“You never did believe in that one true love thing, did you?”
Ally was exasperated. “It’s mathematically improbable, Cassie.” She sounded so much like her usual self that Cassie smiled. Ally shook her head. “But I couldn’t sign the paperwork, even so.”
“And?”
“And what?”
“There’s more. I can smell it.” Cassie stood up and went to the sink. She dumped the contents of the two wine glasses, then poured the rest of the bottle after it, while she waited for Ally’s reply. It wasn’t until she turned around again that her sister spoke.
“And I missed my period,” Ally admitted, watching her finger trace circles on the table again.
Cassie thought this had to be good news, but Ally didn’t look happy at all. “Did you tell him?”
“Cassie, do you know how many times I’ve missed my period through all of this adventure? It can just be stress.”
“So, you find out. Did you buy a test?”
“No. Not yet. I’m not sure I want to know.” Ally paused. “No, that’s not true. I do want to know. I’m just not sure what I’ll do once I do know.”
“Well, if it’s negative, you know.”
Ally nodded reluctant agreement. “I guess.”
“I don’t think you want to get divorced, whether you’re pregnant or not.”
Her sister sighed again, looking so downcast that Cassie wished she could fix everything. There had been a time when she had done all of Ally’s fighting and had ensured that many losses became victories in the end. It was what big sisters were for. “I miss him. I even miss fighting with him, which is particularly pathetic.”
“Does it matter that much about kids?”
“It does if you listen to Mom.”
“I’m listening to you.”
Ally surveyed the kitchen, thinking about it. “I used to think it did. Or maybe I assumed it did.”
“Or maybe you assumed it would be your future.”
“I didn’t mind that. I like kids. I like doing all that homemaker, traditional-wife stuff. I never had an issue with the idea of becoming a wife and mother.”
“But what if that’s not your destiny?”
“Then I should have made some different choices.”
“Like?”
“Finishing my degree instead of quitting college to marry Jonathan. Training for a profession and getting a better job, starting a career.” She winced. “Doing something with my life more than trying to make babies.”
“There’s nothing saying you can’t do those things now.”
“No, I guess there isn’t.” Ally met Cassie’s gaze. “I guess it’s my own assumptions that are holding me back. I should be more like you.”
“If you’d been like me, Mom would never have survived our growing up.” Cassie shrugged. “As it was, it was touch and go for a bit there.”
Ally laughed. “You’re right.” She sobered. “What do I do now, Cassie?”
Cassie sat down opposite her sister again and counted items on her fingers as she spoke. “If you were going to be like me, you’d change the locks on the doors of the house and not give Mom a key. You’d get a pregnancy test at the pharmacy, or even better, have a blood test done at your doctors to know for sure. Then you’d go to Chicago and remind Jonathan why he married you in the first place, and make sure he knows just what he’ll be missing if he lets you go.” Cassie leaned over the table. “Tell him that you’ll love him forever.”
“Then sign the divorce papers?”
“I’d reopen that discussion. I’m not sure you should divorce, because it doesn’t seem like either of you want one.”
“I don’t want to stay married just because I’m pregnant.”
“You don’t even know if you are! And if you are, he deserves to know that, too.”
Ally frowned again. “It’s complicated.”
“No, it’s really simple. There’s this man you love so much that you even miss arguing with him. I think that’s pretty special. I think that’s against the mathematical odds, so I think you should tell him that. And whether or not the two of you have made a baby is another discussion entirely.” Ally opened her mouth to protest, but Cassie carried on. “You can have a baby alone, Ally. If you’re pregnant, the part that needs a man is done. Besides, you have to believe that Mom will be here for you.”
“What about you?” Ally asked softly.
Cassie stopped cold. “At the very least, I’ll help you financially and talk to you whenever you want or need to talk. I’m good with infants, as we’ve seen, and I’m not good with Montrose River, but I’ll try to be here for you.” Their gazes clung for a moment, then Cassie snapped her fingers. “You could come to New York!”
Ally shook her head. “No. I am good with Montrose River. I like it here.”
“So, tell me the plan.”
She watched her sister take a deep breath. “I’ll go to my gynecologist for an exam and a pregnancy test. I can call on Monday morning. If I’m going to tell Jonathan there’s a baby coming, I want to be sure.”
“Fair enough.”
“And I’ll go to see him in Chicago either way. To talk.” She bit her lip. “To tell him what you said.”
“That’s not very promising if you can’t say it out loud.”
“I will. I just have to work up my nerve.” Ally glanced over herself and her brows pulled together. “I’d love to look really good for that moment.” She smiled at Cassie. “And now you’re going to change my plan.”
“Tweaking. Good plans with a little tweak become great plans.” Cassie pulled out her phone and looked up pregnancy tests. “Taking the test ten days after you’ve missed your period and first thing in the morning may lead to more reliable results,” she read then looked at Ally. “You could find out tomorrow morning.”
Ally looked nervous. “Okay.”
“And then...” Cassie flicked to her flight reservations. “You could come back to New York with me.”
