CHAPTER 25
"Oh, thank God you're here," Mary grabbed Delinda by the arm and pulled her roughly into the apartment.
"You said it was urgent. What's going on?" Delinda followed Mary into the bedroom and gasped. "Mary, what the hell happened?" Every piece of clothing her friend owned was strewn throughout the room.
"Nothing fits me," Mary whined as she pushed a pile of clothes off of the bed and laid down on her back, trying desperately to zip up her jeans. "Uggh," she sighed, finally giving up on the zipper, "Even if I could get these zipped I'd probably be giving my baby brain damageby cutting off its oxygen supply!"
"I don't understand. Didn't you realize that you'd gotten bigger?"
"No! I've been wearing my pajamas for two weeks, Delinda, and now that I need to get dressed for my doctor's appointment, nothing fits. Why the hell do I always wear such tight clothes? Nothing has any give!"
"No worries…we just need to go shopping."
"Wow, why didn't I think of that?" Mary rolled her eyes. "I don't have time to go shopping. Danny is going to pick me up in an hour. All my sweats and pj's were dirty so I sent them out to be laundered. I have nothing to wear. What am I going to do?"
Delinda gave Mary a sympathetic look before sifting through the pile closest to her and pulling out a green wrap shirt. She tossed it on the bed and stepped into the closet, reappearing with a pair of Danny's black dress pants.
"Delinda, I'm big, but I'm not that big. Those are going to fall off of me—not to mention they're about two feet too long."
"Trust me, Mary. I know what I'm doing." The blonde disappeared into the bathroom and came back with a pair of scissors. Without ceremony she chopped the bottom of the legs off so that they would hit Mary just below her knees. Delinda tossed the pants to Mary and ordered her to put them on while she dug through her purse and pulled out a small sewing kit. With a few quick alterations, Delinda was able to make the pants fit Mary's waist. She helped the redhead into the stretchy, green shirt and then covered it all with her own khaki denim bolero jacket. Turning Mary to face the mirror, she couldn't help but feel proud of herself.
"What do you think?" Delinda asked, tossing Mary a pair of gold strappy heels.
Mary examined herself in the mirror from every angle. "I look like a homeless person, Dee."
"Hmmph--a very stylish homeless person," Delinda argued.
Both their eyes were drawn to the side of the waistband which bulged awkwardly where Delinda had folded the fabric and sewn it together. "Grab one of Danny's ties and we'll make a belt out of it. That should cover everything pretty well, plus it'll add a splash of color—color is always good."
Mary looked at her friend warily, but did as she was told. She supposed this was better than the alternative of biker shorts and one of Danny's t-shirts—the only thing she'd found so far that actually fit around her. As Mary dug through Danny's tie drawer, Delinda's phone rang.
"WHAT?"
"---"
"OMIGOD! I'm on my way."
Grabbing her purse and heading for the front door, she called back to Mary, "Gunther and Wolfgang are about to come to blows. I've got to go!"
Mary chuckled a little at the thought of the two chefs in a knock-down, drag-out before continuing her search for a "belt". Spotting a colorful tie she pulled it out of its neat little cubby and started to tie it around her waist, but her attention was caught by something else in the drawer. Mary pushed the other ties aside to reveal a small, velvet box. Staring in shock—she felt like all the air had suddenly left her lungs. She quickly slammed the drawer shut and grabbed the rest of her things, rushing out of the apartment.
---
"You still going through those files?" Danny walked into the conference room where Mike had been holed up for the last week.
"Yeah. I know there's something here that we're missing. Nobody is that good, Danny."
"You talk to Mark again?"
"Yeah, but he wasn't any help. It sounds like they pretty much kept him in the dark on things. I sent the virus they used to some of my buddies at MIT. I'm hoping they can tell me something more. I just keep thinking about these guys saying this was all a game. That's got to mean something."
"Well, let me know if you find anything. Mary and I have a doctor's appointment today so I'm outta here."
"Good luck with that, man. I hope everything's okay."
"Yeah, me too. I'll see you later."
---
"Mary, honey, how are you?"
Mary looked up distractedly from her seat in the patio cafe, "Jillian? Hi."
"I was going to stop by the apartment, but it's good to see you out and about. I didn't realize you were off of bed rest."
"Technically, I'm not, but we have a doctor's appointment this afternoon."
"Oh, so you're waiting for Danny?"
"Sort of."
Furrowing her brow at Mary's cryptic answer, Jillian took a seat at the small table. "Mary, is something wrong?"
"I just needed to think and I couldn't do it cooped up in that apartment."
"Anything I can help with?"
"I think Danny's going to ask me to marry him."
"That's wonderful, sweetie," Jillian gushed, but she immediately noticed the somber look on the other woman's face. "You don't sound excited."
"I don't know how I feel. The first time he proposed it was so unexpected and for all the wrong reasons and now…I'm just afraid he's only doing it because of the baby."
