Conflicted (The Existing Series Book 2) (18 page)

I was by her side in a second, holding her up as she held her head down trying to work through whatever happened to cause her to stumble.

“That’s the second time you’ve done that tonight. Are you sure you’re okay?” I asked, the concern laced in my voice as I stared at her, looking for any signs that she wasn’t okay.

She shook her head and looked up at me, giving me a faint smile.

“I just stood up too quickly. I’m going to the restroom. I’ll be back in just a moment,” she said, then walked away from me.

I signaled to the waitress that I was ready for the check. She brought it over, and I glanced down at the total and pulled the right amount of bills out of my wallet, making sure to leave enough for a generous tip.

When she took the payment away from me and walked away, I put my elbows on the table and rested my head in my hands. Worry seeped through me for fear that there was more to it than exhaustion and hoping she wouldn’t lie to me about what was going on.

A hand on my shoulder brought me out of my thoughts, and I looked up to find her looking no better than she had before she left. She looked pale and there was more tiredness in her eyes.

I stood up and allowed her to walk in front of me, resting my hand on the small of her back as we made our way out of the restaurant. I led her over to the passenger side of the truck and opened the door for her so she could get inside. Only when she reached up for the handle and put one foot up on the side rail, her steps faltered and she fell back against my chest. Her head went to the side, and I positioned her so I could lift her in my arms. When I looked down at her, her eyes were shut and her breathing had grown shallow.

Closing the door, I walked around to the driver’s side of the truck and put her in the back seat. I didn’t care if she protested. I was taking her to see a doctor because there was something more than exhaustion going on. She could be pissed at me all she wanted when she woke up. I had told Trenton I’d take care of her, and that’s just what I was going to do. Only it wasn’t just the promise to him that I was upholding. It was the feelings that I knew were growing for her, but I didn’t quite want to accept.

* * *

L
uckily there was
an urgent care facility not too far away. Every twenty or so seconds, I’d look behind me just to make sure she was still breathing and to see if she’d woken. Her chest rose and fell with each inhale and exhale, but her eyes remained closed.

Minutes later, I barreled into the parking lot faster than I should’ve and parked the truck. Not caring if I was parked correctly. Hurriedly, I got out of the truck and opened the back door, picking up a still unconscious Delaney. I pushed the door shut with my shoulder and rushed to the doors of the facility. I walked inside and up to the counter frantic with worry that she still hadn’t come to.

“How may I help you, sir?” the lady behind the desk asked.

“We were leaving dinner and she just collapsed. She’s been out for about ten minutes,” I exclaimed, my gaze going back and forth between the lady and Delaney.

“Let’s get her in a room and get her checked out. Do you know anything about her medical history?” the woman asked as she grabbed the clipboard.

“No, we haven’t known each other very long. None of that had come up in conversation yet,” I exclaimed as we walked through a secured door and down a hall lined with rooms. When we’d gotten to the back corner, the lady opened a curtain and walked inside with me hot on her heels.

“You can lay her down here. I’ll get the nurse in here to get her vitals and the doctor will be in shortly after that.”

Carefully, I laid her down on the bed, brushing the hair off her face that had fallen out of her ponytail and began to cover her eyes.

Glancing around the room, I found a chair and moved it beside the bed. I sat down and grabbed her hand within my own, bringing it up to my lips, not willing to let go until I’d gotten some answers and found out whether she’d be okay.

The nurse came in and checked her temperature and blood pressure, and asked me again if I could tell them what had led to her losing consciousness. Only I had to tell her that I knew nothing, which made me feel horrible. I’d give anything to know the answers.

The doctor came in and asked if she’d ingested anything that she could’ve possibly been allergic to or any medications that she’d been taking. Again, I knew nothing so I just looked down and shook my head, feeling guiltier than I should’ve. All I could respond with was that she’d gotten dizzy twice that night, but she’d said it was because she was tired and stood too quickly.

“Could she be pregnant?” the doctor asked as he looked up from the chart.

“I’m not sure,” I replied, looking down at her, hoping to hide my shock.

Again we were left alone after the doctor made notes and told me that he was going to order some blood work. He told me that a nurse would be in to draw it momentarily and hopefully we’d have some answers soon.

I sat there thinking about how little we knew about each other when Trenton’s joke from the night of the accident entered my mind. How he swore that his “little swimmers” had gotten her pregnant. I shook my head at the thought and closed my eyes, taking a deep breath.

“Delaney, you need to wake up so we can find out what’s wrong with you and get you better,” I whispered against her hand that was now in between each of mine.

I rested my head on our hands and prayed to God, something I rarely ever did, that she’d be okay. That whatever was wrong with her could be fixed and we could get back to our lives.

Her legs stirred causing me to instantly lift my head and look over to her face, which was now turned toward me. Her eyes were open, confusion laced all over her face.

“Where am I, Weston?” she said with worry in her voice.

“You collapsed outside of the restaurant and wouldn’t wake up. I brought you to the urgent care facility so we could find out what’s wrong,” I exclaimed. When she tried to move her hand away, I refused to let go. Needed to touch her in some way to comfort me in hopes that it brought her some comfort as well. Words couldn’t describe how I felt when she just fell back against me.

“There’s nothing wrong with me. I’m just tired. We don’t need to be here,” she said as she tried to get out of the bed. Only I still had her hand and refused to let go.

“Let go, Weston. We don’t need to be here,” she demanded as she tried to pull her hand from my grasp.

