Two to Tangle

Chapter 8

A brilliant beam of sunlight spilled through the small gap left in her bedroom curtains, illuminating the room more than usual at five a.m. It was too bright, way too bright. That was her first clue that something wasn't quite right. Like clockwork, her alarm buzzed every morning at five a.m. Candace would slam her hand down on the snooze button at least twice before she found the will to roll out of bed.

Thinking of Logan was usually enough to light a fire under her. Heartbroken from their breakup, trying not to think about him delayed her morning routines even further. Containing her grief was like holding back a tide with her bare hands. She dreaded going to work. She dreaded seeing him every day. She normally rolled out of bed with just enough time for a shower, chugging no less than two cups of coffee and two hard-boiled eggs for breakfast. Before six-thirty, she was out the door and in the car, so she could make it to work by seven.

Eyes half closed, Candy, smacked her bedside table as she fumbled for her arm clock. Dumbfounded, she stared at the clock for several moments, trying to make sense of what she saw. Her bawled fist worked as visors to clear the cobwebs from her drooping eyelids. She blinked heavily, shaking her head to dispel the last remnants of sleep.

It was eight O'clock. She overslept! It was an hour past the time she should have been at work. She shot out of bed too fast. Her head spun. Candy stumbled to her dresser. She must have slept through her alarm. She grabbed her phone, preparing to call Logan and explain why she was running late. In her shocked state, she was mildly surprised she had no missed calls or voicemails from her boss.

Yesterday's events came rushing back to her. She was suspended. Today was a bonus day off, so she hadn't bothered to set her alarm. On the bright side, she was well-rested. She couldn't remember the last time she had woken up feeling rested and refreshed.

Relieved, she flopped back on the bed. A smile crept on her face. Her day was suddenly filled with so many possibilities. She mentally calculated the various ways she could spend her day off. Finally, she decided to have a lazy day. Candy was especially excited about her decision. She hardly ever got time to herself. The unexpected day off gave her a chance to rectify that little problem.

The tides to her mood changed once she sat up. She closed her eyes, giving the nausea time to subside. It didn't. It never did. For several days she'd been plagued with an upset stomach. Today, since she didn't have to be at work, she could go to the doctor to get something to cure her stomach bug. She was probably just nervous about going home. She hadn't been to her hometown in years.

She picked up the phone and made her appointment before she could chicken out. She had hated going to the doctors ever since she was a child. She couldn't pinpoint exactly why she hated it. It could have been the needles or the long wait in the waiting area. Either way, it wasn't her favorite pastime.

Four months pregnant! How could someone go four months with someone inside them without knowing? Don't you usually miss your period when you're pregnant? She had yet to miss a period. Everything was normal besides occasional nausea and dizzy spells.

Dazed, Candy opened her apartment door. She vaguely remembered the ride home. It was almost as if she'd been walking around in a trance since she received the news. She shook her head, wishing she could rid herself of the reality her mind still had trouble accepting.

Absently she rummaged in her pocketbook for her cell phone, shooting a brief text to her girlfriends requesting an emergency lady's night. It was the first conscious decision she'd made in hours. After tossing her phone on the coffee table, she collapsed on the couch to wait silently for Heidi and Brooke.

***

The room was so quiet you could hear a pin drop. Candy waited with bated breath for someone to say something. Both women whore dumbfounded expressions on their faces for several long minutes. The suspense was killing Candy. She was both fearful and eager for their reaction to her news. Their support meant the world to her. Without them, she didn't know how she would make it through the upcoming months.