Life's Second Chances: The Show Me Series: Book One

by Anne Stone

  Her doctor examined her and told her he wanted to run a couple of tests. He asked that she run over to his office to have her blood drawn and then he’d come back that evening with the results.

  “Do you think there’s something wrong?”

  “I just want to check a couple of things. How about I see you at five? Your husband’s office hours should be over by then.”

  “He’s cancelled them for the remainder of the week since our son just had surgery.” Angelina filled her doctor in on Matthew. She’d attributed all of the stress surrounding his illness to her symptoms.

  “We’ll see. I’ll see you this evening.”

  “Sure.”

  Angelina filled Alejandro in on her conversation. He told her that he’d join her that evening when she got her results. Angelina ran over to her doctor’s office to have her blood drawn. On the way back, she started to feel better. She and Alejandro ate breakfast, and then they saw Matthew for the first time since coming out of surgery. He looked great. Her family arrived after returning home from Wyatt’s hockey game. They were excited to hear the news. Neither of them told their parents of her fainting spell.

  It was five o’clock when they headed back to Alejandro’s office to meet with Kevin. Alejandro’s secretary advised them her doctor was waiting. Alejandro reached for her hand as they walked down the hallway to his office. He had a feeling what the news was going to be. He couldn’t be sure, but he’d had a dream about this day months ago—he’d known Matthew was going to have his transplant. He knew Angelina wasn’t feeling well. He’d seen them walking down this same hallway… Walking towards his office to meet with her doctor. Alejandro hoped and prayed the outcome was the same as his dream.

  Angelina’s doctor greeted them with a huge smile on his face. “How’s your son?”

  “Great. Thanks for asking.”

  “Angelina, why don’t you sit down?”

  “Is the news that bad?”

  “No, but I think you should sit down. What I have to say is going to come as a shock to both of you.”

  “Oh my,” she said. “Let’s get this over with then. Just tell me.”

  “Let me ask you. What’re you doing in say, seven months?”

  Angelina didn’t understand his question. She just looked at him.

  “Angelina, I’m surprised you didn’t figure this out on your own.”

  A huge smile spread across Alejandro’s face. He knew what Kevin was alluding to—his dream was just about to become true.

  “Dear, you have no clue what I’m talking about, do you?”

  “Not really.”

  Alejandro took over, “Honey, what I think Kevin is trying to say is…”

  Kevin looked over at him, smiled, and nodded his head.

  “Sweetheart, you’re going to have a baby.”

  Angelina’s eyes widened. “What? That can’t be. You told me I couldn’t have a child,” she said as she covered her mouth with her trembling hands.

  “Angelina, all I can say is that this is a miracle.”

  She was speechless, staring at Alejandro. A tear escaped her eye and slid down her cheek. Alejandro reached for her and pulled her into his arms.

  “It’s true, sweetheart. I knew it. I knew you were going to be pregnant.”

  “How?”

  “I had a dream. I saw all of this. Saw Matthew’s transplant. Knew you were going to faint. And I even saw Kevin here telling us about our miracle baby.”

  Kevin smiled at them both. “I’ll leave you two alone. I need to see you next week in my office. In the meantime, here’s a prescription for vitamins. You need to start taking them as soon as possible.”

  “I will,” Angelina said, nodding vigorously.

  Her doctor left them alone in Alejandro’s office. She was totally shocked. She still couldn’t believe the news. “Did I hear him correctly? Am I really pregnant?”

  “Uh huh,” he said as he placed a kiss on her forehead.

  “How? I thought…”

  “Let’s not wonder how. Let’s just be thankful that you are.”

  “I am, don’t get me wrong. I’m just so shocked,” she said as she wiped another tear from her face. Her periods had never been regular, and she hadn’t thought twice about missing one.

  “I am, too. I think we should wait a few weeks to tell our family.”

  “Definitely. I wholeheartedly agree.” She threw herself back into his arms. “Thank you. Thank you so much.”

  “For what?”

