Rebecca Winters: The Baby Dilemma

One look at him and she’d fallen so deeply in love, her entire world had changed. Evidently it had for him, too, because when the homestay came to an end, he’d followed her back to Washington. Before the month was out they’d celebrated their wedding.

After experiencing euphoria in her thirty-day marriage to him, she realized life would never hold that same magic for her again. Not ever.

She’d been trying so hard to put the past behind her. But she knew the second she heard his sister’s voice, the pain was going to come crashing through.

Her hand trembled as she picked up the receiver in her grandfather’s study. “Hello, C-Claudine?”

“Kellie—” her friend let out a mournful cry. “At last.”

She could hardly swallow, let alone talk. “I—I’m sorry it has taken me so long to face you.”

“Don’t apologize, chérie. I love Philippe, too, and cry myself to sleep every night for what has happened.”

“H-how is he?”

“If you mean physically, he’s recovering. The bone on his elbow was bruised, but he no longer has to wear a sling. His knee required surgery. Otherwise he would have come after you.”

A quiet gasp escaped Kellie’s throat. His injuries had been worse than he’d made out. Who had been taking care of him?

“Now he’s on crutches to keep the weight off it until it’s healed.”

Every word from Claudine’s lips tore her apart a little more.

“Kellie—you have to know that mentally my brother’s devastated you left him,” she confided in a tremulous voice.

By now the tears were dripping off her cheeks. “Did he ask you to call me?”

“No. He isn’t talking to anyone about anything. His pain is too deep. I’ve been praying you might have had time to reconsider your decision.”

“It’s all I think about.” She half-sobbed. “But no matter how I view it, divorce is the only answer. Cutting ties with me frees him to fulfill his moral obligation. You and I both know what kind of a father he’ll make. You’ve seen him interact with your nieces and nephew. It’s one of the qualities about him that made me want to marry him.”

“My brother can be a model father without marrying her!”

“Visitation isn’t the same thing as belonging to one family. He mustn’t deprive Yvette’s baby of its father. I had to live my whole life without mine, and I don’t want his son to know the same deprivation. Not only that, Philippe has wanted to get started on a family. Well, now he has one… Yvette adores him, and their child will be born any day now.”

“That’s not the point, Kellie. He’s too deeply in love with you to consider marriage to anyone else.”

“But there was a time when he cared for Yvette. Given a chance, those feelings could turn into love. He’s going to worship his child. If you were in my shoes, would you deny him the chance to raise their infant in his own household with the baby’s birth mother?”

A brief silence ensued. “I can’t answer that. I don’t know what it’s like to grow up without a father. Obviously it has scarred you much more than I’d realized.”

“Claudine— I heard Yvette confide in the doctor at the hospital right after they’d brought her in. The pain and the longing in her voice for Philippe killed me. I knew then what I had to do.”

Again there was a hesitation before Claudine said, “What about your pain and longing for my brother?”

“It doesn’t matter about me.”

“That’s what you say now. But there’s going to come a day… I hope you won’t live to regret it.”

“Please don’t hate me, Claudine,” she begged.

“I won’t dignify your comment with a response. As for Philippe, I’m sure he wishes he could hate you. It would make things easier all the way around. Have you been to an attorney yet?”

She sucked in her breath. “Yes. Philippe will be receiving the papers next week.”

“It’s going to kill him.”

“Don’t say that.”

“I have to say it because I know my brother. You think a divorce will force him to marry Yvette, but you’re wrong. He loves you. Our whole family loves you.”

“I love all of you, too,” her voice trembled. “I love you for caring so much, but Yvette and her baby are the important ones here.”

There was a pause. “Kellie?”

She wiped her eyes with the back of her free hand. “Yes?”

“You’re the only wife he wants.”

“He’ll change his mind when he’s there for the delivery and lays eyes on his little lookalike for the first time.”

“I think you’re wrong.”

“Claudine—”

“I’m sorry. I promised myself I wouldn’t put pressure on you, and that’s all I’ve done since I rang.”

“You have no reason to apologize. I’m so awful I haven’t even asked how things are going with Jules.”

“They’re not.”

“Why?”

“Unlike my brother, I think he’s a real playboy who’ll never settle down. He’s too attractive, has too much money. He can put on a convincing act that I’m the only woman for him, but I know deep down that’s not true.

“One day he’ll get bored and move on. I feel it in my bones. He doesn’t know it yet, but I’ve had my last date with him. I’ve got to keep looking for Mr. Perfect. Unfortunately no one ever measures up to Philippe.”

It always came down to Philippe.

No one could compare to him, but Kellie did know one man who had many of her husband’s sterling qualities. It was his good friend, Roger. Ever since she’d met him, she’d thought he and Claudine might hit it off. It was a subject she’d intended to broach with her husband.

Now there was no more Philippe. At least not in her world.

“I can tell you want to hang up, Kellie. Please call me once in a while. I couldn’t take it if you cut me off, too.”

“I would never do that. You’ll hear from me soon. I swear it.”

“A tout à l’heure, chérie.”

“À bientôt, chère Claudine.”

Kellie hung up the phone, dissolved in fresh tears.

Unable to bear the pain, she ran through the house to her room and collapsed on the bed.

KELLIE?”

Her head swerved toward the nurse. “Yes?”

“Dr. Evans wants to talk to you. As soon as you’re dressed, just step into his office.”

“All right.”

Dr. Evans had been the Madsen family doctor for as long as she could remember. He’d seen her through everything from tonsils and stitches to fractures and flu.

Lately she’d been having headaches and could pinpoint the onset of them to the day Kellie’s attorney had sent Philippe’s solicitor the divorce papers by express mail. The packet had gone out a week ago. Since then, the calls from Philippe had stopped.

It was what she’d wanted, but she couldn’t help but be anxious about him and needed to know if the baby had been born yet. She could always phone Claudine. However a part of her was afraid that if she did that, she’d break down crying again and it would make her headaches worse.

Hopefully Kellie’s doctor could prescribe something to take them away. The normal over-the-counter drugs weren’t helping.

A few minutes later she left the examining room and walked into his office. He was waiting for her. “Sit down, Kellie.”

After she’d taken a seat opposite his desk he smiled at her. “I believe I’ve discovered the source of your headaches, but I’ll leave it up to your obstetrician for a final determination.”

Kellie blinked. Obstetrician?

He stared at her. “You didn’t have any idea you were pregnant?”

She lurched in the chair. If she hadn’t been holding on to the sides, she might have fallen out of it.

His expression grew solemn. “I take it you and your husband hadn’t planned on starting a family yet.”