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  “Well, by all means, unzip me then.”

  I complied and followed her closely up the stairs where we lazily made love, basking in the tub of warm water until our fingertips were raisins and the water was beginning to turn tepid.

  Chapter 38

  Andie

  I awoke curled up on my left side, the faint light of daybreak sneaking through the small break in my curtains and assaulting my eyes. Completely in denial, I thought surely it couldn’t be morning already. My body was exhausted and my stomach felt bloated and crampy. Needing to relieve myself of some discomfort, I pushed out, trying to expel some gas, but a small bubble is not what came out. I farted perhaps the biggest cloud of flatulence that had ever come out of my body. It was loud, flappy, and ridiculous, but I felt instant relief and comfort with it finally out of me.

  Then I heard a noise behind me. Someone rustled a little and the covers were slightly disturbed.

  Oh my God.

  Oh.

  My.

  God.

  I’m not alone.

  The realization of what had just happened brought me quickly out of groggy half-asleep-land into the present. I remembered that Vaughn had stayed the night and was right next to me in the bed. Frozen in place, I hoped and prayed he was still asleep and my fart of all farts hadn’t woken him up, but the distinct sound of someone clearing their throat behind me shot down that hope. He’d heard it. I wanted the bed to swallow me whole and kill me in that very moment.

  “Andie?”

  Please Lord, no. Maybe if I just pretend to still be asleep, he’ll forget all about it.

  “Are you awake?”

  There was no use.

  “Hmm?” I grumbled.

  “Are you okay?” he asked. I was able to actually hear the smirk on his face without seeing him.

  I paused and then answered him with a question.

  “Can we just pretend that never happened?”

  He began to laugh and reached over to place his hand on my hip, pulling me to face him. I covered my face with both hands and let my body fall onto my back.

  “I forgot you were here,” I offered, embarrassed. “I was half asleep.”

  He continued to laugh, obviously tickled by my humiliation.

  “WHY aren’t you sleeping?” My face had to be tomato red.

  “I was until I was jolted awake. It was like bombs over Baghdad in here.”

  “Oh, come on. It was not that bad,” I insisted.

  “For a second there I thought my brother was in the room.”

  “All right! That’s enough,” I barked.

  He chuckled, so amused at my expense. “I’m pretty sure the walls of your bedroom shook a little.”

  “Ha ha ha. Very funny,” I groaned, completely turning onto my right hip to face him. I was met with Vaughn’s face, smiling and looking at me adoringly.

  “You’re cute when you’re embarrassed.”

  “I’m mortified.”

  “It’s okay. Everyone farts. Would it make you feel better if I farted too?”

  “NO!” I shouted as he laughed even harder. “Let’s just never speak of this again.”

  “I’m not sure that’s going to work for me.”

  “Please, Vaughn. Please just forget this ever happened.”

  He answered me by pulling me into his arms and peppering my neck with soft kisses. His hand found its way underneath my tank top and teased my skin with soft tickling caresses. I quickly relaxed into his touch and my tension subsided. Enjoying the bite of his facial stubble against my skin, our kisses became less sweet and more eager. It wasn’t long before my tank top was lifted off of me and my underwear was shed. Vaughn rid himself of his boxer briefs as well and hovered over me, completely still, just looking at my face.

  His eyes spoke for him—a thousand words of affection, caring, and promises. He lowered his lips to mine and planted a soft but deliberate kiss there before pulling away again. Our bodies were skin to skin, the heat like a burning inferno, and his lips parted to say something.

  “Andie…I…” He hesitated, slowly blinking and opening his mouth to continue with confidence. “I love you.”

  I was speechless, my chest exploding with a flood of emotions and reciprocation, yet I wasn’t able to get any of the words out.

  “I think I’ve loved you from the moment I saw you on that sidewalk so many years ago. Making eye contact with you that day was the best thing that ever happened to me, and I never want to be apart from you again.”

