I watch them walk out the door, knowing full well that something has happened between them. I turn to look at Laura sleeping. Her color is better; there are still black circles under her eyes, though. I sit down in the chair next to her bed. The TV is on, so I flip through the channels, leaving the volume on low.
“Ally?” Laura says with a hoarse voice.
I stop and put the remote down. “Yes, Laura, it’s me,” I say, then move in front of her. “Can I get you anything?”
She smiles weakly. “You can get me out of here,” she says as she laughs a little.
“I bet you are ready to come home and sleep in your own bed. Hopefully the doctor will let you go today,” I say.
“I’m sure he will. What’s wrong with me can’t be fixed by staying in the hospital,” she says.
“So what is wrong with you?” I ask.
“You must have seen Kyle,” she says. “He didn’t whine to you about it?”
I shake my head. “Why would he whine about what’s wrong with you?”
“I can’t believe he didn’t tell you,” she says, almost to herself. “I thought he would come crying to you for sure. All he could say when they told us was that you were going to be so upset. It was pretty embarrassing, as the nurse thought we were married and might actually be happy with the news.”
I frown at her. “Well, he didn’t. He asked Eden to take him home so he could get cleaned up.”
“I see. He’s going to cry to Eden about it, then,” she mumbles.
“What is he going to be crying about, Laura?” I ask, getting tired of this runaround.
“I’m pregnant,” she states flatly.
My jaw drops open. “I thought you were using birth control!”
“The thing about birth control pills is that you have to remember to take them and I have trouble remembering that. So I got myself in this predicament. It’s not really Kyle’s fault. I was taking the responsibility for keeping myself from getting pregnant and I failed. He probably hates me now,” she says.
“No, he doesn’t hate you at all, Laura,” I tell her, reaching out to hold her hand. “He was worried sick about you. He told me he knew for sure he loved you because he was so upset over what was happening to you.”
She looks up at me with a blank expression “Do you know that he had the nerve to suggest that we get married?”
Why do I feel like I have just been slapped?
“What do you mean by that?” I ask her.
“I won’t be marrying him just because of this thing,” she says as she motions towards her stomach.
“Laura, I know this is a shock to you and you had not planned on any of this, but it is your future now. Accept it and be happy. Don’t shut Kyle out. He’s a great father.”
She turns her head to look at me with a quizzical look in her eyes. “Did you just say that he is a great father, Ally?”
Oh, no! Did I say it like that?
She can’t hear about that right now.
“I mean I know he will be one. That’s what I meant. Laura, maybe he was going to ask you to marry him anyway.”
“The hell he was, Al! He’s still all about you. I could see it in his eyes when he said you would be upset. Can you tell me why you would be upset?”
“I’m not upset. I don’t know why he would think that. I will set him straight, though. This baby and you are his future. I’m only a small part of it. You and your children will be his world,” I tell her.
“No, we won’t. We will always be second to you and that isn’t enough for me. I’ll always be your guardian, Ally, but I won’t always be with him. I can’t short change myself like that. Maybe someone else can, but not me.”
“He loves you, Laura. I wish you would stop thinking you’re second to me in his eyes, because that’s not true,” I tell her. “I wasn’t going to tell you this right now, but I have to, so maybe you can see where he’s coming from.”
She looks at me. “What is it? Is it that the two of you have been sleeping together? Since I’ve been gone you have, haven’t you? I can see it. Does Eden know?” she asks.
I nod. “It’s not how you think it is, though.”
“Ally, this is really low. How could you do this to Eden? I knew Kyle had that dream about you. I never thought he would talk you into it. I feel like I’m in an alternate reality.”
“That is how it happened,” I tell her. “In an alternate reality is where we’ve been living, once we fall asleep. He and I dream the same dreams, somehow. We think it’s so we can see how life would have turned out if Eden and I had never happened.”
Laura looks at me in disbelief. “So you haven’t been together in the physical sense of it?” she asks. “Only in your dreams?”
