Two Hearts for Christmast (10 page)

Yvette had been thrilled that everyone Lacey had invited was actually available to come celebrate on her birthday.  Having a December 23
rd
birthday was problematic when it came to planning a birthday party.  With the holidays so close, most families were either traveling, or had out of town guests or last minute preparations to make, so Lacey’s invitation list usually came back with a lot of no-go’s.  They had taken to celebrating the week before, just so she’d have her friends participate.

Robin’s birthday was mid-November, so it had been much easier to plan.  He’d just turned two, and thankfully, his party was short, but memorable.  Two hours was plenty when dealing with two year olds.  Suddenly, her thoughts drifted to her unborn child.  Her head was still reeling from the thought that after having two kids, she had had no idea that she was pregnant with this baby.  Granted, between her job, the kids’ schedules, and Christopher working like a maniac, there hadn’t been much time to do anything else, but handle the existing things coming her way.

“
Well, now there’s something else coming your way,” she whispered.  And by the doctor’s calculations, she was a little over eight weeks pregnant.  She had to break the news to Christopher.

Christopher.  
It was as though a hand had clamped around her heart when Margaret had said he wasn’t there.  It was hard to process him keeping secrets from her.  To her knowledge he had never done so before, which made this instance even more baffling.  She had to confront him about it, but what would she say?  
Hey Chris, I caught you in a lie, are you cheating on me? Or…You’ve been so distracted lately, Chris.  Do you long for the days when you weren’t strapped down by kids, bills, and obligations?        
 

Her aunt’s words popped into her head.  Was she being ridiculous?  Was there a perfectly good reason why he’d been untruthful about his whereabouts?  

Yvette got up and started pacing.  One thing was for sure.  She was going to get to the bottom of whatever it was.  If he had lied to her to cover up his unhappiness with their marriage, she had every right to know.  His decisions affected her future, too—and those of her children.  She glanced over at the clock.  She had two hours before Christopher arrived.  What would she say?  Whatever the outcome, she would deal with it.

Unable to help herself, the image of a woman fluttered into her mind.  She watched in shocked dismay as her husband drifted into view.  He walked over and gathered the woman in his arms, and then kissed her passionately.  Just as suddenly, the scene faded away.  Yvette’s hand flew to her mouth.  “No,” she choked out.  “Please God, no.”  

 
The image may have been manifested by her subconscious, but the pain associated with it was all too real.  If Christopher was cheating on her, it would be devastating.

“
Yvette?”

For the second time that day, she had been caught unawares.  And this time by the one person that held her heart in his hands.  She turned around with impending dread.

“
Christopher.  I…I didn’t expect to see you so soon.”

“
Yeah, I got off work early.”  He walked in and shut the door behind him.  His face was a mask of concern as he gazed at his wife.  “Yvie, what’s wrong?”

“
Are you having an affair?”

***

In a lifetime, Christopher never thought he would hear those five words come out of his wife’s mouth.  He was stunned.  There was no way he could have prepared himself for the emotionally charged accusation that had just burst forth from her lips.  It took him a few moments to recover from the shock.

“
What?”

“
You heard me.  Don’t…don’t make me have to ask it again,”

she replied in a voice burdened with pain.

He instantly reacted to her dismay, and the stricken look on her face.  He stepped toward her.  “Yvie—”

“
Don’t Yvie me, Christopher.  Just answer me.”

He halted, and gazed straight into her eyes.  “No.  I would never, ever hurt you that way—or our family, Yvette.  I would die before I caused you that kind of pain.”

13 CHAPTER THIRTEEN

Christopher watched his words register with Yvette.  It pained him that there was still a glimpse of uncertainty there.  What had happened?  What had caused her to suddenly doubt his commitment to her?  To their lives together.  It didn’t make sense.

“
You don’t believe me,” he said flatly.  “Why?”

“
I…I want to, but—”

“
But what?”  His frustration flared.  “What have I ever done to make you doubt my fidelity, Yvette?  There is nothing more important to me than you and our children—or anyone,” he stressed.