  I blinked and a lone tear ran down from the corner of my eye into my hair. His face lowered to kiss the track of the droplet and he rose to gaze into my eyes again. I knew I felt the same way. I had felt it for a while. My feelings for Vaughn had been slowly creeping, infiltrating, taking root and spreading within me like a vine. He had grounded himself in my soul and was now anchored, strong and firm. He was invasive and had taken residence but was also nourishing and healthy.

  “I love you too,” I was finally able to get out. “So much, Vaughn.”

  The corners of his mouth lifted into a smile and he rolled his hips to center himself perfectly over me, my legs opening more to welcome him. As he entered me, agonizingly slowly, inch by inch, I let my eyes close in ecstasy to savor the moment and the feel of him as my body accepted all of him.

  “Open your eyes, Andie,” he pleaded. “Please look at me. Don’t ever stop looking at me.”

  So I did. I looked at him and saw deep down into his soul as he buried himself within me. We made love and it was the most connected I had ever felt to another human being. He claimed me with every soft thrust and took ownership of every molecule of my body. Every nerve ending was sensitive and on fire, kindled by his touches, his kisses, his love.

  As we tumbled over the edge together, I truly felt the feeling of falling like I had never experienced before. I had fallen completely and utterly in love with Vaughn Bennett, and I never wanted it to stop.

  ***

  After napping for a while, we finally decided we should get out of bed and try to be somewhat productive. After showering and eating a late lunch, Vaughn was again amazing when he helped clean up the remaining mess from the party that the caterers hadn’t gotten. The table company arrived to pick up all of their rentals, and only after every last item was loaded did Vaughn finally say goodbye.

  “I better get going. I’ve got to take care of a few things at the shop.”

  “Of course. Thanks for hanging out as long as you did. It was a huge help.”

  His arms came to wrap around my waist in an embrace as he said, “I’ll call you later.”

  “Just call me Andie,” I teased as I kissed him goodbye.

  He whispered, “I love you,” against my lips before pulling away, making me smile ear to ear, and I replied with the same words. It felt amazing to finally be able to give voice to my feelings and to know he was on the same page.

  I waved goodbye as he drove away and went back inside, exhaling a breath of relief that my home was all back to normal. When I finally picked up my phone, noticing the light blinking with a notification, I saw I had a few texts and two missed calls from Rowan. The texts were vague in nature, just ‘Are you awake yet?’ and ‘Call me when you get this’, so I didn’t bother to listen to her voicemail before calling her back.

  “Finally!” she shouted instead of saying hello. “Where have you been?”

  “Well, good morning to you too.”

  “Andie, it’s almost three o’clock!” Her voice was certainly annoyed, almost panicked.

  “Okay, good afternoon then. What’s up?”

  “I really need to talk to you.”

  “Okay, talk.” I was beginning to get worried.

  “I just need to vent. Richard’s been acting so weird since last night, as if something happened, but he won’t tell me what. He keeps brushing me off.”

  “You think your mom said something to him?” I asked, heavily suspecting that was the case.

  �
�Probably, knowing her, but he’s normally not rattled easily, and he’s been adequately warned about the manipulative tactics of Patricia Kline.”

  The woman was hateful. I almost felt sorry for the guy.

  “Well, listen, I need to come up there anyway. I need you to take care of something for me, if you guys aren’t too busy.”

  “Okay. Yeah, we’re okay right now,” she insisted.

  “I’ll bring you a latte and you can bitch and moan in person.”

  “Sounds good. I’ll see you soon.”

  Ro was always a bit dramatic about stuff so I refused to think the worst. Plus, if Richard was going to marry her, he needed to learn how to handle her mother appropriately. The woman wasn’t going anywhere.

  Instead of getting prematurely concerned, I threw on some workout clothes and hopped on my bike to head toward the hospital. Whatever nonsense drama was going on, I couldn’t imagine it was serious enough to bring me down from cloud nine.

  Chapter 39

  Andie

  After fetching a venti vanilla latte from the coffee cart in the lobby, I wheeled my bicycle into a supply room and began looking for Rowan.

