Baby Makes Six

by Shelley Galloway

  “We’re divorced.”

  “I remember the divorce well. I also remember the day you first talked to him on the phone. And your first date.”

  “We walked on the beach,” Shawn blurted.

  “Oh, you were so happy then. I have to say I was just a tad envious.”

  “We were happy, but marriage isn’t for wimps. And, well, we grew apart.”

  “You and Eddie have certainly been through a lot.”

  “I still love him, but not as a husband. I mean, we just can’t live together.”

  “You sure about that?”

  “Pretty sure.” Shawn shook her head. “Scratch that. I’m definitely sure. We can’t live together—at least not on a day-to-day basis. And we’re not sleeping together, either.”

  Ramona raised an eyebrow. “Just sometimes.”

  “I don’t know what happened.” Once again visions of their incredible night together leaped to mind. Eddie had recently returned from a weekend fishing trip. He’d been as tanned as he’d been coming back from Iraq. He’d worn new cologne, too. He’d smelled so good. After one kiss, all she’d wanted was another taste of him. “We just…lapsed.”

  Something painfully sweet passed over Ramona’s face. “Don’t be too hard on yourself, Shawn. Some days I’d give a lot to have a lapse. And a baby on the way.”

  Looking down, Shawn nodded. “I know. And I want a healthy baby. After last time, I feel guilty for even having a moment’s doubt. I know I’ll love her, too. But sheesh! This was unplanned.”

  Pulling out an oversize calendar, Ramona said, “So what do you want to do about your job? Do you still intend to work after the baby comes?”

  “Of course! Actually I’ve been trying to find a way to ask if I could have more hours. I’m going to need the money more than ever now.”

  “I was hoping you would say that.” Ramona stood up, pulled a sheet from one of the many colored folders on her credenza. “There’s going to be a job opening soon. Faye Clancy is going to the Phoenix office to take a position in human resources. So I’m going to need someone to fill her spot. Faye, as you know, is a dayshift manager. It’s a forty-hour-a-week job, but it will mean a better insurance plan and quite a pay raise.”

  “Do you think I could do it?” In her wildest dreams, Shawn had never imagined Ramona would greet her news by offering her a promotion.

  “I think you could do anything you set your mind to. You’ve got a lot to offer here, Shawn, and not just to the company and our customers. A lot of employees look to you for guidance and support. Carnegie is lucky to have you. I know it, and what’s more, corporate in Phoenix knows it, too.”

  Handing the paper to Shawn, she said, “Think about it for a week. I’ll post it next Friday if you turn it down. So, there’s no pressure. You’re my preferred candidate—but there are plenty of others in the office who would want to interview for it.”

  “I’m interested.”

  “I’m glad. You are certainly our first choice. And, well, it might be just what you need, Shawn.” With a wry grin, Ramona said, “Never underestimate the healing benefits of a good job.”

  After taking the paper, Shawn clasped Ramona’s hand. “Thanks. Thanks a lot. There aren’t too many places that would offer me a job like this.”

  “I would have been a fool not to. You’re an excellent employee and you have a way about you that others admire. But don’t let this pressure you,” she warned. “If it doesn’t feel right, other offers will come along.”

  Shawn wasn’t so sure. For every person like Tricia, there were ten others who liked Carnegie as much as Shawn did and wanted a long-term career there. The powers that be wouldn’t take her refusal of a promotion lightly. “I’ll let you know my answer soon.” Thinking how clear everything felt at work, she murmured, “I wish things were this easy in my personal life. There, I feel like the biggest idiot imaginable.”

  “Don’t shortchange yourself. You may be more of a successful mother than you’ll ever know.”

  She’d been thinking more about her failures as a wife. But that hurt too much to share. “I’ll think about your offer. I promise.”

  “Good. Now stop beating yourself up for being lucky enough to have another baby. It’s a blessing.”

  A tremor reverberated through Shawn as she heard the wistful tone in Ramona’s voice. Ramona was correct—Shawn had been given a wonderful gift and so far had only been thinking of the negatives, not what a blessing having a baby could be.

