by Ilona Fridl
Tim clinked glasses. “And long may they wave.”
After dinner, Tim drove Dana back to her place. She turned to Tim before she got out. “Would you care to come up to my apartment for a nightcap?”
“All right.” Tim walked her up. Her apartment was simple but tasteful.
She watched his reaction. “I do receive a fairly good salary working as a secretary at a law firm. In case you’re interested.” Her eyes flashed invitingly.
He sat on the couch watching her as she brought over a couple of glasses of wine, and he felt a growing desire. “Dana, I was a fool. You really are beautiful.”
She looked at him steadily. “I never stopped loving you, Tim. I still want you.”
He gently took hold of both their glasses and set them down on the coffee table. She responded by unbuttoning his shirt and sliding her hands inside it to rub his chest. He moaned at the tightening in his crotch as he gave her a lingering kiss. They undressed each other slowly and, for the first time since he’d found out about Teri, he made love to a woman. For several hours, they enjoyed each other’s bodies. Getting dressed, Tim gave her a hug. “I’ll see you again.”
Her lips quirking in a small smile, she responded, “Just call me.”
Within the weeks before Virgin Ram left on tour, Tim managed to find a nice house in the Hollywood Hills and moved out of his parents’ home. He brought Dana over to see it. The house was a large rambling ranch on a hillside, with several acres of woodland overlooking the Los Angeles basin. A cream stone wall surrounded it, with iron security gates at the entrance to the driveway. The drive traveled several hundred feet and ended in a circle in front of the house. In the middle of the circle was a fountain splashing in a cream stone pool. The stone steps from the drive led to a large handsome hacienda-style house.
Climbing the steps, he glanced at her. “What do you think of it?”
“Very nice. Will you stay in touch with me while you’re on tour?”
“You know I will. I’ll give you a list of hotels where we’ll be staying.” He kissed her, and then they went inside.
****
The tour in Europe had been long and hard. The entourage had settled in a hotel in Rome for a couple of days’ rest when the phone rang early in the morning. Tim groped to answer it and looked at the clock. It was seven-thirty.
“Hello?” he said sleepily.
“Tim, it’s Dana.”
“Dana! It’s seven-thirty in the morning here. Why the hell are you calling?”
“You bastard. You got me pregnant.”
“What?”
“You heard me. Now what am I supposed to do?”
“Dana, wait a minute. Why didn’t you tell me you weren’t practicing birth control? I carry rubbers with me. Do you have insurance?”
“Well, I won’t anymore when the firm I work for finds out I’m unwed and pregnant. You have to get back here and marry me.”
“I can’t drop everything and run back to L.A. I’m in Rome and under contract. I won’t be able to get back there until the end of April.”
“Then what the hell am I supposed to do? The baby’s due in March and I’m going to lose my job.”
“You should have been taking precautions if you didn’t want to get pregnant. Or is this another lie?”
She screamed at him and slammed down the phone. He looked at the receiver for a moment and hung up, shaking his head. Tim glanced over to the other bed, where John had his head resting on his hand, watching him.
Tim pointed to the phone. “Did you hear that?”
John half-smiled. “Maybe you should ask the neighbors the same question.”
Tim felt a bit sheepish. “A little loud, huh?”
“Yeah. What are you going to do?”
“There’s not much I can do right at the moment. She wants me to come back immediately and marry her.”
“That won’t go over well with management. What did she say about insurance?”
“She has it through her job, but she’ll be fired for being unwed and pregnant.”
John sat up and was quiet, while Tim felt like he was on a ledge looking into an abyss below.
Regarding Tim, John ventured, “You know, you can try Luke’s solution for the problem. He sends his mistakes down Tijuana way, all expenses paid. She keeps her job and you’re off the hook.”
