The Question (11 page)

“Hey, stuff happens. I understand completely. You just make sure your schedule is free when Dr. Hagan does the sonogram to tell you what you’re having.”

“I will. I wouldn’t miss that for the world. Well, I better get off of the phone. We just got back and I have things to do. Before I go, is everything okay with you? Anything new in your life?”

“I’m fine. Things are quiet. I go to work and come home. I have been getting out of the house a little, renewing old acquaintances. Things of that nature. Nothing worth talking about.” Gail wasn’t ready to tell Crystal about Greg. The relationship was too new. Maybe in another month or so, if it lasted that long.

“Alright then, why don’t you come over for lunch tomorrow? We can catch up and I can show you the stuff I bought.”

“Make that dinner and you’ve got yourself a deal.” Gail was going to church with Greg in the morning and knew she wouldn’t be free for lunch.

“Dinner’s fine. Early or late?”

“Why don’t I come over around four? We can eat at five and lounge around the pool or something.”

“That’s a good time. Okay, I’ll see you tomorrow at four.”

“Until then, take care and cheer up,” Gail told her.

“You, too.”

When Crystal hung up the phone, she turned to see Rashid standing there. She wondered how long he’d been present and how much of her conversation had he heard.

“Was that Gail?” He pointed, indicating the phone.

“Yes. I called to let her know we were back.”

“Is she well? Are the babies alright?”

Crystal rolled her eyes. “She’s fine. We were only gone for two weeks. She’s coming over tomorrow evening for dinner so you can see for yourself. I’ve got to go. I have some running around to do, and I need to stop by the office to see how things are going. You want me to get you anything while I’m out?”

“No, I have need of nothing. Thank you. I may go by my office as well.”

“Okay, if you do call me and let me know what time to expect you home.” She kissed him on the cheek, grabbed her keys and left, still wondering how long he’d been standing behind her.

* * * *

“What happened to you?” Crystal asked. She reached out and took the beach bag Gail was toting.

“Too much sun,” Gail whispered. “My head is killing me.”

“Oh man, that sucks. Have you taken anything for it? You know you get migraines when you get overheated,” Crystal reminded her as she pulled Gail inside of the air-conditioned house. 

When Gail pulled off her sunglasses, Crystal winced. From the look of those eyes, if Gail hadn’t taken any medication, it may already be too late. They narrowed against the light and filled with pain.

“Not yet. It wasn’t that bad earlier. My air conditioner picked today of all days to go out in my car. It must be at least 95 degrees today. And of course, the traffic was stop and go the whole way here,” Gail complained softly, as though the sound of her own voice was painful.

Crystal dragged Gail into the kitchen and pulled the pain reliever out of the cabinet. She passed the bottle to Gail and poured her a glass of water to down the pills with. Gail shook out three and popped them in her mouth, then pulled her hair out of the ponytail it was in, a sure sign of the pain she was feeling.

“Come into the family room and sit in the recliner. It’s not as bright in there. I’ll go upstairs and get the things I wanted to show you.” Crystal waited until Gail had herself situated before walking off.

As she walked past the office, she stuck her head inside. “Rashid, Gail’s here. She’s in the family room trying to cool off and relax. If you go in there, try to be quiet. She’s got a bad headache because she got overheated and she’s prone to migraines. Hopefully the medicine that I gave her will take effect in time.”

Humming to herself, she went upstairs and gathered the items together. There were pictures and a video, things Rashid purchased for her, etc. Now where did she put the seashell she’d bought Gail? She looked all over the room before remembering that she’d stuck it on the shelf in the closet. Once she had it, she was ready.

As she neared the family room, she heard the quiet murmur of Rashid’s voice. “You need to take better care of yourself than this. If the heat makes you sick, you need to stay out of it. You are especially vulnerable to its effects right now.”

“I know, Rashid, and usually I do but stuff happens. I had no control over the air in my car malfunctioning. It will be Wednesday before I can get it to the shop to have it fixed. Thank you, that feels good.”

When Crystal entered the room, Rashid had a damp towel lying on Gail’s forehead and was giving her a massage.

“Your neck and shoulders are very tight. It’s contributing to the pain in your head. And why are you fixing the vehicle? You should just buy a new one. It’s been tearing down more and more,” Rashid said as he took the towel off of her forehead, rung it out in the bowl next to him and replaced it, this time on her neck.

It did something funny to Crystal’s stomach to see Rashid playing nursemaid to Gail. It was petty of her, she knew, but she didn’t like it. She tried to ignore it as she joined the conversation. “I’m with Rashid on this one. I don’t understand why you haven’t bought a new one. It’s not like you can’t afford it.”

“The stuff breaking down on my car is normal maintenance things that have worn down because of the mileage. It’s expected. Besides, and I know you’ll both think this is foolishly sentimental of me, but that car is the one Jason bought for me when the business first started doing well. It’s really the last piece of him that I have. Thanks, Rashid. I feel much better now.” Gail removed the towel from her neck and handed it back to him.

He took the towel and the bowl and left the room. Gail looked at Crystal and told her, “You have a wonderful husband. You’re very lucky. It’s at times like these when I miss Jason the most.”

“Yes, I do,” Crystal acknowledged. Inside she felt guilty. How childish of her to begrudge Gail the little bit of comfort Rashid had given her when she considered all that Gail had lost. Rashid was hers. Every loving and caring ounce of him belonged to her. So he spent a few minutes helping her sick friend.  She should be happy he was compassionate enough to do so, instead of jealous of the attention he was paying to someone else. “I’m glad you’re feeling better. Now I can show you the pictures from my trip.”

