Page 26 of Shining Pearls
Dean stood steadfastly by my side. Placing a comforting arm around my shoulders, he leaned down near my ear and said, “It’s better to just deal with it and get it over with, rather than to keep dreading it. You have to talk to them at some point. Besides, maybe it won’t be as bad as you expect.”
“Famous last words…” I answered him out of the corner of my mouth before reluctantly turning to face the father of my unborn child and his wife.
22
Claire
The last thing I wanted to do was bridge the gap in the sidewalk between where Josie and Dean stood and where Alex and I had just emerged from Dr. Wilkes’ office, but we needed to have a discussion. In my experience, it was always better to deal with complications swiftly and directly, rather than delay and speculate or let the ever-churning rumor mill fill in the missing information.
I had been struggling to get my light windbreaker on as we stepped outside. Alex reached down to hold it up, so I could easily slide my left arm into the previously-elusive sleeve. It probably appeared from the outside to be a thoughtful gesture, but Alex was a gentleman to his core. I knew it was simply an autopilot reaction that he didn’t even have to think about performing. I gave him a sincere ‘thank you’ anyway, hoping that he didn’t ever feel like I took him or his natural, chivalrous gestures for granted.
After I called out to them, Josie and Dean remained frozen mid-step and with their backs to us for an uncomfortably long moment. I began to wonder if they might rudely ignore my request to speak to them. Deciding that I wasn’t going to chase after them, I remained rooted to my spot to see what they would do.
Dean leaned down to say something near Josie’s ear. It must have been just the encouragement she needed because the duo slowly turned around to greet us. Even from this distance, I could see the dread drawing down Josie’s pretty features. My expression likely matched hers, and I was sure Alex’s wasn’t much better, but I didn’t have the energy to plaster on a fake smile.
Despite our mutual desire not to do this, when Josie and Dean began walking slowly back toward us, Alex and I took a few steps forward to meet them in the middle. Once we were congregated as a group, we stood there in silence.
I looked to my husband to take the lead, since he was the common denominator here, but his ashen face made it obvious that he was on the verge of getting sick or passing out.
Since I was the one who had called out to them, I felt obliged to be the first to speak. After awkwardly clearing my throat, I said, “It’s fairly obvious why we were all in this office today.”
Josie and Alex were both staring at the ground, like children after being caught misbehaving. Dean was the only one making eye contact with me.
No one seemed inclined to add anything to the conversation, so I forged on. “We need to figure out a way to move forward that is in the best interest of the children.”
Even though I had no idea where I was going with any of this, I was proud of how rational I sounded. After all, these two babies were completely innocent, so they shouldn’t be forced to suffer any repercussions from the mistakes the adults in their lives had made.
Although I wanted to avoid this woman and the hurt feelings she represented, it was quickly becoming clear that she was going to be a permanent fixture in our lives. I either had to deal with that fact like an adult, or fight against it and make the entire situation more miserable for all of us. As much as my heart ached to do the opposite, I needed to be the bigger person here.
Swallowing audibly, I reached out a hand to her. Looking at the paper she was still clutching, I asked in a wobbly voice, “Is that an ultrasound of your baby?”
Josie’s eyes remained locked on the sidewalk in front of her, but she nodded once in answer to my question. She made no move to hand the picture over, so I assumed with her downcast gaze, she couldn’t see my outstretched hand.
“May we see it?” My bold question got her attention. Her head rose up and her wide-eyed gaze locked with mine. We stared at each other for a long moment, woman-to-woman, and I understood her hesitation. This photo was tangible proof of the pregnancy. Sharing it would make the pregnancy less abstract to us. Once we were presented with real evidence of the baby’s existence, there would be no turning back to the glorious time before we knew Alex had fathered a child with her.
Josie’s hand inched closer to mine. Her hazel eyes were filled with fear as if she knew this was the moment of truth. She hesitated in handing it over like someone who had just found a big bag of money that they wanted to keep for themselves, but knew that they shouldn’t.
It was tempting to snatch it away from her, but I forced myself to refrain. Instead, I patiently held my palm out and waited for her to hand it over at her ridiculously slow, snail’s pace.
The paper was almost to my hand when Dean suddenly yelled, “Josie’s baby is mine!”
His voice was much too loud for our close proximity, which made Josie jump in surprise and yank her hand back. As soon as Dean’s words had a moment to register, I felt Alex sag with relief by my side. The nervous tension that had been emanating from him in vibrating waves immediately dissipated. When I looked up at my husband’s face, he was looking back at me. We genuinely smiled at each other for what seemed like the first time since my return.
This news was the perfect solution to all of our problems. I couldn’t have worked it out better for all involved, if I’d had a magic wand. Well, almost everyone involved, anyway.
Meg had mentioned to me that Dean had recently been dating Molly Malone, but it couldn’t be too serious if he’d gotten Josie pregnant. Molly would just have to figure out how best to deal with it. At least Dean wasn’t her husband and the father of her children. It would have been an absolute disaster if Alex had been the father.
Shoving Molly’s problems out of my mind, I beamed back at my husband, feeling like we might finally be on the right track to return to where we were before this life-shattering year began.
Finally breaking my gaze from him, I turned to look at the couple that had just given us the best news imaginable, under the circumstances. That’s when I saw the stunned stare Josie was giving Dean.
My stomach felt like it dropped to my knees when I realized Dean was lying.
23
Josie
Icouldn’t imagine what Dean was thinking by announcing that he was the father of my baby. We hadn’t ever even kissed in a romantic capacity. The friendly pecks on the cheek or forehead he often gave me when we said goodbye certainly didn’t get me pregnant.
