by Anthology
***
"Ivy!" Holly snapped and Ivy jerked to look at her. "You in a tunnel today or what?" she sighed.
"Sorry," Ivy muttered, picking up her foam roller. "I need some water, I'll be right there."
Ivy wandered through the gym to the drinking fountain, trying to clear her head, but she'd been so clouded and wasn't sure if it was what Derrick's mom told her that Saturday or what.
Her five other Tabata classes that afternoon almost killed her.
"Come on," Holly panted and stood up straight. "We have thirty minutes before CrossFit."
"Hol," Ivy said, still catching her breath. "I'm not feeling good."
"You want to sit out the first class?"
"No. I gotta go home." She brought a serious green-eyed stare to Holly. "I have to go lay down."
"Okay." Holly nodded with concern. "You okay?"
"Yeah. I'll be in Saturday morning."
"You want tomorrow off?" Holly asked in confusion.
"I'm already scheduled off. It's Deluché's x-ray."
"Oh, right. I forgot. Okay, cool. Call Saturday if you're still not feeling good. Get some rest. Eat something. You look pale."
***
"Mom!" Deluché yelled through the house for the third time. "You said you didn't want to be late, but you're making us late!"
"I'm coming!" Ivy called out, squatting over the toilet, peeing on a stick. "Get in the car, I'll be right there!"
Deluché turned up the radio on the quiet drive, while Ivy zoned out, not even sure how they ended up at the hospital without getting into a car accident because she was in a daze the entire drive.
Deluché giggled while they slowly walked through the large rotating door.
"Good morning." The woman behind the front desk smiled.
"Hi." Ivy smiled. "She's getting an upper GI today."
"Okay, just go around the corner and sign in." The cheery woman smiled at Deluché.
After registering, they sat down and she tried to keep up while Deluché rambled about her soccer practice.
"Deluché Rice," a nurse called out.
Ivy took her hand and followed the nurse.
"All right, pretty girl. I need you to put this gown on." With a big smile, the nurse handed Deluché a hospital gown.
While Ivy helped her, Deluché snapped, "Mom! You're putting both arms in the hole."
"Sorry, sorry," Ivy muttered, trying to snap out of her trance.
They were taken into the x-ray lab and the nurse helped Deluché onto the table.
"I’m Ms. Deloris.” She smiled. “We're gonna take pictures of your belly, then the doctor will come in and he'll give you something to drink and we'll take a few more pictures. Sound good?"
Deluché nodded with a smile and her eyes flashed to her mom.
Ivy smiled. "It's a model shoot for your insides, D." She laughed, making Deluché giggle.
"Okay, honey, mom's gonna step back here."
Ivy followed the woman to the back of the room.
"You pregnant mom? Not that you're not safe, I just like pregnant women to stand in there." She grinned pointing to a smaller boxed in room with a few computers and a window.
"Um." Ivy cleared her throat and whispered, "Yes."
"Okay." She smiled amiably. "Go ahead."
Ivy walked around the corner with her head down in shame. When she heard the buzz of the machine, she looked out the window, then to the screen of one of the three monitors in front of her. The image of Deluché's ribs, spine, and hips illuminated on the screen.
Letting out a shaky breath, Ivy quickly wiped her running nose that started with the tears she was managing to keep under control caused by her pregnancy discovery.
"Just a few more, sweetheart," the woman called to Deluché then walked into the room with Ivy. "So the radiologist will come in and have her drink the barium. You'll see it all through here." She pointed to the screen. "That's her stomach, her esophagus, he'll see any twists or turns."
Ivy nodded in understanding.
"Time for a ride, pretty girl," she said while walking toward Deluché.
Ivy stared at the screen, not seeing anything because she was in a daze that she needed to snap out of. She wanted to understand everything that was happening with Deluché. Unable to stop the onslaught of tears, she sat in the chair and dropped her head, holding a tissue to her nose. She missed the radiologist having Deluché drink the barium, and she missed the pictures, but the radiologist would explain what she couldn't understand anyway.
