I looked around and my eyes landed on Deuce walking toward me with his arms open, looking the same as he always did. He had a big round belly, long gray hair that he usually kept back in a low ponytail, and was wearing an American flag bandana on his head. I always thought he looked like an old biker hippy.
“Deuce, hi!” I exclaimed as I ran toward him and hugged him tightly. “It’s so good to see you again! How have you been doing?”
“I’ve been wonderful, Danni. Let me get a look at you,” he said, releasing me and holding out my arms. “You look beautiful, sweetheart. Looks like you’re doing okay in Cincinnati.”
“I really am,” I answered, and then looked back at Beau, who was smiling at me.
“Speaking of doing okay, let me introduce you to the reason that I am.”
I motioned for Beau to come to us. He walked over to me and I took his hand in mine, pulling him close.
“Deuce, I’d like you to meet my boyfriend Beau Cavanaugh. Beau, this is my former boss Deuce Downing.”
Deuce placed his hand in Beau’s and shook it firmly.
“Ah, yes, I think we met briefly at Max’s funeral the last time you were in town. It’s good to see you again,” Deuce said.
“You too,” Beau answered.
“So, you’re the reason Danni abandoned me?” he asked Beau teasingly.
“Well, I guess so,” Beau laughed. “Just so you know, I don’t plan to give her back.”
Deuce smiled at Beau and said, “Glad to hear that, son. Listen, table eight just opened up so why don’t y’all get comfortable and I’ll bring out some drinks. Coffee okay for everyone to start off?”
Under normal circumstances I’d drink coffee but being pregnant meant I had to severely limit my caffeine intake.
I smiled politely and answered, “Actually, can I have some tea with a little bit of honey?”
He blinked in surprise and said, “Sure thing Danni. Tea for you, coffee for everyone else?”
Everyone nodded. “Thanks, Deuce,” I said, patting him on the back and walking to the table with Beau, Mom, and Dad.
As soon as we were all seated, Dad picked up his menu and before he opened it he said, “Well now, isn’t this nice. Being back at Deuce’s for breakfast as a family.”
I smiled at him because he was looking right at Beau when he said that. I felt like I was living a dream…eating breakfast with my parents and Beau, everyone getting along and happy, and me carrying the love of my life’s child inside me. In my mind, life could only get better from here.
“It is nice, Dad, I’ve missed this place.” My eyes scanned the menu and I said, “Hmm, what do I want? I’m starving and everything looks so good.”
Just then Deuce brought a pot of coffee and another pot of hot water, some tea bags, and a bottle of honey.
“Anything else I can get you all before I head back into the kitchen?”
“No, thanks Deuce, we’re good for now,” Dad answered, shaking his hand.
Deuce smiled and headed back toward the kitchen.
As my eyes roamed the menu, I asked, “Beau, what are you going to have?”
Before he could answer, Mom cleared her throat loudly.
“Okay kids, let’s get something out of the way right now before we order anything.”
The tone of her voice made me take notice and my eyes snapped up from the menu to her. She looked so serious.
“Mom, what’s wrong?”
“Do you think your dad and I are stupid, sweetie?”
I cocked my head to the side and slid my hand under the table to grab onto Beau’s.
“What do you mean?”
Dad chuckled softly and said, “Come on, Danni. You’re eating as much as a lumberjack, you’re wearing loose tops, you are drinking tea this morning instead of coffee, and last night you didn’t touch your beer. Not even to move the bottle around to at least make it look like you were drinking it. You want to fill us in here, princess?”
I looked from Mom to Dad and I knew this was it. I was planning on telling them about the baby this morning anyway, I just thought I’d have a little more time. Like when they already had their coffee. I took a deep breath and Beau let go of my hand. I looked at him, confused, but he smiled reassuringly and wrapped his arm around me. He pulled me into him and I went willingly.
“Okay, well, um…Mom, Dad, there is something Beau and I need to tell you. It’s not the reason we came here to visit you but the timing of it just sort of fit.”