“You mean abortion? I’m a little uneasy about that. That’s why I’ve always been very careful with sex. This is the first time it’s resulted in a baby. Hell, Teri lived with me all that time and she never got pregnant. Before her, Dana was always on birth control.” Tim mused on the information. “I don’t really love Dana. Maybe I’ll call her and offer that idea.”
John got out of bed. “Good. I’m awake now, so I’ll go take a shower while you call.” He disappeared into the bathroom.
Tim had the operator put in an overseas call to Dana. “Dana?”
“Yes?”
“I’m sorry for blowing up at you before. Will you listen to what I have to say?”
She was silent for a minute. “Okay, Tim, I’ll listen.”
“I have an idea that will solve the problem for you. I say this because I do care about you. I’ll fix you up with a doctor in Tijuana and pay your expenses down there and back. What do you say?”
“Tim, that’s so typical of you,” she said with an edge to her voice. “You can’t face up to a ‘problem,’ so you try to get rid of it. Well, I’ll tell you this, my love. I’m going to have this baby, and you are either going to marry me or I’m going to slap the biggest paternity suit on you that I can. Is that clear enough for you?” She hung up.
Tim sat on the edge of the bed with his elbows on his thighs, hitting his forehead with his fists. I feel trapped. Damn, Teri, why didn’t you wait for me? Why didn’t I keep in touch with her while I was on tour? I wouldn’t be in this mess. Why was I so stupid? He heard the door to the bathroom open.
“Gee, looks like that went well.”
Tim gritted his teeth. “She not only rejected my offer, but she said if I don’t marry her, she’s going to hit me with a paternity suit. I swear I’m never going to have sex again.”
“If you marry Dana, you probably won’t.”
“Not funny, John.”
“Does it look like I’m laughing? Dana will cut off your balls and nail them in her trophy case. She’s got you where she wants you.”
“I don’t see any way out of this. Maybe she’ll be different after we’re married. After all, that was what the break-up fight was about. If we get married, she’ll be happy. I might even start loving her.”
“What are you going to do when she’s fired from her job?”
Tim thought for a minute. “I’m going to have her stay at my house and wire her money every couple of weeks. My parents have the keys, so I’ll have them set her up.”
“Your parents are going to love this.”
“I know I’m going to hear about it, but what else can I do?”
While John went down to breakfast, Tim put in a call to his parents. He sighed with relief when his mother answered the phone.
“Mom, I need to talk to you. I’ve got a problem.”
“What is it?”
He took a deep breath before he continued. “Dana called here and told me she’s pregnant.”
“Tim, I suppose you’re going to tell me it’s yours. Well, what are you going to do about it?”
“Mom, please. I’m going to ask her to marry me. I need for you and Dad to set her up in my house, because she’ll be fired from her job for being unwed and pregnant. I’m going to wire her money every couple of weeks. Will you do this for me?”
“I was afraid this was going to happen, with you being so loose around women. I don’t know why you continue―”
“Mother, I’m already beating myself up for this. I’m sorry. I was wrong. I’m trying to do the honorable thing. Will you help me?”
She backed down. “All right. It looks like you�
�re trying to fix it. We’ll help you. When are you going to get married?”
“That’s one of the problems. I can’t get off the tour until April, and the baby’s due in March. I think it would be best for all if we just have a quiet ceremony at the courthouse with the immediate families.”
“Did you discuss this with Dana?”
“Not yet, but I’ll put it to her. Can you help her with the plans?”
“Yes, but I’ll need her phone number.”
He gave it to her. “Just wait a couple of hours until I can talk to her. Thank you, Mom. I love you.”
“Love you too, Tim.”
Tim then put in a call to Dana and made her understand he would marry her as soon as he got back from the tour. She told him she would fix up the house for them.
When he got off the phone, he was about to take a shower when the phone rang again. “Hello?” he said as he sat on the bed.
“Tim, what the hell is the matter with you?”
“Dad?”
“Where did you leave your brain this time?”