  “For sticking by my side… I love you so much,” she said as she kissed him.

  “Let’s get that prescription filled and go see our son.”

  She nodded and hugged him again.

  As they waited for her prescription, Alejandro sat staring at her. He realized that it was true. Pregnant women had a certain glow about them, and Angelina definitely was part of that crowd. She had a smile that couldn’t be wiped from her face. And if his eyes weren’t betraying him, she did indeed glow.

  Chapter Twenty-Nine

  Matthew recovered quickly from his surgery and was able to come home a week after surgery. After discovering that she was pregnant, Angelina couldn’t believe how tired and nauseous she actually was. Morning sickness had a different definition in her book—she was nauseous morning, noon, and night. Now she understood what her friends had described while being pregnant. She’d also shed quite a few pounds since Matthew’s transplant.

  One evening, after an extremely difficult day with her morning sickness, Alejandro took a good look at his wife as she was putting Matthew to bed. After reading to him, Alejandro reached for her hand, leading her towards the patio. He guided her towards the chaise lounge and sat down, pulling her onto his lap. “Sweetheart, I can’t help but notice how much weight you’ve lost.”

  “I can’t eat. I’m nauseous all of the time.”

  “Have you talked to Kevin about this?”

  “I see him next week. I’ll talk to him then.”

  “You have to try and eat.”

  She put her hand up to stop him and said, “I know. Please don’t lecture me. I try, but it just comes right back up. I’m sick all day long. I know some women experience this the entire nine months.”

  “Well, we can only hope that doesn’t happen with you. You know, we’re going to have to tell our parents soon.”

  “I know. Let’s wait until after my appointment next week.”

  “That’s fine.”

  “Will you be there for it?”

  “It’s on my calendar. I’ll be there unless something comes up.”

  She wrapped her arms around his neck. “You know, I still can’t believe we’re going to have a baby. I have to pinch myself at least ten times a day. I’d truly given up the dream of our own child. What do you think happened?”

  “I don’t know what happened. It happens all the time when couples who think they can’t conceive and then get pregnant out of the blue, most often when they’ve given up. Just call it our little miracle.” He paused, not sure how she would take what he was about to say. “I just know I’m thrilled. I think you should quit work at the end of the school year. We don’t need your salary. We have Matthew to worry about and, now our very own little one. I want you taking it easy. Enjoy this pregnancy. And most especially, I want you to enjoy motherhood.” He kissed her and held her tightly in his arms. “I love you so much that it hurts sometimes.”

  “I know what you mean… I love teaching but I love you and our family even more. I won’t sign my contract, and I won’t tell Mary about the baby yet. I’ll just tell her that I need to concentrate on Matthew. He’s our priority right now and I need to be here for him.” Smiling, she said, “I can’t wait to tell our parents. My mother will be absolutely ecstatic. And yours…”

  “My mother will be thrilled. She’s missed having a grandchild since Michael died. Now she’ll be able to spoil the baby, just as she did with Michael. Don’t get me wrong, she considers Matthew her grandchild,
too, but there’s just something about my mother and a baby. Be prepared because that’s her motto. She’s there to spoil her grandchildren. My mom was heartbroken when Michael died, and now she’ll have a new way of spending her time. I’m warning you because you’ll get tired of seeing her, especially when there’s a baby involved.”

  “Never. I love your parents. I’m fortunate to have such terrific in-laws. I’ve heard quite a few horror stories. And I, for one, am happy to report that I have the best that could ever exist.”

  “I’m glad to hear that. My parents feel the same way about you. I know they loved Tammy, but they love you as much or even more. There’s a special connection between our families. It’s kind of weird actually. But I’m just happy that you and Gabriella went to college together and became such close friends. Unfortunately, Colleen had to have her accident, but we probably would have never gotten together if it weren’t for that. Fate allowed us to find one another. Fate has given me the opportunity to fall in love again. Fate has… It’s provided us with this miracle that you’re now carrying.” Alejandro placed his hand on her stomach, thanking their lucky stars that fate played a role in making her life’s dream a reality.

