He watched her enter the garage, and a pang of sadness flowed over him, panicking him.
“Bridget, wait up,” he called.
She walked through the door again with a questioning look on her face. “What’s wrong?”
“I love you so much,” he said, pulling her to him again. “I just want you to know that. Be careful out there today.”
“I will. Get some sleep and call me when you get up.”
“I can sleep tonight. I’ll be with Flynn, so call me when you get a break.”
Arriving home shortly after seven thirty, Roberta greeted him at the door with Flynn in her arms.
“Here’s your daddy,” she said.
“Thanks, Ma, I’ll take him.”
“I don’t mind, honey, I really don’t. Get some sleep.”
“That’s okay. You do enough for us.”
Finding out he was going to be a father had sprung Tony into action. As soon as Bridget had given Tony the go-ahead, he’d asked his parents if Bridget and the baby could move in with them. They were sitting around the dinner table, and the others had left.
Big Mike looked confused. “She’s got her own apartment, Tony. Why would she want to live here? And if you really want to be with her, we’ll deal with it. Move in together.”
“Well, it’s a little more complicated than that,” he said sheepishly. “I don’t even know where to begin.”
“She’s pregnant,” Roberta said.
The men looked at her quizzically.
“And how did you find that out?” Tony asked, dumbfounded.
“I just knew. Your body language when you’re together, it transcends intimacy. The way you look at her, everyone around you can tell you’re in love with each other. It’s a little unsettling.”
Big Mike barked out a laugh. “I see it, too. But not the way a woman does. You look like you want to jump her when you’re together.”
“Honest to God, Mike, you are a piece of work,” Roberta said, contemptuous. “You don’t have to say everything that comes into your mind.”
Tony was laughing, listening to his parents. “If it’s that obvious, I’d better work on it. I don’t want to disrespect her.”
“Are you going to get married?”
“We haven’t even talked about it. What we need to do is save up some money so we can buy a house. If you’ll let us live here, we can save even more. Her rent is almost two grand for that dump.”
Roberta turned to Big Mike again. “What do you think?”
“It’s fine with me. I’m not sure about having unmarried kids sleeping together with the boys. What kind of message does that send?”
“You’re living in a dream world, honey. So yes, you can move in. This big old house is feeling empty with Mike and Joey moving out.”
This was news to Tony. “Where are they going?”
“Movin’ in with their girlfriends. And no one is getting married.” Big Mike couldn’t hide his disappointment.
“They will someday,” Roberta said, trying to encourage him. “So yes, your request is coming at a good time for me, Tony. We’ll even do over one of the other rooms for the baby. How long will you stay?”
“As long as it takes.”
So that was how they ended up at the Saints’ rambling ranch. When he’d arrived after work, Tony took Flynn from his mother after he put his coat and bag away and went into the living room.
“Do you want breakfast?”
“No. Joey cooked and I’m ready to bust.”
“Get right in that recliner,” she said. “He’s about ready for his baba, and you can snooze while he does. He’s so spoiled with you holding him all day.”
“It’s not every day. Stop pickin’ on me.”
“Ha! Sorry. I’m going to get some work done. If you need me to take over, just send me a text.”
Reaching for the remote, he turned the news on, trying not to let the dire housing forecast get him down. He’d found a fixer-upper that he wanted to look at as soon as Bridget got home. After nine, he’d call their Realtor cousin Giuseppe and make an appointment to see it that evening. He’d enlist the other men at the fire station to help renovate the house, just as others had used the Saints over the years. Buying a house in need would give him a chance to call favors back.
The house was a wreck. “I don’t know about this,” Bridget said, trying not to gag.
“That’s raccoon piss,” Giuseppe said. “Trust me, a house at this price in this neighborhood is unheard of. You’re really buying the land. It was in escrow once and it fell through, but I have all the inspection reports, and although I’m not supposed to share them, I will. There’s no termite damage, and in California that’s remarkable. It needs new plumbing, electrical service and HVAC, but the foundation is sturdy and the roof is only five years old.”
