Dan followed her over to her car and made sure she was okay to drive before racing over to his Jeep and starting the engine. He knew where she lived so didn’t need to tail her, but he was worried she’d have another bout of vomiting, and if she did he wanted to be there to take care of her.
Jody was stretched out on the couch wondering when it was that Dan had taken over her life. He was currently at the dining table with the girls doing their homework. She could hear them giggling and generally having fun, which she couldn’t remember them doing whenever she helped them. He’d ordered dinner, which would be delivered around seven. And he ordered her to take a nap. Ha. Fat chance that would happen when all she could hear was her girls and how happy they sounded.
She hadn’t been sick again but the nausea was still hanging around. The thought of food made it worse, so she tried to not think about it. But she was thinking about something that made her feel even sicker. It had been a while, a good long while, but she had a sinking feeling she knew exactly what was wrong with her. If she was right, her world—and Dan’s—was about to be turned on its head.
She’d put it off long enough. Forcing herself to move, she got to her feet and headed to her bathroom. She found the packet of pills she was looking for and studied it carefully. The sugar pills had kicked in five days ago and she still hadn’t got her period. This wasn’t good. She checked to see she’d taken all the other pills before she suddenly remembered something that not only confirmed her suspicions but dropped the bomb on her world.
During the first week of this packet of contraceptives, she’d had a throat infection and had to take antibiotics for fourteen days. How could she have been so stupid? She knew the drill. Knew the meds would affect the pill and put her at risk, but she hadn’t thought about that when she’d assured Dan that she was safe. Sinking to the edge of the bath, she stared at the empty pouches and wondered what to do. Telling him was out of the question. Not until she knew for sure. There was no point stressing out both of them until she’d either peed on a stick or in a jar.
“Hey, you all right?” Dan asked from the doorway. He noticed the packet in her hand and came into the room, closing the door behind him. “What’s wrong?”
“I, um, I’m not sure…” Did she just blurt it out? Oh God. She’d been here before. Pregnant, unmarried and facing an uncertain future. Except this time she was older—wiser—and she had no intention of being forced into something she didn’t want. “I was just taking some medicine.”
“Do you have a headache, fever?” he asked as he placed the back of his hand on her forehead.
“A slight one,” Jody lied.
“Why don’t you have a shower and get in your pyjamas. If you want to skip dinner and go straight to bed, I’ll take care of the girls.”
Tears stung her eyes. He was being so nice and she was keeping a huge secret from him. But until she knew for sure, she wasn’t about to reveal what she’d discovered. Instead, she’d play the sick card and keep out of his way as much as possible. “If you don’t mind, I’d really like that. I can always ring Mum though.”
“Nonsense. I’m already here and dinner is taken care of, so there isn’t any point dragging her out when I’m more than capable.” He grinned at her, which made her want to cry more. Why did he have to be so nice when she was feeling so crappy?
“Thanks.”
He backed away. “Yell if you need anything.”
“Okay.”
“I mean it. Anything.”
“I will.”
“Good. I’ll get you a glass of water for beside your bed. Do you want anything else, food?”
“No. I don’t think I could stomach anything right now.”
“All right. I’ll check on you in a bit.”
He was out the door and gone before Jody breathed easy. She had some major decisions to make. Having a baby was not in her plans. She’d been there and done that. The idea of more children had never entered her head after she’d had Amy. Her hand slid over her belly. If she was pregnant, did she want to keep it? Could she even get rid of it? No. There was no way she could abort a child. It just wasn’t in her to take that step.
Pushing to her feet, she turned and twisted the hot-water tap in the shower. Steam rose almost instantly, and she adjusted the cold until the water was the right temperature. She stripped out of her clothes and stepped under the warm spray. The heat and massage showerhead did wonders for her tight muscles and she stayed under longer than she should have.
