Chapter 9
It was hard work being parents but they both loved it. They couldn't believe how much love they felt for their baby. He was perfect. It took them a while to get used to having the baby. Claire came home and felt so tired, but she was going to be fine. Alex had a massive go at her for not telling him what had happened, as did everybody else. She felt stupid and a little overwhelmed with all that had happened in such a short amount of time. Meg was a great help and Liz seemed to spend most of her time at Drovers admiring her grandson. Tess and Nick were a great help though as they tried to keep Liz away as much as possible. Claire loved watching Alex and Jack together. Alex would walk around talking to his son when he thought Claire was asleep. He would talk about Claire and him and all that they were going to do together in the future. The work didn't stop and as soon as Claire felt better she was out there again. There was always somebody willing to look after Jack, but whenever Claire could, she or Alex would take him with them. They made the perfect little family. Within the next couple of months Nick and Tess got engaged. Everything was great. Everyone was so happy. Liz was hinting at another grandchild from either of her two sons. Meg was giving a look to Jodi that said don't you dare, I'm too young to be a grandmother. Jodi gave her a look that said I'm too young to be a mother. Alex was working so hard, but it meant they never got to spend much time together anymore. Claire was trying to work, look after Jack and help Tess organise the wedding. With Claire being busy, Alex was working hard at Drovers, helping Nick out with the wedding as he was going to be best man, and also help out at Killarney as he was still going to inherit it. What little time they did spend together was great though.
It was three weeks before the wedding and everyone was frantic. Alex and Claire were up early, working at various things all day and fell asleep as soon as their heads hit the pillow, although not for long as Jack would wake up crying. They were both so tired. Alex said they'd go away after everything had settled, but when that would be, they weren't sure. "Are you ready?" Claire asked Alex. "Ready for what?" "Jack's doctors appointment" "Is that today?" "Yes, don't tell me, you can't make it" "I'm sorry Claire, I've got too much work on" Claire got in the car with Jack and drove off. Alex kicked the tree he was standing next to. He wanted to go. He loved them both so much, but he was working so hard for them. He wanted to be the best for them and if that meant working hard then that was what he had to do. Claire was furious. Alex said he loved them but when it came to sparing an hour, he wasn't willing to do it. Claire got to the doctors and after jack had been looked over, the doctor asked how Claire was doing. "I'm fine, sleep deprived but he's worth it." "Well this is his 10 month check so he needs some injections at a year, but apart from that, I don't need to see you any time soon. You do need to get some sleep though. Babies can pick up on it. He should be sleeping the whole night now though" "He is most nights. I've just been feeling run down lately. I think I'm getting a cold" "Could you be pregnant?" Claire had been wondering the same thing herself. "If I take a blood test and we should get the results back by tomorrow" he took her blood and she left with a lot more to think about. While she was in town, she had to pick up some bits for Tess. It was great walking around town with her son. He was looking more and more like Alex. She decided that if she was pregnant, she wouldn't say anything yet, at least until Tess and Nick's big day had come and gone. It wouldn't be hard to keep it from Alex as she hardly saw him as it was. She couldn't be that far along and so wouldn't show for a long time yet, and she hadn't had morning sickness yet, not that he'd notice that either. While she was in town, she ran into Harry and Liz who were always thrilled to see the pair of them. "What are you doing here?" "Just had a check up. Everything's fine!" "Where's Alex?" "He was busy" she tried to make it sound as if it was acceptable even though she hated the fact he didn't come. "So when do we get to see you again?" Liz asked enthusiastically. "Well, actually, you'd be doing me a big favour if you could look after him for me tomorrow for an hour or two" "we'd love to, wouldn't we harry?" "Yes, sure" Harry wasn't really paying much attention to what they were saying; he was more interested in making his grandson laugh. "Thanks, I'll bring him around about ten if that's ok?" "Cant wait" Claire was pleased she'd bumped into them now. She went home and was barely talking to Alex. He was eager to know that everything with his son was ok. "He's fine!" was all Claire said.
