The Blindman's Wife Read online

  Hence, she’d been shocked when Liam called during the day since he always calls at night. Just as she picked up the phone, he started snapping at her, no hello how are you, he cut right to the chase.

  “Mum told me you aren’t feeling well and refused to see a doctor,” he snapped.

  Zola had had enough of him who did he think he was? He can’t just turn on the husbandly duty when he feels like it.

  “I’m fine, thank you very much. Shouldn’t you be out with Tasha experiencing something new the world has to offer?” she snapped right back not caring anymore.

  “I don’t know what you’re playing at Azolah or your reason for acting this irresponsible, but you have both our mothers worried. If you can’t take care of yourself how the hell will you be able to take care of our son?” he hissed.

  “I’ve been taking care of myself and my son before I met you. So can stop being self-righteous and leave me the hell alone” she let out with a sob.

  “Leave you alone, is that what you want? Because at this moment I am very tempted to do so. I would throttle you if I were there. Sometimes you frustrate the hell out of me. What is wrong with you?”

  “Nothing, not a god damn thing, goodbye.”

  “If you put the phone down on me you will regret it Azolah,” he warned.

  “Ohh, I’m so scared. That’s all Tasha teaches you? You need to brush up on your threats Liam you’re getting rusty. Your wolf persona is wearing off.”

  “Is this what your bad temper and behaviour is all about? Tasha?” He gave a nasty laugh. “Don’t tell me you’re jealous? It doesn’t become you, Azolah. If you don’t get your act together I’ll have to take things into my own hands. I don’t want my son around his mother when she’s acting like a spoiled bitch.”

  Zola winced as if he had slapped her. That’s the cutthroat bastard she had married and fell in love with.

  “Are you threatening to take my son away from me?” she asked in disbelief.

  “If that’s what it takes yes, get your act together, I don’t have time for more tantrums and jealous women. And get to the doctor or I’ll come there and take you myself, believe me, sweetheart, you won’t like it if I do.”

  “You bastard, you arrogant swine, I hate you, I hate you,” she shouted.

  “I’m sure you do sweetheart. I don’t want to hear about your stupidity and wild accusations again. If you can’t act like a grown up, then don’t talk to me,” He cut the connection.

  Fine by her she didn’t want to talk to him anyway. Zola stood his words ringing in her head. She had screwed things up between them; he was right she was acting silly. He had never promised her a flower garden, only a chance to keep her son. Now he was threatening to take him away. He would too, because what Liam Bradford wants he always gets. He was ruthless and relentless. A sob escaped her and she swayed feeling dizzy all of a sudden. She put her hand out to grab something, anything to keep her upright, but her feet buckled beneath her and darkness enveloped her.

  She woke to bright overhead lights and knew she wasn’t at home anymore. Her head hurts, and she felt as if she had needles pricking her arm. She turned her head to see her mother and mother-in-law sitting in chairs close by.

  “W-what happened?” she asked confused.

  “You fainted on your bedroom floor, lucky Percy was coming to get you,” her mother said worriedly.

  “I never faint,” Zola said, trying to smile.

  “You did, this time. You’re lucky you only ended up with a concussion. You have to take better care of yourself.” Cynthia chided.

  “Yes, I know. I promise I will, how long have I been here?”

  “Four hours. You are dehydrated and can’t go anywhere until that IV is done,” her mother said.

  That’s why she felt as if a needle were prodding her arm.

  “Wyn--”

  “He’s with his nanny; thank God they weren’t home when this happened. Liam is outside talking to the doctor,” her mother said.

  “What! Why did you call him?” Zola asked in a panic. She wasn’t ready to face him yet. She knew he would blame her for not taking care of herself and fainting. It would be ammunition to use against her if he was serious about taking their son from her. Now he would probably think she did it on purpose to get his attention, this was not looking good for her. The accusations weren’t going to stop now she thought, resigning herself for the fallout that was ahead.

  “Well, he is your husband. He has a right to know,” his mother said looking at her with disapproval.

  Great, now her mother-in-law thinks I’m a selfish bitch as well. How could she tell her mother-in-law they were fighting before she fainted? “Yes but he has better things to do, really you shouldn’t—”

  “What’s better than being with my wife making sure she is properly taken care of?” he asked, softly from the doorway.

  Anyone who knew him knew to tread lightly when he used that tone of voice. She was so caught up on feasting her eyes on him she didn’t notice the golden retriever at his side. Another time she would have been glad to see him, but this was not one of those times.

  “You didn’t have to come you need to finish—”

  He held up a hand stopping her. Damn him she thought biting her lip.

  “Mum, Zora could you give us a few minute please?”

  Zola panicked she didn’t want to be left alone with him. She wanted desperately to beg her mother to stay, but instead watched as she left the room. She shot up in a sitting position and regretted the movement. Pain cursed through her head making her eyes water. She waved her free hand at Cynthia letting her know she was fine when she saw that she was about to come to her aide.

  Their parents left the room closing the door behind them. The silence made Zola edgier. It would be better if he were shouting, but this silence meant a storm was steadily brewing and was about to unleashed upon her. The dog guided him towards her bed where he sat at her feet.

