Danaë Chapter 7
Another week had passed by. This one had been shorter by one day.
The upcoming weekend was Memorial Day weekend, and the clinic would be closed Friday through the following Monday.
I looked forward to having the four days off.
We had plans to spend part of it with the Patriots, their employees, and their families.
On Saturday, the company was holding a cookout for all its employees.
Then on Monday, we’d be celebrating with the core group of bosses and their families, plus Ben, Beau, and their wives. I was looking forward to both.
The other reason I was glad the week was over was that it had become common knowledge that I was pregnant, and not just a month or two, but twenty-one weeks. It had come out when my boss, Caroline, let it slip in front of witnesses. My lips twitched, recalling that moment. It happened on Tuesday.
I couldn’t wait to finish all this restocking.
Admittedly, the medical assistants and other staff were supposed to do this, but when ones like Julie, Holly, and a couple of others were on, they waited until we were down to zero before doing it.
There was nothing I hated more in the workplace than needing something and not having it on hand.
Sure, if we were totally out, maybe I stood it a tad better, but to know it was somewhere, just not unboxed and placed where it should be, fired me up.
I had time because the patients had slowed to a trickle this week.
I guess the upcoming holiday and the extra warm weather had everyone feeling better.
More likely, they were saving it for the weekend when they’d do stupid stuff and need to go to urgent care clinics and the ER for their stupidity. That was the cynic in me.
I was carrying another load of boxes to the supply room from the back room, where deliveries were dropped off. They weren’t terribly heavy, just awkward. And wouldn’t you know it, the one balanced on top, the lightest in this load, slid off and hit the floor?
“Damn it,” I muttered.
I placed the other boxes on the floor. As I came to my feet, into the supply closet hurried Caroline, the clinic’s boss.
Right behind her came two more staff members, and it was Holly and Julie.
They’d been casting me shitty looks since last week’s confrontation, though it had been too mild to be called that in my book.
“Danae, what are you doing carrying and lifting those boxes? You shouldn’t be doing that.” Caroline swung around to look at the staff behind her.
“Why is she carrying boxes and restocking the supply room? That’s not her job. All of you are tasked with doing it well before Danae or the other nurses and PAs need supplies. How long have these been in the back room waiting to be unpacked?” she asked.
No one answered. They all wore uncomfortable looks except my two nemesis. They wore sullen ones.
“Caroline, I had time, and you know I like to stay busy. Yes, others need to stay on top of it, but I did it today. However, they do need to pay more attention. I won’t be doing this forever.”
There were murmurs of assent that I'd heard. And it would’ve been the end of it if Holly hadn’t mumbled something that she didn’t say low enough not to be heard.
“What makes her so damn special? And what does she mean she’s not doing it forever? Is she quitting?” There was glee in her tone at the last part.
“No, Holly, she’s not quitting, though I’ve had about enough of you and your sidekick's mouth to welcome you leaving. Not only is it not Danae’s job, it’s certainly yours, but she shouldn’t be lifting anything.
When her stomach gets big, she’s not walking around with boxes balanced on it,” Caroline snapped.
As soon as the words were out, she gasped, and her wide-eyed glance landed on me. I read the apology there. I smiled.
“Thank you, Caroline. Yes, I won’t be balancing anything on my stomach. And while these boxes are light, I shouldn’t do it anyway. I can’t see my feet. I’m waiting for the day when I have a real bump showing.”
Excited chatter burst from the other women. They congratulated me. I was asked when I was due. Another question was whether I knew what I was having. It was a coincidence that all of them had been outside on Friday of last week and met Heath.
“I’m twenty-one weeks. I’ve been waiting to announce it for various reasons, but it’s past time. We’re having a girl. Heath and I are excited and still deciding on names and what to decorate the nursery with,” I told them.
“Well, you certainly have a very attentive and handsome boyfriend. I love it when he brings you lunch, then drops you off and picks you up. It’s sweet to see a guy who is in love. It makes me a little jealous. I told my husband he’d better step it up,” Caroline admitted, chuckling.
