Page 90 of Sergei
“Oh, it’s happening. Your work is truly powerful. It’s going to move a lot of people.”
“I know this might sound strange, but writing them saved me,” I admitted quietly. “Grace, my counselor, helped a lot, too. I think if I hadn’t had both…”
I didn’t finish the sentence.
I didn’t have to.
Marla didn’t need the specifics. She’d read the poems. She knew what I’d been through. She simply smiled and motioned her hand toward the mockup. “Take it home and look it over. Make notes of any changes you might want to make, and that includes formatting or layout. This is your masterpiece, and I want to honor it the best I can.”
“Sure thing. I’ll have it back to you by the first of the week.”
“No hurry. We aren’t on a rushed timeline.” She leaned back in her chair and asked, “So, what’s next? Are you working on something new, or are you going to take a break before diving back in?”
“I’m still writing, but this time I’m focusing less on who we were before or during the trauma and more on who we grow into after.”
“Oh, that’s a fabulous idea.” I was pleased that she liked the idea. I was even more pleased when she said, “I can’t wait to read and publish it.”
“You want to publish it, too?”
“Of course, I do. I’ve been doing this a long time, and your work is some of the best I’ve seen.”
“Thank you, Marla. That means a lot to me.” I stood and gathered my things. “I’ll see you soon.”
“I look forward to it.” Marla stood and walked me to the door. “Tell Sergei I expect him to brag about you shamelessly when this baby hits the shelves.”
“Oh, you can count on that,” I giggled. “He pretends like he doesn’t care about poetry or really understand it, but he keeps every scrap of paper I write on.”
“He’s a smart man.” She gave me a wink. “I’ll see you soon.”
I slipped out of her office and rushed out to the car. I couldn’t wait to get home and show Sergei. I never dreamed I would actually get published, but I did. He’d been so supportive and had encouraged me to get my work out there so others could see it. I just knew he was going to be thrilled at how wonderful it had turned out.
I was so excited that I barely remembered the drive home. As soon as I was parked, I grabbed the book and rushed inside. I was practically beaming as I rode the elevator up to our floor. I couldn’t wait to see his face, and I was grinning like an idiot when I opened the front door and called out, “Sergei!”
I looked up and was surprised to see that he was standing in the foyer with his keys in his hands. The fierce look on his face stopped me mid-step, but my excitement took over, and I rushed over to him. I eased up on my tiptoes and rose up to kiss him. I was expecting him to wrap his arms around me and kiss me back.
But when his hands came up, they weren’t to hold me. Instead, they were used to steady me as he stepped away and announced, “I found it.”
“Found what?”
“The pregnancy test.”
“Oh.”
“Oh? That’s all you’ve got to say?” Before I could answer, he added, “I can’t believe you kept this from me.”
“Woah. Wait a minute. I wasn’t keeping it from you. I was going to tell you. I just haven’t had the chance yet.”
“How long have you known?”
“A few days. Maybe a week.”
“A week?”
“There’s been a lot going on with the new casino and everything else. I was waiting for the right time. I wanted us to have a little celebration. Not just for the baby, but for the new casino and my book.” I swallowed, hoping it would ease the knot in my throat as I told him, “I had a big thing planned with a cake, some balloons, and some cute little booties.”
His expression softened, but only slightly. He stood there for a moment, processing everything I’d said, then asked, “What the hell are booties?”
“Little socks that go on the baby’s feet.”
