Tainted

by Tess Thompson

  “I have nine months to get her to realize I’m the man for her. Then we can live happily ever after with our baby.”

  “This is the worst idea you’ve ever had,” Kyle said.

  Lance grinned. Telling the truth had freed him. “It’s epically bad.”

  “I agree there are a few flaws in the plan,” Zane said. “However, he’s not the only one in this room to venture into what seemed like a hopeless love story.”

  “Violet fell in love with me even though she hated my guts for ruining the planet,” Kyle said.

  “And the town,” Zane said. “Don’t forget that part.”

  “You didn’t ruin the town. You brought hundreds of jobs,” Jackson said.

  “Even Violet admits that now,” Kyle said. “Mostly because of my superior skills in bed.”

  “What is wrong with you?” Jackson asked.

  Kyle wriggled his fingers. “Not a thing.”

  “Honor fell in love with me even though I’m a stalker,” Zane said.

  “You’re not a stalker,” Jackson said. “I don’t like it when you say that. It sounds tawdry and really cheapens a beautiful love story. Anyway, I have the best example.”

  Kyle laughed. “Yeah, no question. Maggie coming back from the dead wins.”

  “So, what you guys are saying here is that I shouldn’t give up?” Lance asked.

  Brody guffawed, like an old man. Lance would love to punch him in his arrogant face and be done with it.

  “Dude, not cool,” Kyle said to Brody. “What’s the matter with you? This is Lance. Best guy we know. Why are you being such an ass?”

  Brody shook his head in obvious disgust. “May I remind you that this is Mary Hansen we’re talking about? Self-centered, petty, overly reliant on her daddy.”

  “Let’s back up for a moment,” Kyle said. “Think about what Mary’s been through. I know from personal experience that pain can cause self-destructive behavior. I’m a primary example of that.”

  “When did you turn into a chick?” Brody asked, but with less venom than before.

  “You need to think of things from her point of view,” Zane said.

  Brody scratched his neck. “That’s what Kara said to me last night. Who, by the way, isn’t speaking to me.”

  “Good girl,” Zane said.

  “Here’s what you’re going to do about Mary,” Kyle said to Lance. “You’re going to love her so hard she has absolutely no reason to believe you’d ever want another woman like you want her.”

  “I agree,” Jackson said. “Pull out all the stops. I’m talking romance, not just sex. Woo her. Let her see that you’d do anything to have her.”

  “Keep showing up every day without expecting anything in return,” Zane said.

  “Make a grand gesture,” Brody said.

  “Grand gesture?” Lance asked.

  Brody nodded. “In all great love stories, a man makes a grand gesture—a sacrifice that leaves no doubt in her mind how much you love her.”

  “I think he did that when he married her,” Jackson said.

  Lance nodded, more disheartened than ever. “I’ve already made my grand gesture and it didn’t work.”

  “You could read one of those romance novels she loves. Get some tips on how to win her trust,” Kyle said.

  Lance stared at his friend. “That’s a heck of an idea.”

  “There’s a reason why women love them, right?” Kyle pointed at the others. “These knuckleheads could use some tips too. Myself, I’m good.”

  Brody tossed a beer cap at him. “I’m better than good.”

  Kyle flicked the cap back at Brody. “Women like romance.”

  “Like you know anything about that,” Zane said. “Jackson here, maybe.”

  Jackson flashed his gentle smile. “It’s easy to be romantic when you’re married to an angel.”

  Kyle clutched his throat. “I think I just threw up in my mouth.”

  “It’s a shame I can’t give her tequila. That worked last time,” Lance said.

  Zane looked over at Kyle before answering, like alpha dogs in collusion. “You don’t need it. Be the tequila.”

  “Yep. Be the tequila,” Kyle said. “Wear down her defenses until there’s no way she can say no.”

  “If you love her, fight for her.” Brody looked over at him with soft eyes. “And for what it’s worth, Kara thinks she loves you. She said there’s no way she’s that good of an actress. You can’t fake the way she looks at you.”

  Lance closed his eyes for a moment. “God, I hope she’s right.”