“Not this week. I have to go to the doctor...”
“Next week, then.”
“But...”
Cassie put down her phone. “When was the last time you left Montrose River?”
“I don’t know. A few years ago.”
“How soon do you want to see Jonathan again?”
“Soon.” Ally smiled sweetly.
“So, if you come to New York next week, you can see him in ten days or less.”
Ally chuckled. “Because I can only go shopping with you.”
“We each have to know our strengths.”
“And what’s mine?”
“I want one of those cute little Welcome signs.”
“That’s it?”
“That’s it.” Cassie offered her hand and the sisters shook on it. Then she stood up and pulled Ally into a hug, her thoughts spinning.
She really hoped that Ally was pregnant, but if she wasn’t, could Cassie help?
Should she?
Once upon a time, she had fixed everything for Ally. She’d waded into every battle. She’d defended her sister from everyone and everything—until she’d had to leave to fight her own battle. By the time that was done, Ally had been older and already with Jonathan. Cassie thought the torch had been passed.
Maybe it was time for her to pick up where she’d left off.
She wasn’t sure. It sounded like a crazy idea but also one that might make Ally happy.
She had to talk to someone who would be able to assess it without emotion.
Cassie had to talk to Reid.
Eight
Reid couldn’t resist.
He went out for a run on Saturday morning, even though his knees protested. To his satisfaction, he reached the end of the river trail and saw Cassie running toward him. She looked as fresh and wholesome as he recalled, and the sight of her swinging ponytail sent a stab of hot desire through him that made him forget all about his knees.
He could have run to Argentina with her at h
is side.
“Just the man I want to see,” she said cheerfully, then fell into step beside him.
His heart skipped even though he knew it shouldn’t. He spared a glance down at her and thought she looked as if she was up to something.
Or wanted something.
“Why does that sound ominous?”
“It’s not.” Cassie flashed a smile at him and he had the feeling that he was going to agree with her, no matter what she asked. She was dangerous—even more so, because she didn’t realize her influence over him.
Reid ran in silence, thinking about that. Was it just the temptation to defy Marty at root? Or was there another explanation? He didn’t believe in love or kismet. His attraction to Cassie had to be purely physical.
Even though he really liked talking to her.
“I have a question for you,” Cassie said when he didn’t speak.
“I’m hoping I have an answer.”
“I’m sure you will. I have this idea and I’m not sure if it’s a good one, so I wanted to ask you.”
“All right.” Why him?
“In fact, it might be a really shit idea.”
“Do you have shit ideas often?”
“No. But this is complicated.” She frowned. “Emotional.”
“Okay.” Reid wasn’t sure why anyone would come to him with an emotional issue but he was intrigued.
Cassie ran for a moment, then blurted out her question. “What do you think about making a baby?”
Reid stopped cold. “Excuse me?”
“You know how it’s done. We’d just forget the condoms and have a good time. Maybe a few good times.” Cassie smiled with a confidence her suggestion didn’t deserve. In fact, she looked a bit nervous about her own idea. She was talking too fast. “I’d take care of the rest.”
“You would take care of the rest?” Reid echoed. He felt as if he’d just been dipped in ice. “Since when are you good with babies?”
“What do you think?” she insisted, ducking the question.
“I will never father a child,” he said flatly, then turned to continue running.
Of course, Cassie followed him. He heard her footfalls right behind him. “You don’t have to be involved with any of it,” she said. “This isn’t a proposal.”
“Just a proposition.”
“Exactly!”
“And suddenly, since last night, you’ve decided that you want to have my child, without me being involved?”
“Other than the fun bit, no. And it’s not a decision. It’s a possibility. An option. Something I want to talk about with you. What do you think?”
“Why?” Reid asked, needing to have all the information before he lost it.
Cassie blushed in the most interesting manner. “I can’t tell you.”
“You want me to father a child without telling me the reason why?”
She made a little growl under her breath. “You can’t tell anyone.”
“I never tell anyone anything.”
“I forgot. You’re the one who hates gossip.”
“That’s me.” He glared at her. “Spill it.”
“Okay.” Cassie heaved a sigh. They were running beside the river and had the trail to themselves but she looked both ways to be sure. And then she whispered. “My sister is having trouble getting pregnant. I didn’t know. She really wants a baby...”
“So, you thought you’d have one and just give it to her?”
“You make it sound so crass!”
“I’m not the crass one.” Reid was angry, more angry than he’d been in a long time, and he didn’t care if Cassie knew it. He was running faster, but she was keeping up. “You’re the one who wants me to donate sperm and walk away.”
Cassie stopped and raised her hands. She looked flustered and he had a hard time staying angry with her. “Okay. I’ve gone about this all wrong. Let me try again.”
Reid didn’t think there was a right way, but he jogged in place, waiting.
Her lips thinned and she started to run again. He ran beside her, seething and trying to keep it under control. “My sister and her husband want a child more than anything. They’ve spent a fortune on fertility stuff and it’s put them under financial strain and their marriage is strained, too.”