  Just as she turned to go, Shawn glanced at the other woman. “Ramona, how are you? Are you dating anyone?”

  “No.” The lone word was bitten out, stark and so sad.

  “Still too soon?”

  Her smile cracked. “I don’t know if it’s too soon or not. My heart just isn’t in it. And, well, the two dates I did force myself to try were pretty awful.”

  “Men are difficult.”

  “Not all men. Mark wasn’t.”

  “He loved you.” After her husband died, Ramona had arrived at work with dark circles under eyes and a telltale pallor to her skin. Everyone had been at a loss as to how to help their hurting manager, who seemed determined to keep all her pain private.

  “He was a gem of a husband. I loved him, too. I always will. But a part of me doesn’t want to live in the past. I want to move forward and try again. Memories and a bottle of wine only get you so far on a Friday night.”

  “I’m sorry I haven’t reached out to you more. I guess I’ve been so centered on my own problems. That’s no excuse.”

  “Don’t worry, Shawn. Pretty soon I’m going to have to make some decisions about my future. But in the meantime, I’ll choose to help you with yours. So, no more talk about getting fired. Okay?”

  “Yes, ma’am.”

  “And you’ll take care of yourself?”

  “I’ll do my best. And you’ll take care of yourself, too?”

  “I will. I will for as long as I have to.”

  Ramona sounded so determined and sad. So abject and resigned. Her words rang in Shawn’s ears for quite some time.

  Chapter Ten

  It was as if he was eleven again and had a secret. At 8:00 a.m., Eddie stood outside his parents’ house and took a deep breath. How the hell was he going to tell them about Shawn and the baby?

  How in the hell could he not tell them?

  “Ed?” his father called from the other side of the kitchen window. “I’ve been watching you wander around back there for fifteen minutes. You going to stand in the back porch all day or come on in?”

  “Yeah. Sorry.” After opening the screen door, he was greeted with the unexpected sight of his parents drinking coffee and eating fruit and granola. That made him smile. His father’s usual routine involved pots of coffee and a Pop-Tart or two. “Dad, I didn’t know you knew what granola was.”

  “I wish I still didn’t. Your mother’s got me on a diet.”

  “His cholesterol was getting crazy. I decided to make some changes,” his mom said cheerily. “Coffee, Ed?”

  “Yes, please.”

  While his mom poured him a cup, his dad continued to grouse. “I’m now eating more fruits, vegetables and yogurt than I ever have in my entire life.”

  “Fruit is good for you.” After thanking his mom for the coffee with a smile, Eddie added, “I’m sure it’s a lot better than the usual stuff you eat.”

  “It wasn’t too bad.”

  Thinking of his dad’s penchant for peanut butter cups, chips and salami sandwiches, Eddie said, “It wasn’t too good.”

  His mom patted his dad’s back. “Now things are much better. Remember, honey, this isn’t a diet, it’s a new way of life.”

  “This new way is a pain in my backside.”

  His mom pretended not to hear. “Hungry, Ed?”

  “Not really.”

  “I am.”

  “Hush, Bill.” In spite of Eddie’s reluctance, his mom brought him a bowl of raspberries, a carton of yogurt and a slic
e of apple cinnamon coffee cake. “Here you go, son. Now eat and tell us why you stopped by.”

  There was only one way to go about sharing the news. Straightforwardly. “I saw Shawn a few days ago. We talked.”

  Sharon glanced at Bill, then nodded encouragingly. “What did you two talk about?”

  “About the fact that she’s pregnant.”

  His dad pulled over the slice of cake from Eddie’s plate, jabbing at it with a fork. “I see.”

  “I don’t.” Sharon frowned, so visibly upset that she didn’t even fuss at Eddie’s dad. “This news has floored me. I didn’t think she was seeing anyone.”

  There was no easy way to admit the truth. There never was. Feeling vaguely like he had in the Army when he’d been the bearer of bad news, he looked straight ahead and blurted the truth. “The baby’s mine.”

  “I see,” his mom said, though it was incredibly clear she didn’t. “Well. So, uh, how far along is she?” Tentatively, she said, “Is everything okay?”

