Unexpected Gifts

by Holly Jacobs

  “Just friends.” There was a hint of something in his voice as he said the words—something Eli couldn’t quite identify.

  Whatever it was, it made her heart do a weird little double beat. As if she could possibly be attracted to Zac Keller. But she wasn’t. For a myriad of reasons she knew she wasn’t attracted and never could be. They worked together on the CATA Project, he was younger, she was barely out of a long-term relationship…and she was pregnant. All good reasons to make sure their relationship stayed platonic.

  She should say no to his invitation to Abercrombie’s, but instead, she reiterated, “Friends,” then found herself saying, “That sounds great.”

  “How about tomorrow, after you’re done at school?”

  “I have an appointment tomorrow after school.” He gave her a look that said he thought she was trying to blow him off. She wasn’t. So she quickly added, “But Tuesday would work.”

  “Tuesday it is.”

  TUESDAY AFTER SCHOOL, Eli waited for Zac in a chair by the window in her living room.

  Her appointment yesterday had been a snap. They’d done a sonogram to get a measurement, and determine when the baby would be born. But Dr. Benton was pretty sure she’d have her baby toward the end of May. Eli would be able to work the school year, and spend the whole summer with the baby.

  Her baby.

  The idea still felt surreal, but she thought she was getting used to it.

  Her hand drifted toward her stomach. The baby resembled a blob on the sonogram, and though the technician tried to point out things, no matter how much Eli tried, it was still a blob.

  She heard Zac pull up out front.

  He laughed as she hurried down the drive. “Wow, that was fast.”

  “I was watching for you. It’s a beautiful day for a drive.”

  “So, how did your appointment go yesterday?” he asked as they started towards I-79.

  She tried to remember what she’d told him, but couldn’t, so she simply said, “Fine.”

  “And how are you doing…I mean with the breakup and all.”

  The breakup.

  Arthur.

  She hadn’t heard from him and—she hated to admit it, even to herself—barely thought of him since she’d told him about the baby and he’d bailed.

  What kind of person did that make her?

  She dated Arthur Stone for five long years, and she hadn’t felt the loss of the relationship.

  Hadn’t missed him.

  “Hey, you got really quiet. Are you sure everything’s okay?”

  “Just thinking. It’s a teacher’s curse. You can leave the school building, but you never quit working.”

  “So, how goes CATA?”

  “I have two other businesses interested and…” She babbled about her job, because in truth, it was easier to think about that than think about everything else.

  Maybe that’s why she’d agreed to go out with Zac today. He didn’t know about the baby, so there were no sympathetic looks like she got from Tucker, there was no shock like there had been with Arthur, and there was no nervousness that she hadn’t told him yet like there would have been with her parents.

  He was just Zac. A nice guy who was a friend.

  And she was just Eli. Someone who liked antiques. Someone who enjoyed a drive on a fall afternoon.

  The rest of it…she’d worry about that later.

  Specifically this weekend, when she saw her parents.

  FOR THE FIRST TIME IN her adult life, the weekend came too soon, in Eli’s estimation.

  “Mom, Dad…” Eli started as she sat across from them in her very neat living room.

  She’d practiced her speech over and over again. She knew what she had to say, but she wasn’t sure she was ready for what would follow.

  She stared at them. Gail and John Cartwright. Childhood sweethearts who still held hands, as they did now, sitting on her sofa. Both wore expressions of trepidation. She worried that she’d scared them with her opening: I’ve got big news.

  “Listen, you know I love you. You’ve tried to raise me right and I appreciate that. I’ve tried to live up to the ideals you set for me. What I’m going to tell you might upset you. And though it’s certainly not what I planned…”

  She paused.

  She’d been here before so many times. Only she’d been the moral support for a girl who was telling her parents she was going to be a teen mother. She tried to remember her advice.

  Tell your parents you love them, and that though this wasn’t what any of you had planned, this baby is a gift and you’re going to do everything you can to be worthy of the life that’s been entrusted to you.

