An Unplanned Life (Unplanned Series) (3 page)

Chapter 4

Nicole

I was just coming out of my facial coma and admiring the pretty shade of turquoise that was being put on my toes when my phone beeped with a text message. I quickly pulled it from my purse. It was from Dailan: 
I had to bring Ryan and Ella into work with me for a few hours. Sorry, there was an emergency. Would you be able to pick them up when you’re done?
My “me day” was officially over.
Why did it not dawn on him to call my mom or his stepmother to come over and watch them before dragging them into work?
I quickly walked out of the salon with my toes still wet and headed to Dailan’s office.

“Nicole! How are you?” Debbie
, Dailan’s assistant, said as she gave me a hug.

“
I’m good.”

“Oh my goodness
, that baby is just the cutest! Sorry Dailan had to get called in on his day off, but there’s a problem with one of the big clients. He’s threatening to sue the company and Mr. Allan is freaking out.”

“Oh boy
. Well, I just came to collect Ryan and Ella.”

“Oh yeah, come on back
. I was just getting Ryan a lollipop. Dailan’s in his office on a conference call right now. Rachel and I are in the conference room with the kids.”

“Oh, who’s Rachel?” I asked.

“She’s one of the new paralegals. I’m going to be working full time for Mr. Allan in September.” She rolled her eyes as if she wasn’t pleased. “So, I’m training Rachel. She’ll be working for Dailan.”

“Oh
.” I nodded. She opened the door to the conference room and the smile that was on my face immediately faded away. I had to do a double take when I saw my baby in the arms of Rachel Wiser, the girl who had made my life an unbearable living hell in high school. I was speechless as our eyes locked. “Nicole Morgan?” She stared at me with her piercing blue eyes, which looked as if they were looking right through you.

“Nicole O’Maley,” I
corrected her as I snatched Ella from her arms. “Ryan, are you ready?” I asked, trying my best to get out of there without any further conversation with her. She stood up, revealing her super short skirt and her extra-long legs. Her long blonde hair was blowing from the overhead ceiling fan.

“Oh my God
, Nicole, this is your baby? And Ryan is –”

“I have nothing to say to you. You are not my friend
, you never were, and you never will be. So, let’s just stop with the nice act because the bottom line is, I will never forget all that you’ve done to me.”

“Ryan
, let’s go get another lollipop,” Debbie said, doing her best to remove Ryan from the tension that loomed.

“Really
, Nicole, you’re still angry over something that happened in high school?”

“You know what
, Rachel? I actually do have a lot to say to you, but out of respect for my husband and not wanting to cause a major scene at his workplace, I’m going to keep my mouth shut. But I will say this; stay the hell away from my kids and my husband.”

I star
ted to walk away. “Well, the second half of that is going to be pretty hard since I’m working for your husband now,” she shouted.

I bit my lip and took a deep breath just as Dailan came out of his office. “Hey
, beautiful, I just tried texting you to tell you I was done and you didn’t have –” I whisked past him, totally ignoring him. I felt myself shaking. He finally caught up to me. “Hey, what’s the matter?”

“I’ll talk to you about it later.”

“No, we’ll talk about it now!”

I watched as Rachel made her way out of the conference room and smile
d at me with a Cheshire cat grin.

“Please
, Dailan. I don’t want to talk about it here.”

“Fine, give me a minute and I’ll be done here.”

I waited for Ryan, who was carefully scouring through the candy bowl on Debbie’s desk. I hurried him along when I saw Rachel walking toward us. She had two files in her hand and began to talk to Debbie as if I weren’t even standing there. “The blue ones are the best,” she said to Ryan as he tried to decide on a lollipop.

“You know what
, Debbie? Would you mind telling Dailan that I’ll meet him outside?”

“Sure, no
problem. Have a great weekend, Nicole, and you have a very happy birthday, Ryan!” Debbie smiled.

“Oh
, it’s your birthday!” Rachel said with a fake grin. “Let me guess; you’re going to be ten?” Ryan nodded as if he was amazed that she knew that. “How in the world did I guess that?” Her fake smile disappeared as she looked at me and raised her eyebrows. I was expressionless. I took Ryan by the hand and gripped Ella tightly as I headed out the door.

I had just gotten Ella into her car seat when Dailan came walking out. “
Uncle D, can we still go the batting cages, please?” Ryan begged.

“Yeah, go get in my car.”

“Yes!” Ryan pumped his fist in triumph.

