“No thanks needed. I would do anything for you.”
“I want to show you something,” he said, gesturing for me to follow him. We went to the living room, and he grabbed a box off the mantle.
“This has always been yours.” He held the box in his hand. “It might be too soon, but it's yours when you’re ready.”
He popped the lid, and the light refracted from the diamond inside. I covered my mouth with my hand. The ring was gorgeous. A princess cut, surrounded by smaller diamonds. It wasn't fancy or ostentatious. It was perfect.
“It was my grandmothers.” he continued, and I burst into tears. He wrapped his arms around me making soothing noises. “It’s okay. If it’s too soon, I understand.”
I shook my head against him and then nodded my head. “It’s not that. I mean it is too soon, but it’s just the ring is so perfect,” I told him in a confused jumble.
“So you like it?” he asked, uncertainly. I nodded vigorously.
“But you want to wait to wear it?” Again I nodded, grateful he understood.
“Okay. So it’s good?” I knew he wanted to make sure.
“Yes, we are.” I held out my hand for the ring. I might not be ready to wear it full time and commit completely, but I wanted to try it on. As he slid it onto my finger, there was no question it belonged to me.
I took the ring off reluctantly, but I knew it was the right thing to do. We needed time to get to know each other again. It had been eight years, and people could change in that amount of time.
“I love the house. And the ring. And you,” I told him, as I handed the ring back.
“But?” he said.
“But it’s too much too soon. We need to tell my dad, and we need to date. This time, with no secrets between us.” The words were difficult to say, but they felt right.
Chapter Nine
The next four weeks were the best of my life, beside those first weeks with Livie. We told her dad, and he was beyond excited. I had the chance to meet her friends and their significant others. We were living the life we should have had years before.
“So you’re working out of Waco now?” Mr. Martin joked with me.
“Yep. I’m sorry, but I’m not leaving your daughter,” I told him seriously.
“I can’t say as I blame you. I wish I’d known sooner. I would have found a way to get you back together,” he said, with the utmost seriousness, and it was my turn to laugh. I had no doubt that was the truth, and if Livie and I ever fought again, I was going straight to him. “I might need to buy a house out there, as well. Otherwise, I might never see the two of you.” I heard the slight loneliness in his voice. Her dad was in his mid-forties, but I had never seen him in a serious relationship. He was devoted to the memory of his wife, and had never found anyone that could change that.
“That would make Livie and me very happy,” I told him. “She misses you, and it would be much easier to do business.” He laughed like I meant for him to, and the moment became relaxed. We wrapped up our discussion, and I headed back to the bedroom. Mr. Martin was in Tokyo, and I had gotten up early to take the call. When I got to the bedroom, I didn’t see Livie. I heard retching coming from the bathroom, and I rushed in there.
“Hey, are you okay?” I crooned, gathering her hair off her neck. She shook her head and continued to dry heave. After a few minutes, she was able to go back to the bed. I got her some water and rubbed her back.
“What happened? Are you not feeling good?” I asked, worried. Hannah’s baby shower was later today, and I knew there was no way Livie would miss it. She hadn’t seemed sick, but maybe it was something she ate.
“I don’t know,” she said, exhausted. “I heard you get up, and then I started feeling nauseated. When I sat up, it hit me. I made it to the bathroom, but I don’t know what triggered it.”
“Well, sleep. It’s early. Maybe you’ll feel better when you wake up,” She nodded, and I tucked her in the bed beside me.
Hours later, we were rushing around getting ready to go to the shower when I thought to ask Live how she felt. “You okay? Not feeling sick anymore?”
She looked surprised, but then shook her head. “I feel fine now. Must have been a weird one of,” I nodded and kept my thoughts to myself. Livie was focused on the shower and getting everything done. I didn’t want to add to her plate, but the thought crossed my mind that maybe we were expecting our own baby. I calculated the weeks in my head, and it was possible.