"I won't be gone too long" Claire shouted out to Meg. "Where are you going?" Alex asked. "I, uh, I have to pop back to the doctors?" "What for? I thought you said everything was fine?" "it is, the doctor just ah, Jacks got a bit of a rash I want the doctor to look at so he can give me some cream" "I never saw any rash!" "Yes, well maybe you should open your eyes and pay more attention to the important things" she didn't give him a chance to reply, she had to drop Jack off at Killarney. She knew why Alex was working so hard and understood, but she missed him. She loved him and wanted to be with him all of the time. With all that was going on though, it made it so difficult, and she was just in a foul mood lately. With the possibility of being pregnant again, didn't make things any easier. She did want lots of kids, but everything was hectic. She knew why. The wedding. Tess wasn't really working because of it and Alex was up to something without Claire knowing. Claire quickly dropped Jack off at Killarney and went to the doctors. He confirmed that Claire was indeed pregnant. She was all excited. She really did want this baby. She loved being a mother. It was the best feeling in the world. All the anger she felt towards Alex had gone. All she wanted to do was tell him, but had decided to wait for Nick and Tess' sake. She couldn't wait to see the look on his face, and hopefully telling Liz this time would be a lot easier. She went and got Jack from Liz who had loved having him. She started to drive back to Drovers, but stopped by a tree. She got him out and sat under the tree, just enjoying being with her son. He was the most important thing in the world to her, and now she was going to have another baby. She pulled up at Drovers and went and put Jack down for a nap. She went down to the study where Alex stormed in after her. "So, what did the doctor say?" "He'll be fine; it's nothing to worry about" "where the hell did you go Claire?" "The doctors!" "Don't lie to me. Mum phoned and said you forgot his bottle when you picked him up. Now where the hell have you been?" She was angry now; he had no right to demand that of her. "It's none of your business!" "I'm your husband, of course it's my business!" Claire stormed out shouting back at him "look after Jack, he's your son, in case you forgot"
Claire came back and found Alex asleep in the chair holding Jack. He came too as she was watching him. "I'm sorry," she said to him. "Claire, why won't you just tell me?" "There's nothing to tell" "well where were you?" "I just had a check up that's all" "well why didn't you say?" "I didn't want you to worry" "that's what I'm supposed to do!" they kissed and had an early night. It was days like that, which made all the bad ones bearable.
The next few weeks went by quickly and in no time it was the day of the wedding. Tess was nervous but happy, as was Nick. Claire and Alex were acting like they'd just fallen in love. They were remembering their own wedding. The service was beautiful and the reception was fantastic. Claire and Alex danced and they were so happy. Harry, who hated these occasions, even if it was his own sons wedding, was looking after Jack. Alex took the micky as he'd never seen his dad act that way before, especially not with him or Nick as kids. Claire loved it because it meant that she got to spend time with her husband. Tess was so happy too and Liz was overjoyed that both of her sons were now married. Nick and Tess left for their honeymoon, they were spending two weeks in Europe and Tess was beside herself with excitement.
Claire couldn't wait for everything to get back to normal. She woke up the next morning with the intention of telling Alex that night. She was strangely excited and in a good mood all day. When Alex did get home, he ate dinner, put Jack to bed and went and laid down him self. "Alex there's something I need to tell you" she started. "Mmmm?" was the reply she got "Well. I found out that I'm pregnant!" Claire got no reply. She turned around to face him and saw that he had fallen asleep. She couldn't believe her luck. The next morning, she woke up to find Alex getting dressed. As she realised she hadn't told him yet, she said, "Alex, we need to talk" "yes, sure, later when I get back" and with that he rushed out the door. Claire was not far behind him, but she was headed to the bathroom where she was sick. Claire had been up most of last night with jack, so by the time Alex came home, she had fallen asleep already on the sofa downstairs. Alex just covered her up and let her sleep. She looked so peaceful and he didn't want to disturb her.