“Dad, I―”
“Listen to me. I let you do your music when I thought you should be in college. I hoped all we taught you at home would stick. Then you got caught up in that fast lifestyle with the Hollywood crowd, but I still held back. The only time I said anything was when Teri moved in with you. Now, with all the women you’re laying, and getting Dana pregnant, you’ve gone off the deep end.”
“Dad, I’m not laying women this time on tour. I’ve learned my lesson. I asked Dana to marry me, and I’m going to stay faithful to her. I asked Mom to help me get things set up.”
“How can I believe you? You’ve done things I never dreamed I should warn you about. For one thing, you’ve got to get that drinking under control.”
“I can handle the drinking. I’m not out of control and I don’t plan to be. Now, will you help me?”
He heard his dad sigh. “Yes, I’ll help you. Just grow up, will you? I’ve got to hang up. I’m paying for this call.”
“Yes, Dad. Thanks.”
Tim went in to take a shower. As he watched the water go down the drain, he wished the drain monster he’d feared as a child would come and take him.
****
In mid-March, Tim was in St. Louis when he got a call from his mother telling him his son was born. She was in the hospital next to Dana’s bed and handed the phone to her.
“Tim, I named him Charles Timothy Olson on the birth certificate. They’ll file it after we’re married.”
Tim grinned in spite of himself. “Give the little guy a kiss for me, and I’ll see you in a few weeks.”
When Tim got back from the tour, he made a beeline to meet his son. “He’s beautiful, Dana,” he said as he kissed her and picked up the baby. “We’ll get married as soon as we can at the courthouse.”
That evening, he took out the ring set he’d purchased in San Francisco. No, that’s Teri’s ring. He put the box away in the back of his chest of drawers and went out to buy another set.
Chapter 12
Early spring found David and Teri fixing up a small area of their bedroom for the baby. David was going with her to birthing classes and found out he could be in the delivery room, coaching Teri with breathing exercises. So everything was ready.
The day of David’s graduation arrived and the baby hadn’t been born. It was two days past the due date, but Teri’s doctor assured her babies have their own timing. But that morning she groaned as she got up. “My back is really killing me!”
David looked concerned. “Do you think we ought to go? I can skip the ceremony. I’ll still get my diploma.”
“No! You worked hard for this. The ceremony is a memory you’ll always treasure. You can’t miss it. I’ll be all right.”
The graduation ceremony started at two o’clock, and Teri sat in the auditorium between her mother and her mother-in-law. Suddenly, she felt her stomach cramp.
“Mom!” she said, gripping her mother’s arm. “I just felt a pain in my stomach.”
Her mother took a breath and looked at her watch. “Teri, tell me if you get that pain again.”
Teri nodded and sat back. A little while later, she felt the cramp again. “Mom, I felt it again.”
Her mother looked at her watch. “That was twelve minutes. Teri, do you have the doctor’s and hospital’s numbers?”
She looked in her purse, pulled out a card, and gave it to her mother.
“Teri, I’m going to go to the lobby and call the doctor, okay?”
“All right.”
Her mother came back a few minutes later and put her hand on her husband’s shoulder. “Ted, we have to get Teri to the hospital now.”
David’s mother looked over. “Should I go get David?”
“The doctor thinks she has a few hours yet, but he wants her at the hospital.”
Teri turned to David’s mother. “Let David go through the ceremony, then bring him to the hospital. Oh, and could you stop at the apartment and pick up my bag?”
David’s mom nodded. “We’ll all be there later.”
Teri’s father brought the car to the front of the building, and Teri and her mother slid into the back seat. They were met at the emergency area of the hospital by an orderly with a wheelchair, who took Teri to a labor room. Her mother stayed with her while her father went down to admissions.
When the doctor came and examined Teri, he said, “It looks like you still have a couple of hours to go yet, but it’s good you came in.” He called Teri’s mother in and informed her.
She smiled. “That will give David enough time to come from the graduation ceremony.”
