Both Denise and Frank turned around mouths wide open in shock. "What do you mean you are deploying?" Denise asked him still upset from the fight she had just had with Frank.
"I mean I'm deploying. I'm going back to Iraq," Jeremy replied. "Got a lot to do before I go."
That's all it took, Denise lost it and turned and made a hasty exit for the bathroom, slamming the door and locking it behind her.
Frank walked over to Jeremy and took him into his arms. "Mind on the mission. I'll take care of your Mom."
"Okay, go check on her I have something I need to take care of before I go," Jeremy said returning the hug.
"We'll have a send off for you Friday," Frank told him. "Grandma's in your room. You're on the sofa." Frank went to try to talk to Denise. He knocked, "Dee, open up."
"No!" She said still sobbing uncontrollably. "Go away!"
"Denise, baby, please. I can't listen to you crying like this, it hurts me too much to be here and listen to you cry when I can't hold you. Open the door, baby." Frank sat on the floor and leaned against it hoping for her to open the door.
Denise didn't move for several minutes but finally opened the door, she was shaking and her face was blood red from crying along with her eyes.
Frank turned to face her and opened his arms, letting the choice of whether or not to go to him be up to Denise.
Denise hesitated but slowly went to him and let him hold her.
Frank held her tight and swayed back and forth. "I love you, Angel. I love you."
"I love you, I'm sorry I'm so moody and emotional," she said burying her face in his shoulder.
"It's okay," Frank said meaning it. "Really." He felt something poke at him."Is that him?"
"Yeah," she said smiling.
"You want to wait up for Jeremy?" Frank asked. He was starting to feel the old unwelcomed feeling he got before his health did whatever the heck it did. His head was starting to hurt and he felt sick to his stomach.
"Yeah I think I want to talk to him, I wish he wasn't deploying, I will worry myself to death," she told Frank.
"I know, but he's well trained. Mind if I go to bed?" Frank asked hoping he really just had a headache.
"No not at all, go I will be in shortly" she said giving him a kiss on the cheek and he went to bed
Jeremy came home two hours later to his mother sitting at the table. He sat down next to her, "I'm sorry I told you like that Mom."
"It's okay Jeremy, are you all set?" she asked him.
"Yeah, just have to wait it out now. I want lots of pictures of my new sister," Jeremy told her.
Denise rose to hug him but the sounds coming from the bathroom stopped her in her tracks and had both she and Jeremy sprinting for the master bathroom.
Denise ran into the bathroom to find Frank throwing up violently.
She dismissed Jeremy for Frank's sake then knelt beside him. "Not feeling good?" she asked dabbing a wet cloth on his neck as he continued to be sick.
"No, I feel like crap," he replied weakly.
"Is it like before? Or you think dinner upset your stomach?" Denise asked rewetting the cloth. She touched his cheek, "You've got a fever, baby."
"It's like before," he told her.
"Chest hurt?" she asked. "Can you breathe okay?"
"Yeah I can breathe fine," he told her.
"Want to go to Mercer or just go back to bed?" she asked him.
"Back to bed," he sighed.
"Can you make it on your own?" Denise asked.
"Yeah I think so," he said standing up.
Frank made it back to bed slowly but surely. Denise made sure he was warm and comfortable then brought the hated oxygen mask, "I want you to sleep with this tonight and see how you feel in the morning. I'll be right beside you." She kissed his cheek. "Sleep well, my love."
"You too baby," he said and kissed her before putting n the mask and slowly falling asleep.
Frank slept late the next morning but felt much better when he woke up. He'd promised to meet Michael for lunch at the O club, and in fact, he really needed to talk to another father. Denise's emotional outbursts were getting hard for Frank to cope with, the instability of his own health and her moods was rocking his world just a bit too much.
Denise was in the kitchen and had Frank's coffee ready when he came for it. "Here's your caffeine," she said smiling "Are you ready for your lunch with Michael?"
"Yeah," Frank replied. "Looking forward to spending some time out of the house."
"Yeah, it will be good for you to get out" she said kissing him goodbye sending the travel mug along with him.
Frank arrived a few minutes after Michael. The friends shook hands then began talking. "Had another battle with Denise last night," Frank said after they requested their meals. "Accused me of not wanting the baby because I don't want to know the sex. Believe it?"
"Women and their hormone, it's a life and death battle" Michael told him laughing.
"This is really starting to bother me," Frank confessed. "Last night I found myself yelling at her. I try to convince myself it isn't her fault but what is so wrong about wanting to be surprised when the baby comes?"
"Nothing, I don't blame you, that's half the fun" Michael told him.
"This is insanity," Frank sighed shaking his head.
"Yeah her emotions will be haywire for a while, just try and be patient" Michael told him "And if you need an ear or a drink you know where to find me."
"Jeremy's deploying in five days, that was hard on her too," Frank told Michael. "But I don't know what to do, when do I give in for the sake of peace and when do I stand my ground?"
"You just have to pick your battles, if it's something small, don't argue, just let her think she is right, even if you think otherwise, if it is big, say for instance knowing the sex, stand your ground, you have the right to be surprised," Michael said.
Frank nodded. "The other thing that's been coming up lately is choosing the Army over her. I'm getting pretty good at knowing when something if hormones and something is real and I think at least part of her believes that I do that."
"Well convince her otherwise, I had the same problem with Claudia Joy, still do at times, you just have to let her know you love her and she comes first "he told him
"How do I do that?" Frank asked. "I got an email this morning from the training command at Ft. Benning, they plan to assign me an onsite training for six weeks beginning three weeks before our baby is due if the next check up gives me a clean bill of health. How in the world do I break that news to her?"
