His Distraction (Assured Distraction Book 2) (25 page)

“It’s fine, Doctor. What did you want to know?”

“Were you aware you are pregnant which could be some of the reason for your continued bout of vomiting.” He knew quickly from the reaction on her face that she had no idea. Her mind started churning like a whirlwind. There was no way she could be pregnant.

“Are you sure those are my tests, Doctor? There is no way I could be pregnant.”

“I assume by your age and the medical history you gave, that you haven’t had a hysterectomy? So, if you’ve had unprotected sex in the past several months, then there is a possibility of your being pregnant. And, Miss O’Connor, according to your tests, you are definitely pregnant. I felt like you didn’t know which is why I asked Ryan to step out. We can call him back in now if you’d like, and you don’t have any other questions for me?” The doctor turned to the door.

“Wait. I don’t want you to tell him yet. I want to - later - when it’s just the two of us. Make something up, please?” The doctor didn’t want to spoil her desire to surprise Ryan, so he agreed, thinking she wanted the joy of giving the daddy the good news.

“Yes, well, the choice is yours. You need to make an appointment with an OB quickly, though, so they can get started on prenatal care. Vitamins at this point are important for development, and, as I am sure you are aware, no alcoholic beverages.”

If Peri felt better, she would be in a full-blown panic attack. Pregnant?
There was no way!
Her L.A. doctor told her she could not get pregnant because of a blockage in both fallopian tubes. She would need surgery if she ever wanted to have kids. She assured Ryan there was no way she could get pregnant. With all of the problems Krissy was causing, she did not want to add to Ryan’s anxiety.

“Oh. My. God.” She said out loud and then covered her mouth. She couldn’t stop the dry heaves that followed her attempt to talk. The doctor grabbed the blue basin and held it up to her mouth. Thankfully, her vomiting seemed to have stopped, but she hurt all over from doing so all night.

“Miss O’Connor, is there another problem we need to discuss?” The glare she gave him made him wonder if something else might be going on. “Do I want me to get Mr. Powell?”

“Oh, hell no. You cannot tell him. His ex is pregnant right now. He could have two kids coming three months apart.” The doctor heard all kinds of sordid stories working in the ER, but it was obvious that they never ceased to amaze him.

He picked up Peri’s paperwork and nodded his head to her then opened the door inviting Ryan back inside the room.

“Are you alright, Babe? Did you get sick again? It’s ok; I’m sure the doctor has seen it before.” Ryan completely misread her distress.

Dr. Rothman briefly studied Peri, and said, “Yes, she did try, but she’s cleared her system and is suffering from dry heaves now. I’m going to give you an antibiotic to clear up the bacteria. I will write you a script, too, Ryan. As soon as her IV finishes, you can take her home. She’ll be fine. Lots of liquids for the next several days, and take it easy around the house until you are feeling better. It will take a couple of days to leave your system. Stick to the B.R.A.T. diet, and plan to take a few days off work to rest.”

“Can you tell me now what’s wrong with her?” He stared between the Doctor and Peri.

“With all the new laws about confidentiality, we are required to question patients alone unless they give consent for someone else to be present. I was asking Peri if it was alright to discuss the test results with you in the room. I should have confirmed your relationship before giving any information.” The doctor spouted off the lie like it was nothing but he never looked Ryan in the eyes, preferring to talk to the paperwork instead. “Then she got sick again, and I was trying to help her with that. She’ll be fine, though, and the IV won’t take much longer.” He shook both of their hands and left the room.

“Was that guy hitting on you, because that sounds like a line of bullshit to me? He wouldn’t meet my gaze when he was talking.”

“No, he was not hitting on me. I’m sure from the looks of me right now that was the furthest thing from his mind.” Peri smirked trying to make light of the situation so Ryan wouldn’t ask any more questions. She didn’t want to lie to him, and technically, she hadn’t yet. It was the “yet” part that had her worried, which only made her want to throw up again.

“I’m ready to go home, Ryan.” She reached for him.

He clutched her hand and held it to his face. “I know, but we need to let them pump you up with the good stuff so you can start to feel better.” He glanced at the IV. “It’s just about done so that it won’t be long now. Try to get some rest?”

The nurse came in a while later and removed it all, gave them instructions on the prescriptions, and sent them on their way.

