Beyond Expectations (Mended Hearts Book 3)

by Sarah Markel

  *****

  “Everyone’s here now, babe.” Alex said a short time later as she ushered Tina and her husband Carl into the backyard to join the others. Kelly accepted a kiss on the cheek from Tina and Carl, before making her way over to the chairs that had been set up in the grass. She sat carefully, easing herself down slowly, and let out a sigh of relief. She took the champagne flute that Zane handed her, decorated around the stem with thin pink and blue ribbons, and filled with sparkling grape juice. “Are you feeling alright, mom?” the boy asked, noticing the tired look on her face. “I’m perfect, son, don’t worry about me, it’s your mother that I’m worried about. She’s been running ragged the last few weeks, and I haven’t been the easiest wife to deal with.” Zane smiled at her and rubbed his hand over the swollen abdomen that held his future siblings.

  “Hey, punk, move it.” Alex said, joining the pair. Zane shot his mom an annoyed look and leaned over to kiss Kelly’s cheek, before vacating his seat. “I didn’t want to sit with you two anyway, you annoy the hell out of me.” Kelly snorted as the pair watched their son make his way over to Willow and Shantell. “He’s growing up way too fast, honey. Do you think we can push pause or something?” Kelly asked, lacing her fingers through Alex’s and resting it on her belly. Alex chuckled and kissed her lips softly, “I wish, babe. We’re going to have to accept it, and hope he doesn’t outgrow us.” Nodding, Kelly closed her eyes and let out a groan when she received a good, swift kick. Alex’s eyes widened, “Oh ouch, that was a strong one. I think we might have a soccer player on our hands.” She said, staring at her wife’s belly.

  As the party wore on, Alex made the rounds, spending a few moments with each guest, while Kelly did her best to stay near a chair. Her daily nausea spells had ebbed, only hitting her when she was around certain smells, but she had been experiencing more and more fatigue of late. Alex had questioned her several times about her frequent need to sit, but Kelly had brushed it off as normal for a woman carrying three people inside her body. What she hadn’t told Alex was that she had been having some back pain and, on occasion, she would experience a bout of lightheadedness. The episodes only lasted a few moments, but those moments were draining on her energy.

  “Alright, could I please have everyone’s attention?” Alex asked loudly, clinking her glass with a spoon. When all eyes were on her, Alex found Kelly and motioned for the crowd to look at her. “My beautiful wife and I would like to thank everyone for coming today. I know many of you brought gifts for Kelly to open, and we will get to that, but our son and I would like to start. Zane,” she said, turning her attention to her son, “would you please help your mom over here?” Zane nodded and wrapped his arm around Kelly’s waist, guiding her at her own pace toward the area that had been designated for the gifts. After helping her into an overstuffed chair that had been Andrea’s present to the woman, Zane moved over to Alex and gave her a knowing smile. Counting down from three, Alex and Zane whipped the tarp off their gift and watched for Kelly’s reaction.

  Kelly stared at three small, hand crafted rocking bassinettes. Each one had been carefully and intricately painted with a different scene from various nursery rhymes. The white one depicted a cow in mid-jump over a smiling full moon on the footboard, with the fork and the spoon running along one of the sides and a fiddle-playing cat along the other. The middle bassinette was painted a pale, soothing yellow, with a small mouse running toward the footboard, which held a beautifully detailed Grandfather clock, while the image was reversed on the other side to make it appear as if the mouse was running toward the headboard. The last bassinette was painted an extraordinarily pale shade of blue. The twinkling stars that graced each side came together on the footboard to form a cluster of yellow diamonds painted above an almost perfect depiction of their house. Kelly stood carefully and ran her hand over each one, making her way to her wife. “They’re beautiful.” She said, tears streaming down her face. Zane beamed at her, clapping Alex on the back before kissing Kelly’s cheek and joining the rest of the crowd.

