Serendipitous Chapter 5 B

Tyler and Rebeka met 7 days ago.

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Inside the car, Rebeka put her hands over her stomach. "Another cramp?" asked Tyler. When she nodded, he placed his hand on her stomach. "I need to feel the tightening in your stomach." When he moved his hand, he made a phone call, "Aunt Beth, we won't be home tonight. Beka needs to rest. I'll keep you posted. Tell Missy I'll call before she goes to bed."

Rebeka's eyes met his. "What's going on?"

"I'm finding a hotel. You need a break. I don't want to risk traveling any longer. This trip was too stressful."

They took the exit with the first billboard sign that advertised a hotel.


TODAY'S POST:

Chapter 5 B

The first two hotels they stopped at had no vacancies. The third hotel had one vacancy, with one king-size bed. Tyler took it. Beka won't like this. I'll sleep on the couch. Hopefully she trusts me. He paused and muttered, "At least a little."

Inside the room Rebeka scanned the area. "Where's the second bed?"

"This is the only room available. I'll sleep on the couch."

She walked to it, spread her arms the length of it, and said, "It's too short. You'll never fit. I'll sleep here."

"In your condition, that's not going to happen." Tyler opened his medical bag. "I want to check your blood pressure and glucose level."

When he finished, his eyes revealed his concern.

"They're not good, are they?" asked Rebeka.

"Both are close to the danger level. Lie down and rest for a while. Hopefully resting will bring them down. I'll take them again in about an hour. If they remain where they're at, we'll visit an ER."

After she lay on the bed, Tyler folded the other side of the blankets over her. "Maybe you'll get some sleep."

"What are you going to do?"

"Sit here and worry." Tyler grinned. "You relax. I promise to worry enough for both of us, deal?"

With a weak smile, Rebeka said, "Deal."

*****
As the sun dimmed in the sky, Rebeka woke up. "Ty?"

He touched her arm. "I'm right here.' He held his stethoscope. "As soon as I check your blood pressure, I'll get dinner. Any suggestions?"

She reached for his hand. "Please don't leave."

Tyler's thumb caressed the top of her hand. "I'll order delivery." He finished taking her blood pressure. "Still not good, but the nap helped. What do you feel like eating?" While she thought, he searched through his phone. "How about cedar plank grilled salmon and steamed vegetables?"

"Sounds good."

"It does. I'll get the same."

Rebeka dozed on and off as Tyler called in the dinner order. When he answered his ringing phone, she awoke. Tyler nodded in her direction. "Hey, Roger, what's going on?" He listened and then let out a deep breath. "Sorry Stuart's being a jerk." He teased, "Think it's a good idea having Amber stay with you?"

Rebeka sat up. "What? No!" She held out her hand. "Let me talk with her."

Tyler shook his head. "They're adults. They can handle it. Roger's keeping her safe."

The phone conversation continued, and Tyler said, "I don't think it's a good idea that you two come this weekend. We visited Beka's father today. She's having a few issues and needs to rest." He thought for a moment. "Monday's a holiday. How about coming on Sunday and return Monday or maybe Tuesday? She'll have Friday and Saturday to rest. I'll let you know if Beka needs additional time to rest."

Those days were agreed to, as there was a knock on their door. "Sorry Roger, dinner's here. We'll talk later." Tyler answered the door, tipped the delivery person, and took the bag. Then he moved two bedside tables close to each other as a dining table and moved two chairs around them. He set the food on the table. "Ready to eat?"

"Thank you for everything."

"Not a problem. After you've eaten, I'll test your insulin level. Has the cramping eased any?"

"Some." She took a bite of salmon. "This is really good."

Moments later another knock sounded at the door. Rebeka's eyes widened. "Who could that be?"

"I ordered a few things we might need tonight." He set the bags on the couch. "Let's finish eating."

Dinner was finished and the containers disposed, before Tyler opened the first bag.

Rebeka watched Tyler remove the items and place them into two piles. "What are you doing?"

Tyler winked. "You'll see in a minute." The bags were emptied. He carried one of the piles to Rebeka. "Things you might need tonight and in the morning. I hope you're happy with my choices."

She held up soft blue plaid pajama bottoms and a soft blue long sleeved top.

Tyler watched her. "I know you don't wear pants, but since we're sharing a bedroom, I thought they'd be best. Our sleeping situation hasn't been resolved. You won't be sleeping on the couch."

"The couch isn't long enough for you."

"Any suggestions?" asked Tyler with a raised eyebrow.

"This is so not right, but I guess we share the bed."

"It's up to you. Since I've never slept with someone, I don't know if I travel around the bed." He paused. "After my sister died, Missy crawled in bed for a while. She never addressed it. I'll do my best to stay on my side of the bed."

Rebeka ignored his comment as she picked up the toiletries and carried them to the bathroom. "You've made good choices." At the mirror, she held up the new dress in front of her body before she hung it up. "This is beautiful. Thank you. There's no way I can ever repay your kindness. As soon as my finances get fixed, I'll repay what I can."

"Don't even try. I won't accept it. I'm sharing freely with no expectations." Tyler walked to the window and stared out before he turned and faced Rebeka. "I think I gave you the wrong impression. I want to clear it up."

He sat in a chair across from her. "I said I hadn't slept with anybody. I have shared a bed, but we didn't sleep."

"I understand. It's none of my business."

"I felt I needed to be completely honest. I don't want any misunderstandings."

