Page 46 of Hot in the City
She bit her lip.
No. This couldn’t be happening. She shivered, feeling all the heat flood out of her body.
“He’s left me. Oh, God.” Tears streaked her face as she sank back in the bath, closing her eyes on the scene of their lovemaking. And her stupidity.
Chapter Four
“Ryan.”
Gabriel leaned on the table in the hotel’s bar, blocking out the mind-numbing light jazz music on the sound system. His best friend had picked up the phone, and that was a miracle in itself. Ryan was usually either working or running these days. Pretty much nothing else.
“Hey, mate. What’s happening? I thought you were away for the weekend.” Gabriel could hear the smile in his friend’s voice.
“Yeah, I am. Listen, I have news.” He paused to pick up his Scotch in the cut crystal tumbler in front of him, then placed it down again on a leather coaster. “Sinead just told me something huge. I think I had an aneurysm or something. God, I stuffed up. I walked out and she–”
“Hang on, hang on. What’s the deal? Explain it to me like I have absolutely no idea what you’re talking about, because I don’t.”
With a swallow of his drink that burned going down, Gabriel winced, then tried to relax enough to think. To retrace his steps. Why was he in the hotel bar and not with his wife?
He shook his head but it didn’t really help order his thoughts. “Okay. Sinead and I had been together. Intimately. You know what I mean. Then she blurted out the news that she’s pregnant. Having twins for God’s sake! I short circuited. I don’t know exactly what I said, but I needed some air so I just...left.”
“What? Back up a sec. Pregnant? Congratulations, man. That’s amazing. And twins, I mean, that’s double the blessing, isn’t it?”
Gabriel nodded, but of course Ryan couldn’t see him. “Yeah. Amazing. You’re totally right.”
Dead silence from the other end of the phone told him Ryan was processing the other part of what he’d said. Maybe the flat, zombie-like tone of Gabriel’s voice was a clue something was wrong, too.
“Mate, did you say you walked out?” Ryan’s tone was cautious and calm, like he was trying to talk Gabriel down from a ledge.
He nodded, then ran a hand through his hair. “Yeah. I fucked up. Badly. What should I do?”
There was a pause. “Okay. I’m not an expert on these things, but you two have always been so drawn to each other, and I know you love her. She’s supported you through some tough times and she clearly loves you. Use that. Tell her exactly how you feel. Don’t hold back. Now is not the time for games. Make it clear you’re doing the right thing.”
Gabriel nodded again, swirling the Scotch in his glass. “You’re right. So, I go find her, and ask her forgiveness.”
“Not even that. You’re allowed to panic for a second. Explain that you had a mental blip. But be there for her now. Don’t let her feel alone. I mean it. When women are pregnant,” Ryan paused again, cleared his throat, “they need to feel loved. Safe. Don’t let her feel for one minute that you’re not with her one hundred percent. Starting right now.”
Ryan was totally right. Of course he was, given his own history with his first girlfriend. The difficult pregnancy, then the accident. Losing his girlfriend and the baby, too. The family and the future he thought was his. It had almost broken Ryan. That was the other reason Gabriel had the urge to call his best friend. Ryan needed to be the first one to know the news, to give him time to process it.
Gabriel almost laughed at the trivial thought that now popped into his head. His surprise for Sinead would have to be cancelled. “Oh, and I obviously can’t take Sinead to live on an island in the middle of the Pacific Ocean. Not now. Not for a whole year. We’ll have to work out what the hell to do about setting up our new resort.”
“Don’t worry about that now. Seriously. I’ll think about it and we’ll come up with a plan next week. Go enjoy your time with Sinead.”
“Thanks Ry. And I hope. . . I hope you’re okay with this.”
“Oh, yeah. Don’t worry about me either. I’ll be fine.”
Gabriel ended the call, not entirely believing his friend would be fine. At least, not right away. What had happened in his past had coloured every moment of his best friend’s life and changed Ryan completely. He was a loner now, so worried about what the future might hold that he’d chosen not to move forward at all.
Ryan was exactly like Gabriel had been, before he’d met Sinead. Stuck in a rut, so worried about his health and his Mum’s, he was going through the motions but unable to enjoy all the good things he had already succeeded in doing in life.
Gabriel had made the call to Ryan, knowing it was the right thing to do, but hating every second of it. Suddenly, it seemed ridiculous to worry about ruining a surprise. He couldn’t go through with his plans, not now. There was no way they could live on a remote island in the Pacific for a year, a place without a hospital. Not with Sinead being pregnant. Let alone having twins.
My God.
He placed his phone on the table, then rested his head in his hands. The bar was quiet where he sat, all alone. There weren’t a lot of tourists around this weekend except a few older couples, or so the barman said. Gabriel took a sip of his drink and winced. He nursed his glass of Scotch that he didn’t really want. He didn’t know what he wanted.
Pregnant. With twins!
