19. Lexie

Chapter 19

Lexie

I couldn't seem to stop shaking.

"I know it's hard, Lex, but you should call the police. Make sure there's a record of this."

"I don't want to?—"

"I know," he said softly, cupping my face in his hands. "But you need a restraining order now that he knows where you work."

I swallowed hard. Oliver was right. I needed to keep myself safe.

I pulled out my phone and called 911, letting them know I'd been harassed and giving them the address of the bar.

Oliver decided to shut down the bar for the night, sending everyone home, and not a soul complained. Krista gave me a quick hug as she left, even Raoul giving me a sympathetic look and a little wave.

"Everything's going to be all right," Oliver repeated, rubbing my back in comforting circles, and I felt glad that he was with me, glad that he protected me .

Reese Cunningham, the sheriff's senior lieutenant, was the first to arrive on the scene.

"My ex has been harassing me," I said quietly. "And he knows where I work now. I would like to get a restraining order."

Lt. Cunningham asked me about a million questions, but in the end, it all boiled down to Dick's full name, last known address, and full physical description.

He then spoke to Oliver for a long moment while I went inside, drinking some soda to try and settle my stomach. It didn't work very well. I felt nauseous, my nerves on edge from the incident with Dick.

"I'm going to keep you safe from him," Oliver promised me after we finished up with Lt. Cunningham and got into his truck. "He's not going to find out where you live."

"I appreciate all your help, Oliver, but you don't have to do all of this?—"

"Of course I do."

He dropped me off at the cabin and watched me go inside, staying in the yard for a long time before pulling out, presumably to pick up Trent.

I didn't feel great being there alone, but I knew he'd be back shortly. I went to the couch to lie down, my head pounding, my stomach rolling.

God, how had he found me?

Dick had walked right up to me, and all I could do was stare, shaking.

"What the hell do you think you're doing, dressed like a whore?" he demanded to know, and I realized right away that he was drunk.

Dick didn't drink much, but when he did, he was a totally different person .

"You're coming home," he said brusquely, and grabbed my hand. That's when I screamed.

Oliver had come out of the office like my knight in shining armor. Thank God he'd been there, because Dick may have tried to pull me out of the bar and into his car. God only knows what would have happened then.

I already knew that Dick wasn't the guy I'd originally thought he was. But I'd never thought he was dangerous. However, after his appearance at the bar and seeing the look in his eyes, I was beginning to think differently.

I took in deep breaths, trying not to throw up, but I ended up hugging the toilet anyway.

I woke up the next morning overwhelmed by nausea. I had a shift at the grocery store and I knew there was no way I was going to make it. After another bout of hugging the porcelain, I called Agnes. She picked up on the first ring.

"I think I ate something that didn't agree with me," I said slowly, trying not to throw up again.

"Oh no," she gasped. "Well, you stay at home and get better, you hear me? I'll ask Oliver to check on you."

"You don't have to do that."

"He won't mind one bit. I'll have him bring you some of my chicken noodle soup. It's got ginger in it. Good for the stomach."

I smiled, thinking she was making too much of a fuss but still grateful, nonetheless. "Thank you, Agnes."

"You're welcome, honey."

I threw up again as soon as I hung up. I was dry heaving at the end of it and I felt awful. Yet somehow I managed to make my way into the kitchen to make some dry toast. Oliver showed up a half hour later and it was all I could do to answer the door.

"What the hell did you eat so I can stay away from it?" Oliver asked, and I chuckled.

Truth be told, I didn't remember eating much other than a couple of granola bars yesterday, and those had never given me stomach trouble before. Maybe I picked up a virus working at the store or at the bar. Being around people would always end up making you sick, my mom used to say.

"I'm not sure."

"My grandmother sent over her chicken noodle soup. It's got ginger?—"

"Good for the stomach," I finished, chuckling. "Thanks. I'll have to put it in the fridge for now. I'll try to eat a little later."

He put it away for me, concern on his face when he walked back into the living room.

"Are you sure you're all right? Do you think this is just from the stress?"

"It might be," I admitted. My stomach was often off when something very stressful happened, so it made sense.

"I'll be watching out for you," he promised, kissing my temple. "I don't want you to worry about anything."

"I'll try not to," I murmured.

After Oliver left, I remembered that I had lunch plans with Gillian. I called her.

"Hello?"

"Gilly, I'm sorry. I'm going to have to postpone lunch," I said hoarsely.

"Oh, no, you sound like hell. Are you sick?"

"Something is off with my stomach," I admitted. "It's been a rough night."

"I'm coming over right now."

"Gillian, you don't have to—" I said weakly, but she had already hung up.

I laid on the couch for another half an hour before she showed up. When I heard her tap on the door, I called out weakly for her to come in.

She hurried inside, holding a bag full of saltine crackers and Gatorade. I smiled at her gratefully.

"Thank you for coming over to take care of me."

"Of course. What are sisters for?" She paused. "Besides, I brought you something that might be useful."

She took a box out of the bag, and I blinked at her.

"A pregnancy test?"

Gillian shrugged. "You never know. I keep a few on hand just to be sure. It could be what's causing this sudden onset of nausea."

"I'm not pregnant," I muttered, but I started doing the math, and realized I couldn't remember the date of my last period. Dick and I hadn't been having sex at the end, given all the stress of planning the wedding, so if I was pregnant, it was Oliver's.

The first thing that happened after that thought crossed my mind, was that I felt elation. I immediately imagined a cute little version of the both of us tugging at my hand and asking to be picked up.

