by Brenda Novak
“You’re considering taking my sperm and...and inserting it yourself?”
“Yes. It’s called the turkey baster method. For obvious reasons.”
He tried to reject the image that presented. “I guess I’d rather not hear the details, after all.”
“Got it,” she said with a nervous laugh. “Sorry. But...there’ll be a lot of advantages. It’ll be free, so that’s one. And if it doesn’t take, it won’t be hard to repeat the process. We wouldn’t have to wait for another appointment, and so on. What do you say?”
He rubbed his temples. What had he gotten himself into? “What’s my alternative?”
“We could keep looking for the right clinic and hope to get in. But if it takes too long...”
“Then you’ll have to tell Dylan you’re not pregnant.”
“Yes.”
He imagined his brother strutting around the office pouring that champagne and knew he couldn’t let it come to that. Shit.
“So what do you say?” she prompted.
When she first mentioned a fallback plan, he’d assumed he’d be opposed to changing course. But as uncomfortable as her proposal made him, on some levels he was relieved. Why not get this over with? Spending a few minutes in a private home instead of walking into a clinic, where he’d be faced with reams of paperwork and a slew of awkward questions, sounded fine to him. Maybe they’d get lucky and their do-it-yourself insemination would take the very first time. Then he’d be done with the whole business. Better yet, no one would know about it except the three of them. What they’d done wouldn’t be listed on any medical charts, making the possibility of pulling it off far more plausible. Greater security. Less expense for Cheyenne. A local house that provided ease and convenience.
Damn, if it turned out to be as easy as it sounded, he’d bring champagne to work. As a bonus, agreeing to handle the insemination at Presley’s meant he’d get to see her again. She was so close and yet so absent from his life, and that had been driving him crazy. “Done. What time?”
“I haven’t asked Pres yet if we can use her place, but I can’t imagine she’d mind.”
He had to get back to work before one of his brothers came looking for him. “Text me yes or no and give me the time.”
“I will. Today her last yoga class starts at seven, so she should be done around eight-thirty.”
He’d been about to hang up, but at this he hesitated. “Dylan will be home by then. What will you tell him?”
“I’ll say Presley needs me to watch Wyatt for an hour while she does a late massage.”
“What if he wants you to babysit at your house?”
“I’ll convince him that Wyatt will be happier in his own home.”
“He could decide to go to Presley’s with you.”
“We’ll have to call it off if he does and try again tomorrow or the next day.”
She could always text him at the last second. That he could handle. He just didn’t want Dylan showing up in the middle of it. “Fine.”
“Thanks, Aaron,” she said. “I really appreciate it.”
He squinted at the sun. The cold front they’d experienced in March seemed to be gone for good. It was going to be a warm day. “You know he brought champagne to work, don’t you?”
There was an awkward silence. Then she said, “Yeah. I tried to get him to wait until we could have the pregnancy confirmed by a doctor, but he was too excited.”
Aaron sighed. “Let’s hope he stays that way.”
15
That afternoon Aaron had just finished painting a car and was busy washing out the stall when Dylan approached. Dylan didn’t come into the paint bays that often. He ordered parts, maintained the books and manned the office, which kept him so busy he didn’t have the chance to do much bodywork. He liked running the business. Aaron preferred doing the actual repairs. He loved taking a car that had been demolished and making it look new again, loved working with his hands. But unless he had some reason to go into the front—to grab a soda or cool off in the summer—he didn’t see Dyl very often during the day. So he felt a little leery to be singled out by his older brother, especially since Dylan was wearing such a somber expression. Where was the unadulterated joy he’d been feeling when he came to work armed with the news that he was soon going to be a father?
Aaron turned off the pressure washer. “Something wrong?”
Dylan looked around as if he didn’t want Grady, Rod or Mack to overhear. “I met Cheyenne for lunch.”
The mention of Cheyenne did nothing to alleviate Aaron’s concern. Had his sister-in-law decided to tell Dylan what they were planning to do? If so, Aaron hoped she’d left him out of the story. Dylan wouldn’t be pleased that this had all been decided without him. “She okay?”
“She’s fine, but...she brought the mail with her.”
Feeling a measure of relief, Aaron hung up the wand he’d been holding. “You got a reply from Dad.”
“He thanks us for our ‘generous’ offer, but he’s not after money. He misses Whiskey Creek and wants to return.”
“Damn.”
“He also claims he wants to make up for lost time and get to know his sons.”
“With him saying stuff like that, no wonder Mack’s excited he’s getting out.” Aaron removed his goggles and let them dangle around his neck. “The poor kid thinks he’s finally going to have a real father.”
“He doesn’t realize how difficult it might be, particularly now that Dad’s remarried.”
Aaron wiped his wet hands on his overalls. “Did you get the impression Dad was being sincere? Or does he believe he’ll wind up with more if he comes back and inserts himself into the business?”
Dylan shook his head. “No way to tell. And...something else you should know.”
“What’s that?”
“I haven’t wanted to say anything, even to Cheyenne, but his wife has been calling me for the past three days.”
