Chapter 20
Vic jogged through the medical building’s hallway while loosening his tie with one hand.
He checked his watch again, even though he knew he was late.
He’d broken every speeding law that Ohio had in order to get here as soon as he could.
He’d been on a Zoom meeting regarding the Houston project that had run over.
No fault of his, but that explanation wouldn’t matter.
Not today.
He bit out a curse, trying to find his way.
He spotted a door marked OB/GYN Maternal Health Associates and remembered that from Tachina’s text with the directions.
He inhaled sharply and headed that way. A small trickle of sweat dribbled beneath his button-down shirt.
He hated being late for anything, especially something as important as this appointment.
The waiting area was decorated with pastel colors on the walls and framed pictures of infants with chubby cheeks and families. A row of chairs lined the room. Almost each chair was taken as couples sat together. An occasional laugh broke the quietness.
His gaze landed on her.
Tachina sat alone with her legs crossed while a clipboard rested on her lap. Her dark hair was left free to fall at her chin and even looked as if it had been cut recently. She wasn’t gazing at her phone or the wall. She was staring off into space.
Relief hit him at the sight of her, but then he grew confused.
“You’re here,” he breathed. He took the seat next to her and inhaled. “I’m so sorry. The Houston meeting ran over—”
“They’re running behind, so you’re good,” she said. A small smile appeared on her lips, but it didn’t reach her eyes. “They said it shouldn’t be too much longer.”
The way she spoke was calm yet felt flat. It had him swallowing hard. She didn’t appear to be angry. Just shut down.
“I know today is important and that damn meeting ran over—”
“It’s okay. Appointments get pushed back all the time,” she interrupted him. She couldn’t have been listening to him. Or maybe she was and didn’t care.
He apologized again. “I’m sorry.”
She nodded once.
He tried to take her hand and entwined their fingers together. He had missed her. She eased her hand back to collect a pen from her bag as if she needed it at that moment. She set it down.
He didn’t miss the dodge. He also didn’t know how to respond.
They sat in silence while other couples chatted. A woman leaned her head on her partner’s shoulder while he rubbed her back. A young lady at the desk called out names one by one. The room was starting to empty out a bit.
Tachina continued to stare straight ahead, not saying a word.
“Are you okay?” He cleared his throat. “You look tired. You didn’t answer when I called you last night.”
“I told you I was tired.” She had only responded with a brief text after not answering him. “Kian and I fell asleep early.”
“He’s okay?”
“He’s fine.”
“Are you mad at me?” He needed to figure out what the hell was going on. She was not acting like herself, and this had him worried.
“No.”
That should have comforted him, but it didn’t. All it did was make him want to figure out what the hell had her acting this way. Before he could pry even more, the nurse opened the door.
“Tachina Winston?”
Tachina raised her hand and stood from her seat. She grabbed her purse and swung it over her shoulder. He rose behind her.
“Do you want me to come with you?” He braced for rejection.
She looked over at him and jerked her head in a short nod. “If you want to.”
If he wanted to? If? His chest tightened sharply. Something was terribly wrong.
Yes, dammit. I want to.
They followed the nurse down a hallway into an exam room filled with soft lighting and the faint scent of disinfectant. Posters of fetal development lined the wall, and beside the exam table stood a machine with cables, a monitor, and a rolling stool beside it.
Vic stared at the equipment that looked as if it were from a sci-fi movie.
All of this was foreign to him. He had wanted to be a part of everything this time around and he was certainly jumping in headfirst. He sat in one of the chairs while the nurse took Tachina’s blood pressure and checked her weight.
She handed Tachina a gown and instructed her to change.
“The doctor will be in shortly, Ms. Winston. Have a great day.” The woman scurried out of the room and shut the door behind her.
Tachina walked around the curtain and began changing. The rustling of fabric was the only sound.
He couldn’t take it anymore.
“I feel as if I’ve done something wrong,” he announced. “We’ve barely spoken since yesterday morning. You’ve barely looked at me today. What is going on?”
The movement behind the curtain paused.
“You haven’t done anything wrong, Victor,” she answered.
He jerked back as if she’d physically hit him. She’s never called him Victor. He ran a hand across his face.
“That’s not how it feels.”
She emerged from behind the curtain with her clothing in her hands. She folded them neatly and placed them down on the empty chair next to him. She turned and climbed up on the exam table covered in white paper. She sat upright then turned her eyes to him.
