Chapter 10
When he came back, I spoke up softly.
"Rich," I called out.
He set his laptop down.
"Yeah?" he replied.
"Rich, can you pick something up for me?" I asked softly.
"What is it?" Rich replied.
I looked up at him, my eyes searching his face.
"A pregnancy test," I said quietly.
Richard froze, as if he couldn't quite believe what he'd heard.
He stood there, almost in disbelief.
A few seconds later.
His gaze slowly dropped to my lower belly.
And then, he looked at me again, searching my face for answers.
"A pregnancy test?" Rich asked, his voice barely above a whisper.
"My period is a few days late," I said quietly.
"I was all over the place before, so I didn't really pay attention," I added.
"But today, I started feeling a bit nauseous," I said.
He stared at me, unable to look away.
A glimmer of hope slowly lit up in his eyes.
But there was still disbelief written all over his face.
After a long, heavy pause.
"Really?" he asked hoarsely.
I frowned.
"Well, are you going or not?" I pressed.
He finally snapped out of it.
He jumped up almost instantly.
"I'll go right now." he blurted out.
He was back in less than ten minutes.
We were out in the middle of nowhere, and there was actually a place nearby that sold pregnancy tests?
I took the bag from him.
Then I turned and walked into the bathroom.
I reached into my pocket and pulled out a small sealed bag.
Inside was a little bit of liquid.
The nanny had slipped it to me earlier that afternoon.
A few minutes later, the pregnancy test showed two red lines.
I wiped at my eyes, trying to fight back the tears.
When I finally felt the sting of tears in my eyes, I opened the door.
Richard was right outside the door.
He hadn't moved an inch.
As soon as he heard the door open, his eyes locked onto the test in my hand.
I didn't say a word.
I handed him the pregnancy test.
He stared at the two red lines, his eyes locked on them.
"Julia..." he whispered.
"I knew it," he said, his voice trembling.
"I knew this would happen," he added.
"Autumn's really coming back," he said, his voice thick with emotion.
"I promised you," he said, his voice thick with emotion.
"I promised you," he repeated, his voice trembling.
He hugged me, his tears falling hot and fast.
They were hot, burning against my skin.
"Julia," he whispered.
"Thank you," he said, his voice thick with emotion.
"Thank you for giving me another chance," he added.
That night, Richard wanted to take me to the hospital right away.
I sat on the couch, gently touching my belly.
"Let's wait until things are more settled, maybe after three months," I said softly, my hand still resting on my stomach.
"Okay, whatever you say," Richard replied softly.
"We'll wait until the baby's more stable before we go," he added.
He crouched down in front of me.
His hand rested gently on my knee.
The tenderness in his eyes actually hurt me.
"Julia," he said softly.
"This time, everything will be okay," he promised.
"I promise," he added, his voice full of conviction.
He started making plans for everything.
The nursery.
The postpartum recovery center.
A private medical team.
He even had the school picked out for our baby.
Whenever he got excited, his eyes would light up.
I sat there, listening quietly.
Sometimes I'd nod.
Sometimes I'd crack a small smile.
Time went by.
I kept track of the days.