Early made an exaggerated sound of food-induced pleasure. “This eggplant parm is practically orgasm worthy. You should cook more often.”
“I’m going to have to agree.” Roni rubbed Gina’s knee under the table then whispered, “I’m sure I can make it orgasm worthy after dinner.”
“There’s no lesbian sex talk at the table,” Early mock chastised. “Unless, you’re finally going to tell me the answers to my questions.” For as long as he had known Roni, he had been desperately trying to learn the answer to two questions. Did scissoring really work? And who wore the strap-on?
“I’m never telling you either,” Roni sipped more wine, “and I’m suddenly very interested in what Monica asked you, Steven.”
“Monica asked you something?” Gina inquired, as she twirled her pasta.
“I think maybe I should tell you later when we’ve finished off this bottle of wine...and the other bottle.”
“Okay, now you have to tell us,” Gina said. She saw Steven and Early’s shared sideways glance. “Tell us!”
“Alright,” Steven continued and Early topped off the ladies’ wine. “Monica asked when Roni and I were going to try for another baby.”
A spaghetti noodle dangled off of Roni’s fork as she stared at her husband in disbelief. Gina shook her head slowly while she sucked air through her teeth.
“Told you they’d be speechless,” quipped Early.
“And what did you tell her?” asked Roni.
“That we were going to discuss it after you finished your degree.” He pointed across the table at Gina. Her expression had evolved from one of horror, to surprise, and then anger. “I see that look you’re giving me. I’m not saying that we have a baby. It’s just interesting, that’s all.”
“Interesting?” Gina asked with disbelief in her voice. “How about a catastrophically bad idea?”
“I don’t know if I’d say catastrophic,” Roni countered. “It’d definitely be challenging, but it is...interesting.”
Gina couldn’t believe it. “Really, Roni? You think the idea of bringing a child into our already complicated life is ‘interesting’?”
“Yes, I think it is,” Roni declared. “I like children. I teach two dozen of them every day. I do wonder what it would be like to have my own. And if I were to be completely honest, ever since I had the ‘miscarriage’ it’s something I think about often.”
Early patted Roni’s hand as a gesture of comfort. “I remember how sad you were when you lost your make-believe baby.”
“Thank you, Early,” she said just as sweetly as the smile she gave him. “Plus, I’ll be thirty this time next year. I do have a ticking clock.”
Roni has a ticking clock? How had that never come up in conversation before? Gina refused to lose her temper at the dinner table. She was not her father. “I think it’s fair to say that I feel completely blindsided right now and would rather we talk about something less work or baby oriented. You know, so the chef of this fine meal doesn’t have an aneurysm at the table.”
***
“Why don’t I cook more often?” the chef asked the ceiling.
“I honestly don’t know. I appreciated it in all sorts of ways even though I ate light.” Roni slid the pink harness off her hips and snuggled into bed beside Gina. “Which I’m glad, because a large meal with that level of activity is a very bad idea.”
They lay together, spent from their intimate activities, and lost in their own thoughts. Gina was focused on nothing. The extreme relaxation she felt from two large glasses of wine and her orgasm prevented her from contemplating anything other than wondering if she had no bones in her body.
“Gina?”
“Mmm?” She felt like she was drifting on a raft of mattress and sheets.
“About what Steven said...”
Roni’s topic introduction bore a hole into Gina’s metaphorical raft and suddenly felt that her bones were made of lead. “Do we have to talk about this now? I was really enjoying my afterglow.”
Roni kissed the back of Gina’s naked shoulder and traced a circle around her navel. “Can you just please think about it?”
“What’s there to think about? You’re talking about creating a living being that I have no doubt would be the cutest baby on Earth, but eventually would grow up and see that his or her life is different. Extremely different. Don’t you think that would be unfair to a kid? Remember that both of us are married to men because we live in a society where a strong majority of people reject gay marriage. Imagine trying to explain that to a little kid.”