  “Me too,” Brody said. “If that’s what you want.” Brody shrugged in a gesture of apology like he used to do when they were kids and had fought over a toy. He couldn’t come right out and say the words, but Lance knew he was sorry. “I’ll support you.”

  Lance mumbled a thank you, embarrassed. Then, he grimaced and looked at the others. “Listen, is there any way in hell you could keep this from your wives?”

  “Why?” Brody asked.

  “It would be nice for Mary if they thought our marriage was real. She needs their support,” Lance said.

  “Impossible. Honor will kick my ass if she thinks I’ve kept something like this from her,” Zane said.

  “I tell Maggie everything,” Jackson said.

  “Even if I wanted to, it’s impossible,” Kyle said. “Violet has ways of pulling things out of me.”

  “Same. When it comes to Kara, resistance is futile,” Brody said.

  An hour later, they took a break from their game to have slices of pizza. Jackson excused himself to make a phone call but returned a few minutes later to join them back at the table.

  “I called one of my med school friends,” Jackson said to Lance. “Winifred Block. Freddie. Doctor Block now. She has a practice in the city—specializes in high risk pregnancies. I called her, and she said she can squeeze you guys in tomorrow afternoon.”

  “Wow, thanks,” Lance said.

  “Given how far you live from the city, she suggested the two of us work together. I’ll see Mary weekly and alert Freddie to any changes. I can do ultrasounds and such between visits, but she would be your primary doctor.”

  Lance knew that Jackson and his father had completed special OB training knowing they would work in a small-town practice in a remote area.

  “If anything goes wrong, we’ll get her airlifted into the city. Dad’s here for backup too. As you get closer to the due date, you may want to think about staying at Brody’s condo in the city.”

  “I’ll let Mary know.” Lance helped himself to another piece of pizza. “How’s Maggie feeling these days?”

  “Pretty good. A little nauseous in the mornings, but so far so good. Her album releases soon, so she’s been pretty caught up in that, which doesn’t keep her from worrying. Between her and Violet, my ultrasound machine’s been busy.”

  “How is Violet?” Lance asked. He was a heel, not having asked after either of their pregnant wives earlier.

  Kyle grinned. “Speaking of twins.”

  “Were we?” Zane asked.

  “Trish and Trash,” Jackson said.

  “What about them?” Brody asked.

  “We’re having fraternal twins. Boys.” Kyle folded a slice of pizza in half like a sandwich.

  “No,” Zane said.

  “Yes. Apparently, I have super sperm.” Kyle took a triumphant bite of his pizza.

  “It has nothing to do with that,” Jackson said, laughing and rolling his eyes. “It’s a medical fluke. And technically Violet’s the one who released two eggs.”

  Kyle wiped his mouth with a napkin. “I’ll choose to believe what I want to believe.”

  “Is Violet freaking out?” Zane asked.

  “She cried for two days.” Kyle said.

  “Happy tears?” Brody asked.

  Kyle winced. “No, I wouldn’t exactly describe them that way. After Jackson broke it to us, she didn’t speak all the way home. Then, she locked herself in th
e bathroom for like an hour. After the initial shock wore off, she wandered around the house crying and mumbling about four kids under four, which is incorrect, by the way. Dakota will be five by the time the babies come. When the crying stopped, she stood in front of the mirror looking at her expanding tummy—totally cute, by the way—talking about how she couldn’t possibly wear a wedding dress or any kind of form-fitting dress ever again, or a bathing suit, or yoga pants. The list went on and on. The only way I could console her was to promise to keep ice cream out of the house. Pregnancy’s given her a sweet tooth.”

  “Seriously, Kyle. She’s right. What’re you guys going to do?” Brody asked.

  “That’s a lot of babies,” Zane said.

  “We’re fine. We’ll hire help,” Kyle said. “I’m totally psyched. Not to mention, she’s insatiable when it comes to yours truly. It’s like turbo sex lately.”

  “So tacky,” Jackson said. “She’d be mortified to know you’re talking about her that way.”

  “You jealous?” Kyle asked.

  “I have nothing to be jealous over.” Jackson grabbed another piece of pizza. “Things are dandy at my house too.”

