30. Chapter 29
Clark
“My god, Mr. Canders is a grump,” I grumble as I approach the nurse's desk towards my friend who has been off lately, but Belle doesn’t answer and I say, “Belle?”
“I messed up,” she whispers before her teary eyes lock with mine, and I quickly put the clipboard on the nurse's desk.
When Amber paged and asked me to look after the patient, she failed to mention how grumpy he was, which was probably on purpose. She also didn’t tell me he was Belle’s and my husband’s patient, that I read from the form, I just thought they got called away.
I touch her arm, and I say, “Whatever it is, we can figure it out,” but she shakes her head as a few tears fall.
“I accidentally stabbed a needle in Trick's hand, and now I’m suspended,” she chokes, and I frown as I let go of her arm in an instant and take a step back already knowing she’s lying to me.
Don’t tell me how, but somehow I don’t think the word accident should be in her sentence. Her tears are proof of that, that and she won’t look me in the eyes.
She was the same when she was nasty to Kodi and tried claiming she was the problem.
“Miles wouldn’t have you suspended for something you did by accident, Belle, and you know this. So why don’t you cut the crap and tell me what really happened with my husband!” I say firmly, and she sniffles as she wipes away a few tears.
“I’ve been so busy, working as much as possible to help mom with her bills.
I’ve been stressed. I haven’t seen your brother much, and I miss him, but I was also mad at him for canceling our date.
I ignored him only to find out that I missed all his calls because there was a surprise wedding for my friend that Kodi and Drew organized,” she says, jealousy and anger lacing her tone.
“I felt like Trick didn’t try to get a hold of me enough, and I blamed him. ”
“You stabbed my husband on purpose?” I snap, my body tense.
She flinches and stutters, “A-after treating him poorly all day. I-I, I was just so angry I wasn’t there for you, and yet Kodi was.”
“You didn’t answer your phone. We both know you’d have spilled what Miles was planning, which is the only reason why you weren’t involved. You decided to blame my husband out of petty fricking jealousy?” I sneer.
I’m pissed, really fucking pissed.
“I’m sorry,” she chokes, and I scoff.
“Sorry? You stabbed my husband, Belle, for something he didn’t even do then just tried to lie to me!
” I say tensely, “You’ve been aloof a lot lately.
Every time I’ve tried to call, you haven’t answered.
Yet the one time I don’t answer you, you snap at me.
” I shake my head, “I’m pregnant, Belle,” and she looks at me in shock, her eyes wide.
Belle asks softly, her voice barely audible, “Pregnant?”
“Yeah, pregnant, and do you know who I tried to call first?” I say, and she shakes her head, so I inform her, “You,” and her eyes widen further.
“I’m so sorry, Clark,” she whispers, and I shake my head.
“Yeah, so am I because now you can’t have access to Willow or this baby,” I say, and she takes a step back like I physically hit her.
“But I’m your friend. I’ve always been there,” she protests, hurt.
“And you stabbed my husband, the father of my children. He won’t trust you around them and I would bet my ass that you’ve most likely lied to my brother about it like you tried with me.
So now you’ll also be banned from the club and I can’t fight for you this time, you’ve taken things too far,” I whisper, and her tears fall yet again, but I can’t even comfort her because she attacked the man I love over her own actions, and I can guarantee my brother will now hold off even longer in claiming her.
I shake my head at her before I turn and walk away, only to be met by a fist.
I grunt and fall to the floor just as I hear Belle shout, “Clark!” and I lock eyes with psycho Dr. Lavish’s wild ones.
Come on! Why do people keep attacking me?
“I have told you once. I’ll tell you again. That man is mine, and that baby in your belly will die!” she snaps before she pounces on me, shocking me.
Straddling my chest before I can react, she wraps both her hands around my throat and I buck and smack her, trying to dislodge her.
She chuckles. “If you weren’t in the picture, he’d already be mine,” she says and tightens her hold on my neck and I buck harder, shoving at her hands as I choke. Panic hits seeing my friend has frozen instead of shoving the crazy lady off me.
“Belle, why are you just standing there!” I hear Amber shout as hands grab Dr. Lavish, trying to pull her off me, but her grip tightens, and breathing becomes difficult, my body weakening.
“No, get off me!” the bitch shouts, and I try to claw at her hands, trying to catch any air at all, but it’s no use.
“What is wrong with you? Get off her!” Amber snaps just as I hear a loud roar echoing, and my body goes lax unwillingly.