  Everyone clapped and cheered as Kelly leaned up on her toes and captured Alex’s lips in a deep kiss. The women chuckled against each other’s lips at the catcalls they received, before Alex pulled back and helped Kelly back to her chair to open the rest of her gifts. Taking a seat next to her wife, Alex sat and watched as Kelly was opened the gifts and thanked their friends. After a few moments, Alex noticed a pained expression cross Kelly’s face and she moved to sit behind her on the chair. Threading her arms around the woman’s waist, Alex pulled her back against her and rubbed her belly to soothe the very active babies. When she felt her wife relax and let out a small sigh, Alex leaned forward and whispered in Kelly’s ear. “I’m sorry you hurt, baby. I’ll try to keep them calm until you’re done. If you need to, you can go lay down afterwards and the kids and I will clean up.” Kelly smiled and turned to kiss Alex, “Thank you, sweetheart.”

  *****

  “Alright, this is the last of it. You four are off the hook.” Alex said to her kids and their girlfriends. Without so much as a goodbye, Dej grabbed Carrie’s hand and headed out the front door. Alex chuckled at her daughter’s fleeing back, “Well, I guess she has other plans.” Zane and Willow snickered, setting their armload of boxes on the coffee table. “Are you sure you don’t want help with the baby beds?” Willow asked. Alex shook her head and flopped into her recliner. “No, I’ll get them. You two go on and have fun at Colton’s. Zane, make sure you grab your sister’s food out of the fridge before you leave. I don’t need a lecture from Judy about forgetting it again.” Zane laughed, remembering the last time he and Dej had stayed the night with the Parkers. Alex had forgotten to remind Dej to take her supper, and Judy had called Alex, chewing her out. Kissing his mother on the cheek, Zane took Willow’s hand, and after a stop in the kitchen, the pair left. Alex let out a long sigh and rubbed her tired eyes. It was only a little past five in the evening, but she was exhausted.

  Alex had awoken at a quarter past four that morning, and had been too excited to go back to sleep. After twenty minutes of maddening stillness, she had been afraid to toss and turn for fear of waking Kelly, she had cautiously slipped out of bed and gone into the guest room. She had started piecing together the bassinettes, and was now grateful that she had started so early. If she had waited until a decent hour, she never would have finished them before the party. Shaking her head with a tired groan, Alex stood and went outside to bring in the beds. As she hauled each one inside and stowed it away in the unfinished nursery, Alex thought about the woman sleeping her bed.

  She had noticed several times throughout the day that Kelly appeared to be in pain. At the time, Alex had just chalked it up to the tiny humans vying for space in Kelly’s crowded womb. But now, as she thought more about it, she realized that each time she had noticed it, Kelly had also seemed to be reaching out for support of whatever was closest. For most of the afternoon, Kelly had either been sitting or leaning against something for support. There had even been a few times that Kelly had been noticeably pacing her breathing. As Alex placed the last bassinette in the nursery, a thought came to her. She would tell me if something was off, wouldn’t she? The thought brought a wave of unease over her, and Alex decided to leave the rest of the baby gifts where they were until tomorrow.

  *****

  After making sure the doors were shut and locked, Alex made her way back upstairs. Easing open the door to her room, she smiled to herself as her eyes lit on Kelly’s sleeping form. God she’s beautiful. Alex thought, standing at the foot of the bed. Kelly was lying on top of the blankets, her hip cocked to the side and her back flat on the bed, almost as if she couldn’t decide between the two positions. Her hair, which had recently been cut to mid-back due to the weight of it, was splayed out over the pillows, and her right hand rested against the right side of her head. Her left hand was draped protectively over her belly, and with her eyes closed, Alex felt as if she was staring at the definition of beauty. Alex stood ther
e for another moment, admiring the way that Kelly’s lightweight summer dress fell loosely over her ample curves. Kelly’s breasts, which were normally large for a woman of her size and build, had begun to grow noticeably larger over the last several weeks, and Alex couldn’t help but stare at them now as they rose and fell softly in time with Kelly’s breathing. She shifted, a sudden discomfort between her legs, and carefully climbed in next to her wife.

  “Don’t even think about it.” Kelly said when Alex rested her hand over the one on Kelly’s abdomen. “Jesus Christ,” Alex yelped, pulling her hand away quickly, “I thought you were asleep! I was just trying to hold you, I wasn’t going to do anything.” She said defensively. Kelly opened one eye and glanced at Alex. Slowly, Kelly rolled over to face her. “I was meditating, not sleeping, and what I meant was, ‘Don’t even think about getting into this bed with those clothes on’.” Alex stared at her, an eyebrow raised in confusion. “I can’t take a nap with these clothes on?” she asked. Kelly smirked and leaned closer to capture Alex’s lips in an insistent and need driven kiss. Pulling away, Alex gawked at her wife. “Ouch, babe. What’s gotten into you all of the sudden?” she asked, lifting her fingers to her lips, which felt as if a tooth may have pierced them.