I stopped to take another deep breath and Beau whispered, “Go ahead, Danni. I’ve got you.”
I smiled at him and said, “Dad, Mom…Beau and I are having a baby,” I said, almost breathlessly.
Dad smiled and said, “Tell us something we don’t know.”
Mom reached across the table for my hands and after Beau gave me one final squeeze he released me and I placed my hands in hers.
“Danni, this is wonderful, sweetheart!”
“Really? I asked her.
“Of course it is! My baby is having a baby…this is wonderful news,” she replied.
I looked over at my dad and he was still smiling, but his eyes quickly moved from mine to Beau. Smiling at the man that knocked up his daughter after officially dating her for only two months? That was a good sign.
“Dad? What do you think?” I asked him.
His eyes moved back to mine and he was beaming with pride.
“Oh princess,” he said, “I am beyond happy for you and Beau.”
I breathed a sigh of relief (not that I needed to, I knew they would be okay with this). “So, you’re ready to be a grandpa then?”
“Oh lord,” he said, laughing. “I didn’t think I’d be hearing anyone calling me that for a while but, hell yes I am. Bring on my grandson.”
I barked out a laugh and Beau chuckled.
“So you think you’re having a grandson?” I asked.
“If nature isn’t cruel, I will,” he laughed. “I have been outnumbered in the gender department for twenty-six years and now that we have Beau in the family things are finally even. Don’t you think the men are due to be on top for once?” he asked.
My mom giggled and said, “What do you mean, ‘for once’? You are on top all the time.”
She nudged him and I rolled my eyes and laughed. I really hoped that Beau and I would be as in love and still going at it like rabbits when we reached their age.
“And I hope it’s a girl. I’d love to spoil a little girl again now that my girl’s all grown now,” she said, smiling at me warmly.
I felt my emotions beginning to get the best of me but I choked them down.
“Mom, don’t make me cry. I’m already an emotional mess. This baby is making me crazy in every way,” I said, fanning my face.
“So, Beau,” my dad asked, “how do you feel about all of this? You ready to be a dad?”
He turned to me and ran a finger gently down my cheek.
“Absolutely, especially since it’s with Danni. Don’t get me wrong, I was shocked when she told me, but as long as it took us to get to this point, I am ready for anything with her. We’re going to rock parenthood just like we do everything else.”
I smiled and kissed his lips lightly.
“I know you will. Come on, son, you have to get on my side here. You want a son to carry on those rocker genes of yours, right?” Dad asked, nudging him from across the table.
“Honestly, Dan, I don’t care if it’s a boy or a girl just as long as it’s healthy,” Beau stated and my dad groaned.
“That’s such a whipped thing to say,” Dad laughed. “I know what you mean though. I’m sure no matter what it turns out to be he or she will be so loved and spoiled rotten by Grandma and Grandpa Sharpe.”
At that moment our waitress came to our table and we placed our orders. I of course got banana walnut pancakes with a huge side of bacon and sausage. This little Jelly Bean was going to make me turn into a hippo before it was all said and done.
&nb
sp; “So,” Mom asked, “how far along are you? You aren’t showing too much that I can tell, so you can’t be that far into the pregnancy.”
“I’m twelve weeks today, so I am officially into my second trimester. I have an appointment when I get back to Cincinnati and Beau is coming with me. It will be the first time he will hear the heartbeat.”
“He hasn’t yet?” she asked me.
“Um, no. I’ve actually known about the baby for a few weeks but I was too chicken shit to tell him at first. It was lame, I know, but we’d just gotten back together and everything was perfect. It’s been a tough year for us and I was afraid something this big would set us back. Thank God it didn’t,” I said, snuggling into him. He kissed my hair and I sighed.
“Well I’m sure this was a wrench in your plans but a baby is always a blessing and I’m happy you two seem to be okay taking this step,” Mom said.