  “Is that where we’re storing our bikes now?” one of the smartass techs jabbed as I walked away.

  “Safer in there than outside in this hood,” I retorted, garnering a surprised look from him. I didn’t usually speak to him much unless it was required for work. With this extra pep in my step, who knew what I was capable of?

  Once I found Rowan, it was as if she had forgotten all about her Richard issue. She began chitchatting like we hadn’t even spoken on the phone that morning so I went with it, not wanting to poke the bear and get her all riled up again.

  “What’s up with you? What’d you want to take care of?”

  Glancing around, I nodded for her to follow me into a private exam room that was empty. I shut the door behind us and turned to answer her, my voice low.

  “I need you to help me with something.” She widened her eyes and raised her brows, urging me to go on. “I need to trade out my IUD.”

  “Why?”

  “It’s…well, it’s just a tad overdue to come out.”

  “How overdue?”

  I hesitated, partially to avoid answering but also to actually do the math in my head, feeling the embarrassment flood my cheeks immediately.

  “Almost two years,” I answered in a rush, like it was all one word.

  “Two years overdue?” Ro barked. “You’ve had that thing in there for seven years?” She was aghast.

  “Keep your voice down, please,” I begged in a hushed tone. “Yes, almost seven years, but in my defense, I’ve been busy, and I’ve had no reason to worry about it. It’s been forever since I’ve been with anyone. I just didn’t think about it.”

  “But seven years, Andie! It’s probably growing algae and a family of mushrooms on it.”

  “Oh shut up!” I replied with a chuckle. “The rest of the world recognizes the life of this particular IUD for seven years. The World Health Organization approved validity for up to seven and they’re doing trials to potentially extend it even further. We’re the only country that only gives it five—”

  “All right, all right,” she interrupted. “Enough, Surgeon General. I got it.”

  I exhaled and reached into my bag to grab the new one I’d scored from OB the week prior.

  “So you and Vaughn are getting down and dirty huh? You’re just wanting me to switch this out then?”

  “Yeah. It occurred to me that now that I’m in a monogamous relationship and we’re physical, I should probably start paying attention to this sort of thing.”

  “Good call.” She approached the cabinet that was stocked with general supplies and pulled out a specimen cup, tossing it over to me. “Go pee in the cup so we can do a quick dip pregnancy test and then I’ll trade it out for you.” Her request immediately changed the air in the room.

  “I’m not pregnant, Ro,” I dismissed, scoffing at the idea.

  “How do you know? You haven’t had a period in probably forever, that thing is way old and probably not even working anymore, and you two have probably been screwing like rabbits. Just go piss in the cup.”

  I rolled my eyes, knowing she was right. If she were asking me to swap out her intrauterine device, I’d insist on her taking a pregnancy test too. Creeping into a staff bathroom stall, I slid my pants down and sat on the toilet to go. As I thought about it, I had started to spot more, and had even had a few mild one- or two-day periods in the last year. I’d always attributed it to an increase in stress or something at the time, but maybe my little T-shaped friend was starting to lose its effectiveness. It was a good thing I was getting it changed out now, before I got myself into trouble.

  Discretely covering my pee cup, I reentered the room and set it on the counter. Rowan unwrapped the stick and dropped it into the cup to soak up some of the urine as I rid myself of my pants and underwear and had a seat on the table. Even with a paper drape covering me and the fact that the exam room had a closable door, I still felt like the entire emergency department could see my nakedness.

  We continued to talk as we waited the two minutes for the results, Ro going on and on about how amazing the dinner party had been and how appreciative she was for everything I’d done to make it special. All I could think about was seeing one line instead of two and moving on.

  Ro rolled her stool over to the countertop and turned to read the strip, her back facing me. I couldn’t see her, but I watched her posture visibly stiffen. She paused, ever so slightly tilted her head, and leaned in a little closer, her head coming down to be eye level with my piss cup.

  “What is it?” I asked with a nervous shake to my voice.