“Like I told Teri, babies seem to have their own time.” He turned back to Teri. “I’ll see you later.”
Teri sighed after the doctor left. “I wish I had my bag with me.”
“I’m sure David’s mother will remember to stop at the apartment for it. Do you want me to stay until David gets here?”
“Please do.”
A nurse came in to take her blood pressure. “Mrs. Kelsey, would you like to watch television for a while? You can turn it on with this remote.”
After the nurse left the room, Teri turned on the television, stopping on a news program. “In today’s entertainment news, Virgin Ram’s Tim Olson has returned from his honeymoon with the mother of his infant son.” She dropped the remote to the floor and her mother quickly retrieved it and turned to another channel.
“Teri?” her mother said hesitantly. “You went white, and now you’re trembling.”
“Mother, why does that bother me so much? I’m here having David’s baby and I’m jealous of the woman Tim’s married to.”
She took her daughter’s hand. “Do you remember our conversation at lunch about a year and a half ago? That’s what I meant. You have to be strong. You’ll hear about him because he’s famous, but you’ll have to continue with your own life. He’s not a part of it anymore.”
“Thank you, Mom, for reminding me. I love David and our child. That’s all that matters now.”
Teri and her mother watched television together until David hurried into the room with her bag. “Am I too late?”
Teri got up and went to him. “No, not yet.” She took her bag and gave him a kiss. As she was going back to the bed, she felt a gush of warm water over her legs. “Mom?”
Her mother was already headed for the door. “Your water broke, honey. I’m going to get the nurse.”
David was helping her onto the bed when a strong contraction hit. He took her hand. “Pant through it, remember?” Teri felt like the old retriever her family had when she was a child, panting heavily.
The nurse came in, followed by the doctor. “Her mother said her water broke.”
As they examined her, another contraction hit, but David had gone out for a moment. Teri made a gurgling noise like she was drowning. “Teri, don’t push yet.”
She grasped the doctor’s arm, her fingers making dee
p impressions. “I want the baby out now!”
He winced. “Take it easy. Just continue breathing and let me get some feeling back in my hand.”
David came back in the room. “How is she?” He was pale and shaken.
“I’m going to get the anesthetist. Keep her panting.”
“Come on, Sweet Stuff, you can do this.” David took her hand.
A strong pain hit as she yelled, “Shut up, damn it. I don’t need a fucking Mr. Sunshine!” David grimly held on as his fingers turned purple.
The anesthetist came in with an IV. “Hello, Mrs. Kelsey. I’m Dr. Stone, and I’m going to give you some of this solution, just in case we have to do a Cesarean. It will keep your vein open if we have to give you a transfusion.”
“What?”
“Don’t worry. It’s only a precaution.”
Teri endured as the doctor got ready to stick the needle in her hand. He jabbed, and she felt a sting that was as bad as the contractions. She yelped.
Dr. Stone said, “Your vein collapsed, I’m going to have to try again. Calm yourself down.”
Teri gritted her teeth, wanting to grab the doctor’s balls and pull them up over his head. He jabbed her again and this time was able to tape the needle to her hand.
“There, that’s a good girl.”
“Get out!” Teri shouted. “Get out of here!” Dr. Stone left.
David rubbed his hand to get the blood flowing again. “Teri, you’re pushing up the blood into the tube. Take a deep breath.”
“Shut up, David. Don’t patronize me.”
Dr. Martin, her doctor, came back into the room. “Hey, don’t scream at the help. Let’s see if you’re ready to go yet.” He called the nurse after he examined her. “She’s ready to go to delivery. Get the gurney.”
They took Teri to the delivery room, and David was detoured to put on hospital coveralls. The nurse got Teri’s legs up into the stirrups and strapped her arms down.
“Why are you doing this?”
The nurse gave her a syrupy smile. “We don’t want you to injure yourself, dear.”
I want to injure you most of all. Soon everyone gathered and she calmed. Her contractions weren’t hurting as much.
