Unplanned
Myra stared wide-eyed at Cal, hardly believing what she had just heard.
If he were any other man she would have thought that he was just trying to pacify his daughter with those words.
But Cal never lied.
“Yay.” Nova welped in excitement the way only a four-year-old could, and ran over to hug Myra’s leg tightly.
“You will always stay in our house, Myra, and you will marry my daddy?” She said, looking up into her eyes.
Myra smiled, and gently caressed her hair.
“Yes princess, I will always stay in your house.” She said, carefully avoiding the other half of her question, and thankfully that was enough for Nova, who hugged her leg tighter even as Cal was watching her.
“Nova,” Cal called. “Would you go stay with Grandpa Gib? We will join you in a bit.” he said, his eyes never leaving Myra and as soon as Nova closed the door behind, Cal stood up, staring intently at her.
“Why do you have that expression on your face, Myra?” He asked, looking deep into her eyes in confusion, “You don’t want to be with me?”
She wanted to tell him that she was a cop, and that the whole of their relationship was a lie, and she was the detective daughter of his enemy.
But the word her stupid brain could produce was.
“I am pregnant, Cal.”
And his brows were still furrowed for a few seconds, before his eyes widened in comprehension.
“My love.” His hand went to her face, and tears she had no idea had been lurking spilled over onto her cheeks.
“I found out when you were still unconscious.”
And just at that moment, time seemed to stop as they heard Cora Craig’s voice just outside.
“Where is your nanny? Why would she leave you wandering everywhere on your own?”
“Myra is daddy’s girlfriend, and they are going to marry, and have many babies.” She heard Nova’s unmistakably high-pitched voice sing out, like a programmed robot, saying the words at the same pace and cadence with which Cal had told her just now.
“What?” Cora’s voice rang out, and Myra slipped away from Cal and hurried towards the door.
But when she got into the hallway, she did not see Cora, only the echo of her shoes going up to the Dankworth terrace where the dinner was happening.
“Nova.” Myra squatted before her. “You cannot go telling everyone.”
Nova made a puppy face, and Myra knew she would burst into tears any minute. “Sorry Myra.”
“It’s fine.” She hugged her quickly.
This was all her fault. It was all hers.
This was spiraling out of control very quickly. It was not the child’s fault that she was excited about the news.
Everything was happening quickly, too quickly.
She felt like she was on a train that was going down a slope at a very high speed.
A maid appeared just as Cal walked out of his bedroom, and said everyone was waiting for them to begin dinner.
Cal did not say anything and when she looked up at him, she saw he was still in shock at the news of her pregnancy.
The maid gave them an odd look, bowed and walked away.
Myra stood up, smoothed down the nanny's uniform she had on, and looked at Cal. “You and Nova should go. I don’t want to ruin the dinner.”
But he gripped her hand as his eyes seemed to finally focus. “That’s not happening,” he said firmly, and she did not bother to argue.
She would have to tell him the truth as soon as that dinner was done.
He led the way up the flight of winding stairs to the terrace with open air.
Myra looked around the table and from the look on their faces she knew Cora had not said anything.
She sighed in momentary relief as her eyes found Cora sitting at the other end of the table.
“Come, Nova.” Myra began leading her to sit beside her father, when Cora spoke up.
“I should have known it when you were hugging my sister’s child to yourself,” Cora said in a clear voice, and Gilbert Dankworth looked from Cora back to Myra and Cal.
Myra winced at the congressman, and shook her head.
“What’s going on?” Gillian Dankworth looked up at his son, and then his brother and finally at Myra.
“I will not let this slide, Cal.” Cora stood up, and smacked her hand on the table, upsetting some glasses of water, and Nova began to cry.
“You can tumble in bed all you like to fulfill your male fantasy, but how dare you let her anywhere around my niece?”
“My daughter!” Cal barked, his eyes like lightening and Nova shrieked, and ran towards Myra to grip her.
“Will any of you explain what this is all about?” His father’s voice came out strong this time.
“Myra is the woman I want to marry,” Cal said, and Myra winced, hoping he would not mention the pregnancy part.
She saw the shock in all their faces, his brothers and sisters, their spouses and their teenage and adult children, some of whom were as old as she was.
“What?” Gillain was the first to speak up.
“I will not let you treat my niece like this just because Cassie is gone." Cora yelled. "You want to give Nova a social climber for a stepmother who will mistreat her as soon as she gets your last name.”
Myra gasped, shocked at how someone would ever think she could hurt Nova.
“You cannot make decisions for your late sister’s husband.” Gilbert finally spoke up, his voice firm. “That’s his daughter and his house.”
“That’s my niece,” Cora smacked down hard on the table. “You all keep forgetting that Cassie gave me rights to her. I will take her away from that abomination. I will not let her child grow there.”
“I'd like to see you try,” Cal said.
He was no longer agitated or furious, and somehow this calm tone scared Myra more.
She leaned down to pick Nova up finally, and wiped her face.
“Get your filthy hands off my niece this minute,” Cora said, rushing towards her like a bullet from the other end of the table, eluding all the people who tried to stop her. “You godforaken whore.”
“I cannot do this, Cal,” Myra said, gently lowering Nova to the nearest seat. “I will be in my room.”
She had bigger worries than a model who she could make lose half her source of income at the snap of a finger.
“Myra.” Cal looked at her doefully.
But she smiled at him sadly, shaking her head, and turned away.
“Running away? Can’t stand the heat of your own kitchen?” Cora shrieked after her like a mad woman as Myra drew near the stairs.
She said nothing.
“You will stop ignoring me, you filthy help.” Cora gripped her arm, and tried to spin her around.
“Get your hands off me!" Myra finally yelled angrily, and yanked her arm out of Cora’s grip.
She could already see Cal hurrying as fast as his cane would let him towards them, but the rest stood back.
Cora reached out to grip her again and Myra stepped back, but somehow she had misjudged how close to the edge of the stairs she was.
As she tumbled down the stairs, she felt like her eyes were spinning.
She heard Cal’s scream, and even Cora’s shocked gasped, as she tumbled down, and down,
the banister rolling, the lights on the ceiling seeming like they were on the fall.
She tried to grip the railings of the banisters, but she could never be fast enough because they brushed past her fingers, like she was running her fingers over piano keys.
She stopped trying to save herself and tried to wrap her hand over her still-flat belly, and maybe then her baby wouldn't crush like some tomato.
She suddenly hit her head hard on something, and all the voices in her head went quiet.