pain, and I don’t know what—”

I punched him hard in the arm, wanting to aim for the face. Maybe break a nose.

“Ow! Why do you do shit like that?”

“You fucking jerk, Mike,” I hissed quietly through my teeth. I didn’t need an audience, but I was fucking pissed. “You made me worry for nothing? I was with Chase, and you called me away because, what, she’s mad at you? What the fuck?”

“Jesus, Jillian. Calm down.” He glanced around. “How was I supposed to know what you were doing? I just saw your car here. Was he admitted? Perry didn’t mention anything.” His jaw dropped. “No, don’t tell me… you’re not pregnant too, are you?”

“No, Mike. Not that it’s any of your damn business. I’m leaving.”

He grabbed hold of my arm. “Can you just give me a minute to explain? Please?”

Fuck. I needed my phone. “Give me your phone first, and then I’ll give you that minute.”

He handed it over, and I typed out a text to Chase:Texting from Mike’s phone. So sorry, false alarm. Please meet me in the main lobby by the front doors.

I deleted all record of the message so Mike wouldn’t have Chase’s number, then set it back in his hand. “Okay, go.”

“She had an appointment earlier today, just a routine visit. Everything’s going great, but she just lost it, Jillian. Started crying hysterically and saying she didn’t think her body could handle any more. I couldn’t even touch her without her wanting to slap me. I thought this kind of shit only happened during labor.”

I scrubbed my hands over my face. “God, Mike. She’s growing awhole new personinside her. How can you not understand that? Just the amount of hormones involved. Maybe if you gave her a little more support, she’d have an easier time.”

“I know, Jillian. I’m getting better, I swear. I think… I think I’ll be okay.”

I rolled my eyes. “Yeah, because this is all about you, right?”

“I didn’t mean it that way. Just that the easier it’s getting for me, the harder it seems to be getting for her. She just wants to cry all the time. Says she’s afraid of getting fat and ugly. Feels like her body is breaking apart or something and she’s not even showing yet. I’m not female, Jillian. I don’t understand this shit. I mean, women have been doing this forever. It’s not like she’s the first one ever to have a baby.”

“Let me guess, Mike. That’s exactly what you told her too.” He gave me a blank look that had ‘guilty’ stamped all over it. I sent up a silentThank you, Godthat I never experienced pregnancy with him. “You are such a frickin’ idiot. No wonder why she won’t talk to you.”

“Like the name-calling is going to help right now, Jillian. I just need you to talk to her, okay? Tell her it’s going to be okay. I know you’ve never been pregnant, but you’ll know what to say much better than me. And you’re about the same age, so maybe she can relate to you in some way. You’re in better shape though, so maybe you can give her some tips to feel more confident or—” My ‘are you fucking kidding me?’ look seemed to shut him up. “All I know is that I’m running out of options here, Jillian. And… and I’m sorry before for calling you a December. You’re not, more like, um, an October.”

I shook my head.I was married to this guy for seventeen years? What the hell was the matter with me?It just proved how much I loved Daniel. It also helped that he wasn’t around much.

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