Roni nodded and snuggled into Gina more. “I can’t help but think that even with the complications, a child could be wonderful. There would be four parents who loved, supported, and cared for her or him. I don’t think that’s unfair. Different doesn’t necessarily equal bad.”
“You don’t think having two lesbian moms and two gay dads would be strange?”
“I don’t know if I’d use the word ‘strange’. And think of the four of us. None of us had what you’d call an ideal upbringing in heterosexual homes, but we’re still good citizens.”
Gina turned to Roni. “I think we were raised pretty normally.”
“Oh, please. Steven’s dad died before he could form memories of him and was raised by Monica. The only relationship Early had with his father was the hush money he gave his mom to not publicly name him as the father—money she spent on liquor and pills. Your parents essentially disowned you and my parents never treated me like I ever existed. We’d have to be more stable or better than all of that.”
“I can see your point, but Roni, I have no real experience with children and it’s not like I have a personality children flock to. There’s not a maternal bone in my body.”
“I don’t think that’s true. I think you haven’t had the opportunities to show yourself that you have one.” Roni realized that for all of Gina’s talking, she still hadn’t answered a key question. A little scared to hear the answer, Roni asked, “Gina, do you not like children?”
“It’s not that I don’t like them. I just don’t understand them. Things that I don’t understand scare me.”
“Like Early’s new obsession with Toni Braxton?” Roni grinned with the hope of lightening the mood again.
“Exactly,” Gina smiled. “I just...I can’t say that I’m comfortable with the idea of a kid right now.”
Roni was quick to note that Gina said: “right now”. That implied it was a possibility later. “Okay, babe,” she kissed Gina once more, “thank you for being honest with me. That’s all I can ask of you.”
THREE MONTHS LATER, JUNE 1994
STEVEN’S HAND REACHED THROUGH THE car window and into the humid air for the drive-through bag and orange juice. A small grease spot bled through the paper where the hash brown rested. He gave both to Gina and paid the cashier before he drove to start their patrol.
“Thanks for breakfast,” Gina mumbled around her bite of egg sandwich.
“You’re welcome. I noticed you were in a hurry-up offense again this morning and skipped it. Roni keep you preoccupied again?” Steven asked with a wink.
“Early’s a bad influence on you. Did you know that?”
“He definitely keeps things fun,” he said and nodded gratefully at the hash brown Gina offered him. “So, what’d she do?”
Gina desperately needed to talk about the issue, but part of her just wanted to focus on work. “I don’t want to talk about it.”
“Okay.” Steven was never one to push an issue so he directed his attention to the road and to the hash brown. “This is good. Do you think they use a special kind of potato?”
Gina rolled her eyes at the question and took another bite of her sandwich. The flavorless mass was made of a stale English muffin and the bulk reminded her of dehydrated Army eggs and prison cheese. With that thought, she realized she was officially in a bad mood. What had happened at the house gnawed at Gina and she knew she had to talk or else Steven would unfairly get the
brunt of her wrath. “Roni turned on the TV to the morning news and they were covering some kind of children’s charity event.”
Now, he understood why Gina had her gun belt metaphorically twisted. “Was she hinting at the kid thing again?”
“Indirectly, yes. It’s like I can’t escape it. And even when there isn’t a small person around or something, there’s this feeling I get like I have to automatically be on the defense.” She sipped her juice through a straw and thought of an example. “It’s like when we went to the Phillies game and that family sat in front of us. The whole time I knew Roni wasn’t watching the game, because there was that little girl with those things on her head that kept turning around and smiling at her and Early. What are those things called?”
“Pigtails,” he answered readily. His nieces had sported the braided pigtail look for most of their childhood. “Gina, why don’t you just tell Roni that you don’t like kids?”
Gina crumpled the bag and tossed it at her feet. “Because that’s not it! I don’t know if they like me.”
“Is that the only thing you’re afraid of?”
