“No, I’m just surprised.” He leaned back and crossed his arms over his chest.
“I was scared, Mark. I couldn’t tell you I was pregnant because I was scared. I know about Rebecca, and I didn’t want to cause any trouble with the two of you. You’re a busy doctor. We shouldn’t have done what we did in the first place, but I didn’t see why we should both be punished.”
“Wait.” He leaned forward. “Rebecca? How do you know about Rebecca?”
“While I was at the apartment, she called. I saw her name come up on your cell phone. Then I saw a picture of you together on Ruth’s bookshelf. She came to my diner a few weeks later. She’s beautiful.” Jennifer hesitated, remembering the night at Ruth’s apartment. In one instant she wanted to tell him the truth about Rebecca, about Alan. And in another instant she kept it to herself. “And she seemed very sweet. I know you probably love her. I know that. I’m not asking to take you away from her, or anyone, for that matter. I didn’t tell because I didn’t want to cause any problems for you.”
Mark sat with a slightly bemused smile on his face. “I do love her. In fact, I hope you don’t mind, but I asked her to come over later.”
Jennifer felt a knife twisting in her heart. “No, you really don’t have to do that. I really don’t want to meet her. Not yet. Not now.”
“I want you to. If we’re going to make this work out, you will have to meet the people I love. Rebecca included.”
As the baby kicked, Jennifer rubbed her stomach and nodded. “I’m sorry, Mark. I really didn’t want to cause any problems.”
“Shh, we’ll talk about this more later. You eat, I’m going to take a nap. I haven’t slept all night.”
He left the room, but the smell of his cologne lingered. Keys in his pocket jingled as he sat on the couch, then again as they landed on her wooden coffee table. She couldn’t help but imagine him curled up with the blanket she’d laid across the back of the couch. Imagining him asleep under something she’d made lifted her spirits. And the image of his frame curled on her tiny couch made her grin.
Strawberries. She hadn’t eaten strawberries in months. The smells from the food made her stomach rumble, and she took a bite. In all the turmoil from the night before, she’d forgotten to eat. Finding Mark in her apartment this morning had made her forget just how hungry she truly was…until that first bite passed her lips. The hot, crisp pancake danced over her taste buds. Traces of maple syrup and butter melded together, a contrast of sweet and salty so tantalizing she couldn’t put her fork down until the last bite slipped past her lips.
Mark should quit his job at the hospital. Sure, the idea of going from doctor to chef seemed a bit laughable, but his food tasted divine. Anyone with that kind of raw talent shouldn’t ignore it.
She finished off the last of the strawberries and wondered who’d snuck in and eaten the rest of the food. Peeking through her open door, she saw Mark’s feet hanging over the edge of the couch. Jennifer wished he would lie next to her, instead. Pushing the tray aside, she curled onto her side and closed her eyes.
Not quite awake, not quite asleep, Jennifer enjoyed the last remnants of a beautiful dream. A sunny day playing in the park, her baby in a stroller as she and Mark walking hand and hand down the trail. The clouds all looked like teddy bears and hearts. Every street corner had a different vendor: balloons, cotton candy, even giant cookies. Awareness seeped into the edges of the dream, but she didn’t want to open her eyes.
Then the sound of the doorbell sent the park scattering to the far recesses of her mind. She almost never had visitors and, for a moment, thought it must be a neighbor’s bell, till she heard Mark open the door. The tone of his voice and the sound of the other reminded Jennifer of what she’d hoped to forget. Pangs of nervous energy pinged under her skin as that laugh came again. That sweet, lilting laugh to go with a more than beautiful woman.
Jealously couldn’t quite describe what the whispered conversation did to Jennifer. But then she remembered: she was the other woman, not Rebecca. Mark had already told her he loved Rebecca, and somehow Rebecca loved Mark enough that she agreed to come and meet the woman carrying his child. She felt sadness as the last memories of the dream floated away. She could not compare to this woman. She’d never known anyone to be so generous and forgiving.
Closing her eyes to her thoughts, she listened as the two talked for a while longer. Then she heard footsteps coming her way.
He spoke softly. “Jennifer, are you awake?”