I have been feeling nauseous for the past two days and it is killing me. I have barely had anything other than granola, yogurt and soup.
It's a good thing that Christian wasn't home this morning to see me throw up my breakfast omelette. Because THAT would not have been pretty. Luckily I was already in the bathroom, fixing my make up, when my breakfast decided to work its way up my body. So, I didn't have to run through the entire house and make myself look like an idiot in front of Gail and Luke. Also if either of them had known about it, there would have been a call made straight to Christian who would have decreed a sick day on my behalf. And I cannot afford a sick day, especially today when I was meeting a new author, Jessica Bryan, to go over final edits of her book. Her book is so interesting that I had been looking forward to the meeting for a whole week, I was in no way going to miss it.
And I didn't miss it. The meeting was the highlight of my sickly morning. Probably one of the most interesting business related conversation I have had in a while.
So talk about LUCK.
I am pulled out of my thoughts when my phone rings.
"Ana, Katherine is here to see you" Hannah tells me.
"Send her up, Hannah. Thanks."
"Sure."
Exactly two minutes later, the now- Grey tornado walks in.
"Ana!"
"Hey Mommy-to-be! How are you?"
"Better than I was last month! Gosh, so glad that I am over the morning sickness. It sucked."
"Well, glad to hear it. What brings you here?"
"I haven't seen you in ages, and I was in the neighborhood. So I decided to stop by and if you are not too busy, then I would love to go get Chinese for lunch."
"Um… You saw me two days ago at Bellevue for dinner. And as for the Chinese, YES!"
"Baby Brain, duh. And lets go! We can catch while eating."
Twenty minutes later we are sitting at my favorite Chinese restaurant.
"I will have Orange Chicken, bowl of fried rice and coke please." Kate orders.
"Got it. What about you ma'm?" the server asks, turning to me.
"Um.. You know what I will make this easy for you. The same for me."
"Okay, so two orange chickens, two bowls of fried rice and two glasses of coke. Anything else?" He says jotting down.
"No!" We both say in unison and the he leaves.
"So, how has Teddy been? He seemed really out of it on Sunday. He was clinging to Christian the entire night." Kate says.
"He's been doing fine. He had seen Christian after basically two days since he has been holed up in his office working on some big merger deal in Germany. So, it is safe to say he had daddy fever."
"Yeah, Christian didn't seem to mind it at all, but all of us were sort of taken aback since Teddy always plays with everyone. And he didn't leave Christian's lap at all."
"Christian will never complain about attention from Teddy. In fact, he had felt horrible about not playing with him or being around him, so it was just nice for him to have time with him."
Just then our food arrives.
I finish my meal while Kate updates me on how things have been regarding their to their new house just twenty minutes from Grace and Carrick's home. I am waiting on her to finish, until that unsettling feeling creeps back up. And before I can react to anything, I am running to the restroom.
I throw up whatever I had just consumed in the toilet bowl, barely in time, as Kate rushes in behind me, patting my back.
"Geez, Steele, are you okay?"
I am dry heaving, as Kate grabs a piece of paper and hands it to me to wipe my face. I stand up and clean up at sink, while Kate looks on with anxious face.
"I am okay."
"Uh.. no you are not. You just threw up your entire meal. Are you okay?"
"I think so. Its just I have been feeling nauseous for the past two days."
"Did you go see the doctor? I am surprised you haven't been to the hospital considering Christian."
"He doesn't know I have been feeling sick. He has barely been home thses past few days and quite frankly I would rather him spend time with me and Teddy than worry about me and drag me to the doctor's. Besides Grace is coming over later tonight, I will ask her about it."
"Okay. Just make sure you go straight home after this."
"Fine, Christian."
"I am being serious Ana. If you fight me about this, I will call Christian."
"Since when did you switch sides and be Team Christian?"
"I am not on Christian's side, I just want to make sure you are fine. And I have to admit, no matter how much I find Christian frustrating, he does do a gret job of taking care of you."