“Well, yeah, mostly. But I also don’t know if I’m any good with kids. They don’t cry or scream or run away from me, but I also don’t get the reception Roni gets when kids are around. Pigtail girl didn’t even look at me.”
“Roni does have a way with kids, but I think that’s experience. I’m sure you’d be fine if you had practice.” Steven snapped his fingers as he thought of a scenario. “How much military experience did you have before you started basic?”
“Does reading Catch-22 or The Killer Angels count as experience?”
“No. But that’s my point.”
“Officer DiCarlo and Fields?” The call from dispatch came in over the cruiser radio.
“We’re done with this conversation. Let’s just work.” Steven nodded his understanding and Gina reached for the device on the console. “DiCarlo, here.”
“There is a possible kidnapping situation at East Shore Park, northwest entrance. The call in says the suspect and witnesses are near the benches off of the trail.”
“Copy that. We’re on it.” She turned on the lights and siren as Steven drove the vehicle to the scene.
“I wonder what that means? Possible kidnapping situation?” Steven asked.
“We’ll find out soon enough.”
As they approached the park’s oak tree shaded entrance, a group of five women, some with strollers, cornered a disheveled and frantic woman against a high, metal fence.
“Tell these bitches to move!” demanded the woman.
“Who are you calling a ‘bitch’, junkie whore?”
Gina approached the group carefully. They all appeared too emotional for her liking. “Let’s just calm down and sort through all of this. Who called the police?”
One of the stroller pushers, a very tired, thirty-something mother, raised her hand, “That’s me.”
“Okay, could you explain why, please?”
She continued to push the stroller back and forth to rock her sleeping baby. “I called because this woman,” she pointed to the young woman, now crying against the fence, “tried to take a little boy. She looks like a drug addict.”
“His name is Dustin! I’m his babysitter,” pleaded the hysterical woman. She had moved out from the shade of the trees, which displayed old bruises and a few fresher puncture wounds on her spindly arms.
“Where is the little boy?” Steven asked. Even with his height advantage, he couldn’t see over the crowd and playground equipment to locate him.
The stroller mom pointed down the trial. “He’s playing with Will and his son, Cody.”
“You want to check on down there and I’ll start up here?” he asked Gina.
“Sure.” Gina saw that the crowd of angry women had managed to move the babysitter back into the shadows. “May I suggest you talk to the alleged kidnapper first and then put her in the cruiser so the rest of the pack doesn’t kill her?”
“That’s a good plan.”
Gina headed down the narrow, slightly wooded trail and saw a man sitting on a park bench watching two young boys play on the swing set in front of him. His scruffy brown stubble and clothes made Gina think he had the day off. “Excuse me, sir. Are you Will?”
He rose when he saw Gina’s uniform. “Yes, officer, I am. I’ve been watching my son and that other boy, Dustin, until you arrived.”
“We appreciate that. I just need a few details from you.” After she obtained his personal details, she was able to get to the heart of the matter. “Could you please describe to me what happened?”
Gina wrote copious notes as he described the events. “And that’s when I realized Dustin was here completely by himself. When we were trying to figure out where the nearest pay phone was to call 911, that girl started screaming, ‘Dustin! Dustin!’ I asked him who she was and he said he didn’t know her that well. He thought her name was Tina, but wasn’t sure. Then ‘Tina’ came over trying to take him back and that’s when the others heard the commotion and got involved.”
He removed his hat and wiped the sweat off of his brow. “Between him being here by himself, his uncertainty as to who she was, and her just acting plain nuts we thought it was best if we called the police.” With a whisper, he added, “I think she might have a drug problem.”
“I understand your concern, sir. So, you’ve never seen that woman or this boy in this park before?”
“No, I haven’t. And I come here about twice a week with Cody. He loves the slide,” he added with a smile.
“I’m going to need to speak to Dustin now.” She intended to call him over individually, but saw the two boys playing well together. She considered the morning Dustin had and decided to change her tactic. “Would you mind calling them both over here? Tell them I’m you’re friend.”