Ryan drove home as slowly as he’d driven from the ER in the early morning hours, trying to avoid anything that shook the car and caused Peri discomfort. He carried her inside and placed her on the couch all while she complained that she could walk now, but he refused to hear any of it.

“Babe, I
need
to take care of you. Please let me do this. I’m going to get these scripts filled. Do you think you can stay here alone while I pick it up? I hate leaving you, but I need to get this done. You know what? Never mind, I’ll call Hayden, and ask him to get it for us.”

“No, no. You can go. I’ll be fine. I’m sure he had a show last night, and he’s probably still asleep. You only have to go two blocks away. I’m sure I can make it thirty minutes without you.” She wanted him to leave needing time to think about how this was going to play out. The timing sucked. The band was going back out on tour as soon as the album is released. How could she do her exhausting job with a huge belly? Would people even take her seriously? And then there was the whole ordeal with Krissy, who would probably accuse her of getting pregnant to steal the spotlight from her baby.

Peri needed to call her mom. Her mom and dad were wonderful and would be thrilled about having another grandchild, even if the dad may not be in the picture. They had always encouraged Peri to make her own choices and be her own person. Now, she had a little one to consider. She might have to move back to California, hating the idea of leaving Austin. Her parents would help her all they could. She could get another job and a small apartment for her and the baby.

What if Ryan didn’t want her to keep it? Would she even consider aborting a baby? She had never thought about it before. She had never had a scare like this with Sawyer. Only this wasn’t a scare; it was the real deal.

A little one would change her life, but she knew she could never abort a baby. She felt like this was God’s little gift to them. How could she even think about it? She would never give up something they made together out of love. And she thought Ryan would make a wonderful dad. Maybe he would be happy. But what if he’s not?

She couldn’t fathom how Ryan was going to react to this news. He had been angry when he’d found out about Krissy, but their circumstances were completely different.
Weren’t they?
He suspected that Krissy had deliberately gotten pregnant to trap him. Peri had factual evidence from her doctor in L.A. stating she wouldn’t be able to conceive unless she had a procedure to unblock her tubes. She would never use a child to trap a man into being with her. If he did not want to stick around, she would do it on her own, especially if she moved back close to her parents. All of this uncertainty made her stomach roll and here came nausea again. She was lucky she still had her blue bin from the ER, but she didn’t want Ryan to know she was back at it, so she forced herself up and made it to the bathroom and got cleaned up as much as she could before he returned.

Ryan got back in no time and brought all kinds of juice and soups for her. “Sunshine, how are you feeling? I didn’t know what kind of soup you might like, but my mom always gave us chicken noodle when we were sick. Are you hungry?”

She smiled at him when he came around the corner into the den. The rose petals still scattered all around reminded her that they had made love several times after all of his hard work just to show her how much he cared for her. Deep down, she knew she should tell him right now, but she wasn’t ready to spoil what they had.

The next few weeks were difficult for Peri. The food poisoning passed but the morning sickness, that lasted all day, did not. She had to spend more time covering the circles under her eyes, and her curves were losing some of their roundness. Another problem was her breasts were getting larger, and they were tender all of the time now. She wondered how long it would be before Ryan commented on their size.

Her only saving grace was his distraction: Ryan spent time working with Hayden in the studio which kept him preoccupied and the cousins were getting to know one another. The kid’s voice and music he wrote amazed Ryan. He believed even if Hayden did not make it as a performer, he could sell his music and do well in the industry as a songwriter. Ryan planned to talk to the rest of Assured Distraction about possibly recording a couple of Hayden’s songs for future use and maybe trying them out on the next tour. He was even thinking they might consider taking Hayden along for some backup vocals on the road, and they could record a collaboration on a few songs. Whatever the band agreed to, he wanted to try to help Hayden to succeed.

Krissy walked in the studio to meet with him and had to stop Ryan before he could get past her. “Ryan, we need to find time to talk, you know. This baby will be here before we know it, and I want an idea of exactly what I can expect out of you.”

“Like what, Krissy? I’ve already told you that I would be there for the baby. All you need to do is tell me what you need.”

“You’re needed every day, Ryan. I’m tired after working all day, and yet you aren’t there to do anything for me when I get home. It’s as though I’m doing this all alone.” She knew which buttons to push to make him feel guilty.

