Challenge: A Contemporary MMA Romance: Oni Fighters Book 3

by Natalie Gayle

  “It’s real, Eden. There really is a baby in me.” I knew it was a dumb thing to say, it was just so surreal.

  She burst out laughing. “Of course there is.”

  “Ladies, I’m just going to get Dr. Collins to come take a look.”

  I suddenly felt uneasy. “Is there a problem?”

  “Just standard procedure. Dr. Collins likes to take a look at all these tests. I’ll be right back.” She got up from the stool and was gone.

  When the door closed, I looked over at the screen. “Hey, little one.”

  “So, what do you think? Boy or girl?” Eden asked me.

  “Mmm, I don’t know…it’s not as if I have a clue about babies. I guess I have a fifty, fifty chance of getting it right.”

  “True, very true,” Eden agreed. “Well, I think it’s a boy.”

  “Why? What makes you think that?”

  “Don’t know, just a feeling.”

  “Fair enough.”

  “Do you have a preference?”

  Did I? I’d only just really come to terms with the fact I was having a baby in the last couple of days. I really hadn’t given the sex of the baby much thought.

  “I don’t think so, at the moment, anyway. Besides, aren’t I just supposed to say—healthy?”

  “Exactly. The world needs both good women and good men. My niece or nephew will be one or the other.”

  The door opened and Dr. Collins came in, followed by Karen.

  “Morning, ladies. Let’s take a look at what we’ve got here.”

  He picked up the probe and started rolling it over my belly. Once again, he went through the motions of running the measurements. I could see the little numbers appear between the points on the screen.

  Then, he seemed to spend a lot of time on the baby’s belly and feelings of dread and fear rose up and threatened to choke me.

  Something was wrong. I just knew it.

  After what seemed like an eternity of staring at the screen, he turned to me. “Sophia, it looks like the baby’s belly has become distended with fluid.”

  Was that bad?

  What did it mean?

  “At present, your baby’s little tummy is measuring the size we would expect for a twenty-one week old fetus. This fetus is twelve weeks. See that black spot there?” He pointed to it on the screen and ran the probe over it on my belly. “That’s not supposed to be there.”

  A little gasp escaped from Eden’s throat and her body tensed up beside mine.

  I couldn’t talk; my throat had closed over and my body felt frozen in fear.

  “All the other tests look good. But, I’ll be honest. I’ve never seen ascites in a fetus so young. If that is what it is. What I’m going to do is get a fetal specialist to take a look and we’ll figure out what to do okay?”

  Words wouldn’t form. All I could do was nod my understanding.

  “Let me just go make a couple of calls and get this sorted out.” He passed me a towel to wipe off the sonar gel.

  A few seconds later, they were both gone from the room again.

  I looked at Eden and I knew she could see the terror in my eyes, because I could see the same in hers.

  She stroked the hair back from my forehead. “It’ll be okay, Sophia. Have faith, it’ll be fine.”

  Faith?

  My world was crumbling. There was something terribly wrong with my baby, our baby, and the baby’s father didn’t even know.

  “Seth, Eden. He needs to know.”

  She nodded. “You’re right.” She took her phone out of her handbag. “Let me call him now.”

  I watched her hands fumble as she turned on the phone and entered the pin. Her hands were like my heart erratically jumping around all over the place.

  Deep breath, Soph. Stay strong. Our baby needs you. I told myself.

  I watched her pull up Seth’s number and call. I held my breath while I heard the telltale ring, ring, ring.

  My heart sank, even further…voicemail.

  To hear his voice and not have him answer when I needed him so bad—it was the worst sort of pain.

  “Seth, it’s Eden and Sophia, please call immediately when you get this.”

  She hung up and fired off a quick text to him as well.

  Then she dialed another number.

  It rang and rang, the sound seemed even louder to my ears in the silent room. “Please, Xan…pick up!” Eden begged as it was just about to go to voicemail.

