Chapter 51

51 BAD BOY DADDY

SEB

Jesus, please, don’t let me think that. I check her phone while she’s sleeping, but I don’t find anything, or maybe I’m just overthinking, and she’s pressured with moving in and her college. I check her emails and her credit card bills. Nothing worths suspecting.

I send her to her house before my flight. It’s hard to leave her when she seems off, but she won’t let me cancel my trip. I call her as soon as I land.

“Babe, did you even land?”

I can hear her chuckling. “Miss you already, wife. And don’t roll your eyes on me, Abbygail.”

She laughs. Thank God, she sounds okay. “Good. I’m about to roll my eyes. How’s your flight?”

I feel sad that she’s not here with me. “Nothing interesting to tell, except that I miss my wife. If she only agreed to come with me, I might fuck her in this hotel room.”

She laughs even more. “Can you not think about fuck for just a minute, Sebastian.”

I chuckle. “Okay. Sex, bang, shag, love. What else? And what can I say I have a hot and sexy as hell wife. Lucky me, yeah?”

She goes silent.

“Baby, you there?”

She clears her throat. “Yeah. I’m still here. Sebastian, I gotta go. Take care of yourself. Would you call me tonight before I go to bed?”

Something is odd. I hope she can just tell me right into my face. “Baby, can I ask you something?”

She answers okay immediately.

“Are you hiding something from me? Is there anything you’re not telling me?”

She doesn’t answer that confirms my suspicion, but I can hear her breathing.

“No. Why would you even think something like that?” She’s lying. Abby is a terrible liar.

I rub the back of my neck. What if I ask her if she’s sick, then she would answer yes I’m not ready to hear it. I squeeze my eyes shut.

“I’ve been meaning to ask you, but I don’t wanna upset you, Abbygail. It’s just—I can feel that you’re hiding something from me. I don’t know, maybe, I’m just overthinking.”

“I’m not hiding anything from you.”

Thank God. “Okay then. I love you. Abbygail.”

“I love you, Sebastian.”

***

The meeting went well as I expected. I get to my hotel room early and fall asleep after our call. I move my flight to Tuesday afternoon instead of night, and I plan on surprising her.

Lincoln is already at the airport waiting for me before I land. I buy a dozen red tulips on our way. I go directly to her room since her dad is still in the office at this time.

I knock, and she doesn’t answer. Then I call her name, and I hear nothing. When I open her door, that’s when I hear her voice. She must be talking to someone over the phone.

“Can I move my appointment to a week earlier or a week after. It’s my birthday. Yeah. Okay, after a week, then. Thank you. Bye.”

I swallow hard. Appointment? For what? I feel the color drain from my face, and my chest tightens. My knees weaken. I hold onto the wall, and I think I might pass out. I can’t breathe. My wife is sick, and she’s always sleeping lately and puking. Is she—?

No, no, no.

“Babe? Is that you? Oh, my God! Are you okay?” She sprints in my direction and hugs me tight. I’m still shaking, but manage to pull her into my arms and bury my nose in her hair.

I missed her smell. I don’t notice I’m already crying until I close my eyes and feel my tears roll down my cheeks.

I open my eyes when Abby breaks the hug, and she stares at me. “Thought your flight would be later tonight.”

I just stare at her while I can literally feel my world is falling apart.

She creases her eyebrows. “What’s wrong, babe? Are you crying?” then her eyes widen and look shocked.

“Why didn’t you tell me anything when I asked you if you’re hiding something from me?”

She goes pale, clutching her chest, and the last thing I know, she just fainted. Good thing my reflexes are quick, and I catch her before she falls to the floor.

I carry her outside her room and run downstairs and outside her house to the car. “To the hospital. Hurry up, Linc. She fainted.”

Lincoln pulls the car out of the driveway, outside the house to the nearest hospital.

“What happened?”

She’s still on my lap, breathing but unconscious.

“I asked her something, and then she just fainted.” I kiss her forehead. “Baby, we’re almost there. Please hang on, please? I love you, Abbygail.” I pressed my forehead into her and sniff. God, why does it have to be like this? “Please, be okay, baby, please? I love you. You know that, right? Wake up, baby,” I keep whispering to her and cry at the same time. Jesus, why this has to happen to us again?

I run towards the entrance, carrying Abby with me as soon as we arrive. Lincoln follows me. I put her to the bed when the doctor asks me to.

“Mr, what happened to her?” I close my eyes and take a deep breath.

“I just came from a business trip and tried to surprise her. I heard her talking over the phone, asking to move her appointment. When I asked her why she didn’t tell me, she just fainted.”

The doctor checks her chest with a stethoscope and puts some probe on her. “What is your relation to the patient, mister?”

I run my fingers through my hair. “Hughes. She’s my wife. Abbygail Hughes.”

The doctor faces me after a minute or so. “Surprisingly, he’s vitally stable. We’ll just run some tests to confirm why she fainted. Did you observe anything from her lately? Like nausea, vomiting? What appointment she’s talking about over the phone?”

I stare at the doctor. My eyes might pop out from my head. I wish I can just recede something I don’t want to hear.

I swallow hard before I speak, “Confirm what? She’s been, um puking lately, moody, she slept longer, ate a lot of ice cream.” I shake my head and blink as I try to remember what else I noticed from Abby’s behavior lately.

The doctor smiles at me. “That’s what I think.”

I’m completely lost, and I want to collar the doctor that she even has the guts to smile when I’m holding my life in a fine thread. “What do you mean?” I may have raised my voice a little bit.

She smiles again. “Your wife is probably pregnant.”

My jaw drops. Abby? Pregnant? She’s not sick? She’s pregnant? Am I going to be a father? And we’re having a baby? Why didn’t I think of that? Fuck. I grin like a stupid.

“She’s pregnant? Holy shit! Really?” Before she can say something, I hug her.

She laughs. “ Well, congratulations! But we have run some tests first.”

“Do whatever is necessary, doc. Thank you very much!”

I feel like I’m on top of the world. The smile doesn’t leave my face until I reach the seats where Lincoln is.

“Abby is Pregnant.” I grin.

Lincoln grins back. We laugh and hug each other.

“Well, congratulations! Welcome to the club. You made me worry, you moron. Don’t you even know the signs? You thought she’s sick, don’t you?”

I nod, showing him my guilty look.

“You’re stupid, Seb.”

I punch his arm.

“You punch like a girl too.”

I scowl at him, then I smile. “I’m gonna be a dad.”