“Yes we do. There’s something wrong with you, and we’re not leaving until we find out what that something is,” I said, pulling on her hand to get her to sit back down on the bed. She flopped down with a huff and attempted, but failed, to get her hand out of my hold.

She breathed deeply letting her frustration be known, refusing to look at me. Instead, she stared ahead at the curtain.

“The doctor asked me something before he left to order some blood work, Delaney,” I said to gain her attention. Only she refused to look at me.

“Could you be pregnant?” I asked, and her head snapped up as her eyes grew wide.

“Why would you ask me that?” she said through gritted teeth, her breaths growing more rapid by the second.

“Because I was asked that and obviously don’t know the answer,” I replied, rubbing my thumb back and forth on her hand.

Before she could reply, the nurse came in to draw her blood, to which she reluctantly complied to.

“Now that you’re awake, I need to get some information from you,” the nurse said as she pulled a portable computer over to her.

She asked questions regarding her medical history and when her last period was, only Delaney couldn’t remember, which I found odd. She said it was on her phone in her purse, but I’d left that in the truck because I was in such a hurry to have her seen.

The nurse concluded her questions, and Delaney asked if I could go get her purse so she could provide her insurance information and pay for the deductible.

I leaned down and kissed her forehead, promising her that it was all going to be okay before I walked out to get her belongings.

After turning down the wrong hall, I finally found the exit and walked over to my truck. I opened the door and found her purse which had fallen in the floor, and carefully grabbed it so that nothing would fall out. I shut and locked the doors and leaned up against the truck. This whole night had been awkward. Everything seemed so easy when we were in the comfort of my home, but now, alone with her, out in public it all seemed complicated. More so than I’d imagined it would be. I took a few moments to gather my thoughts then walked back into the hospital. There wasn’t anyone at the desk when I returned, which meant that I’d have to wait to be buzzed back to Delaney.

What felt like forever, someone finally appeared, letting me back once they confirmed who I was there to see. The lady on the other side of the door led me back to the room where I’d brought Delaney. The curtain was shut, something I’d forgotten to do when I left. Cautiously, I opened the curtain to find Delaney bawling on the bed, her head in her hands.

I rushed over to her side, tossing the purse on the chair that I’d sat in and sat down on the bed beside her. I pulled her into my arms, wanting to know what the hell had happened between the time I’d left to now, but knowing she needed to calm down before I’d be able to understand a word that came out of her mouth.

Moments later, she pulled back and turned her head to the side in search of something. She found the box of tissues on the table beside the bed, pulling a few out of the box. After she had composed herself, she looked back over to me, tears still waiting to fall against the brim of her eyelids.

“What happened?” I asked, reaching for her hand which she let me take.

“I’m just scared to find out. I’ve ignored everything for weeks because I didn’t want to be disappointed, and now I’m moments away from finding out the truth. It’s just scary.”

“What’s scary?” I asked, rubbing her hand with my fingers.

“Finding out the truth. Something he joked about but wanted so badly. He’d always said he wanted kids, but we were going to wait. When that condom broke, that’s all he talked about. How he’d knocked me up. It drove me crazy but only because I didn’t want to disappoint him. With everything that’s happened, I hadn’t even realized that I was late. What type of woman does that make me?” she asked, pulling her hand from mine and covering her face again with both of her hands.

“It makes you a stressed woman who’s grieving the loss of the man she loved,” I responded, pulling her hands away from her tear-stained face. I wiped the remnants away from her right cheek, cupping her face with my palm. She leaned into me and shut her eyes. When I was about to continue my encouraging speech, the curtain opened, breaking my train of thought.

She moved her face away from my palm and sat up a little straighter. Both of us impatiently waiting to hear what the doctor had to say.

“Your blood work came back and the pregnancy test was positive. Since you can’t recall your last menstrual cycle, I want to do an ultrasound to see how far along you are and make sure everything is okay,” the doctor said looking back and forth between us as we spoke.

“Of course, doctor,” she replied, wiping the tears from her face, her hands went to her stomach as her chin rested on her chest. The doctor said he’d be back shortly with the ultrasound machine and walked out of the room, shutting the curtain behind him.

Her eyes were shut as she caressed the spot where her baby laid. I couldn’t believe Trenton Quinn was going to be a daddy and he’d never get to experience it. Only I couldn’t say those words right now or possibly ever. She didn’t need to focus on that. She needed to concentrate on the baby growing inside of her and remaining healthy during her pregnancy.

She hadn’t uttered a word since the doctor left. Just continued to move her hands back and forth across her stomach with her eyes closed. I was worried that she’d yet to respond to the doctor’s diagnosis, but didn’t know how to interrupt her private thoughts regarding the news.

I gently touched her wrist and her movements halted. She lifted her head and opened her eyes. Tears continued to fall as she looked over at me.

“What’s going through your mind right now?” I asked, hoping to lend a listening ear to her in a time that she obviously needed one.

“I’m going to be a mom,” she whispered, shock and joy laced in her tone.

“I know. How do you feel about that?” I hated that I even had to ask it, but hoped she’d open up about how she truly felt and not how she was expected to feel.

“I’m shocked, but happy. I honestly thought we were covered, but apparently I was wrong,” she said with a laugh. “But I’m sad that I have to do this without him. I’m hurt that he will never get to see his child. But most of all I’m sad for the baby because he’ll never know the amazing man that was his father. There’s so much he’s going to miss out on and that breaks my heart. I’m also scared that I will be doing this by myself. I’ve seen how single mom’s struggle to get everything done throughout the day and the toll it takes on them,” she continued. More tears fell down her face, but she didn’t move to wipe them away.