When her fingers began to wrinkle, she decided it was time to get out. The end of her ponytail had gotten wet so she grabbed a handtowel to squeeze the water out before picking up her large bath towel and rubbing the soft cotton over her skin. With the towel wrapped around her, Jody made her way out into the bedroom to find Dan had done exactly what he said he would. On her bedside drawers sat a glass of water.
She fought off the onslaught of tears that suddenly pressed against her eyes and quickly got into some pyjamas. Turning back the covers, she climbed beneath and snuggled into the thick quilt. First thing tomorrow, she’d sneak off and buy a home-pregnancy kit. The sooner she knew for sure, the sooner she could make some decisions and plans.
Chapter Seventeen
Jody stared at the stick in her hand and couldn’t believe it when a tiny pink plus sign appeared in the clear window. That couldn’t be right. She shook the damn thing in case it was stuck. No change. She grabbed the box and re-read the instructions. Had she peed on the stupid thing right? Maybe she was supposed to pee in a cup and soak the end for a minute or something. She scanned the words as they blurred before her eyes. Oh God! She’d done everything exactly as instructed.
Full-blown panic took over. She trembled from head to toe and sweat broke out, slicking her palms so much that the reason for her sudden terror slipped from her grip. It dropped to the bathroom floor and she scrambled to pick it up before someone in another cubical saw.
“Oh God.” This can’t be happening again. “Oh God, oh God, oh God.”
She couldn’t breathe. Couldn’t think. Couldn’t get past the terrifying reality that at thirty-four she was a divorced mother of two teenagers and pregnant from what had essentially been a one-night stand.
“Oh God.”
It had to be wrong. She couldn’t be pregnant. Did these things have used-by dates? Surely it was broken or something—anything other than finding herself in the same position as sixteen years ago. A wave of nausea swamped her and she spun around, flipping up the toilet seat before emptying her stomach into the bowl. Again. She’d never been this sick with either of the girls. That had to be a sign the stick lied. Didn’t it? When the last of the spasms passed, Jody got to her feet and almost toppled headfirst into the toilet when someone knocked on the door.
“Are you all right in there, love?” The voice was shaky with age and Jody thanked God it wasn’t the smartly dressed twenty-something who’d been her constant shadow since arriving at the courthouse.
“Y-yes.” Jody licked her dry lips and bile rose in her throat at the foul taste. “I’m fine. Thank you.” Her own voice shook, but it had nothing to do with age.
She needed to pull it together. Revealing her secret here was not an option, and if she didn’t get control of her emotions the first person to look at her funny would send her into a meltdown. Water ran in one of the sinks and Jody hoped the elderly woman was about to leave. Drawing in a deep breath, she turned the lock on the door and stepped out of the cubicle.
“Here you go, dear.” The smallest woman Jody had ever seen held out a handful of wet paper towel. “Put that against your neck. I always found that helpful when I was suffering morning sickness.”
Jody’s hand froze in mid-air as she reached for the wadded up towel. “How—”
The gray-haired woman chuckled. “My dear, nothing other than a coming baby can empty a woman’s stomach quite like that.” She patted Jody’s arm. “Now take these and a deep breath. I’m sure it’ll pass in
a few moments.”
Jody took the bundle of wet paper and pressed it against her neck. Dumbfounded, she stood there as the kind old woman turned to leave. At the last second, she remembered her manners and muttered, “Thank you.”
“You’re welcome, dear. And congratulations. It’s an exciting time when you’re expecting.” With a wave, she disappeared through the outer door, leaving Jody alone in the cold marble room with her decidedly unexcited emotions.
She still held the stick in her hand and she brought it up to look at it one more time before tossing it in the bin when she discovered the plus sign hadn’t changed. Remembering her bag, Jody turned around and retrieved it from the hook on the back of the toilet door. The test kit sat on the floor where she’d dropped it when she’d thrown up and she picked it up and shoved it back in the brown paper bag in her purse. There were another two test sticks in the box. She’d wait until later, at home, to do the test a second time. Possibly a third. If the results were the same, she’d make an appointment with her doctor as soon as she could get in.
