by Amber Lynn
“I don’t think I’ve anticipated something more in my life.” Nelson meant every word.
Annie shook her head. “I was with you on draft day. You can’t tell me you’re more excited about this than when you were waiting to hear your name called.”
She hadn’t moved to start whatever they needed to do to get the show on the road, so he reached over and grabbed her left hand. It was slightly cold and clammy, but as he raised it up to his lips so he could kiss it, he didn’t care.
“As far as I’m concerned, that baby growing inside of you is my greatest achievement. So, yes, I think what I’m feeling now beats draft day.”
Annie was quick to try to take her hand back, but he held on for a second. After a second tug from her, he went ahead and released.
“I thought I made it clear that you shouldn’t go around kissing women if you didn’t have a good reason.” Annie avoided looking in his direction and focused on finally picking up on the thing next to her.
“And I thought you were only referring to lips coming in contact with more lips. Plus, I had a fine reason for kissing your hand.”
Nelson enjoyed the fact that it didn’t feel like she’d totally shut herself up after the gesture. It wasn’t like she could claim she had somewhere else to be, but she also didn’t try to scoot away from him.
“I highly doubt that.” Annie looked like she was going to say something else, but a figurative flashbulb went off in her brain, at least the widening of her eyes made it seem that way. “Hold whatever logical reason you think you have for just a minute. I put a mess of junk food in the oven for you, and if I don’t pull it out now, I’ll end up burning the apartment down.”
Before Nelson could tell her he’d take care of it, she bounded off the couch and rushed around the corner that divided the kitchen from the living area. The kitchen was set back a little from the open space that was the rest of the apartment.
“Can you take it out and get your butt back here so we can get on with things? I’m hungry after playing twenty-five minutes, but we’re in the middle of something.”
Middle wasn’t the right word, since they hadn’t started. He looked over to the heartrate monitor calling his name and picked it up. Viewing it closer, it still kind of looked like a tool for a car, but the simplistic white device had logos that made it difficult to continue thinking that.
“Why don’t you read the instructions real quick, so you can tell me what to do? Then, while I’m hitting buttons and rubbing that little wand thingy across my belly, you can eat your supper.”
Nelson heard a cabinet open and a plate being set on the counter. It was evident that he was a little preoccupied since all he’d picked up for smells in the apartment was what he assumed was incense. Something about the overpowering smell was familiar, but he couldn’t place it and it was stronger than whatever Annie was making.
“I don’t think it’s going to take much to flip the switch on and use this thing.”
There was a small booklet on the far couch cushion, but it seemed obvious. It wasn’t surprising that Annie thought there was more to it. Technology had never been her friend.
“I read through the novel that came with it, and there’s no way it’s that easy. Flip the switch on and you’ll see how complicated it gets.”
Nelson didn’t believe her, but he went ahead and hit the button to start the machine. It took a second, but the screen came alive. Nelson put it back down, so he could undo most of the buttons on his shirt. When he had something to listen to, he picked up the wand and ran it over his chest.
It was a mere second before he heard the thumping through the speaker on the Doppler. He knew finding the baby’s heartbeat wouldn’t be as easy, but it proved to him he could make it work. The display indicated his heartrate was seventy-three, which was a normal resting rate for him.
“You got it to work.” Annie appeared in front of him with a plate. Her eyes were focused on where the wand touched his skin.
“It’s no wonder you don’t have a television if you couldn’t figure this out, sweetheart. Here, I’ll trade you.” Nelson held out the Doppler in one hand and his empty hand so he could take the plate. It would’ve been nice if she had a coffee table to put it on, because even though she could run the wand on her own, he wanted to help.
They made the exchange and she sat down next to him, leaving about the same amount of room he’d originally put between them. While she moved, Nelson got a look at the food she’d brought. Seeing his favorite kind of frozen pizza, he had to smile. He almost jumped to bite into the Italian sausage thin crust delicacy, but he waited to see if Annie could figure things out.
“It’s not like there’s only one button to hit. I’m pretty sure one of them will teleport me to the future.” Annie studied the device, but didn’t move to use it.
Nelson had already done the difficult part of turning it on, so he didn’t know what the holdup was. He’d even shown her how to use it.
“I guess it’s pretty obvious why you’ve kept me around all these years.” Nelson wasn’t sure why she didn’t lift her shirt and just get on with it, but he decided to let her take the time she needed. He’d already made it clear he was excited about hearing the baby, about twenty times it seemed.
“What do you mean?” Annie looked away from the red numbers to show him that her face also reflected her confusion.
“Like I said earlier, you wouldn’t be able to operate a TV if you didn’t have me around. Technology really isn’t as scary as you make it out to be.” Nelson put his plate in his lap and held out a hand, hoping she’d give the Doppler back, since she didn’t seem to be ready to use it.
“I’ll do it. I’m just a little worried we won’t be able to find the heartbeat.” There wasn’t a lot fear in Annie’s voice, but Nelson didn’t like the thoughts the words instantly filled his head with.