  “No complaints here either,” Zane said. “Married life rocks.”

  “You guys have to keep the twins under wraps for a few more weeks. Violet wants to tell the ladies herself. She will seriously kill me if she knows I told you guys.”

  They all agreed. Apparently, twins could be kept a secret better than fake marriages.

  Lance glanced at Brody, curious if he would share Kara’s news. He didn’t have to wait long. Brody cleared his throat.

  “Kara’s pregnant too—due at the end of September,” Brody said. “New Year’s Eve was a happening scene here on the Mullen compound.”

  As everyone congratulated him, Zane got up from the table and tossed his paper plate in the trash. The rest quieted. All these babies, but none for Honor and Zane. Lance exchanged a helpless look with Jackson. There was nothing any of them could do. Honor would never be able to have a baby of her own.

  Zane came back to the table with a new beer. “Not gonna lie. It sucks.”

  Jackson patted his shoulder. “We’re all so sorry.”

  “I’m happy for you guys, but man, it’s a hard pill to swallow. Mostly because I wish I could give Honor what she wants.”

  “What about Sophie’s offer?” Kyle asked.

  “Her offer remains on the table. I’m still not convinced it’s a good idea,” Zane said.

  Sophie, Zane’s half-sister, had offered to carry a donor egg impregnated with Zane’s sperm. Personally, Lance thought it was a great solution, but Zane wasn’t sure it was a line that should be crossed.

  “What’s Honor say?” Jackson asked.

  “She doesn’t talk about it—pretends she’s too busy with work and Jubie to worry about it right now. But with Kara and Mary both pregnant, it might break her.”

  “Man, you know what the answer here is,” Kyle said.

  “I suppose you’re going to tell me,” Zane said.

  “You bet I am. Take Sophie up on her offer. It’s selfish not to,” Kyle said.

  “There’s so few times we can actually fix something for the women we love,” Lance said. “I wish I could heal Mary’s broken heart. You can actually give Honor the very thing she wants.”

  “My sperm in my sister’s body? Am I the only one who thinks that’s weird?” Zane asked.

  Jackson cleared his throat. “That’s not how it works at all. The embryo would be conceived in the laboratory, so to speak, then implanted in Sophie’s womb.”

  “When you put it that way, it sounds perfectly clinical,” Zane said.

  “Just think about it,” Brody said. “For Honor.”

  Lance paced between the fish tank and the windows of the OB-GYN waiting room while Mary saw the doctor. No men allowed for these visits, the nurse had informed him with a condescending cluck of her tongue, as she swept Mary behind closed doors. He had no idea what went on in the exam room, but he wished they’d hurry up about it.

  Mary had been quiet on the hour and a half drive into San Francisco. He didn’t push her to talk. She was worried, quite naturally. Instead, he played Maggie’s soon-to-be released album on the car stereo. Her songs of love, loss and redemption were so clearly about Jackson it was almost like peeking into someone’s diary. The album was a true work of art. He had a feeling their Maggie was about to be a star.

  Tired of pacing and worried his fretful footsteps bothered other people, he sat in one of the uncomfortable chairs next to the fish tank. They should think about investing in more comfortable seats, given their clientele. Women in various stages of pregnancy populated the lobby. Some of the ladies’ bellies were so round and large he didn’t know how they walked around without falling forward. He assumed they were due soon. Others, as he learned from the woman with an infant sitting next to him, were here for their postpartum visit. What would their postpartum experience be? Would Mary want to leave him as soon as the baby arrived?

  After a few more agonizing minutes, the nurse called his name. “They’re ready for you, Mr. Mullen,” she said.

  He followed her down a hallway of what appeared to be many examination rooms. After turning a corner, the nurse held the door open for him. Mary was inside, sitting on an examination table wearing nothing but a hospital gown. She had her arms wrapped around her middle. They should turn on the heat in here. Pregnant ladies shouldn’t be cold. Especially not this one who didn’t have enough meat on her bones to warm her.

  “I’m Doctor Winifred Block, but all my patients call me Doctor Freddie.” They shook hands. Doctor Freddie was of Asian descent, with creamy skin and brown eyes in a round face.