  Alejandro’s phone rang. He glanced at the caller ID. Rarely did his mother call him on his cell phone. He answered while Angelina got up to prepare for bed.

  “Hi, Mom. How are you?”

  “Good.”

  “How come you called on my cell?”

  “I wasn’t sure if you were at the hospital. I wanted to be sure that I reached you.”

  “Is something wrong?”

  “Alejandro, what’s wrong with Angelina?”

  “Why do you think something’s wrong?”

  “Gabriella and I were discussing her. She’s worried about her. She said she always looks pale and has lost a considerable amount of weight and—”

  “Mom, she’s been through a lot with Matthew. She lost a lot of sleep and still is not quite comfortable with his whole transplant. She’s worried—”

  “Alejandro, enough. Something’s not right. You’re both coming over here tomorrow and I won’t take no for an answer.”

  “Mom, she’s fine. We’re fine.”

  “We’ll see the three of you for dinner.” With that, she ended the conversation.

  Alejandro was staring at his phone when Angelina reentered the room. He told her about his conversation and their ensuing dinner plans for the following evening.

  “What are we going to do? We can’t tell them yet. It’s too soon. Anything can happen.”

  “Let’s just see what happens. Hopefully by tomorrow Mom will have calmed down and she’ll have put it behind her.”

  “Knowing your parents, the answer to that statement is a big, fat NO.”

  The next day at school, Angelina worried the entire day. Thankfully Gabriella’s class was on a field trip and she didn’t have to face her.

  They found a sitter for Matthew, as they didn’t want him witnessing the potential fallout from their evening with his parents. Matthew was just as happy because he could watch one of his favorite movies instead of having to listen to a bunch of grown-ups.

  “Tell Grandma and Grandpa I say hello.”

  “You have a good time with Julie.” They kissed him goodbye and told him they’d see him in the morning.

  Alejandro reached for her hand while he drove to his parents’ home. Resting it on his thigh, he told her not to worry. He was sure his mother had settled down from their conversation the previous evening. Angelina informed him that she hadn’t seen his sister that day since she’d been on a field trip. “I have to admit, however, that I did leave school right after the bell. I didn’t want to face Gabriella any sooner than I had to.”

  “My sister can be a tad overbearing. I don’t blame you for avoiding her. She’s created this mess.” He pulled into his parents’ driveway. Angelina sat in the car while Alejandro exited and came around to open her door. He squeezed her hand and gave her a kiss on the cheek as she got out of the car. “Just try and smile and believe that it’s all settled down.”

  Maria anxiously awaited their arrival. John had told her it was nothing and not to worry, but she insisted on confronting them. She was worried something was terribly wrong with her daughter-in-law, and she couldn’t face it if she lost another.

  The door opened as they approached. His mother was standing with a pained expression on her face. They both greeted her with a kiss on the cheek. Alejandro reached for Angelina’s hand again as they headed off to the kitchen where his father and Gabriella were seated. Angelina immediately brought up Gabriella’s field trip.

  “One of the children decided to have a food fight in the middle of the park. He squirted his drink all over another student, and then one thing led to another. I’ve never been as mad at my class as I was today.” Gabriella described the remainder of the trip while Maria finished preparing dinner. Angelina surmised it was her nerves that caused it, but she became nauseous just as dinner was served. She placed a small amount of food on her plate. Alejandro gave her a sideways look. Fearing he knew the answer to her fairly empty plate, he decided to carry the conversation. She picked at her food and never really took a bite. When everyone had just about finished, she reached for her plate along with Alejandro’s. By doing this, she thought it would take the attention away from the fact that she didn’t eat anything. Just as she placed their plates in the sink, she knew she was going to be sick. Excusing herself from the room, she ran down the hallway towards the bathroom, making it just in time. A few minutes passed before he excused himself as well.