“Do you think something’s wrong with the baby?” After she’d been out of it when he got there and the slight quiver in her voice when she mentioned being worried, Nelson felt a jolt of panic to his chest.
Annie was quick to reach over and grab his hand. “No, it’s not that. I’m sure the baby’s fine. I’m just afraid you’ll be disappointed, and maybe question if there’s a baby at all.”
For someone who wasn’t big on drama, Annie must have been reading a few too many romance novels. And she clearly didn’t have a good memory, because he hadn’t questioned her once about the baby. If it was any other woman, he’d not only demand to witness a pregnancy test, he would’ve asked for a paternity test as well.
“I won’t lie. I’ll probably be a little disappointed if we don’t hear anything. But, there is nothing that would make me doubt there’s a baby. I saw your stomach last week, and it isn’t much, but I can’t think of anything else that would add that bump.”
Annie sighed, and Nelson could tell it was in relief. “Okay then, I suppose I should let you hear your baby.”
She put the monitor between them and lifted up the maroon shirt that dwarfed her body. It wasn’t as bad as when she’d worn his shirt, but it was more fabric than he thought was necessary. The top of her jeans was a little high, so she unbuttoned them and folded the two sides down to expose more of her belly.
Nelson had met models, and even done a little up close observations of a couple, but nothing he’d seen compared to how sexy he thought Annie’s pale white skin of her stomach looked. He wished he remembered how it felt next to his own skin, but that was something he’d just have to kick himself for daily.
Annie picked up the wand and started by putting it just above her belly button. There wasn’t an initial sound that indicated the baby was there, so she slowly dragged the wand in lines, moving around her entire belly. When it looked like she made it over the entire surface, Nelson worried.
He knew there were positioning issues that could cause the silence, but the baby was far enough along that it should’ve been strong enough to come through. Nelson reached over and co
vered Annie’s hand on the wand with his own.
“Slow down a little bit. It doesn’t have to be a race.”
Nelson helped set a new pace. It wasn’t much slower, but he liked feeling he was a bigger part of it. His desire paid off when the first burble of a noise made it through the speakers.
“Wait,” he said as he moved the wand back to where he thought he heard something. It took another second, but a second noise came through the speakers, followed closely by more. The red numbers on the screen jumped up into the hundreds as the fluttering picked up.
“You found it.” Annie sounded amazed.
Nelson was more than amazed. He was speechless. Nelson knew being able to connect to the baby by hearing it would be a momentous occasion for him, but he didn’t understand the full magnitude.
The urge to ask Annie to marry him again was almost overwhelming. He was fairly certain her answer wouldn’t have changed in the week since the first proposal. They hadn’t spent enough time together to get her to change her mind before the two-month checkpoint.
But hearing their baby’s heartbeat made him even more determined that marriage was the right choice. They clearly cared about each other, and even if he didn’t remember it, there had to be some chemistry between them.
Nelson didn’t want to believe he was simply a means to an end when it came to Annie losing her virginity. She had more male friends back home who would’ve loved to help her out, and Nelson would know after having to deal with the looks she got from a few of them. He’d been afraid the threats he’d made would seem a little less scary when he’d moved to the states, but he should have known better.
After you tell someone, with conviction, that if they so much as touch Annie, they are going to find themselves strapped to goal posts so he could practice his slap shot, they tend to listen. Especially if they’ve watched you shoot a puck at a hundred miles an hour.
“Have you ever heard anything that sounded that amazing before?” Nelson was in awe, even after they’d just sat there and listened for a couple of minutes. He didn’t want the sound to go away.
“I have heard it a couple of times before, but I agree. Each time I hear it, it’s getting stronger. The first time I thought the doctor was joking and it was really just gas.”
Annie looked over at Nelson, and he could see tears accumulating, but not quite falling yet. He moved a little closer and lifted his right hand up to softly brush them away before they could go anywhere. Then he leaned down and kissed her forehead. It wasn’t where he wanted to kiss, but he’d learned his lesson.
“Thank you for sharing this with me. I can’t wait to see what shows up on the sonogram.”
Nelson didn’t scoot back to his side of the couch immediately. Instead, he kept his face close to hers, and stared into her eyes. He knew he had to prove to her that he could love her the way she deserved, so their marriage would be more than just one of convenience. He just didn’t know how to take what had been a perfect friendship and adapt into the perfect couple.
Or whether that was what she ultimately wanted. She’d never really shared her hopes and dreams for a husband with him, even though he told her about every serious girlfriend he’d ever had – all two of them.
So, not only was he going to have to change his way of thinking, but he was going to have to work on hers too. The first step he saw in making that happen was getting rid of the boyfriend. She hadn’t brought him up, which Nelson was thankful for, but she also hadn’t mentioned breaking up. That meant he was probably in the wings somewhere, and all Nelson had to do was figure out where and let him know the relationship was over.
Chapter Twelve
It should have been harder for Nelson to leave, but not long after they heard the evidence that their baby was alive and well, Nels kissed her forehead and said he was going to let her rest. Out of all the odd interactions they’d had, something about him taking off so quickly ended up at the top of the list. She could tell he wanted to stick around, just by looking in his eyes.
