Dangerously In Love Chapter 1

Dayna Reynolds stared at the test stick, took a deep breath and waited for it to turn pink. Nothing happened. It was negative…again. Stabbed by the familiar pang of disappointment, she closed the lid of the cushy toilet seat and sank down onto it. Inconsolably sad, she dropped her head in her hands. Then, overtaken by a sudden and hot anger, she hurled the test stick along with the empty home pregnancy kit into the waste basket. Another fifteen dollars wasted. The hell with home pregnancy kits; she would not give the E.P.T. manufacturers another red cent.

She'd stopped taking the pill a month after her marriage…and now, three years later, she still wasn't pregnant.

No longer able to skirt around the issue; she had to face the fact that she and Reed had a problem. She wrinkled her brow in thought. Surely, she didn't have a problem; she was as fertile as they come. Two abortions during her college years attested to that fact.

But Reed, on the other hand, had no children and had never been accused of fathering a child. He took pride in having been responsible during his late teens and early twenties, using condoms even when his partner swore up and down that she was taking the pill. Most of his friends had been making support payments since their early twenties. Teasingly, Reed often said that at the rate his buddies were still impregnating women; they'd be making child support payments well into their retirement years.

That line used to make her laugh, but today she found no humor in the fact that Reed's friends were procreating like jackrabbits. At thirty-four years old, her biological clock was ticking loud and fast. If she didn't conceive soon, she'd be at risk for all types of complications during pregnancy and while in labor. And if that wasn't bad enough, she'd read somewhere that a first-time pregnancy for women over the age of thirty-five was considered a geriatric pregnancy. Jeez!

Reed, on the other hand, didn't seem the least bit concerned that they were childless.

Gloomily, she gazed around her beautiful mauve and gray bathroom. From the glitzy multi-colored shower curtains, plush bath mat, thick towels & wash cloths, to the soap trays and toothbrush rack--everything was expensive and perfectly matched. Great care was given to every room in her spacious Mount Airy home, yet her lovely home provided little joy.

She wanted…no, needed a baby. The pain and yearning felt almost physical.

Something had to be done and it had to done soon.

First, Reed had to get tested. He needed to take a sperm count test or something. But how could she bring up such a sensitive subject without bruising his ego? It was bad enough that she had a Master's Degree in Special Education and had been teaching for over ten years in the Philadelphia School District, earning a salary that more than doubled the money Reed made as an office manager at a telemarketing company.

He just wasn't ambitious enough.

Three and a half years ago, Dayna had met Reed. Six months later they were married. Reed Reynolds, a product of the 'hood, was bi-lingual. He was articulate when necessary, but also fluent in hip street jargon and had convinced Dayna as well as her newly divorced parents that he had a plan to overcome his humble beginnings. That plan included obtaining an undergraduate degree from Penn's Wharton School. That prestigious degree would open many doors in corporate America.

Dayna's father was so won over by the charming and seemingly future Wharton grad, that he'd eagerly forked over twenty-five thousand as a wedding gift for the down payment on Dayna and Reed's Tudor-style home.

It was guilt money. Her father had left her mother after twenty-nine years of marriage. His new bride or that bitch as Dayna's mother called her seemed none too pleased about the wedding gift. Tough! Who cared what that home wrecker thought?

Though she was a grown woman, the wound of her father's abandonment had yet to heal and it didn't help that she was being further traumatized because her father and mother were having an affair. Her father had somehow managed to turn his former wife into his mistress. It was a shameful disgrace and it hurt to the core to see her mother reduced to the other woman status.

Sucking her teeth in disgust, Dana's directed her ponderings to her own marital problems. Unbeknownst to her parents, Reed had dropped out of school, deciding that higher education was a waste of a black man's time. He said he could accomplish more by becoming a Mason and networking with his lodge brothers. Dayna dreaded having to break that news to her parents.

And now he was rarely at home; he seemed more like a guest than an actual resident of the household. Reed spent long hours after work involved in lodge business. He often went away for weekends, to secretive locations with his lodge brothers. Wives weren't welcome.

Aside from the innate desire to bear a child, Dayna also believed a baby could save her floundering marriage. No doubt, Reed would balk at being dragged to her gynecologist for testing, but perhaps he'd agree to see a male fertility specialist.

Buoyed by the idea of cajoling her husband into seeking help from a qualified physician, Dayna sprang up and trotted down the stairs to her fully equipped, ultra-modern kitchen. Preparing her husband's favorite meal might soften him up enough to at least discuss seeing a doctor.

