Chapter 26
Stephanie's blue eyes stared absently out the window. The bright lights of the city blindly flashed by her as the small, well-built driver manoeuvred the cab effortlessly through the busy streets. There was no particular destination he was heading to. He was just carrying out her instructions to drive around for a while and after flashing him a handful of notes he had been more than happy to accept the expensive fare. Thankfully he hadn't felt the need to strike up meaningless conversation with her either and had left her pretty much alone with her thoughts. Stephanie had been more than grateful for the silence needing the time to try and wrap her head around the fact that Paul was the father of her child or so he had claimed.
But as she twisted her fingers together and rested her head back against the head rest, Stephanie knew for a fact that Paul was speaking the truth. Why else would he have Andrew pinned up against the wall like that? God, he had looked so angry with him too and having no idea why her best friend would be attacking her husband in the middle of the hotel, she had rushed over to find out exactly what was going on. She had been completely shocked when she had overhead Paul say that the baby she was carrying was his not to mention being utterly confused. He was supposed to be her friend and one of the most important people in her world. Now she had to try and process the fact that they had slept with one another. Had it been a simple indiscretion; a one night stand or it had been so much more that? She wished she could remember the truth. She wished she could know how she could be married to one man yet father a child to another. God, she was supposed to be in love with her husband. How could she do that to Andrew and why hadn't he mentioned anything to her? But she guessed it would explain a lot like his noticeable lack of interest in her pregnancy. Maybe it would even explain why she felt so cold and distant towards him. And then of course there was Paul.
Sighing softly, Stephanie lifted her fingers to her temples and pressed small circles against her skin. Her head was thumping trying to process everything. She'd also lost track of how long she had been driving around in this cab. As she went to check her watch, she saw the driver turn in his seat and briefly glance at her.
"Sorry lady but I have to take you back to the hotel. I've got a pick-up over on 9th West."
Stephanie nodded her head and smiled. Inside her stomach was a jumble of knots at the thought of what awaited her when she got back there but she knew she had to face up the truth even though she was terrified about what that truth might be. She was frustrated too; frustrated at all the things that she couldn't remember and there was really only one person she knew she could rely on to tell her everything.
Moments later, she was back at the hotel and after tipping her driver more than generously, she walked tentatively in the hotel lobby. The reception area was silent and deserted with thankfully not a soul around. Tucking her hair behind her ear, Stephanie checked her watch as she waited patiently on the elevator. She grimaced slightly at the late hour but she knew that she didn't have any choice. Waiting until morning to talk to him would drive her totally crazy. She needed to know. It was as simple as that.
The elevator pinged open and stepping inside, she pressed the button for the tenth floor. Her foot tapped impatiently as she watched the red illuminated square blink and ascend the row of numbers.
"Come on. Come on." she pleaded.
It was a matter of seconds before the door slid open. As she stepped out into the freshly decorated hallway, she saw his room straight ahead and adjusting the strap of her handbag, she waited with baited breath as her knuckles lightly rapped against the wood. She knew he would no doubt be pissed at her for waking him up in the middle of the night but she just didn't care. All she cared about finding out the truth and he was the only one that could help her with that. He was the only one she trusted right now.
Just then, she heard him fumble with the lock and the door slowly opened. His tired face peered out of the gap and he scowled.
"Steph! It's you." His hand lifted to rake through his strands as he let the door swing over. "What the hell are you doing here at this time of the night?"
"I needed to see you."
"And couldn't it wait?"
"No Shane, it can't wait. I need to know the truth."
His brown eyes narrowed curiously. "The truth about what?"
Stephanie briefly closed her eyes as an image of Paul's face flashed through her mind and she sniffed as she felt the hot tears burn at the back of her throat. Her lips trembled as she looked back at her brother, her hand lifting to touch her slightly rounded stomach. "The baby, Shane. Is it true this baby is Paul's?"
Shane's mouth parted in stunned surprise as a million questions began to race through his head like how did she know and who the hell had told her? It couldn't have been Paul. He knew the risks to her recovery. He had promised he would keep his distance from her.
"Please Shane, I need you tell me the truth. I need you tell me everything. Please." she cried as her unshed tears trickled down her cheeks.
Unable to see her so distressed, Shane pulled her into his arms holding her tightly as her body shook with her sobs.
"Bring her inside Shane."
