Chapter 22
They stared at each other in shock. Wanda felt a jolt and felt wide awake. “What did you say?” they asked at the same time.
“I don’t want a divorce. I’ve been thinking about us a lot since I’ve been home. I know you might not agree with me, or even believe me, but I fell in love with you when we were together the last time I was in Arizona. I’ve been taking some steps to move.”
“Really? You’d give up your life here in New York and move to Arizona?”
“I would. Think about it. I can work anywhere. And I’ve looked into it, and to have a building the size you have in Arizona here in the City, it’s going to cost us close to ten thousand a month, that doesn’t include utilities either.
Not to mention how long your business would be shut down if you had to pack everything and move here, then set up again.
How much business would you lose during that time? ”
Wanda actually giggled. “Let me guess. You’ve written this all out in lists.”
“Absolutely.” He grinned and leaned in and kissed her quickly.
“I even went so far as to discuss my plans with Sean. If you agree to take me on and we start a relationship, and I move to Arizona, he’s willing to buy me out of our partnership and even my condo.
I’m not saying I have to move tomorrow. But I’d like to be there by Thanksgiving. ” He paused then grinned.
“I’ve even contacted the realtor that has the building on the other side of the bike shop.
I’ve seen it through the computer, and it’ll suit me for opening my business there.
I could live with you and walk to work. I’m not saying we should or could do marriage right from the get-go, but maybe live together in sin and get to know each other. ”
Christopher studied her and saw that she wasn’t comprehending what he was saying.
He quickly bundled her into bed, doused the lights, but left the light in the bathroom on with the door only slightly ajar.
He tucked her in, crawled in behind her and wrapped both arms around her.
With her head on his bicep, he held her tightly and together they sighed and slipped into sleep.
*****
Several hours later Wanda was rudely jerked awake from a heavy, dreamless sleep when Christopher’s arm was ripped out from beneath her head, the covers were thrown off her, and he jumped up and began pacing and saying repeatedly, “Oh my god.” He’d looked at her repeated it, then paced some more.
Wanda frowned and sat up. “Oh my god,” he said again, and put his hands on his head and pulled his own hair.
“Are you okay?” she asked, and looked at the clock and saw that it was five in the morning. “What’s wrong? Having second thoughts about what you told me last night?”
“Oh my god.” He looked like he was in shock, so she yelled his name.
“Christopher!”
“What?” He stared at her with deer in the headlights eyes. “Oh my god.” Then he took a deep breath, let it out and began to laugh. He dove across the bed, reached up and gripped her head and kissed her.
“What the hell?” Wanda frowned at him when he released her and started laughing again. “Christopher, you’re starting to scare me. Please, tell me what’s going on.”
“You’re pregnant.” He grinned at her. “I’m assuming you’re telling me because I’m the father?”
“You are. You’re the only one I told. My parents don’t even know yet.” She wrapped her arms around her knees and stared at him. “I take it you’re not mad?”
“I don’t know yet. I know when I was planning everything to move to Arizona in the back of my mind I was flirting with the idea of adoption. I thought you couldn’t get pregnant. When did you find out?”
“Tuesday. Three weeks ago, I went in and had my yearly blood tests. It’s required because my blood will be the first place to look whether I’m either rejecting the kidney or if I’m not in remission any longer.
If there’s ever anything wrong, the doctor’s office will call me and have me come in.
If nothing’s wrong, he tells me at my appointment a month later.
As long as I remain healthy, I only see my doctor twice a year.
For the blood draw, and the results later.
We basically exchange e-mails and phone calls for my meds.
I don’t have a problem with them, because I’ve been on them for so long, and will be for the rest of my life.
But on Tuesday, I was literally emptying my closet on my bed to see what I could pack for this gallery opening. ”
“Let me guess.” He grinned. “You didn’t have a thing to wear.”
“No, I didn’t. I can’t remember the last time I wore a dress. I think I was under the age of ten. But anyway, I was getting frustrated and the phone rang, it was a nurse from the doctor’s office asking me to come in that night at six. It was already four.”
“Damn. And your mind immediately went to something wrong, I’m only saying this because mine would have.”
