Her Journey (Her Series Book 2) (5 page)

I smiled and went along with her plan. As I lay in my bed later that afternoon, I looked up at my ceiling, thinking. I had thought I was so strong when I was in DC. I was independent, had a great job, did whatever I wanted whenever I wanted. Ever since I’d moved to Arizona I felt like I was getting weaker and weaker. My photography business was hurting, every single time Ryan or Ellis brought up the club I shivered in fear and now I was pregnant and hormonal to add to it all.

Deciding it was time to stop feeling sorry for myself, I got up from the bed and fired up my computer. It was time to get my head back in the game and get my pictures uploaded to my website, or at least off my camera so I could alter them if need be. Time to work. Center and focus my world. Work would always be there. It would help support me and take care of me. It was all I really needed in life.

So that’s what I did for the next couple of weeks. I would chat with Ryan on the phone every day about how I was feeling, but I refused her offer for lunch every day. I needed to get myself in order and back on my feet; otherwise, I’d fall apart. Work got me through my mother’s death and it would get me through this new transition in life. It had to. I had bills to pay and I made more than enough, if I kept on top of it. Plus, the morning sickness kept me looking haggard, so I didn’t want to have to brave the world unless I absolutely had to.

When my next doctor appointment rolled around, I had to stop working and living out of my apartment. I had to go out and interact with society. Sadly, I barely fit into any of my clothes. I was only freaking eight weeks pregnant! I slipped into a loose skirt and a top that used to be loose. Not any longer! I was always fairly slim, but even with the morning sickness, my belly was noticeably bigger.

I met Ryan and Ellis at the curb of my apartment and Ryan immediately put her hand on my belly, smiling freakishly big at me. “Look at how big you’ve gotten.”

“Thanks,” I said dryly. It was not something any woman wanted to hear, even though I knew it was a good thing for the babies.

“How are you feeling?” Ryan slipped into the back of the little black car they drove, giving me the passenger seat.

“Okay. Some days are better than others.” I shrugged, shutting the door after I’d gotten comfortable.

“You know, I really wish you’d let me come stay with you and help take care of you,” Ryan suggested for what had to be the twentieth time that week alone.

“I’m okay, really. I’m used to taking care of myself.” I wasn’t about to tell her that between working and my all-day morning sickness I really didn’t do much else but sleep. I didn’t want someone to have to deal with it. It was horrible enough dealing with it myself.

Ryan and Ellis started talking about baby things and I tuned them out as we headed toward the doctor’s office. I was feeling nauseated from the car movement, but didn’t want to complain, so I closed my eyes and leaned my head back against the head rest.

“Everything okay?” Ellis asked looking at me warily.

“Yep.” I forced a smile for him. I did the same thing when the doctor asked me the same question a while later when he finally got to our room. It was over thirty minutes after our appointment time. I seriously hoped he wasn’t always so far behind. He asked me a mile-long list of questions about how I was feeling and I answered to the best of my ability.

“So, you’re getting sick how many times a day?” He repeated to me at the very end.

“Three, four, five… I don’t know. I guess it depends. I don’t really keep count.” I shrugged. I was getting used to it, not that I liked it.

“And you said you had some bleeding. How bad is the bleeding and how often has it happened?” He asked.

“Spotting?” I shrugged. “Every few days I guess. I looked it up online. They said spotting was normal early on in pregnancy so I didn’t think anything of it. Should I have?”

Ryan looked from me to the doctor to Ellis then back to me, her eyes wide. I could see her squeeze Ellis’s hand from where they sat next to each other next to me.

“It can be. Let’s get an ultrasound machine in here and take a look, okay?” The doctor walked from the room, leaving the door cracked open behind him.

“Why didn’t you tell me any of this stuff?” Ryan looked more hurt than I expected. I hadn’t thought she’d really care about it.

“I’m sorry. I really didn’t think it was anything. It might not be.” The doctor didn’t seem all that worried, but she looked like I’d sucker punched her in the gut.

“Melia! These aren’t
your
babies. They’re
our
babies. You need to tell us stuff. We want to be there with you for anything. If there’s anything abnormal or different,
please
tell us. We worry about the babies just as much, if not more than you do.” Ryan was pacing the small room, running her hand over her head. I expected Ellis to have something harsh to say to me, but he was more focused on Ryan.

“Ryan, baby, calm down. She didn’t mean any harm. You need to relax.” Ellis stood and wrapped his arms around her, tucking her into his chest as he ran his large hand over her head and whispered to her. Kissing her head, he released her to sit back down without another word. Ryan turned towards me.

“I’m sorry. I didn’t mean it to come out like that,” she said, moving to stand right in front of me. She rested her hand gently on my belly. “It’s just these little guys mean so much to me.
You
mean so much to me. I know we aren’t close. I’m working to change that. I want you in our lives after they are born. I want them to know the wonderful person who gave their parents such a special gift. Trust me, I’m stubborn and I can tell you are too. It’s time for you to stop being so independent and let us help take care of you.”

“I’ll try.” I smiled. “It’s hard. I’ve never had someone to rely upon. It’s just been me and Mom for as long as I can remember, and now it’s just me. Believe me, I know these little guys are yours. I talk to them about you guys and how excited you are they are here all the time.”

The doctor walked back into the room with a tech dragging a portable ultrasound machine interrupting our sweet moment. Gesturing for me to lie down, the doctor moved to stand on the opposite side from the tech with the machine. “Pull your shirt up, pants and underwear down, please.”

