“Just okay? I heard Garfield took you under his wing.”
“He has.” My answers are short, I know. This is just so fucking uncomfortable.
“Have you been feeling well? I hope you’re not taking on too much at the firm,” she prods.
“It’s fine, everything is fine. Just ask your husband,” I spit out and immediately close my trap. Tyson gives me a funny look before squeezing my hand, letting me know he’s here for me. I know if I say the word he’ll sweep me right out of here, appointment be damned.
“What the hell is that supposed to mean?” McHottie growls.
“Well, I don’t know. Maybe it has to do with you hiring my enemy as your secretary, where she takes great pleasure in harassing me every chance she gets. Because of you, I have no choice but to deal with her on a day to day basis when before I barely saw her. I find it all ironic since you offered me the job there in the first place so I wouldn’t be stressed, when you’re the main reason behind why I’m so damn stressed there.” Folding my arms across my chest, I look away because yeah, I’m mature like that.
“Is that true?” Nichole asks her husband. Huh, I guess he doesn’t tell his wife everything after all.
“It is,” he grunts out.
“Grayson, why would you do that if you knew the girl would cause problems for Jade? We agreed to do everything we can so that Jade delivers a healthy baby. Stressing her out won’t help our cause,” Nichole chides him and McHottie actually looks contrite.
“I doubt she even notices Nancy. She’s too busy fucking Tyson all over the office to be doing her job.”
“You sound jealous there, Grayson. Are you pissy she’s not fucking you in the office anymore?” I know Ty said it as a jab to Grayson, but I couldn’t help feeling like it was a jab to me as well. Making me feel like maybe he’s not as okay with me fucking McHottie as I thought he was.
“I’m not even going to comment on that. Anything I did with Jade was for the result we are now sitting here for.”
“Keep lying to yourself; you’re the only one you’re fooling.”
“That’s enough,” I interrupt him before he says anything else. I really don’t want to get in a verbal match airing out our ugly business right here in the OBGYN’s fancy waiting room.
“I agree. You two are stressing Jade out and me too,” Nichole comments and I turn away from all of them.
After a moment of thick silence, I say, “I don’t care who you hire as your secretary. People worse than Nancy have tried to put me down and failed.”
I’m happy when I don’t hear their reply because we’re called to the back. After they steal my blood and take my weight and blood pressure, we’re all ushered into the ultrasound room. I only have to undress from the waist down this time, but both Tyson and McHottie wait outside the room until Nichole tells them I’m ready. When the ultrasound tech comes in, she’s not surprised to see us all crammed into the room and gives us all a bright smile.
“Hello, Jade, I’m Laura. How are you feeling today?” she asks.
“Today could be going better,” I answer honestly.
“Oh, I’m sorry to hear that. Are you in any pain?” she questions as she readies her supplies.
“I have a slight headache and I’m cramping a bit,” I admit and McHottie looks me over with a worried gaze. Tyson grabs my hand and holds it as Nichole stands there, taking us all in like she’s trying to figure out a solution to all our problems. I hope not. Nichole’s solutions are always complicated as fuck.
“On a scale of one to ten, with one being the lowest and ten the highest, what is your pain level?
“A five,” I reply.
“I’ll let your doctor know. The headache could be because you’re dehydrated or stressed. At six months, you should be taking it easier and lessening your workload.”
“I’ll keep that in mind,” I mumble and both McHottie and Tyson growls. Stupid alpha males.
Nodding, she puts on her gloves and uncovers my belly as I stare down at my round bowling ball in wonder. I didn’t even mind the baby was stretching out my ink. After I lose this baby weight, I’m going to have to get a lot of them touched up anyways, plus I want some more. It’s true what they say. Tattoos are addictive.
“This will be cold,” the tech warns before squeezing a clear jelly substance on my belly and spreading it around with a probe. It feels funny at first, like something using my belly as a slip and slide and I watch the monitor transfixed. All I see is a dark canal and a lot of grey before a baby starts to take shape and I gasp. The details are amazing, but what did I expect? The Hastings always make sure I have the best money can buy when it comes to this baby. The baby has Grayson’s same shaped nose and what looks like my lips. When the baby’s heartbeat echoes around the room, a lone tear trails down my cheek and Tyson wipes it away, whispering reassurances in my ear.
“Do you want to know what the sex is?” the tech asks.
I look over at Nichole and Grayson, who nods and I answer, “Yes.”
“Congratulations, it’s a boy,” she gushes. Look at that. Another mini Grayson will be entering the world. Hopefully, he just inherits his looks and not his father’s attitude problems.
After the tech takes more measurements using the computer, she prints out a bunch of photos and places them in an envelope before handing it to me. I wipe the gel off my belly and hop down, changing quickly as soon as she leaves. Washing my hands at the sink, I hand the photos over to Nichole. After the ultrasound, I saw my doctor who prescribed me some meds for my headache, pretty much saying the same thing as the ultrasound tech as of the cause of my pain. I’m not dehydrated, but I’m sure stress is the source of my pain. Nancy isn’t the only cause. I have a lot going on, and I’m keeping something major from a guy I’m falling for. It took today with Tyson being there for me, for me to realize that I never want to give him up. If that isn’t the makings of love, I don’t know what is.
“Why don’t you take the rest of the day off? You need rest so you’ll feel better. I’ll let my father know,” Tyson suggests as soon as the doctor is done.
“I’m fine,” I tell him, shrugging off his suggestion. The last thing I need is to be alone with my thoughts.
“You heard them in there. You should be taking it easy,” Tyson continues.
“For once I agree with your boyfriend. You should rest,” Grayson says and I look over at him, shocked. Since when does he care about my well-being? Or agree with anything Tyson says? But then I realize it’s not me he cares about, but his kid.
“Yeah, we wouldn’t want anything to happen to your investment,” I snark.
“Jade,” McHottie starts, but I’m already walking away. When I hear the beep to Tyson’s car from him unlocking it, I jump in, strap on my seatbelt, and cross my arms, facing forward. Maybe I should go home. My headache will only get worse if I have to deal with Nancy. No matter how good my lawyer is, I doubt pregnancy is a reasonable excuse to get out of murder.
The drive home is silent. It’s not like I’m mad with Tyson, I’m just ready to be done with all this. I want this baby out so I can start my plans for my better future. I’m so sick of McHottie’s mood swings or always having to explain myself. I’m tired of being poked and prodded over or treated like glass. I won’t break. I can’t.