An Unexpected Baby (3 page)

“You mean, the big deal with the takeover of the steakhouse and its internal ad agency?”

“Yep.”

“Oh, girl! That’s huge. He really is into this baby thing.”

“I know,” she murmured under her breath.

Stupid. Stupid. Stupid. Why did she open up her big gob before getting verification from the doctor? Everyone knew that home pregnancy tests were like condoms, they’re only ninety-nine percent accurate. Ugh.

Her spirit felt so deflated it was as if someone had taken a pin and popped her happy birthday balloon.

“Girl, you can’t lie to him. I mean, remember what happened last time?”

“Yeah, I know. Don’t remind me.” Emma remembered when she told her grandfather she was getting married when he was supposedly on his death bed at the Palliative Care Center. She just wanted him to stop crying and feeling sorry that she was still single and he would never live to see her happily married. So naturally, she told him she was engaged. Of course, she hadn’t counted on him asking her then and there who the lucky guy was. Since she’d worked with Evan so long and they had a good working relationship and she secretly fantasized about him being her soul mate since she’d had a crush on him from day one—it seemed to be the only logical name to come to mind. Then of course, Gramps had to ask to see him in person. Ugh. Boy, was she stuck in a bad place between a lie and deception. To make matters worse, Evan was gamo-phobic—which meant fear of commitment or marriage. Then there was this whole Fletcher curse that ran in his family, too. It was a mess. But somehow they made it happened. He only warned her not to ever lie or deceive him again. What was she to do? Break his heart and risk him second-guessing his manhood and resenting her? Or lie a teeny bit to spare his feelings until—well, until she got pregnant for real this time.

“That’s it!”

“What’s it, hon?”

“I won’t tell him now. I’ll just fake it until I can make it! A baby, I mean.”

“Emma, what if you or Evan can’t really have children? What will you do then? You can only fake pregnancy for so long. Have you lost your mind, girl?” She wanted to add AGAIN, but she refrained.

“Nope. But if I lose Evan emotionally over this, I think I just might.”
“Emma, please listen to yourself, girl. You’re not the world’s greatest liar, you know. And that husband of yours seems like he can be really unforgiving if he’s bitten twice.”

“You know, Gina, you’re right.”

“You’re not just saying that, are you?”

“Nope. I can’t go through another deception. He’ll just have to understand. I will tell him when he gets back home. He just went out to the bank to do some personal transactions.”

“Oh?”

“Yep. I will confront him with the news then.” Emma had never felt so lost, so hopeless. If only she could pray for a miracle. While on the phone with her friend, she’d taken the liberty to sit on the bed and Google ODP pregnancy test on her iPad. And sure enough, one strip was a negative. That would teach her to buy so many different brands. Why couldn’t they all be consistent with their results? Some test sticks tell you that two lines was affirmative, for others it was one line, some had a plus sign and some were digital. Ugh. She really got in over her head again, didn’t she? Telling Evan the truth was going to crush him. But what other choice did she have, right now?

She closed her iPad case and closed her eyes.  She laid back on the bed feeling a mixture of anger and pain following her phone call with Gina. Her best friend was right. She had to come clean. As potentially devastating as it would be. Why was it so much easier to lie to spare someone’s feelings than to hurt him with the truth? She wished she had an answer for that. One of those “human nature” annoyances. Confrontation. Nobody really liked it. She was living in a culture that was afraid of “offending people” and afraid of “losing affection” from those close to us.

Wishing this was all a terrible dream and she would wake up soon and not have taken that stupid pregnancy home test, she secretly prayed for a miracle—because that was what she would need to save her marriage.

4.

“Wow, man, that’s big news! Your wife’s expecting! We’ve gotta celebrate!”

“Well, not yet, Dale. But I do need you to take the trip to Dallas for me.”

“What? Man, I thought you’d be there to show them that ol’ Fletcher charm.”

