She looked around. There were three other women in the waiting room besides her. One had a gloomy look on her face, and Gina thought how she must be in a similar position: either an illness or an unwanted pregnancy. The second woman had an indifferent look on her face as she leafed through a magazine. Yearly checkup, Gina thought to herself. The third one was the most gleaming of the three. She was obviously at least six months pregnant and she looked radiant. From what Gina could see, the woman was in her late twenties, tall, blonde, and beautiful. She reminded Gina of a female version of Tyler, and the thought almost made Gina giggle in the quiet waiting room. The lady was obviously very happy with her life, as her hand never left her gently protruding belly. It rested there throughout the entire twenty minutes Gina spent waiting, until finally her name was called.
“Ms. Sellers?” Gina stood up. “The doctor will see you now.” Gina smiled and entered the blindingly white office.
“Ms. Sellers, please come in.” The doctor’s voice was warm and welcoming. He was in his late fifties, with greying hair and deep green eyes which evoked feelings of security upon immediate contact. “This is your first visit here, correct?”
Gina nodded. “You came highly recommended by a friend of mine, Jill Doherty…”
“Ah yes! Miss Doherty. A regular of mine, lovely young woman.” He smiled. “Well, let’s see if you shall be as satisfied as Miss Doherty. Please take off your clothes behind the screen and then sit on this chair.” He pointed at a little screen, dutifully putting on a mask. “You must excuse me, my son has the flu and I try hard to keep my patients safe from all harm. Even though I’m not really sick, one can always benefit from precaution, right?”
Gina smiled. She felt secure here and was glad that she took Jill’s advice to come and see him.
Once she was ready, she nestled on the chair, making herself as comfortable as the current circumstances allowed. As the doctor started his examination, he kept on talking.
“Do you have any troubles? Anything we should take into consideration when doing the tests?” he asked.
“Well…” she started shyly. “There is a specific reason I came to see you,” she admitted.
“There usually is,” he said, but not in an effort to criticize her. “Rest assured that I’ve heard all sorts of things…” Probably from Jill herself, Gina couldn’t help but think. “And there is nothing to be embarrassed about. Absolutely nothing.”
“Well, I did a pregnancy test, and it was positive.”
“I see.” A few instruments clinked and clanked, but Gina was still busy staring at the ceiling. “May I ask, is it a wanted pregnancy?”
Gina sighed. “Well, that’s the problem. I’m not sure.”
“You know there are options you can consider,” the doctor said gently. “This is not something to be decided on the spot. I don’t expect you to tell me right away what we will do with the baby. But depending on how far along you are, there is a certain deadline by which you need to make up your mind.” He lifted his gaze at her.
Gina nodded. “I know.”
“I would gladly help, if you have any questions or concerns, but I advise my patients to always discuss it with their partners. That makes it much easier. Is your partner involved?” he asked, without prying, and Gina somehow felt safe telling him the truth.
“Absolutely not.” She shot her answer out of a cannon. “If I saw him, I’d gouge his eyes out.” She realized then that she may have gone too far.
“That bad, huh?” The doctor laughed. “Trust me, you’re not the first patient to tell me that. So, keeping the baby in a two-parent family environment is out of the question?”
Gina exhaled noisily.
“He is the last person on this planet, maybe even in the universe, you’d want to have a child with. Just…the worst.” She felt at a loss for words in describing her true feelings for her ex. “His lying, cheating, drug-dealing ass, excuse my French, doctor, is right where it belongs now: in jail.” Gina raised her voice. “And I hope to God he stays there for a very long time.”
“I see. Okay, now, I’d like you to lie on this bed. I need to do an ultrasound, to see how far along you are.”
Gina switched places, and felt a foreign body entering her, in anticipation of news to come.
“Well, there it is,” he said.
Well, there you go. I’m a goner. I’m done for. What’ll I do now?
“Do you see that little bean-shaped shadow over here?” The doctor pointed at what Gina thought was just a shadowy blur on the screen. It didn’t look a bean, let alone something that’d grow up into a child.