“No! What does she want?”
“She’s asking if she could come out and meet us next weekend. She says Dad would love it if we got acquainted. She’d like to take some pictures to give him when she visits him again.”
“Having some woman we don’t even know show up, some woman who probably feels we should welcome her with open arms, is not an appealing prospect.”
Dylan puffed out his cheeks, then let his breath go. “I agree.”
“So now what? Can we say no?”
“I don’t see how,” Dylan replied, “not if we want to maintain good relations with her, and that might be important until we see what kind of person our father’s turned out to be.”
“But I’d rather not have this stranger in my life! Hell, I don’t even want Dad in my life.”
There’d been times when Dylan had attempted to stick up for J.T. Recently, he’d stopped. Aaron believed that after the shank incident, they’d both come to the same conclusion: their father couldn’t be trusted. “Like you, I’d rather leave the past alone,” he admitted. “I’m finally free and clear of that time, that part of my life. Why would I want to look back? But...maybe we’re being too closed-minded. Maybe it’ll be a good thing for Mack and the others.”
It probably wasn’t fair to decide for their brothers. “So we take a vote?”
“Sure. We’re all adults.”
“If we do, they’ll vote us down. They’ll want to give Dad—and any woman he’s married—a chance, but Amos Auto Body is our livelihood. We can’t let Dad wreck our future like he did our past.”
“They won’t see it that way.”
“So what are you going to do?”
“Put her off.”
“Until...”
“As long as possible. If we’re lucky, the situation will resolve itself. Somehow.” With a s
igh, Dylan headed back to the office. “But sometimes I’m afraid what happened all those years ago will never be fully behind us,” he said over his shoulder.
Aaron’s phone vibrated in his pocket before he could put his goggles back on. He pulled it out to see who was trying to reach him and found that a text had come in from Cheyenne.
Tonight won’t work.
He checked to make sure Dylan was gone and wouldn’t turn back before texting his response.
Presley can’t do it?
It’s not that. I wasn’t thinking earlier. I have to be ovulating.
He could see why, after telling Dylan she was already pregnant, she’d be in a rush.
So do you have any idea when that will be?
I’ve been charting my cycle. Should be next weekend. I bought an ovulation test to be sure. It’ll predict the two days this month when I’ll be most fertile. We’ll follow that. It’ll improve our chances.
Because he wanted to have to do this only once, he was willing to wait until every indication suggested the optimum time. Have you told Presley what we have planned?
Yes. She’s happy to help but knows we have to put it off for a week.
Great. Do I need to do anything to boost my fertility? Take some kind of vitamin or herb or...stand on my head? Anything?
LOL! I’ve read a little about the male side of it. Don’t wear restrictive clothing. Don’t let certain...equipment get too hot, which means you shouldn’t get in any hot tubs between now and then. If you could hold off having sex a few days before the big event, that should help, too, by boosting your sperm count. But that’s about it. Except I’ve heard that the clinics provide girlie magazines. Since I have no idea what turns you on, you might want to bring your own material, if necessary.
He could always think of Presley. These days, any sight or thought of her caused a spike in his libido.
I’ll take care of that end of it.
He thought their exchange was over, but she texted him again.
By the way, I found a site that sells in-home insemination kits. It’s crazy what you can get online these days. It looks like it will have everything we need. And they have two-day shipping. As long as I’m home when the package arrives so I can hide it before Dylan sees it, we’re gold.
Since he’s always at work, that shouldn’t be too difficult. Or you could ship it to Presley’s.
Great idea.
So you’ll let me know when the time is right?
I’ll text you in a week or so.
I’ll keep my phone handy.
“Hey, Aaron.”
Startled by the interruption, Aaron whirled around to see Mack closing the distance between them.
“What’s up?” he asked as he shoved his phone in his pocket.
“You almost done for the day?”
Some parts had come in that he needed for Malcolm Field’s Toyota Land Cruiser. He needed to get them installed, or they’d never have it done by the time Dylan had told Malcolm they would. “I’ve got another couple of hours, why?”
“I was wondering if you want to go out afterward.”
“Where to?”
“Sexy Sadie’s?”
“There’re other bars within a fairly short drive.”
“Why leave town? We have to get up for work again in the morning.”
But if they went to Amador City or Jackson he’d be less likely to run into Noelle Arnold. He hadn’t talked to her since she’d hung up on him, and he liked the peace and quiet. “It might be nice to change things up.”
“Next time. Lana’s coming. If I send her somewhere new she might get lost.”
Lana was Mack’s cute girlfriend. Although she had a warm heart, from what Aaron had seen she wasn’t the smartest girl he’d ever met. “You’re not picking her up?”
“No.” He grinned meaningfully. “She’s bringing a friend to meet you.”
Skepticism made Aaron less than enthusiastic. “So this is a blind date.”
“Absolutely not. You hate those. It’s just a group of people meeting for a drink at a local bar.”
“Two couples.”
“Two guys meeting two girls for drinks—arriving separately.”
“You’re splitting hairs.”