  “Umm, Andie?”

  “Cut the shit, Rowan. Gimme the test.”

  “Andie,” she said regretfully, her tone laced with pity. She took the strip out of the cup, turning to face me with it in her hand. “Congratulations?” she said, the word in the form of a question with one eyebrow shooting up to wrinkle her forehead.

  This isn’t happening.

  This can’t be happening.

  How could this be happening?

  “It’s a faint line, but a faint line is still a line. I’m pretty sure you’re pregnant.”

  “I know how to read a damn pregnancy test!”

  I hopped off of the table, not caring one bit about my ass hanging out for her to see, and yanked my clothes off of the adjacent chair. Angrily pulling my underwear and jeans back up, I could barely fasten the zipper and button because my hands were shaking so much. I couldn’t believe I had let this happen. I was no idiot teenager caught up in puppy love and lust. I was a doctor for crying out loud—a trauma surgeon, and a brilliant one. Top of my class, I had an IQ of almost 160, yet I’d managed to get myself knocked up.

  “Andie, calm down. Maybe this is just a fluke. Let’s test it again.”

  “It’s not a fluke,” I replied softly, bringing myself to sit down in the corner chair and resting my head in my hands. All I could think about was how many glasses of wine I’d had the night before and the fact that I’d eaten sushi just four days prior. Who knew what else I had exposed this poor child to already? How was I supposed to work my crazy hours and be on my feet for long shifts with a pregnant belly in tow? Did I even want a baby? Of course I didn’t want a baby, at least not now, but I was not that girl—that irresponsible girl who terminated an innocent child because of a moment of poor judgment and a lack of planning.

  “It’s going to be okay,” she tried to reassure me. “You have options.”

  I held my hand up in the air and she immediately stopped talking.

  “I know my options, Ro. I’m not terminating a pregnancy. I’m thirty-four years old and I have the means to financially support a child.” She sat quietly, allowing me space to verbalize some of the millions of thoughts dancing around in my head. “I just don’t know how Vaughn is going to feel about this. What if he
doesn’t want a baby? I don’t know if I’m ready to have that conversation. What if this is my last chance to have a child? In less than a year, I’ll be advanced maternal age.” My mind was going a hundred miles an hour and the doubts were flying around like pinballs.

  “Andie, I wasn’t suggesting that you—”

  “I know. I’m sorry. I just need some time to wrap my head around all of this. I’ve got to go.”

  Making my way toward the door, I grabbed the pee stick from her and palmed it, squeaking out a curt, “Thank you,” as I started to walk through. Before leaving, I turned to make eye contact with her, my expression desperate, apologizing, and asking for her not to say anything to anyone—all without ever saying a word. She nodded in understanding and I walked away.

  Chapter 40

  Andie

  I’d never made it back to my house so quickly before, bee-lining it on my bike as fast as my legs could possibly pedal, only to jump right into my car and leave again. Before I knew it, I was standing in the aisle at my local superstore staring at more than thirty different options of pregnancy tests with varying methods of delivery: pluses, minuses, pink lines, blue lines, the word pregnant, with or without the word ‘not’ in front of it. Some of them were store brand for $4.99 while others were $19.99 apiece. Selecting a few tests on the cheaper side and a few from the more expensive side, I loaded my handheld basket full of the only thing I’d come for and headed for the checkout line.

  Wanting to avoid any potential snickering comments from a cashier, I opted for self-checkout and was nearly in tears when I got back to the safety of my vehicle.

  What the hell? Why am I crying? Is this for real? Does this mean I AM pregnant because my emotions are out of whack? Do my boobs hurt?

  Shaking the psychotic thoughts from my brain, I pulled it together enough to drive back home. Just as I sat down on my couch and willed myself to relax, my phone buzzed with a text notification.

  Vaughn: I miss you.

  The tears started again. Less than twenty-four hours prior, we’d been professing our love for each other, and now we were going to have to have one of the most stressful conversations a couple can have.