"Very carefully, and I will see what I can do about getting that moved up so you can at least be here for the birth, I mean if you want me to" Michael said.
"Absolutely, though moving it back would probably be better. She has us taking this class...I don't know Michael, maybe I am done, for the first time, I don't want to be deployed, I don't want to leave her for more than a few hours, but I'm so close to my time, it's a bad idea to leave now," Frank confided. "Another problem, a friend of mine from my last tour emailed, she's been reassigned to Fort Marshall. Arrived last week."
"Well don't make any hasty decisions yet, let's take this one step at a time, I will call and see about getting the date moved, who is the friend you are talking about?" Michael asked him
"Off the record?" Frank asked to make sure he wasn't about to start trouble.
"Of course," Michael replied.
"Major Jordana Davis," Frank replied. "She and I were colleagues in Iraq when Dee and I were separated. There was some inappropriate contact verbal mostly, Denise doesn't know, even after she confessed her indiscretion, I didn't bring this up to her. There were some letters and e-mails as well during that time some were personal and some might qualify as intimate."
"And you think if she comes here it will start trouble with you and Denise" he asked.
"Yeah," Frank replied. "If not before she was pregnant, definitely now. I know that pain, I can't put her through that."
"Yeah I know what you mean, okay let's do this, if I think she is going to start trouble for you and Denise I will have a meeting with the two of you and I will tell her myself that if she does something to cause a strain on you or your wife I will have no choice but to reassign her, deal?"
"Deal," Frank said feeling a familiar crushing pain in his chest. He tried to hide it from Michael.
Michael saw it in his face. "Frank you okay?"
"Yeah," Frank lied, breathing hard, not as hard as before but harder than someone should sitting in a chair. "Just nervous about all this."
"Frank you are breathing too hard, maybe you need to go home and lie down," Michael told his friend
"If I go home like this, Dee will hit the roof. And I can't even call for someone to take her out cause her mom is staying with us indefinitely," Frank sighed. "It'll get better in a minute."
"Okay but if you aren't better in a minute I am taking you home," Michael said sternly
At the PX Denise was shopping with Claudia joy catching up on all the gossip and just enjoying time with her friend, when suddenly not playing attention they ran into a young woman, Denise looked at her "Oh I'm sorry, that was my fault I wasn't watching where I was going" she said politely
"No problem," Major Davis replied. "I'm sorry, have we met?"
"Um, no not that I can recall" Denise replied.
Claudia Joy looked on with interest wondering how this pretty officer would know Denise. Denise's phone rang then and she answered it, "Mrs. Sherwood."
"Hi, yes, I have one scheduled for tomorrow at 10. I'm hoping my husband can be there, but I need you to please make sure the tech does not refer to the baby's sex, Frank is adamant about not knowing," Denise instructed. She listed a few more minutes then hung up realizing the Major was still staring at her.
"That's where I know you from," Jordana said once Denise was off the phone. "You're Frank Sherwood's ex wife."
"Oh, no we withdrew the divorce, we are still married, in fact, we're having a baby in three months. Are you a soldier?" Denise asked, not knowing because Jordana was dressed in casual clothing.
"I served with Frank on his last tour," Jordana replied. "We worked pretty closely together. I was planning on contacting him and trying to get together."
"Okay I'm sure he would love to see you again, why don't you come over for dinner around 7?" Denise asked the young soldier.
"That would be lovely. What should I bring?"
"You don't have to bring anything, just come over and everything will be ready," Denise replied
"Wonderful," Jordana smiled. "When are you due? Frank didn't mention he was expecting another child."
"He hasn't mentioned it?" She ask trying to keep her cool.
"No, I only wrote to him last week and he never mentioned it," Jordana said trying to hide the smile coming on her face. "Then again, he never mentioned you'd reconciled either, we mainly talk about his work."
"Oh, well I'm sure he was going to mention it soon, he is so excited, it's great," Denise replied smiling
"I'm sure it is," Jordana sighed. "I'll see you both later." With that she walked off leaving Denise speechless and Claudia Joy shocked.
"That was awkward, I can't believe Frank didn't mention us getting back together or me being pregnant" she said somewhat upset, was he not excited about being as father, did he not want to be with her?
"Don't get excited, Denise. Frank is a good man and I'm sure many, many women would have loved for him to go through with the divorce. They'd have lined up for him in no time," Claudia Joy told her friend. "But he chose you. He loves you. Now, don't let her know that she got to you. If it'll make you feel better, let's get you a pretty new dress for tonight."
Denise smile "Okay lets shop" she said.
They strolled through the shops, "So you think Frank's health is finally on an up turn?"
"Yeah I think so, he still has spells but he seems to be getting better" denies told her
"That's good to hear Denise," Claudia Joy said smiling. "I'll have your mom around to our house for dinner. Jeremy called to ask Emmalin to a movie. What was that about?"
"Not sure, I think he likes her though, if I was guessing" Denise said smiling
The two women laughed and shopped until Denise returned home with a beautiful black maternity dress that showed off her long legs and full bosom and the makings for one of Frank's favorite dinners, her sage chicken with cranberry chestnut stuffing. Frank's car was in the drive but he wasn't waiting for her ate door. When Denise went to their room to put away her new outfit she saw him across their bed, still in his uniform, sound asleep.
She smiled to herself, she loved him more than anything in the world, and she put away the dress and went to start cooking dinner