"All right, missy, you're all done," he said to Deluché, giving her a huge smile. "Where's mom?" he asked his assistant.
"In my pregnancy box," she quietly told him with a smile.
He chuckled, finding the woman's ideas ridiculous, but he knew if there were a pregnant woman in the lab there was no way Deloris would let them stay out of the box. Deloris went to help Deluché, while he went to find Ivy.
Looking up, Ivy noticed they were done and she quickly cleared her throat, wiping her face. Rounding the corner, she smacked roughly into a hard chest; it didn't help he was wearing a protective lead vest.
"Whoa," he grunted, grabbing her arms before she fell backward. "You all right?" When he looked down at the small woman, his eyes went bright.
"So sorry," Ivy said embarrassedly and looked up at him; her eyes widened with fear as she looked into Rule's face.
"Ivy," he said.
"Uh." Her eyes flashed to Deluché, who was distracted by Deloris. "Um, hi."
"You have a daughter?" He glanced back at Deluché in confusion. "Wait, and you're pregnant?"
Ivy stared at him, locked in his gaze. Her mouth was agape and she was holding her breath, not sure what to say. Her brain wasn't processing thought while she stared, lost in his swirling chocolate eyes that looked eerily similar to Derrick's.
"Are you married?" he whispered with worry.
"No!" she blurted, stepping back and breaking their gaze.
"You have a boyfriend?" he asked in confusion.
"What?" she snapped. "I-what? I-you-this is none of your business. Why are you here?"
"I'm the radiologist," he explained. "Just tell me, were you in a relationship two months ago?"
Ivy groaned and dropped her head. "No, I'm not in a relationship, I wasn't in a relationship then. I didn't cheat," she grumbled with aggravation.
"Doctor Ivie, Deluché wants to see what her insides look like." Deloris grinned up at Rule.
"Um, yeah. Sure. Come back here with mom, Deluché," Rule called out and stepped around Ivy. "So." He pointed to the screen, but his brain wasn't processing thought with her that close. All his senses were in overdrive.
He was baffled Deluché was her daughter, and baffled Ivy was pregnant. He supposed Ivy didn't need to tell him either of those things that night, but he damn well hoped she wasn't pregnant that night because she was most definitely drunk.
"Here's the liquid," he mumbled, pointing to the screen. "No kinks or twists preventing it from getting to her stomach. There's her small intestines and the liquid is already traveling, so no problems getting out of her stomach.”
Ivy sighed. "So this tells me nothing," she grumbled.
"It tells you her esophagus is fully functioning properly."
"So now I'm back to square one," she muttered, knowing it wasn't Rule's fault, or problem. He was only the radiologist.
"Well, what's the issue?” He smiled at Deluché who was no longer interested in the picture of her insides, she was going through Deloris' suckers.
"She has GERD," Ivy mumbled, making it a point not to look at him.
"Mom, can I take Deluché next door? That's where the loot is. We can't find a flavor she likes."
Ivy's eyes went to Deluché, who was smiling so sweetly it made her chuckle. "Sure." Her eyes mistakenly found Rule's so she could continue to explain, but she didn't explain, she stared, entranced by him, remembering that face like it was just yesterday they slept together.
&n
bsp; Getting to his feet, his hand softly went to her face and his thumb smoothed over her cheek. "Were you crying?" he quietly asked.
"No," she snapped, pushing his hand away. "Look, Rule, this is really awkward. So these will just get over to Deluché's doctor, then?"
"Yeah," he spoke quietly with a nod. "Why'd you leave that morning? How'd you leave?" He chuckled as he remembered waking up alone and praying she was only in the shower.
"I don't do one-night-stands. I've never in my life had a one-night-stand. I drank too much and it shouldn't have happened. I'm sorry."
'It shouldn't have happened' stung.
"So now you have a boyfriend?"
"No. Stop, Rule. It's really inappropriate for you to question my personal life. You're the radiologist who read my daughter's x-rays—”
"And we slept together almost two months ago. We had a pretty amazing night actually, even before getting to my place. I deserve answers just to put my mind at ease."