“Yes, I immediately began flipping from cancer to organ rejection. I was a mess. I actually threw up a couple times. When I got to the doctor’s office, I couldn’t wait, and I lost it.
I told him to tell me right away if the cancer was back or if I was rejecting the organ.
I was so worked up, I almost passed out.
I had to drop in a chair and put my head between my legs.
I never saw the other man in the room. He talked me through my panic attack and once I was calm, Dr. Hall, my regular doctor who I see yearly, told me that the only thing that was wrong with me was that I was pregnant.
“I laughed. And laughed, and laughed. I told him I couldn’t get pregnant because of all the drugs that’d been pumped into me when I was younger.
I told them I’ve only had my period ten times in the last twelve years.
So how the hell could I be pregnant? But Dr. Carson, the man who talked me through my panic attack led me down to an exam room.
” She paused and got up and retrieved her purse.
She dug through it and came back to the bed. She held out black and white photos.
“This is the baby?” Christopher asked as he reached for them, they both smiled at how badly his hand was shaking.
“Yes. Can you see anything?”
“I think I see a spine.” He pointed to one, and they spent several minutes looking at them. “We talked, and because you are the only man I’ve ever had sex with, based on the last time we had sex and the size of the baby, I’m twelve weeks along. My due date is around April 11th.”
“Is everything okay?” Christopher asked, and gently laid her back and put his hand over her belly, holding a picture above it, in his hand. “This is so cool.” He grinned at her. “And before you ask again, I’m happy about the baby.” He leaned down and kissed her belly. “What did the doctor. say?”
“Dr. Hall had called Dr. Carson in when he got the test results back that I was pregnant. Dr. Carson is an OB/GYN that works only with high-risk pregnancies. Due to my being in remission and having an organ transplant and all the medication I’m on, Dr. Hall felt I was high risk.
Nothing to do with the baby, but for me.
He wants to see me every two weeks until it gets closer, then weekly. He’s going to keep a close eye on me.”
“Is there a risk you could lose the baby or the medications you’re on be harmful?”
“I don’t think so. The only thing he told me not to do was work until he researched the chemicals I use.
He told me to take pictures of them and e-mail them so he could read the ingredients and research them.
I knew I was coming here in two days and I had finished everything, so I wasn’t going to be working.
I’ll call the doctor when I get home if I don’t have an e-mail from him. ”
“Why don’t we call him now?”
Wanda laughed. “Because it’s only two in the morning there, that’s why.”
“When’s your next appointment?”
“A week from Tuesday.”
He studied her intently and sighed. “What do you think about what I said earlier?”
“Do you really want to move to Arizona? I don’t want to force you into anything, Christopher. But I never thought I’d ever say this to anyone. I’ve missed you. Sure, we don’t know each other that well, but I’m willing to give it a try if you are.”
Christopher grinned, then leaned down and kissed her.
He stretched out beside her, and as he kissed the hand he had on her belly, he moved up and gently took a breast in his hand.
When he felt her pebbled nipple, he smiled against her lips.
When she lifted her legs and dropped her knees to the side, he quickly stripped them both and settled between her legs.
“Sorry if I’m going too fast, but it’s been a while. ”
“Wait.” Wanda lifted her head and looked at him. “You’re not seeing anyone are you?”
“No.” He worked his way back up her body and while resting on his forearms he kissed her gently and stared into her eyes.
“I haven’t been with anyone but you since you came back into my life.
” He kissed her again and moved a hand down and found she was dripping wet.
While still kissing her he slowly eased into her and sighed when he was all the way in.
He had to pause so that she could adjust to him and he didn’t slam into her.
“Shit, are we supposed to be doing this while you’re pregnant?”
Wanda laughed. “Let’s put it this way, the doctor never told me no.”
“Good, because I don’t know if I can stop now.
” He began to move, and he’d barely pumped a dozen times before Wanda actually arched into him and came.
“That’s it, baby, feel me,” he said against her ear, and when she wrapped her arms and legs around him, and began matching him stroke for stroke, he called out that he wasn’t going to last, and when he felt his release coming, he slammed into her and threw his head back and groaned.