“And you want to fix it.” This much, Reid understood. It was nice that Cassie wanted to do something for her sister, even if what she wanted to do was unconventional.
They made movies about people doing stuff like this.
But him doing it in real life was a whole ’nuther thing.
“I think I could fix it,” she said, appealing to him. “But I’d have to do it soon.”
“Why soon?”
“Because I’m not getting any younger.”
Reid understood that.
She took a deep breath and he knew this wasn’t an easy prospect for her, either. Was she really that set against having kids? “Ally and I look similar,” Cassie said, as if she really wanted to convince both of them. “The genetics would be on our side. No one would know. No one would have to know. They could go away and come back with a baby.”
“Like it’s 1850.”
“Well, not exactly. People do hire surrogates, you know.”
“In secret?”
“I’m not sure.” She looked perplexed. “I don’t know much about it.”
Reid scoffed and stopped running, then folded his arms across his chest. He had no trouble pointing out the obvious flaw in her plan. “But what if the kid looked like me?”
Cassie blinked and he knew she hadn’t thought of that.
“Everyone in Montrose River would think I’d been doing your sister while her husband was in Chicago, and that she’d lied to him about it. There’d be a pity party for Jonathan on every corner in town—” Cassie opened her mouth to protest, but Reid held up a finger “—and that kid’s life would be a living hell.” He glared at her again. “No. Unequivocally no.”
“I’m glad we’re having a discussion.”
“We’re not. It’s a bad idea. A really bad idea.”
“But...”
“You asked my opinion. You have it.” Reid began to run again, deliberately choosing the path home. He was furious with Cassie for her suggestion, though he knew rationally that his reaction was more about his experience than her reasons for coming up with the idea.
“But...”
He paused and turned to face her as he had a realization. “And if I hear that you’ve gone and done this with some other guy, Cassie Wilson, I’ll come to New York and spank your ass until you beg for mercy.” He thought he sounded fierce—because he did mean it—but she smiled at him.
“Promises, promises,” she muttered as she caught up with him. Her eyes were sparkling. “I just thought it was an interesting possibility.”
“You’re wrong,” he said, having no interest in letting this go. “It’s a truly shit idea.”
Cassie sobered. “I see that you have strong feelings about it.”
“Kids aren’t just assets to be passed around, or liabilities to be ditched,” Reid said. “It’s not fair to treat them like property. Like stuff. It’s not right.” He leaned closer, shaking a finger at her. “Every single child should be wanted by his or her parents. Every single child should be conceived in love and cherished, or not conceived at all.”
She slanted a glance at him. “I thought you weren’t a romantic.”
“I’m not!” Reid could feel himself getting more angry as he had to explain to her. “It’s better for kids to be treasured. Better for their immune systems, and their futures.”
“But...”
“What if Ally got pregnant while you were pregnant, maybe before you told her the good news?” he challenged. “Would you just say oopsie and get an abortion? Problem solved. We don’t need this kid anymore so we’ll just get rid of it?”
Cassie blinked rapidly and dropped her gaze. When she answered him, there was chagrin in her tone. “You’re right. Of
course, you’re right, Reid. I was just thinking of Ally and how I could maybe make her happy. It might be a nice change.”
“Why don’t you two get along?”
“Because she thinks I have everything I want, and she doesn’t.”
“But that makes no sense...”
“It makes perfect sense.” Cassie glanced up at Reid with a sad little smile, one that made him feel like an asshole even though he knew he was right. “Thanks for being the voice of reason. Sorry to have bothered you with it.”
She left him standing there as she ran back down the trail, her pace telling Reid that she didn’t want him to follow.
Had he said something wrong?
It seemed like it, but he wondered what it had been. He knew he was right. She’d asked his opinion and she’d gotten it. The woman was usually as vulnerable as an armed tank.
How had he managed to hurt her feelings?
And why did it bother him so much?
Cassie felt like a jerk.
She really hadn’t thought her plan through and she was glad that Reid had been more sensible than she had been. She’d been impulsive. She’d just wanted to fix something, to do something nice for Ally, but he was right.
And his harsh words had hit home.
Because once upon a time, Cassie knew she had treated a baby like a liability.
It still bothered her.
A lot.
It bothered her more to know that Reid would be disgusted with her if he learned that truth.
She got back to the house to find Tori humming in the kitchen as she made coffee and Nick watching Tori with a smile of undisguised satisfaction. He was rocking Emily who was cooing with pleasure and Cassie felt bad to be interrupting their cozy morning.
“Hi. I’ll just hop in the shower,” she said with a smile.
“Don’t you want a coffee?” Tori asked.
“I don’t want to be in the way.”
Tori smiled. “You can’t be in the way. We had such a great time last night, Cassie. Thanks so much.” She came and gave Cassie a hug as Nick beamed at them both. He gave Cassie a thumbs-up when Tori couldn’t see his gesture and she bit back a smile.
“And Emily was fine?”
“Ally came down to help,” Cassie said. “And Reid brought me dinner from Pappy’s, so I had lots of help.”
Some Guys Have All the Luck Page 15