Unexpected

by Jenny Frame

  Dale was more than a little surprised Trent was being so open and honest. She supposed when life hung in the balance like this, the most important things became clearer. “People want different things, Trent. That’s okay.”

  “Ten years I let slip by. I always had this thought that eventually we might get back together, but Becca never dated, so I suppose I thought I had all the time in the world. Then you came along.”

  Dale looked at her with sympathy. “I came along and messed things up for you?”

  Trent shook her head. “No, you came along and made her happy. Something I didn’t do. You’re right for her, Dale. You give her the family she’s always wanted, and I wish you both happiness.”

  Now Dale really was surprised and touched. Trent offered her hand in friendship. Dale took it immediately and said, “I’m glad she has you as a friend.”

  “Treat Becca well, okay?” Trent said.

  “I always will. I would move heaven and earth to make her happy.”

  A man in doctor’s scrubs entered the waiting room. “Is there a Trent here with a Rebecca Harper?”

  They both stood and Trent said gallantly, “I’m Trent, and this is her partner, Dale McGuire. I’m their solicitor.”

  Trent took a step back and Dale patted her on the shoulder. “Thanks, mate. How is she, doctor?”

  “Rebecca’s placenta ruptured, and we had to get the baby out of there before she was starved of oxygen. The baby is in an incubator under observation—we’re not out of the woods yet, and she is premature, but the signs are good.”

  Dale was terrified to ask the next question. “And Becca?”

  “Rebecca lost a lot of blood, but she’s in recovery now. We’re hopeful she can make a full recovery.”

  “Hopeful?” Dale snapped. “Does that mean there’s a chance she won’t be?”

  “Ms. McGuire, when patients lose a lot of blood, there is always a chance of problems, but you got her help quickly, so everything is positive at the moment. If you would like to see her, I’ll get a nurse to take you to her.”

  “Yes, please. I want to see her.”

  When the doctor left, Dale felt her legs turn to jelly. She sat down quickly.

  “Are you okay, Dale?” Trent put a comforting hand on her shoulder.

  “Aye, aye.” Dale quickly wiped away the tears of relief and fear. “It just hit me that if I hadn’t come back today, if Becca had done that interview, she might be dead now, the baby might be dead…” She leaped up and grabbed her jacket.

  Trent moved quickly and stood in front of the waiting room door. “Where are you going?”

  “I’m going to find that Ashley Duval and kick her arse. She nearly killed Becca, and our baby.”

  Trent placed her hand on Dale’s chest. “Listen, Dale. That is not going to do any good. You’ll get yourself arrested, and then the first face Becca will see when she wakes up is mine. You don’t want that, do you?” Trent joked.

  Dale fought with the anger trying to take control of her. “No.”

  “Then take a few breaths and calm down. Anger is a lot easier an emotion to deal with than fear, but it’s better to face fear than get lost in anger. Let me deal with Duval. She and her newspaper are going to have a huge lawsuit coming their way for harassment, and unless they want an exclusive interview published in a rival newspaper about their journalist tactics, then they’ll get her under control and write Becca a large cheque. You take care of Becca and Jake, and let me do my thing, okay?”

  Dale let out a long breath. “Okay, okay. I’m calm, I’m calm.”

  There was a knock and they both stood back to let the nurse in. “Dale McGuire?”

  “Aye, that’s me.”

  “I’ll take you through to see Rebecca. Follow me.”

  Dale turned to Trent and said, “Could you do me a favour and find Jake? My friends took him the restaurant and gift shop.”

  “No problem.” Trent hesitated. “When you can, will you give her my love?”

  Dale gave her a smile. “You can tell her yourself.”

  * * *

  Dale had never been so frightened in her life as she was now, looking at all sorts of leads and tubes coming from Becca, and hearing the noise and beep of the machines.

  The last time she had been in this situation had been when her mum had her stroke, and that one event had sparked the most painful time in her life.

  This time Dale couldn’t let that happen. She took Becca’s hand and held it tightly.

  “Becca, I know you’re tired and you need to sleep, but I just want you to know that Jake, me, and the wee yin will be waiting for you when you wake up, and we all love you.”

  There was no response apart from the beep of the machines. One of the nurses taking care of Becca came in to check her vitals. As she worked around Becca, she said to Dale, “You’re Rebecca’s partner?”

  “Yes, my name’s Dale.”

  “Did someone tell you that you could go and see the baby?”

  “Uh, yeah. I want to wait and see her with Becca. Is the baby still doing okay?”

  The nurse smiled. “Yes she’s doing well. She’s a strong girl.”

  My little baby girl. There had been something bothering Dale, and it was making guilt gnaw at her stomach. She had been too nervous to ask the doctor, but this nurse seemed sympathetic.

  “Nurse, could I ask you something?”

  “It’s Maggie, and of course you can.”

  This was so embarrassing, but she had to know because she was driving herself crazy, blaming herself.

  “The last month, Becca’s pressure was a lot better, and in fact she kind of began to forget about her problems. And, well, we…”

  “Yes?”