When Aaron continued to act reluctant, Mack slugged him in the arm. “Come on, big brother. You haven’t been out in ages. And Lana’s sure you’re going to like this girl.”
These days he was almost as bad as Dylan used to be before he married Cheyenne. He just didn’t go out much anymore. He was working too many hours, for one. And he’d lost interest. But he couldn’t say no to the family favorite. “Fine, I’ll go.”
Two hours later, once Aaron was off work and showered, he managed to drum up a degree of interest in hanging out with Mack and his friends. But when they got to Sexy Sadie’s, and Aaron saw that Presley was there with Riley, he wished he hadn’t come.
* * *
Presley couldn’t believe it. She hadn’t accepted any of the invitations Riley had extended to her, not since she’d broken their last date. But two weeks of remaining strong and not seeing Aaron had boosted her confidence. Not only that, but Riley had caught her at the perfect moment, when she felt as if she were growing old before her time, living like a recluse at night, and that had made it difficult to say no. He’d promised he wouldn’t keep her out late, because she had to work the next morning. He’d also lined up his son, Jacob, to watch Wyatt at his parents’ house, so she’d feel comfortable that Wyatt was in a safe place and she wouldn’t have to ask Cheyenne for yet another favor.
He’d overcome all her objections before she could even make them, so she’d agreed. She’d figured it couldn’t hurt to have a drink and dance for an hour or so.
But she’d never expected to run into Aaron. Maybe if this had been a weekend, she would’ve been nervous that their paths might cross. They used to frequent Sexy Sadie’s when she lived in Whiskey Creek before. But, according to Cheyenne, the Amos boys put in such long hours these days that they rarely went to bars during the week.
“You probably saw Aaron walk in,” Riley murmured. “Is that going to be okay? Or would you rather leave?”
She didn’t look in Aaron’s direction, didn’t want to make eye contact. She might’ve admitted to Riley that she’d prefer to go somewhere else, but they’d just arrived, right before Aaron and his youngest brother. It would be ridiculous to get up and walk out so soon. “It’s fine. Of course.”
“Great.” He got up from the table. “I’ll get you a drink. What would you like?”
“Cranberry juice?”
“That’s it?”
She’d planned on having a glass of wine but now she didn’t dare. The crowd, the sounds, even the smell of the place, took her back two years. So did seeing Aaron. And that had a powerful effect....
When she nodded, Riley went to the bar while she surreptitiously watched Aaron and Mack locate seats in the corner. She could tell Aaron knew she was there. She could sense it like she had at the bookstore. But he didn’t approach her.
Although she felt a sharp pang of jealousy as two women, probably a decade younger than she was, joined the Amos brothers, she warned herself not to let it show.
Thankfully, Riley returned a moment later. Then she had her drink to concentrate on—little though it did for her.
“How’re things going with your massage business?” Riley asked.
“Pretty well.” She smiled as she spoke but couldn’t help listening for Aaron’s voice. Who was the girl? Presley had never seen her before. The blonde Mack had his arm around worked at Shearwood Forest. Presley had seen her there when she went in a week ago to have her hair trimmed.
She brought her attention back to Riley. “Definitely the massage, but my yoga classes are growing. The first day I had maybe ten people show up in the morning, and five at night. The Friday evening class is still struggling. I may have to cancel that one, but we’ll see what happens.”
“Is the massage side bringing in enough to get by?” He asked this with concern, which was nice of him.
“Fortunately, it is.” She was earning enough to ease some of the worry that had plagued her when she’d been considering everything she needed to do in order to open. Since business could drop off suddenly, she couldn’t be sure that peace of mind would last—but she hoped it would.
“Maybe you should advertise your yoga classes, try to draw from some of the neighboring towns,” he suggested.
“I’ve thought of placing an ad in the various local newspapers. Maybe I will.” When she had more money to invest.
A slow song came on—“In the Air Tonight” by Phil Collins—and he jerked his head toward the dance floor. “Would you like to dance?”
* * *
Bobbi, the girl Lana had brought to meet him, was attractive. And she seemed sweet. But Aaron had just met her and already he couldn’t remember her last name. He found it hard to listen to her when Presley was snuggled up to Riley Stinson. That kiss Riley had given her at the studio kept playing in Aaron’s mind, making him angry all over again—and embarrassed, too, because he’d let it get to him.
He tried to ignore that Presley was even there, but his eyes seemed to have a will of their own. He couldn’t help watching to see if she was enjoying herself. If she was touching Riley anywhere she didn’t have to. If Riley was keeping his hands where they should be—
“Hello? Aaron, are you in there?” Mack snapped his fingers in front of Aaron’s face.
Aaron hadn’t realized he’d missed part of the conversation. Blinking, he focused on his own table. “What did you say?”
Mack threw an irritated glance in the direction of the dance floor, but if he saw Presley, he didn’t put two and two together. It was dark inside the bar and fairly crowded. “Bobbi is a welder. That’s how she’s putting herself through school. Isn’t her job unusual? I’ve never met a female welder before.”