  “And though I know this isn’t what I had planned, I have to tell you that I’m…”

  The word pregnant hung for a second on the tip of her tongue. Once she said it, once it was out in the open, everything would change.

  “I’m pregnant.”

  Her mother clapped her hands to her mouth and her father sat stone-faced and unreadable.

  “Mom. Dad. Say something. Say anything.” She waited for them to tell her how disappointed they were. That this wasn’t how they’d raised her.

  “Oh, Eli…”

  Wait for it. Wait for it, she commanded herself, steeling herself for her mother’s words.

  “I’m going to be a grandmother.” Her mother hugged herself with apparent glee. “Oh, my. I’d given up hope. Will I be Grandma? Grammy? Granny—no. I hate that one. Mammy? Nana? Bubbi?” The words rushed over one another, tripping to get out.

  Her mother sprang from the couch as if she were too excited to stay still any longer. She hugged Eli tight.

  “Mom—” You’re happy was what she was going to say, but her mother interrupted.

  “Oh, Eli, I’m going to be a grandmother.”

  She took a deep breath that Eli could feel, as she was still caught in her mother’s death-grip of a hug.

  “Gail, I don’t think Eli can breathe,” her father said. “And that can’t be good for the baby.”

  Her mother let go immediately.

  “Come and take a seat, honey, before you keel over.” Her father made room for her on the sofa next to him. “Congratulations, Eli.” He smiled, but his brows puckered in such a way that she could tell he was worried.

  There was no puckering, no worry in her mom’s expression, as she asked, “Now, when’s your due date? Do you know?”

  “May.”

  “Why isn’t Arthur here with you, telling us?” her father asked.

  There it was again, the pucker.

  Well, they’d taken the news about the baby better than she’d imagined, so maybe they’d take the news about Arthur better as well.

  “You see, Arthur’s not going to be a part of this. We broke up and—” I’m doing this on my own was going to be the rest of the sentence, but her doorbell rang and interrupted her. “Hang on a minute.”

  Eli hurried to the door. Zac was there, with pizza boxes and a DVD. “Hey, I brought food, hoping it would keep you from being annoyed that I’ve just dropped by uninvited and unannounced.”

  She heard her parents’ footsteps and knew they’d followed her. She turned and they were standing in the doorway studying Zac.

  “Mom, Dad, this is my friend, Zac Keller. Zac, my parents, John and Gail Cartwright.”

  Zac handed Eli the pizzas and walked up to her parents. “Mr. and Mrs. Cartwright, it’s so nice to meet you. Eli’s said such lovely things about you. My mother totally fell for Eli when she was over, and said her parents must be wonderful to have raised such a great daughter.”

  Her mother looked hurt. “You told his family first?”

  “Told my family what?” Zac looked confused.

  Eli realized that her mother had misunderstood. “Mom, it’s not what you think. I—”

  Her father cleared his throat and interrupted. “Elinore, you know we’ve always supported you and your decisions. And though we haven’t seen Arthur in a few months, it di
dn’t sound as if you’d been separated very long. After all, today is the first you’ve mentioned it. So how long could you have known this man? This is a monumental undertaking for two practical strangers.”

  She was in trouble when she was Elinore.

  “Dad, I—”

  This time Zac interrupted. “Mr. Cartwright, Eli and I have worked together for quite a while on her new CATA Project. Now that it’s time to implement it, well, so far so good. We’ve become quite close. She’s an amazing woman.”

  “The CATA Project is a huge undertaking,” her mother said. “But John’s talking about the baby.”

  “What baby?” Zac asked, clearly baffled.

  “Yours and Eli’s,” her father responded, looking stern. “And I need to ask you, sir, what are your intentions with my daughter?”

  “Baby?” Zac asked Eli.

  She nodded. “We’ll talk later. But Mom, Dad, this is ridiculous. Zac’s not—”

  “Afraid to answer your question, Mr. Cartwright,” Zac finished. “My intentions, in regard to your daughter, are to do whatever she wants to make this easier on her. I’ve liked her longer than she knows.”

  “Liked her?”