Claire woke up with Liz and Harry in the house. Liz was seeing to Jack when Harry walked in. Claire didn't stay put for long though. She had to rush to the bathroom. When she had finished being sick, she went back downstairs. "Are you alright?" Harry asked. "Yeah" was the short reply he got. "Where's Alex?" he asked "Don't ask me, I haven't got a clue. What are you doing here?" "Alex called, asking if we could look after Jack today" Claire was getting more and more annoyed with Alex. She hadn't been able to speak to him, he was organising things without asking her and he was no where to be seen. Claire had to rush to the bathroom again. Harry actually looked quite concerned when she came back down. She stood in the doorway getting ready to leave. "Claire, what's wrong?" "Nothing!" "What's Alex done now?" "Nothing I can't handle" "Claire." "I've got work to do, thanks for looking after Jack" she walked outside but nearly fell as her legs started to buckle underneath her. She grabbed onto the doorframe for support and sat down on the veranda. Liz had seen this, but Claire quickly went off to do some work before Liz got to her. Liz was concerned and went into Harry and said, "What did you say to Claire, she was almost in tears, and she nearly collapsed, is she ok?" "I haven't done anything, it's that son of yours" Harry got up to leave and Liz shouted after him "Harry, don't get involved, it's got nothing to do with us"
Harry finally found Alex and started shouting at him. "What the hell do you think you're doing? Learn from my mistakes son, and don't let work get in the way of family. Now whatever you've done to Claire, fix it!" "What's wrong with her?" "Just fix it!" Harry left Alex to his thoughts. He was quite worried now. What was wrong?
Alex finished what he was doing and went in search of Claire. She knew why he was coming over, she wasn't stupid. She walked in the other direction. Alex shouted after her. "Just go back to whatever it was you were doing. I know you're only here because Harry told you I was sick" "you're sick?" "Don't play dumb Alex. You should be here because you want to be not because your dad told you" she tried to walk away but she wobbled a bit and Alex had to grab her. She got her balance and tried to walk away again. Alex grabbed her around her waste. As soon as he touched her tummy she moved his hand away in anger.
It was hard work being parents but they both loved it. They couldn't believe how much love they felt for their baby. He was perfect. It took them a while to get used to having the baby. Claire came home and felt so tired, but she was going to be fine. Alex had a massive go at her for not telling him what had happened, as did everybody else. She felt stupid and a little overwhelmed with all that had happened in such a short amount of time. Meg was a great help and Liz seemed to spend most of her time at Drovers admiring her grandson. Tess and Nick were a great help though as they tried to keep Liz away as much as possible. Claire loved watching Alex and Jack together. Alex would walk around talking to his son when he thought Claire was asleep. He would talk about Claire and him and all that they were going to do together in the future. The work didn't stop and as soon as Claire felt better she was out there again. There was always somebody willing to look after Jack, but whenever Claire could, she or Alex would take him with them. They made the perfect little family. Within the next couple of months Nick and Tess got engaged. Everything was great. Everyone was so happy. Liz was hinting at another grandchild from either of her two sons. Meg was giving a look to Jodi that said don't you dare, I'm too young to be a grandmother. Jodi gave her a look that said I'm too young to be a mother. Alex was working so hard, but it meant they never got to spend much time together anymore. Claire was trying to work, look after Jack and help Tess organise the wedding. With Claire being busy, Alex was working hard at Drovers, helping Nick out with the wedding as he was going to be best man, and also help out at Killarney as he was still going to inherit it. What little time they did spend together was great though.