Will yelled to the other side of the playground. “Cody, Dustin. Come over for a second. I’d like you to meet a friend of mine.”
The two boys sprinted over the mulch and stopped right in front of her.
“Woah,” Cody, a mini-Will except for the stubble, looked up in awe. “Are you a real police lady?”
Gina smiled and got down on one knee so she was eye level with the young boys. “Yes, I am a real police officer. My name’s Officer DiCarlo, but you can call me Gina. Are you Cody?”
His eyes widened in shock. “Are you looking for me? Am I in trouble?”
“No, Cody, you’re not in trouble. I was just talking to your dad.” When she reassured Cody, she noticed the other boy had slinked behind him. “And you must be Dustin.”
Dustin stopped and anxiously answered, “Yeah.”
“How old are you Dustin?” she tried to keep her voice as friendly and light as she could even though she had already grown concerned. His clothes were torn and his hair was a proverbial bird’s nest.
“I’m five.”
“That’s neat. Pretty soon you’ll need two hands to show how old you are.” When he smiled shyly, Gina continued, “Where do you live, Dustin?”
“Pennsylvania.”
Gina tried not to smile or laugh. “Okay, that’s good. Do you live in Harrisburg?”
Dustin shook his head. Gina was pretty sure some grass or something fell out of it. “No, but my Daddy does.”
“Oh. Are you visiting your Daddy today?”
“Yeah, but then he woke me up when it was still dark outside and then he had to go to work and then he took me to Tina’s house.”
The pieces came together. “Did Tina bring you to the park?”
“No. I saw the swings out the window and came down.” He pointed across the street to a third story apartment with a fire escape.
Gina was amazed he had climbed down successfully. “That looks dangerous. Didn’t they teach you in school that it’s not safe to climb rusty ladders? Or be outside without an adult?”
“Yeah,” he admitted sheepishly. “Mommy takes me outside when I’m with her.”
“What are your mom and dad’s names?”
“Jenny and Brian. My last name is Harris like my Mommy.”
“Well, that gives us someplace to start.” She stood up, straightening her leg a few times to get the kink out of her knee. “It was nice seeing you again, Will, but Dustin and I have to get going.”
“Right.” Will quickly shook her hand and reached down to grab Cody’s. “Let’s go get some waffles, buddy.”
Cody turned around and waved. “Bye Dustin.”
“Bye Cody. Bye Cody’s daddy.” Dustin looked to Gina with very hopeful eyes. “Are we getting waffles too?”
“You didn’t have breakfast did you?”
He placed his hands on his stomach. “No, and I’m hungry.”
“Then yes, we’re getting waffles...or something.” She led the way to the trail with Dustin directly beside her. Her casual walk stopped when Dustin reached up to hold her hand. For a woman of average height and build she had never felt gigantic before, but she did in that moment. She also felt an overwhelming need to protect him.
When Steven saw them hand-in-hand, he mumbled quietly to himself with a smile, “Not good with kids my ass.”
***
Gina sat at her desk and wrote the details regarding the park incident when a member of social services made himself comfortable in the chair beside her. If he could rest, he took advantage of it. The bags under his eyes and complete lack of color in his face showed how overworked he was. Underwood had once said that with his shaved head, he could have passed for someone with a terminal illness.
Gina asked, “Did you get in touch with Dustin’s mother?”
“Yes, and she’ll be here in about fifteen minutes. I just thought I’d come by and let you know it worked out. Well, you know, the best way something like this can work out.”
“I hope his mom appeals custody arrangements as soon as possible. Who leaves their child with an adult they don’t know?” Gina asked perplexed.
“You don’t need a license or common sense to procreate. I just wanted to let you know what happened before I left.” His clothes hung off of him as he stood. “You and Steven did really well with this one. Dustin kept talking about you to his mom on the phone.”
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