“
You lied to me.”

That gave Christopher pause.  There was no way that he could deflect that truth.  His actions for the last six months had been a carefully constructed house of cards.  Done with love, but laced with subterfuge.  And now Yvette’s fingers were poised to pull the one card that would bring that structure crashing down around him.  It must have registered on his face because she seized upon his hesitancy like a lioness protecting her cubs.

“
Tell me I’m wrong,” she accused.

He closed his eyes briefly in defeat.  “I can’t, Yvie.”

She railed on him.  “You told me you were going to work, but that was a lie.  I called your parents’ house and Margaret told me you had an appointment and weren’t planning on coming in.  Do you know how incredibly stupid I felt not knowing that?”

“
You’re not stupid.”

“
Apparently I am,” she shot back.  “Apparently, I’m the only one that doesn’t know the punch line, Christopher.  I don’t like feeling that way.  I don’t like letting my mind manifest the painful things it has lately, that if they were true, would totally break my heart.”

“
I’m not having an affair,” he repeated.  “I never would.”

“
Great, then how about you tell me where you where yesterday, and why you felt that you had to keep it from me?”

“
I can’t.”

“
Can’t?  What does that mean?”

Christopher pinched the bridge of his nose, and cursed himself for not being more careful.  He should have alerted his mother to the possibility of Yvette becoming suspicious.

“
It’s…a Christmas gift I’m working on.  I had an appointment to speak to someone about a gift for you.  A guy,” he said, pointedly.

She stood there transfixed.  “A gift?”

“
Yes.”

“
You lied to me about a gift.”

He nodded.  “What’s the point in buying a gift if the other person already knows about it,” he countered.  “I wanted it to be a surprise, Yvette.  That’s it.  That’s my big, dark secret I’ve been hiding from you.  I’m not being disloyal to you.  My heart has been, and always will be, yours.”

She wiped the tears from her eyes, but they were replaced with fresh ones.  “I…I don’t know what to say—except that I’m sorry,” she cried.  “I’m sorry I doubted you.  I just…I can’t explain what came over me.  You’ve been working so hard for such a long time, and then I just started wondering if you weren’t really there and maybe you were doing something else with your time, or that you were unhappy with our lives together, and then when you lied about where you were, I just…my imagination got the best of me,” she admitted.  

Christopher walked over to her.  His raised his hand and wiped a tear off her cheek with his thumb.  “Yvie, when have I ever,
ever
given you the impression that I’m unhappy with our life together?  I love you; I always have, and always will.  The only time I was ever unhappy in my life was when you weren’t in it.”

She threw her arms around his neck and hugged him.  “Chris, I apologize for doubting you—or what we have.”

His arms encircled her waist to pull her closer.  He closed his eyes and buried his head in her hair.  “It’s okay, Yvie.”

Christopher’s forgiveness had the opposite effect on Yvette.  Instead of feeling better, his quick acceptance made her feel worse.  

“
I don’t know why I’m still crying,” she said, dismally.  “It’s like a floodgate has been opened, and I can’t shut it.”

He released her, and then placed his hands on either side of her face.

“
Do you love me, Yvette?”

He saw the surprise in her eyes.

“
Yes, of course I love you, Christopher.  Why else would I be standing here in a puddle of my own tears?  You mean everything to me.”

“
Then trust me.”

“
I do, Chris.  In fact, I—”

Before she could continue, a rapid knock sounded at their bedroom door.

“
Mommy, open.  Snack peace.  I hungry.”

“
Mom,” Lacey yelled through the door.  “I told Robby I’d get it for him, but he said no.  He wants you to get it.”

Yvette wiped her eyes.  “Okay,” she called out.  “I’ll be right there.”

“
Hurry, Mommy,” her son replied.

She couldn’t help but smile.  “Okay, baby.”

Christopher came back with a hand full of tissues.  He handed them to her.

“
Thanks.”  Yvette dabbed at her eyes.