It was three weeks before the wedding and everyone was frantic. Alex and Claire were up early, working at various things all day and fell asleep as soon as their heads hit the pillow, although not for long as Jack would wake up crying. They were both so tired. Alex said they'd go away after everything had settled, but when that would be, they weren't sure. "Are you ready?" Claire asked Alex. "Ready for what?" "Jack's doctors appointment" "Is that today?" "Yes, don't tell me, you can't make it" "I'm sorry Claire, I've got too much work on" Claire got in the car with Jack and drove off. Alex kicked the tree he was standing next to. He wanted to go. He loved them both so much, but he was working so hard for them. He wanted to be the best for them and if that meant working hard then that was what he had to do. Claire was furious. Alex said he loved them but when it came to sparing an hour, he wasn't willing to do it. Claire got to the doctors and after jack had been looked over, the doctor asked how Claire was doing. "I'm fine, sleep deprived but he's worth it." "Well this is his 10 month check so he needs some injections at a year, but apart from that, I don't need to see you any time soon. You do need to get some sleep though. Babies can pick up on it. He should be sleeping the whole night now though" "He is most nights. I've just been feeling run down lately. I think I'm getting a cold" "Could you be pregnant?" Claire had been wondering the same thing herself. "If I take a blood test and we should get the results back by tomorrow" he took her blood and she left with a lot more to think about. While she was in town, she had to pick up some bits for Tess. It was great walking around town with her son. He was looking more and more like Alex. She decided that if she was pregnant, she wouldn't say anything yet, at least until Tess and Nick's big day had come and gone. It wouldn't be hard to keep it from Alex as she hardly saw him as it was. She couldn't be that far along and so wouldn't show for a long time yet, and she hadn't had morning sickness yet, not that he'd notice that either. While she was in town, she ran into Harry and Liz who were always thrilled to see the pair of them. "What are you doing here?" "Just had a check up. Everything's fine!" "Where's Alex?" "He was busy" she tried to make it sound as if it was acceptable even though she hated the fact he didn't come. "So when do we get to see you again?" Liz asked enthusiastically. "Well, actually, you'd be doing me a big favour if you could look after him for me tomorrow for an hour or two" "we'd love to, wouldn't we harry?" "Yes, sure" Harry wasn't really paying much attention to what they were saying; he was more interested in making his grandson laugh. "Thanks, I'll bring him around about ten if that's ok?" "Cant wait" Claire was pleased she'd bumped into them now. She went home and was barely talking to Alex. He was eager to know that everything with his son was ok. "He's fine!" was all Claire said.
"I won't be gone too long" Claire shouted out to Meg. "Where are you going?" Alex asked. "I, uh, I have to pop back to the doctors?" "What for? I thought you said everything was fine?" "it is, the doctor just ah, Jacks got a bit of a rash I want the doctor to look at so he can give me some cream" "I never saw any rash!" "Yes, well maybe you should open your eyes and pay more attention to the important things" she didn't give him a chance to reply, she had to drop Jack off at Killarney. She knew why Alex was working so hard and understood, but she missed him. She loved him and wanted to be with him all of the time. With all that was going on though, it made it so difficult, and she was just in a foul mood lately. With the possibility of being pregnant again, didn't make things any easier. She did want lots of kids, but everything was hectic. She knew why. The wedding. Tess wasn't really working because of it and Alex was up to something without Claire knowing. Claire quickly dropped Jack off at Killarney and went to the doctors. He confirmed that Claire was indeed pregnant. She was all excited. She really did want this baby. She loved being a mother. It was the best feeling in the world. All the anger she felt towards Alex had gone. All she wanted to do was tell him, but had decided to wait for Nick and Tess' sake. She couldn't wait to see the look on his face, and hopefully telling Liz this time would be a lot easier. She went and got Jack from Liz who had loved having him. She started to drive back to Drovers, but stopped by a tree. She got him out and sat under the tree, just enjoying being with her son. He was the most important thing in the world to her, and now she was going to have another baby. She pulled up at Drovers and went and put Jack down for a nap. She went down to the study where Alex stormed in after her. "So, what did the doctor say?" "He'll be fine; it's nothing to worry about" "where the hell did you go Claire?" "The doctors!" "Don't lie to me. Mum phoned and said you forgot his bottle when you picked him up. Now where the hell have you been?" She was angry now; he had no right to demand that of her. "It's none of your business!" "I'm your husband, of course it's my business!" Claire stormed out shouting back at him "look after Jack, he's your son, in case you forgot"
Claire came back and found Alex asleep in the chair holding Jack. He came too as she was watching him. "I'm sorry," she said to him. "Claire, why won't you just tell me?" "There's nothing to tell" "well where were you?" "I just had a check up that's all" "well why didn't you say?" "I didn't want you to worry" "that's what I'm supposed to do!" they kissed and had an early night. It was days like that, which made all the bad ones bearable.