"Oh my god! Kate saying good things about Christian, did the sun rise from the west today?" I say with exaggerated shock.
"It didn't. Now, let's get out of here. I don't know, but this bathroom is doing things to me, I am singing praises of my arch nemesis." She says laughing.
Kate comes to drop me off at my house, with Luke following in the SUV, since she didn't trust me when I said that I would just go home with Luke from Grey Publishing.
I walk in through the front door, when my baby boy comes charging at me with one little car in each hand.
"Mama!"
"Hey baby! How are you? What did you do today?"
"I play with GG."
"Oh, GG is here?"
Just then Grace comes into the foyer, "Ana dear, how are you? I got off my shift earlier than planned, so I decided to stop by and play with my precious Teddy."
"Oh that's fine Grace. I am glad you did. Did you and GG have a good time playing Teddy?" I ask turning to my 20 month old.
"Play car and vroom vroom."
"Oh you did? That's awesome."
We head over to the living room that is covered in trucks and cars. Teddy goes right back to the rug to play with his toys while Grace and I take a seat on the couch.
"Grace, I wanted to ask you something."
She turns her attention away from her grandson making "vroom vroom" and "beep beep" noises to me. "What is it dear?"
"I have been feeling nauseous and uneasy for the past couple days. I have been throwing up almost anything that I eat except soup and yogurt. And even those in small amounts. I don't know it just started happening, and I just want to make sure it is not like a stomach bug or anything viral that I may pass to Teddy or Christian."
"Oh, well have you had anything out of the ordinary lately. Like a weird dish or anything like that?"
"No, I don't think so."
"Well, I am not going to rule food poisoning out. But have you been under any time of stress lately?"
"No."
"Maybe it is just hormonal imbalance. When did you last have your period?"
Oh... I totally forgot about my period. I had it last when I went to Ireland with Christian on a business trip with Teddy. And that was in... Late November. Shit. I haven't had a period in almost two months now.
Grace looks at me, "You don't need to feel uncomfortable dear. I am just asking so I can better understand the cause of your nausea and vomitting."
"Oh no, that is not it at all. I just realised that I had my period last in November. With Christmas and the family trip to Aspen, it just slipped my mind. And I have been wrapped up in spending time with Teddy since Christian has been very busy lately that it just left my radar."
"Oh it is okay. We all forget things at times."
"I guess. But it just is unusual that I would forget something like that."
"Don't stress yourself over it dear. Now, it has been almost two months since your period." She looks at me carefully and smiles. "Have you been feeling any morning sickness?"
What? Does she really think THAT?
"Morning sickness?"
Her smile becomes wider. "Yes, morning sickness. I mean, you haven't had your period in two months, you are nauseous and have been vomitting. It certainly seems like you could be pregnant."
I could be pregnant. Wow. I didn't think of that at all. Surely it wouldn't be a bad thing. Christian and I have talked about having more children on several occasions. But never did we decide to actually start trying at any point. Surely being pregnant wouldn't be bad. Not at all frankly. It is a GREAT thing actaully. We could be having another child. A baby brother or sister for Teddy to play with. Another baby for Christian and I to spoil and care for. Oh God!
"Ana?"
"Hmm?" Grace looks at me anxiously.
"Is everything okay? I hope that it is not bad news that you may be-"
"Oh no Grace! Not at all. It is just unexpected that is all. The idea of being pregnant again is actually kind of exciting." I say, probably with a huge grin.
"Well, that is sure great. But I wouldn't rely on just the idea. I would tell you to take a test, but I don't carry some on me." She laughs.
"Oh that is alright Grace. I will get one later on. Don't worry."
"Well, that is great. I am certainly very glad I could be of help. Now, when you take it, be sure to let me know as soon as you can. Because I would not mind having three granchildren to spoil by fall." She says winking.
"I will be sure to let you know. Thank you Grace."
"Oh you don't have to thank me." She envelopes me in a hug. "I should, in fact, thank you. You have been so good for Christian ever since you have come into his life."
