Listen to your heart
Author: mltayor1985
Rated: M
A/N: I am sorry that it has taken me so long to get this chapter up. I literally am always at work it seems these days. I just finished seven straight days. Anyways, I had written chapter seven a long time ago, but didn't really like it. So I revamped and revised it. Hopefully this version is better.
Summary: MacKenzie Borden is daughter of Steve "Sting" Borden. She has followed her dad into the world of professional wrestling. She stands behind her dad and his friends in the Main Event Mafia. But will her relationship with Josh Harter (Chris Sabin) threaten her relationship with her dad and the Mafia?
Chapter Seven: Surprise
MacKenzie snuck out of the hotel room. She wanted to get this over with and with as little drama as possible. Nothing against Josh, but having him tag along to tell her dad that she was pregnant and engaged to the one guy that he didn't like, was not going to go over well. They had decided last night that they had to break the news to her dad and to try and find a way to bury the hatchet. Peace was to be restored before Baby Harter was born or hell would be raised by the momma.
"Hey dad, it's me. I was calling to tell you that I am on my way to your house. I should be there in about ten minutes depending on the traffic. Call me back if you are not home. See you, bye."
Nervous and slightly nauseous, she kept murmuring to herself. She believed in being prepared. She wanted to be straightforward and upfront but not all in your face. It took a little finesse when telling your dad that you were knocked up. "Just breathe… it's not like you have to tell him that you don't know who the daddy is, or that it was a one night stand gone wrong. You are having a baby with the man that you plan to marry."
Just as she is pulling onto his street, her cell phone begins ringing. She winces when she sees it is from Josh. She was hoping to get back to the hotel before he even woke up.
"Hey baby… you're awake?"
"Where are you?"
"Uhhh… right down the street from my dad's house. What are you doing?"
"I'm just getting out of bed… What did you just say?"
"Don't get mad. But I am at my dad's. I know you said you wanted to go along but I wanted to tell him about the baby and our engagement alone. I've been up all morning thinking about it and I think that it will go over better if I tell him alone then with you sitting there within striking distance of him. I can't take this fighting much longer. It has to end today."
"Kenz, I know you want to smooth over everything but you should have waited for me. I don't want him to upset you. I know he'd never hit you, but he can hurt you with his words just as well as if he had hit you with his fists. Does he know you are coming?"
"I called the house phone but no one answered. I left a message for him."
"Great you still have time. Come back and we'll go together."
"Josh, I'm doing this alone. I need to do this. Call it daughter's intuition but I have a feeling that it will all be okay. Trust me, okay. I'm here. I'll call you as soon as I leave. I love you, bye."
She hits the end button and turns off her phone. "Forgive me Josh."
As she is getting out of her car, she sees Gracie in the backyard.
"Grace, is daddy home?"
"He is upstairs; mommy said he was sleeping in."
"Can you tell her that I am here and that I really need to talk to him? It's really, really important."
"Okay."
"Thanks Grace."
A few minutes later, the door opens and Sue walks out onto the patio.
"Hello, MacKenzie. Long time no see. I told your dad you were here. He should be down in a moment. So how are you doing?"
"I'm good. I was planning to talk to him alone, but it might be better if you stay. What I have to say won't be easy to hear and I think we might need a cooler head to prevail."
"Are you sure everything is okay"
"I'm fine. I'm going to get something to drink."
A few minutes she comes out with a glass of tea. Just as they are sitting down, Steve comes outside.
"MacKenzie, what are you doing in California?"
"Hello daddy. I came out here so I could talk to you. I have something to tell you and a phone call was not an option. I didn't want to wait until Monday so I decided to fly out."
"I asked Sue to stay because what I have to say will probably make you angry and I think that having her here will make it easier for both of us."
"This doesn't sound good."
"I think being straightforward is the best choice. So I'll just get to the point. Josh and I are engaged and I'm pregnant. I found out about two weeks ago. I'm two months along."
"Oh MacKenzie…"
"I know that you are disappointed that I got pregnant before I got married and that it is Josh's. I'm not sure exactly why you don't get along with each other, but I want you to know that I am determined that before the baby is born, we will be a family again. I don't want my baby, your grandbaby, to feel the tension whenever we are around each other."
"MacKenzie, are you sure that you are in love? Marriage is a very big commitment. I know people say that if it doesn't work out, you can always get divorced. But I don't want you to get married now and realize later that you made a mistake."
"I understand what you are saying, Sue. I'm so in love with Josh that it breaks my heart whenever he is away for even a moment longer than is necessary. He just came back from Japan and it was the longest two weeks of my life. Finding out I was pregnant was the only high point of those two weeks."
"Kenzie, I know that you have always struggled with the fact that you were "illegitimate". Are you sure that you are not rushing into marriage because you don't want your baby to be illegitimate?"
"Dad, I know that you feel a little guilty that you and mom didn't love each other. I know you think that I hold you responsible that I was labeled by the other kids, but I never even cared that my parents weren't married to each other or that I was the by-product of a one-night stand. I want you to understand that I am not marrying Josh, just to make my baby legit. I don't care if I had twenty kids out of marriage, rumors and labels don't bother me. I promised myself that I would never marry for any other reason than love."
"I also want it to be known, that I will not be part of this feud any longer. I will not choose between my father and my husband. So, I officially am stepping back. It is now up to Josh and you to come to terms with each other.
MacKenzie glanced sideways long enough to see Sue hiding her smile. If nothing else, she realized that she had an ally. She would use her influence to get Steve and Josh to become a family one way or another. MacKenzie couldn't have loved her anymore at that moment.
"Look, I have to go. I promised Josh that I would get back to the hotel as soon as possible. Ever since I told him about the baby, he is like a watchdog. He doesn't like me being out alone for too long. I think he is scared that if he isn't there to protect me against the world, then something will happen.
"Steve was like that with all our pregnancies. Especially Gracie. It was so annoying that every time I would turn around there he was. If he had to be out of town for a show, he would call me twenty times a day. I laugh about it now, but I know how frustrating it can be."
"Most of the time, I find it to be hilarious and so sweet and other times, I am sure I will strangle him before I have the baby."
"Just remember that he doesn't understand that our bodies are made specifically to protect our babies. Just be patient and smile when you want to strangle him. When it gets to be too much, call one of his friends. If you are not friends with them already, by the time the baby is born, you will be best friends."
MacKenzie stood up, leaned over and kissed both Sue and her dad on the cheeks and then left.
"Hey sweetheart, I just left their house, I should be there in about twenty minutes. Call room service. I am starved. Love you! Bye."