The next few weeks went by quickly and in no time it was the day of the wedding. Tess was nervous but happy, as was Nick. Claire and Alex were acting like they'd just fallen in love. They were remembering their own wedding. The service was beautiful and the reception was fantastic. Claire and Alex danced and they were so happy. Harry, who hated these occasions, even if it was his own sons wedding, was looking after Jack. Alex took the micky as he'd never seen his dad act that way before, especially not with him or Nick as kids. Claire loved it because it meant that she got to spend time with her husband. Tess was so happy too and Liz was overjoyed that both of her sons were now married. Nick and Tess left for their honeymoon, they were spending two weeks in Europe and Tess was beside herself with excitement.
Claire couldn't wait for everything to get back to normal. She woke up the next morning with the intention of telling Alex that night. She was strangely excited and in a good mood all day. When Alex did get home, he ate dinner, put Jack to bed and went and laid down him self. "Alex there's something I need to tell you" she started. "Mmmm?" was the reply she got "Well. I found out that I'm pregnant!" Claire got no reply. She turned around to face him and saw that he had fallen asleep. She couldn't believe her luck. The next morning, she woke up to find Alex getting dressed. As she realised she hadn't told him yet, she said, "Alex, we need to talk" "yes, sure, later when I get back" and with that he rushed out the door. Claire was not far behind him, but she was headed to the bathroom where she was sick. Claire had been up most of last night with jack, so by the time Alex came home, she had fallen asleep already on the sofa downstairs. Alex just covered her up and let her sleep. She looked so peaceful and he didn't want to disturb her.
Claire woke up with Liz and Harry in the house. Liz was seeing to Jack when Harry walked in. Claire didn't stay put for long though. She had to rush to the bathroom. When she had finished being sick, she went back downstairs. "Are you alright?" Harry asked. "Yeah" was the short reply he got. "Where's Alex?" he asked "Don't ask me, I haven't got a clue. What are you doing here?" "Alex called, asking if we could look after Jack today" Claire was getting more and more annoyed with Alex. She hadn't been able to speak to him, he was organising things without asking her and he was no where to be seen. Claire had to rush to the bathroom again. Harry actually looked quite concerned when she came back down. She stood in the doorway getting ready to leave. "Claire, what's wrong?" "Nothing!" "What's Alex done now?" "Nothing I can't handle" "Claire." "I've got work to do, thanks for looking after Jack" she walked outside but nearly fell as her legs started to buckle underneath her. She grabbed onto the doorframe for support and sat down on the veranda. Liz had seen this, but Claire quickly went off to do some work before Liz got to her. Liz was concerned and went into Harry and said, "What did you say to Claire, she was almost in tears, and she nearly collapsed, is she ok?" "I haven't done anything, it's that son of yours" Harry got up to leave and Liz shouted after him "Harry, don't get involved, it's got nothing to do with us"
Harry finally found Alex and started shouting at him. "What the hell do you think you're doing? Learn from my mistakes son, and don't let work get in the way of family. Now whatever you've done to Claire, fix it!" "What's wrong with her?" "Just fix it!" Harry left Alex to his thoughts. He was quite worried now. What was wrong?
Alex finished what he was doing and went in search of Claire. She knew why he was coming over, she wasn't stupid. She walked in the other direction. Alex shouted after her. "Just go back to whatever it was you were doing. I know you're only here because Harry told you I was sick" "you're sick?" "Don't play dumb Alex. You should be here because you want to be not because your dad told you" she tried to walk away but she wobbled a bit and Alex had to grab her. She got her balance and tried to walk away again. Alex grabbed her around her waste. As soon as he touched her tummy she moved his hand away in anger.