I nod my head yes. “The only thing is, it feels real. Even now, it feels like something which has really happened. That’s why he thought I would be upset. He and I had a baby together in our dream the night before last. I have been a little bit sad that she’ll never really exist. In our dream marriage, he was a great father. He loved that baby so much and he will love this one even more,” I explain to her.
“This is completely whack, Al. I don’t see how this is going to make me change my mind. I mean, he’s married to you, having kids and shit in his head. So I get the daytime Kyle and you get the nighttime Kyle?” she asks me.
“I hope our dream life is over, since we both know this path is the right one and the best one for all of us. This baby will be loved so much, Laura. You don’t have to worry. Just have faith,” I plead with her.
“I don’t know, Ally. I won’t be deciding anything right now. I want to go back home, to Cloudcroft,” she tells me.
“What, Laura? No, please don’t do that. You’ll never come back. I know this is a very different situation and one which could never have been predicted, but you belong with us. You and he really do belong together. Please stay with us for a while, please,” I beg her.
“I need to call my mother, Al. Can I use your phone? I don’t know where mine is,” she says.
I hand her my cell phone. “Do you want me to leave the room while you talk to her?” I ask.
“I’m not telling her I’m pregnant yet. I’m only a couple of months, so you never know what might happen. I might lose the thing,” she says, and I feel like she hopes she will.
“I’ll let you have some privacy. I’m going to get something to eat in the cafeteria. I’ll bring you something back,” I say.
“I really want pancakes, Ally. They brought me breakfast at like six this morning and I’m starving.”
“Got it, Laura. I love you, and Junior too,” I say, then I walk out the door, closing it behind me.
I stop as soon as I walk out and fall against the wall.
How do I feel about this? Why does this have to happen so fast? How is Kyle taking this? Why can’t life be simpler?
“How is she?” Eden says as he walks off the elevator, noticeably alone.
I walk to him, taking his hand and pulling him back into the elevator. “Did he tell you?” I ask him as we go down to the cafeteria.
“Yes. So she told you, then?” he asks.
I nod. “She isn’t taking it well, even though he suggested they get married. She’s just not feeling like he really loves her.”
“He loves you so much more,” Eden tells me.
I look at him like he’s crazy. “No, he doesn’t.”
“Yes, Alyssa, he does. This is making him feel awful. He isn’t ready for this. This dream life you two have has really messed him up. You know how everything feels real to you? Well, it does for him too. It’s too soon for him. He hasn’t gotten over the fact that your child will never be, and he doesn’t want any with anyone else’s yet,” he says.
“Well, I can see I have to talk to him. He has to get over it. He has a real child on the way now and he has to put whatever happens in our dreams into the proper perspective. He can’t live his life in dreams alone. His future is with Laura and th
eir children. His real life is with them.”
“You know what I found out I can do now?” Eden tells me.
I shake my head. “What can you do now?’ I ask him as I pick up a tray and look at the lady across the glass from me. “Pancakes, please, with bacon.”
Eden leans down closer to me. “I tried something and it worked.”
I pick up the plate the lady is handing me, then walk over to get Laura an orange juice. “What did you try, Eden?”
“Kyle fell asleep on the sofa as soon as we walked in. He was exhausted. I went up and brought a blanket down for him. As I put the blanket down on him, my hand brushed his back and images started to appear in my head,” he says.
“You and your spying on people’s thoughts, Eden. Really, you have to stop that,” I whisper, because it has become obvious people are eavesdropping on us and our ridiculous conversation.
Alone in the elevator, I feel we can carry on our conversation. “So what did you see?” I ask.
“I see that he only sees you, Alyssa. We have to give them time alone, to bond. Your presence is stopping that from happening.”
“I can talk to him. We don’t have to leave. That’s not the answer, Eden. My best friend needs me right now. I’m not leaving her,” I tell him.
Eden opens the door to Laura’s hospital room. I take the tray of pancakes and set them down on the little table. “I found you some pancakes, Laura,” I say.