  Instead of voicing her answer, Kelly shifted again, this time to straddle Alex’s hips. “You did.” Kelly said, running her hands up Alex’s shirt to massage her breasts. Alex raised her eyebrow again and waited for her wife to explain. Kelly let out a low purr of appreciation before lifting Alex’s shirt and pressing her lips to the bare stomach beneath. Kissing her way up Alex’s torso, Kelly paused and frowned when she realized Alex’s shirt was still on. Righting herself, Kelly tugged on the shirt, urging Alex to sit up. Once the shirt was removed, Kelly pressed her palms against Alex’s shoulders and pushed her back down on the bed. Before Kelly could lower her head again, Alex crossed her arms over her chest. “Kelly, are you alright?” she asked, meeting her wife’s irritated gaze.

  “I really wish you would quit asking me that.” Kelly said, her posture changing, before she lifted herself off of Alex and laid back down, staring at the ceiling. “Good luck with that,” Alex replied, concerned at Kelly’s quick mood change, “You’re my wife, and I’m worried about you. I know you weren’t feeling well today, and don’t bother trying to deny it. You’re not as good at hiding it as you think you are.” Seeing the vein in Kelly’s neck begin to thrum, Alex shifted to her side and rested her head on her fist. “I understand that it’s frustrating for you when I ask, but think about how I feel.” Alex laid her hand over Kelly’s stomach before she continued. “I see the little wince when you’re in pain, I see the glassiness in your eyes when you get dizzy, and I see that vein in your neck start dancing when your blood pressure is up. I don’t always say anything, because as a doctor, I expect that you know what you’re doing. But sometimes, I think you just don’t want to admit that something is bothering you, so you try to hide it, and when I ask about you, you snap at me and get all pissed off. I’ve read everything I could find on high blood pressure and preeclampsia, and the thought of what could happen scares the hell out of me. You don’t want to be babied and treated like you’re made of glass, I get that, but don’t expect me to just let it go when I think something might be wrong. If something were to happen, not one of those babies is developed enough to survive. So forgive me if I’m worried about the safety of you and our kids.”

  Kelly sat up and turned away, kicking her legs over the side of the bed with a huff. “I know that, Alex. I know you love me and you’re scared, but so am I. This is the very first time I have ever been pregnant, and it happens to be triplets. On top of the heavy knowledge that my health directly affects three human lives, I am supposed to keep my stress to a minimum, maintain my roles as a wife and mother, fight the constant restlessness that I’ve been feeling, monitor my blood pressure, watch my diet, get plenty of rest, and be careful not to overexert myself.” She said harshly, counting off each task with her fingers. “To top off that lovely sundae of ‘have-to’, I also have to deal with the fact that I am so uncomfortable all the time that all I want to do is sleep. My boobs are so big that I feel like I am being smothered when I lie in certain positions. My belly is so huge that not only can I not see my feet, I can’t even see the stairs when I am trying to go up or down them. Do you have any idea how difficult that is?”

  Alex sat up and nodded her head, rubbing her hand up and down Kelly’s back. “Actually, yes I do. You’ve seen the pictures of my pregnancy with Zane, I was a walking blimp. By the time he was born, I couldn’t even put on my own pants. I didn’t have all of the stressors with him that you are dealing with, but I do understand, completely, how you are feeling. I’m not asking you to do anything that your doctor hasn’t told you to do. All I’m asking is that you don’t bite my head off when I ask about you.” She explained softly, trying to keep the conversation from turning into a full blown argument. Letting out a defeated sigh, Kelly turned to face her wife. “If it will put your mind at ease, I will make an appointment to see Dr. Gilbert.” Alex smiled and nodded, taking Kelly’s hand and pulling her back down to the bed. “Good. Now that that’s out of the way, how about we try this again?” she asked with a low moan next to Kelly’s ear.