“What the hell happened to it?” Tony asked, unable to hide his disgust.
“It was a rental and squatters got in. Happens all the time. Then vandals took all the copper pipe and fixtures and the outside AC compressor.”
Tony glanced at Bridget and bit his lip to keep from laughing. She’d pulled the neck of her T-shirt up over her nose.
“You okay, babe?” he asked.
“I’ll live. But not in this place while it’s in this condition, however.”
“What about if we stay at Ma’s while we renovate it?”
“You stayin’ with Roberta?” Giuseppe asked.
“Yes. What do you think, Bridget? We’ll be in this house by the time the baby’s born.”
“You havin’ a baby, too? Yikes, I’m outta the loop.”
“Your wife will be invited to the baby shower,” Bridget said. “So what should we offer for the house?”
“Ten percent less than asking is acceptable, even as low as the price is.”
It was a done deal. They’d close after Christmas and spend the next three months working on the house, hopefully getting it ready for occupancy before the baby came.
Near the end of the first trimester, it was time for an ultrasound. Tony was so excited. “Schedule it for my day off, please.”
“I’ll have to take some time off work,” Bridget said. “Charlie’s not going to be too happy about that.”
“What are you talking about? You’ve never taken a sick day yet.”
“He’s let it be known that our tête-à-têtes are not appreciated.”
Blood pressure rising, he tried to control his anger, but she could see it and immediately regretted saying anything.
“Don’t get all upset now.”
“The hell I won’t. What? He doesn’t like us having lunch together? Or is it our chat when I leave after being here for three days. He never has to worry about extra staff when there’s an all-hands-on-duty call. Me or one of my brothers are the first to show up. He has a lot of nerve.”
He decided to let his father handle it because anything Tony said would be misconstrued as being disrespectful. And when he told Big Mike, he became livid.
“What brought this up, anyway?”
“Bridget needs some time off to get an ultrasound, and she’s afraid to ask him! Said he has spoken to her about the time me and her spend together.”
“Son, you did the right thing coming to me. Charlie’s problem, and I hate to say this about my own brother, but he needs to get laid.”
Tony slapped his thigh, laughing. “Well, I can’t help him with that. I don’t know any babes that old.”
“Yeah, I might tell him to go on that over-fifty dating site.”
“I wish I could be a fly on the wall.”
The men conspired, and when Big Mike went off to the battalion chief’s office, Tony quickly got busy.
Ten minutes later, Charlie came out looking for Bridget.
“Should I go there?” Tony asked Big Mike.
“No, he’s contrite. He admitted that he did tell her that she needed to get busy and not stand around schmoozing with you when she comes in when you’re le
aving.”
“That son of a—”
“Yeah, but don’t worry. He feels awful. He said he must have been having a bad day that day and he took it out on her. He did say it was crappy to have to replace her so soon after he hired her.”
“The jerk never said a word to me. I hope she tells him she’s not quitting. He’s one of those. Take it out on the weaker party.”
“She’s not weaker, though, Tony. You would have gotten into a spat with him. She never said a word.”
A few minutes later, Tony’s phone beeped.
“I got an apology and the go-ahead to take a morning off for an ultrasound.”
“Good! Too bad I had to sic my dad on him.” They shared some laughter. “I’m off Thursday and Friday. Can you get an appointment that early?”
“I’ll try.”
So Friday morning they went to her obstetrician’s office together. “I’m tingling, I’m so excited. We get to see if she is really a she!”
Bridget patted his hand. “Tony, will you be upset if it’s a boy?”
Thinking for a second, he shook his head. “I know this is cliché, but I just want a healthy, normal baby.”
“We’re both young and healthy and don’t drink, at least I don’t anymore, or smoke, so chances are good he’s healthy.”
“She’s healthy,” Tony said, teasing.
