This is going to be fun, thought Bennett as he put her phone away and sat down to wait for the arrival of the now-infamous Greer.
Taylor could hear someone talking, but they sounded very far away. She opened her eyes and tried to sit up, but every muscle and bone in her body ached. The room was really dark. In the background, Taylor could hear the faint sounds of a television playing. She supposed that was the person she heard talking. With a start, she realized she was in a hospital bed, but her brain wasn't working quite right. She kept having images of a car crash and an ambulance ride, and then images of being in the ER floated through her mind. She supposed she was now in a room. But she had no idea what hospital she was in or if anyone was with her.
Then suddenly, in the dark, a voice that she instantly recognized said, "Hey, Sleepy Head. It's good to see you awake. You have been out pretty much since I got here."
"Bennett? Is that you?"
At that moment, Bennett moved closer to the bed, ran his hand along her face, and pushed her hair out of her eyes. She had an ugly bruise forming along the top of her left temple. It hurt Bennett to see it.
"You gave me quite a scare. When they called to say you had been in an accident, my heart stopped."
"Yeah, I still can't believe I am alive."
Smiling down at her, he said, "Well, you are. Every time the nurse checks your vitals, you ask her if you are alive. You've done it so many times, she now just says, "You lived, Mrs. Carrington. Don't worry. You are still alive."
Taylor tried to laugh, but it hurt too much. “That is funny. It wasn't so funny when I saw that car flying at me. I really did think I was going to die. I wondered if that was what they thought just before they were hit." There was no need to say who the "they” was. Bennett instantly knew she was talking about her parents and Tatum.
"Well, I don't know about that, but I do know I am awfully glad you didn't die for a million reasons, not the least of which is I would never get to know who the daddy is of the baby you are carrying." Mimicking a Dezi Arnaz voice, he said, "Lucy, you got some splainin' to do."
"What?" Taylor looked at him so confused, and then she closed her eyes and said, "I thought that was just a dream. Something I was remembering from before. But I had an ultrasound, didn't I? I am pregnant, aren't I? I thought I was flashing back to another time." Putting her hands on her stomach, she looked at Bennett and asked, "Is it true? I am going to have a baby?”
Bennett nodded, smiling down at her with tears in his eyes. He said, "Yes, sweet girl. You are."
Instantly, a look of pure adulterated fear crossed her face, "How many weeks am I? What if…" If she had been more alert, she would not have had to ask. She would have known the answer to that question immediately. However, her mind was a little fuzzy.
She let the question hang in the air, but Bennett did not need her to finish it to know what she would say. He quickly said, "Nothing is going to happen. You are going to get your storybook ending this time. I promise. You are fifteen weeks, and the doctor said the baby's heartbeat was strong and healthy."
Taylor didn't say anything for a moment. Then, with tears of joy running down her face, she said, "Crazy, huh? All those years of trying, tests, and doctors, and nothing. And I go crazy one night, and bam, I am pregnant."
"Well, it is not that far-fetched. The doctors never could give us definitive reasons why you had trouble carrying. My question is, how did you not know? Fifteen weeks is a long time. You must have gotten pregnant back in March. Right?"
"Oh, yeah. It was the night I got so mad at you on the phone. I was determined to show you. I guess I did that in spades, huh? I am not sorry about the baby, but I am sorry about cheating."
"No, I am sorry I ever put any of us into this position. This would have never happened if I had handled things better on the front end. Well, I now know what bad choices you made. So, what's the story? Do I need to beat somebody up here or what?"
"No, you definitely don't need to beat anyone up. We are working it out, but at the moment, it is complicated."
"Isn't it always with us?”
Again, Taylor almost laughed, but the pain in her head stopped her.
"So, are you in love with this Greer guy or what?" asked Bennett.
"How did you know his name? Yes, I am. And I am pretty sure he is in love with me. We just haven't gotten around to saying it yet, but we will. Oh my gosh! What time is it?"
"It's almost 7:30."
"Oh no! I was supposed to pick Greer up at the airport at 6:00. He will be frantic. Could you hand me my phone? I need to call him and tell him where I am."
"No need. I sort of already did. He called a little bit ago. I answered your phone, and we talked."
"Oh no. Is he on his way? Is he mad?"
"Well, he wasn't happy that I had your phone. I can tell you that much. Also, he called me a Ken doll. What did that mean? I didn't know if I was supposed to be offended or flattered."
Holding a hand to her head, Taylor rolled her eyes and gave a short laugh as she said, "Neither, and please don't make me laugh. So, he is on his way here now?"
Bennett nodded, "Yes, and you should know that I figured he had to be your baby daddy since I knew I wasn't. Why else would he be calling demanding to talk to you like a jealous boyfriend? And uh…"