  “More than like, if I were honest, but I’m taking it slow, so as not to frighten Eli off.”

  “You two obviously didn’t take it slow enough,” her father groused.

  “Enough,” Eli said loudly. “Everyone keeps interrupting me. I am not some child who needs to be defended, or explained.”

  “Yes, exactly.” Her mother came over and put an arm gently around Eli. “Enough, you men. My daughter’s pregnant and I’m thrilled. I have so much to do. So much to think about. I have to learn to knit, and we’ll have to go shopping for the baby. Oh, Eli, I’ve wanted to be a grandmother for so long.”

  Eli was on the verge of telling all of them that the baby was Arthur’s, but her mother’s last statement stopped her. “Really?”

  “Oh, yes.”

  “But you never said anything.”

  “I wouldn’t want you to feel as if I were disappointed that I wasn’t. I didn’t want to pressure you. But no matter how this baby came about, know it’s going to be loved and spoiled beyond all sense and reason.” She glanced at Zac. “And no matter how long you’ve known the father, we’ll accept him, too.”

  Her mother walked over to Zac and hugged him. “Welcome to the family, son.”

  “Stop. Please. Zac. Is. Not. The. Baby’s. Daddy.” She enunciated each word as clearly and succinctly as she could.

  “Eli and I are friends who are working our way up to dating,” Zac added helpfully. “But I’m thrilled about the baby. I have five siblings, and am pretty handy with babies, if I do say so myself.”

  “You dumped Arthur, got pregnant by someone else and now are dating this man?” Her father’s voice held a sad disbelief.

  “No. I didn’t dump Arthur. He dumped me and the baby—his baby. And I’m not dating Zac.”

  “Not yet, but hey, a guy can hope.” Zac grinned.

  What on earth was with him? Eli gave him a sharp jab with her elbow.

  Her parents both looked as confused as she felt. “Gail, I think we’d better go and let these two work out what’s going on with them.”

  “You’re right, John.” She hurried to Eli and swept her into her arms. “No matter who the baby’s father is or isn’t, or how long you’ve known him, don’t you worry. Your father and I are here for you every step of the way. And…” She squeezed Eli tighter. “Eli, a baby. I’m beside myself with happiness.”

  Suddenly her mother’s face clouded over. “John, we were leaving in a week for Florida. I don’t know if I can go now. Eli might need me. I—”

  “Mom, Florida’s a couple hours’ flight. I don’t want this to undo any of your plans. You’ll be home long before the baby comes.”

  “But I—”

  “Gail, we’ll talk about Florida and what Eli does and doesn’t need from us later.”

  For a moment, Eli wasn’t sure her mother was going to agree, but then she slowly nodded. “Okay. Tomorrow, Eli. I’ll talk to you tomorrow after you and Zac here sort things out.” She turned to Zac. “It was very nice to meet you, young man. We never really liked Arthur, you know.”

  And with that surprising last sentence, her mother took her father by the hand and said, “Come on, John. Let’s take a drive into Erie and do some shopping on Peach Street. We can stop at Babies ’R’ Us and then…”

  The rest of her mother’s plans were muted as they closed the door.

  Zac took back his pizzas from Eli and started walking toward her kitchen. There was nothing left for her to do but follow and ask, “What on earth was that all about?”

  He set the boxes on the counter. “What?”

  “Don’t what me. You didn’t come right out and deny the baby was yours. And then you claimed we were dating. We are not dating.”

  He opened up one of the lids. “Do you want to get us plates?”

  On autopilot, she opened the cupboard, grabbed two plates, then took a handful of napkins back to the island’s counter.

  “So what gives?”

  “A,” he began, as he put a piece of pizza on a plate and slid it in front of Eli, “I didn’t know you were pregnant, and didn’t know the circumstances with your parents. So I just tried to go along with it.”

  “I didn’t ask you—”

  “And B,” he said, taking the other plate and another piece of pizza and sliding it in front of himself, “we haven’t been dating only because I wanted to give you time to get over your breakup with Arthur. I have no interest in becoming your rebound guy, but I’m every bit interested in dating you for a long time to come. I was trying to be considerate and ease you into the notion.”