"I told you I didn't cheat on anyone. I'm very much single, and very much content staying single."
"So you had another one-night-stand then?" he cockily asked.
"What?" Her brows angrily scrunched and she wanted to slap him.
"You're pregnant, Ivy," he uttered at her like she was dense.
She stared into his eyes for a few seconds, realizing he didn't comprehend it was with his child.
That was for the best.
"So we're all set then, right?" When he didn't answer and he just stared down at her, she cleared her throat. "Thanks." Stepping around him, she headed for the door.
Realization hit him and he inhaled sharply. "Ivy!" he blurted before she could make it out the door. He walked farther into the room and stood before her. "Is.…" His eyes drifted around the room, then back to her face. He took her hands and she was going to pull away, until his touch sent a tingle through her. "Is that my baby?" he whispered.
The shock of her situation jolted painfully through her and turned her on her heel and out the door.
"You have to tell me, you know," he yelled to her. "I have a right to know!"
A patient on a gurney in the hallway furrowed his brows while looking at Rule. Rule cleared his throat and pulled on his lab coat. Storming back into the lab, he went to Deluché's information and pulled her up in the system.
Ivy didn't say yes, but she didn't say no, and he was determined to find out.
ABOUT H.Q. Frost
H.Q. Frost is a fiction dictator of contemporary romance, but not limited to. To connect with H.Q. find her at her on Facebook, https://www.facebook.com/H.Q.FrostAuthor, or send an email to [email protected]
Tryst
By Brooklyn Taylor
I’m finally getting some much needed peace and quiet from the living hell that life can turn into so quickly. The kind of life that becomes unrecognizable over night, a nightmare becoming reality. Really, I confess I knew that something wasn’t right. I recognized the little signs that didn’t seem right but ignored them. The coming home late, always away for work, never looking me in the eye, and the worst of them all not being intimate for years. I don’t remember the last night I didn’t have to use my rabbit. Yes, you know what I am talking about.
Arriving in Costa Rica today was bitter sweet. My husband Anderson and I were going to celebrate our ten year anniversary here. We had been planning it since the day we got married. It was an ongoing dream of ours since we never really got a formal honeymoon. He was just starting out at his job and I was content just to be with him. He could’ve done anything and I would have stood by his side. Well, until the hellish ordeal I walked into two days ago. I’ve loved Anderson for as long as I can remember. I don’t recall existing before him in my life.
It’s astonishing to me how fast that can all change. Lord knows how bad my heart aches for what I had with him at one time but that wasn’t us any longer; it hadn’t been for a very long time. Now, I don’t have a choice.
I came home from a day of shopping getting ready for our trip. I wanted to buy some special lingerie and swimsuits to surprise him. It had been quite a while since we had made love and the last time we did it was wham, bam, thank you ma’am. You know how old married couples get and we certainly had become that. It used to be a priority on our to do list, falling to dead last. He was always so busy and I never spoke up.
I hollered as I walked into our home and said his name seductively. Something about the shopping and thinking about our trip away, our first true honeymoon, had me excited and ready to take my man. He had bought me a day at the spa to help me prep for our trip saying he wanted to treat “his wife that he doesn’t show how much he loves.” I got the much needed wax to the appropriate parts and left early trying to get home itching at the bit to get out of town. We needed it so badly and it had come at the perfect time. I felt like we were growing further and further apart and hoped this trip would bridge the distance bringing us back together.
We didn’t fight. Anderson wasn’t aggressive in any way, shape or form. It was one of the things I liked about him but now, if I got mad, he didn’t. It got to where he showed very little emotion and seemed almost numb. He got frustrated if I showed emotion so I tried not to, holding it in until I would have a break down while he was away at work. It had essentially gotten to the point that many nights in bed, as I waited for him to join me, I wondered if he would even notice if I was gone? He said he still loved me, but every action he took said differently.