“Aha.” She nodded, because she thought that was what was expected of her. “I see it.”
“That’s your baby.”
My baby.
Even though she knew it, she expected it, the final confirmation hit her like a ton of bricks.
“When was your last period?” he asked, switching the images on the screen that was turned towards Gina. All she wanted was for him to hide it from her, but she didn’t have the courage to ask him.
“The twelfth of April, I think.” She tried to remember. She wasn’t sure.
“Well, if the information you gave me is correct, then you, Miss Sellers, are exactly five weeks pregnant.” He turned to her with a smile.
Why are you smiling after all I just told you? she couldn’t help but think. Maybe some kind of professional deformity. After all, aren’t all women happy when they find out they’re pregnant?
She tried to fake a smile, but couldn’t. Her facial muscles remained rigid, her jaw tighter than ever.
He turned off the machine. “Everything is perfect. Both you and the baby are healthy, no complications there. Now you just need to figure out what you want to do.” He smiled a non-judgmental smile. “You can get dressed.”
He went over to his desk, writing in the examination results into the registry. When Gina got dressed, she sat opposite him.
“There are three options at your disposal, Miss Sellers,” he started with a fatherly tone of voice. “You may, of course, have an abortion, if you see this as your only way out. We provide that service here, at the clinic, and we assure the utmost discretion, without judgment, without trying to make you change your mind. It’s your body, and you get to decide what to do with it. Similarly, you are the only one who knows what you can and can’t afford to provide for this baby.” He paused. “Furthermore, you can decide to keep it, and there you have another two options.” Gina was listening intently. “You can keep the baby yourself. You know there are lots of government funded sources for young mothers, and you can always apply for financial aid. Unfortunately, I have no first-hand information on how this functions or whether it will cover all your expenses. Most probably, it won’t, but at least some basics will be covered. That is something you must find out. Finally, you can always choose to give the baby up for adoption. There are many families who, for one reason or another, are unable to have children of their own and who would be glad to offer a loving home to a newborn. There are adoption agencies that deal with these sorts of things, and I’m sure they’d be happy to offer more info on how this entire process works.” He rested his pen on the desk.
“I really appreciate all your help, doctor. I have to think about it all. It’s just…too much. I don’t know how I’m going to handle all this on my own…”
“Is there any family you can ask for help?”
“No,” Gina whispered. “I never knew my father. Ever since I can remember, it’s been my mom and me, just the two of us. And now she’s gone, too. I’m all alone.”
The doctor felt uneasy. He clumsily placed his hand on top of hers.
“It’ll be alright, Miss Sellers. Whatever you decide, I’m sure you’ll make it work somehow.” He didn’t really sound that convincing, even to himself, let alone to Gina. The truth was he didn’t know how else he could help, so for him, it was time for the next patient.
“Please let me know once yo
u’ve decided what your choice is, and we’ll take it from there.” He stood up, relieved to see that Gina was doing the same.
“Thank you, doctor.” She extended her hand. “I appreciate everything.”
“All the best, Miss Sellers.”
When Gina got home that afternoon, she was happy to find the apartment empty. Jill was out doing her errands, and Gina felt free to take a nice long bath. She wasn’t sure how much longer she could endure this heavy burden.
Chapter 8
After the weekend, which she spent running to the bathroom every half hour each morning, Gina wasn’t too happy to go to work. She looked at herself in the mirror and gasped in horror. The face that was staring back at her seemed to belong to someone else. It was as if she’d switched bodies with a tired, worn out woman, who was almost ten years her senior.
“Good God!” She quickly reached for her makeup bag, in hopes of salvaging what was salvageable, though it honestly seemed to be a lost cause. She spent more time than she usually did on her makeup, and once she was done, she was happy with the result. While it was true that her skin lacked its natural glow and there were unmistakable bags underneath her eyes that no concealer had the power to hide, she still looked better than a while ago. I guess this’ll have to do, she thought to herself, and went to look for a decent outfit.