“
Do I look as bad as I feel?”

“
Yes,” he said, honestly.

She smiled, and leaned up to kiss him.  “I appreciate the honesty.  And yes, Christopher.  I will trust you.”

He returned her kiss.  “Good to know.  Now let’s try some cold water on your face, and some eye drops so the kids don’t get wigged out.”

“
Good idea.”

She went into the bathroom to splash cold water on her face, add eye drops, and some light makeup.

She turned to her husband.  “How do I look?”

“
Beautiful,” he declared solemnly.

She smiled, and kissed him again.  “I love you,” she said, and then left the bathroom.  

Christopher listened as she called out to Robin that she was on her way.  He turned back to the mirror and gazed at his own reflection.  His plan was still intact.  Yvette believed that he wasn’t having an affair.  He saw it in her eyes, the moment that she believed what he said.  He heaved a sigh of relief.  

Almost there, baby.
 
Just hang on a little longer, and then you’ll know everything.
  Christopher turned away from the mirror and walked back out into the bedroom.  He sat at the foot of his bed, and put his head in his hands.  He was exhausted.  The herculean task he’d taken on was wearing him down, but he had to push through.  He hated being evasive and lying to the woman he loved, but it was imperative that she continue believing that nothing unusual was going on.  Whatever it took to keep that illusion going, he would do.  

Christopher reached into his pocket to retrieve his cell phone.  He selected a speed dial number, and waited.  “Hi,” he said when the line connected.  “Do you mind if I drop by tomorrow?  I need some help with something, and I’m hoping that you’ll say yes.”

***

Yvette lay on her back and stared up at the colorful fresco painting above her.  She took a deep breath, and exhaled slowly.  It had been a few days since her big talk with Christopher.  She felt like a weight had been lifted when he confessed that he had never cheated on her.  She had planned to tell him about the baby, but they’d both been pounced on by the kids the night of their talk, and later she had waited up for him to tell him the news, but had fallen asleep waiting for him to come upstairs.  She awoke to total chaos in the house because Robin had colored on Lacey’s project.  A battle had ensued when she tried to remove his handiwork.  Luckily, they were washable markers and Christopher was able to save her project.  Robin dissolved into a fit of angry tears, and it took a while to calm him down.  Lacey missed her ride, so Christopher drove her.

After her nanny arrived to take care of Robin, she went upstairs to shower and get dressed.  It was then that she discovered that she was spotting.  She rushed to the phone and called her obstetrician’s office.  They told her to come in immediately, so she notified her manager that she would be taking the day off, and alerted Robin’s sitter that she had an unexpected appointment.

Now she was waiting to hear the news on whether her unborn child would be alright.  A pang of guilt spread through her.  She should have told Christopher, but there was no way she could bring herself to get his hopes up in one breath, and have the possibility of complications looming in the next.  No, she would wait and tell him when she was sure that there was no imminent danger to their baby.  The doctor had given her a physical examination, but then got called out of the room.  For what, Yvette didn’t know, but she was on pins and needles trying to keep calm.

Just then her doctor came through the door.

“
Sorry to keep you waiting, Yvette.  There was a potential mix-up on a prescription that had to be addressed.”

“
It’s fine, Dr. Myers,” she said with a courage she didn’t quite feel.  

The doctor sat on a stool near Yvette.  “The exam went well.  The spotting has ceased, and your cervix is still closed, so there is no threat of a miscarriage at this time.  Let’s get a sonogram and see what your little guy or girl is up to in there, okay?”

Yvette was too overcome with relief to speak.  She merely nodded.

Her doctor got everything set up, and kept up constant chatter with Yvette while she did.  She asked about Lacey and Robin, and thanked her for sending recent pictures.

“
They’re growing so big,” Dr. Myers enthused.  “It’s hard to believe Robin’s two already.  It seemed like not too long ago you and Christopher were in here and we were staring at him on the monitor.”

“
I know.”  Yvette smiled.  “Christopher was so nervous.”