Anyway, like I said, I walked into our home and couldn’t wait to wrap my legs around him. I was so anxious to get him to myself, no one could interrupt us. I wanted that intimacy back, needed it really. As I said, I had even gotten a Brazilian wax to spice things up a bit. I read that it was a major turn on for men. At this point, I would do anything to bring some passion back into our marriage.
I took my off heels before I strolled across the cold ceramic tile that covered our first story so that I could sneak up on him. I wanted to whisper in his ear how badly I had been craving him. I had always been the type of woman that could live with or without sex, not needing it or thinking about it either way. As I have aged, that has changed, and the intimacy that Anderson and I were lacking was eating at me.
He wasn’t anywhere to be found along the first floor so I made my way up the stairs. I felt the adrenaline pumping through my veins with the intensity that I was determined to take the lead and show my man how much I loved and needed him. I was ecstatic and couldn’t hold my hands steady. This was a role I hadn’t played before. I was usually passive, letting him take the lead, and never pushing if he resisted me.
I turned the corner to our beautiful master bathroom connected to our massive bedroom that over looked the greenery all around our property. I had gotten lost staring out of those windows when I had been lonely. Then, I heard my husband laugh and then another voice.
“Turn around baby, I want to fuck you from behind at least twice before you have to leave. We should have the house to ourselves until at least 6 o’clock.”
“When will the she-monster be home?”
“I gave her a whole line of bull shit of how much I loved her and wanted to give her a day to show how much I appreciated her.” I heard a kiss and a moan. “Baby, I don’t want to talk about that cold bitch right now. I want to get buried deep in you.” Then I hear a smack on what I can only assume was her ass and then a giggle.
“Oh yes, I love how big your dick is sliding in my pussy. Hit me harder, harder. Don’t stop.”
I stood by the door in absolute shock, horrified that my husband had bought me the spa day so he could screw some whore in our own home! He is cheating on me with some fucking bitch. No wonder he hasn’t touched me; and when he did it was clinical, it was like a bad movie put on replay just to run through the motions. The only thing missing was the latex gloves.
I listen at the door to the sounds of their wet bodies slapping each other. I hear him tell her things he hadn’t told me in years.
“I love to be buried in your pussy baby. I can’t get enough of you.”
I hear her grunting and moaning with pleasure and the rage is filling my whole body. I have never felt so much anger. I could murder the fucker and whatever hooker is in my bathroom with him. The bathroom that I decorated, that I cleaned, that I bathed in.
The water finally turns off and I hear him tell her how good she felt. She agrees and tells him to give her a few minutes and then she wants him again, and that is when I lost my shit.
I stood in the doorway holding the towel for him with the biggest smile on my face while the enormous tears started to fall. The drops were blinding my eyes and I was trying not to blink to keep them prisoner in my eyes.
He pulled the curtain back and stood there in complete humility. You know the look, the criminal caught in his crime. He knew there was nothing he was going to say to get him out of this. My sweet, innocent, loving husband that I married and loved with all my being was screwing another wom….
Mother fucker. I lean over the toilet and vomit all my salad I had eaten for lunch at the spa. The other woman was getting out of the shower in all of her glory accompanied by my naked asshole husband. He came to my aide pulling my hair back trying to help me, like it was the flu and he was doing his loving husband duties.
“It’s ok Kris... Get it all up.” His voice…
I lift my head out of the toilet and wipe my mouth with my sleeve. I take a deep breath knowing it’s not going to relieve the pain from the knife that had been stuck and twisted in my back.
“Get the fuck off me. I…”
My husband speaks up, “Kris, let me explain.”
I look at him and if I would have had something to kill him with I would have.
“Do you really have an explanation for fucking my sister?”
She speaks up trying to defend him which only pisses me off more. “We are not sisters. I mean, we are. But we aren’t really.”
“You’re my half sister. You met my husband at our wedding. What do you mean we aren’t sisters? You have got to be the stupidest fucking whore I have ever met. I can’t believe you would try to say we aren’t sisters. Call it what you will, you are screwing my husband in my home that you have come to for dinners, birthdays and holidays. You disgust me.”