“Ms. Walsh?” Blonde twenty-something stuck her head in the bathroom door. “The girls are finished and the judge is going to make his decision in the next few minutes.”
Jody breathed a sigh of relief. Finally, Leigh and Amy were out. They’d been in with the judge for over an hour, and the longer it went on the more she’d worried. Not about what either of them might say, but about how they’d cope being peppered with questions about a man they barely knew.
“I’ll be right there.” She dumped the wad of towel in the bin and checked her appearance before deciding she was none the worse for wear after her latest vomiting episode. She’d been doing it so regularly this morning that haggard was her permanent look, and she figured she’d get away with it because of the nature of today’s proceedings.
Exiting the bathroom, she found both her lawyers, her parents, her brother and the girls waiting for her. It was the person between the girls that surprised her. Dan smiled, and even with the emotions currently swirling around inside, she smiled back and felt a heavy weight lift off her, like he’d taken heavy grocery bags from her hands. She took her time, nerves about the decision, about how the girls went and about the man who’d turned her life on its head, collided together to make her cautious even when it was just approaching those who were here to support her and the girls.
Mackenzie stepped forward. “Leigh and Amy did brilliantly. You should be very proud of both of them.”
“Thank you. But I don’t need them to answer questions in front of a judge to make me proud.” Jody held out her arms and both girls rushed into them. She buried her nose in Amy’s hair and breathed in the scent of her familiar shampoo. The three of them held on for longer than normal, but today was anything but normal.
“We’ll know for sure in the next few minutes, but I’m confident the judge is going to grant the order,” Mackenzie added.
Jody looked up and met Mackenzie’s gaze. “Thank you. For everything.”
“You’re welcome.”
The girls started talking at once as they pulled away and Jody had to hold up her hand to stop the excited flow. “One at a time, please.”
“Gran and Gramps want to take us to the movies. Can we go?” Leigh asked.
Jody glanced at her mother and father. “Are you sure?”
“Of course. We’ll bring them home after dinner.” He father pulled her into a big hug and she leaned into him, soaking up his warmth and comfort.
“Thanks, Dad.”
“You hang in there, kiddo. Everything is going to be fine.” He gave her a final squeeze before letting go. “We’ll see you later. Me and my favourite girls have a date.”
“Hey, I thought I was your favourite girl.”
Her dad tweaked her nose. “Always. But if I don’t share it around the others will get upset.” He winked, making her laugh.
Her mother gave her a quick hug before grabbing the girls’ hands and leading them away.
“Bye. Behave, girls,” she called out. They were already halfway down the corridor, their mother and this morning’s ordeal completely forgotten. Which delivered equal pangs of relief and sadness.
“You okay?” Dan’s warm hand spread across her spine. “Still feeling a little queasy?”
“Yes, how can you tell?” She turned to look at him. He couldn’t tell anything else could he?
“You’re still a little pale and your eyes have that glazed look you get when you’ve been tossing your cookies.” He rubbed his hand in circles and Jody couldn’t help but lean into the support he offered.
“You can stop worrying now. In a few minutes, the judge will hand down his decision and everything will go back to normal,” Dan said.
Jody covered a snort of laughter with her hand and a fake cough. If only he knew. Nothing was ever going to be normal again.
Dan hadn’t meant to snoop. But when he’d dropped Jody’s handbag on the counter and everything had tumbled out…the brown paper bag had snagged his attention first. Then the box with words Early Test Kit half hanging out had grabbed him by the gut. He wasn’t proud of himself for pulling it out the rest of the way, but nothing could compete with the roller coaster of emotions that followed.
He wasn’t sure what to think. Okay, he knew exactly what he was thinking, but what to do about it was the question. Jody hadn’t said a word, and he couldn’t decide if he should wait to see if she did, or bring up the topic himself. She’d obviously taken the test. The box was open and one of the three test sticks was missing. A burst of excitement exploded inside him quickly followed by anger.