“Okay, what is your problem?” he asked once Ryan was out of earshot.

“That fucking bitch that’s going to be working for you!”

His eyes widened at the langu
age that had just come from my mouth. I never dropped the f-bomb unless I was really angry over something and he knew it.

“Who is she?”

“Dailan, you have no idea the hell that girl put me through in high school.”

He laughed as if I were overreacting
, which was only making me angrier. “Umm, Nicole, you’re twenty-eight. High school was a long time ago.”

“That doesn’t matter
, Dailan! You have no clue what she did to me and I will never forget it. Then I walk in and see her holding my baby! Do me a favor; never bring my kids around any of your co-workers again!”

I opened up the car door to enter. I was angry over the whole situation and how Dailan just acted so nonchalant about it. He
pulled me toward him and lifted my chin up to look at him. “Hey, I’m sorry that she got you that upset. I’m going to take Ryan to the batting cages for a little bit and then when I get home, we’ll talk about it, okay?”

I nodded
, even though I was still seething inside. He kissed me softly on the lips and stuck his head in the back seat to give Ella a kiss goodbye. I watched as he and Ryan drove off. I sat in my car, waiting for the air conditioner to kick in, trying to settle my nerves, still unable to get Rachel Wiser out of my head.

Chapter
5

Nicole

The past…

I was eight weeks pregnant and still hadn’t told anyone but Donna and Jonathan, who adamantly claimed that it wasn’t his. He stopped taking all my phone calls and wouldn’t respond to any of my emails. I had never felt more alone. I was scared to death, not knowing what to do or how I would ever break this news to my parents. Donna tried to be the best support system that she could to me, but being seventeen herself, there was only so much she could do.

I sat on the bleachers in the gym half listening to
Mrs. Bradley, the school nurse, as she began to ramble on about the three cases of measles that had broken out in the school. The school was giving out inoculations as a precaution. My ears finally perked up when I heard her say, “Ladies, if there is any chance that any of you even suspect you may be pregnant, please see me. Everyone else, please line up against the wall.” My stomach dropped as I watched all of the students charge down the bleachers to line up.

“Do you want me to go with you to talk to Mrs. Bradley,” Donna asked sympathetically.

I could feel my eyes burning with tears. “No, just go get in line. I’ll be fine.” She rubbed her hand up and down my arm in support as she headed down the bleachers. I truly didn’t know what I would have done without Donna over these past few weeks. She was the greatest friend anyone could ask for. She rubbed a lot of people the wrong way because she was very headstrong and not afraid to speak her mind. She didn’t take any nonsense from anyone and I loved her for that. I slowly made my way down the bleachers, trying not to be too obvious.

“Nicole, come and get in line!” I looked over to see Rachel Wiser staring at me and waving me over to get in line. Rachel and I were not friends by any means. She had dated Jonathan before me and when he broke up with her, she swore it was my fault
. Then, my being chosen over her as captain of the cheerleading squad only added to her fury. She and Jonathan were together for almost a year before they broke up, which had nothing to do with me. She was super close with Jonathan’s parents and made it very difficult for me when I first started going out with him. She was now dating another football player and was trying to act as if she was over the whole Jonathan thing by befriending me, but I knew it wasn’t sincere.

“Umm, I have to go to the bathroom first,” I said.

She raised her eyebrows and I could feel her piercing eyes burning into my back as I walked out of the gym. I was finally able to locate Mrs. Bradley in the hallway and anxiously waited for her to finish up her conversation with the gym teacher. “Mrs. Bradley, can I talk to you for a minute?”

“Sure, Nicole.”

“In private,” I said.

“Sure.” We walked down the hall and into her office. She closed the door behind her. “What’s up
, Nicole?”

“I can’t get that shot. I’m pregnant,” I blurted out, feeling a little relief knowing that someone else knew now.

“Oh, Nicole.” She looked at me in shock. “Are you sure?” I nodded as the tears rolled down my face. “Have you been to see a doctor yet, honey?”

I shook my head. “No
. I haven’t told my parents yet.”

“Nicole, it’s very important that you go see a doctor
, sweetie. Have you told the other person responsible for this?” she asked.

I nodded and began to cry harder. “Yes and he doesn’t want anything to do with it. He swears that it’s not his. It was my first time
, Mrs. Bradley. I didn’t even want to do it.” She hugged me tightly as I began to sob. She rubbed my back to console me.