He glanced up to see Marissa standing next to them, her expression sympathetic and gentle as her fingers gently smoothed backed Stephanie's hair.
"You need to tell her." she hushed to her husband. "This has been going on for long enough."
Shane smiled sadly and nodded as he felt Stephanie lift her head. He knew the doctor had warned that it might be detrimental to his sister's recovery to confuse her by telling her about Paul but surely it couldn't be any worse than the emotions she was going through now. His heart was breaking at the devastation in her blue eyes. All his life he had looked out for Stephanie and protected her doing what he thought was best. Well, it was no different now and Marissa was right. Being honest with her had to be for the best. She couldn't continue living this crazy lie about Andrew.
Dropping a kiss on Stephanie's forehead, he guided her into the room sitting next to her on the small cloth patterned sofa. Although she had stopped crying, he still felt the need to comfort his sister and took her hand in his, holding it tightly. Her skin was cold and felt like a chunk of ice and he rubbed it gently in an attempt to warm her.
"Are you okay?" Marissa asked as she sat down on the chair across from them.
Stephanie sniffed and nodded as she turned to her brother. His mouth lifted in a smile as he stared at her thoughtfully.
"So, how did you find out about Paul?" he asked her.
Stephanie let out a shaky breath and began to tell him and Marissa everything that had happened from the moment she met Paul in the corridor right up to the part where she overheard his revelation about her baby. All the while, her heart was racing in her chest and her stomach was a jumble of nervous anticipation knowing that what she was about to hear was going to change everything and possibly determine the future; her future and the baby's. That's what made it so important for her to know about Paul. After all, if he was the baby's father, he had a right to be part of that and their life. That's if he wanted to be.
Clearing her throat, Stephanie finished her story and her blue eyes anxiously scanned her brother's face as she waited for his response. She could see the concern etched in his forehead as his hand gripped hers just a little more tightly and his lips lifted in a small smile.
"Paul will be devastated you found like that. He'll also be worried sick about you, you know. Have you talked to him at all?"
"I came straight here to see you." she told him as she licked her lips and shifted on the chair impatiently. "So are you going to tell me the truth or not?"
Shane quickly nodded his head and her shoulders slumped with her relief.
"But before I do, I need you know something. I need you to understand that the reason we haven't said anything before now is because we were worried about you, Steph. We were worried especially when the doctor told us that telling you the truth might upset you and setback your recovery and we didn't want that. We didn't want to do anything that would jeopardise your health and we honestly thought the best thing was letting you remember by yourself."
Stephanie nodded and smiled at him showing she understood.
"But things seem to be getting out of control so maybe it is better that you do know everything now."
She squeezed his hand. "That's all I want Shane."
He rolled his lips together as he looked directly at her. "Well I guess the first thing you should know is that Andrew isn't your husband."
Stephanie gasped and her big eyes went wide. She was totally stunned by that admission yet at the same time overwhelmed with total relief. It just felt right and made perfect sense to her but what didn't make sense was why Andrew had told her they were married in the first place. What the hell had he been playing at saying such a thing? Was he crazy or just completely insane? Shaking her head, she felt herself bristle with her anger. "Why would he lie to me Shane?" she asked him.
This time it was her brother's turn to look stunned as he sat back from her looking at her strangely. "What do you mean he lied to you? You were the one that said he was your husband when you woke up after your accident."
Stephanie shook her head. "I recognised Andrew but he was the one that told me we were married."
Shane snarled as he pushed his hand through his short dark strands. "That son of a bitch! I can't believe he would stoop that low and do that to you. I'm going to kill him."
He rose to stand up from the chair but Stephanie still had a firm grip of his hand and tugged him back to sit.
"Oh Shane, I don't care." she told him as she smiled. "I'm just happy I know Andrew's not my husband. You know I thought it was strange that I felt nothing for him but I just thought it was because I couldn't remember being married to him, like I couldn't connect with him or something. It's such a relief to know that we're not together."
Shane looked at her stunned by how well she was taking the news. It made him wonder what her reaction would be once she knew about her relationship with Paul. After all, Stephanie still considered him a stranger of sorts despite now knowing he was the father of their child. Maybe he should test the water first. She'd had a lot to take in tonight and he didn't want to say too much or upset her in any way. God knows he'd never forgive himself if she did end up back in the hospital. Still, he had promised her to tell her everything. He just needed to be sure. His brown eyes watched her carefully as he posed his next question. "And what about Paul, Steph? How do you feel about him?"