  “See, something is wrong,” Maria commented as she stood to finish clearing the table. John looked at his wife and nodded his head in agreement. He’d noticed Angelina’s weight loss but hadn’t said anything. He thought it could’ve been stress-related, but after witnessing Angelina’s condition, he questioned his first diagnosis.

  Alejandro knocked on the bathroom door. “It’s me,” he said, entering. “You okay?”

  She was washing out her mouth. He brushed her hair back from her face and then hugged her from behind. “I think we need to tell them.”

  Sighing dejectedly, she nodded in agreement.

  “I know you wanted to wait until after your doctor’s appointment, but I think it’s best. I want to head off a confrontation with my mother. She’s pretty astute, and my father has already figured out that something’s up. I know him too well.”

  She dried her face and reached for his hand. “Let’s do it.”

  They discovered that everyone had moved into the family room. His parents didn’t take their eyes off of them. Alejandro squeezed her hand. She smiled at him and nodded. She wanted him to be the one to tell them of her pregnancy. They sat down on the couch. He placed his arm around her shoulder and reached for her hand. “Before you start in…”

  “So there is something—”

  “Maria, please let Alejandro speak,” Angelina interrupted.

  Maria nodded as they waited on Alejandro.

  Alejandro smiled at Angelina. All eyes were focused on him. “I don’t know how to say this, so I’m just going to—”

  “Angelina, you’re ill aren’t you?” chimed in Gabriella.

  “Gabriella, will you please let me speak?”

  She nodded.

  “As I was saying, we’ve had a miracle.”

  “A miracle?”

  He nodded. “Yes, Mother. A miracle.” He again looked at his wife. “Angelina is pregnant.”

  Everyone was stunned silent.

  “Don’t all congratulate us at once,” he said.

  “Oh my gosh,” cried Gabriella. “How?”

  He smiled at his sister. “We’re not sure. Just that we are.”

  Maria rushed over to them. She pulled Angelina into her arms. “Angelina, I don’t know what to say. I’m so happy for you both.”

  “We wanted to wait to tell you and my parents next week after my next doctor’s appoin
tment. You’re the first to know.”

  “When did you find out?”

  “When Matthew had his transplant. I hadn’t been feeling well, but I thought it was a virus. After Matthew’s surgery was completed, we went to Alejandro’s office to rest. That was the first time I had morning sickness, although I’d been lightheaded off and on for several weeks. Alejandro called my doctor and he examined me in Alejandro’s office. That evening we discovered I was pregnant. It was a glorious day for us. Matthew had successfully received his transplant, and we discovered I was going to have a baby. I’ll never forget that day as long as I live.”

  “I’m so thankful for this miracle.” Maria pulled Angelina into her arms. “I feared the worst. Angelina, you’ve been a wonderful addition to this family. I don’t know what we would’ve done if there was something seriously wrong with you. When are you going to tell your family?”

  “I think it’s too late this evening. I guess we’ll go by tomorrow and let them know.”

  “Please let me know, so I won’t ruin the surprise. I can’t wait to talk to your mother. We have so much planning ahead of us. There’s the baby shower and—”

  “Enough, Mom. Let’s get through telling Angelina’s family first before you start making all of your plans. I’ve already warned Angelina about how you like to spoil your grandchildren.”

  “I do not.”

  “Yes, you do. But let’s not go there tonight.”

  His mother agreed. The conversation shifted to Matthew’s recovery and their adoption. As the clock neared eleven, Angelina started yawning.

  “I think I need to take the mother-to-be home.”

  Hugs and kisses were had all the way around. Angelina asked Gabriella not to spread the news of her pregnancy at school—she was planning on telling them but not right away. Angelina also told Gabriella that she wouldn’t be returning the following school year. Gabriella didn’t care if Angelina taught—she was thrilled that she was pregnant and that she was her sister-in-law.

  Alejandro led her to the car. Once they were both settled in, she turned to him. “I’ll call my mother first thing tomorrow morning and find out what’s a good time for us to drop by. But first, we need to tell Matthew that he’s going to be a big brother.”