  “Tell me Azolah, am I a bad husband?”

  “I never said you were.”

  He exhaled noisily “I honestly don’t know what to do with you. I am beginning to think I am a failure as a husband. Maybe this marriage was a mistake after all.”

  Her heart broke slowly piece-by-piece as he spoke those words. Maybe two months ago she would have agreed with him, now all she felt was her happiness crashing down around her.

  “I’m sorry Liam; I never meant to make you think you were a failure. You’ve been kind to my family and I. I am sorry for my behaviour earlier, and I’ll sign whatever papers you need me to. Just don’t take my baby away from me, he’s all I have,” she said trying not to weep. Even though he said there wouldn’t be a divorce, she wasn’t going to keep him to his word if he wanted out of their marriage. She had her son he was safe from Nick at least she knew Liam loved him and would never do anything to harm him. It just meant he would have to find someone else to give him his heir. She was the failure not him; she hadn’t kept up her part of the bargain. She wiped the tears falling silently down her face; she would not embarrass herself any further than she already had. There was so much she was going to be in debt to him.

  “What are you talking about?” he asked confused.

  “The divorce, you want one don’t you? Isn’t that why you regret marrying me?” she asked holding her breath wishing, hoping he would say no. She loved him and even though she wished for him to feel the same way, it would be enough for her if he would give her another chance. She would love enough for the both of them and maybe one day he would come to love her too.

  “I never said I regret marrying you. Even if I wanted a divorce, which I don’t, I wouldn't get one now. Not with the babies.”

  His words jolted her … “What babies?” she asked carefully.

  “The ones you weren’t going to tell me about. What did I do to make you hate me this much?” he asked her with such feeling and disappointment.

  “B…
babies, I’m pregnant?” she asked stunned. Was being pregnant the reason she was so exhausted?

  “Don’t give me that innocent act; you had to have known you were pregnant. God Azolah, you’re almost three months along.”

  “I don’t…I never really thought about it. Yes, I’ve been tired, I thought it was stress…I didn’t know Liam, I swear to you, you’ve got to believe me,” she pleaded.

  “Whether or not you knew is irrelevant we have to focus on you and the babies. You’re ten pounds underweight you need to gain them back and be more mindful of our children. You can hate me, but don’t spite the babies. They are the innocent ones in this.”

  “You keep saying babies,” she said looking at him, trying to find anything in his face but the hollow look in his eyes.

  “Yes, twins.”

  “I honestly didn’t know,” she said taking his hand trying to make him understand. When he pulled away from her, her heart sank. Her heart was completely shattering, and the dam of unshed tears started flowing with a vengeance. He might as well have asked for a divorce, it would have been less painful than rejecting her.

  “Azolah it doesn’t matter, let’s move forward. I’m home now, so you needn’t worry about anything; I’ll take care of everything. I need to make a call,” he said.

  She looked at his retreating back as he left the room, “I don’t hate you, how could I when I’m in love with you?” she whispered to the now empty room burying her face in the pillow sobbing violently. He didn’t believe her; he thought she knew about the pregnancy and was purposely starving herself. Was she such a terrible person? Who could blame him? She wasn’t sure their relationship would ever be as it was before he had left three weeks ago. Whatever trust he had in her seem to have gone.

  Maybe she had known she was pregnant. She had a child before and should have seen the signs. No matter what he thought, she would never use her pregnancy to hurt him even if she knew about it. She put a hand on her still flat tummy. She was having twins, Liam’s babies. For the first time in weeks, Zola smiled. She may not have his love, but she’ll always have two pieces of him to love knowing they would love her back in return no matter her faults.

  CHAPTER SEVEN

  “Triplets?” Liam and Zola asked in unison. He had accompanied her to the doctor on each of her appointments since he had returned home almost two months ago. He said he wanted to be a hands-on father from the start. She knew what he really meant was he didn’t trust her to take care of herself and their unborn children. He had been making sure she was eating properly and was taking all her vitamins. He had moved back to his office downtown a month ago, after hovering over her for the first few weeks. She was happy for the breathing space. She was beginning to feel suffocated; she would have felt pampered if he was doing it out of love and not because he didn’t trust her to protect his babies.

  “Are you sure?” Zola asked when she got her voice back. “I know I am a bit big, but I figured I had two big babies, not an extra one. Are you sure about this? Because I’ve only felt two babies kicking, I think.”

  “I’m very positive Mrs. Bradford, you are definitely having triplets, this little one is a prankster and has been hiding behind her sister,” Doctor Grant said with a smile.

  Zola looked at her husband then the doctor, “Did you say she? They are all girls?” she asked in excitement.

  The doctor nodded.

  She had expected Liam to say something, but as she looked at him again, she wondered what he was thinking. He was unusually quiet at the ultrasound when he was normally animated with a list of questions. From the look on his face, he was still in shock, she smiled inwardly, good serves him right. Now he has to worry about three girls and dating, she couldn’t wait for when that day came. He had gone back to being his arrogant, self since he had found out she was pregnant. He was still meeting with his Tasha after work and was only home in time for Wyn’s bedtime. He acted as if he didn’t want to be in the same room as her.

