Dane tightened his hold on her and slowly their breathing returned to normal. While he held her, he allowed himself to acknowledge what he could no longer deny. He was falling in love with Brooke and he didn’t want her to go back to Colorado. The thought of having to say goodbye to her again cut him deep.
“What time do you have to be at the pool?” she asked.
“Soon.”
“Well, that’s helpful,” she commented and climbed out of bed. He caught a nice glimpse of her firm ass before she covered her luscious flesh with her robe. “Do you, um, want something to eat before you go?”
Dane followed her out and pulled on his briefs then his pants. He grabbed his shirt and was buttoning it up when he walked into the kitchen. Brooke was looking into the fridge.
“I’ve got some eggs, fruit, and—,” she turned and ran into him. He put his arms around her.
“It’s fine. I don’t usually eat much before I train. I tend to fill up when I’ve finished.”
“Okay, right.” She pulled away from him and walked to the other side of the small kitchen. “Yeah, that makes sense.”
Dane was surprised at how awkward this scene was unfolding, especially after what happened in her bed not more than fifteen minutes ago.
“Hey.” He smoothed Brooke’s hair down so that his hands framed her skull. “You seem nervous. What’s wrong? It’s not like we haven’t woken up together in the morning.”
“I don’t know.” She sighed. “I guess after last night, the things you told me, this morning feels a little different.”
He took a step back so he could get a good look at her. “Why?”
“Why what?”
Dane chanced a quick look at the glowing time on the microwave above the stove. He had ten minutes before he needed to be on the pool deck. “How did what I tell you last night make things different between us? Do you feel pity for me? Do you think I was a fool for wanting Daisy to be my daughter?”
His tone became harsher and harsher with each word. He hadn’t told Brooke his deepest dreams because he wanted her pity. He’d told her because he wanted to share a future with her. He’d acknowledged within himself when he woke up that he loved her. Now she was acting as if he’d told her he wanted her to give up on her dreams and have his baby. He may want a family, but he wasn’t that desperate.
Anger at a situation he thought he’d buried deep within him long ago worked its way up until it burst out with a few words.
“You know what, it doesn’t matter. I’ve got to go. I’ll see you later, Brooke.”
“Dane, wait.”
He ignored her and made his way into the small living room, collected his shoes and wallet and strode out the door.
* * *
Dane found himself once again sitting in the bleachers, watching Brooke dive, and getting ready to apologize.
With every lap he’d powered through during practice, his anger had cooled off and realization sunk in that he’d jumped off the deep end after her comments. He had no idea what she’d meant when she’d said she felt different. The least he could’ve done was give her the opportunity to explain. Instead he’d acted as if it was all about him and stormed off.
He was a jerk, and he needed to tell her how sorry he was.
“Last dive, Brooke,” Susie called out from where she stood on the opposite side of the pool to Dane. During the session, he’d observed how Susie guided Brooke through perfecting little things. From what he’d seen, Brooke would have no trouble transitioning from synchronized diving to individual diving. In fact, he knew a couple of the Australian divers who competed in both events and did it successfully. Part of him couldn’t understand why Brooke didn’t think she could do it.
Lost in his thoughts, he missed her final dive, only being pulled back to the present by the splash and the sound of clapping.
“Great work, Brooke.”
His heart flip-flopped when he saw the smile on Brooke’s face as she climbed out of the pool and walked toward Susie. He’d love for her to smile at him like that every day. The two women walked away chatting, no doubt going over the finer points of the dives.
Dane made his way down the bleacher stairs, rehearsing what he planned to say to Brooke, reaching the pool deck when he heard a cry of surprise. Dane didn’t know whose voice it was, only that it was female. As far as he knew, Brooke and Susie were there only two women in the building.
With swift movements, he headed in the direction he heard the cry come from. He skidded to stop when he spied Brooke crumpled on the ground.
“What the hell? Brooke?” He reached her side and looked up at Susie. “What happened?”
Susie shook her head. “I’m not sure. We were talking and laughing when the color drained from her face and she closed her eyes. I managed to catch her right before she hit the ground.”
Blood rushed through Dane’s ears. His heart racing as he looked down at her Brooke. He couldn’t let anything happen to her. Her eyes fluttered opened and he released the breath he’d been holding.
“Wh-What happened?”
Dane squatted down and brushed her damp hair off her forehead. “It looks like you fainted.”
“How are you feeling, Brooke?” Susie asked. Dane transferred his gaze from Brooke to Susie and saw concern etched on the coach’s face.
Brooke sat up, swayed a little, but put her hand on the concrete. “I’m fine. I guess I overexerted myself today. I didn’t eat much before I came to practice, so it’s probably something to do with that.”
Guilt assailed Dane. He knew his jerk actions were the reason she probably hadn’t wanted to eat. Still, he didn’t think she should take any chances. “I think you should see a doctor.”
“I agree.” Susie interjected. She must have seen what he’d seen on Brooke’s face—the intention to argue. He knew if Susie said the same thing, there was no way Brooke would argue with a coach.
“Fine, but who would I see?”
