Page 59 of Too Close To Call

Another thing I’ve discovered about pregnancy hormones is how insatiable they make my wife. In this instance, I have no problem with them.

“Harder, Case. Faster. There. Right there. Don’t stop!” she demands.

With the biggest smile on my face, I happily comply. Because… why not? My life is perfect.

* * *

Later that afternoon, Tori and I are snuggling on the couch with the television playing in the background. Our fun day on the water had been spoiled by a sudden storm blowing in. So we’d played board games and watched movies.

I run my fingers through Tori’s hair and she nuzzles my hand. I have become to love lazy days. Axel and Paul run the garage now and I go in when I want to. Lately, I’ve not wanted to go in much at all. Every day with Tori is like a gift I can’t wait to open.

When we’re in Matthews, I help out at the driving school. Tori has built a very lucrative career and she’s good. I’ve been approached by several sponsors to drive for them, but I discovered I wasn’t interested in that life anymore. Instead, Tori and I are opening a camp for children with medical issues at no cost to their families. We plan on breaking ground within the next month.

“Do you think we should rescue your mom and dad and go pick up Daisy?” Tori asks.

Earlier in the afternoon, Mom and Dad had stopped by. With rain ending our plans, they asked if Daisy could spend the afternoon with them. They miss her when we’re in Matthews.

I kiss her cheek and rub her belly. “I think we would have a hard time getting her to leave if we go this soon. She’ll be fine. She’ll be spoiled, but fine.”

Tori sits straight up and asks, “What did they say?”

Confused I reply, “Hmm,”

She grabs for the remote. “The news. What did they just say?”

She sticks her hand under my ass and I jump. “I don’t know. Something about a lab.”

With remote in hand, she turns the sound up. “Did they say Bioguard Labs?”

We both sit up and stare at the television. It’s a news segment about a testing lab being charged with fraud and negligence. It sounds bad for whoever owns the facility. They’re accused of reporting inaccurate results which led to patients not getting the treatment they needed. Some resulting in death. They go on to talk about malpractice, reporting false DNA test results, and fraud charges.

“I think so. Why?”

Tori gasps. I turn to find her face ashen and I take her shaking hands in mine. This can’t be good for her and the baby. “Honey, what is it? You need to calm down.”

She points to the television and stumbles to ask, “What… what years did they say?”

I repeated what the newscaster said and tears fill her eyes. “Tori, what’s going on?”

She turns and our eyes meet. “That’s… that’s the lab I used for Daisy’s DNA test. And it would have been in that time period.”

Now my heart is threatening to beat out of my chest. “Do you mean…”

I can’t finish that question.

Slowly she shakes her head and then looks back up at me. “I don’t know what it means. Maybe nothing. Maybe everything.”

The thoughts in my mind are going so fast I can’t focus on any one thing. “But it could mean that Daisy is my daughter. The DNA results could have been wrong.”

Tori begins to cry and I wrap her in my arms and run my hand up and down her back, trying to calm her. I silence the voices in my head to focus on the most important thing. Tori. “It’s okay, sweetheart.”

She looks up at me with tears running down her cheeks. “What if, all these years, you could have been… and you missed out… and Ryan… he thinks, he’s been her dad, and you…you should have…”

Nothing she says makes sense, but I understand her rambling. I take her face in my hands and wipe the tears away with my thumbs. I smile down into her face. “This changes nothing, Tori. Maybe I am Daisy’s father, but I couldn’t love her any more than I do at this very moment. And Ryan has loved that girl since she was born. That’s not going to change, no matter what some test says.”

“But…”

I press a gentle kiss to her lips to stop her from going down another negative path. “No, Tori, we aren’t living in the past. We can’t change it, but we can change how we go forward.”

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