And if it turned out that Reed had a low-sperm count or worst…if it turned out he was sterile, they'd at least know what they were dealing with and could make an informed decision on what to do next. Artificial insemination, adoption…or perhaps there was some new miracle treatment for sterility. They'd never know if they didn't confront the problem.

"You really put your foot in this potato salad," Reed said cheerfully as he forked up another heap that instantly disappeared into his mouth. Dayna accepted the compliment with a proud smile, though she'd merely added a little Dijon mustard and a couple teaspoons of relish to the ready-made container she'd purchased from the Farmer's Market in Chestnut Hill. The chicken he'd already devoured, however, was breaded and fried by her own hands.

"Try the green beans," she encouraged, sweetly. The fresh green beans seasoned with minced garlic and basil was also her own creation.

"Don't worry; I'll get to those in a minute. Hey, how come you're not eating," he asked when he realized Dayna was sipping tea, but had not prepared a plate for herself.

"No appetite." She shrugged. "I guess I did too much taste-testing while I was cooking."

In three short years, she'd ballooned from a size 8 to size 14 and she realized if she didn't cut back, she'd be an absolute blimp during and after the anticipated pregnancy.

Reed nodded in understanding and continued wolfing down the potato salad.

She briefly gazed at him with pure adoration. He was so good-looking, with his bright brown eyes and gorgeous kissable lips. Together, they'd definitely make a beautiful child. Wondering if it were the right time to bring up the subject that weighed heavily on her mind, Dayna took another sip of tea. She watched Reed like a hawk as she tried to gauge his mood.

Taking a chance, she cleared her throat. "How was work?" She asked, deciding to ease into the discussion.

"Same ol'shit." He looked up. "That's why I'm glad I joined the Mason's. Those brothers are really about something.

"Yeah," he went on, "one of my lodge brother's is hosting a meeting tonight at the Hilton Hotel. He's conducting a seminar for a new business venture that I'd love to get involved with while it's still on the ground floor. I'm gonna go check it out tonight."

"Tonight!" Dayna screeched. "I thought we'd spend a quiet evening at home. You're hardly ever at home, Reed."

Reed pushed his unfinished plate away, shoved his chair away from the table, and stood up. "You're always complaining about my job…I don't make enough money…there's no potential for growth. I just want to go to the meeting to get some information on a career where I might be able to make a decent income and call my own shots. Why are you trying to stop me?"

"That's not true, Reed. I don't complain about your job or any of your extracurricular activities. You know I'm one hundred percent supportive of…"

"Cut the crap. You're always bragging about your education and your salary." His face twisted with what appeared to be hatred. "I know your parents think you're slumming with me…"

Dayna stood up and calmly maneuvered around the oblong table and stood next to her husband. Determined to salvage the evening and keep her husband at home, she smoothed the hairs on his forearm comfortingly, and spoke softly. "My mother welcomed you with open arms and my dad certainly wouldn't have given us that down payment for this big house," Dayna waved her free hand extravagantly, "if he had any doubt about your earning potential."

Reed jerked his arm away. "Yeah, and accepting that money was a big mistake; every chance you get, you throw it up in my face." Reed threw the cloth napkin he'd been clutching onto the dining room table. He stomped into the living room, grabbed his briefcase. "I'm out! Don't wait up for me!"

The slam of the front door, followed by the sound of Reed's Chrysler 300C screeching out of the driveway, dashed all hopes of a civilized conversation that would lead to visit to a qualified fertility specialist.

Dayna sagged into the chair Reed had just vacated. Feeling disoriented, she tried to sort out her thoughts and figure out what had just happened. What had she said to set him off like that? Absolutely nothing, she concluded. The numerous Lodge meetings and even the alleged meeting at the Hilton was probably just a façade, convenient excuses to get out of the house.

He hated being around her; she was too fat. Oh God, why had she allowed herself to gain so much weight? Pondering the question, Dayna gobbled down the leftover potato salad on Reed's plate, the untouched green beans. Pushing away from the dining room table, she got up and ambled to the kitchen, stuck her hand inside a plastic container lined with napkins and helped herself to two fried chicken wings, a breast, and a thigh.

Filled to the gills, she felt worse than ever, but couldn't stop eating. With spoon in hand, she sought comfort inside a container of Ben & Jerry's ice cream. Then, shaking her head in bewilderment, she headed up the elaborate staircase to unwind and mentally prepare for another work day.