That made her worried about where he was off to in a hurry. Annie didn’t know what she expected to happen when they heard the baby, but him up and leaving wasn’t one of the possibilities.
She waited to make sure he wasn’t going to turn around, before making her way to the bathroom door. The wait gave her a few minutes to put the Doppler away and try to figure out what was up with Nelson. He hadn’t even bothered to take a bite of the food she’d made. He’d carried his plate to the kitchen and that was it for his visit.
Knocking softly on the bathroom door, she opened it up to see how Doug had fared during his thirty-minute captivity. At first Annie didn’t see him, which didn’t make sense since he should’ve taken up most of the space. She was getting ready to ask if he’d found his invisible cape, when the shower curtain moved.
Doug stretched, like he’d crammed himself in the tub while he waited. His over six-foot frame wasn’t meant to fit in a slightly smaller than average tub.
“I’m sorry the accommodations aren’t as ritzy as your place,” Annie said as she stepped out of the room so he could escape.
“I wouldn’t say that. I’m sure pretty much any tub would make me have to see a chiropractor.”
He was still adjusting his back when he made it into the living area. He paused after clearing the doorway to look around, but once he was sure nothing would bite him, he walked over to the door.
“Well, you said earlier that our farce is over, so you’ll have to find another bathroom to get stuffed in when company shows up.”
Doug hummed and turned to lean against the door. “I thought I had a lot to say before I got to listen to your little intimate conversation. Now, I think I have even more, but it doesn’t seem right to intrude on the soap opera you’ve got going on.”
She didn’t like it, but Annie thought that seemed like an accurate description. She picked up Nelson’s plate and returned to her seat on the couch. She hated seeing food go to waste, and since she hadn’t really had a cheeseburger at the arena, she was hungry.
“It may surprise you, but I’m open to outside opinions on the soap opera.”
The pizza was cool and slightly rubbery, which seemed to be a byproduct of the brand. It didn’t stop Annie from taking a bite, which was followed closely by another.
“I don’t think you really want to hear my opinion. I’d have to tell you that he doesn’t deserve you.”
“Technically, he doesn’t have me. We’re having a baby together, but that’s all.”
The words didn’t feel truthful. They weren’t lies either. There was something in Nelson’s eyes before he left that was different, but she thought any emotions shining in their depths had to do with the baby.
“If you seriously believe that, I’m not the only delusional one in the room. I couldn’t see what was happening, but I heard enough from where I was. It wasn’t like the charade you two put on during team events.”
Annie looked up from her food. “Like you said, you didn’t see what I did. If you did, you would’ve witnessed me pretending I wasn’t in love with him and Nelson coming to terms with the fact there really is a baby in there.”
“Liar.” The word made Annie narrow her eyes at him. “It’s either that or you’re blind. Maybe you’ve just convinced yourself over the years that he couldn’t care about you the same way you claim to him.”
“There’s no way you could’ve picked up his emotions from only hearing our conversation. Whatever you think you heard, was just the devotion he now feels towards his baby.”
Doug shook his head and sighed. “I’m not going to sit around here arguing about this with a chance of him coming back. You can believe what you want, or you could stop torturing yourself and just tell him how you feel.”
“And watch what I’m sure will be pity in his eyes when he tells me he doesn’t feel the same way. I think I’ll pass on that.”
“Suit yourself,” Doug said as he shrugged. “I never did understand how
women think, which is probably why I’m still single.”
“You’re still single because of your horrible taste in movies.”
Annie went back to her pizza. It was half gone, but there was at least three-quarters of it left in the kitchen. She hadn’t eaten for five hours, and she didn’t doubt she could’ve handled the whole thing.
“You would’ve liked it if you weren’t preoccupied. Once things settle down, maybe we can watch it again. With Nelson’s supervision, of course.”
Laughter started in Annie’s chest and found its way out of her mouth. Just picturing Nelson and Doug in a room watching a movie was hilarious. It’d be impossible for anyone in the room to follow along with a plot.
“I’d like to see you suggest a movie night. I thought you said you wanted to get out of here, but yet you seem to be lingering.”
Annie hadn’t decided what she was going to do with the rest of her night. It was getting late, but she knew she was going to be up for a while. Unless someone was kind enough to show up and give her a quick hit to the head to help her fall asleep.
“I’m trying to decide whether I should help you out.” Doug paused.
While she waited to hear what he thought could help, she decided to try one of the lukewarm egg rolls. She figured he was going to bring up telling Nelson how she felt again, not that it would help her. It wasn’t advice she wanted, so he’d only be wasting his breath.
“He probably wouldn’t kill me if he thought we were dating. He’d be pissed, and I’d get at least a black eye, but I think I could keep things from getting out of hand.”
Annie was confused by the direction he seemed to be heading down. He’d stormed over after the game to tell her he wasn’t going to see her again. His brain had to still be compressed from his time in the bathtub.
“Are you saying you’re willing to keep fake dating? I think the ship has probably sailed on that. I have the gist of how it works down now, so I can keep things up without risking him seeing us out together.”