My Wife, My Man?

Chapter Forty-six

"The best use of life is love. The best expression of love is time. The best time to love is now." Rick Warren

Two months had passed since his birthday, leaving behind the echoes of happy memories that teased his mind. His mother and sister had long travelled back and, although Marx and Leah had stayed back for a few more days, it wasn't long before they too, bid their goodbyes. Daniel, on the other hand, travelled in and out of the country and, being away for a while, was soon to return to Jo'burg in a few days.

Jack had missed all that, the noise and the few days of chaos that had flooded the house. A house with Marx in it was sure to be an atmosphere of laughter. Marx was always a jokester; he had an element of humour that made many fond of him. Even Daniel, who was not fond of many people, was very fond of him.

As the memories of the past month echoed in his mind, Jack found himself distracted and blankly smiling at the computer screen in front of him. He must have been like that for a while because he was still stuck repeatedly reading the first paragraph of the five-page-long document. That, along with many other work-related activities, was among the few things that took most of his time.

The new week drew a chain of worries and busyness, especially with a project of the recently received contract commencing. He wanted to ensure nothing but perfection in all that needed to be done in that project.

His attention was drawn back to him when he heard some scrambling before a sudden bang had his office door bursting open. He looked up to meet his wife with confusion. There, glittering in her eyes, was a child-like excitement that foretold the noise that was going to follow.

"Oh, my gosh!" she breathed aloud, dramatically placing her hand over her chest. From her panting, he could tell that she had probably run from wherever she was to his office. She had been out the whole day.

He rocked back against his chair and raised a brow at her, waiting to hear the reason for her excitement.

"Oh, my gosh!" this time she shouted, jumping up and down and threatening to throw the phone she waved about to the ground.

"What is it, Perli?" There were elements of curiosity in his voice. He was growing impatient not knowing what exactly excited her.

Perli quietened down, yet the excitement still glittered in her eyes. She allowed a small smile to play upon her lips. "I'm..." she felt hesitant to say whatever it was she wanted to say. "I'm pregnant..." She held a serious face.

Jack almost fell off his chair, and his eyes widened. Perli, on the other hand, covered her mouth, afraid that her giggles would give it away. His reaction deeply amused her; she had reckoned that he would've spit out his drink if it had so happened that he was drinking one.

"What, pregnant?" he spat the words out, trying to make sense of what she had just said. He met her eyes. "H-how?" he asked. "When? But... We're yet to..."

It was Perli's loud laugh that had him halting from his speech. She couldn't hold it in any longer. "Oh, my!" she held onto her stomach as she laughed. "You're so priceless! I'm pregnant..." She raised her hand, stopping him from saying anything. "Let me finish," she laughed again. "I'm not pregnant with a baby, but with news!"

Jack smiled amusingly, shaking his head. "Perli..." He didn't know what else to say to her as he leaned back against his chair. His eyes suddenly gleamed up in remembrance; it had finally happened. After months of planning, Luke had finally proposed. "Oh, it was today?" He wanted to be sure.