She took a deep breath and clapped her hands together. “Okay, so, let’s talk baby names. Have you picked any out yet?”
Beau and I laughed at my mother’s enthusiasm and we spent the rest of the morning eating, talking, and laughing. I had never been happier in my entire life as I was right then and I knew things were only going to get better. I’d had enough drama to last a lifetime in the past year. Now I was really looking forward to our future and our child with a new kind of excitement I’d never felt before.
Chapter 10
Beau
Two days later, I was feeling more relaxed than I had felt in years which surprised me since we had been at Danni’s parents’ house all weekend. I was really relieved that Dan and Brenda seemed to like me; it made everything so much easier.
Danni had been right; they were thrilled when we told them about the baby and had decided to take bets on whether the baby would be a boy or a girl. Now that everything had fallen into place, there was just one more thing I needed to do to make my life perfect.
Brenda had mentioned yesterday that she wanted to spend some mother/daughter time with Danni before we left for Cincinnati, so when she asked me if I could hang with Dan for the day I didn’t hesitate to say yes. I had actually wanted to get him alone to talk to him about something and this was the perfect opportunity to do it. I had pretended to be slightly annoyed by it just to throw Danni off, but this was going to be the most important conversation I would ever have with him, and it had to happen before we left Muncie.
“I promise we’ll only be gone for a few hours,” Danni said, wrapping her arms around my neck. “We are just going to the nail salon and Mom said something about checking out some of the baby shops around town.” She rolled her eyes playfully and smiled. “We won’t even know what we are having for another two months and she already wants to start buying baby stuff.”
“Let her have her moment, Danni. She’s just excited,” I told her, wrapping my arms around her waist.
Danni smiled widely at me but I could see something in her eyes, and for a brief moment I thought she might start to cry.
“What’s wrong, baby? You seem like a mix of emotions.”
“Oh Beau, I’m just…this time last year I didn’t even know if I could ever be in the same room without you without feeling hurt. You were drowning more and more in alcohol and you were alone to deal with everything,” she said, and I saw a tear fall quickly down her cheek.
“Danni,” I said, kissing her wet cheek, “all of that is in the past. We have so much to look forward to now, including our Jelly Bean.”
“I know and I’m so thankful for all of that. I guess…I just love you so much and sometimes it’s overwhelming to see how far you’ve come. Please don’t take me to sound condescending because I don’t mean to, but I’m just so proud of you.”
I smiled at her beautiful tear-stained face.
“Danni, you shouldn’t be proud of me, I was a mess. You are what turned me around. You coming back to me and pulling me out of that bad place is what saved me.”
More tears fell from her eyes and she snuggled into my chest. “You are amazing, Beau Cavanaugh. I’m sorry I’m an emotional mess, these damn hormones are going to kill me before it’s all said and done.”
“Don’t apologize, Danni. I think it’s cute,” I said, kissing the top of her head and inhaling the sweet floral scent of her shampoo.
“He says that now,” noted Dan as he walked into the kitchen. “Just wait until she’s close to her due date and she’s uncomfortable and screaming at you over the television being too loud or chewing with your mouth open.”
Danni giggled and released me.
She walked over and hugged Dan. “Are you and Beau going to be okay for a few hours while Mom and I are gone?”
“Of course, we’re just going to be shooting the shit and getting the food ready for the barbecue, right?” Dan asked.
“Right,” I answered, grinning at Danni.
Brenda walked into the room and asked, “Danni, are you ready to go? If we don’t go now we’ll lose our appointment.”
“I’m coming Mom,” she answered. She walked back to me and asked, “You sure you will be alright while I’m gone?”
Rolling my eyes, I laughed. “Relax, Danni, I’ll be fine. Go enjoy the afternoon with your mom, okay? I’ll still be here when you get back.”
“Okay,” she answered. “Like I said, we won’t be long.”
“Have fun baby,” I said. She leaned up on her tip toes and kissed me deeply.
