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Post by Suzette Rousseau on Oct 24, 2008 23:23:49 GMT -5
"No, that's not what I mean," Suzie said, shaking her head. "That's not what I mean at all. Tell me things are okay, Zachary," she said, panic in her eyes and her voice, letting her see just how lost she was.
"Tell me everything is okay and I'll believe you, and then we'll figure out what to do. I want to do this with you, but I need you to want the same thing."
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Post by Justin Scotts on Oct 24, 2008 23:36:52 GMT -5
Justin stepped back, letting go of Suzie's hand when Zach arrived. He wasn't sure if he should leave her side but he finally decided on the nearest chair just so that he was close if she needed him. The chair was facing her but not in the way of Zachary, enough that he was within sight if she needed him but out of the way too. He sat there and leaned back casually relaxed for the moment. He would step in with his family the moment they either became an issue or the results came.. he was sure either way he'd be needed to step in and until he just waited silently in case Suzie needed him. Waiting for Zach to say the right things for once and waiting to stop his family from interfering unless Zach was too stupid to do it himself.. then he'd step in. But a lot rode on those results.
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Post by Zachary Scotts on Oct 24, 2008 23:42:32 GMT -5
Zachary took a breath. That was all she needed to hear... that everything was OK. Of course, everything was not OK. But he was willing to do whatever it took to make everything OK for her. And if what she needed right now was a lie, he would give it to her. Soon enough, he swore, it would be true. Whether the child was his or not, he was going to find a way to fix this for her.
Taking her hand in his, he lightly stroked the back of her hand with his thumb. Smiling reassuringly, he said, "Everything is fine, Susie. I promise you."
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Post by Suzette Rousseau on Oct 24, 2008 23:49:56 GMT -5
Suzie knew he was lying because she knew everything was not okay. There was nothing remotely fine about any of this, but he was supposed to tell her that it was.
"I lied earlier. I don't want it to be Taylor's. I want it to be yours. But I want you to want that to. I can't be an obligation to you." Once she let him see just a little of her honest fear, it was easier to say more. She would sit down and hash things out with him later, if the results came back in his favor, and they would figure things out. But right now, she just wanted to be near him, to remember what it was like being in his arms.
Justin told her to give him a chance. She was trying.
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Post by Zachary Scotts on Oct 24, 2008 23:56:01 GMT -5
Zachary closed his eyes for a minute. The pain and fear in her voice seemed to magnify those same feelings in himself. The truth was, he was bloody terrified. One of them had to be the strong one right now, and by all rights, it should be him. Tanya was right; it was time to grow up.
Still holding her hand, he pressed another kiss to her palm, and then looked at her. His expression was still one of terror, but he met her eyes anyway. "You're not an obligation to me, Susie," he said. "I could never see you as one."
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Post by Suzette Rousseau on Oct 25, 2008 0:00:45 GMT -5
He said that, but she didn't feel it. She felt like he was worried the child would be his, that he was worried he'd have to figure out how to have her around.
She shook her head, her free hand gripping the glass of juice for something besides him to hold onto. She had held onto him before and he had bolted.
"Then want me," she whispered. She would never have begged a man to love her, but Zach was different. He was the one she needed.
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Post by Zachary Scotts on Oct 25, 2008 0:15:50 GMT -5
Normally, when a woman got this clingy and needy, he wouldn't have hesitated to walk out the door. But leaving was the last thing on Zach's mind. All he wanted to do was ease her mind, to make her feel better. He wanted to kiss away her fears. "I want you," he whispered. It was easier than saying "I love you." But to him, it meant the same thing.
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Post by Suzette Rousseau on Oct 25, 2008 0:34:06 GMT -5
Even if he was lying about this, she needed to hear it, and she nodded. "When I'm more awake, and when I'm not so thirsty... I'll be me again, okay?" She knew she was being unnecessarily needy, but she just wanted to know that she wasn't alone in this. She was strong, but everyone deserved a moment to lean on someone else.
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Post by Zachary Scotts on Oct 25, 2008 0:43:37 GMT -5
Zachary shook his head. "Don't even worry about it," he said. He felt more relaxed already, better able to talk. Just telling her that he wanted her seemed to have helped ease the tension. "You've been through a lot in a short time. It'll be easier once you've rested and you find out the truth. I'll try to make things easier for you. I just want you to be OK."
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Post by Suzette Rousseau on Oct 25, 2008 1:25:46 GMT -5
"I'm okay," Suzette said, pulling her hand from his and getting some toast. "I'm really hungry." She hadn't eaten at all today, and she was starving finally.
"I need the results soon," she added. Waiting was killing her.
She took a bite of the toast and chewed slowly, finding it hard to meet his eyes.