“Nicole, you have to tell your parents
, sweetie. This is too much for you to take on by yourself.”

My stomach churned just thinking about it. “They will kill me.”

“Nicole, I’m sure they’ll be upset, but you need a support system. You need to talk to the guidance counselor right away, so you can discuss the options that you have.”

I shook my head. “I’m not having an abortion.” I was adamant.

“Okay, but there are still so many options for you. She’ll also work out a plan so you can finish up school and still graduate with your class in June. The main thing right now is that you get to a doctor and get prenatal care. “Do you know how far along you are?” she asked.

“Eight weeks.”

She looked down at the calendar on her desk and flipped through the pages. “Okay, that puts your due date near the end of May. So if you can make it up until April, then I’m sure that the school can arrange a private tutor for you to finish up the rest of the school year at home.” She wrapped her arm around me and walked me down to the guidance counselor, just as Rachel Wiser was walking out of the gym, grasping onto her arm where she had just gotten her shot. She stared into my tear-filled eyes, giving me a devious grin as she looked at Mrs. Bradley. I knew from that moment on, that my hell on earth was about to begin.

Chapter
6

Nicole

I was surprised to see my dad’s car in my driveway. My mom and dad had moved back to our hometown permanently a year and a half ago. It was a great help to me. My mother watched Ella for me every day while I was at work. My parents and I didn’t have the greatest relationship for the longest time, but over the past few years, we had mended our wounds and our relationship was the best that it had ever been. They doted on Ryan and Ella constantly. My father was especially close with Ryan and I knew it had to do a lot with the way he had treated me over the years regarding the situation. I buried the past behind me and was just happy to have my parents back in my life without any more tension between us. I had a great support system in addition to my parents; Dailan’s father and stepmother were always there to help out as well. And Dailan – well, he was the best husband I could have ever asked for. If someone had told me that a few years ago, when that wise cracking, chauvinistic, hot Irish guy first walked into my classroom, I would have never believed it. He loved Ryan and Ella so much and he always made sure he let me know how much he loved me too.

I walked inside to find my
mother folding a load of laundry. She immediately grabbed Ella from my arms and smothered her in kisses. “There’s Mom-Mom’s baby,” she said. Ella’s smile widened as she attempted to kiss my mom back the best way she knew how.

“What are you guys doing here?” I asked.

“Your father wanted to fix that overhead light that’s not working out on your deck.”

“Oh, he didn’t have to do that. Dailan was going to call an electrician.”

“Nicole, don’t be silly. Why would you guys pay someone to do that when your father can fix it? It gives him something to do besides driving me crazy! Where’s Ryan?” she asked.

“He’s at the batting cages with Dailan.”

“Oh, Dailan finally took a day off from work?”

“Yeah
, but he ended up getting called in for a couple of hours.”

My mom shook her head. “Well, he should have just told them no. He works way too hard.”

“Yeah, he does.” I said, still unable to get the visual of Rachel holding my baby out of my head. I walked over to the counter and began to prepare Ella’s lunch while my mother seated her in her high chair. She began to bang on the tray and babble. “Okay, piggy, I’m moving as fast I can.” I couldn’t resist giving her a kiss on the cheek, smelling the strong scent of a very familiar perfume on her that wasn’t mine. I cringed.

I handed my mom the bowl of Ella’s baby food and a yogurt as she sat down and began to feed her. Ella couldn’t get it into her mouth fast enough. “This child loves to eat!” my mother said.

“Yes she does.” I laughed. I was still stewing over what had happened earlier and felt the need to talk to someone who understood where I was coming from. “Hey, Mom, you’ll never believe who Dailan’s new assistant is.”

“Who?”
she asked, half paying attention as she laughed at Ella shoveling the food into her mouth.

“Rachel Wiser.”

She put the spoon into the bowl and placed it down on Ella’s tray. She turned around, giving me her full attention. “Oh no, Nicole.”

“Yeah
, tell me about it, and could you just imagine how I felt when I walked in and saw her holding Ella?”

“What was that little witch doing holding my baby girl?”
my mother asked, giving Ella a spoonful of yogurt.

“Well, I was getting around to using my Mother’s
Day present when Dailan texted me to tell me that he had to run into work. I went to go pick up the kids from his office. Dailan had a conference call, so Debbie and
Rachel
were watching Ryan and Ella.”

“Why didn’t Dailan just call me? I would have come over and watched them?”