  “We made love over the last few weeks. Did that contribute to Becca’s problems?”

  Maggie shook her head. “Not at all. Rebecca’s doctor was very happy with her recently, but going by her records, Rebecca had high blood pressure and nearly had pre-eclampsia with her first birth. She’s a lot older now, and I understand she’d been under a lot of stress. It’s just one of those things.”

  Dale held Becca’s hand and prayed she would open her eyes soon.

  * * *

  Dale took a box from her jacket and brought it over to the bed. She kissed Becca’s forehead gently. “Listen, hen, I’ve been walking around with this box in my pocket all week. I was going to ask you to marry me. I wanted to give us both the family we’ve been looking for.”

  She bent down and whispered in Becca’s ear, “I hope you’ll say yes. Val helped me choose it, and it’s a really good diamond, so you better wake up or no diamond for you, okay?”

  Becca began to murmur and move, and Dale’s heart started to beat fast.

  “That’s it, babe. Open those eyes.”

  Dale smiled with joy as Becca’s eyes flickered open. “Yes, I knew a posh girl would wake up with the promise of a diamond.”

  Becca was mumbling something she couldn’t quite make out.

  “What is it, hen?”

  “Baby?”

  Dale knelt down at the side of the bed, grasped her hand, and kissed it repeatedly with relief. “Oh, thank God, you’re awake. I was so scared. The baby is fine, they’ve got her in an incubator and we can see her whenever we want.”

  Becca’s voice was a little stronger this time. “Yes.”

  Dale was confused. “Yes…what do you mean, yes?”

  Becca managed a small little smile. “Yes, I’ll marry you. I want my diamond.”

  “Yes! I love you, babe. We’re going to have a great family and a great life. No more secrets, no more looking over your shoulder. Ashley Duval will not be a problem to you any more.”

  Dale took the ring from the box and placed it on Becca’s finger. Becca lifted her hand to see the ring.

  “It’s beautiful. Thank you. Where’s Jake?”

  Dale gave her another soft kiss on the lips. “I’ll let the nurse know you’re awake, and then I’ll get Jak
e. Sammy and Val are here too, and…” Dale hesitated. “Trent’s here too. She’s been helpful and kind. She really cares about you.”

  Becca managed to croak, “Thank you for letting her in. She’s always been good to me.”

  Dale smiled and nodded. “I’ll run and get the family then.”

  “That would be nice.”

  * * *

  Becca couldn’t have been any more happy if she tried, as she held her newborn baby girl in the neonatal unit. Dale had taken her along in a wheelchair to visit their new child. Becca was very sore, but none of the pain mattered when the nurse laid the baby on her chest. She was filled with such love, just as she had been with Jake, but this time she had someone to share it with—Dale, the woman who had saved their little family, and saved her soul. It gave Becca such a warm joyful feeling to know she was holding a little part of Dale in her arms.

  Dale was kneeling beside her chair, looking at the baby with awe. They both had on plastic aprons to protect the baby from germs.

  “She’s so tiny, and so perfect,” Dale said, as the baby held her finger.

  “She is,” Becca agreed. “But she’s going to get a lot bigger. Most McGuires do.”

  Dale looked at her with a mixture of confusion and disbelief. “Do they?”

  Becca smiled and nodded. “That’s what I want us to be when we get married. Harper was never real, and Carter has nothing but bad memories. The name McGuire will bind us all together forever.”

  Dale stared open-mouthed at her, and seemed unsure how to react, so Becca joked, “Are you changing your mind already, McGuire? You did give me a diamond ring, did you not? Or maybe you don’t want to leave Britney behind.”

  Dale smiled. “Britney who? Thank you, that means so much to me. What about her first name? Is our favourite still Grace?”

  Becca kissed the fluffy wisps of brown hair on the baby’s head. “Yes, that’s what she and you have brought to Jake’s and my life. Grace Mary McGuire. How about that?”

  “Wow, that’s perfect. Hi, wee Gracie, do you like your new name Mummy gave you?”

  Becca chuckled. She knew from now on the baby would forever be Gracie. It suited her perfectly.

  “Does Mum want to hold her wee yin?” Becca asked.

  Dale looked terrified. “Ah…I’ll break her or something. Maybe when she’s bigger.”

  “Don’t be a scaredy-cat.” Without giving her a choice, Becca asked the nurse for another chair for Dale.

  Dale sat down and the nurse showed her how to hold the baby. At first Dale was stiff with terror, but when the nurse laid Gracie against her chest, she started to relax and smile.

  “Hey, wee yin. I’ve been so excited to meet you. I love you so much and I promise you that I’ll never leave you or turn my back on you, no matter what you do.”

  Becca had thought nothing could compare with holding her children, but she was wrong. Watching Dale hold Grace with such love and tenderness melted her heart. Tears started to fall. “Dale, I love you.”

  Dale smiled and replied, “I love you too. Thanks for trusting me and letting me in.”