"You don't have to thank me. I love him, he is everything that I care about." We stay hugging for a few minutes, until Grace pulls away.
"Now where is that man? I called him earlier today about something, and he didn't pick up his call or call back later even."
"He has been really busy lately Grace, he has a very important deal that he has been trying to crack and has been leaving early and coming home late for about week and half now."
"Well, I can understand that. It would be good that he finishes everything as soon as he can, since he will have another someone to worry about soon, hopefully." She says grinning.
I can certainly imagine the major control freakness taking over soon. And all the unbreakable guidelines I must follow. Ahh... as annoying as it is, it sure is a good way of knowing how much he cares for me and our baby.
"I will head on out now, I have to make it back home soon. Carrick is coming back home eary because we have to attend dinner at a partner's home."
"That is fine Grace. Have a great time." I say getting up to see her out.
"Take care dear, and be sure to let me know." She says hugging me. "Bye Teddy!" Teddy jumps up and runs to hug her.
"Bye Bye GG!"
"Bye Grace."
I spend the rest of the afternoon with Teddy, playing and at times day dreaming of how wonderful it would be to have another child playing in this house soon. I call Dr. Greene's office to make an appointment for the next day.
Around 5pm, my phone rings, Your Love is King filling the living room.
"Hello!"
"Hey baby." He says in a sensuous, deep voice. It still possesses the ability to make me swoon.
"Hi. How has your day been?"
"Long. And it seems as if this deal is going to take an eon to finish." He sighs.
"Aww, it is alright. Just keep working at it, I am sure if someone can finish it, it would be you."
"Thank you for the kind words. But I called you let you know that it might be a while before I can make it home tonight. We are having a conference call with the board of directors of the company that we are taking over. I am sorry, but I won't be able to make dinner tonight."
"Oh. That is alright." I say, trying my best to high the disappointment in my tone.
"I am really very sorry baby. I feel so bad. I haven't spent any time with you or Teddy in the past week. I feel so-"
"Christian stop it. I understand, okay? It is important and that you aren't choosing to stay away from us. It happens with work."
"I know it does. But a week? I feel so incompetant at times. I haven't been around to put Teddy to bed or read him a story or anything."
"It is okay Christian."
"No, it is not. Which is another reason why I called you. I promise that once this deal is finished, I will take an entire week off from work and stay home with you and Teddy. I want to make up for the time I have given up this past week and this."
"Christian, it is okay. You really don't have to do that."
"No, Ana I do. And I will. I won't work for a week after this deal, and I promise I will turn my phone off too."
"That is really sweet Christian, but you really don't need to do that."
"Are you trying to push me away Mrs. Grey? Huh? You not interested in your husband any more?" He feigns hurt. That bastard.
"Uh.. no. I am still very much interested in my husband. You know what, stay home for a week. I am totally fine with that. In fact more than fine."
"Good. Because I don't mind giving you my undivided attention for a long period of time." He says in a sultry voice.
Ahh... The idea of undivided attention from Christian Grey sounds delicious.
"That sounds divine, Mr. Grey. I will take you up on that."
"I certainly plan on it, Mrs. Grey."
"Sounds delightful."
I hear Ros' voice in the background summoning Christian.
"I am sorry baby, but I have to go now. Don't wait up for me, I don't know hoe long this is going to take. And kiss Teddy for me. I love you."
"I will, and I love you too."
We eat dinner. I put Teddy to bed and head over to my bedroom.
I stand in front of the full length mirror, and caress my middle. There could be our child growing in there right now. A child conceived of my and Christian's love.
I head to bed, smiling.
When I wake up, I turn to Christian's side to find it empty. The sheets are cold, but messed up. So he did sleep here last night. I sit up to find a piece of paper on his pillow.
Ana,
I am sorry.
I got home late last night and had to leave early due to a breakfast meeting.
I will try to get home as soon as I can today.
I LOVE YOU AND TEDDY
C xx
I get out of bed. Get ready and head to Teddy's room.
After feeding him breakfast and managing a little myself, I call Luke.
