Imperfect Love (33 page)

The drive to her father’s mansion took only a couple of minutes.

Holly’s eyes grew wide as they pulled into the driveway. She found herself gawking at a semi-palace with glass windows built high on a cliff. It was gorgeous.

Having given orders for her bags to be taken inside, Charles led her through to the patio.

Gabriella, her father’s wife, was sunning on a lounger next to the pool. Holly had only seen her a handful of times when she was a little girl, but as soon as Gabriella noticed Holly standing next to Charles, the look on her face said she wanted to scold him over who the hell the strawberry blond slut was.

Charles knew her all too well. “Relax, Gabriella. It’s only Holly.”

She squinted and looked at Holly. “Holly? As in—”

“Yes,” he cut her off, “she will be staying with us for a couple of months.”

Gabriella finally smiled. “Welcome to our home, Holly. It will be nice to finally get to know you.”

“Likewise,” Holly lied. She hated this woman with every fiber of her being, but needed to remain on her good side otherwise her father would throw her out, and then where would that leave her?

The woman standing before her in gorgeous open-toed shoes was in her mid-forties but still looked twenty, only because of all the plastic surgery her father had obviously paid for.

Money that should’ve actually helped raise me and Jamie
, Holly thought, shaking her head. If her current situation was going to work, she needed to rid herself of such thoughts.

“Come, darling.” Charles motioned for her to follow him. “Let me show you to your room.”

Holly gave him a soft smile, although it was really hard to muster one after the last two days. A part of her had always known that the situation she now found herself in was bound to happen, that the day would come when Jake would not want her anymore.

She still couldn’t believe it, but the words had come directly from the horse’s mouth, so to speak. Words that would stick in her head for years to come.

She wiped at a tear, then followed her father through one of the side doors into his mansion. They walked up the first set of stairs. Another led them to the upper level. It was huge, which made her wonder who had more money; him or the Peters’.

A small dog ran out of one of the rooms and barked hysterically as they passed by him. Holly jumped because that had to have been the ugliest dog she had ever seen. It was completely hairless.

“Pimples, quiet,” Charles demanded in a thick voice.

The dog backed off, but continued to growl, letting it be known he wasn’t happy with the new stranger coming into his home.

“Sorry, he’s old. I can’t wait for him to die.”

Holly giggled, although she was a bit taken aback with him wanting the dog to die. “He’s not the prettiest dog I have seen, that’s for sure.”

“It’s Gabriella, she’s got a thing for ugly mutts. Have to love that about her, otherwise she would never have gone for me.” He raised his eyebrows, and Holly only smiled.

I don’t think it was your looks she was after, dearest Dad
, Holly thought but didn’t dare say out loud.

They continued down a hall. Numerous picture frames had been hung along one wall, all showing photos of Gabriella, but none of her father.

The door at the end was their destination and when Holly entered, she sucked in a huge breath. It was stunning, the stuff dreams were made of. At its center was the biggest four-poster bed she’d ever seen, covered in the most beautiful satin linen.

Surrounding the room were ceiling to floor glass windows, framed by the softest, white curtains. Almost all opened up onto a balcony with its own breakfast corner, and amazingly what looked to be an honest to goodness hot tub.

She shook her head. That kind of opulence was something she wasn’t used to, but as her father was the only one with the means to help her through this mess, she would make herself get used to it.

“I hope the room is to your satisfaction. If you’d like the linen changed, I can ask Penelope to come sort it out—”

“It not necessary,” she interrupted. “It’s simply beautiful. Thank you, Dad.”

He smiled and looked at the carpet. “I’m glad you’ve stopped calling me Charles. It’s nice to have you here, Holly. Really.”

She smiled at him, feeling somewhat guilty. It wasn’t like she really wanted to be there anyway, but beggars couldn’t be choosers.

“I’ll let you settle in, then. I’ve a couple of things I need to see to in my office. If you are hungry, let the chef know and he’ll make you something.”

Chef! He’s got a freaking chef?

“Thanks, Dad. For everything.”

Once he closed the door, she began to unpack her clothes. Her mind ran rampant again. All the times her mother had struggled to put food on the table, he’d had someone making it for him. He’d never been there. Even when Jamie died and her mother drowned herself in alcohol, he hadn’t been there. He’d never even bothered with threats toward Jane regarding taking Holly away from her if the alcohol bingeing continued.

What Holly had now done was without a doubt the lowest she’d succumbed to in her life; ask the man she despised most in the world for help. She’d never in her wildest dreams thought that that was where she’d end up, that that was what would happen to her. But the end result was her only option. She was in the one place where she’d be safe.

Bernie knew her mother, but Holly wasn’t certain if her friend was privy to her whereabouts. Sure, Holly had spoken to her from time to time. She’d even, shockingly, given money toward Holly’s now doomed wedding to Brandon. But she was the one person Holly couldn’t have gone to. It would have been too easy for Bernie to find her.