He turned and stared her in the eyes. Honestly, he hadn’t paid any attention to her since she told him about this baby unless she caused a scene. Yes, he went to the appointments and at the next one the doctor wanted to do a sonogram, and they could learn the sex if they wanted. The baby bump now visible made him feel guilty. An absent father was not the kind of dad he wanted to be. If the baby were his, he would be present for his child’s life in every way. Maybe he needed to start acting like it now.

“I know you’re right about this, Krissy. What if I came to the apartment after work once a week and either brought dinner or cooked?” He knew he needed to man-up to his responsibilities, so he decided to start with this one concession for now.

He could tell by her reaction that she was shocked. Never did she dream he would consider spending time with her, much less preparing and sharing a meal with her again.

“I’m sure Hayden and Peri would be happy to eat a nice meal together once a week,” he added.

Wow, her euphoria was short-lived. She wanted Ryan thinking about her and the baby, not simply visiting for the sake of entertaining her or feeding her.

“Why would you do that to me, Ryan?”

“Do what? You want me to be there and help you out. I’m offering to spend an evening, once a week, with you and…” he pointed to her expanding bump. “That’s what I’m trying to do. I can do stuff around the apartment then, too.”

“Peri and Hayden will interfere with our time. And what kind of “stuff” do you think I need you to do? Hayden already does everything.”

“I’m sure he does. But you’ll need to get some furniture for it, I’m assuming. I can put it together. You’ll need to move furniture to get its bed in there with you if you plan on staying there. Don’t they have other items they need?”

“Wait. You expect me to stay in that apartment with Hayden after the baby comes? Have you lost your damn mind? I want my own place for the baby and me, not shared space with some kid who comes and goes at all hours of the night!” Her voice was rising in volume and pitch with each statement.

“Calm down, Krissy. When the time comes, we’ll look at one of you moving. Hayden probably won’t want to live with you either.” Ryan thought about how he wouldn’t want to be eighteen and living with a woman and her new baby, and he’s pretty sure his young cousin wouldn’t either. And when he factored in how needy she always was, he knew after the baby, it would only get worse.

“So, you are already planning for me to do this alone, aren’t you? Who’s going to help me with the baby once it’s here? My mother can’t come down and stay, so who’s it going to be? Unless you are planning to hire a full-time nanny for me, I suggest you consider moving back in when Hayden moves out.”

“Yeah, that’s not going to happen, Krissy. I may hire a nanny until you can go back to work and the baby can go to daycare. And I’ll pay to support the baby, too.”

“You are such a piece of shit, Ryan. This baby is half yours you know, and you want me to work and raise our child by myself?”

“No, we will have joint custody. After the doctor thinks it’s safe, I’ll expect to have the baby some of each week. As far as that goes, I’ll take the baby when it’s born and raise it myself. What
is
never going to happen, Krissy is us living together, so you need to understand that.”

“I will not give up my baby to you, or anyone else, so you and Peri, or whoever your flavor-of-the-month is, will not be raising my child. EVER!” Krissy was crying and yelling. “Get the fuck out of my sight! You make me sick, Ryan!”

Ryan decided walking away was a good idea right then. He was furious at her comment about Peri being a ‘flavor’. He tried to offer a solution to the situation, but her expectations were obviously unrealistic.
When had she become so high maintenance?
He supposed he did sound like a prick about all this, but he still was not convinced the baby was his. Until the test told him for a fact the baby belonged to him, he truly did not want to get deeply involved with her or it. If the baby were his, he would happily raise it without her, but a baby needed its mother. He would bide his time until the facts were laid out on the table for all to see.

After his unpleasant confrontation with Krissy, Ryan lost himself in work with Hayden all afternoon and late into the evening. It became their routine over the past couple of weeks since Hayden sometimes played until late into the night and he worked as Cash’s assistant on the days he didn’t have a set lined up in a bar.

Ryan called Peri to check on how her day was going. She’d been so busy the last few weeks with work herself; she would sometimes doze off when she came home. She hadn’t regained all of her strength after the food poisoning incident, so she was often tired late in the day. Sometimes he would come home and find her still sleeping and wouldn’t want to wake her, so he would crawl in beside her and simply pull her close and enjoy her sweet fragrance and the feel of her soft body against his.

