Page 98 of His Obsession

The fully fenced modern two-story home had beautiful cement planter boxes next to the entrance and a small patch of grass in the front. The red door to the right had a welcome wreath hanging on it. “Do you like it?” He sounded a little worried. I would be concerned about buying something with such a hefty price tag just for that person not to like it. That would be a big strike to the ego and pocketbook.

My eyebrows raised, and a smile burst across my face. “I love it, Alek!” Relief blew across his features, and he let out a sigh. I turned in his arms and gave him a loving kiss.

“You do?”

“I do. It’s ours?”

“Yes, I closed on it yesterday. Do you want to see inside?” He took me by the hand and led me to the big red door.

“Of course, I do!” Handing me the key to the house, he let me do the honors. The grand foyer opened to a great room in front and an even bigger kitchen on the left. To the right were stairs and what looked like the master beyond the living area.

I honestly didn’t know why we would need such a large kitchen; we hardly ever cooked.

I tried cooking a lasagna from the store, and I almost burned down the house. He told me I wasn’t allowed to touch the stove anymore. My eyes went wild, looking at all the details, and I was like a kid in a toy store, amazed at it all.

The tall floor-to-ceiling windows opened to a view of the large pool and spa, fenced off for safety. “This is beyond incredible.”

“Don’t get too excited. We don’t want you to go into labor before we move in.”

“Well, we better move in quick because it could happen at any moment.” My heart swelled for this man. He had changed a lot since the first time we met. He was still controlling, but he was less demanding of my compliance. I liked to give him the illusion of control, but I always did what I pleased. When he found out I was pregnant, his domineering side tried to take a whole new level. I knew he was doing it based on fear, so I gave him a pass on some things.

His smile left, and worry took its place. “What’s wrong?” I asked. My concern was creeping in.

“I don’t know if I’m ready,” he said, running his smoking skull tattoo over his face.

My smile returned—typical first-time father response. We had been over this time and time again, but he was still fearful. “I told you, Alek. You’ll be a great dad. You aren’t anything like him. If you were, you wouldn’t be anywhere near her or me.” I slapped my hand across my face. Shit.

Alek locked his blue eyes to mine, his eyebrows knit together. “It’s a girl?” he asked softly. I nodded as tears stung my eyes, and I broke down sobbing. His arms encompassed my shoulders and held me while I wept. “Why are you crying?”

I wiped the falling tears on my sleeve. “I ruined the surprise!” I said, my words indecipherable through my hysterical crying. These pregnancy hormones were absurd. I cried over the stupidest shit, got angry over the smallest thing, Alek could barely keep up with the mood swings. Jake stopped coming around for a while, and Randall just stared at me like I was a Creature from the Black Lagoon. I felt like a pariah. At least I still had one surprise, the name. Alek said that since I knew what she was, I could name the baby.

“It’s okay, I was going to find out eventually,” he said, trying to console me. It didn’t help, my crying couldn’t get any more outrageous, but it just wouldn’t stop. “Okay, let’s go get some ice cream.” Alek had found the key to getting me to shut up during my crazy pregnancy moments; bring me ice cream. I don’t know what it was about the delicious frozen treat, but it made my tears go away.

“Okay,” I agreed, hiccupping. Alek laced his fingers in mine, and I waddled back to the car. I stopped, breaking contact with him, and put my hand to my belly. A trickle of liquid ran down my leg. “I either just peed myself, or my water just broke,” I said, surprised.

“Are you serious?” he asked hesitantly.

I nodded. Alek’s face whitened as he ran to the car, opening the door. “Let’s go to the hospital, quick.” He put his hands to my back and tried to get me to get in the car.

“Relax, Alek. There is no getting me to do anything fast right now. It’s not like she’s going to drop from my vagina right here. We have some time.” I said as a contraction tightened my belly, turning the trickle into a gush. “Maybe not,” I backtracked.

I sat in the car as Alek rushed to the driver’s seat, and another contraction squeezed my belly, causing a groan from the pain. I took a deep breath and let it out slowly, concentrating on anything other than the elephant-sized cramping of my uterus.

It took a century to arrive at the hospital’s labor and delivery. At least that was what it felt like when the man I called my husband hit every single pothole the road offered. By the time I got out of the car, he was no longer my husband, and I was screaming bloody murder. I didn’t mean any of it, but torture felt better than this. I’m fairly certain I broke Alek’s hand when they asked me to push. I had no intention of doing this the natural way, but I was ready to go when we arrived.

The midwife standing between my legs grabbed a towel. “One more push, and your baby will be here,” she told me. I looked at Alek. He stood by my side, holding my hand, and was sweating about as much as I was. I pushed, giving it my all. A small wet blob settled on my belly, and the most innocent cry came from the black-haired beauty.

“Congratulations, it’s a girl,” the midwife exclaimed as she wiped the squawking baby down. The biggest smile broke across my face, and tears mixed with elation. Alek stared at his daughter with a new father’s awe and wonderment as he cut the cord, handing the scissors back to the nurse.

“What do we call the new bundle of joy?” the midwife asked.

“Her name is Hannah, after his mother.”

Alek held his daughter in his arms, staring at her beautiful face.

A single tear ran down his face.