“That was until I found out Emma’s expecting my child. Besides, I wanna be there with her to go to her initial appointments and stuff.” The thought of this excited Evan and caused his heart to beat hard in his chest. It was really happening, wasn’t it? He was going to be a daddy. He never would have imagined how hard it would have struck him until it actually happened. But there it was. Evan was slowly changing into a new man. He felt a tinge of guilt over not being close to Emma over the past few months, having so much on his mind. Stuff like his father’s slow decline, keeping things afloat at the office, the surprise wedding and going from self-proclaimed bachelor to self-less groom in one day. Holy crap! Looking back at it now, he really did act on impulse when he found out that their pretend wedding to fulfil the dying wish of her grandfather would be the real deal when he got to the hospital. But now that she was having his child—it was all worth it. Months ago, he felt that he didn’t know Emma as much as he wished he could. He just didn’t know. Not that he had a change of heart over his beautiful bride for the woman she was. She had a good heart and a sound mind. And her body? Wow! Her body was to die for. Her sensual curves and long thick black, silky hair and full, kissable lips turned him on every time. He was a leg man, and boy did she have legs to kill. He was changing alright. He was suddenly no longer taking anything for granted.

“So here’s the deal,” Evan continued his conversation with Dale over the speaker phone. He stroked his five-o’clock shadow and leaned back in his chair. “We both know what vision we have for the Ma Rae’s Texas Steakhouse, right?”

“Right.”

“So we need to sell them on going national. Everybody knows they fill up seven days of the week and they  have the best tasting steak this side of heaven.”

“Tell me about it. Man, I’d drive a hundred miles to have dinner there.”

“Me, too! Well, we need to change the marketing to include their best assets. You can’t visit the state of Texas and not taste Ma Rae’s finest!”

“Not to mention their indoor amusement park for kids!”

“Of course. It’s a family oriented business where kids can play after dinner while adults talk and maybe hit the dance floor. What an unusual concept. They don’t even know what they’re missing by not selling their benefits. Imagine having a staff that will mind the kids while they play and you rest.”

“I’m thinking you and Emma will be paying some visits soon, huh?”

“Yeah. You know, I’ve got to get used to being a family, man. Holy! This means so much to me.”

“I know, man! You didn’t really have a family growing up. This is your time now.”

“Wish I knew my mom,” Evan’s voice trailed off.

“Well, the good thing is your kid’s gonna have both parents around and that’s what counts.”

“Exactly. That’s why I’m doing some major scaling down with work. Emma?”

Evan was distracted by the beautiful silhouette standing in the doorway of the den. It was Emma, though the look on her pretty face was anything but joyous.

“Dale, we’ll finish this conversation later, okay?”

“Everything okay?”

“Yeah. My queen has just entered the den.”

“Oh, right!” Dale laughed. “Be sure to tell her congrats and give her a hug for me.”

“Will do.”

“I’m sorry,” Emma’s soft spoken voice sounded weak. “I didn’t mean to distract you…”

“Honey, come here!” He stood up and stretched out his arms and hugged Emma. He’d been doing a lot of reading up on women and pregnancy. He didn’t want to screw this up. He read somewhere that more than ever women need to feel loved, and hugged often. Touch was very important. Not that he needed a book to tell him that.

He gave Emma a lovable huge squeeze and gently ran his hand over her belly. God, he loved her and his unborn child. He didn’t think before that he was even capable of loving someone he’d never met yet. His baby.

“You okay, babe?”

Emma’s soft, pouty lips tugged at his inside. He reached his hand to her chin and gently stroked it as he brushed his lips on hers. “God, I love you, baby. You and our child mean the world to me.”

Emma sighed and shifted herself appearing uncomfortable.

“Oh, baby, come here.” Evan guided Emma to sit down on his lap once he seated himself back on his chair. He held her like cradling a child. Her soft flowery scent tantalized his nose. He kissed her again tenderly on the chin and then moved his lips to her lips. He felt an electric current travel through his vein. He was falling in love with her all over again, if that was at all possible. But right now, he had to get to the bottom of her not looking so well.

“Anything I can get you, hon?”

“No. Evan.” Emma sighed heavily, her brown-eyed gazed dropped to the marble floor of the den. “I have something I need to tell you,” she murmured, sliding his right hand from her belly and pushing it away.

“What is it, baby?”