"Luke, Can you get the car ready? We will leave in a few minutes."
"Sure, A"
"Thanks." I turn to Gail, "So, how have you been dealing with Taylor's absence this past week?"
"I am doing alright Ana" she says with a smile but it doesn't reach her eyes.
"It is hard, Gail. It is okay to admit it. Hell, I can't wait for that deal to be over. Christian has promised that he will take the entire week off. Maybe you and Taylor should go for a vacation, just the two of you, during that time and enjoy alone time."
"Oh, Ana, that really isn't necessary."
"No, Gail, it is. I insist. You know what, I will call Christian later and tell him that." I say
She smiles a huge smile, "Thank you Ana."
"Don't mention it. You are like an older sister to me. I love you, you are truly amazing. It is the least I could do for all the things you and Jason do for us." I say, hugging her.
Luke honks the horn outside, letting me know he is ready.
"You don't want to be late."
"Yes. I don't. Thank you Gail. I will see you later."
I go to the living room, to Teddy.
"Bye, baby boy! I love you! I will see you later, okay?"
"Bye, Mama!" He says hugging me.
As much as I love my work, this is always hard for me. Having to leave my baby boy home.
"Be good for GaGa okay?"
"Okay Mama!"
"I love you Teddy!"
I am sitting in the back seat of the car. When I receive a text,
**Finishing the final negotiations on the merger. It is officially finished. Can't wait to come home for a week. And give you my undivided attention. ;)
C**
**I am glad it is. And I can't wait to get the attention. But you can't give me all the attention. We have a 20 month old boy who will hog you as soon as you get home.
A**
**I can't wait to spend time with my little buddy. I guess I will have to give you my attention when out little fella is fast asleep dreaming of cars and trucks. I can't wait for some alone time with you.
C**
**Duly noted. Speaking of alone time, I think we should give Taylor and Gail the rest of the week off, since you are going to be home all week and they need some quality time together as well.
A**
**I agree, I was going to suggest the same thing. You truly are the nicest person I know. I LOVE YOU
C**
**I LOVE YOU TOO.
A**
I am really starting to like today. And I really hope it only gets better once I go to Dr. Greene's office.
"Luke, we need to go to the hospital today for an appointment at 3pm today."
He looks at me through the rearview mirror, "Is everything okay Ana? Do you want me to call Mr. Grey?"
"No! I mean, Luke, can you not tell Christian that I have a doctor's appointment today? Please?"
"Why? Is everything okay?" He looks at me anxiously.
"Yes, it is fine. It is just a regular appointment at Dr. Greene's. I just want to stress Christian out since he is alreay dealing with stress from Grey House. You know?"
He looks at me skeptically for a few moments, then finally says, "Okay."
"Thank you Luke."
Boy, I sure have gotten better at lying. But technically it isn't all bad. It is a white lie. I am going to Dr. Greene's for a different reason. Hopefully, I will return with happy news. Besides, I wasn't about to tell Luke that I was suspecting that I might be pregnant. He may have become a friends more than a security detail over the years, but I am certainly not going to tell anyone that until I tell Christian.
I just hope telling him this time won't be as bad as telling him about Teddy. Are you serious? My subconscious chastises me. He has more than proved to you and himself that he is very capable and loving father. And he has admitted that he wanted to have more kids, so ofcourse he will be very happy. Sometimes, I actually really like my subconscious.
At Grey Publishing, I immerse myself in manuscripts until about 2:30pm.
"Ana, we should leave now if we want to make it to the hospital in time for your appointment." Luke says, standing at the door of my office.
"Yes, let's go."
We get to the hospital, and I go into Dr. Greene's section. The nurse escorts me to Dr. Greene's office, and asks me a few basic questions. Just as she gets done, Dr. Greene walks in.
"Mrs. Grey, it is nice to see you. How are you?" she says, smiling.
"I am good."
"So, what brings you here today?"
