Taking It All(38)

What was she supposed to do?

Kylie and Joss had resolutely thrown their support behind Chessy, vowing   to murder Tate in his sleep if he didn't cease with the emotional   warfare. It had gotten to the point where Chessy hated answering the   doorbell to greet that day's delivery. Perhaps what she needed to do was   move into her own place and not give out the address.

It seemed like the cowardly thing to do, but she wasn't prepared to face   Tate. In the two weeks since she'd walked out on him, she hadn't seen   him. Oh, it wasn't for lack of effort on his part. He'd gone first to   Joss and Dash's house, thinking she was staying there. Joss had   immediately called to warn Chessy that he was likely on his way to   Kylie's and, sure enough, he'd knocked determinedly on the door only to   be greeted-and turned away-by a scowling Jensen.

It hadn't deterred him, though. He'd continued his relentless assault   and Chessy imagined had she left the shelter of Kylie's home to go   anywhere, Tate would probably make an appearance and cause an   embarrassing public scene. Not that he'd intend to make a scene. He'd   never do anything to humiliate her. But he would likely beg her to give   him another chance and then make her look like the biggest bitch who   ever lived when she refused. Publicly.

So she'd remained inside Kylie's home, not venturing out for fear of   running into Tate. And that pissed her off. She was a total coward. A   spineless, gutless idiot for allowing him to dictate her every movement.

It was high time she took back control of her life and stopped living in   fear of the inevitable confrontation with Tate. It would have to be   done sooner or later. She couldn't avoid him forever. But she simply   couldn't decide her own fate. One day she'd be convinced that she needed   to set an appointment with the divorce attorney Dash knew and the next   she'd back down from that conviction and float in the direction of not   being positive of such a huge step yet. Once in motion, there was no   going back. Having Tate served with divorce papers would be so  …  final.   And she simply wasn't sure if she was ready for that.                       
       
           



       

And added to that, she was coming down with some sort of ugly stomach   bug. She couldn't look at or smell food without gagging. She was   listless, run-down and she wasn't sleeping at night. And Tate's daily   onslaught was wearing on her.

Her anxiety had gotten so bad that she'd actually made a doctor's   appointment so she could be prescribed medication to help calm her. She   cringed at the very thought of having to be dependent on medication for   her emotional stability but at the same time she was desperate for  some  sense of normalcy.

Since Kylie was working, Joss was coming over to take Chessy to the   doctor. Chessy had protested, saying she didn't need someone to hold her   hand through a doctor's appointment, but Joss had firmly told her that   there was no way in hell she was letting Chessy go alone. In the end   Chessy had caved under Joss's insistence and was now waiting for her to   arrive.

When Chessy heard the car pull up, she went outside to meet her. Joss   had just gotten out and looked decidedly green. There was a pallor to   her face that made Chessy feel instantly guilty.

"Joss, you look awful, hon. Why don't you go back home and go to bed? I can drive myself to the doctor's office for God's sake."

Joss waved a hand in front of her face. "It's nothing. I promise.   Mornings are just terrible for me but I can't stay in bed for my entire   pregnancy even if that's precisely what Dash would prefer. I swear he's   like a mother hen. One would think no other woman in the world has  ever  been pregnant before! He acts like I have a terminal illness.  Although I  will say being waited on hand and foot is a very nice perk  of this  pregnancy."

Her eyes twinkled merrily, some of the color returning to her cheeks.   Chessy hugged her just because. Joss's good spirits were infectious. She   was so sweet and kind it was impossible not to be cheered just by her   presence.

"Well thank you," Chessy said. "I'm always glad to have your company. We better get going. I don't want to be late."

Joss snorted. "As if you being late will make a difference. It's not   like doctors are ever prompt in seeing patients. You could probably   arrive thirty minutes late and still have to wait."

"True enough, but you know I hate being late."

Joss rolled her eyes. "Is that a dig at me and the fact that I'm perpetually late for everything?"

Chessy laughed as she slid into the passenger seat of Joss's car. "Would I do something like that?"

"Yes!"

It was a fifteen-minute drive to the doctor's office though it wasn't   that far away as the crow flies. But there were an insane amount of   lengthy traffic lights and they caught every single one of them.

Half an hour later, Chessy sat in shock as her doctor delivered very unexpected news.

"You're pregnant, Mrs. Morgan," her physician calmly stated.

"What?" she squeaked.

Chessy felt faint and then her dizziness gave way to utter panic.   Pregnant? But she was on birth control. She tried to think back. Had she   taken her pills on her anniversary weekend when things had been in  such  upheaval? It had to have been then. She and Tate had made love  that  weekend. Before that it had been awhile.

"You look very distressed," the doctor said in a concerned voice. "Is someone here with you? Should I summon them?"

"No," she murmured. "I'll be fine. It's just a shock. I was-am-on birth   control." Then another thought hit her and she stared anxiously up at   her doctor. "I've continued to take birth control. Will that hurt the   baby?"

"Well you certainly need to discontinue them," he advised. "But I doubt   you've done any harm to the fetus. You'll need to get an appointment   with an obstetrician so they can do a sonogram to determine your due   date. And they'll want you to go in for routine prenatal care. I can   give you a referral unless you already have someone in mind."

Her head was spinning trying to process the bombardment of information.   Pregnant. Separated from her husband. A husband she now had to tell she   was pregnant.

A few minutes later, she stumbled back into the waiting room where Joss   sat. Joss took one look at her and her brow furrowed in concern. She  met  her halfway across the room, putting an arm around her for support.

"Chessy, what's wrong?" Joss demanded. "What did the doctor say? Did he   give you a prescription for something to help your anxiety?"

Chessy closed her eyes. "What he gave me was more anxiety."

"I don't understand."                       
       
           



       

"I'm pregnant, Joss."

Joss stared at her in shock. Her mouth fell open. "Oh my God, Chessy.   What are you going to do? I know how much you wanted children but Tate   wanted to hold off."

"I didn't do this on purpose," Chessy said fiercely. "I know we talked   about it at some point before Tate and I separated. But I acknowledged   that a baby wouldn't fix our problems. I'd never purposely become   pregnant with our relationship in the shape it was."

"I never thought you did this on purpose," Joss soothed. "But hon, the   timing is horrible. Tate is going to want you back more now than ever."

Tears gathered in Chessy's eyes. "I don't want him back because of the   baby. I want him to want me. To put me first. I have no doubt he'd put   his child first. Is it selfish of me to want that priority over my   baby?"

"God no," Joss denied. "You should expect to come first with your   husband. There's no question of that. How do you plan to tell him?"

Chessy sighed wearily as they exited the clinic and walked to Joss's car   in the parking lot. "I don't know. I have to think about this. This   changes everything, Joss."

"On the bright side, we'll be pregnant together!" Joss said, smiling over at Chessy as she put her car in reverse.

Chessy attempted a smile. "Our children will grow up BFFs just like us."

"Now we just have to get Kylie knocked up and it will be a trifecta!"

"Don't hold your breath," Chessy said in amusement. "I don't think Kylie   has plans to be pregnant any time soon if ever. And Jensen seems   content with her decision."