  It hurt but she wasn’t about to let him know how much. He thought he had reason to justify his behavior and she had stopped trying to convince him she didn’t know she was pregnant until he told her. He refused to listen to her and she quit trying to get him to believe and forgive her for not realizing it sooner. She shook her head in wonder, gave her husband a final look, and then smiled at the doctor. “Everything is okay otherwise; I can still carry on with my activities?”

  Doctor Grant nodded, “just don’t overdo it and tire yourself out too much.”

  “Thank you, I’ll take your advice into consideration,” She said getting to her feet.

  “She’ll heed to your advice,” Liam said firmly.

  Zola bristled; well the bastard finally had something to say. As usual, he thought she couldn’t make her own decisions. She thanked the doctor and walked out leaving him. He had become adapt to his situation and at times, she marveled at how fast he moved, just as if he could see. He grabbed her left arm.

  “What’s the hurry, we have reservations for lunch, Marc won’t give our table away,” he said under his breath.

  She had forgotten about the damn lunch, all she wanted to do was get, as far away from him before she said something she would regret. How she could love a man and hate him the same time was beyond her comprehension. Ever since he had accused her of wanting to harm their unborn babies, he made no effort what so ever to touch or be intimate with her. He had moved back into their bed but might as well have stayed on the couch. The only time they end up in each other’s arms is when she woke in the middle of the night with him spooning her. Like a starving child, she looked forward to the nights when they’d unconsciously reach for each other.

  She craved him more than she craved food. She wondered how she could get out of sitting across from him for an hour watching him eat, remembering how giving he was when they made love. The way his lips begged to be kissed and the way he used that mouth of his to send her to heaven and back. There was no way to get out of this lunch without offending him. She learned a while ago that using insults tended to make him throw her aside as if she had venereal disease. It was not a nice feeling, but it was better to be on his bad side than to have him pretend she didn’t exist.

  As they walked out into the mild October sun, the devil tickled her funny bone. She stopped and looked at him trying to make her voice sweet as syrup.

  “What now?” he asked irritated as he stopped with her.

  Good, he was already in a bitchy mood; she took a hand and smoothed the length of the blue silk tie he was wearing leaving her hands where it ended at his waist. She moved in closer invading his space as much as her protruding stomach would allow. She was going to teach him a lesson.

  “I thought we could forget lunch and just go home and have sex for a couple of hours. If you could only make it an hour and a half, I’m sure Mark can take care of things at the office for a couple of hours,” she purred close to his mouth.

  He stilled then pulled her as close as her stomach would allow. “Don’t tempt me, woman, I am not in the mood for your games. Let’s have lunch before we both do something either of us will regret,” he said letting go of her.

  Hurt by his rejection she lashed out, “Who said I was playing games? You haven’t had sex with me in months, isn’t that odd for a newlywed couple or are you getting your fix elsewhere?”

  She heard him inhaled deeply and saw a tick in his locked jaw. He was trying to hold back his temper; that should have warned her to back off, but she was tired of his icy treatment and didn’t care for it anymore.

  “Did I hit a nerve, hmm maybe Tasha is doing more for you than beyond the call of duty,” she said nastily. She didn’t care that they were in public anymore she was tired of the silent treatment. “Maybe we should get a divorce; you take the woman, I take the children. I’m sure I could get a judge to see things my way. Make sure it’s a man, so I could use my persuasive charm on him if I can’t get pleasure from my husband I
might as well get it elsewhere.”

  “Get. In. The. Car.” he said clenching his teeth.

  “Really Liam, you shouldn’t clench your teeth like that if I remember you once told…” She knew when she had pushed too far from the look on his face, he would kill her if he could. She had hit a nerve when she suggested finding pleasure elsewhere. He had warned her about that when they had agreed to get married. She swallowed hard and walked the short distance to the car where Jack was waiting with the door open. She slid in and moved further to the other side.

  “Where to Mr. Bradford?” the driver asked.

  “Home, please Jack.”

  “What about—”

  “Not a word Azolah, I am warning you. I am not in the mood to speak to you right now.”

  She nodded, maybe she had bitten off more than she could chew. To be honest, she didn’t want to be at home alone with him, their son was at daycare, and their parents weren’t at home either. An empty house of invisible servants wasn't what she had in mind when she had started this. Damn that tongue of yours Azolah, she thought. She put up the partition so Jack won’t see or hear them, then turned to him; she had to try again, “maybe—”

  “Stop talking Azolah, when will you learn to listen? You went too far, this time. You wanted to go home, so I am taking you home.”

  So he wasn’t staying that was good news, she had seen him angry before but not to this extent, and she didn’t want to be alone with him in his current state, albeit she was the one who got him this riled up.

  “Well thank you, but there was no need we could have dropped you off at work first no need to miss an important meeting on my behalf.”

  He turned and smiled at her, and her insides dropped. It wasn’t a nice smile; it was a smile that had the hairs on her headstand up, “who said anything about going back to work, surely my wife takes priority over anything and anyone else. As I recall, you wanted sex, so sex is what you will get.”

  “B-but what about lunch, work?” she asked panicking.