Emma sighed again. Her heart was thrashing about madly inside her chest. Her stomach ached as if someone was throwing her mighty blows. It was empty. She was not carrying his child after all. This was harder for her than she’d thought. Looking into Evan’s sexy, dark eyes and his long beautiful lashes was not going to be easy when she was about to burst his bubble. His five o’clock shadow which he’d been sporting a lot of these days made him look like a bad-boy tycoon. She was turned on by it! But not turned on about what she was about to tell him.

How was she going to deliver the news of the newfound pregnancy results without crushing the man who had put her up on a new pedestal?

5.

Emma drew in another deep breath and turned her face to look Evan in the eyes. “Honey, you’re crying!”

“No, I’m not!”

“Yes, you are, baby. I…I’m not used to seeing you cry.”

She pushed her hand to remove a tear drop that spilled out of the corner of his sexy dark eyes. Her stomach leaped like an Olympic gymnast on the uneven parallel bars.

“What is it, baby?” she probed.

Evan drew in a breath and squeezed Emma closer to his body. He rested his head on her breasts and closed his eyes. “I love you and our unborn child, Emma. You have no idea how happy you’ve made me,” he whispered in a low moan as he caressed her back and gently rubbed her tummy.

Oh, God! This was so not the right time to tell him that her belly was empty. No baby. She must think of something fast! But what?

He kissed her neck then brushed his soft lips against hers. Emma’s body reacted to his pleasurable touch and she moaned in her throat. His fingers moved to massage her nipple under her blouse. Emma felt electric currents of desire rush through her body. Oh, she was so turned on. Now was definitely not the best time to tell Evan. She couldn’t kill the mood. And for what? Maybe she could get pregnant now.

After passionate lovemaking on the plush sofa in the den, Emma laid cradled in Evan’s strong, muscular arms. She looked up at him and couldn’t help but melt at the grin on his face. He seemed as if he were in heaven. Oh, why couldn’t she really be pregnant? That darn ODP pregnancy test! They should have made the instructions clear on the box. Then again, she did throw it out right after she pulled the test stick out, didn’t she?

“What’s on your mind, baby?” Evan’s deep, sexy low voice derailed her line of thought.

“You’re awake, hon?” His eyes were still closed and he looked dreamy, yet she knew he must have peeked at her as she laid on his muscled chest. A blanket covering the two of them as they rested in the after-glow of love-making. The French double doors to the den were locked just in case anyone tried to come in. That was the only downside to living with extended family and servants.

“You look like you have a ton on your mind.” His lips were still curved into a salacious grin and his eyes were now penetrating her as he opened them.

“Oh, it’s nothing.”

“You’re worried about the baby?” he queried.

Actually, I’m worried about the
lack
of baby.

“Why would you think that?”

“That’s why I used the condom just in case, baby. I didn’t want to take any chances. But you’re still safe to make love to your husband, unless the doc says otherwise. Speaking of which…” He leaned up a bit in the couch with a quizzical expression on his face. “Which obstetrician are you going to use for our baby? I’m planning to change my schedule to make sure that we can go to your first official appointment together, hon."

“What?”

“Your first appointment. You know. The official pregnancy blood test at the doc’s office then the referral to a good obstetrician. I want to make sure you get only the best.”

Emma’s entire body stiffened. She tried to hide the look of horror on her face by burying her face into Evan’s naked chest.

She felt a sudden urge to make a bathroom visit, probably guilt. She got up from the sofa hugging the sheets around her. Thank God the den had its own private en suite bathroom.

“Where are you going, hon?” Evan called out to her as she made her way across the spacious den.

Where am I going? Probably hell!

“Oh, just to pee, hon.” She tried to hide the quiver in her voice.

“Oh, right. I read somewhere you’ll be taking a lot of bathroom breaks, especially during the first three months."

Oh, God! He wants to go with me to the doctor to do the official blood test for pregnancy. How am I going to get out of this one?

6.

“Good morning, Fletcher Advertising,” Lucinda the receptionist answered the phone at the corporation with a reserved tone in her voice. As receptionist, no matter how crappy she felt she had to try to mask it with a smile or fake pleasantry.