  “Have a seat,” she said, pointing to a chair in the corner as she settled onto a rolling stool.

  He smiled over at Mary, hoping to assure her and disguise his own nervousness. She returned his smile with a tight one of her own.

  He pulled out the small notebook he’d stashed in the inside of his jacket and waited for Doctor Freddie to fill him in on the plan.

  “Taking notes? Good idea,” Doctor Freddie said. He couldn’t tell if she was making fun of him or praising him. Either way made no difference to him.

  “Everything looks good at this point,” Doctor Freddie said. “The heartbeat was strong.” She handed him a small slip of paper from the shelf behind her. “This is the first ultrasound picture of your baby.” She pointed at a dot in the middle of a black and white image. “There is your son or daughter.”

  “That’s a baby?” Lance asked.

  “Yes, she or he is only a few centimeters at seven weeks.” Doctor Freddie crossed her legs. She wore scrubs and Birkenstocks with red socks. “I’m recommending a progesterone supplement as a precautionary method. This has proven helpful for women who’ve miscarried or had premature births.”

  “Helpful?” he asked.

  “Meaning, it prevents them,” Doctor Freddie said.

  “Oh, okay. Well, that’s good. Right?” Could he get his voice under control? He sounded like a pubescent boy.

  “Yes, that’s good. As far as her cervix goes, right now all is well. However, I’ll want her to visit Jackson—I mean, Doctor Waller—once a week. He’ll keep a close watch. Because of her previous premature birth, I’d like to perform a cervical cerclage at fourteen weeks, regardless of whether we see any softening.” She then explained the possibility of late term bedrest and further information about the use of progesterone shots.

  Lance scribbled notes. When he got home he might have to look up some of what she was saying on the internet.

  “Finally, Mary’s going to need a lot of emotional support, even more so than other expectant mothers, given the trauma of her first pregnancy.”

  “I’m on it.” Lance glanced at Mary. She stared into her lap and twisted a tissue around her index finger. “Is there anything in particular I should do?”

  “Listen mostly. Reassure he
r when she’s feeling nervous.”

  “Okay, of course, yes.”

  “That’s how he is all the time,” Mary said, looking up from the task of wrapping the tissue around her finger.

  “You’re a lucky lady, then,” Doctor Freddie said.

  “I am,” Mary said.

  “Lance, would you like to hear the heartbeat?” Doctor Freddie asked.

  “Can I?” Lance asked.

  Doctor Freddie smiled. “I’ll do one better. Because you’re a good friend of Jackson’s, I’ll even do another ultrasound, so you can see the flutter of the heartbeat.” She moved a plastic contraption with a screen closer to the examination table.

  Mary lay back. “Come closer,” she said. “And hold my hand.”

  He leapt from his chair and did as instructed. Mary’s hand was cold and clammy. “You okay?” he asked softly.

  “Yes, but I’m glad you’re here.”

  Doctor Freddie pulled on a pair of gloves. To his horror, she lifted a phallic shaped wand from the machine and told Mary to push her feet against the stirrups. “Scooch down a bit. That’s right,” Doctor Freddie said.

  She placed the wand between Mary’s legs, and presumably, up into the place where plastic should never go. Good God, he hoped it didn’t hurt.

  He was distracted from his thoughts when a black and white image appeared on the screen.

  “Do you see there? That little flutter? That’s his or her heart beating,” Doctor Freddie said.

  Yes, he saw it. His baby’s heartbeat, strong and furious. He squeezed Mary’s hand. “Look at that.”

  “Isn’t it something?” Mary asked.

  He nodded, unable to speak because of the ache in the back of his throat.

  “All right, then. Let’s get you two out of here. Go have a healthy lunch. I can’t emphasize enough, Mary, how important nutrition is. You’re at a healthy weight, but it’s important to eat food packed with nutrients, take your prenatal every day, and drink plenty of water.”

  “I will,” Mary said.

  “How much water exactly? And is there a cookbook I should get?” Lance fetched his notebook from his pocket, ready to add this latest bit of information to his list.