CORAL - Fallen (A Romance Trilogy, Book 2) (56 page)

“
Coral, Gladys is
coming to pick you up
,”
he
tells me softly.

“
Why?
”
I snap fighting back the tears that will
no
t go away.

I feel someone’
s
hand rest on my shoulder, I jerk it away, whipping my head round I see Joyce
lower her hands and stare at the floor
. I think I’
ve offended her
, but right now I don't care,
I just want to go back to work.

“
Coral
,”
Joyce soothes.

I whip my head round to her. “
Stop Coraling me both of you
!”
I shout.

“
Coral!
”
Tristan shouts.
“
That
’
s enough!
”

I whip my head
back
round to him and swipe at the tears, glaring angrily at him
. I’
m still mad at him about Susannah
.

“
Let me past
,”
I bawl – I
want
to run, far, far away.

“Coral,”
Tristan
pleads, reaching up to touch my arm.

“
Don
’
t touch me
,”
I jerk it away and take two steps back,
I
don't want anyone to touch me.

Tristan backs away his hands held high
looking bruised.

“Just leave me alone!” I shout just as
Gladys flies through the door. I feel my resolve falter as I stare back at her,
then completely disintegrate as she envelopes me in her arms.

“
I'm here
darling,”
she softly says as I break down
and let out loud, cathartic sobs.

All I can see is a picture of my Mom’
s face smiling down at me, she
’
s healthy, happy, her eyes filled with love for me,
and at the same time the voice keeps telling me
My Mother is
dead!

I want it to stop –
No!
– I can't
handle this!

“
Hush now darling
,”
I hear Gladys
say.
“
Hush now!
”
she squeezes me tighter as my crying slowly softens.
“
We need to get her home
,”
she says.

“
I can get Stuart
back here
,”
I hear Tristan
offer.

“
Good idea darling
,”
Gladys
says.

I'm aware Tristan leaves the room.

“
Have some Brandy
Coral, i
t’
ll help with the
shock
,”
Joyce softly says. I let go of Gladys feeling completely bewildered
and turn to Joyce. She is smiling tentatively at me.

“
Sorry Joyce,
”
I whisper.
I take
the glass of brandy, she knocks one back herself and hands another to Gladys. “
Drink
,”
she tells
me.

I bring the glass to my lips, open my mouth
and neck it back. Joyce takes the glass off me, and stuffs a load of tissues in
my hand. I blow my nose several times, but no matter how I try, I can't stop
the tears.

“
Is your
bag at your desk?”
Gladys asks.

I hear her speak, but I don't really
understand.

“
I
’
ll get it
,”
Joyce walks out of her office.

I feel waves of hollow black pain lance
through me. I hug Gladys again as another set of raging tears overtake me...

I DON’
T
REMEMBER
getting back to Gladys’
s, or into the
house, but I do remember Gladys making me a hot chocolate, sitting me down on
the sofa in the living room and helping me make sense of it all. We talked for
a long, long time, she helped me understand why I fe
lt
so bad when I heard the news...

“
She was your birth
mother sweetheart
.”
Gladys
softly says.

I frown deeply at her.
“
But she
’
s never meant anything to me before
,”
I croak.

“
Nonsense, of
course she did, it can't all have been bad. You must have some fond memories of
her?
”
sh
e questions.

I nod knowing full well I do.

“
It
’
s only natural to grieve for what we have
lost, what could have been
,”
Gladys says, stroking my back.

I listen to Gladys’
s
wise words and nod silently.

“
Will she have a
funeral?
”
I croak.

“
I'm not sure
darling, but I can find out for you if you like?”
I nod feeling totally confused about it all, if my Mother had kept
her shit together...

“
Do you think I
should go if there is one?
”
I ask.

“
I can
’
t really answer that one
for you darling. I think you have to look within and listen to your
heart,”
she says.

I stare numbly out the window.

“
Tristan
’
s been calling you
,”
she tells me
. “
He
’
s worried about you, he wants to come and
see you
.”
I sigh heavily I know
I should put his mind at rest that I'm ok, but
I feel
drained, exhausted.

“
Can you call him
for me? Tell him I'm ok. I feel exhausted, I just want to sleep
,”
I say.

“
Of course, I
’
ll let him know
,”
she says.

“
Thanks
,”
I say blankly and head out the room.
As I climb the stairs, I feel really weird, like I'm walking up the
stairs in someone else’
s body.

