Chapter 3

Angela closed her eyes trying to quell the adrenaline that was now coursing through her body, both from the thoughts running through her mind and from the fact that she was going to have to come face-to-face with Tony, at the absolute worst possible time.

"Come in," she said; her voice, to her dismay, an octave higher than normal.

"Hi," Tony said giving her one of his disarming grins as he walked into the room placing the tray he was carrying on the nightstand next to her. "Feelin' any better?"

"A little," Angela responded trying to keep her voice steady. "Being all warm and cozy in my own bed is definitely helping."

"You should get some sleep," Tony replied. "I've brought up some juice, tea with a little honey and some saltines when you feel up to it."

"Thanks Tony. I don't know what I'd do without you," she said before she could stop herself.

Blushing, Tony smiled again before responding, "Oh ay, ay oh, that's what I'm here for. To keep this family healthy and happy. After I'm done cleaning this morning, I'll come back up and check on you, and if you're hungry, I'll make you some of my homemade chicken noodle soup. Guaranteed to cure what ails you!"

"That sounds great," Angela said trying to keep a neutral look on her face.

"But, I do have to go out this afternoon. Mrs. Rossini called this morning, and she and Joe are shorthanded at the fish market, so I said I'd come down and help. I'm sorry," Tony said ruefully.

Angela closed her eyes briefly and said a silent 'thank you' that Tony wouldn't be hovering over her all day.

"That's fine. I'm glad you're able to help. I'm sure I'll just sleep most of the day or maybe try and do a little work later if I feel up to it."

"Ok," Tony said as he turned to leave the room. "Just remember, you need to take it easy. Doctor's orders."

Angela gave him a weak smile as he pulled her door shut. She sank back against the pillows and let out the breath she didn't realize she'd been holding since he'd knocked on her door.

Her mind immediately began racing; a million thoughts running through her head. 'Get hold of yourself Angela,' she said to herself taking another deep breath. She needed to think through this rationally before she completely spun out of control.

Could she actually be pregnant? Counting backwards in her head, she realized that the timing of when she and Tony had made love would have been about the right time for it to happen. But, she'd always been so diligent about her birth control even when she wasn't seeing anyone. Mainly because of the wonders that it did to keep her acne in check. However, the weekend they went to Jonathan's camp, she'd been so concerned about him that she'd forgotten to pack it. She'd had a fleeting thought about it that night with Tony but then his hands and lips chased the thought right out of her head.

This was crazy. Yes, she'd wanted another child for a long time. So much so that when Michael moved back in last year and brought it up, she'd agreed. But she had put her foot down insisting that they wait a few months to make sure their relationship was back on solid ground. And then, of course, that never happened.

But now? Pregnant with her housekeeper's baby? It was like an episode of One Life to Live; a soap opera she and many of her sorority sisters watched religiously in college. Of course, Tony was so much more than that now. He had slowly morphed into her best friend. Her partner in almost every sense of the word, really. This though would change everything.

Angela reminded herself that she didn't know anything for sure. Maybe it really was the stomach flu or some other illness. Right now, she wasn't sure what she wanted it to be. She knew though she had to find out as soon as possible because there was no way she could pretend that everything was normal around Tony. He knew her so well by this point that he would see right through any façade she tried to put up. Not to mention, her mother would too.

Waiting until Tony left for Brooklyn was going to be torture, but Angela knew she didn't have any other choice. She had to be as discreet as possible. So, for the time being, she had nothing else to do but let the myriad of thoughts run unabated through her mind.

How would she and Tony navigate this? How would they handle it with the kids? With the Fairfield community? Many of whom already assumed that they were sleeping together. But, more importantly, how would Tony react? Did he want another child? Angela didn't know exactly how old Sam was when Marie had died. Would they have had more children if she hadn't gotten sick or was one enough? Tony had taken to Jonathan so easily and seemed to really enjoy having a 'son', so maybe he wouldn't want any more? And how would he feel about the fact that it was her having his baby? Tony was a proud Italian man who still seemed to hold some old-fashioned views even though he did seem to be slowly changing and evolving. Could he handle though letting her provide the majority of the financial support for this child?

Just then, there was another knock at her bedroom door, and there was Tony again. Had it really been two hours since he'd first checked on her?

"Angela, you've hardly touched the crackers," Tony said with a shake of his head after he entered the room. "I went ahead and made the soup. It's on the stove. You can just heat it up in a little bit if you get hungry. You should eat something though," Tony finished giving her a look.

"Thank you, Tony. I will, I promise," Angela said trying to smile brightly at him while thinking to herself that she really did need something in her stomach for a variety of reasons.

"I'm sorry I can't stay," Tony said squeezing her shoulder briefly. "You have the number for the fish market if you need anything. I told Mona what was going on, so she'll be around as well. I also told the kids that they need to be ready to help when they get home from school. I should be back around 7."

As soon as he'd closed her door, Angela was up and out of bed. Throwing on a sweat suit and piling her hair into a messy bun, she waited until she heard the front door close behind Tony before racing down the stairs grabbing her purse and car keys.

An hour later, Angela was back in her bedroom after her rushed trip to a drugstore in neighboring Bridgeport. She had gone out of her way to make sure she didn't run into anyone she knew. The neighborhood gossips would have a field day with this news, once it was out, and there were so many things to figure out before that happened.

Home pregnancy tests had evolved a lot since the one she took with Jonathan almost nine years ago. She remembered how she and Michael had waited for what seemed like hours to find out the results. The test she'd bought today promised accurate results in 20 minutes once you were due or overdue for your period. And she was definitely overdue, she thought to herself; chagrined for not realizing how late she was until today.

As the longest twenty minutes of her life ticked by, Angela couldn't help but let her mind finally focus on the excitement she was starting to feel. Yes, there were so many obstacles that needed to be addressed, but deep down, the idea of having another baby and the fact that this baby would tie them all together as an actual family were beginning to take root. And she couldn't help but picture Tony with a tiny sleepy newborn in his arms, chasing after a giggling toddler and teaching an adorable little 8-year-old boy or girl to play baseball.

Just then, the timer Angela had set dinged interrupting her daydreaming. Taking the deepest breath of her life, she forced herself to get up and go into her bathroom.

Plain as day, the liquid in the test tube that she'd placed on her bathroom counter had turned from clear to blue; she was pregnant. Angela staggered back into her bedroom and collapsed on her bed. Could she and Tony weather this or would it tear their friendship and, more importantly, their family apart? Angela honestly didn't know…