My fight slowly gives up, black dots blur my vision, just as Dr. Lavish is knocked off me.
I cough as I roll over onto my side, my hand going to my neck while my other goes to my stomach.
“Oh God, Clark, sweetie,” Amber gasps as she kneels before me and cups my cheek, and I cough again as I try to catch my breath.
“Is she okay?” I hear Belle ask, and Amber snaps, “You are suspended, Belle, go home now!”
“But-but…” she stutters, and I open my mouth to say she can stay, but I end up coughing instead, and I hear, “Belle Jones, head to HR please, Dr. White, security is now here.”
“Buttercup,” Miles rasps as he gently helps me sit up, then tilts my head and takes a look at my neck.
I croak, “I-I I’m really get- getting fed up with being attacked,” and he mutters, “Fucking ditto, baby, I don’t think my heart can take it,” before he says, “Let’s get you up, I want to have the baby checked out.”
“O-Okay…” I stutter and grip his hand as he helps me stand, just as rumbles of engines echo around us.
“Looks like the cavalry has arrived,” Miles sighs as he cups my face and takes a look at my neck again, and his jaw ticks.
“I-I’m okay,” I croak, and he shakes his head just as I hear, “Clark?!” and I turn and see my brother running my way.
“She’s alright, brother, I tackled the bitch that was strangling her while Belle stood in shock,” Miles grunts just as screams echo, and we look to see Dr. Lavish looking crazy as she tries to get to me, and I frown.
“Surely t-this can’t just be because of you,” I stutter.
“It isn’t,” Crash says, “Trick and I have been looking into her for months. When she arrived, she’d just been discharged from a mental facility but managed to hide it.
She latches onto people, mainly men, and doesn’t care if they are married and attacks whoever goes near them, trying to claim the man. Unfortunately, she latched onto Trick.”
“Can I hit her?” I mutter, and Miles sighs and denies, “No, buttercup, you need to think of the baby.”
“Spoilsport,” I grunt, and my brother chuckles just as Amber says, “Clark, sweetie, Hannah from OB is heading to bay three to do an ultrasound, head on over.”
I nod but wince at the pain in my neck, and Miles growls as he wraps his arm around my waist and guides me towards the bay just as I hear, “Crash?” but my brother grunts, “Not now,” and follows us and Amber snaps, “HR, Belle, now!”
I wince but then flinch when I try to swallow.
Fucking Dr. Lavish.
***
“Is she asleep?” I murmur as Miles takes a seat on the couch, then grabs my legs and lifts them onto his lap to start rubbing them.
“Yeah, after five stories this time,” he says, then mutters, “I really hope we’re having a boy. Our daughter just spent twenty minutes before her stories scolding me because I suck at doing hair and need to watch tutorials because apparently I can’t always count on her grammy…”
I snort then laugh and wince at the same time with the pain. Miles chuckles as he leans his head against the couch, and we lock eyes before his eyes go to my neck.
“I’m okay,” I say, and he hums, “I know, I just, that was a shit show.”
I nod, then mention, “But not much of a shit show as my friend telling me she accidentally stabbed you with a needle,” as my eyes go to his bandaged hand, “But it wasn’t an accident. She lied to me.”
“I don’t know what is wrong with her lately, Clark, and neither does your brother. They’ve barely spoken, apparently,” Miles says, and I sigh.
“She said she’s been working a lot, having to pay for her mom, and you basically became her punching bag because she didn’t want to blame herself, but I,” I take a deep breath, “I told her she can’t see Willow anymore because she isn’t trusted.”
“So did I,” he admits, and I nod, not surprised. “I’m sorry,” he murmurs, and I half smile.
“As soon as she lets someone help and allows us to pull her out of whatever mess with her mom she doesn’t want help with, we’ll be there for her.
I’ll get my friend back then, but for now, we need to put our kids first and she’s unpredictable.
This is how she acted when she saw Kodi and I getting closer in high school,” I murmur, and Miles half smiles.
“I’ll stand by whatever you want to do,” he confirms, before he asks, “So how do we go about making sure that baby is a boy?”
I laugh, even though it hurts, I can’t help it as my husband looks at me with love and everything settles deep inside me because I know we will be okay. Unfortunately for my husband, his wish doesn’t come true until after our fourth girl and he finally gets his little boy that will be his mini.
Being trapped with Miles turned out to be the best gift a woman could ever ask for.