“Hey, Laura, you look a lot better. I’m really glad to see that,” he tells her.
“You are looking gorgeous as usual, Eden. Do you have any flaws?” Laura smiles as she asks him.
He smiles back at her. “Many of them. You know, Laura, I can see a glow about you,” he tells her as he sits down on the bed next to her. I hang back a little.
“He told you, huh?” she asks.
He nods and takes the back of his hand, running it over her pale cheek, then letting it rest on her shoulder. “You have nothing to fear. All is as it should be. I have seen the future, Laura, and it is good.”
He’s lying to her!
I can’t believe he’s making this up. I have to stop him. I move closer to him, reaching out to touch his shoulder to try to stop him from giving her any more false hope.
As I touch his shoulder, images begin to appear in my head. There’s a small boy with a head full of golden curls swinging in the backyard of the house we gave to them. Laura looks beautiful. She’s pregnant and smiling. Kyle pushes the swing and the little boy is laughing.
“Can you really see that?” she whispers.
“I can. Ask Alyssa. She saw it too. You’ll be a very happy family. There’s nothing to worry about,” Eden tells her as he pulls her hand up and kisses it gently.
A tear rolls down my cheek and I notice Laura has tears rolling down hers as well. “Eden, you have made me feel so much better. You have no idea.”
The door opens as the doctor comes in. “Hi guys,” he says as he enters. “Oh, tears. We can’t have any of those around here. How would you like to go home, Mrs. Stevens?”
Laura smiles at him. “I would love to go home.”
“Then get dressed. Eden, come with me, and bring your magic card so we can get her paid for and out of here,” the doctor says.
“Yes, sir,” Eden says as he follows him out of the room.
The doctor stops and turns around. “Laura, come see me within a month. My address is on the paperwork. I like to see my mothers once a month, as soon as possible. The nurse will be bringing some prenatal vitamins to you. Please take one a day and try to take them a bit more religiously than you did your birth control pills, young lady. Tell your husband congratulations for me, and I hope I’m invited to the real wedding, Ms. Tanner,” he tells her, then walks out.
Laura and I look at each other, then laugh. “Well, there you are, Ms. Tanner. Looks like you and junior are in good hands,” I say.
“Guess so,” she says as she gets up out of the hospital bed. “Now home we go. Am I ready for this, Al?”
I put my arm around her shoulders. “Probably not, but this life has a way of making us get ready for things we never expected.”
A nurse comes in to take Laura out in a wheelchair. “I’m fine. I can walk,” she tells the nurse.
“Hospital policy, Mrs. Stevens,” she says.
“Come on, Mrs. Stevens, just accept the free ride,” I tease her.
Eden meets us in the front of the hospital in Laura’s car. He jumps out when he sees us and helps Laura into the back seat. To my surprise he reaches across her, buckling her in.
“You doing okay?” he asks her.
“I’m fine, Eden. You don’t have to fuss over me,” she says.
“Let me fuss. I like it,” he tells her as he closes the door, then turns to help me in, buckling me in as well.
“He’s so attentive,” Laura comments.
“Yes, he is. I forget how attentive he can be,” I say offhandedly.
Eden gets in and drives us home to find Kyle laid out on the sofa, still asleep. “Looks like Big Daddy is catching up on his z’s,” I say.
“Alyssa!” Eden admonishes me. “Let’s go out back so they can have their privacy.”
The last thing I hear as Eden pulls me out the patio door is Laura’s voice. “Kyle, wake up. We have a lot to talk about.”
CHAPTER 70
KYLE
“Are you sure you’re okay with me doing this, Ally?” I ask.
“I think that, given the circumstances, it’s the best thing to do. In a normal situation, though, I wouldn’t really think it was the thing to do,” she answers.
“You said you saw us together and happy, so it must be the right thing to do,” I say as I take the small black box off of the dashboard of my truck.
I asked Ally not to show me what she saw. I prefer to be a little bit surprised.