“I love you,” she whispered against my lips.
“I love you too,” I replied as she and Brenda left the kitchen.
As soon as we heard the front door shut, Dan turned to me and said, “Well, it’s just us men now. What should we do?”
“Well I don’t drink anymore, so we can’t do that,” I said jokingly.
“Oh yeah, that’s right. Well, we can get all jacked up on cola and play go fish,” he suggested and I laughed.
“You sure know how to party hard, man,” I told him.
“Actually there was something I wanted to talk to you about.”
Dan smiled at me and motioned to the kitchen table. “Well, have a seat, son, while I grab us a few sodas.”
I walked over to the table and grabbed a seat as he opened the refrigerator. He set a cold can of Coke in front of me and then sat down across from me. I popped open the tab, took a drink and set it down in front of me, keeping my eyes down and suddenly feeling a bit nervous.
“So, what was it you wanted to talk to me about, Beau?”
I spun the cold can in my hands on the table several times before I looked up at him.
“Man, this is harder than I thought it was going to be.”
“Whatever’s on your mind you can talk to me about it. Go ahead, son.”
I sighed deeply and said, “I want to ask Danni to marry me and I would love your blessing before I pop the question.”
Dan leaned back in his chair and crossed his arms.
“So, this isn’t you getting my permission, this is basically just a heads up?” he asked with an amused expression on his face.
I grinned back at him and said, “Pretty much.”
“Is this about the baby? You two can raise it together without being married.”
“I know this, and no, this isn’t about the baby. I have wanted to marry Danni from the second she decided to give me another chance. I’ll level with you, I know I fucked up badly when we were in New York, I’m sure you know that.”
“I do,” he answered. “Danni told me what happened.”
“I’m sure she also told you that I fell into a bottle of any kind of whiskey I could get my hands on for the next six months after that, didn’t she?”
“She did.”
“Well, the whole thing in New York never would have happened if I’d just told her then that I loved her. I could have saved myself some awful nightmares, some horrible things I didn’t even realize I’d done, and a whole lot of throwing up,” I said, trying to lighten the mood. “How you and Brenda can
even stand to be around me after what I’ve done I’ll never know.”
Dan uncrossed his arms and scooted the chair closer to the table.
“I’m going to let you in on a secret Beau, one that Danni to this day doesn’t know and I prefer she never find out. Maybe this will explain why I instantly liked you when Danni first told me about you.”
“Okay,” I answered, listening intently.
“Brenda and I have been married for thirty years and they have been some of the best years of my life. But they didn’t start out that way. When we first got married, everything seemed great for the first year. I was already in the Navy when we met, and Brenda tried to keep in touch as possible when I’d be on base far away from her. It started to wear on our relationship after we’d hit our one year wedding anniversary.
“It was hard on both of us and we ended up spending most of our time when I was home on leave fighting instead of enjoying each other. Eventually I started hanging out in bars on my nights off instead of checking in with Brenda.
“One night we had a particularly bad fight and she told me that she wanted me to move out. I felt like she’d ripped my heart out, and before I hung up the phone I told her that I was done fighting and she’d get her wish. After I hung up I went to the bar and met a girl,” he said, pausing. This was a story that sounded all too familiar to me.
“Her name was Katherine. That’s the only thing I can remember about her other than the fact that she had dark hair and dark eyes. I can’t really remember much else because I got so drunk that night the next thing I knew I was waking up in her bed.
“I felt like shit…I’d never felt so low in my life. I loved Brenda with all my heart but she had told me she wanted me gone. In the light of day I knew she hadn’t meant it. I was disgusted with what I’d done and I knew I wanted my wife back. But I also knew I couldn’t go to her and pretend everything was fine when it wasn’t. It didn’t matter what our problems were because I’d screwed up big time. I didn’t think there was any way of getting her back once she knew the truth.
Reckless Redemption: A Bad Blooded Rebel Novel (Bad Blooded Rebel Series) Page 14