Baby in a Million

“What brings you here unless it’s to get your old job back? Much as I like Elly, she’s never been able to fill your shoes. She doesn’t understand the business the way you do. Everyone around here still misses you like crazy.”

“Thanks, Greg. That’s nice to hear.”

“I’ll tell you what. If you’d reconsider working for me again, I’ll buy you a reclining chair, and we can put a cot in back room when you need to lie down.” He kept it up with that winning smile. It warmed her aching heart.

“Greg—you’re wonderful, and I treasure those words, but you know why I could never come back here to work.”

His expression sobered and he leaned forward in his swivel chair. “Cord doesn’t come in the store anymore if that’s what you’re worried about. If I want to talk to him, I have to do the calling. Even then, he’s not himself. The last three times I’ve asked him to go spring skiing with me, he’s turned me down. Frankly, I’m worried about him.”

The fact that Cord had called her from the hospital made what Greg said that much more alarming.

Evidently their impending divorce had caused a breach in Greg’s relationship with Cord, something Ashley wouldn’t have imagined happening. They’d been friends for years and loved each other like brothers. The two couples had been on dozens of weekend vacations together in the mountains.

If he’d closed up on Greg, then she had to assume Cord’s problems had to do with Sheila. When the divorce was final, Ashley didn’t suppose he could contemplate marrying his father’s second wife without alienating a lot of people, but it would be Greg’s opinion that mattered most.

Since Greg had done everything in his power to help them fight for their marriage, she could only assume Cord was staying away from his closest friend to avoid talking about the past or being made to feel guilty.

She took a shuddering breath. “Did you by any chance give him my phone number?”

Greg’s eyes narrowed. “Did he phone you?”

“Yes. From City Creek Hospital. Last night.”

“Thank God!”

Ashley was taken back by such heartfelt emotion. “Then you told him where he could reach me?” she asked incredulously.

“Yesterday morning,” he said with a nod. “I had to, Ashley. Cord is in serious trouble.”

A spurt of adrenaline made her feel dizzy. “He said it wasn’t fatal.”

“He was lying!” he fired back. “I’m convinced you’re his only lifeline. Have you seen him?”

“No,” she said on a ragged breath. “I’m afraid our conversation degenerated rather quickly. He insisted on seeing me in person. I told him no and he hung up.” Her voice trailed.

She heard an unintelligible epithet come out of him. He sounded so much like Cord just then, it stunned her.

“Did you tell him I’m pregnant?”

“No. He has no idea he’s about to become a father, nor does he know where you live, or how you’re earning a living. Since you refuse to go to him, I guess that’s it.”

For the first time since she’d known Greg, he was making her feel guilty. “Do you know what’s wrong with him?”

He grimaced and it aged his appearance. “I have a gut feeling, but it’s not my place to say.” His amber eyes stared directly into hers. “You really have cut him completely out of your life, haven’t you?”

“Greg—” she defended, “if Bonnie had ever done to you what Cord and Sheila—”

“Ashley—” he broke in not unkindly, “I didn’t say that to hurt you. I suppose I was hoping time might have softened the wounds, but apparently I was wrong. I love you and Cord, and can see that both of you are in horrendous pain. It’s hard to sit back and do nothing, but that’s exactly what I’ve done all this time up until yesterday when I went to see him. That’s when I felt I had to intervene.”

Ashley started to feel physically ill and couldn’t talk for a minute.

“I’m sorry you’ve lost confidence in me, Ashley, but I won’t apologize for wanting to help save him. One thing I can promise you, he’ll never try phoning you again. Seeing how bitter you still are, it took more courage on his part than I would have had to reach out to you one last time. To be completely honest, I’m shocked he actually had the fortitude to make contact.”

He was sounding an awfully lot like Cord.

“Am I such a horrible person?” she finally asked in a dull voice, dying a thousands deaths inside.

“You know better than to ask a question like that. I’m not judging you, Ashley. I’m not in your shoes and couldn’t possibly presume to feel what you’re feeling. All I know is, two wonderful people who seemed so perfect for each other are now living drastically altered lives and I’m helpless to do anything about it.”

Ashley couldn’t take any more. “Greg—I didn’t mean to place you in this terrible position. I don’t blame you for what you’ve done.” Her voice trembled. “In fact I love you for caring so much. I don’t want to be a bitter woman. There’s nothing uglier or more self-destructive.” She lifted her head and eyed him levelly. “D-do you know his room number at the hospital?”

“He’s not in there now.”

“What do you mean?”

“When you didn’t come, he checked himself out and went home.”

“What?” With difficulty, she got up from the chair.

“But that doesn’t make sense.”

“I guess it does to him.”

She bit her lip. “I—I’ll phone him as soon as I get home.”

A somber expression darkened his features as he rose to his feet and walked her to the door. “Please, Ashley,” he whispered against her forehead where he gave her a kiss. “Don’t do anything unless you mean it.”

Don’t do anything unless you mean it?

Those words went ‘round and ’round in her head all the way back to the apartment.

As soon as she’d put away groceries and prepared Mrs. Bromwell’s lunch, she left her propped up with pillows listening to the radio, then shut the door and reached for the phone. But fear of becoming vulnerable again prevented her from actually punching in the numbers.

Another hour went by while she debated what to do, all the while growing more and more frantic. Finally, when she couldn’t stand it any longer, she picked up the receiver and phoned Cord’s extension at the office. Most of the time Sheila answered it for him.

Prepared to hear the satisfied sound in her husky voice, Ashley was taken aback when a terse, “Yes—” came over the wire to meet her ear. He had to be in a vile mood.

“Cord?”

For once the deafening quiet coming from his end told her she’d caught him off guard.

“Ashley? Dear God—it is you.”

The raw emotion in his voice revealed that she still had the power to affect him in some small degree. Summoning her courage she said, “I went to see Greg today. He said you’d left the hospital. Why?”

“Does it matter?” he asked grimly. “Last night you said you didn’t want to hear anything I had to say.”

She was afraid it would be like this. “Cord—do you want me to go on, or shall we just hang up?”