I get out of the truck, putting the black box in my pocket, then turn to help her out of the truck. I reach up to catch her as she slides off the seat and into my arms. I hesitate before putting her down, looking into her deep blue eyes. I have to blink back the tears I feel welling up.
“You’re not okay with this, Ally. I hate that I’m making you feel this way. Shit, why did I have to hurry this thing with Laura?” I ask myself.
“Don’t blame yourself, Kyle. I’m the one to put all of the blame on. I should’ve handled it extremely differently,” she says as a tear runs down her cheek.
I wipe the tear from her cheek. “I don’t want you to do that to yourself. You had no choice, Ally. I did have choices. Unfortunately, I made some bad ones. I should’ve taken more responsibility. If I had done that, then this wouldn’t be happening right now,” I tell her, then pull her to me, hugging her tightly.
“You’ll be a fantastic husband and father, Kyle. I know that because you’ve been so good to me in real life and in our dreams. I just hope we can stop this dream marriage we have going. It’s making this so much harder for me to take,” she confesses to me.
I kiss the top of her head. She pulls her head off of my chest and looks up at me. Her eyes glisten with tears. These damn dreams are confusing me, and her too it seems. We fall asleep and wake up in a world where we’re making a life together. I feel closer to her with every dream we share. Now I’m going to be someone else’s husband and have children with her.
Ally shakes her head and says, “What kind of a brat am I? I’m happily married to the best guy in this world. Here I am wanting to have it all. I’m selfish to the core. My best friend needs you. You need her too. You can’t live the rest of this life without knowing what true love in the physical world is like. It wouldn’t be fair to you.”
“I guess you have to be careful about what you wish for, Ally. You have gifts you’ll need to learn to control. Maybe you can stop the dreams if you try hard enough. I don’t want to put a lot of pressure on you about it, but life is going to be kind of tough if I have to live like this forever,” I tell her.
&
nbsp; She smiles up at me. “I believe you might be right, Kyle. I’ll make an effort to stop the dreams. If my wish to see what life would have been like with you came true, then I should be able to wish for it to stop.”
Taking her hand, I lead her to the house. “Things sure have changed quickly for all of us, Ally. My mom is going to freak out. I don’t even want to think about what Laura’s mom’s going do. Thankfully, you gave us this house. It’ll make things a lot easier,” I say as I open the door.
Laura’s sitting on the sofa, watching TV. “I’ll disappear out the back door so you two can be alone,” Ally whispers to me.
My heart is pounding in my chest. I make my way to her and she smiles up at me. A real smile, a genuine smile, a happy to see you smile. When Laura smiles, it radiates over her whole face. She’s beautiful and good, and she’s carrying my baby.
This is right.
“Hi,” I say.
“Hi to you too.”
I kneel in front of her. My hands rest on her knees as her smile fades. “I love you, Laura.” My voice quivers and I swallow hard to steady it. “I want to ask you something and I don’t want you to answer right away. There isn’t just one reason why I’m asking you this. It’s for many reasons.”
Her light blue eyes darken and she frowns. “Kyle, wait,” she says and places her hands on top of mine. “You don’t have to do this. I’d never keep this baby from you.”
Moving my hands from under hers, I run them along her thighs. “Laura, please listen to me. You’re strong, smart, funny, and beautiful.” My hands run up to her waist and I pull her to me as I lean toward her. I place a light kiss on her lips. “You’re sexy as hell and make me feel like I’m the only guy on the planet you care to show that side of yourself to.”
The touch of her hand on my cheek makes me turn toward it and kiss her palm. Her words are quiet as she says, “You are the only one I care to show that part of myself to.”
Pressing my forehead to hers, I forge ahead. “I respect you, want the best for you, and for our child. Just know that I’m not asking this for the baby, Laura. I know you’re incapable of hurting a child to spite anyone. This is not something I’m doing to ensure you let me be a part of our child’s life.”
His Beautiful Revenge: A Bad Boy Billionaire Romance Page 157
