Page 49 of Damaged Billionaire Daddy
She took the folder out of its hiding place in the hallway. “Now, what do we have here?” She read through it, then chuckled softly. It was a warm comforting sound. It seemed I was not going to die.
“Well, my dear,” she said. “I have good news, and then Ihave news that will require you to make some decisions. First off, your condition is not venereal, nor do you have Covid or one of those new flu bugs that are going around. Your condition is quite natural and will clear up in about nine months, give or take a week or two.”
Mimi began to laugh. “I thought so.” I must have looked puzzled, because she added, “Kandy, you are about to give me a great grandchild.”
“I’m . . . pregnant?” I asked. The symptoms and the timing certainly fit.
“Yes, indeed,” the jovial little doctor said. “You tested positive. From your personal condition, I would say you should have a healthy child. But,” and here she sobered, “my dear, I did notice that you are not married. With all the new laws, you have a very short time in which to make a decision.”
I stared at her for a minute. Then I realized what she was asking. “I’ll keep it, of course!” I exclaimed. After all, I might hate Richard for what he was trying to do to my grandparents, but this baby might be the last thing I would have from him. I wouldn’t even curse him for unprotected sex, nor flagellate myself for lack of birth control.
“She will have support from me and her grandfather,” Mimi said. “We will welcome another child in the family.”
“That is excellent,” the little doctor said. “If you want me to continue on as your physician, I’ll look forward to delivering your baby a few months from now. Meanwhile, we’ll get you started on some prenatal vitamins and a diet that should help calm down your nausea. I prefer not to give meds for pregnancy nausea.”
I walked out of the urgent care office in a daze. Mimi carried the paperwork and my prescriptions. I
t seemed as if I could look forward to a diet of saltine crackers, ginger ale and vegetable broth for another week or so.
The doctor hadbabbled about body balance changes, hormones, and inner ear, but I was mostly trying to process the news.
“You knew?” I asked.
“Well, let’s say I suspected,” Mimi said. “I’ve seen these symptoms before.”
“Oh.” I tried to digest this information. “You aren’t mad at me?”
“Oh, sweetie,” Mimi said, “I’d have been mad at you if you decided not to keep your baby. Or maybe I wouldn’t. It’s a hard world and having a tiny life to care for doesn’t make it easier.”
I thought about that some more. Then I remembered something that I should have checked on and would have if I’d not been so sick. “Have you heard from Mom?”
“Yes, darlin’ girl.” Mimi paused as she threaded her way through a traffic merge. “She’s been sick. It was a good thing you called George. She had pneumonia, so he was able to get her into the hospital. She’s in hospice care now, and he’s trying to get legal guardianship based on her past history. As her next of kin, you can help with that.”
A wave of guilt broke over me. “She was really sick? And I just blew her off and called Uncle George. I’m a terrible daughter. What if I’m a horrible mother?”
“Oh, sweety,” Mimi said. “What else could you have done? You didn’t know she was going to call, and you were way up in the mountains in a snowstorm. George called us not long after she was admitted. I was going to tell you, but you’ve been so sick, I didn’t want to bother you.”
“Next time, bother me,” I said, trying not to snap at Mimi. My mother’s behavior which no doubt led to her illness wasn’t my grandmother’s fault. I was glad I’d at least had the presence of mind to call Uncle George.
When we pulled into the driveway, the last person onearth I expected to see was waiting by the front door. “What’s Justin doing here?” I burst out.
“I called him,” Mimi said. “Now, please don’t be mad atme.I didn’t know whether you’d had relations or not, and I didn’t want to mess up any opportunities for you.”
“Justin is not an opportunity,” I said firmly. “We didn’t …. I mean, he’s definitely not . . .”
“Oh, I get that now,” Mimi said, “After helping you fill out your paperwork. But he is here, and you should at least talk to him.”
“Oh, I’ll talk to him, all right,” I seethed. “Then he can go right back to wherever he came from. He wasn’t faithful to me before, and I don’t see him being so afterward.”
“It is your life, Kandis,” Mimi said. “Pops and I will support whatever you want to do.” She pulled into the driveway and shut off the car.
I got out, walked around the car and up the path to the front door. “What the fuck to you want?” I demanded, glaring at Justin.
He held up his hands defensively. “Hey, don’t yell at me. I, uh, heard you were sick. I was worried, so I came to see if you were all right.”
“Well, I’m not sick,” I said. “I’m perfectly healthy. So, what do you want?”
“Kandy, I wanted to say I’m awful sorry for what happened. I didn’t mean for it to. I tried to find you to explain, but you were already gone.” He swallowed hard and looked at me pleadingly. “I miss you.”