She was safe in Seattle. No one, not even Bernie would find her.

She wondered if Bernie would be upset with Jake for not wanting the baby. But Holly knew the answer to that; she most definitely would be. However, as far as Leo was concerned, that was another matter entirely. Jake would never sever his friendship with Leo. They’d been friends practically since the day they’d been out of diapers. That kind of friendship shouldn’t be broken, and those kinds of friends shouldn’t have to choose. In the end, Holly had been the one to make the choice instead.

Her hands began to tremble as she pulled the tin that held the last shake out of her bag. Thank heaven she had another full one, but it would only last her half a month, and then everything would go haywire once again.

Her fear of hospitals was such that she couldn’t imagine what she would end up going through. If Mara was right about dying, there was nothing to be done. She’d rather die for her unborn baby than contemplate aborting it. Her life felt meaningless, anyway. She was convinced she’d never find love again. She’d known it the first time she’d kissed Jake, and if by some miracle the baby and her survived, it would have to be happy with only one parent.

THOSE FIRST FEW WEEKS WENT BY QUICKLY. HOLLY spent most of them in her room.

Gabby, as her father called his wife, tried her utmost to be friendly¸ but after the umpteenth time of short answers from Holly—who had absolutely no interest in either being her friend, much less go shopping with her—that’s when the fighting started. Her father’s house wasn’t big enough for Gabby’s shrill voice.

To her surprise, her father didn’t interfere, demanding that she give Gabby a chance. Instead, he tried his best and was nice to his daughter, which Gabby didn’t approve of.

One day, she noticed that her father had been sleeping in one of the guest rooms for at least two nights. A part of her felt awful, but she really had nothing in common with Gabby, neither was she interested in what kind of plastic surgery she was thinking of getting next. Actually, Holly wasn’t even sure if any of the woman’s body parts were real anymore.

Time wasn’t the only thing that went by quickly. Holly’s last tin was also diminishing with every passing day. She had more or less one week of the supplement left, deciding to stretch it as far as she possibly could. She’d only drink it when she felt she really couldn’t cope with the dizziness or nausea anymore.

She would also drown the powder with milk and would skip the next dose, which needed to be taken every eight hours. She hated the whirlwind thoughts going on in her head. Worry was a constant companion.

That evening after consuming her shake, Holly took a bath and went straight to bed, after Al, Charles’ chef, made her something light to eat.

At around two in the morning, a crazy nauseating feeling interrupted her sleep; she barely made it to the bathroom.

She couldn’t stop what was happening and began to cry as she dry heaved over the toilet bowl.

Eventually, her father must have heard. When Charles saw the condition his daughter was in, his face was a mixture of horror and worry.

“We need get you to the hospital.”

“No. Just get the tin from my closet. Four scoops into a glass of milk. It will help.”

She listened to closet doors opening and closing as her insides burned.

“Which one, Holly?” he yelled from within her bedroom.

“The one closest to the wall, Dad, third shelf.”

The sound of the closet opening again, followed by her father exiting her room and walking to the kitchen came next. She took deep breaths and wiped her mouth. The dizziness was horrific.

If she wasn’t capable of skipping eight hours, how on earth was she going to make the tin last? And then it hit her. The tin wasn’t going to last—it meant that Mara had been right. Holly didn’t want to die, but she didn’t want to abort the baby, either. She couldn’t.

She’d walked that horrible marathon with Amelia against abortion. And even if Amelia had managed to change her mind about the baby, Holly still wouldn’t have been able to go through with it. It wasn’t right, and she would never be something she wasn’t just to get Jake back. Whatever they’d had wasn’t love, because he’d basically discarded her and their baby.

Holly began to cry as she thought about Jake and the mess he’d left her to deal with. He was a coward, a word she never would have used to describe him before.

He’d broken her heart. No, he’d shattered it and it would never be able to heal. She would end up like her mother, alone with a tiny baby.

Charles returned, holding the glass to her mouth so she could drink. He then picked her up and carried her gently back to bed. “Are you going to be okay? Don’t you think we should call for a doctor, Holls?”

“No, Dad. I’ll be okay now. If it worsens, I’ll go see a doctor.”

“When is your next appointment?”

“I made one with Gabby’s doctor. She said he’s really good.”

“Dr. Rikus is one of the best. I’ve checked him out and Gabby trusts him, so he must be really good.”

Holly managed to chuckle. Her father’s humor reminded her of Dr. Meyers. It was dry, but she could read between the lines.

Charles smiled and stroked her hair. “Sleep tight, and if you don’t feel better in an hour, you call me and we’ll go to the hospital, you hear?”

She nodded. Even though she hated the fact that her father had just told her what to do, she had to admit that it felt good to be taken care of.

When she woke the next morning, Holly was forced to drink the shake. Al now made sure she didn’t skip even one. He took a photo of the tin and said he would try to get her more.

