Page 55 of Protecting Olivia

I will not start my relationship with my soon-to-be-wife with lies. That was not going to happen.

“I wouldn’t expect you to. Pamela should’ve told her. Right now, it might be better coming from you. I trust you’ll tell her when the time is right. Peter is taking care of Pamela. They’re working out their issues. What a cluster fuck. I always had my suspicions but never asked. I wish I had. Maybe then both of them wouldn’t have spent the last twenty-five years in misery.”

“How well do you know Peter Newton? Pamela eluded to him cheating on her while she was away,” I asked.

I tried to remember as much of the conversation in the basement when Pamela and Peter came to see Olivia, but the truth was my attention was on Olivia and not Pamela’s drama. Olivia looked so broken and lost lying on the bed afterwards, I wanted to scoop her up and take her away from all the confusion.

“Peter did not cheat on Pamela with that bitch, Anna Crofton. Anna set Peter up. They were at a party, Peter had too much to drink, and Anna got into bed with him. Took off both their clothes and made Peter think he’d slept with her. A month later she’s pregnant and threatening to expose him if Peter didn’t marry her. Peter didn’t want to marry Anna, but his father demanded he did, as not to embarrass the family. Peter followed orders because back in the day, no one crossed Thad Newton. Shortly after Peter married Anna, she conveniently had a miscarriage. By that time, Thad wouldn’t let Peter dump her lying ass because the Croftons had made large investments and donations to Newton businesses. He was stuck with the wench until she died. And I hate to speak ill of the dead, but that woman was a nasty piece of work, and Peter sucked it up. Miserable every day of his life with her. He never stopped loving Pamela.”

I didn’t know Peter well, but I felt sorry for him. I hoped now that the truth was out they could find a way back to each other. That was, if Pamela pulled through her treatment. I prayed to God she did. This was going to kill my sweet girl.

“That has to be the most fucked up story I’ve heard,” Z said.

“Indeed. You boys get on home.” Tom dismissed us.

I rushed through my SITREP while Zane drove back to Maryland. I normally went back to the office to file my reports. But then I’d never had anyone waiting for me to come home before. I sent my report to Garrett and closed my laptop.

Almost home.

Epilogue

Leo

It has taken a few months, but I finally did it. I knocked my woman up and got my ring on her finger. Pamela and Ma were so excited they were filling our house with so much baby shit I couldn’t find a place to sit.

Once I had all the facts about Pamela’s brain tumor, I took Olivia over to Ma’s and sat her down with her family surrounding her and laid it out for her. She reacted the way I knew my girl would – she broke down. Ma, Bella, MJ, and Luca all closed ranks and gave her all the love she needed to get through the following weeks. I had never been prouder of my family.

Once my family was told, Olivia and I visited Pamela in DC. We brought Ma along as reinforcement. Pamela was combative and aggressive and exploded when we confronted her with all the information. In the end, it was Ma who calmed Pamela. She broke down and told Olivia everything. Since that day, Ma and Pamela have forged a close friendship. Pamela was at most Sunday dinners. Peter, too. Olivia was one of us, and by extension, Pamela and Peter had been welcomed into the fold.

Ma was happy; her family was growing by leaps and bounds.

Peter never left Pamela’s side. Her surgery was a success, the recovery is still ongoing and would be for a long time. They were slowly working their way back to each other. Peter had proven to be a good dad and was making up for lost time. He called Olivia every day to check in with her. He supported her when she announced she was following her passion for art and going to design school.

My Olivia was happy. And knocked up!

I glanced at my wife in the chair next to me reading some sort of parenting magazine with a breastfeeding mother on the cover. I couldn’t wait for Olivia to grow round with my baby.

“Are you nervous?” she asked me when she caught me staring at her.

“Not at all. I know everything is fine.”

“Mrs. Gillonardo we’re ready for you,” the nurse announced.

Mrs. Gillonardo. Goddamn, I loved the sound of that.

We both stood and followed the nurse to the exam room.

“The doctor will be just a moment.”

Olivia got herself situated on the exam table, the white paper crinkled as she tried to get comfortable. There was a knock on the door and relief washed over me when a woman in her mid-fifties walked in. The guys had been tormenting me all week at work about Olivia getting a male doctor. They explained all the ways the doctor would be examining my wife.

After the introductions were made, Dr. Lee told Olivia to lie back and squirted a clear jelly all over her lower abdomen. Olivia squeezed my hand and smiled.

“You ready?” she whispered.

Was I ready? Fuck yeah, I was ready. I wanted to yell to the world just how ready I was. Instead, I settled on nodding my head.

The doctor moved a wand over Olivia’s belly and the room filled with a swooshing sound.