"Thank you, but you don't owe me an explanation."

"Probably." Tyler paused and exhaled. "My goal is for you to have a healthy baby. I'm going to be your birthing coach. There's a reason it's called labor and delivery. It'll probably be the hardest thing you've ever done. If this is going to work, you're going to need to completely trust me."

He moved the chair closer. "You've shared parts of your life, I'm sure you would've preferred not to tell anybody. You didn't share your pregnancy with Amber. Roger assumed you had and accidently told her."

"I need to apologize to her. I was so ashamed. I tried a few times but couldn't."

"I figured that was the situation. Since I expect your honesty, I need to be honest with you." He reached over and touched Rebeka's arm. "I know at least two men you trusted, your father, and your agent and they both wronged you. I don't know if there were other men."

"No. Men were never interested in me. Men like curvy women. I don't qualify.
I resemble a twig. Besides, I dress like an old lady, don't wear make-up, and..."

"Stop putting yourself down. I've only known you for a week and already realize how special you are."

"I understand how busy you are raising Lily, your work, and your private life. I don't want to interfere."

"Under most circumstances, Missy will come first, but I have Aunt Beth's help, so there's some wiggle room. Yes, my work keeps me busy, but there are other doctors who can cover it when necessary. I don't have a private life. I'm a bachelor. I'm free, so you'll fit right in."

Rebeka studied her hands in her lap.

"Until this baby is born, and you're back on your feet," Tyler studied her before he continued, "I'm committed to you and this baby."

"Why?"

Tyler got up and walked around the room, before he sat. When he did, he leaned over with his hands clasped together as if in prayer. His sapphire eyes met Rebeka's. "I've never shared this with anybody, not even Roger."

She started to say something, but he held up his hand. "I need to share. While in med school, there was a young girl, Lacy. Lacy was an undergraduate, a sophomore, I think. One evening I was in the library doing research. She was at the next table crying. I attempted to ignore her but couldn't. She said she'd had a fight with her boyfriend. We talked, and I convinced her it wasn't the end of the world."

"This doesn't surprise me. You're very caring."

"I met Lacy again, this time after a football game. She was wandering the universities' quad area stumbling drunk and close to passing out. I took her to my place to keep her safe. She slept it off. The following morning, she told me she had a new boyfriend who was in a fraternity, and they'd started drinking before the game, kept it up during the game, and after the game."

"Why wasn't she with her new friend?"

"Don't' know. But pretty sure, he and his friends had taken advantage of her condition. She either wouldn't share or didn't remember. Her clothes were in disarray and some were missing."

When Tyler exhaled, Rebeka asked, "It gets worse, doesn't it?"

"It does. She'd randomly show up at my apartment either drunk, high, or at least not in good shape. I allowed her to sleep it off. I tried talking with her about her choices but got nowhere." He paused. "I should've pushed harder but was busy with med school or maybe wasn't mature enough myself."

Tyler got up, got a drink of water, before he sat again. "I started doing volunteer runs with the emergency response teams. One late afternoon, we got a call."

He took a deep breath and wiped his eyes. "It was Lacy. Attempted suicide. She'd slit her wrists with a broken bottle. We got to her in time. I sat with her during the night. The following day her parents arrived. Last I heard she went into rehab. I lost touch with her."

Rebeka closed her eyes. "I'm sorry."

"I know you're not Lacy, but I also know you're a young lady in need and I can help. I'm not making a mistake like that again."

Tyler stood and answered the door. "Good. I was worried this wasn't going to make it."

When he closed the door and turned around, Rebeka asked, "What's that?"

He held up a coat. "I'm tired of you swimming in Aunt Beth's coat. I hope this will work." He helped her put it on.

"It fits perfectly. Thank you, but you shouldn't have. I do have a coat in Dallas."

"Now, you have two."

"Ty, you need to stop doing this."

He winked as he answered his phone. "Hi Missy." He checked the time. "Sorry, time got away from me. I'm glad you called."

After Rebeka and Lily spoke for a few minutes, Rebeka went into the bathroom to get ready for bed.

When Tyler said goodnight to Lily and put his phone away, he studied Rebeka and grinned. "I know you're uncomfortable with us sharing a bed, but if you hang off the edge like that, you're going to end up on the floor. Either you move over, or I'm sleeping on the couch. Your choice."

When Rebeka scooted over a little, Tyler said, "Move a little more." She did. "Still more."

She exhaled. "Is this enough?"

"Barely, but I'll accept it. Goodnight."


~~~~~
Rebeka Miller - our heroine, she's twenty -two, a romance award winning author, extremely old fashioned

Dr. Tyler Butler - 'Ty' an ER doctor, raising his niece, Lily.

Richard Stuart - Rebeka's agent and rich spoilt brat, a not nice person

Amber Wilson - Rebeka's personal assistant and best friend

Peter Dawson - Tyler's friend and part-time ranch hand

Elizabeth - 'Aunt Beth', helping raise Lily and helped raise Tyler after parents died

Christina - Elizabeth's close friend

Lily - 'Missy', Tyler's niece, 5 years old

Lori - Tyler's deceased sister and mother of Lily

Zeke - Golden Retriever mix, family dog

Roger Whitmore - a lawyer and Tyler's best friend

Dr. Heather Sharp - OB/GYN and Tyler's childhood friend

Ruth and Elijah Miller - Rebeka's parents