  “Hey, Gem.” His voice was clear and I realized Eden had pressed the speaker button.

  Relief flooded me. He sounded winded and I figured he’d been training.

  “Xan you’re on speaker, you have to help us,” She blurted out.

  “What’s up, Eden? Are you okay? What’s happened?” His voice was on high alert.

  “I’m fine. We’re at the hospital. Xan, there’s something wrong with the baby. Seth’s not here and really needs to be.”

  I listened to my sister explain it all to him and I was so thankful to have them both. I could rely on them one hundred percent.

  “Right. Hang tight, Gem. I’m on it. I’ll find him and get him to the hospital as soon as I can.”

  “But you’re training…” It kind of all registered as I blurted it out.

  “Fuck training Soph. Text me the details of where you need us to go to.”

  “Thanks, Xan. I love you.” Eden replied.

  “I love you, too! Try not worry. I’ll get him and see you both soon.”

  Xan would find Seth and everything would be okay.

  It had to be, didn’t it?

  The fear was killing me.

  Seth

  What a craptastic morning!

  As if all the shit Anthony—or was it “Dad”—laid on me wasn’t enough. I’d deviated from normal programming. Never before had I ever bought flowers for a woman.

  Today, I’d left the breakfast and been headed to the hospital, on a mission to make things right. I got a wild idea that flowers would be good.

  Wrong!

  Fucking brand new car stopped and wouldn’t start again.

  What the fuck?

  Today, of all days. I wanted to be there, no, I needed to be there. Sophia shouldn’t have to do this alone, wouldn’t be doing it alone very soon if I had my way.

  Now, I just had to wait for a cab, maybe I could still make it? I grabbed my phone off the passenger’s seat of the car from underneath the bouquet of flowers. I’d forgotten to put it in my pocket when the tow guy brought the car here.

  I glanced at the screen. Ten missed calls.

  WHAT THE...???

  I started to scroll to the call screen when the phone rang.

  “Hello?”

  “Thank fuck I got you, man.” It was Xan. “Where the hell are you now?”

  “Dealership at Springwood, my new car’s dead.”

  “Don’t leave, I’ll be there in ten to get you.”

  “Look, Xan, I’ve got a cab coming I should have been at the hospital thirty minutes ago.”

  “Eden just called. She told me to get you. There’s something wrong with the baby and they’re both scared out of their minds.”

  Fear, terror, dread, all seemed to smother me at once. What was wrong?

  “Look, I don’t know any real details. Just that Eden sounded really worried told me to get you there and Soph wasn’t making much sense at all.”

  “Right. I guess I’ll see you in a few then.”

  “Roger that.”

  I hung up and then I realized I was shaking.

  There was something wrong with the baby and my guts were like acid. My emotions were all over the fucking place.

  Think, Seth, logical.

  Focus on the problem.

  I called and cancelled the cab.

  Then, I saw the text from Eden. I sent her one back in response, letting her know I was on my way.

  Soph…she’d be beside herself. I need to be there. I wanted to be there.

  My head was
all over the place after that bullshit from this morning. Two things were clear.

  I wanted Sophia and she needed me.

  I wanted our baby and he or she needed me.

  That would have to do for right now.

  The rest would just have to wait until I had time to figure it out. The most important people in my life came first.

  Somehow, Xander made it in eight minutes, not ten.

  I was waiting at the curb and he slowed down only long enough for me to heft myself in.

  “Thanks, mate.”

  “No problem,” he said, pulling out into the traffic.

  “Do you know anything?”

  “Nope, sorry. What happened?”

  “I was on my way to the hospital and decided to stop off and get something for Soph. Car decided not to start. Has to be electrical, might be a dodgy key who knows right now!”

  “It’s brand new!”

  “That point hasn’t escaped me. Nor the service manager when I chewed his arse. I don’t pay eighty grand and expect the thing to die in the first month.”

  “Ah, no!”