He would never get tired of being next to her in their bed. She was always so receptive when he pulled her close. Sometimes she would mumble his name in her sleep. He loved that she was always thinking of him, even unconsciously. He often wondered how he had been so lucky to find a girl like her. She stuck with him even with all the shit he had going on with Krissy. She put up with his awful hours and never complained. She always did little things like send him short texts during the day to just see how things were going. Their decision to get together was the best thing that had happened to him in a long time. He hoped she felt the same way.

She answered drawing him out of his daydream of her. “Hello.”

“Hey, Sunshine.”

“Hey, yourself, Mr. Rockstar.” Peri snickered at her comeback since she knew he disliked the title.

“You just wait, I’ll be rock staring on that pretty little ass of yours!” he teased.

“Bring it on, guitar man.” Their easy banter kept them both smiling.

“Laters, baby,” Ryan whispered heatedly, knowing she loved the little quote from Fifty Shades, even if he thought it sounded like something a douchebag would say.

“Hmmm, I like it. Is that a hint of what you have planned for the evening, Sir?”

“We aim to please, Miss O’Connor” He hadn’t seen the movie or read the books, but he had heard enough quotes Peri and Chandler like to use, so he was aware of a few from the novel.

“So, what’s going on, Ryan?”

“I was wondering if you wanted to join Hayden and me at Bender after work. I was thinking about inviting the whole damn group. We haven’t seen everyone since we got out of the studio, and that was all work.”

“Yeah, that sounds great. I haven’t seen Chan in a while now. You going to call them all?”

“Yeah, I’ll take care of it. See you shortly.”

Ryan fist-bumped each band member as he slid into their favorite booth by the pool tables. They were always great people to hang with, even if they worked together. Music never felt like work to them. It was more like sharing their greatest passion with four of their closest friends. Though it was nice to get a break from them after the tour, it didn’t take long to start missing them either. They were the kind of family members he knew he could always count on when he needed them just like his real family. He knew he could call any of them in a crisis. The band was who he called first when he wanted to hang out or simply needed someone to listen, and he knew they all felt the same connection.

Ryan kissed Chandler on the cheek. “Peri is so glad to meet up with you tonight. Said it had been too damn long. She was going to stop off at the office to finish up a couple of things and then come straight here.”

“Yes, it has been too long. How have you both been? You know, she works too hard when we’re at home. No, strike that, she always works too hard. The road is just always a lot worse.” Chandler smiled at him. Ryan knew Peri took her job seriously. She always did, but since she had earned the spot as tour manager her hours were never her own, even when they weren’t on the road.

“I guess KeeMac told you we were both sick with some food poisoning shit a few weeks back? She had to go to the fucking ER with it.”

Jabbing KeeMac with her elbow, “No, he didn’t. Keeton, why didn’t you tell me they’d been sick?”

KeeMac shrugged. “I don’t know. Ryan said she was fine the next day, so I didn’t think a lot about it.”

“Well, I hope she’s okay now? I wish y’all would have called me. I could have come over and stayed with her if you had to leave or something. I’m good at entertaining.”

“They gave her an IV bag of fluids in the ER to rehydrate her and some meds for her nausea, and then gave us both antibiotics. She’s better now, but sometimes she still seems so tired. I’ve been thinking maybe she needs to see her doctor now to make sure she’s over it, and it didn’t do any damage or anything.” The others could tell he was worried about Peri not recovering from the illness as completely as he had.

Peri came through the bar and spotted the group gathered in their usual location. “Hey, everyone,” she greeted the group. “Why do y’all always sit back here where it’s so hot?” While she was still smiling, Ryan knew her tone was off, and Chandler caught it, too.

“We like to be close to the pool tables so we can fuck with each other’s game and make fun of everybody’s shit shots. That’s half the pleasure in coming here.” KeeMac said when she leaned in to let him kiss her cheek.

Hayden jumped up. “Not mine, I’ve been mastering this bitch while y’all were off banging hot chicks in Europe. I spent hours here each day after work if I could.” Ryan knew immediately why, and that gnawing feeling of guilt returned for pawning Krissy off on him.

Carter chimed in, “Dude, any fucking thing would have been better than getting bitched at by your new roommate.” The table seemed to agree with him.