  “She’s five months. Out of the danger zone.”

  For a brief moment his dad closed his eyes, making Eddie realize once again that none of them had been unaffected by the miscarriage.

  When he glanced Eddie’s way again, however, Bill’s expression was not as contemplative. “She’s five months? What kind of divorce was this, son? If you two intended to still fool around, you should’ve just stayed together.”

  “Everything would have been a lot easier,” his mom agreed.

  “We haven’t been fooling around. It was a onetime thing. One late night.”

  His mom tilted her head just enough to make the ends of her auburn hair brush her jaw. “And what about Jayne? Are you sleeping with Jayne, too? Because if you are, I just don’t think that’s a good idea.”

  Eddie was glad he hadn’t even made a dent in his food, because he’d be having a hard time choking it down. “Who I’m sleeping with is none of your business.”

  “It kind of is, if you’re producing grandchildren right and left.”

  “Dad!”

  “Don’t play shy now, Edward. I don’t want to know the details. I just want to know what’s going to happen with our new grandchild.” Sizing his son up, he asked, “Are you sure you’re the father? Maybe Shawn is sleeping with other men, too.”

  “Yes, I’m certain.” For some reason, he was prepared to defend Shawn’s honor. “She doesn’t sleep around.”

  “That’s only something you do, huh?”

  Why had he thought this would be an easy conversation? “I’ve only recently been sleeping with Jayne. Are you two happy now?”

  His parents exchanged glances. After a good pause his mother blurted, “Only recently? But you’ve been dating for a while. Why’d you wait so long? Because you still have feelings for Shawn?”

  His father answered before Eddie could tackle that one. “Obviously. He’s still making babies.”

  “It was one time!” Eddie snapped. Though that also wasn’t quite the truth. It had been several times during one amazing night.

  To his shock, his mother smiled. “That one time must have been something else.”

  Closing his eyes, Eddie breathed deeply and tried to hold his patience. “This is definitely not going like I thought it would.” He pulled over the dish of raspberries and tossed a few in his mouth. As the tart sweetness exploded on his tongue, he said, “I thought you two were going to be shocked.”

  His dad glared. “Oh, we are.”

  “We are really shocked,” Sharon said, looking him over. “But I’m more shocked to hear about your indifference to Jayne, if you want to know the truth.”

  “I’m not indifferent—”

  Slicing another piece of cake, Sharon continued, “Jayne’s a nice girl, but she’s young. And she’s looking for a future, Eddie. She’s going to want her own babies. I don’t know what she’s going to think about a future with you and Shawn.”

  “You know, Shawn doesn’t want me involved like that. She doesn’t want to get married again.”

  “It doesn’t matter what she says—or what she wants,” his dad pointed out. “You already are involved. And you will be involved with Shawn and your children for the rest of your life.”

  “I know.”

  His dad forked another bite of cake. “Do you?”

  His mother patted his shoulder. “Eddie, did you come over here to tell us the news or ask for advice?”

  “I don’t know. Maybe both,” he admitted. “I thought I was here just to tell you, but I’m reeling. I don’t know what to do about Shawn. She’s kept that news from me all this time. How could she keep something so important a secret?”

  “I guess she’s the only person who can tell us that. But maybe she didn’t know how to deal with things, either? Give yourself some time, dear. You need time to let things sink in.”

  “I don’t have weeks to process all this and plan ahead like I usually do. Shawn’s going to have a baby in September.” He raked a hand through his hair. “September.”

  His parents exchanged glances. “That’s a good month.”

  In spite of their serious conversation, Eddie felt himself smile. Everyone liked the idea of a September baby. “What should I do about Jayne? She’s going to be furious.”

  “I imagine so.” Spearing a raspberry, his dad spoke again. “But I’d think long and hard about this. One relationship is hard. Two sounds downright impossible.”

  “Especially with a baby on the way.”

  “Especially with another one,” Eddie murmured right before he took his parents’ advice and headed out the door. A walk on the beach might not help, but at least it wouldn’t make things worse.