  “Well, you can obviously see that’s out of the question now. I thought it was just friendship, Zac. If I’d known you were hoping it was anything else, I would have said something and put a stop to it. Truth is, I was selfish. I had fun hanging out with you. It was easy to forget…well, everything. All the changes I’ll be going through—my life will be going through. The time we were together I wasn’t worrying about the future, about how I’m going to handle becoming a mother. I’m sorry. You deserve so much more than that.”

  “And you deserve all the friends and support you can get. If you don’t mind me asking, if you’re having his baby, why did you break up with Arthur?” Zac took a bite of his pizza.

  “I had a choice. Arthur or the baby. I chose the baby.”

  He dropped the pizza back onto the plate, swallowed and asked, “He didn’t want it?”

  “He’s got his life mapped out and this wasn’t on the map.”

  “So, did you…you didn’t plan on a baby?”

  “Once upon a time, I thought I’d have a houseful of kids. I never found the right guy, and it was never the right time. So somewhere along the line, I decided it wasn’t going to happen and I’ve set up a quiet life for myself.”

  “That’s going to change real fast.” Zac chuckled. “I’ve got younger siblings and I can assure you, babies aren’t quiet.”

  “No, they’re not—I do know that much. But it’s a drop in the bucket compared to what I don’t know. You’d think the fact I’ve done this, dealt with situations like this, for years, that I’d have it all together. I don’t, I’ve got a lot to figure out. And I will. I’ve watched too many girls cry because they’re pregnant. I won’t do that. This baby might be unexpected, but it’s being greeted with…” She searched for the right word. Joy wasn’t quite it. “It’s being welcomed.”

  Zac nodded, as if he’d never doubted it for a moment. “Eli, I want to keep seeing you.”

  “As friends,” she clarified.

  “I want to see you in whatever capacity you’ll allow me to,” he said.

  “I don’t want to lead you on, Zac. I’ve got a lot on my plate. We can be friends, but there’s too much stacked against us being anything more. If that can be enou
gh, then yes.”

  “Fine. If that’s what you want.”

  “That’s what I want,” she assured him.

  “Then friends it is.”

  A COUPLE OF HOURS LATER, Zac turned off the television. It was ironic that he’d thought to woo Eli by bringing a chick-flick movie disguised as an action-adventure, called Adventures in Friendship. Two best friends cavorting through Europe, running from the big bad mafia and discovering they have deep romantic feelings for each other.

  He wondered if there were any mafia guys interested in chasing after a grocery store manager and a teacher. Maybe that would convince Eli they could still be a couple.

  But she was pregnant.

  A baby.

  The news was a shock, and he wasn’t quite sure what to do about it.

  “Zac, I don’t want to be rude, but I really have some things to get done around the house, and I expect my mother and father to stop by once she’s done buying out every baby store on Peach Street.”

  He took the hint. “Yeah, I’d better go.”

  She stood at her door, watching him walk to his car. He wanted nothing more than to go back, hold her and tell her everything would be all right.

  But he’d wait.

  Zac had gotten very good at waiting.

  Rather than drive home though, he went to his parents’. It was never quiet there, and he wanted something to distract him.

  He found his mom in the kitchen, which was no surprise. The fact that he didn’t see his dad or sister, was.

  “Where’s the gang?”

  “Cessy had basketball practice, and your father’s picking her up.”

  His mother was stirring a pot of something as he sat down at the island counter. “You’ll stay for dinner?”

  He meant to say “Yeah, of course.” Instead, he blurted out, “Eli’s pregnant.”

  His mother stopped stirring and took the stool opposite him. “And what are you two going to do.”

  “No, it’s not mine. It’s her ex’s. He found out and dumped her.”

  “I’m sorry. That has to be hard on her.”

  “Mom, does it make me lower than low to be glad he’s gone? Even knowing about the baby? I know I should hope they get back together, but I can’t.”