I clutch onto Blake for support.
“Wow, are you all right?” He asks as he grabs me.
“I’m fine,” I say with relief as I feel the needle leaving my arm. “Just got a little light-headed. I don’t know why they need to take so much in the first place. Or any, for that matter.”
“It’s so we can determine if everything is going to be fine with you and the baby,” Doctor Johnson confirms as he puts down my blood sample. “We don’t want any surprises.”
“So that’s it?” I ask quickly, jumping down from the table. “We can go?”
“Not so fast.” Doctor Johnson chuckles again. “I need to make sure that the two of you are fully up to speed. Have you done any reading on what to expect? Morning sickness, cramps, weird cravings for odd food combinations? That kind of thing?”
“We are fully up to speed,” I say as my eyes fall on the door. I really want to get out. For some reason, I feel as if the doctor is stalling. As if he is enjoying my discomfort.
“Good. Then there is just the matter of the due date, and you are free to go.”
“Due date?” I ask. My ears perk up, and I turn to face the doctor, looking at him properly for the first time.
“That’s right. February fourteenth. St. Valentine’s Day. An auspicious date. With the speed at which you conceived and the due date, I might just have to admit that I’ve never seen such a compatible couple. Congratulations!”
I look across to Blake who is already looking down at me. We share a smile. For once, I couldn’t agree more with the doctor.
Chapter 40
BLAKE
“So, what do you think?” I ask as I look up at my construction. “I’m not just a pretty face.”
“I’m so impressed,” Carrie says. “If I wasn’t attracted to you before, now I certainly am.”
We are in my backyard, and I have just finished setting up a moon-bounce. I rented it online for the day, and although the company offered to set it up, I declined. I was in the mood to bust out my handyman skills.
“So, who is getting on first, you or me?” I ask playfully. I stalk her, and she takes a step back. She grabs her stomach and frowns at me.
“I don’t know if it’s good for the baby. I better not.”
“I guess I’ll save it for Tommy and Simon then. I haven’t checked with Ben, but I’m pretty sure that neither of them is pregnant.”
I’m actually feeling a little excited. More than I am letting on to Carrie. The reason for my excitement is that Ben, Janet and their two sons are coming over for a barbecue later today. While they are here, I am going to tell them the big news.
It’s been three months and we’ve been given the all-clear.
I was once nervous to tell Ben, thinking that he would judge me. But now, I cannot wait. Ben and I used to be such good friends, and although we still are, a definite divide opened between us when he became a father. Now that I will have a child of my own, we can finally bridge that gap, once and for all.
“When are they coming over?” Carrie asks, walking back to me, now that I have stopped threatening to throw her on the moon-bounce.
“Any minute,” I reply. “The food is ready, the table and chairs are set up. All we need now are the guests.”
I stop talking as I hear something in the distance. It sounds like screaming, and as I continue to listen, it gets closer and closer.
“What’s that?” Carrie asks, hearing the same thing.
I listen, my ears straining. Breaking into a smile, I suddenly realize what it is. The screaming is more akin to laughing, and I watch the side of my house, waiting for what I know is about to charge around the corner.
It’s Simon, Ben’s son. He is screaming playfully as he charges across the backyard to me. The second he reaches me, I scoop up him and literally throw him across the gap between myself and the moon-bounce. He lands in it safely, laughing the whole time.
“Hey there!” Ben calls out.
He and Janet walk across the yard to Carrie and me. Tommy walks between them, holding his mother’s hand. Ben and Janet have been married for over ten years. I actually met her first and essentially introduced them, although Ben will never admit that. She has long red hair, big green eyes and a kind smile.
“He came at me,” I say and I hold my hands up in defense. “I was worried for my safety.”
“Oh, no,” Ben says as he reaches me. “Are you okay?”
“I am,” I say, before leaning around Ben to face Tommy. He is only four, but is the spitting image of his father. “Hey, buddy. How’s my favorite guy?”