  Chapter 14

  “Alright, Dr. Walker, let’s see what we have here.” Dr. Gilbert said as she squirted the warm, light blue ultrasound jelly onto Kelly’s prominent abdomen. Kelly had kept her promise to call the doctor, even though it had taken until Friday to get in, and the couple were now hoping to get some answers. Alex held Kelly’s hand as the crowded image of their unborn children filled the screen. “They look so squished.” Kelly said with a loving smile. “Well, they look to be growing normally, would you care to know their genders?” Dr. Gilbert looked from Alex to Kelly and smiled. “What do you think, babe?” Alex asked, not really caring what the babies were, as long as they were healthy. Kelly thought for a moment before replying. “Well, it would be nice to be able to know, I mean for the sake of coming up with names and such, but I don’t want to tell anyone else. I want it to be a surprise for everyone.” Alex patted Kelly’s knee and nodded. “Fine by me, I like making them all guess.” She said with a mischievous grin. Dr. Gilbert laughed and turned back to the monitor, playing with the buttons until the screen changed and each baby was displayed, one by one, across the screen. After making some notations on the images and printing them out, she handed them to Alex.

  “Oh, Dej is gonna be pissed!” Kelly chuckled as the pair made their way to the car a few minutes later. “She’ll live. Although I think Zane might lose his mind.” Alex said, helping Kelly into the car. While Alex maneuvered the car onto the street, Kelly studied the images in her hand. Each one was labeled with the gender of the baby in question, and Kelly’s mind raced. She hadn’t realized that she would feel any differently with the knowledge of what she was carrying, but somehow, knowing that she was going to bring three healthy sons into the world scared her. “Baby?” Alex asked, noticing the small frown that marred her wife’s features. Kelly looked at her and her frown deepened. “Does it feel different for you? Knowing, I mean.” Alex thought about that for a minute. Placing one hand on Kelly’s stomach, she shrugged. “Well, a little I guess. I mean we will still be referring to them as ‘them’, so it’s not like we are going to blow the secret. But to be honest, knowing what they are does make it all seem more real.” Kelly nodded, having thought the same thing, and grunted when someone’s foot pushed up into her lungs.

  “I don’t know about you, honey, but I’m starving.” Kelly said, once the baby’s foot had moved. Alex chuckled and shook her head, “Shocked look on my face.” She replied, patting her wife on the knee. “How about we grab some fruit at home before we get ready for the party?” Alex offered. Kelly nodded and looked down at her stomach, frowning once again. “What’s wrong, babe?” Alex asked. “I was just thinking… you’re going to have to help me get dressed. I’m not going to b
e able to wear heels tonight.” Kelly said, rubbing her hand over her belly. Alex snorted and bit the inside of her cheek to keep from laughing outright. She had wondered if her wife was going to realize that she wouldn’t be able to wear the new stiletto heels that she had bought for the event. “Don’t worry about it, love. I’ll wear flats so I’m not towering over you.” Kelly swatted at her. “I’m still surprised that you chose to wear an evening gown tonight.” Kelly said, “I can’t wait to see you all gussied up.” Alex gave her a look and raised her eyebrow. “Gussied up?” she asked. Kelly gave her a wry smile, “Mmhmm. I bet we hit our goal in no time once everyone gets a load of you in that dress.” Alex grumbled under her breath, cutting her eyes at her wife and letting her mind wander to the upcoming event.

  When the Callie Rae Baxter Center had first opened, Hank and Andrea had put up the funding for the first two fiscal years. As a non-profit business, the Center was staffed with volunteers, but it still had operating costs. The Center had been a grand success from day one, helping countless young people who had been displaced or abused because of their sexuality. With only seven months until the end of the fiscal year, Alex and Andrea had decided to throw a private fundraiser to try to get the community more involved in caring for its children. Andrea and Hank had invited all of their friends and business contacts to the event, hoping that with some of the wealthiest people in the state in attendance, their one-hundred-thousand dollar goal would be met. Local business owners, politicians, philanthropists, and even the Governor had jumped at the invitation, and the party had been the talk of the town for the last few weeks. With Andrea happily taking on the event coordination, Alex and Kelly’s only obligation had been to attend.