When she arrived at work, she immediately felt nauseated. There was a heaviness in the air, leftover perfume scents, coffees brewing, salty-sour smelling shirts stuck on bodies that forgot to take a shower every day, and it was all too much for Gina’s delicate state. She could feel her breakfast finding its way back up, so she stopped by an open window and stuck her head all the way out.
“Hey, you okay?” Gina heard a familiar voice.
“Oh, hey, Jeanie.” The fresh air felt good. “Yeah, I think I’m coming down with some stomach bug. You’d best stay away from me unless you want some of it, too.” She smiled.
Jeanie retreated in mock horror. “No way! I had it about a month ago. The worst week of my life, I was vomiting, had diarrhea, fever, the chills, the whole shebang.” Jeanie shook her hands as if refusing something that was being offered to her. “I just got better. Not really in the mood for round two yet.”
“Yeah, I can imagine.” Gina managed another smile, even though her head was banging like a drum. “How are things up with the big boss?” She leaned towards the window again.
“Oh, you know, same old, same old. No one’s complaining though.” Jeanie smiled, but her expression quickly switched back to concern. “You should really stay home, Gina. You look like crap, I’m sorry to say.”
Gina couldn’t help but laugh. “Yeah, I feel like crap, too.” She breathed in the fresh air, and her dizzied mind cleared up a little. “But I can’t afford to stay home. I need the money.”
Jeanie sighed. “Don’t we all? Well, I do hope you feel better soon, Gina. Come see me during the lunch break if you can. I can whip you up some soup, out of thin air!” She laughed.
“I’ll try. Thanks, Jeanie.” Gina waved and went towards the janitorial office. She could almost feel herself swaying, and all she wanted was a chair. When she reached her destination, slowly but surely, she immediately sat down, barely noticing Ricky behind the screen.
“Who’s… ah, Gina!” He peered through. “Whoa!” His face was shocked, eyes bulging as if they were about to pop out of their sockets. “Gina, Bonita…you look…whoa…what’s the matter?” He immediately approached her, as if he was expecting her to fall to the side at any moment and he needed to be there to prevent her from getting hurt.
“Oh, you know…it’s this damn stomach virus that’s been bugging me since Friday evening. Can’t seem to get rid of it,” she managed to utter, though every word felt like a throbbing knife.
“Why didn’t you call in sick?” Ricky asked anxiously. “You know I would have covered for ya.”
“I know, I know. And I do appreciate it, but I need the money, Ricky. Badly.” She took a deep breath. “I just need to sit down a little and I’ll be fine.” She could actually feel the nausea lessen, and the disgusting acid reflux letting go of her chest. It felt good.
“Do you need me to get ya anything?” Ricky asked, still right next to her, not believing that she’d get better after just sitting down for a while.
“No, no, thank you, I’ll be fine. You just go on ahead, I’ll catch up with you.”
“Well, alright…” Ricky didn’t sound convinced as he grabbed his trusty bucket and mop, but he had no other choice. “If you need anything, I’m just a phone call away.” She nodded, as he closed the door behind him.
Gina had no idea how she was going to survive the day. It was the first time she felt this nauseated, and the dizziness was unbearable. She was hoping that as the day went by, she’d return to her normal self again. Once she felt relatively fine, she changed into her work clothes and went about her business. She started off with the corridors, as always, finishing up on the eighth floor. The elevator ride didn’t even make her barf, surprisingly.
As she was finishing up, ready to take up Jeanie on her soup offer, the elevator door opened, revealing Benjamin, who was holding a coffee in his left hand and a briefcase in his other. Not having noticed that the carpet was slightly rolled to the side, allowing Gina to do a better job that way, he tripped on his way out of the elevator, his coffee landing all over Gina’s freshly washed floors. She lifted her gaze just as she was squeezing the mop dry, happy that she was finally finished, only to see that there was more work to be done.
She just kept on looking at him, expecting an apology or something of the sort. She was shocked to see that no such thing was to follow.