I did as he asked so the tech could squirt warm gel on my stomach before placing a small wand on my stomach. She moved it around for a few moments before turning the screen so the doctor could see the screen better. They checked on both the babies, and once they’d gotten confirmation they were doing well, they moved to a slightly different spot on my stomach.

“Well, there we have our answer. You, my dear, have a partial placenta previa. This is what probably was causing you to have the bleeding. That, combined with the excessive morning sickness, means I’m going to put you on modified bed-rest until our next appointment to see how things are going. I would like for you to change your diet as well. The nurse will give you a list of foods for you to try that might help with the sickness.” And with that the appointment was pretty much over. The nurse told me the doctor wanted me to spend a good majority of every day in bed but it was okay for me to get up and walk around for short periods of time. I was given a printout with a list of foods that were suggested to eat as well.

I made my next appointment for four weeks out and followed Ryan and Ellis out of the office. As soon as we stepped outside, they both turned to look at me. “What?” I asked, knowing I probably wasn’t going to like what they were going to say just by the looks on their faces.

“You’re moving in with us,” Ellis said as Ryan opened her mouth to speak. “I’m not taking no for an answer. You didn’t tell us what has been going on up to this point, which thankfully wasn’t anything major, but for the next four weeks you will be living with us where we can make sure you do as you’re told and everything is going okay.”

“You can’t make me move in with you. You aren’t my boss.” I put my hands on my hips. I didn’t care if he was big and scary, he wasn’t ruling my life just because I was carrying his children.

“Please. I promise I’ll spend every second with you if that’ll make you feel better. No one will bother you. It’ll make me feel so much better to know you and the babies are okay. I’ll spend all day in bed with you and I’ll bring you food so you don’t even have to leave the room if you want. I just want to have you close by,” Ryan pleaded as she grabbed both of my hands in hers. It was her face, her pleading, that did me in. Yell at me and I’ll fight back. Beg me and I was going to cave.

I took a deep breath and let out a heavy sigh. I was completely against it. I didn’t want to go. I had a bad feeling about it. However, I knew Ryan and Ellis would never let anything happen to me…at least, not to their babies, which were relying upon me. Swallowing hard, I nodded, and Ryan pulled me into a tight hug, thanking me over and over.

~Patrick~

I was sitting behind my desk, typing an email, wearing jeans, a shirt, and my leather cut - my preferred attire - when Ellis threw open my door. The fucker never knocked. Thankfully, it was a day when I didn’t have any business meetings out of the house so I didn’t have to put on a stuffy suit. However, there was still plenty of business to take care of, so I gave him an irritated glare and leaned back in my chair, crossing my arms over my chest.

“What?” I growled at him.

“Ryan is here…and she has a guest. She has requested for you to let her guest get settled before attempting to meet her,” Ellis said as he sprawled out in one of the chairs on the other side of my desk.

“What?” I repeated. The situation was quickly going from irritating to enraging. Pushing back from the desk, I stood and started to walk around it. Yet again, Ryan always thought she could do what she wanted without asking anyone else for their opinion. “Who is it?”

“You’ll find out soon enough.” Ellis held up his hands before I could say anything. “I warn you, though, she’s very skittish about being here. So be nice or you’ll have a very pissed off Ryan to deal with.” Ellis smiled, knowing it was the card to play with me. My damn sister. My only weak spot, even as irritating as I found her to be.

“Whatever. Where is this
guest
?” I sneered the word. I would like to have some fucking control of who was in my house. The bikers came and went whenever they wanted. I didn’t give a fuck because I knew they would take care of an intruder if one was found. Oddly, that’s exactly what I felt like my sister brought into my home. If she felt like she needed to smuggle this person in, then tell me I wasn’t allowed to see them. I ground my teeth together. I was losing control of my own fucking house and that was not acceptable.

“
She
will be across the hall from us so we are close by if she needs anything. No one ever uses that room anyway,” Ellis informed me, clearly not picking up on how pissed I was.

“Fuck off. Tell Ryan she needs to get her ass down here right now or I’m going up there and will personally kick this guest out of my fucking house.” I leaned back on my desk and crossed my arms over my chest, lifting my eyes to the ceiling, and trying to rein in my anger as Ellis left the room without another word. Ryan was always pushing my buttons. I swore she did it on purpose sometimes. This, though,
this
was too far.

I was still standing there when I heard a soft knock on my door. Ryan pushed it open and slipped inside before letting it shut behind her. “Hey,” she said quietly. She knew she was gonna get an ass-chewing.

“Sit. Now.” I pointed at the chair Ellis had just vacated. She did, folding her hands in her lap, looking at me with big eyes.
Nice try.
“We need to have a serious fucking talk, Ryan.”

“Can I explain first?” Ryan asked, sitting straighter in her chair.

“No.” I glared at her. I didn’t give a fuck what her reasons were. She could’ve told me before arriving. She could have fucking
asked
before moving a stranger in. Gripping the edge of my desk, I could feel the muscles in my forearms bulging, but it was better than punching something…or someone. “You can’t just move someone into the house! Although you and Ellis seem to think this is your fucking love pad or some shit. This is fucking a biker club house. You don’t just bring some civilian in here! What if she’s using you to snoop? What if she gets into trouble when you aren’t around? The guys won’t know who the fuck she is, they’ll assume she’s just another whore!” I growled at her, throwing my hands in the air, slamming them back down on top of the desk. “You want me to treat you like an adult. You’re always saying I don’t realize you’re a grown-up. It’s ‘cause you do shit like this!”