“I’ll speak to the team doctor,” Susie said with a smile. “It’s time you had a physical anyway. It’s what I do with all my team members.”
He tightened his hold on Brooke when he heard her gasp of surprise. The import of Susie’s words penetrated the haze that had engulfed him from seeing Brooke lying unconscious on the ground.
Susie had confirmed she wanted Brooke on her team and Brooke had understood that. He glanced down to her, expecting to see a smile on her face. Instead he spied shock and despair. He wanted to ask her what was going through her mind to cause the look of absolute loss when she’d just been given the opportunity she’d been wanting. With her fainting spell, though, now wasn’t the time.
Susie stood and smiled, clearly having heard Brooke’s gasp. “Dane, can you help Brooke over to the bleachers. I’ll call the doctor.”
“Sure.”
While the urge to lift her up and carry her over to the bleachers was strong, Dane had a feeling she wouldn’t appreciate it. The last thing she’d want Susie to see would be more weakness. If he were in her situation, he would react the exact same way, because there was nothing worse than showing weakness in front of your coach. No matter how much your muscles screamed to rest or how crappy you felt, you never stopped until the coach told you to stop.
He stood and held out a hand toward her. For a moment, he didn’t think Brooke was going to accept his hand, but her cool one slipped into his. He squeezed it as he helped her to her feet.
Dane slipped an arm around her waist and guided her toward the bleachers.
“I can walk on my own, you know.”
He bit back a smile at her snippy tone, but didn’t respond. The last thing he wanted was to argue with her and upset her even more.
A few moments later they were seated side by side on one of the plastic seats.
“This is so embarrassing. I’ve never fainted in my life.”
“It happens. If you’re anything like me, you put everything into your training, and well,” he ducked his head. “Yo
u didn’t really have a quiet night last night or this morning.”
As much as he wanted to pull her close to him, he curbed the urge.
She turned and looked at him. “Why are you here, Dane?”
He wondered how long it would be before she asked that question.
13
What is about doctor’s offices around the world and the scratchy, paper sheets they hand you to cover you as you wait for the doctor? Brooke understood that it was for hygiene purposes, but they still didn’t feel nice against her skin.
Susie had interrupted her and Dane to let her know she’d arranged an appointment for her with the team doctor, so there was no time to find out why Dane had been watching her practice. While she’d been pricked, prodded and questioned about nearly every aspect of her life, part of her mind was still on Dane and what he wanted with her. Now here she sat, waiting for the doctor to come back in and give her the verdict.
Why today of all days did she have to go and do something so Victorian as to faint? She’d been diving well, too, showing Susie that she was easily making the transition from part of a synchronized team to being a single diver. And Susie’s words still echoed in her ears: It’s time you had a physical, anyway. It’s what I do with all my team members. Those words had been music to her ears, even though she was still woozy. But they also represented a whole lot of hard thinking she needed to do regarding her future.
The door opened and she sat up straighter, squashing the thoughts of her future to the side for the time being.
“Alrighty, Ms. King, I’ve got your test results back.” Dr. White grabbed his chair and sat down, facing her. He opened the folder and rubbed his chin as he pulled out a sheet of paper.
This was worse than when she was watching her favorite cooking reality show and they paused for ages before announcing who was being booted off.
“Well, now,” he started. “It looks like we have an explanation for your episode today.”
Episode. I suppose that’s one way to look at it.
“Low blood sugar?” Brooke asked.
“I think low blood pressure might have been more of a factor for you fainting.” He stopped and read the paper again.
Now he was acting like the television hosts, drawing things out. Her heart pounded as thoughts of her having contracted some terrible disease filled her mind. Had she picked up something while she was in Rio? Apart from fainting and the tiredness from jetlag, she’d been feeling fine. Oh, wait…there were those mornings she’d been nauseous, too.
“It’s bad news, isn’t it, doctor?”
“Well, I guess it depends, really, and I think what I’m about to tell you is going to surprise the heck out of you.” He rolled the chair closer to her and laid a hand on her leg. “You’re pregnant, Ms. King.”
“What?” She had to have heard him wrong. The doctor didn’t just say she was pregnant? “You must have my results mixed up with someone else’s. I’m not pregnant. You’ll have to run the tests again.”
She couldn’t be pregnant. What about her diving career? She couldn’t possibly dive while pregnant. If she over rotated in a turn or twist, she could land on her stomach. There’s no way Susie would work with her now, no matter what the coach said a few hours ago.
It had to be mistake.
Dr. Parker squeezed her leg, his touch calming her frazzled thoughts. “I can assure there’s no error. I did a blood test and a urine test. Both results were the same.”
“Oh.” Nothing else formed in her mind. No coherent thought.
“I can tell this is a shock for you. Is there someone back in the States you’d like me to contact? Perhaps the father of your baby?”
Brooke attempted to laugh, but it came out as a sob. Of course, he would assume the father of her baby lived in the United States. The ironic thing was the father was right here in Australia. In fact, she’d been in his arms this morning.
The doctor reached out and patted her hand gently. “It’s going to be okay, Ms. King.”
