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“After what I’ve just witnessed, I can promise you that your divorce will not resolve the pain and doubts still assailing you. For your mental health and his, I urge you to see this through.
“If you can’t, then I suggest you make an appointment to talk to Dr. Drake. He’s one of the finest psychiatrists in the country. You need some help before your baby comes. The emotional burdens you’re carrying will affect your child. Think about it.”
Ashley rubbed her forehead where she could feel the beginnings of a headache. “I know you’re right, Vince. It’s just so hard.”
“Because you’re still in love with him.”
She would have liked to deny it, but because he’d spoken the truth, she couldn’t.
“No matter how difficult this is, think what it will mean to your child’s happiness if you and Cord can deal with this now. Whether you stay married, or end up divorced, you’ll both be able to start fresh, with new faith in the future. Hopefully he’ll be able to live the rest of his life without a crutch like nicotine.”
Vince spoke the truth. There was more at stake here than just her pain and Cord’s. Their baby deserved the best from both of them. She’d told Cord she would only stay as long as the first session took but the therapist’s words found a responding chord in her and prevented her from leaving.
Somehow she was going to have to find the strength to sit there and listen to more devastating details of his long-term affair with Sheila.
“I’m sorry I walked out,” she said quietly.
“It was a normal reaction, Ashley.”
“If I’m going to stay on, I guess I’m going to have to find another way to deal with my pain.”
“If you’ll keep your thoughts focused on what’s best for your child in the long run, I think you’ll be able to handle it.” After a pause, “Do you want to wait until after the group session this afternoon to pick up where we left off?”
She shook her head. “No—the sooner everything is out in the open, the better.”
“Good for you.”
As she turned, she saw Cord s
tanding in the doorway to their room, his features an expressionless mask. “This is asking too much of you, Ashley. You said you’d stay through the first session. I won’t hold you to any more.”
She took a fortifying breath. “I admit I’d rather be anywhere than here.” At that comment, she thought she saw a flicker of pain enter his eyes before they darkened. “But Vince is right. If you never tell me the whole truth, and I never stay long enough to listen, then we’ll carry around unwanted baggage the rest of our lives. That won’t be good for the baby. So, for the sake of our unborn child, I’ll stay.”
Her words brought another grimace to his hardened features. “I can’t ask for more than that.” He studied her so thoroughly, she started feeling weak-kneed again. “Are you sure you’re up to this physically?”
“I’ll be fine.”
She moved past him, but her protruding stomach brushed against his arm. The slightest contact sent a current of electricity through her body. To offset the sensation, she sat down on the bed next to the bedside table and began eating the roll and grapefruit he’d brought in earlier. Maybe a little sustenance would help insulate her against the shocks still to come.
When Vince started the questioning again, Cord stood nearby, his hands on the back of one of the metal chairs. The knuckles stood out white, testimony of the tension gripping him.
“You said that you and your father became estranged, then you mentioned the woman, Sheila. Let’s start there.”
The last of the roll turned to sawdust in Ashley’s mouth as she listened without looking in his direction, “Sheila was twenty-five when Dad hired her, seven years older than I. She was a willowy blonde who knew she was attractive. I noticed that she flirted with all the male employees, married or single, even my father.”
“Did she flirt with you?”
“Especially with me.”
Ashley’s eyes closed tightly.
“I was like a lot of high school guys, flattered by the attention of an older woman. Since I already had a legitimate right to be at work until late, I hung around there a lot more, hoping she’d hang around, too.
“One night I got my wish. She didn’t have her car and needed a ride home. So I willingly drove her to her apartment. She invited me to come up for a drink.
“I couldn’t believe my luck, so I went inside her place. After she put on some music and told me to get comfortable on the couch, she brought out a couple of beers.
“Since I’d thought she meant a Coke or something, I was really excited because she was treating me like a man her own age which really built my ego. I drank beer with her. Then she asked me if I wanted to dance. Another thrill.