  Her partner began to talk incessantly to the baby, telling her about Jake, the vicarage, and how she was going to get them chickens, ducks, and goats.

  Jake and Gracie were going to have a wonderful life, thanks to Dale, and so was she.

  “Look, she’s sucking my finger,” Dale said. “She must be hungry. I bet she’ll want pureed jalapeños in her milk, with the amount you ate during your pregnancy.”

  Becca laughed. “Probably.”

  Then Dale whispered to the baby, “Oh, Gracie, I’ve got a good joke for you. Why did the jalapeño wear a jumper?”

  Becca interrupted. “Uh-uh. I think we better get Jake in to see Gracie before you bore her to sleep with your bad jokes.”

  “You love my bad jokes, but you’re right. I’ll go and get him.”

  Dale handed the baby back to her and walked out to get their son. Becca had the family she always dreamed of at last, and now she could look forward in life, not over her shoulder.

  Epilogue

  Six months later

  The summer sun was shining brightly down on the vicarage’s back garden. It was looking wonderful after being landscaped and planted with some beautiful flowers.

  A perfect day for a barbecue for Dale, Becca, and their friends. Sadie and Val were bringing dishes of food from the kitchen out to the picnic tables, Jake and Mia were running around with water guns, laughing and screaming, and Becca was setting up her camera on its tripod.

  “A little to the right, Trent,” Becca shouted over the noise of the children.

  Both Trent and Sammy were setting out the chairs for the family picture Becca wanted to take.

  “Is that okay?” Sammy asked.

  “Looks good, just let me check.” Becca looked through the viewfinder, and smiled when she felt a hand slide over the small of her back. She knew that hand only too well, and got a rush as she remembered how both Dale’s hands had touched her last night.

  Becca turned around and found Dale standing there with Gracie in her arms. The baby reached out for her. “Mumma.”

  “She wanted her mummy, because Mum’s tickling her too much.”

  Gracie giggled as Dale tickled her tummy again.

  “Okay, come to Mummy, before Mum gets you too excited.”

  Dale handed the baby over and said, “You never complain when I get you overexcited, Mrs. McGuire.”

  Becca gave her a swipe on the bum. “Behave. I do have my family lawyer here, so unless you want to head to the divorce courts, then you behave.”

  Dale leaned over and kissed Becca so softly and tenderly, it made Becca moan. She pulled back and said with a lot of confidence, “Nah, you’re never getting rid of me, babe. Isn’t that right, wee yin?”

  Gracie replied, “Mumma.”

  “See?” Dale clapped her hands together. “Okay, are we ready for this picture, because my hair is at peak awesomeness.”

  Becca laughed and said to the baby, “Mum is very silly, isn’t she?”

  Dale put her arm around them both. “Well, I make you two smile.”

  Becca laid her head on Dale’s shoulder, and they both watched Jake and Mia run around having so much fun.

  “Jake’s like a different boy since you’ve come into his life. He has fun and doesn’t live in his head so much.”

  “He’s got a great friend in Mia, anyway. I think those two are going to take over the gaming world,” Dale joked.

  “I know. It’s so great he has a friend, and they like the same things. Mia brings fun to his life, just like you. You came into my world and told me stupid jokes until I laughed and fell in love with you.”

  Dale kissed her brow. “I’m nothing if not persistent.”

  “I’m being serious, darling. This…” Becca indicated to the beautiful garden, and their friends chatting away happily, and then the vicarage that was now freshly painted and looking fantastic. “None of this would have happened if Jake hadn’t found you. You were completely unexpected but the best thing that’s ever happened to me.”

  “Thank God Jake found me, or I would have missed out on my family.” Dale turned and put her arms around Becca’s waist, leaving the baby in between. “It’s like I was living in this parallel universe, working hard, going out to clubs, never knowing I had this family waiting for me. Then Jake came along and opened up the door between the two worlds.”

  “And what did you think when you saw us on the other side?” Becca asked.

  “From the first glimpse, I knew I wanted in, but I had to convince you, and you can be one hell of a stubborn woman, hen.”

  “Maybe.”

  “But I worked hard and I got there, and I’m never going back.”

  Jake came running over to them. “Mummy, can we take the picture so we can eat? We’re starving.”

  “Okay, get everyone to sit.”

  Becca handed the baby back to Dale and began to
set the timer.

  Dale took a seat in the middle and waited for Becca to hurry over. Sammy, Val, Mia, and Trent were all there and were all part of the family they had created.

  Becca took her seat beside Dale and said, “Ten seconds, everyone, say Cheese!”

  The camera flashed and caught a happy moment in time. Because sometimes the best things are unexpected.

  About the Author

  Jenny Frame is from the small town of Motherwell in Scotland, where she lives with her partner, Lou, and their well-loved and very spoiled dog.

  She has a diverse range of qualifications, including a BA in public management and a diploma in acting and performance. Nowadays, she likes to put her creative energies into writing rather than treading the boards.

  When not writing or reading, Jenny loves cheering on her local football team, which is not always an easy task!

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