She slowly nodded as she pushed a lock of hair behind her ear. "You know I totally believe what you said about him being my best friend. I just feel so at ease around him and when we were talking earlier on, I felt like there was some sort of connection there, something that I definitely didn't feel with Andrew. It's like I could tell he was someone special to me. Does that make sense?"
Shane nodded and smiled. "It makes perfect sense."
"And how do you feel about Paul being the father of your baby?"
Stephanie turned and looked thoughtfully at Marissa. "You know, I think I'm actually okay with it. I mean don't get me wrong. At first, I was spooked and totally freaked out but now I've had time to settle down and time to think about it, I reckon it might turn out okay." she smiled softly. "Paul and I are friends, right and what could be better for our child than growing up with parents that care for each other and are close in some way."
"Yeah well, you and Paul are a lot closer than you might think."
Stephanie's blue eyes were tentative as she turned to her brother. "What do you mean by closer?"
She saw him glance at Marissa and she patted his hand to get his attention again.
"Shane, tell me what you meant?" she pleaded as her stomach churned anxiously.
"You always were impatient."
He laughed as Stephanie hit him in the arm and held his hands up to stop her. "Alright, I'll tell you." But his laughter faded as his concerned brown eyes looked at her. "Are you sure you're okay? You can handle this?"
Stephanie sighed heavily but deep down she knew that he only had her best interests at heart. "I'm fine Shane." she told him squeezing his hand and reassuring him.
"Well, okay." He paused as his lips curved up gently. "Steph, you and Paul were in a relationship before your accident."
He heard her gasp before she pressed her lips together tightly. Her blue eyes glossed over with her tears.
"Are you okay?" he asked her.
Stephanie nodded and sniffed as she tried to compose herself. She blinked back the tears as she suddenly realised all the pieces of the puzzle of her life were starting to slowly come together and make sense. "Were we in love?"
"Yeah and I happen to know that for Paul, nothing has changed. He was devastated when he found out you lost your memory and has been waiting patiently hoping you'll remember everything. It's been killing him to stay away from you and the baby."
She shook her head in disbelief as she wiped at the tears on her wet cheeks. "I can't believe it. Why didn't he tell me any of this?"
"Because he didn't want to do anything to harm your recovery, Steph. But you know, I am starting to wonder whether Andrew lied to us about that one too."
But in that moment Stephanie didn't care about Andrew or his lies. All she cared about was Paul and suddenly it felt terribly important to see him and talk to him. She let go of her brother's hand as she rose to her feet. "I have to go and see him Shane. I have to tell Paul I know the truth."
Shane nodded as he stood up, his brown eyes shining with his happiness for her and his relief that Stephanie seemed to be happy now she knew the truth and more importantly than that, she seemed to be coping just fine. "Before you go though I should probably warn you."
She wrinkled her brow in curiosity as she smoothed down her sweater. "Warn me about what?"
"Well I guess you don't remember but Paul is one grumpy pain in the ass when you disturb his sleep. Prepare for some verbal abuse when you bang down his door."
Stephanie laughed and she wrapped her arms around her brother and hugged him gratefully. "I'll try and bear that in mind."
She released him before walking over and hugging Marissa too. "Thank you both so much. You don't know how relieved and happy I am right now."
Shane smiled at her gently. "I'm just sorry it took us all this time to tell you. I hope you understand we were just worried about you."
"Of course I do." she told him, patting his arm and sighing softly. "Well, I'm going to go and wake up Paul. Wish me luck."
Shane chuckled as he followed his sister across the room. "You do know you're probably going to need it."
Stephanie turned the handle on the door and looked back at her brother, her face lit up with her tender expression. "I mean it Shane. Thank you for everything."
She hugged him once more before Shane pulled away and winked at her. "Go on sis. Go and get your man."
Stephanie gave him a beaming smile as she turned and walked down the corridor. As she heard the door click shut behind her, her nerves kicked in and her smile faded as her footsteps slowed on the plush pale blue carpet. She could feel her heart pounding madly in her chest as she got closer to his room. Paul was staying on the same floor as Shane. She had remembered that when she had seen his key card lying on the table in the hotel bar. His room number was 1024; the room now right in front of her.
Letting out a shaky breath, Stephanie stared at the white laminate door before lifting her hand to knock………..