We were laughing because we knew her husband adored her. They had been married twenty years, and he was always doing things for her. I watched Holly and Julie slink out of the room. I was glad to see them leave. That was how my secret got revealed.
I drove myself today because Heath had a meeting he wasn’t sure would end in time to pick me up.
He apologized, but I assured him he had nothing to apologize for.
He made me promise to drive extra carefully and to text not only when I got to work but also when I got home.
I was staying at his place again. Last weekend, he got me to move some of my things back to his house.
I knew he wanted me to move in with him, but he wasn’t pushing for it.
I think he was nervous about pushing me so soon after I had forgiven him.
However, after what he shared about his past and what I shared about mine.
I was more sure of our future for some reason.
I ached for what he must’ve felt like as a child growing up in that environment.
It made what I’d experienced after Dad died so trivial.
At least I could say I had the love of one parent, maybe two, for most of my childhood.
I say maybe two because, looking back on how Mom acted when I was growing up, what I assumed was a loving mom might not have been. Or not to the extent I thought.
If she truly loved her children and husband that much, how could she have turned into what she did after Dad died?
Why become so obsessed with money and status?
It was like she would do anything, sacrifice anyone to ensure she was kept in style.
She never seemed preoccupied with possessions or money before Dad died.
Sure, there were times we couldn’t afford things, but she hadn’t seemed upset or angry about it.
After his death and her remarriage, Haris and I had sat down and talked about it.
We racked our brains to recall if we’d ever seen or heard our parents fight.
The answer was no. Nor had they ever seemed to be upset with each other in our presence.
They verbalized their love for each other.
They hugged and kissed in front of us. The change in our mom baffled us, and it still baffles me.
The drive to Heath’s condo was interrupted by a stop at the grocery store.
I wanted to pick up something to make for dinner.
I knew Heath would say I should let him cook or bring something home, but I was craving my pot roast. It wasn’t hard to make, especially when using a pressure cooker.
However, when I was putting the roast in the fridge to thaw this morning, I noticed he was out of carrots and onions.
Rather than mention it and have Heath say he’d pick them up, I kept quiet.
The grocery store I preferred was between the affluent section of Hampton, where Mom and her husband lived, and Heath’s condo.
I wasn’t worried I might run into her there.
She had given up shopping for herself after her remarriage.
Just like she didn’t cook either, that’s what you had a personal chef for.
Those were things she liked to point out to me and, back when he was alive, to my brother.
She thought it illustrated why we should listen to her about creating and marrying wealth.
What should have been a quick in-and-out lasted twenty minutes because I thought of a few other things I wanted to get, and then I had to peruse the fresh produce aisle.
I had a constant craving for fresh fruit.
I was putting strawberries and fresh blueberries into my basket, the last items I planned to get, when a voice I’d know anywhere spoke behind me.
“Danae, what in the world are you doing here? Did you move out of that tiny apartment of yours and finally get a better place?” Mom asked.
Her snide tone put my teeth on edge. I knew if I ignored her, she’d only follow me. I’d tried that before. I took a deep breath, held it for a few seconds before I blew it out, then turned to face her.
There she stood, dressed to the nines, wearing jewelry that was more appropriate for a formal night out.
Only she would wear them to the grocery store in the middle of the day.
She carried a Hermes Birkin bag that cost thousands of dollars.
Her shoes were Ferragamo. Her clothing was Chanel.
Yeah, I recognized the brands because she’d been obsessed with teaching me about them during those two years I was stuck living with her and my stepfather.
Not a hair was out of place, and her makeup was flawless.
Long, perfectly manicured nails graced her hands.
For a woman who was fifty-seven, I grudgingly had to admit, she looked good.
When I didn’t say anything, she did. “Hello, Danae. I know I taught you proper manners. You should acknowledge your mother first.”
There it was, her derision. Her tone and the way she raised her nose in the air told me she thought I was beneath her and an embarrassment to her.