“Are you embarrassed of me?”
Of all the things she could have asked, he would have never predicted this question. His mouth parted, but no words came out.
“What?” he breathed.
“It’s a simple question,” she said quietly. “Are you ashamed of the way I grew up? Where I come from?”
The room tilted slightly for him. What the hell kind of question was this?
“What? No. Why would you—?”
“I just want to know,” she said, calm.
“God, no. That’s never crossed my mind.”
She had to know that. He’d never once cared that they were from two different worlds. Her background made her the woman she was today.
“So then why haven’t you wanted to publicly acknowledge that I’m the mother of your child?”
It felt as if the world had frozen over. Or time had stilled. He tried to drag in a deep breath. Right now it felt as if a trapdoor had dropped out beneath him.
Years ago, things between them had been complicated. They were trying to figure out the situation they had found themselves in while he was trying to keep his personal life from detonating under scrutiny. They had agreed not to publicize anything. She’d agreed. They both had.
“You and I talked about that. You said—”
“I know what I said.” Her voice cracked a little.
“I’ve never asked for attention. Or for your name to elevate mine.
But now there’s a new baby coming, and your mother is being told that I’m trying to use child support to manipulate you.
That I’m a threat who might take Kian away.
That I’m…basically looking for an opportunity. ”
Victims of lies didn’t sound calm. They sounded hurt—like her right now.
He exhaled and combed his fingers through his hair as realization dawned on him.
“You saw my mother yesterday.”
“I overheard a conversation at lunch.” Her expression flickered to something he couldn’t read.
“She was with Sydney?” His pulse spiked.
She nodded once.
Anger and rage flooded him. He clenched his jaw. “What did she say?”
“Enough.” Tachina’s eyes filled with unshed tears.
That just made him even angrier. He stood and took a step toward her, but the door opened. He sat back down and tried to get his emotions in order.
“Hello! I’m Dr. Hanover.” The woman was dressed in a blouse and slacks with a white lab coat. She went over to Tachina and shook her hand. “It’s been awhile since I’ve seen you.”
“Dr. Hanover, it’s been about a year,” Tachina said.
“I hear congratulations are in order. The urine sample you gave confirmed pregnancy,” Dr. Hanover said.
Tachina murmured her thanks.
Dr. Hanover turned and smiled at Vic. “And who do we have here?”
“This is Victor. He’s the father,” Tachina replied evenly.
Not her partner. Not her boyfriend. Just…the father.
It sliced into him like dull blade.
“Victor Maxwell.” Vic stood and took the doctor’s hand in a firm shake.
“Well, congratulations to the two of you.” She made her way back over to Tachina. “You look a little down. Feeling all right? Any pain?”
“Just tired,” Tachina said with a soft exhale. “And some nausea.”
Nausea? His heart thudded. Why hadn’t she shared that with him?
“You’ve vomited?” Guilt filled him to think that this pregnancy was already causing her discomfort.
“Oh, yeah,” she muttered.
Dr. Hanover continued on, asking Tachina some questions while performing a thorough exam of her. Vic sat back and watched—and listened. This was the first time he’d ever been at a prenatal appointment. He swallowed hard, thinking how she had done most of this by herself last time.
A tech came into the room and fiddled with the machine.
“Well, let’s see if we can see the baby and determine how far along you are,” Dr. Hanover said.
“Today? We should be able to see the baby already?” Vic blinked. It wasn’t too early?
“It may not be much, but this will allow us to do some measurements. I will tell you now, this baby at this stage won’t look like a fully developed fetus quiet yet.” The doctor smiled. She motioned for Vic to come close to Tachina.
They assisted Tachina to lie back. He found it weird that they were positioning her legs in metal bars that came off the table. It looked as if she were about to have a baby right now.
Vic’s eyes widened at the size of a long probe that the tech covered with a sheath and handed to the doctor who promptly covered it in lube.
“Wait, what is that for?” Vic asked. “And um…where is it going?”
There was no way that thing was going where he thought she was about to put it. Vic swiped a hand along his jawline. He ignored the stubble that greeted him as his gaze remained on the long probe.
“This is how we’re going to see the baby.” Dr. Hanover chuckled.
The young lady assisting the doctor turned down the lights.