For the next hour, Gail laughed, ooh’d and ah’d over everything Crystal showed her. Then they joined Rashid in the dining room for dinner. Crystal served since Carmelita only worked half-days on weekends. The conversation was lively and fun and Crystal enjoyed herself immensely. She was sorry to see Gail leave but realized she needed to rest.

As they cleared the table, Rashid commented, “She’s really not that large to be four months pregnant with twins. Do you think that’s normal? Are we sure everything’s alright?”

“I’m sure everything is fine, but if you have any questions, she has an appointment next week. You can ask Dr. Hagan then.” Once again, all of this concern over Gail was starting to annoy her.

“Do you think she’ll get a newer vehicle? Jason wouldn’t want her holding onto that thing, not if it’s starting to tear up. It was used when he bought it.”

“I’m sure Gail will do whatever she deems best,” Crystal said shortly.

“I’ll talk to her. See if I can convince her to buy another one. She’ll need something larger eventually and higher off of the ground. As her pregnancy advances, she’ll have difficulty getting in and out of her car, as low as it is,” he finished thoughtfully.

“Well, if she doesn’t, you can always buy her one,” Crystal suggested sarcastically as she finished loading the dishwasher and turned it on. “I’m going up to take my shower. Are you coming?”

“I’ll be in the office.” She watched as he left the kitchen, his mind clearly on something else.

* * * *

The next Friday when Gail walked into the waiting room, she was startled to see Rashid. After checking in to let them know she was there, she took a seat next to him.

“Hi, I’m surprised to see you here. I thought you’d be busy like Crystal.”

“I had my secretary put your appointment on my schedule so I wouldn’t miss it.”

“Oh, that was smart.” Gail mentally scrambled for another topic of conversation. When she couldn’t find one, she reached for one of the pregnancy related magazines on the table.

“You are feeling better? There’s been no return of the headache?”

“Yes, I’m fine now. I really don’t get headaches that often any more. That one took me by surprise.”  Gail really had no one but herself to blame. She knew she was prone to migraines and should have taken something when the headache first began, instead of trying to wish it away.

“And the car? Is it fixed?”

“It will be in another couple of days. I’m driving a rental right now. They had to replace the whole unit.” At that moment, Gail’s name was called. She was glad for the interruption.

The visit was routine right up until Dr. Hagan asked if they had any questions. Rashid had a whole list of them. He questioned if her stomach was too small, if the babies were growing properly, and if Gail was eating and drinking enough for the babies’ development. He reported the incident with her headache, which really pissed Gail off because then she had to listen to a ten-minute lecture from Dr. Hagan on the dangers of heat exposure.

By the time the visit was over, she was seriously regretting granting Rashid permission to accompany her to all of her appointments. As they prepared to leave, Rashid asked Gail in front of Dr. Hagan if she’d been getting her daily exercise. The answer to that question was no. She’d forgotten all about it. That negative response earned her another lecture from Dr. Hagan on the benefits of exercise. Gail was ready to kick Rashid when it was all over with. The sooner she got away from him, the better.

She escaped as soon as she could and went to set up her next appointment. Then she had to relieve her bladder again. She was hoping when she came out that Rashid would be gone. No such luck.

As he walked her to the car, he reminded her of the commitment she’d made. “Do not forget that you promised to come over in the evenings, use the pool, and eat dinner with us. I know you could not do so while we were gone, but we have returned.”

Darn it! When she’d made the promise, she didn’t have a life. Now there was Greg, and the women whose friendships she had renewed. Did she really want to spend every evening with Crystal and Rashid? No, but a promise was a promise.

She sighed. “I did forget but I’ll make it a point to be there tomorrow.”

“I will see you then.” He moved out of the way so that she could shut the car door.

Later that same night, she was telling Greg all about it as they shared a pizza. “I’m telling you, Greg, I wanted to hit the man. It’s not like I haven’t done this before.”

“Give the man a break. He’s lost…how many kids now? It’s bound to make him a little paranoid.”

“I know, I know. I’m really trying to be patient and understanding. Really I am. It’s difficult. We’re not married. We were never lovers. I’m just the woman who’s carrying his children. It’s awkward. To get close to them, he has to stay close to me, at least until they are born.” She rolled her neck to loosen the tension before continuing.

“Rashid and I have never been friends, never had what you would call a close relationship. He’s just my best friend’s husband. Someone I’m familiar with but don’t really know. Now we’re being forced into close contact. It was supposed to be me and Crystal doing this. I never really gave much thought to Rashid’s role in this whole thing. I just kind of assumed he would donate his sperm and then show up at the hospital to pick up his kids. Boy was I wrong.” She sighed and took another bite of pizza.

“I have to go to their house every evening, which was fine when I suggested it. It was a compromise against my actually living with them. Now that I have you, I really don’t want those kinds of demands on my time.”

His eyebrows shot up. “They wanted you to move in with them?”

“Yeah, well, mostly Rashid. Although Crystal agreed with him. I told him no. That for my own emotional stability, I had to maintain a certain degree of separateness. I couldn’t do that if I was living with them. I’m giving up enough of my life as it is.”

“What exactly did you tell him you would do?” Greg reached out and stole a pepperoni off of her slice of pizza.

“I told him I would come by every day and use the pool for my daily exercise I’m supposed to be getting and let Carmelita feed me.”

“Were those your exact words?”

“I’m pretty sure they are. Why?” She wondered where he was going with this line of questioning.

“Well, you want to keep your word but not have every evening tied up with them, right?”

“That’s the idea,” she confirmed.

“Here’s the solution. Go over to their house as soon as you leave from work and take your swim. Then allow Carmelita—that’s her name, right?” At her nod he continued, “Allow Carmelita to feed you. Afterwards, you head home. You didn’t commit yourself to a certain time did you?”

“No, no time was mentioned.”