Unfaithful (19 page)

Rebecca was almost twelve weeks pregnant now. Her baby was about the length of her little finger at this stage, all her organs would be formed and she would even be practicing sucking and swallowing. Rebecca was convinced that she was having a girl, mostly because she'd always dreamed of having a daughter but also because this pregnancy was very different to how she'd felt when she was pregnant with Christopher.

She hoped she wouldn't have the same complications with this baby as she'd experienced with her son. She'd been bed-bound for most of the last two months of her pregnancy with her first born. The tiredness she’d had with Chris was not nearly as exhausted and sick as she felt now. She'd actually lost weight, almost a stone, when she'd had Chris but she knew she was going to be stones heavier after this little one but she didn't care. It would all be worth it in the end. She smiled to herself and gently patted her tummy.

She sat in her rocking chair in the conservatory rocking gently, and dreaming of baby names. She had a great fondness for Irish names and was fascinated by the history behind the names. Mark had insisted on naming their son Christopher after his father but Rebecca would choose this baby's name. Aoibheann or Saoirse were her favourite baby girl names at the moment. Aoibheann, pronounced "e-ving" means radiance and Saoirse, pronounced "seer-sha" means freedom.

If she had a baby boy then she quite liked the names Fionn or Oisin. Oisin, pronounced "o-sheen" means forever young and Fionn, pronounced "fuh-yun" means white or fair hair and is a derivation of the name Finbar. Rebecca liked the fact that Fionn Mac Cumhaill was an Irish warrior and poet and Oisin was his son.

She hummed to herself as she daydreamed about all the hopes and dreams she would share with her new child. It was such an exciting time and she was glad, in a way, that it was her little secret. Nobody else knew about her pregnancy, so nobody could spoil her joy and ruin it with doubt. She knew it wouldn't be easy, but she was looking forward to the future for the first time in a very long time.

The joy that Mark's betrayal had crushed so badly within her was slowly but surely starting to resurface once again. She felt like it was her and her baby against the world. It would be her and her baby together, just the two of them, when all of this was done. She certainly didn't want to have anything more to do with Mark once she'd left him and Christopher had his own life to lead. Sometimes, part of her wished she had someone to share her happy news with but she didn't think the time was right to tell anyone just yet, especially not Mark.

She put the precious baby book back in its hiding place behind the washing machine, somewhere she knew Mark or Christopher would never venture. She often wondered if either of them ever wondered how their dirty laundry seemed to magically return clean and fresh to their wardrobe shelves.

She'd been distracted from her plan to leave her husband over the excitement and worry during the last few weeks, but now that everything was confirmed and she had made her decision to continue with the pregnancy she was determined to get back on track soon. She was so grateful for the chat that she'd had with Laura earlier that week.

Laura used to be a family lawyer and an old school friend of Rebecca's. She had provided Rebecca with a wealth of information on her rights if she divorced Mark. Laura had advised her that it would be easier to obtain a divorce if she could prove that Mark was indeed having an affair and she was sure that she'd have all the proof she needed in a very short time.

Laura had advised her that it would be at least four years before she could even apply for a divorce from Mark as Irish law states that both parties must be living apart for at least four out of the previous five years. Her first step was to apply for a judicial separation which was granted when one of the parties had committed adultery amongst other reasons. The judicial separation decree confirms that the couple is no longer obliged to live together as a married couple.

The court may also make orders in relation to custody and access to children, the payment of maintenance and lump sums, the transfer of property, the extinguishment of succession rights, etc. Rebecca knew that Mark would more than likely turn very nasty once he realised that there was no hope for a reconciliation and that she really meant business, which is why she so badly needed hard evidence that Mark was indeed committing adultery.

She realised that she had a difficult road ahead of her as she knew that Mark would fight every point regarding maintenance, ownership of the family home, ownership of their business assets and what worried her most of all; custody of their unborn child. Chris was old enough to make his own decisions but she worried about her baby.

However, she knew that leaving Mark was her only option and the right thing for her. She had tried to ignore his philandering ways but living with his deceit was undermining her self-esteem and she found that she was constantly annoyed and stressed. It needed to end and the only way to end it was divorce.

Chapter 24

Rebecca jumped as the front door slammed. She’d been having a peaceful afternoon watching daytime television and drifting in and out of sleep. The tiredness these last few weeks was almost debilitating. She’d be up an hour in the morning when shed have an overwhelming urge to go back to sleep. She tried not to succumb to the tiredness too much as she felt the more she indulged in sleeping the more sleep her body craved.

“Darling, I’m home! “ Mark called from the hall, as he hung up his heavy winter coat.

“I’m in here,” Rebecca replied, as she sat up and rubbed her tired eyes.

''Is everything ok darling?'' Mark asked as he bent to kiss her cheek. “It’s not like you to be sleeping in the afternoon.''

He looked at her quizzically.

“Everything’s fine,'' she replied shortly. “I haven’t been sleeping very well recently, that’s all.'' ''Are you still feeling ill?”

''No, no, I’m fine,'' Rebecca lied. ''Anyway, what are you doing home so early?''

''I thought I’d pop home and keep you company. You looked very pale this morning and I was worried about you,'' Mark replied.

Rebecca managed to force a smile. “Thanks darling. Would you like a cuppa?''

''Let me get it,” Mark insisted, as he hurried into the kitchen.

Rebecca groaned as she struggled to her feet. Spending any extra time with Mark was the last thing she wanted to do at the moment. It was all she could do to restrain herself from screaming at him and telling him exactly what she thought of him and relations between them were getting more and more strained by the day.

She was sure that he had been on the verge of saying something to her on several occasions, but somehow she had always managed to distract him. She certainly didn’t want a confrontation any time soon, and certainly not on his terms.