Had she lied to him about being on the pill? Reason quickly asserted itself. Why would she? It didn’t make sense or fit with the woman Dan had come to know. He shoved everything back in her bag and put it down on the breakfast counter. She’d raced off to the bathroom the minute she’d opened her front door and he had a pretty good idea why. So far he’d counted four dashes to the toilet today, and he’d only been with her for as many hours. He’d honestly thought she was sick due to the stress of going to court, but if he was reading the signs right—and a box of home pregnancy test kits was a pretty big sign—it wasn’t the threat her ex represented that had her throwing up her lunch.
“Sorry. Can I get you a coffee?”
She breezed into the room, her face flushed, her eyes glassy, and he couldn’t think of a thing to say that didn’t start and end with, “Are you pregnant?” He figured blurting it out was the wrong way to deal with it, so he held his tongue and nodded.
He slid onto a barstool and watched her move around. She wasn’t as animated as usual, but after the last few weeks and today that was to be expected. And if she was pregnant—his gaze dropped to her belly, but he couldn’t see any evidence of a baby bump—then he was surprised she was functioning at all. Other than the dark circles beneath her eyes and the tired, pale look, Dan couldn’t see any physical difference. He’d heard the female body went through numerous changes before it became obvious there was a baby on the way, but other than the obvious swollen belly he didn’t know what they were.
A thought occurred to him and he pulled his phone from his pocket and opened his calendar app. He counted back to their weekend job. Seventeen days. She wasn’t even three weeks. Things were barely getting started inside her.
“Dan!”
He jerked his gaze up to meet Jody’s. “Huh?”
“Do you have milk?”
Oh, his coffee. “Yes, please.”
“Where were you? You spaced out on me. I don’t think you heard anything I said in the last five minutes.” She filled two mugs with boiling water and the aroma of coffee filled the air.
He waved his phone. “Just checking email.”
“Oh.” She leaned across the counter and put his coffee in front of him.
Dan had to admit he could get used to watching her make him coffee every day. And if she was pregnant, he’d get to do exactly that. He wondered if she�
��d want a big wedding or if they’d have something small and intimate. He’d never thought about how he’d get married or even if he would. But now that he was thinking about it, Dan had to acknowledge a small wedding would be more his style. Of course, he was putting the cart before the horse. She hadn’t even mentioned the possibility of a pregnancy.
He decided to lead her in the direction of a confession. “How are you feeling?”
“Better. I’m sure it’ll pass now that the drama is over.”
“Are you happy the judge granted your order?” Dan had to wonder how much she cared for her ex when she very rarely badmouthed him. Although he was more inclined to think she pitied the man she was once married to.
“Yes. There won’t be any real difference day to day, except the girls and I are protected from another incident like the other night.” Jody took a sip of her drink before continuing. “Colin’s not in the girls lives anyway. Since he moved out five years ago, he’s seen them a total of twelve times. He does the obligatory Christmas and birthday visits and that’s it—although he’s missed both of their last birthdays and Christmas. Other than the child-support money that drops into my account once a month, I don’t even think about him most of the time.”
“I don’t understand how anyone can walk away from their children like that.” He wanted his position on any children he might father clear before Jody brought up her possible pregnancy. “I’d never abandon a child of mine even if I was no longer involved with their mother.”
He thought she stiffened for a second, but then she turned around and, opening the dishwasher, began emptying it. “Not all fathers feel the same way obviously.”
Dan bit his tongue. He wanted to confront her. Wanted to know for sure so they could make plans, except something told him she wasn’t ready to face this yet. He’d been chasing after her from the start, and he suddenly had the sinking feeling that he’d always be trying to catch her. In this, he had to let her come to him. And if she didn’t by the end of the week, he’d say something.
Catch 'n' Kiss (Are You Game?) Page 17