"So, things weren't working out between you before you found out you were pregnant?" Jillian knew the answer, but she wanted to hear Mary's response.
"No, things were great. We were happy just being together."
"And you're not happy anymore?"
Mary looked up at Jillian, finally realizing what the older woman was trying to do. "Okay, I get it. I sound like the girl who finally got everything she ever dreamed of, but now she doesn't want it anymore. It's not that, Jillian, I swear. I thought I was so sure of things, but after finding the ring all those fears just came flooding back. I'm justworried that when things settle down, Danny's going to change his mind."
"Mary, I know he's messed up your relationship more times than I can count, but he was really devastated after you gave him the ring back the first time. I think he understood why, but it didn't make it hurt any less. He loves you very much."
"I know he does. I've never doubted that, Jillian, and I've messed things up just as much as he has,but Idon't want him to ever feel trapped. That's why I couldn't marry him before. He wasn't thinking clearly and he was just looking for something to hold onto. I love Danny so much—I've always loved him-- but I know him, Jillian, and I knew he'd end up regretting it later."
"Things are a lot different now. You still don't think he's sure?"
"Yes, but what if…"
"Mary, we can't live our lives based on what-ifs. You should know that better than anyone. Danny loves you and he loves this baby. He got a little taste of his own medicine watching you with Jake and I think that made him realize how much he needed you. Add all that to the fact that he almost lost both of you. He's just finally figured out what's important to him. It's something that all men have to figure out in their own time—some just take longer than others."
"I guess you're right… I just don't know how to handle all these feelings I'm having. I mean, Danny's supposed to be the one who's freaked out and I should be the one convincing him that everything's going to be fine. But now…he just seemsso damn sure about everything and I'm the one who's a total basket case."
"Mary, you've been through a lot. It's only natural that you would be worried about things."
"But Danny's not," Mary protested.
"Oh, trust me. Danny's just as worried as you are, but he's trying to be the strong one right now so you can concentrate on getting better. He knows he hasn't always been there for you and he's trying to change that."
"You're probably right. He's been wonderful, but I've been too busy questioning his motives to really enjoy it. Our whole lives, Danny has been so hot and cold with me. He gives a little and then takes it back and I guess I'm just waiting for that to happen."
"Well, that's perfectly understandable, but I truly believe that Danny's a different person now than he was before. Besides, if he hurts you…I'll have Eddie break both of his legs."
Mary couldn't help but laugh at Jillian's comment. She knew deep down that she had to let the past go and concentrate on their future. Danny loved her and she trusted him with her heart—what more did they need? If she spent her whole life waiting for him to pull the rug out from under her they would never be happy.
"So, little momma, I think you need to relax and let Danny take care of you for awhile. Speaking of Danny…"
They both turned to see a frazzled looking security chief headed their way.
"Hey, I thought we were meeting upstairs," Danny tried to sound casual, but he was sweating and out of breath.
"I'm sorry. I just needed some fresh air. I meant to call you, but I forgot my phone."
"It's okay, I was just a little worried." He didn't mention that he'd almost sent the entire casino into lockdown mode the minute he'd realized she wasn't in the apartment. Mitch had to assure him repeatedly that she was out by the pool and that they'd been monitoring her constantly since she stepped off the elevator. "You ready to go?"
"Yeah," Mary let Danny help her up and then turned back to Jillian. "Thank you…for everything."
"Don't mention it," Jillian said with a smile. "That's what moms are for."
As the couple headed past the pool and back through the casino, Danny noticed something odd. "Hey, are those my pants?"
"Stop talking…right now," Mary ordered without looking back. Realizing he'd touched on a sore subject, Danny decided not to press any further.
---
Later that afternoon, Danny and Mary reentered the casino like a couple of teenagers. They couldn't keep their hands off of each other and made a beeline for the elevator. Dr. Overton had given Mary a clean bill of health. The baby looked great and her pregnancy was right on track. She'd taken Mary off bed rest, but still recommended she limit her workload and take it easy as much as possible. She'd also told them they could resume sexual activity which was the reason for the grope fest currently going on in the elevator lobby.
"Danny, you have to wait until we get upstairs."
"Mmmm, I'm trying," he told her, nibbling on the spot right behind her ear that always made her squirm. The elevator doors opened and Danny ushered them both inside, thankful that they were the only ones on board. He vaguely heard someone calling his name, but he couldn't concentrate. The only thing on his mind was getting Mary upstairs and out of her clothes.
"DANNY," Mike stuck his hand between the doors to stop the car from ascending.
"Later, Mike. I'm really busy," Danny said as he attacked Mary's neck again, pulling her jacket down her shoulders so he could have better access while Mary giggled at his eagerness.
"DANNY," Mike yelled again and Mary took notice of the tone in his voice. She pushed Danny back and they both turned to face their friend.
"What?" Danny asked, frustrated.
"Mark Benton is dead."