“How do you know? I’m on the other side of the world from everyone I know and I’ve just found out I’m pregnant. Something that I never thought would be possible. And, sure, everything’s going to fine. I’ll just have to give up my dream of being an Olympic diving gold medalist.”
Her voice rose higher and higher with every word she spoke. God, this was a disaster.
* * *
Brooke unlocked the door of her apartment, still reeling from the news the doctor had delivered to her. How the hell had she fallen pregnant? She and Dane had been careful. Although, like Dane say last night, contraception wasn’t one hundred percent fool proof. She wasn’t ready to become a mom, and yet here she was knocked up and her plans blown to pieces. She slumped down on the couch, her head in her hands.
Hell, how was she going to tell Dane, especially after the whole Therese and Daisy debacle? Not to mention Susie. She didn’t think the other woman would get the results of her physical from the doctor. Or would she? It wouldn’t be wise to take any risks and just tell Susie as soon as possible.
Should she do it in person or by telephone? Brooke rolled her eyes at the thought. Telling Susie by phone was a copout. She had to face the woman who’d decided to give her chance. She knew that by the end of the phone call, Susie’s offer from today would be rescinded, and Brooke would soon be back on a plane to Colorado, where she’d have to break the news to her family that she was about to become a single parent.
Decision made, she called Susie and arranged to meet her at her house in two hours. Telling her would be difficult, and telling Dane would be even harder, but like her upcoming conversation with Susie, it was a conversation that couldn’t be avoided.
She was about to head to the shower when there was a knock on her door. It didn’t take a degree in rocket science to know who would be on the other side. A look through the peephole confirmed her suspicions.
Dane.
Why was he here? She knew she had to see him, but when she’d gotten her head wrapped around the idea of being pregnant. Not now.
Sighing, she opened the door. “Hi, Dane. What do you want?”
If he heard the bitchiness in her tone, he didn’t comment or acknowledge it. “I came to see if you’re okay.”
Brooke should’ve known he’d come to check on her. He’d been annoyed with her when she said she would go by herself to the doctor. Now she had her opportunity to tell him the news. No matter how she felt, she knew that, after their conversation from the previous evening, Dane would be happy. He’d told her wanted a family. And while she had made plans to go meet with Susie, Dane had a right to know about the baby before anyone else.
“I think you’d better come in.”
His brow furrowed at her words and he halted, touching her cheek. “What’s wrong? Are you sick?”
Well not sick yet, but the doctor had told her she was close to eight weeks pregnant—more morning sickness could be lurking around the corner ready to make its presence known.
“Not yet.”
“Okay, I don’t know what you’re getting at, but how about you tell me exactly what’s going on.”
His tone demanded no argument. He crossed his arms over his impressive chest, the one that had been warm and hard against her back this morning.
“Sit down.” She indicated the couch. There was no way she planned on sitting next to him, though. Her focus needed to be on the words she was about to blurt out.
“I’m sitting.”
She allowed herself a small smile as he’d stated the obvious. “The doctor ran some tests and they came back with a surprising result.” She took a deep breath. “It seems…I’m pregnant.”
His eyes widened in shock and a hint of joy. Then in a flash, they shuttered and the light died out of them. “If this is some type of joke, I don’t think it’s very funny.”
Whoa, that had been the last thing she expected to come out of his mouth. “I can’t believe you’d think I’d joke about something as
serious as this.”
Dane stood and took a couple of steps toward her. She retreated, seeing the anger firing in the depths of his eyes.
“What am I supposed to think?” he asked quietly. “I tell you about what happened with Daisy and, lo and behold, the next day you tell me you’re pregnant. You’ve got to admit the timing is suspect.”
Anger boiled inside of her. “Are you suggesting I’m faking this pregnancy? Why the hell would I do that when you know my immediate focus is on my career? I don’t want to be a mother right now.”
The color drained from his face at her declaration and she was worried he was about to pass out.
“What are you saying?” The words were wrenched out of him. “You’re going to get rid of the baby?”
Brooke hesitated. She would never do something like that, but she’d be lying to herself if she hadn’t let the thought momentarily take up residence in her mind. “No.”
“But you thought about it, didn’t you?”
God, could he read her mind or something?
She knew admitting the truth would hurt him; however, she’d never lied to him and she wasn’t planning to start now.
“For a couple of heartbeats—yes, it crossed my mind. But I rejected the thought. I could never go through with it.”
If she hoped being truthful would win her some points with Dane, it had the opposite effect. His lips pursed and his eyes hardened into ice chips.
“Is it even my baby?”
Her stomach clenched tightly, as though she’d slammed into the pool after having done a belly flop off the diving board.
“How can you even say that? Of course, it’s your baby.”
“Well, it was a few weeks between when I last saw you in Rio and when you arrived here in Australia. Anything could’ve happened in that time.”
“I can’t believe you just said that to me. That you could even doubt what I’m saying hurts more than you can imagine.”
“I’ve been lied to once before. And, like I said earlier, I told you all about what Therese and her boyfriend did to me. How they played me, making me believe I was a father. And now the very next day you tell me you’re pregnant.”
Fighting for Love (The Elite Book 3) Page 8