We arrived at the bakery where Livie had ordered the cake. I ran in to get it, since she was on the phone with Sophie. The shower was being held at Martha and Joe’s house, an older couple I had met the weekend before. They were longtime friends of Hannah and Ford, and the perfect people to host her shower.
When we arrived, Livie shooed me out of the house and pointed to a shop across the yard. “The men are out there,” she told me. I wandered out there and discovered the other guys laughing with beers in hand.
“I think I’m in the right place,” I joked, as the expectant father handed me a beer.
“Oh, yeah. Nothing short of death is getting me into that house. Not with a party organized by Olivia going on up there,” he said, before realizing I was with Olivia. “Uh, not to say anything against her, of course,” he corrected, as I shook my head.
“I’m with you. I didn’t want to come at all, but she said the men weren’t expected to be part of it.” I gave a relaxed laugh, before spotting the Broncos starting quarterback. I knew he was engaged to Sophie, whom I had met, but I hadn’t had the opportunity to meet him. Ford saw my gaze and said, “Let me introduce you.”
“So you’re the one that tamed the shrew,” Colt told me, laughing, as he said it. I couldn’t be offended when he continued. “Man, I owe her. There was a nightmare publicity thing when knowledge of my daughter was made public. Olivia pulled me out of a tight spot. You better be good for her.”
I understood the warning loud and clear. All of the guys around me were with women close to my Livie. If I hurt her, they would all hear about it and do whatever it took to make it stop. I could respect that and hoped to become a part of their group.
“I’m Thomas. Joe’s oldest son.” A man introduced himself and nodded over at the older man I recognized as Joe.
“Nice to meet you,” I replied, looking around. “This shop is incredible.”
“Thanks,” Ford told me. “Hey, Joe! Want to show the new guy around?” The old guy meandered over as Ford explained. “I’m partners with Joe. He started the furniture making as a hobby, and it developed into a business over the years. He taught me everything he knows.”
“Almost everything,” a dry voice stated, and Ford grinned at Joe.
“Almost,” Ford repeated.
“What I see is beautiful. I’d love to order pieces for the house,” I told them, before thinking about it. “After I talk to Livie,” I amended, to their amusement.
“Now that’s a man ready to get married,” Thomas joked, and I nodded.
“It’s been a long time coming.” They looked a bit stunned, and I realized they didn’t know about our history. To their minds we had only been dating for a month. “Livie and I have known each other for eight years. We just recently got back together.”
They nodded, satisfied with my explanation.
“You want to play?” Colt asked me, a football appearing in his hands. I nodded. I hadn’t played since high school, but there was no way in hell I was turning down the opportunity to play with an NFL quarterback.
“Pops, you reffing?” Thomas called, and his dad shook his head at him. “Dumb question?” Thomas laughed.
“Yes, those two need a ref on the field,” Joe explained, at my curious expression. “They sure do like to argue over who’s better. Honest truth, they both would have made it in the NFL.” I was impressed, as I looked over at Ford. He was tossing the ball to his brother, and I could see what Joe meant.
I found myself on the same team as Colt, and it was intense.
We were in this to win. This was no friendly pick up football game. These guys had played together a few times, and wanted to win. It suited me just fine.
We were down to the last play, tied up, ball was ours.
“I’m going to pass the ball off to you,” Colt whispered tightly, as we huddled together. “Ford will expect me to throw it and you’re still a wildcard,” I nodded feeling the pressure. I had the feeling losing wasn’t something Colt tolerated well, and I didn’t want to be responsible for it.
The whistle blew, and I felt the ball slam into my hands. I tucked the ball under my arm and ran. I saw Thomas coming at me and twisted to avoid him, feeling him hit the ground behind me. Seconds later, I was across the line. Touchdown. I could hear Colt whooping and hollering behind me, and I laughed. The rush was incredible. Suddenly, hands were clapping me on the back and congratulating me.