They arrived at the office and went through the usual routine. It was the first time Tony had gone with her. The few other times she’d gone, it was to one of their after-hours clinics.
Tony helped her up on the exam table even though she really didn’t need it. He was out of his element, everything dwarfed by his size. The doctor came in and looked up at him like he was a giant, and then she started to giggle.
“We’re measuring this baby’s size today, and not a moment too soon, I see.”
He flushed and Bridget noticed he even kicked his toe around a little bit. She reached out for his hand and squeezed it, mouthing it’s all good.
“Okay, let’s get started.”
She explained about the cold gel she would use and the wand she’d press lightly over Bridget’s belly.
“Here we go! Oops, now that’s a cooperative baby!”
Tony hunched over to see the screen and promptly burst into tears seeing the little one spread-eagle.
“Oh, great.” Bridget laughed. “An exhibitionist.”
“Do you want to know what you’re having?”
“Yes!” Tony cried.
“It’s a girl!”
“Oh, how nice,” Bridget said.
Tony bent over again and kissed her, wiping his face with his sleeves.
The doctor continued with the examination. “Now we’ll look for specific indicators that will show us how well your baby is doing.”
“Tony, why don’t you go out and call Roberta and Alice? They’ll be so excited. Tell them to start thinking of names.”
He kissed her and left the room to make the calls.
“He’s had enough excitement for one day,” she said, laughing. “I’ll tell him if there’s anything more to tell.”
For the next ten minutes, the doctor explained what she was looking for, measurements that meant certain things, and everything looked good until she got to the back of the baby’s neck. She spent a long time looking at it and taking measurements, and then she went to the baby’s heart and did some more looking around, and then her legs. She returned to the back of her neck.
“This area right here, can you see where I’m pointing to?” She made some measurements again while Bridget looked on, terrified. “This area is a little thicker than we want it to be. It’s a fluid-filled space that usually goes away by the time you’re thirteen weeks, which is why we like to do the ultrasound in the first trimester.”
“What does it mean?”
The doctor looked at her with concern, raising anguish in Bridget that made her want to dive on the doctor and slap her.
“It could indicate a chromosomal issue. Trisomy 21. We would want to do more testing to be sure.”
“Is there anything you can do about it? Medicine or an operation?”
“Oh no, nothing like that.”
“Well, I don’t want to know, then. I’m not going to terminate. You saw Tony. He’s in love with this baby already.”
“Of course it’s entirely up to you. Everything else looks great. Her heart is fine; the length of her femur is okay. She’s tiny, but she’s proportionate. We’ll look again in a few months.”
“Can things change? Could she develop a heart issue later?”
“Her heart was completely developed by eight weeks. Her heart looks great.”
“Well, I don’t want another ultrasound, then. If she’s got something wrong with her that we can’t fix, what’s the point of knowing?” Bridget lost the battle to stay calm but didn’t want to get shrill in case Tony came back. “I’d make myself nuts.”
The doctor finally showed some understanding and ended the ultrasound, wiping the gel off Bridget with a tissue and then offering her an arm to pull herself up.
“There’s no reason to do any further testing if you don’t want to know. No matter what, you’ll prepare for your baby. They all need the same thing. You’re doing a great job, Bridget. I’m sorry you’re upset.”
“I’ll live,” she said, her standard answer. “My biggest concern is my boyfriend. His mother uses the term retard.” That did it for Bridget and she began to weep. “She’s really a lovely woman otherwise.”
“You’ll educate her if need be. Hang in there, sweetheart. It might not mean anything.”
That night in bed, her hands over her belly, she thought of the little baby girl inside her. Like a miracle, she felt a flutter inside her, that familiar butterfly-wing feeling.
“Tony,” she whispered, “are you sleeping yet?”
“I’m awake,” he said, rolling over to face her.
“Give me your hand.”
He offered it and she placed it over her belly. On cue, there it was again, a little tap, tap from within.