“What idiot rolled up the carpet this way?” he roared, loud enough for her to hear. A few other people passed by, shrugging their shoulders, careful not to step into the creamy puddle that was forming on the previously sparkling floor.
Gina couldn’t believe her eyes. She wanted to shout all sorts of obscenities at him, but she knew this would get her into a lot of trouble. It was best to keep her mouth shut, though this was definitely not something her mother had taught her to do. She dipped the mop back into the bucket again, creating a foamy concoction.
“Do your job properly or I’ll make sure you don’t do it at all,” he spat at her, making her feel smaller than a cockroach as he passed her by without glancing at her twice.
Gina thought she was going to explode. She could feel her heart beating faster than a race horse, and her ears started feeling prickly and unusually hot. She dragged the bucket towards the puddle and started mopping it up. As she did so, she was suddenly stricken with the unmistakable aroma of cinnamon latte that permeated the air around the puddle. Altogether, it was too much: the pulsating heartbeat, skyrocketing blood pressure, the pregnancy nausea, the cinnamon smell. Gina dropped the mop right into the puddle and fell down to her knees, expecting to vomit.
She hoped no one would be passing by at that moment, to see her in this horrible position, but at one point, she just stopped caring. All she wanted was to lie down and take a nap, without having to clean up anything that would make her sick. Still on her knees, weaker by the minute, she closed her eyes for just a second, and felt her entire body drop to the floor. But just before it hit the ground, she was grabbed by a pair of strong arms and lifted back up. The arms were still holding her, and as if through a muffled speaker, she could hear a man’s voice addressing her.
“Gina? Gina? Gina, can you hear me?” It was Tyler. She recognized his voice, even with her eyes closed, even with a booming headache, with a body that wanted to regurgitate everything it had eaten up to that point.
Suddenly, she felt her body being lifted up and taken down the corridor. She could smell a man’s cologne, something that again didn’t sit very well with her, but, somehow, it didn’t make her nauseated. Tyler brought her into his office and laid her on a leather sofa tucked in the corner. When she finally managed to open her eyes after a f
ew minutes, she could see Tyler’s worried face right above hers, and Benjamin sulking right behind him. His image ruined her view.
“Oh, Mr. Reid…” She immediately propped herself up. Somehow, the nausea had passed and she felt like her old self again. The smells still bothered her a little, but at least there was no heaviness in her stomach.
“Easy, easy…” His voice was soothing. “Just calm down, Gina. Everything’s fine now.”
She felt embarrassed, being found by her boss on the floor, half dead. She was resolute never to allow herself such weakness ever again. She sat up on the sofa and looked at both men. It’s all your fault, you snake, her mind hissed at Benjamin. She’d show him another time, without an audience.
“I’m so sorry, Mr. Reid.” She managed to go back to her professional self, and the weak Gina was nowhere to be found. “I’ll go back to my duties immediately.” She stood up, but was held by the elbow.
“Where do you think you’re going, missy?” Tyler asked, trying to sound funny, but there was deep underlying anxiety that couldn’t be neglected. “I knew there was something wrong last week, and now you’re going to tell me exactly what happened and how I can help you.”
Gina looked at him surprisingly. Then glanced at Benjamin. Tyler immediately got the hint.
“Ben, why don’t you give us a minute…” he told his assistant without taking his worried eyes off of Gina.
“Of course, Mr. Reid.” It was obvious from the tone of his voice that he didn’t like being thrown out like that, but he had no say in it. So, he left the duo alone.
“Okay, now…” Tyler sat right next to her, taking her hands into his, trying to warm them. “I want you to tell me exactly what’s going on, because, obviously, something is up. I know you’re still new here, and maybe you don’t feel comfortable enough sharing your problems, but it’s like I tell all my employees: we’re not here just as people who work together. We’re a family. And a family looks out for one another, right?” There was a little sparkle in his eye, as his words touched her very soul.
Not his baby: A BWWM Billionaire Romance Page 5