“Dude!” I heard, before Colt engulfed me in a bear hug. “That was awesome. I need a new running back. You available?” I couldn’t tell if he was joking, but I nodded my head anyway. “That is the first time I’ve beaten my brother in TWO years!” He was shaking two fingers in my face, and I got the impression this was better than his winning the Super Bowl last year.
A few minutes later, Ford came up to me. “You’re on my team next time.” Colt overheard him and shouted, “Oh hell no. He’s mine, brother.”
I lifted my shirt to wipe the sweat from my face, when I heard shouting. We looked up to see Martha waving out the back door and shouting for me. I ran faster than I ever have. Taking that ball down the field had nothing on my speed, as I raced to the house. I heard the other guys behind me, but I knew it was Livie. When I got inside, I saw her on the floor and I rushed to her. She was already coming to, as I lifted her head.
“She just passed out,” Sophie said, scared. “She was handing Hannah a gift. Her face went white and down she went.”
“I’m fine,” Livie muttered, trying to sit up. “Help me,” she grunted.
“Are you sure you should?” I asked, taking my life in my hands. Her glare convinced me she was fine to sit up, and I set her against my back.
“I’m fine, Hannah. Sophie. I forgot to eat lunch and got lightheaded. It’s my own stupid fault,” Livie told them, reaching over to grab Hannah’s hand. Hannah looked at her worriedly. I knew she was lying, because we had grabbed lunch on the way over, but I didn’t contradict her. “I’m sorry for messing up your shower, Hannah.”
“Oh, please. That is the least of my worries,” Hannah cried.
“Here.” Sophie shoved a tiny sandwich at Livie. I noticed it looked like there was nothing between the bread and there were no crusts. If she had passed out from hunger, that would be why, if that was all the food they had to offer. I looked around to see all the guys huddled in the doorway and a bunch of concerned women staring at us. I leaned down to Livie’s ear. “Do you want to leave?” She nodded forcefully, so I stood up with her.
“We’re going to go. I’ll get Livie something to eat and have her lay down,” I announced, pulling her toward the door. She waved at them weakly, hissing at me, “Get my purse.” I recognized the little symbol on it and grabbed it.
We got in the truck and I turned the air up. It was hot in the truck, and I was sweaty from playing. Livie leaned her head back against the seat with a sigh. When I reached the street, I turned left instead of right to our house. Livie glanced at me and I told her, “Stopping by the store,” She nodded and closed her eyes. I pulled into the Walgreens on the corner and left her in the truck with the engine running. I came back a few minutes later with my purchase.
I headed back to the house, nervous about what I had bought. I had to know though. The symptoms were too suspect.
I handed her the bag when we got home, and she looked in it.
“You think?” she asked, and I raised my eyebrow. “But I’m on the pill.” I shook my head.
“I’d rather know either way,” I told her. She nodded, and went to take the pregnancy test I had bought.
A few minutes later, she came back with it. I saw the readout and it said ‘Not Pregnant.’ She shrugged. “Maybe I have a virus. I shouldn’t have been around Hannah. I should call and let her know,” she said, looking hesitant. She stumbled, as she walked to her phone, and I caught her.
“Maybe you should lie down,” I said, concerned. She stood there for a second, before nodding. I watched her go up the stairs and looked again at the negative pregnancy test in my hand. Something wasn’t adding up.
A few days later, Livie came home upset. I ended a conference call with investors in the UK and hurried to her.
“What’s wrong?” I asked her. She looked at me and burst into tears.
“My period still isn’t here,” she said, with a gasp through the tears. I gathered her in my arms. “Do you think we should take another pregnancy test?” I asked, carefully, not wanting to set her off. She sniffled.
“I already did.”
“And?”
She shook her head. “It was negative.” I let the breath I was holding out. I was sure she was going to tell me she was pregnant.
“I’m scared,” Livie whispered. “Something is wrong,” I nodded, feeling the first trickle of fear myself.
“We’ll make an appointment for the doctor,” I said, as reassuringly as I could.
