CH 34 - #forever
Riley
“RHYS, WHAT’D YOU do with my car keys?” I asked, my arms crossed over my chest.
“I didn’t do anything with them.”
“You’re smiling, so I know you did.”
“I’m smiling because my ghost came back to Cypress Hills with you and is here and doesn’t want you to leave.”
“ You don’t want me to leave.”
“That’s true, but I didn’t hide your keys. Promise.”
I sighed. “So what do I do now?”
“Search my house. Come on, I’ll help you.”
Rhys and I looked in every room, drawer, and under every piece of furniture. No keys.
“I appreciate your/my/our ghost’s sense of humor, but I really need my keys. My spare set is in Fort Worth,” I said.
“Wait a sec. There’s one place we didn’t look.”
“Where?”
“My bedroom closet. Be right back.”
Rhys returned to the kitchen with a medium-sized box and set it on the island. When he took off the lid, I saw my car keys. They were lying on top of all of Rhys’s keepsakes of us.
“There you go,” he chuckled, handing my keys to me.
“This is unreal.”
“I think it’s great.”
I looked back down at the box, scanning its contents. “You’re so sentimental,” I said.
“You’re welcome to go through everything if you want.”
“You don’t mind?”
“No. Why would I?”
“It’s just…private.”
“Not when it comes to you.”
I took a deep breath and nodded. Then I started inspecting each item, one by one, taking trips back in time. When I reached the bottom of the box, I saw my pregnancy test and carefully picked it up. I kept staring at it, getting more and more choked up by the second.
“This brings it all back,” I said, looking at Rhys standing beside me.
He stroked my cheek with his fingertips. “I know.”
“Where do you think we’d be today if I hadn’t miscarried?”
“I think we’d be together, happily married, and probably with two or three kids. But I don’t know how accurate that is because you still dreamed about living and working in a big city.”
“If I hadn’t miscarried, I don’t think that dream would’ve ever entered my mind. I never told you this, but I felt like I did something wrong to lose our baby.”
Rhys shook his head. “You didn’t, though. It was just nature taking its course.”
“Well, whatever it was, it did something to me. I remember thinking you deserved to be with someone who could give you children because I knew you wanted your own family.”
“I do, but if my family consists of just you and me, I’d be happy too. Riley, you are my everything. You are my forever, and you always will be.”
As I was leaving Cypress Hills to go back to Fort Worth, I was fine until I crossed over the bayou. Once I had, my tears flowed. I was feeling things so intensely today. I knew it was because I’d shared another amazing weekend with Rhys, and then the morning sickness situation with Destinee at church and seeing my positive pregnancy test.
When I made it to my duplex, I texted Rhys to let him know. He sent back a red heart emoji and said he’d call me when he and Jackson were done tending the cows.
I didn’t feel like unpacking, so I stretched out across my bed, noticing the cramping that I’d started experiencing on my way home was getting worse to the point of nauseating me. Then, I felt the warmth between my legs and went to the bathroom.
Sitting on the toilet, looking at the blood in my panties, I realized my IUD was in the process of coming out. I needed to see my gynecologist, but it was Sunday, and her office was closed. I was going to have to tough this out until tomorrow. An hour and a half later and running a fever, I realized I wasn’t going to be able to and drove myself to the hospital near my duplex.
After being admitted, examined, and having my IUD removed, I was taken to a private room. I asked the nurse if she knew where my purse was, and she got it out of the closet for me. When I checked my cellphone, I saw three missed calls, one voicemail, and several text messages from Rhys. He wondered where I was and if I was okay.
“Where have you been?” he asked, answering my return call.
“I was at home, but now, I’m in the hospital.”
“What?”
“I’m okay. My IUD came out. It caused a ton of pain, bleeding, and high fever.”
“Did you call an ambulance?”
“No, I drove myself to the emergency room.”
“I’m packing a bag and will be on my way.”
“Rhys, no.”
“I am not staying here while you’re in the hospital.”
I sighed. “You can’t keep coming to my rescue.”
“I damn sure can, and I am. What’s the name of the hospital?”
“Medical City.”
“I’ll be there soon. I love you.”
While waiting for Rhys to arrive, I called my momma and daddy to let them know what had happened to me. They wanted to come to Fort Worth, but I told them that Rhys was already on his way. They were relieved, but they still wanted to come to see me. I assured them I was on the mend and wanted them to stay home.
After agreeing, they asked me to keep them posted on everything. I said I would and then called Macie and Rachel with the news. I had the same conversation with them that I’d had with my parents. Afterward, I lay in my hospital bed, staring out the window. When I woke up, Rhys was sitting in a chair beside my bed and holding my hand.
“Hey,” I said, feeling groggy from the pain meds. “When did you get here?”
“About an hour ago. Are you going to be okay?”
I smiled. “Yes. Guess why my IUD came out.”
“No idea.”
“The doctor thinks it’s from all the sex that you and I have been having.”
Rhys swallowed hard. “Riley, I am so sorry.”
“I’m not. It was worth it.”
“Are you going to get another IUD put it?”
“No, I don’t want to go through this again.”
“What about protection?”
“I guess it’s back to you using condoms.”
“But I like feeling all of you.”
“I like feeling all of you, too. I could try retaking the pill.”
“When did you try it before?”
“Right after I moved here, but it made me feel funky. It’s hard to explain.”
“You’re not getting back on the pill. I’ll use condoms.”
“I’m going to be out of commission for a little while,” I said, glancing down at my abdomen.”
“That’s the least of my concerns.” Rhys stood up and kissed me. “Are you hungry?”
“Trying to feed me again.”
“That’s right.”
“Thank you, but I can’t stomach anything yet.”
“Let me know when you think you can. I’ll go get you something a hell of a lot better than hospital food. I saw a Whataburger and Torchy’s Tacos not far from here.”
“Okay. But on a serious note—you can’t keep coming to Fort Worth like this. To work, you’ve got to be in Cypress Hills.”
“You let me worry about that, princess.”
“The name you call me when I’m being stubborn.”
“If you keep it up, I’m going to put you over my knee and spank your little ass.”
“I might like it.”
Rhys smiled. “Yeah, you’re definitely doing better because you’re being stubborn and feisty.”
“Would you have me any other way?”
“Yep.”
“How?”
“Back in our hometown with me for good.”