  “Seriously, it’s just par for the course today.” He gave me a sideways glance as if to say, “What?”

  “I had breakfast with Anthony.”

  “Your step-dad?” He all but screeched, so very unlike Xander. He was Mr. Unflappable.

  “Yep, the one and only.”

  “What the fuck for?”

  “Seems there were a lot of secrets in my family Anthony and I had no idea about for a longtime.”

  He briefly looked at me, surprise and curiosity were all over his face. Xander was a mate and wouldn’t ask.

  Instead, I decided to offer. What was the point in keeping the secret? I was refusing to think about all the emotional stuff for the moment. “There’s too much to go into now Xan. The abridged version is Anthony is apparently my biological father.”

  “What the FUCK?” he shouted.

  “Yeah, that seems to be the phrase of the day too.”

  He was still shaking his head in shock.

  “Oh, I can top that, if it’s at all possible. Anthony and the man I thought was my father were actually cousins.”

  “Jesus H Christ on a raft.”

  “There’s more, lots more. But seriously, today Xan—not even going to think about it. I just need to make things right with Sophia. Her and the baby are my priorities. That was the only positive to come out of this morning. The rest is in my rear view mirror. Doesn’t matter here nor there. They can have their bullshit games. I want no part of it, nor do I want to create more for my future. I’m not going to let history repeat itself with fucked up families. I’ve played that game for almost thirty years.”

  I hadn’t really thought about any of this. The words were just coming out of my mouth and I believed them. This was how I felt. I’d never been clearer on anything in my life.

  Xander was still shaking his head, struggling to believe the bombshells I’d dropped on him.

  “Things cleared up for me. After all the crap I went through and living with those people that are apparently my family, I am dead set certain I’m not going to put Sophia or our child through it. If she wants me, I’m there. God knows, I probably don’t deserve it. But I’m ready to give it everything. I need normal. My whole life was a damned lie. One created by other people. From here on out, I’m in the driver’s seat and I’m making the calls on what happens.”

  He nodded. “Good for you, mate. That’s exactly what you need to do. You’re heading for thirty. It’s time to stake out the family you want, not the fucked up shit you’ve been enduring.”

  I realized for the last ten years, I’d half-made that choice of not being part of my family by distancing myself. Although, I realized now I’d still been living in an emotional limbo land. Now I had the truth, I could let it all go. If I had anything to do with them, it would be very much on my terms.

  We might share blood, that didn’t mean we shared the same mindset on how family should be.

  Fortunately, the traffic had lightened right off by this time of day and we got to the hospital with a straight through run.

  “You know where you’re heading?” I asked. Last thing we needed was getting lost in this place.

  “Yeah. Specialist suites. Eden said to park here and take the linkway that joins to the hospital.”

  The urge to run was high. I just wasn’t sure how wise it was.

  My stomach was churning as we reached the door to the specialist suite. I pushed it open with more force than necessary.

  Every head in the waiting room shot up as I strode to the reception desk.

  “Can I help you?” She looked a little taken aback by our abrupt entry.

  “I’m Seth Harris, my girlfriend, Sophia Sommers, is here with her sister.”

  Understanding seemed to immediately register with her and she stood. “Right this way, Mr. Harris. I’ll take you back to her.”

  I turned to follow her and Xander caught my arm. “I’ll wait here, mate.”

  “Bullshit, come with me. You’re family.” Right then, I realized I could use his solid strength. I had no idea what I was about to walk into, that in itself, was fucking terrifying.

  The receptionist led us down a hall then knocked lightly before sticking her head in the room, blocking us from seeing. Whatever words were exchanged were enough for her to open the door and the receptionist stood back to let us in.

  Sophia was sitting on the edge of the bed and Eden had a chair pulled over beside her. Everything blanked out and all I saw was Soph. Her face was etched with worry which then changed to relief and then to tears flooding her eyes and cheeks and her bottom lip trembling.