“My thoughts exactly, Mom! But he’s a man and men don’t think.”

I told my mom everything that happened
during my encounter with Rachel. My mother listened and seemed just as sickened by it as I was. “Did you tell Dailan who she was?”

“I told him a little
, but, believe me, when he gets home, he’s going to get an earful!”

“Well, I want to take both Ryan and Ella overnight for you next weekend
. You and Dailan deserve some alone time together. You’ve both been working so hard and it’s very easy to lose that spark when you’re busy taking care of little ones.” She seemed like she was speaking from experience, but I didn’t dare ask.

“Hey
, thanks!” As much as I loved Ryan and Ella, the thought of having some uninterrupted alone time with my incredibly sexy husband made me smile.

“Don’t tell Ryan
, but your dad has tickets to a baseball game. He’s going to surprise him.”

I smiled as I thought about how close my
dad and Ryan had become. It was as if Ryan was a clone of my brother when he was his age. The similarities between the two were almost scary.

“Hey
, Dad!” I said as he entered the kitchen.

He gave me a kiss and leaned down to kiss Ella as she held her arms up to be taken from her high chair. My mom removed her from her high chair
and my dad took her in his arms and kissed her. “She loves her Pop-Pop,” my mom said.

“And her Pop-
Pop loves her,” my dad said, giving Ella a kiss on the forehead. “Where’s Ryan?” my dad asked.

“He and Dailan are at the batting cages.”

“Did he tell you about the game he pitched the other night? That kid has some arm,” my dad said proudly.

“Yes, I heard
, and it figures of all the nights that I had to miss his game!” Normally, I made a point of never missing one of Ryan’s baseball games and the one night that I had parent/teacher conferences was the night that he pitched a great game.

“Are you ready to get going
, Tre?” my dad asked.

“I’m never ready to leave my baby girl,” my mom said as she squeezed Ella tightly. “Nicole
, did you need me to bring anything else over for Ryan’s party tomorrow?”

“Nope, I’m good. I just
have to pick up the cake in the morning.”

“Well, you know your sister is coming without the kids.”

“Oh, why is that?”

“It’s Mark’s weekend and he won’t bend and let her have them.” It had been six months and I still could not believe that my sister and her husband were separated. Her perfect world
and her perfect marriage had finally come crumbling down when she found out that he was cheating on her for the past year with a co-worker. I tried to be as sympathetic as I could to her, but she and I still did not mesh well. She had warmed up to me a bit since I had the baby and found out about Ryan, but she was still the same self-centered Renee that she had always been. She and her husband were in an ugly custody battle and I was so thankful that Dailan’s specialty was not in family law. But that still didn’t stop her from calling him at least once a week for legal advice.

I walked my mom and dad to the door and we said our goodbyes. I came back into the kitchen and looked at the clock. It was only 12:30, a little too early to put Ella down for a nap so I could get some stuff done. I decided we would hit the grocery store so I could get some last minute things for Ryan’s party.
I gave her a quick diaper change, grabbed the diaper bag and my purse, and we headed out the door. The normal five-minute ride to the food store took twenty with all of the Memorial Day traffic headed to the beach.

We arrived at the food store
. I ran down each aisle, throwing all of the last minute items into my shopping cart, while Ella babbled and got the attention of everyone we passed. The afternoon heat hit me in the face as we walked out of the store. I placed Ella's sun hat on her head, turned on the car, and got the air conditioner started before placing Ella in her car seat. I made a detour and pulled into the cemetery. I had bought a beautiful bouquet of red, white, and blue flowers while food shopping to place at my brother's grave. Normally, I would only come here alone to have long deep conversations with him, but today, I wanted Ella finally to meet her uncle.

I
sighed as we pulled up to the familiar spot. Two years after and it was still so hard. I missed him so much. I took Ella out of her car seat, grabbed the flowers, and walked up the hill to my brother's grave. I greeted him the usual way; a kiss to the back of my hand and then a touch of his tombstone. I placed the flowers on the ground in front of his tombstone. "Hey, Justin, I thought it was time that you met your niece.” I bent down to the ground and placed Ella on my knee.

"Blow kisses to Uncle Justin, Ella.
” A smile stretched across her face as she excitedly began to rock back and forth. She placed her hand in her mouth and then waved it in the air, just as a warm breeze began to rustle the leaves on the tree overhead. My eyes began to fill with tears. Justin was there...I knew it.