Opening the door to my old bedroom, I
collapse on top of the bed
, fully clothed and fall
instantly into a deep sleep...

SOMETHING WAKES ME
,
turning over I search the room, then I hear it again. Oh! It’
s my mobile
buzzing. I sit up and spot my
bag hanging on the bedpost, reaching forward I find my mobile. Punching in the
security code, I see I have a new message, it’
s from
Tristan.

*Hi baby. I
hope you’
re feeling a little better. I want you to know
how
sorry I am about your Mother, that must have come as a nasty shock. I really
want to see you baby, Gladys called me earlier said you were a little better
and had gone to lie down. I know you’
re in safe
hands, but please say I can come over, I want to see yo
u
for myself. I need to know you’
re ok.

Your loving husband (to be) Tristan x*

Oh Tristan! You’
re so sweet and caring!
I think back to what
happened before I got the news. I work it backwards, Stuart dropping me off at
work, Tristan bringing me breakfast, getting pulled into the office, being
really mad with Tristan, quitting my job! Then I remember reading through
Susannah’
s report.
Shit!
– I have to see Tristan, I have to tell him.

Launching myself up off the bed and
grabbing my bag, I'm about to run out the door when I hear laughter coming from
the kitchen. Gladys is with someone, I know it’
s not
Malcolm.

Walking to the door, I open it as quietly
as I can. The loudest person laughs heartily again. Hold on a second, I know
that voice –
It’
s Rob!

Throwing my bag over my shoulder, I dash
down the stairs, run the small length of the hallway and bang through the
kitchen door, making Rob and Gladys jump, and skid to a stop.

“
Rob!
”
I squeak in delight running into his open
arms. I hug him
tightly. “
What
are you doing here?
”
I ask.

“
Popped into work
to see you and that hunk of a man of yours told me what happened and that you
were here
,”
Rob says, smiling
broadly at me.

It’
s so good to
hear his voice. I have so much to tell him, I don
't
even know where to begin. Then I remember the hell he’
s
put me through the past two weeks, yet here he is laughing and joking with
Gladys in her kitchen.

I pull back from him and slap his bicep. “
What are you laughing about?
”
I shout.

I see Gladys’
s m
outh pop open.

“
Answer me Rob you
’
ve had me so worried
.”
I slap him again, just for good measure.

“
Alright, alright
keep your pants on
,”
he
chuckles.

“I think I’
ll leave
you two to it
,”
Gladys says, she
tenderly rubs my a
rm. “
You know
where your bed is if you want to stay, oh and Tristan called again
, said he’
s back at the house
,” she adds.

“
Thanks Mom
.”
I don't know why, but I really feel like
I can actually call her that now. Gladys makes a high pitched squeaky noise,
sniffs lou
dly, kisses us both goodbye and heads out the
kitchen.

Turning back to Rob I narrow my eyes at
him, cross my arms in a huff and wait for his answer. “
Well?
”
I snap, my foot tapping involuntarily.

“
I'm sorry about
your Mom
’ –“
Rob!
”
I screech.

“
Ok, ok...
Carlos found a lump.”
I gasp in shock. I'm
speechless.
My heart starts thumping wildly. “
We went to the hospital, got the biopsy done, then went to his
parents. We were told we had to wait a week for the results
.”
So maybe I did
see him at Montefiores?

“
And?
”
I whisper in shock.

“
Benign, he
’
s ok!
” Rob says
with relief.

I launch into his arms again.
“
No wonder you were so upset
,”
I squeak, fighting back my own tears.

“
Yeah well
, wait for the shocker.”
He says teasingly.

I pull back
and
look up at him with wide, worried eyes. “
What?
”
I
ask.

“
We are going to be
parents
,”
he says
matter-of-factly.

I frown deeply at him. “
But you don't want kids
,”
I say knowing he doesn
’
t
.

“
Yeah well
, when you think you might be on deaths door things change, and it
did for both of us. We talked all week, Carlos told me he’
s been thinking for a long time about having a family, but he didn
’
t say anything to me because he knew I didn
’
t want them, but seeing him so upset about
it all, and knowing he was goi
ng to be ok, I realised
I’
d do anything for him, including kids.
“I don’
t want to lose him, and now I know
how badly he wants a family and
well… I love him, so I
said yes as long as he deals with the nappies’
Rob
makes a funny face ‘
I can't do that. Carlos will be at
home as he always is, and I’
ll bring in the bread
.”
Rob shrugs, then smiles brightly at me.