Married For Jeremy (Under Fire Book 1) (14 page)

Prologue

              James heard scratching on the inside of the garage door. Scooter must’ve gotten himself locked in there again. Striding to the door, he pushed it open and the dog burst out, rubbing against his legs and whining with pleasure. “How big of a mess did you make this time?” James asked, reaching into the garage to flip the lights on. Scooter hadn’t accessed the garbage yet, he’d only managed to knock over a box of cardboard, ready to be recycled.

              “You stay outside,” James said, going into the garage and shutting the dog out. He quickly shoved most of the flattened boxes back into their container, then bent to reach for the last few pieces. He stopped as his eyes found a bright pink piece of cardboard. The packaging for a pregnancy test. A little suspicions, James finished cleaning up and headed into the house, hoping to talk to Ellen.

              As he’d thought she’d be, she was sound asleep. Quietly undressing, he crawled into bed beside her. She had been more tired than usual lately. Stretching out on his back, he put his hands behind his head. If he really was a father again, it would be a lot different than last time. This time, he could share some joy with Ellen, instead of them both feeling angry with each other. He wondered how she’d like him to react when she told him. He glanced sideways as she stirred.

              “James? Is that you?” She shifted toward him.

              “Yeah, it’s me.”

              “Scooter wandered off, I couldn’t find him before I went to bed. Did he come in with you?”

              “Yeah. He got himself locked in the garage again.”

              “Oh. I didn’t mean to leave him out, I was just so tired I didn’t think I could stay up waiting for him.”

              “It doesn’t hurt him to stay out on a night like tonight. Might help him remember to come back.”

              “He didn’t get into the garbage again did he?”

              “No, just dumped the cardboard. I picked it up.”

              “Thank you.” She curled up against him and he put his arms around her. “James, can we talk?”

              “I thought you were tired,” James said with a smile.

              “I’ve already slept a couple hours. Are you tired?”

              “I’m never too tired for you.” James hoped she was going to tell him.

              “Do you think we should have more kids?”

              “Sure, someday.”

              “Soon?”

              “Sure.”

              “James,” she shifted so she could look at him. “That’s good because I’m pregnant.”

              James grinned at her. “That’s great. This time we can both be happy about it.”

              “That’s what I thought.” Ellen put her arms around his neck. “I want a girl this time.”

              “Yeah, maybe she’ll even be pretty like you.” James kissed her. “Now get some rest.”