  She didn’t hesitate. She was off the bed and flinging herself at me hard enough that I had to brace.

  There was no way I’d let her fall.

  “You came.”

  Those two words spoke volumes.

  Right there and then, I vowed to myself, I’d never let her down again.

  I pulled her tight to me and ran my hand over her hair. “Yeah, baby. I would have been here earlier but I had car trouble. Damned thing’s dead. Xan picked me up from the dealership.”

  Her head drew back from under my chin and she looked at me with disbelief and tears trailing down her face. “You were coming?”

  I nodded slowly. “I had some things cleared up for me, and I was coming to surprise you. Guess it all kind of backfired. I should have called to let you know I was going to be here.”

  Her arms wrapped around me firmer.

  “Want to tell me what’s going on?” I whispered to her.

  She pulled back again and a sob wrenched from her throat and that, in turn, struck me to the heart. Sophia glanced at Eden, and something unsaid transferred between them.

  I edged us over to the bed and sat down, holding Sophia on my lap.

  Then, I looked to Eden, who now had Xander standing behind her with his arms locked around her shoulders.

  “Dr, Collins said the baby’s belly is distended with fluid. He’s not sure why and wants a fetal specialist to take a look. Apparently, the baby’s little tummy is the size of a twenty-one week old fetus. He said he’s never seen it before.”

  “What?” I was trying to comprehend it.

  “He left a still image on the screen.” I glanced over to where she was pointing at the ultrasound machine. “See the black area, that’s it.” I looked but I wasn’t seeing. There were lots of darker areas on the screen.

  Sophia let forth with a whole new round of tears and I held her through it. Eden’s eyes were glassy with unshed tears and I glanced up at Xander and his jaw was tight.

  “So, what’s happening next?”

  “Dr. Collins said he would be a few minutes. He hasn’t come back yet and that was ages ago.”

  It’d been the longest hour of my life. I was fast learning that allowing myself to feel stuff was far more exhausting than physical exercise.

  “We
’ll get through this, Soph,” I whispered in her ear. I had no idea what else to say or promise. Just how bad was it? What did it mean when this guy said he’d never seen it before?

  She curled in tighter.

  The door opened.

  “Sorry to keep you all waiting like this. Took me a little while to locate Dr. Chambers. I’m Dr. Collins.” He moved across and stuck his hand out. I would have stood but Sophia seemed comfortable. I shook his hand a little awkwardly from my seated position.

  “Seth Harris. Sophia’s boyfriend.” I needed to figure out a better title. Boyfriend seemed weird. I was the father of our child, boyfriend seemed far too casual now.

  The doctor looked to Xander and we all knew he recognized Xan.

  “Xander Todd.” He had the advantage of standing to shake hands.

  “Great fight in Vegas.”

  “Thanks.”

  The doctor turned back to me, all business again. “So, as I explained to Sophia and Eden before, the baby has what we call ascites in the abdominal cavity. It happens from time to time. I’ve just never seen it in a fetus this early. I’ve organized for you to head down to Dr. Chambers’ rooms. Hopefully, he can shed some light on this and come up with a plan of action.”

  I didn’t like the sound of any of this.

  “Be honest here, Doc. What are we looking at?”

  He sighed and looked grim.

  “Very hard to say. And I don’t mean to be evasive. The Nuchal fold test was good for Down Syndrome, that’s a positive. I can’t tell if the baby has any other chromosomal issues from what I know and the tests we’ve done to date. Most pregnancies with chromosomal issues spontaneously miscarry by this stage. Let’s see what Dr. Chambers’ thoughts are then work out what to do.”

  He didn’t know.

  I had to ask the question that everyone was skirting.

  “Are we going to lose the baby?”

  Gasps went up from Eden and Sophia.

  “I don’t know, but I don’t think the odds are good.”

  I felt like I’d been punched in the gut.

  If we lost the baby, would I lose Sophia, too?

  28

  Sophia

  It felt like I was in a daze.