Page 100 of The Betrayal

I nod. How do I tell her that I am, in fact, not okay.

“Okay, you ready?” The nurse asks as she tightens a strap and taps the vein.

“Ready as I'll ever be,” she focuses on me and that right there is when everything around me disappears into nothing but calmness. All I see is her and only her because she is all I care about.

Her.

Only her.

The nurse finishes up and exits out the same door she came from. Ari has a small cotton ball taped where they drew blood. Hated it. Hated that they marked her beautiful skin.

“Come lay down, let’s get a look at the twins,” Kyra stands, ushering Ari over towards the bed. I move behind her, following her footsteps before taking a seat next to the bed. She lifts her top and Kyra squirts clear gel onto Ari's little swollen belly. I feel like she's only really started to pop over the last week or so and it makes my heart swell inside my chest.

My fingers lock with Arizona's, her head turned to face the screen that the doctor is currently looking at, the probe pushed onto her lower stomach and that's when I hear it. The sound of galloping horses.

“They've changed so much,” Ari whispers towards the screen, my eyes fixed to the flickering heartbeats. Two hearts. Two babies. Tears sting behind my eyes and as I blink, a tear rolls down my cheek.

“Wow,” is all I can muster, Arizona lets out a soft laugh as she squeezes my hand.

“It's something right?” her voice floats over me like silk, my skin pricking in goosebumps as I focus on the two babies on the screen.

“It really is,” and only then do I pull my eyes from the screen and look at her. My wife. The love of my life. I have fallen hard. God damn, so fucking hard.

My eyes well and I tear them away from Ari and back onto the screen. I never want this moment to be over.

Right here, right now. Everything is just... perfect.

“Twins are measuring good, Twin A is a little bigger but that is normal. We will keep a close eye on them both to make sure each is growing, but right now, I am happy. Do you have any questions?” Kyra asks as she freezes the screen on the image, then hands Arizona some tissue to wipe the excess gel off her belly which means she has to drop my hand and I miss her touch already. I help her sit up, and she twists round to face Kyra. I watch as her brows furrow slightly, fingers locked but her face drops as she looks at her stomach before they're back on the doctor.

“No, everything is fine,” she breathes out, but the tone of her voice is not convincing. At all.

She hops off the bed and walks towards the doctor’s desk to grab her bag and coat.

“Is everything okay?” I say quietly as I stand next to her, and she looks at me giving me a solid one nod response.

“Okay, so I’ll see you in December for your next scan, this one takes a little longer as we check all the babies heart, chambers, spine, neck fluid....” she rambles off but I know the doctor is telling me over Arizona because she already knows.

“Plus, you can find out the genders if you wish,” and my ears prick.

“Thank you, Kyra, I'll see you soon,” Ari shakes Kyra's hand then turns for the door.

“Oh, Ari,” Kyra calls out just as she gets to the door, she spins and waits for the doctor to continue. “If you have anything you want to ask before your next appointment, just give me a call and I’ll be happy to answer any questions you have,” she gives a soft nod and Ari nods back before walking out the door and there I am just standing there wondering what the fuck is going on.

Following Arizona out to the front desk, she talks quietly to the receptionist as she confirms her next appointment.

“Does that date still work with you?”

“Yes, fine,” her tone is clipped as she takes her files back and slips it under her arm.

She looks at me, and I don't know what her eyes are telling me. They're erratic but sad, searching my face for something, anything.

“Ready?” she asks before she turns on her heel and walks out the door, me right behind her. Only when we're out on the sidewalk do I reach for her elbow, pulling her back into me.

“Hey, hey...” my voice trails off and I see the tears in her eyes. “Baby...” I pause and she shakes her head from side to side. “What's wrong?” My fingers softening on my grip.

She looks away for a moment, arms folded across her chest. “You can talk to me baby, you know that.” My voice is calm, my eyes soft but when she looks at me, her eyes are red rimmed and filling with fresh tears.

“I wanted to ask about finding out who the dad was but then I freaked, because what if the twins are not yours Keaton? What if they're the mystery guys?”