“Wow, that’s so cool! She’s moving around already.”
“This is about the time. I’ll be four months soon. I hope time doesn’t go by too fast.”
“Me either. I’m in the one-day-at-a-time mode. If I start thinking about everything, it will make me crazy.”
“Me too. I love you, Tony.”
“Aw, I love you too, so much. You’d better get some sleep.”
They kissed and he fell asleep with his hand on his baby.
Chapter Seven
Christmas was on its way. Roberta had gone over the top decorating for Flynn and shopping and making everything perfect for him. She’d invited Alice and Emmett Clark for Christmas Eve, so there wasn’t the competition between the almost grandparents.
The firehouse was also being decorated. That morning, Katherine sat on the top rung of the extension ladder of engine 5, stringing lights around the perimeter of the room.
“Why don’t we leave these things up all year? They’re cool looking,” Joey Saint said.
“We’d be the laughingstock,” Rick Jackson said. “It would look like a circus tent.”
“You’re nuts,” Katherine yelled down.
“I’m going home as soon as Bridget gets here,” Tony told Joey.
“I’ll be right behind you. Ma had Candy baking Christmas cookies at the house last night. There goes her diet.”
“You’re cruel,” Tony said, but he laughed, catching Bridget coming through the door out of the corner of his eye. He practically vaulted over to her, pushing her back out the door so Charlie didn’t get annoyed when they hugged.
Outside in the cold dark December morning, they kissed like guilty lovers. She threaded her hands into his jacket and held him close.
“Last night was so difficult without you. Thank God this is the last night for a while.”
He was going on vacation for a week before Christmas, but unfortunatel
y, he had to work over the holidays.
“And how did this little girl do?”
He placed his giant hand over her belly, and the warmth from it stirred the baby. “Now you’ve done it. She was rolling around half the night but finally fell asleep around midnight.”
“I wish you could come home with me,” he said, kissing her again.
“I’ll leave as soon as I can tonight. We’ll be together for a long weekend! I can’t wait. I have a surprise for you, too.”
“Do I have to wait?”
“Nope, I’ll tell you now. Giuseppe texted me last night that we’re going to close on the house today!”
“No way! That’s great. As soon as I get the key, I’ll head over. Maybe Joey will help me do some cleanup because he’s off today, too.”
“Candy was at the house last night. We baked cookies. I ate at least a dozen chocolate chip.”
“Good. I know what I’m having for breakfast, then.”
“I’d better get back inside before Charlie comes looking for me.”
“If he gives you any crap, tell him to call me.”
“Right, I’ll do that,” she said, smirking. “Goodbye.”
She got up on her toes and kissed him, pushing him toward his truck. “Go home.”
They waved to each other as he pulled out of the driveway.
Later that day, Giuseppe gave Tony the keys to the new house. Joey took a ride over with his tool bag in the back of Tony’s truck. The first thing Tony did was install a flag holder on the front porch. He went to the backseat of his truck and retrieved a neatly stored flag wound around a wooden stick, and when it was displayed in the holder, Tony smiled.
They worked at cleaning up, tearing up old carpet, and began the process of gutting the bathrooms and kitchen. Big Mike stopped by on his way home from work to offer advice. In the morning, Tony was going to meet another cousin at the house, who would do the wiring. Once they had heat and light, Bridget could come to keep him company. But for now, she’d stay home with baby Flynn at night and wait for Tony.
The words of the doctor about the tiny fluid-filled space in the back of the baby’s neck haunted her, but she wouldn’t let it take over her life. Well, that wasn’t exactly true. When she got back to the station that afternoon after the ultrasound, she’d sat at the computer in the office and Googled chromosomal abnormalities in babies. The first condition mentioned was Down syndrome. Reading until she had to do some work, the one thing that kept going through her mind was that the little baby’s heart was good. As long as she was physically healthy, they’d cope with anything else.
Sweet and Sassy Baby Love Page 35