The next day, we found ourselves sitting in the waiting room of an ob./gyn. Livie filled out some paperwork, including the date of her last menstrual cycle. They had her pee in a cup and told her the pregnancy test was negative. Livie didn’t look surprised. She went in for the exam by herself, and when she came back told me, “I have to go here. They want to do an ultrasound,” She thrust a piece of paper in my hand. It was doctor’s orders, and we needed to go to the fifth floor.
“Did they say anything else?” I asked.
“She felt something, but couldn’t tell what it was,” Livie told me, her fear apparent. I nodded and held her hand, as we took the elevator up.
I was able to be in the room for the ultrasound. I gripped her hand tightly, as they discovered the mass around one of her fallopian tubes.
“We’ll need to perform surgery to remove the mass and biopsy it,” the doctor told us, her expression serious. “We won’t know if it’s cancer, until the biopsy comes back.”
My blood turned to ice with the word cancer, and I felt Livie tense.
“It’ll be okay,” I murmured, squeezing the hand I hadn’t let go of, since the ultrasound.
They scheduled the exploratory surgery for the following Monday. When we got home, I handed her the phone. “Call him,” I told her, knowing they needed each other. She nodded and asked, “Do it with me?”
“Of course.”
One of the hardest phone calls I’ve ever had to hear was Livie telling her dad that she might have cancer. I heard him choke back tears, as he told her, “I’m on my way, baby girl. I’ll be with you through it all.”
Her voice was tiny when she told him, “I love you, Daddy.”
“I love you too, Olivia.”
After they hung up, I asked her, “Do you want to call Hannah or Sophie?” She shook her head no. “After the results come back from surgery,” she answered.
The next Monday came entirely too quickly. Her dad had made it in the night before. He had been in London when we called. He had rearranged his meetings and flown back as soon as possible.
The doctor came in, as we waited with Livie before the surgery.
“While the surgery is exploratory, we do need permission to remove the mass and possibly the fallopian tube, if necessary,” Olivia agreed and signed the paperwork they gave her. They also gave her a pill to help her relax.
I held one hand, while her dad held the other. I felt her fingers tighten around mine. “I’m sorry,” she said, and we both asked, “For what?”
“Wasting time. Not having babies,” she answered, a little loopy. “Daddy, I know that's what you wanted from me. Grandbabies. And if I hadn
’t been so upset with you Beck, we would already have kids.” Her dad and I shook our heads.
“No, Livie. You can’t think that way. We have no idea what could happen. Hell, I might not be able to have kids! I don’t know. I haven’t tried.” My attempt at a joke fell flat, because she continued to tear up.
“But what if there are no Beckett babies?” she sniffled.
“So long as I have you, that’s all that matters to me,” I assured her.
“Baby girl,” her dad said, catching her attention. “Having babies is not what I wanted from you. It’s what I wanted FOR you. Sweetie, you are the single best thing I have ever done with my life, hands down, bar none. And I wanted you to have that.” He paused and cleared his throat. “I wanted you to experience motherhood. All the money in the world doesn’t make me happy. You do. I never wanted you to feel less for not giving me grandkids. I just wanted you to know how much I loved you by having your own kids.”
“But what if I can’t have any now?” she whimpered, and my heart broke.
“Then we adopt, if that’s what we want,” I said forcefully, surprising them both.
“But—” s
“No buts. I mean it. If we decide to have kids, and you can’t, then we’ll adopt. Don’t think you can wriggle out of marrying me now,” I declared. They looked a bit stunned, but I was adamant. A few seconds later, they came to take her for surgery, and I kissed her forehead, “I love you, Livie.”
Chapter Ten
I was nauseated when I woke up. The rolling sensation in my gut consumed my attention. A nurse said, “I’ll give you something to help with the nausea.” A few minutes later, I opened my eyes, and I was in another room with my dad and Beck.
“Hey, how you feeling?” Beck asked me, and I thought about it.
“Better,” I answered, the horrible nausea gone now. “What did the doctor say?”
I vaguely remembered the doctor talking to me, but I couldn’t remember what she said.
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