  Chapter Eleven

  “You didn’t have to be here,” Shawn whispered to Eddie as they sat thumbing through baby magazines in the pink-and-ivory waiting room. “Accompanying me on this appointment really wasn’t necessary.”

  “Sure it was. No way was I going to have you go to all of these checkups by yourself.”

  “I went by myself before and everything was fine.”

  Tossing the magazine back on the table, he said, “How many have you gone to? Four?”

  “One.”

  “One?” He barked the word, giving to the four other women in the room the perfect excuse not to even pretend to do anything else besides stare at them.

  And of course he had to have worn his uniform, so he looked as gorgeous as ever.

  “Keep your voice down,” Shawn hissed. And since it was obvious to everyone that her attention was definitely not on Family Fun Vacations, she tossed her magazine down next to his. “And yes, one.”

  “Even though last time—” He shook his head. “Sorry. I didn’t mean to bring that up.”

  Even though last time she’d miscarried at nine weeks. “We’d already gone to the doctor by then, if you remember.”

  “I remember. Sorry. Look, I’m sorry I brought it up.”

  “You shouldn’t be,” she said after a moment. “It’s always with us. We can’t help that.”

  “No, I guess we can’t.” For a moment she thought he was about to reach for her hand. If he had, she knew she would have taken it.

  There were some things that would always be between them. Some things that could never be taken away.

  The reception door swung open just in time. “Mr. and Mrs. Wagner?”

  “Yes.” Shawn answered, not seeing a need to correct the nurse as they strode into the awaiting hallway.

  AS THEY WERE LED down the hall, Shawn found herself glancing Eddie’s way. To her surprise, he was scanning the pale pink walls and bulletin boards filled with birth announcements with a smile, all traces of their argument long gone.

  “Here’s Elsie’s photo,” he said, pointing to the pink-and-white announcement Shawn had made on their home computer. Standing next to him, she chuckled. “Elsie was so bald. Oh, she was cute.”

  The nurse grinned. “You two already have a child?”

  “W
e already have three. We’re here for number four,” Eddie said just as if they’d planned it.

  “Four! Oh, my! We don’t have too many patients who want to have four children.”

  “Sometimes things just happen,” Shawn said dryly as she stepped on the scale.

  Eddie didn’t even try to look away from her weight. When he frowned at it and then at her, she glared his way. “What?”

  “Your weight seems low. Would you look back and see what Shawn’s weight was for her fifth month last time?”

  Before Shawn could intervene, the nurse—Debbie—was flipping through pages. “Here it is,” she said, pointing to the notation. “Mrs. Wagner, you’re ten pounds less at five months than the last time.”

  “That’s great.” Now she’d have even less baby weight to take off.

  But Eddie shook his head, still concerned. “I don’t think it’s great. Go back and check her weight with the other two, would you please?”

  Now Shawn was just getting annoyed. “Eddie, this isn’t any of your business,”

  Debbie pointed to a chair. “Why don’t you have a seat, Shawn? This might take a moment.”

  Shawn couldn’t believe it, but she sat. And waited. And then felt a little bit of anxiety when Debbie reported that she was eight pounds less than she was during Kit’s and Mary’s pregnancies, too. “It’s probably because I was lighter to begin with. I lost weight during the divorce.”

  “That much?”

  Actually she wasn’t sure. “Probably.”

  “I’m writing a note for Dr. Axman,” Debbie said. “Now, let’s get your blood pressure.” After a few moments she smiled at Eddie. “Blood pressure’s good.”

  “That’s great.”

  When they entered the examining room, Shawn had given up pretending Eddie wasn’t involved and didn’t want to be. Obviously he wanted to be involved a lot. When they were alone, she murmured, “Ed, I’ve got to slip out of this dress. Want to turn around?”

  Instead of answering, he walked behind her and deftly unfastened the top three buttons of her dress, then helped her pull it over her head. Just as she started to feel exposed, standing in front of him in a maternity bra and underwear, he picked up the neatly folded cloth robe on the exam table, flicked it open and helped her into it.