Holly didn’t like it one bit and worried that somehow Gus would find out, especially as it wasn’t on the market, added to the fact that she was carrying his ‘grandbaby’, so to speak.

The bean was almost three months along now. Holly was proud that they’d both made it that far. Just a little farther to go. At least her father had her back, and she knew that should the day came when those she was trying to avoid interfered, he would fight them tooth and nail in court.

She didn’t want a single thing from Jake, but for some reason she loved him still, even if she hated his guts. She often wondered if she’d ever go back were he to beg. But she’d counter that thought in the negative; he’d made his choice and that was where it would stay. Her grandmother had always told her to never take someone back if the relationship hadn’t worked out the first time around. Although, where Brandon was concerned, she’d given him a number of chances. With Jake it was different, though. She was carrying his baby, one he didn’t want and because of that, there would be no second chance.

‘It is what it is, Holly. I’ve got to go.’
Every time she heard his words in her head, tears would stream down her face and she would hide her face in her pillow, ashamed that she still cared for him.

Two days later, her father entered her room. “Holly, where did you get that formula?”

“It doesn’t matter anymore, Dad.”

“If it’s the only thing that keeps you healthy, please. If it’s money—”

“It’s not about the money,” she cut him off hastily. “Thing is, it’s not on the market yet, and the doctor who’s experimenting with it won’t give you any.”

“Honey, we’ve got to try.”

“Dad, please, let it go.”

Charles sighed. “We need to help you somehow. Please, let me help you. It’s why you came to me.”

Holly merely nodded. She didn’t want to fight with him, and God knew how scared she was of Jake finding out about her keeping the baby. But she had no choice, not if she didn’t want her father to find out who the baby’s father was.

“When is your appointment with Dr. Rikus?”

“Tomorrow.”

“We should ask him about this, maybe he’ll be able to get his hands on some.”

“Sure, I’ll ask him.”

Charles eyed his daughter both patiently and warily, and then left.

After dinner, Al prepared her last shake. She cried as she finished it, the end had come.

There were still six months left in her pregnancy, and Holly could just imagine in what kind of a state she was going to be in when it was time to deliver the baby. She just knew she had to.

She slept through the night, but when she woke it was with a mind that wouldn’t stop swirling. It felt as if her thoughts were smashing up against each other in her head, and when she sat up in bed the nausea hit her like a ton of bricks. Hurling herself out of bed, she ran to the toilet and threw up bile, just slime and water.

Al knocked on the door. “Miss Holly, are you okay?”

Between breaths she croaked, “I’ll be fine, Al.” Which was an outright lie.

As the nausea abated somewhat, Holly pushed herself up from the toilet and stumbled back into her room. She dressed in a T-shirt, jeans and a coat. Her belly had started to extend slightly but not by much, which also told her that something wasn’t right. Women usually began showing at around three months, right?

She knew she was over three months now, according to her last visit with Dr. Meyer’s five weeks ago.

Grabbing a brown paper bag out of the pantry as an afterthought, she made her way out to the waiting car. The driver opened the door for her and introduced himself as Bennie. Once seated, she rested her head against the window’s cold glass, hoping it would help with her hot flushes.

Holly thought about having skipped that one shake; it had influenced the progress she’d made. If she hadn’t skipped it, she probably wouldn’t be feeling as horrible as she was at that moment.

Pulling up at the hospital, Bennie stopped the car, got out and opened the door for her once again.

Holly thanked her lucky stars he was close by when she climbed out, as she almost tumbled over from the dizziness.

“Don’t worry, I’ve got you, miss,” he reassured her. Turning, he yelled for assistance.

She was settled into a wheelchair and taken to the emergency room by a man wearing scrubs, and was immediately attended to.

“What seems to be the problem?” a woman asked, shining a light into Holly’s eyes.

“I’m pregnant and I have gestational hypertension,” Holly answered. “I’m here to see Dr. Rikus.”

“Page Doctor Rikus, stat. We’ve got a bad case of hypertension,” she yelled.

Holly was immediately moved onto a bed.

“Do you have any insurance?”

Holly shook her head. “You’ll have to call my father.”

“I already did, Miss Scallanger.”

The doctor looked at Bennie.

“Charles’ daughter?”

“That’s correct, doctor,” Bennie confirmed.

“Get her up to the maternity ward, now. Private room,” the doctor barked.

Holly was wheeled away whilst still on the bed and into an elevator. Nurses fiddled with her arms, while she pinched her eyes closed as a needle pierced her skin.

“I’m pregnant,” Holly stated, sounding tired.

“We know. It’s okay,” a male voice answered. “Once you get that line open, let’s get her that labetalol. Start with 20 mg,” he barked his orders to another man who’d joined them in the elevator.

The nausea began to slowly disappear as did the lightheadedness, but not completely.
This is manageable. I can work with this,
she thought.

It wasn’t long before they were exiting the elevator. By then, fatigue had consumed her and she fell asleep, only to be woken by the doctor.