''Tea’s ready darling,” he called from the kitchen, ''shall I bring it through to you?''

''Let’s have it in the conservatory,'' she suggested as she took the hot cup of ginger tea from him. ''This is my favourite room in the whole house.” Rebecca settled herself carefully into the wicker seat, adjusting the cushions to support her aching back. She placed another cushion in front of her to hide her bump.

''Best birthday present I ever gave you,'' Mark smiled as he spooned sugar into his Earl Grey and noisily stirred it.

''Hmm,'' was all she could manage as she sipped her tea in an effort to cover the expression on her face. She was finding it difficult to restrain herself from flinging her tea cup at his smug face and giving him a serious piece of her mind.

''What have you been doing with yourself today?'' Mark asked eventually, in an effort to break the awkward silence.

''Not a lot,'' she replied stiffly, “resting mostly.''

''Don’t you think you should see a doctor, darling?'' Mark asked, ''you seem very down in yourself lately, depressed almost. I suppose it must be strange for you now that Chris is away at college. The house must seem so empty without him. He was a full-time job with all the running around you had to do, ferrying him back and forth to school, to soccer matches, friends' houses. I guess it was non-stop really.''

''Yes, I do miss him,'' Rebecca forced herself to speak, ''but he has his own life to lead now.'' ''Yes, that’s true,'' Mark agreed, ''it will give us more time to spend together anyway.''

''Mmm,'' she sniffed.

''Are you sure you’re ok?'' Mark asked again.

''Oh, just drop it Mark, will you, for heavens' sake! I’ve told you that I’m fine, perfectly fine!” She stood up suddenly, saying, ''I’m going to have a bath.''

Mark looked after her curiously. “What’s her problem,” he muttered as he sipped his tea. He gazed out the conservatory window and watched the rain as it ran in rivulets down the window pane. He admired the palm trees which were now almost twenty feet tall. He’d planted them almost ten years previously in an effort to give them more privacy from any nosy neighbours. The trees surrounded the house now, like a warm blanket, protecting them from the cold, harsh winter elements.

He and Rebecca and even little Christopher had had such fun back then. He remembered how they’d dug up each hole in the muddy garden to plant the fledgling trees and how Chris couldn’t believe the photos of how tall the trees would grow one day.

He missed Chris around the house. The place seemed so lonely sometimes with just him and Rebecca rattling around the place. Rebecca seemed so unreachable lately, distracted almost. It was as if she was lost in her own world, her own thoughts, and there wasn’t much room for him. He sighed.
Probably another mood swing
, he wearily tried to convince.
I wish she'd hurry up and get her period.

He gathered up the tea cups and popped them into the dishwasher. Then he wandered into the sitting room and switched on the television. He hoped Rebecca would be upstairs for another while. He wasn’t in the mood for looking at her sad, pale face. She was really starting to irritate him and she made so little effort for him these days. She barely listened to him when he was talking to her, whereas before she would almost hang on his every word.

She rarely bothered to cook a decent dinner, telling him to have a sandwich or call for a takeaway if he was hungry. That’s probably why she’s getting so chubby herself lately, he thought unkindly, too much fast food, it’s about time she started cooking some healthy food for us again, just because Chris isn’t here anymore it’s no excuse to let things slide. I’ll have to mention something to her, he decided as he flicked from channel to channel. 

Suddenly, he heard a loud bang from upstairs and a muffled cry. He jumped to his feet and ran upstairs. He burst into the bathroom where Rebecca was lying in a crumpled heap on the cold, tiled floor. She was moaning softly, and lying awkwardly on her side, one hand protectively clutching her stomach.

''Darling! Darling! Are you ok? What on earth happened?''

Mark rushed to her side and tried to help her up. She was soaking wet from the bath. He grabbed a soft, warm towel and wrapped it around her and tried to help her to stand up. She leaned on him heavily as he helped her to her feet. She immediately fell against him, clutching her stomach in pain.

''Oh, Mark, Mark, I think I need to go to the hospital,'' she whispered, tears beginning to form in her eyes.

''It’s just a fall, darling. I think you’ll be ok in a while. I’ll get you some paracetamol and some more tea and you’ll be fine. It’s just a shock, that’s all,'' he tried to console her as he saw the panic starting to rise in her face.

''Please, Mark, take me to the hospital, please,'' she begged in desperation.

''Of course, darling, of course,'' he soothed, as he helped her to get dressed. ''There’s no need to panic, I don’t think you’ve broken anything.''

''You don’t understand!” she cried, as she suddenly doubled over, clutching her stomach. ''Understand what?'' he asked, turning pale as the realisation began to dawn on him.

''Call an ambulance, please!''

''Of course, of course,'' he rushed downstairs to find his mobile phone, almost falling downstairs in his haste.

"The ambulance is on its way, darling.” He was breathless from his run upstairs.

"Ok," Rebecca gasped.

She was sitting on the edge of the bed, struggling to get into her tracksuit.

"Let me help," Mark rushed to her side and helped her dress. "Are you in a lot of pain, darling?" he looked at her face, which was paler than he'd ever seen.

She was moaning softly to herself.

"Yes," she gasped, clutching her stomach again, and doubling over in agony.

"What on earth is the matter?" he asked, sensing that she wasn't telling him something, and wanting desperately to know what was wrong.

"Not now, Mark, not now."

She pulled her top over her head and winced with the effort.

"Rebecca, please, what are you hiding from me? I know you're not telling me something." "You're not the only one with secrets around here!" She snapped viciously at him.

He felt like she'd just slapped him sharply across the face, in fact he wished she had slapped him, it would have been easier to understand the sudden intense pain he felt in his heart. He could feel a huge shift in his world.