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Post by Zachary Scotts on Oct 25, 2008 17:18:16 GMT -5
Zachary was just glad that she was eating. The toast wasn't even close to enough, but at least it was something. He relaxed slightly, but his eyes kept darting over to the door, as if willing the doctor to come in with the results. "We should have them soon," he said reassuringly. He was glad he'd filled out the paperwork in the cafeteria while waiting for her juice and toast, because he could now give her his full attention.
"Susie," he began slowly, not quite sure how to say what was still weighing on his mind. "I... if this child turns out to be Taylor's and not mine... I hope you will consider staying here with me, at least for a while." The thought of her leaving was almost unbearable. But at the very least, he wanted her to consider her decision carefully and do what was right for her and best for the baby. If she went back to Taylor right away, she wouldn't be taking the time to think it through. He wanted to win her back, somehow.
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Post by Suzette Rousseau on Oct 25, 2008 17:51:58 GMT -5
"I don't know if I'll have the choice," Suzie told him. "But Taylor thinks I'm in France until the end of the month." It was only a couple of weeks away, but it was more time. She was willing to give him that.
She looked up, apologetically again. "I don't even know if I'll have the choice if it's yours... I mean, Justin was saying... Zach, you know Taylor. He's a master of buying people off, but he's not so good at being bought off. And threats don't scare him."
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Post by Zachary Scotts on Oct 25, 2008 17:58:40 GMT -5
Zach nodded. "I know. And I've been thinking about that. Taylor doesn't give up when he wants something. And I don't think simply paying off the debt I owe him is going to be enough. What do you think he'd do if he found out you were carrying my child? If you are, that is," he added. "I know he has a lot of pride.... he was furious at the thought that you were cheating on him with me. Would he tolerate the idea of raising a child that wasn't his?"
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Post by Suzette Rousseau on Oct 25, 2008 18:11:18 GMT -5
"I don't know. I've been thinking about it a lot, and I don't know what he would do. He would never acknowledge that it was yours... I want to think that he would raise it as his own." There was the slight possibility that he would make her get rid of it and have the scandal swept under the rug, but if she was completely against it, Taylor wouldn't do anything to hurt her. Not knowingly, not that she knew of.
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Post by Zachary Scotts on Oct 25, 2008 22:53:48 GMT -5
That really wasn't the answer Zachary had been hoping for. He was still used to having everything come easily for him, and he didn't really know what to do now that he was faced with a seemingly impossible situation. And while dealing with Taylor was hard enough, on the other side, he had Thatcher, who would not take no for an answer if the baby turned out to be Zach's.
"If the baby's mine, Thatcher's going to insist that I marry you. I wish to hell Thatcher wasn't involved at all, because I think you ought to have some say in what's going to happen, but on the other hand, he can help. Thatcher is just as powerful and rich as Taylor, and if Taylor tries to stand in the way... well, let's just say he'll regret it."
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Post by Suzette Rousseau on Oct 25, 2008 23:11:51 GMT -5
Suzie nodded. They kept promising her that it would be okay, and she didn't know how much to trust it.
But Thatcher was an imposing man... Taylor scared her more, but she could see the intimidation that he could impose.
"We'll figure it out, Zach. I just... I want us both to have a choice in this."
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Post by Zachary Scotts on Oct 26, 2008 0:06:39 GMT -5
Zachary sighed softly. He knew that, if given a choice, he would choose her. He didn't deserve her, but he needed her. She would never know just how much. But did she need him the same way? Now that she knew about what he was and what he had done, would she still choose him? A part of him feared that she wouldn't.
"Do you need anything else?" he asked. "More food, maybe? I wish the results would come back already. This waiting is killing me."
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Post by Suzette Rousseau on Oct 26, 2008 0:43:46 GMT -5
Suzie shook her head. "No, I'm... I'm okay for now." She was fine with th juice, but the toast was hard for her to swallow. Solid food was a bit too much for her right now. "I'll let you know. Just... talk to me, Zach," she asked him. "Keep my mind off the results."
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Post by Zachary Scotts on Oct 26, 2008 0:58:43 GMT -5
Zachary frowned. While he could certainly understand her desire to get her mind off of things, he wasn't sure what kind of small talk she wanted from him. It seemed a little like avoiding the giant elephant in the room. But on the other hand, until they got the results, there wasn't much else to say about the test or the situation. They were just playing the waiting game now.
"Er, well... I hope, if you do get to stay, you get a chance to meet Thatcher's other children. Justin's younger siblings. There are four of them... wonderful kids. You'd like them."
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Post by Suzette Rousseau on Oct 26, 2008 1:16:16 GMT -5
Suzie looked at Justin and smiled. "Justin told me. He said I reminded him of his sister. Your niece, I assume. Are they in school?"
She was okay with this small talk, and it did wonders to take her mind off of things. She wanted to keep him talking to her until those results came back in. And then, they would figure out what to do.
She wanted to know how he was with children, mostly. "Did you spend a lot of time with them when they were growing up?"
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