"Dr. Greene, I had been experiencing nausea and vomitting for the past few days. And I haven't had my period in almost two months now. I was talking to Grace, Dr. Trevelyan-Grey, my mother-in-law yesterday and she suggested that I might be pregnant. So, um.. here I am." I say with a nervous giggle.
"Dr. Greene smiles, "Well, Grace was right in her idea. I mean, the missing period, nausea and vomitting are pretty strong indicators of pregnancy. Well, then I will let you get on your way." She hands me a cup. "You know what to do."
I go to the bathroom, do my business and walk out to hand her the cup. She dips the test in there, and we wait in awkward silence.
She breaks the silence, "So how is Teddy doing?"
The mention of my baby boy brings a smile to my face, "He is doing great. Thank you."
"How old is he now, 21 months?"
"20 actually, but yeah, he is growing up real fast."
"Kids have the ability to make us feel like that." She looks at the test again, "Ahh! Well, Blue! Congratulations, you are pregnant."
YES!
I cannot stop the grin on my face, "Thank you!"
"Well, we should do an ultrasound to check how far along you are." She hands me a cloth to cover myself, and once again I am sitting in the familiar seat, with a probe between my legs.
She turns on the monitor, I see the sepia storm again. And then there it is! Our, blip. But this time, it seems bigger.
"Well, Mrs. Grey, it seems like you are about 7, almost 8 weeks along. Would you like a picture?"
"Yes please." I say unable to turn my face away from the screen.
She prints it out and hands ot to me, and turns off the machine. I turn towards her, "You should set an appointment in for about 4 weeks from now."
"Okay."
She goes to her desk and pulls out a bottle of vitamins and a leaflet of the do's and don't's. "I know you are familiar with the rules, but just as reenforcement." She smiles.
"Thank you. I will see you soon."
"Bye Mrs. Grey."
I walk out of the building with a spring in my step and a smile on my face. Luke nods at me and leaves to get the car.
Just then, Your Love Is King sings to me, I fish my phone out of bag, "Hello!" I say in a cheery voice.
"Hi. Where are you?"
Shit... What do I say?
"Umm... I am running a few errands."
"Errands?" He says incredulously.
"Yeah."
"What errands are you running, Ana?"
"Nothing important." I say sweetly. "Where are you?"
"I am heading home. And you still haven't answered my question." He says in a stern voice.
I roll my eyes. Luke pulls the car up in front of me and I clamber in.
"Don't roll your eyes at me."
"How did you know I was?"
"Because I know you. Now tell me."
I turn the phone to mute, "Luke, can you drive to a Hallmark store please?"
He looks at me, confused, but then says "Sure" and drives off. I turn the mute off.
"It's a surprise." It actually is.
"Anastasia, you know I don't like surprises."
"But this is a good one."
"Oh really? So tell me what is it?"
"Um.. do you not know the definition of a surprise?"
"I do."
"Well, then you know that if I tell you, it won't be a surprise anymore."
"Where are you?" He sighs.
"I am heading home too. Where are you now?"
"Walking out of the car in front of our door."
"Great. I will see you soon."
"Anastasia.." I hear him open the door, and the not so surprising sound of our little boy yelling "Daddy!"
"Well, I will let you enjoy time with your son. I will see you in a bit. Love you!"
"I love you too. Get here soon, you have questions to answer and not to mention, my palm is twitchy."
A threat has never sounded more delicious. We have been abstinent for 4 days now, not by choice of course. So, I can't wait for tonight.
We stop in front of the Hallmark store, I rush in and grab the things I need. I pay, and walk out hurriedly, as the storm cllouds are starting to roll in.
Luke starts the car and drives off into I-5. The rain starts pouring. I am so excited to get home that this weather doesn't matter. I hate storms and the gloomy weather, but nothing can ruin my mood today. Today has been one of the best days of my life. I can't wait to go home and into the arms of my husband. Tell him that we are having another child, another mini us. Another symbol of our love.
Then what happens seems like a blur. I am pushed forward into the car, "Ana duck!" Luke yells. I feel the car skid across the road.
Then Darkness consumes me.