And then reality crashed in on me. I was running from my ex who had tracked me down to Wagontown and threatened me. Oliver and I had a crazy, messed up thing going on. His father hated me. My parents didn't support me.

I was working at a bar and a grocery store and borrowing my house from the man I might be pregnant with. It was all too much, and I started to feel lightheaded.

My breath started to come hard and fast. Gillian sat down next to me, putting her arm around my shoulders .

"It's going to be okay," she tried to comfort me, but I still couldn't seem to catch my breath.

"I can't be pregnant, Gilly."

"Maybe you're not!" she chirped, trying to stay positive for me. "I just thought we should know, one way or the other."

I took in a shaky breath and grabbed the test from her, going into the bathroom to take it.

"It's not doing anything," I complained as I came out, holding the test stick in my hand.

"You have to give it five minutes, Lex. It's not instant," Gillian explained, and I sighed.

I'd honestly never taken one before. I'd always been so careful about keeping up with my cycle so that I wouldn't be caught off guard.

I had known that a possible pregnancy would destroy my dreams of escaping my hometown and bring down the censure of my parents and Oliver's dad. I hadn't even let Oliver kiss me during the times when I might be able to get pregnant when we were sleeping together as kids.

I sat the test down on the coffee table and slumped onto the couch, the next five minutes feeling like three hours. Finally, Gillian picked up the test, her eyes widening.

"Uh..."

"What does ‘uh' mean, Gillian?" I demanded to know.

"It's got two lines."

I huffed out a frustrated breath. "And what does that mean?"

She put the test down and looked at me. "It means you're pregnant."

"No," I breathed, sinking farther into the couch as all the oxygen seemed to leave the room. "I can't be pregnant. "

"But you are," she said gently. "And we have to talk about what you're going to do."

"I can't talk," I gasped. "I can't even breathe."

Gillian hugged me tightly, rubbing her hands up and down my bare arms. "I need you to calm down, sissy. Breathe in and out, slowly."

It took me a minute, but after a few deep breaths, I started to calm down.

"Ok, so, you're pregnant," Gillian said when we pulled away from each other.

I groaned. "Yes, I'm pregnant."

"And I assume it's Oliver's?"

"Of course it's Oliver's," I snapped. Gillian winced and once again guilt washed over me. I seemed to be getting hit with a tidal wave of it ever since I returned to Wagontown. This wasn't her fault. She was only trying to help, and I needed to calm down. "I'm sorry, honey. It's just... a lot to deal with."

"Of course it is."

"Especially now that Dick showed up."

"Wait. Your asshole ex is in town? When did this happen?" She frowned at me.

"Last night. I just haven't had the chance to tell you. He came looking for me at the bar."

"Jesus," Gillian muttered. "You're really having a rough go of it, aren't you?"

"I am," I whined, leaning against her. "And I feel like if I so much as smell food I'll throw up, but I am hungry."

"Maybe we should try something simple? Like soup?"

"Oliver's grandmother sent over some chicken ginger soup. I could try that."

Gillian nodded, going to the kitchen to heat it up for me .

I took a couple of tentative sips and hunger gnawed at my belly. I started to eat a little faster, noticing my stomach was seeming to settle as I ate.

"They were right about this ginger," I murmured. "Good for the stomach."

Gillian just looked at me, out of the loop, setting off a hysterical laugh. I had no idea what I was going to do about this baby, about Oliver, about Dick, about any of it. The laughter was better than tears. I knew if I started crying there was a good chance I might never stop.

"I'm a little worried about you, sis," she said hesitantly.

I waved my hand dismissively. "Don't be worried. I'll figure it out. I always do."

"You don't have to do this alone." She put her hand over mine, and tears sprang to the backs of my eyes. I fought hard, but I couldn't keep them from falling.

"Thank you, Gilly. For everything."

"Don't say that like you're about to disappear," she said, fear evident in her voice. "You can't just take off."

"I don't know what else to do," I admitted. "I don't really have the funds to start over, but I can't stay here. I'll start to show, and then Oliver will know."

"Shouldn't he know?" she asked quietly. "Oliver has the right to know you're pregnant with his baby."

"I can't tell him. He'll never let me leave Wagontown."

She frowned. "He can't stop you."

"He'd never try to stop me, but he'd work hard at convincing me to stay. He'll tell me the baby is better off having two parents, that they would be more mentally and emotionally stable growing up in a solid home. He'd be right on both accounts, of course, and I'd be stuck here for the next eighteen years. "

"Whoa, whoa, slow down. You haven't even thought about whether or not you're going to keep the baby."

I rubbed my stomach, thinking about it. I couldn't imagine not having this baby, now that I knew it existed. As complicated as things were, Oliver and I had been very much in love at one point, and this was proof of that love.

I knew that I would love this baby. So, so much.

But that didn't mean I wanted to get back together with Oliver.

Or did I?

Could this be the string that finally pulled us together? Could I ever trust him to trust me again?

I didn't know. So for now, I had to keep it a secret.

I took Gillian's hands in mine. "I'm going to keep the baby."

She squealed, hurting my ears. "I'm going to be an auntie!"

I laughed. "Yes, you are. But you can't tell anyone. Not yet."

"You're not going to tell Oliver?"

"I can't. Not yet anyway. I need to tell him in my own time," I explained, hoping she would understand.

"Okay. But I get to come with you to the doctor, right?"

"Of course you do." I smiled at her. "You're all I have right now, Gilly."

She hugged me tightly. It was in that moment that I realized how proud and happy I was to have her back in my life, after all those years of resentment. She hadn't deserved any of it.

She was the only person in town I could trust with my secret.

How long it would stay a secret, however, I had no idea.