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CHAPTER SEVEN
Ashley froze in place.
Only three days’ absence and already Sheila is trying to make contact. Okay. This is it. Your first test. If you can’t handle it, then there’s no point to anything.
“They told her that no one is allowed up here during the clinic, but she insisted it was an emergency and said she must talk to you in person.”
Cord’s head jerked around, his eyes darkening to a glacial midnight blue as he stared at Ashley. “I know what you’re thinking,” he rapped out before she could say anything. “But I swear I have no idea how she traced me here.” His voice grated. “Dan’s the only one at the office privy to that information. As for the rest of the staff, they’re assuming I’m on a week’s vacation.”
“I believe you,” she assured him. “Otherwise why bother to go through with the elaborate farce of getting me to attend this clinic with you.”
Cord gauged the sincerity of her words, then grasped her hand. “As far as I’m concerned, she can go to hell. Let’s get back to our room.” His jaw had hardened so ferociously, she barely recognized him.
“No, Cord.” She stood her ground. “Maybe she’s using this as an excuse to see you. Then again, it’s possible she has news you need to hear.”
Obviously shocked by her reaction, his relentless
gaze searched hers. He didn’t quite trust this new side of her. She couldn’t blame him. The old Ashley would have stolen quietly away, her face eloquent with anguish. Another hurt to nurse. Another wall to keep them apart.
“You don’t believe that. Neither do I,” he scathed. Ashley stood her ground. “Nevertheless, as long as she’s here, you’d better see her.”
You may be surprised that she found out about the clinic, Cord, but you’re not really surprised that she would go to these lengths to see you. You’re only pretending to be because of me and the precariousness of our situation.
That had always been their problem since living in Salt Lake. Because of Sheila, they’d tried to protect each other from getting hurt. They’d bent over backward to avoid causing pain, but in the process, their efforts had only made everything worse.
She heard his harsh intake of breath. “The only way I would agree to see Sheila is with you at my side. But if it means upsetting you and the baby, I’m not prepared to take that risk.”
Those words went a long way to assuage Ashley’s fears. It was his method of demonstrating new resolve on his part to dispel any suspicion. Because he was trying so hard, it prompted her to say, “When you think about it, what difference does it make whether we talk to her now, or four days from now?”
There was no response. His powerful body didn’t move an inch. Only his eyes spoke to her. They were asking the question he hadn’t voiced. Both she and Cord were painfully aware of their tenuous new beginning. Neither one wanted to make a wrong move. Right now he was trying to do everything right. So was she.
Did she trust him? If so, she needed to proceed the way she intended to go or she’d never be whole again. What was it Sister Bernice had said? “You have a duty to your husband to put your old fears to rest once and for all.”
“Let’s go down right now and find out what she wants.”
By the deafening silence, she realized that once again she’d surprised him. The Ashley he knew would never have suggested such a plan, let alone had the courage to carry it through.
“Please, Cord—you want me to trust you, so why not deal with her together and present a united front.”
She could sense the battle going on inside him. “You’re sure?” Anxiety, fear, admiration—all those emotions and more she read in his eyes.
“Actually I think I’m glad she came. If I have to see her again for the first time in months, I would just as soon it be here at the hospital with you at my side. I mean, what can she say or do in front of us that she hasn’t already tried?”
His chest heaved. “If you really want to do this, then promise me you’ll follow my lead. Whatever she thinks she has to say can be accomplished in sixty seconds or less.”
Since Ashley had no desire to be in Sheila’s company any longer than necessary, it was an easy promise to make.
“Shall we go?”
He put his arm around her shoulders and they retraced their footsteps. At the double doors leading to the elevator he pulled her close. “One more thing before we leave the floor,” he whispered.
The second she lifted her head in query, his mouth descended. He gave her a long, urgent kiss. When he finally relinquished his hold of her, she was out of breath. The blood pounded in her ears. “Now I’m ready.”
The barely controlled ardor of his embrace left her so speechless and dull-witted, she was scarcely cognizant of their trip downstairs to the outpatient lounge.
Perhaps the one thing that helped her press forward without hesitation was the knowledge that Sheila would be expecting one person to appear in the waiting room. Cord.
Ashley’s presence, a very pregnant Ashley, nestled tightly against her husband, would come as a tremendous shock.
