Audrey wasn’t sure what to say. She had no idea what he was talking about and his pacing around like a headless chicken was beginning to worry her. “Well, it depends on what we are talking about.”
“Ellie is pregnant.” He spat out and waited.
Her eyes popped out. She froze looking at him, mouth agape.
“That’s what I did and she didn’t like that very much.”
She shook her head, trying to clear it. “Okay. Okay. Let’s start from the beginning because I’m confused. When did you sleep with her?”
He went back to pacing, “The day she dumped me.”
“That’s fifteen weeks ago, there should be a bump or something. Does she seem heavier?”
“Her waist is a lot rounder than the last time I felt it. I put my hand on her belly,” he felt sweaty and breathing was becoming a chore for him, “He’s in there alright.”
“OMG!” she yelled, dancing around, “You are going to be a dad!” She jumped on him and hugged him tight. “I’ve got dibs on godmother.”
He laughed nervously, “So this is a good thing?”
Audrey held his face in the palms of her hands, “Dale Carson, you are thirty-six years old. It’s about time you spread your good genes around.”
“So it’s a good thing?”
She laughed, hugging him. “It’s a great thing!”
Carson drove to Ellie’s apartment, his mind still in a whirl wind. Possibly falling in love wasn’t something he thought seriously about. When he was younger, yes he thought about it, he had it all planned- law school, his own practice, a wife and three kids- two boys and one girl- all by the age of forty. He’d have a wonderful marriage and give his kids the best childhood that he could. Just like his dad did, then things changed.
Practicing law didn’t seem as fun as getting into the minds of psychopaths and hunting them down. Going head to head with situations people only had nightmares about or watched in movies. Knowing that each day he went out on the job there was a fifty percent chance he would be back in a body bag. He had to admit, those odds gave him a rush nothing else could match up to. With everything he’d seen on the job, bringing children into the world at the risk they’d be tortured by one of the animals he hunted down, or leaving a widow behind or becoming a widower himself because of his job was something he wasn’t willing to put up to risk. The pain of losing a loved one isn’t something he would wish on anyone.
He was content with being a bachelor for the rest of his life. But now, at the age of thirty-six, he had a girl he thought he loved and she was expecting their first child. A life he was frightened of living was becoming a reality.
He rang her door bell, each hand holding snacks and foods he’d heard Richard complain having to drive to a twenty-four hour store in the middle of the night for his wife and what Paloma used to stuff herself with at work.
Kris opened the door in her flannel shorts and red vest. “Good, you are finally here.”
Holding up the bags to her as he stepped in, “Hi. Long time no see. I brought pizza, burgers, chips, chocolates and ice cream. I wasn’t exactly sure what her cravings are.”
“You nailed it.” Kris took the bags from him and set them on the kitchen counter. “We barely have any food in the house since hurricane Ellie arrived four days ago.” She said, pulling out four slices of pizza out of the box and putting them on a plate.
“Did someone say something about food?” Seth, Kris’s blond headed boyfriend appeared out of her room. “Hey man. So you are the lucky guy?” He nodded at Carson as he went to join Kris.
“Yeah, I guess I am.” Carson answered, staring at the duo. They looked like a pair of chaos judging by the way they went through his craving kit. “Where is Ellie?”
Kris hissed, “Speaking to the she-devil!”
Before he could inquire further, he turned to the soft padding of feet on the hard wood floor.
“Did someone say food?” Ellie walked out of her room, a jar of peanut butter in her hand and a spoon hanging loosely in her mouth. She pulled the spoon out of her mouth, and just stared at Carson.
“Hi. I brought you something to eat,” he said, pointing at Kris and Seth.
“Hey, hands off. He brought that for me,” Ellie warned, pointing at them with the spoon.
“Once you refill the refrigerator, we’ll be happy to, until then,” Kris bit into the slice of pizza she was holding defiantly.
“Kris, did you call me a she-devil again?”
Instinctively, Carson’s head jerked in the direction of the voice. “Whoa!” She looked exactly like Ellie the first night they met.
“Ellsa, Dale. Dale, Ellsa.” Ellie quickly introduced them.
“She-devil, baby daddy. Baby daddy, she-devil,” Kris added.
Carson turned to Kris with an arched brow. She made no attempts to hide her distaste for Ellie’s twin.
“Don’t mind her. She’s bitter, with no ambition in life.” Ellsa spoke, pulling his attention.
He gave her a weary smile, as he did a quick assessment of her.
She dressed in designer labels right down to her shoes. Her hair was held back, giving her makeup accentuated face precedence. Her red lips matched her red purse and shoes contrasting well with her black cocktail dress. Her confidence that amused him: She knew she was attractive and had no problem letting that fact known.
But it was her eyes that unsettled him.
When Kris coughed and Ellsa’s lips parted in a seductive smile, he knew he’d been staring for too long.
“You look like you are going someplace fun.”
She moved to him, a subtle sway in her hips. “I was, but I think I’ll stay a while.” She put her hand on his arm and squeezed. Her lips formed a red O then she looked up at him, her brow raised and her lips back to a seductive smile. “Get to know you better.”
Carson heard Kris snort. He shifted his eyes to Ellie. All her attention was on the jar of peanut butter. She was the only one in the room oblivious to her twin’s tactless advances.
He gave her hand a brotherly pat and pushed it away from his arm, “Maybe another time. I’d like to spend some time with Ellie.”
She sighed, “Well it’s the least you could do. You did knock her up.”
That caught Ellie’s attention. “Excuse me? The least he could do? What’s that supposed to mean?”
Ellsa huffed and rolled her eyes. “Let’s not pretend that baby is not an inconvenience.” She moved to Ellie and kissed her cheek, “All it did was trap you a man.”
Ellie stepped back, shock written all over her face, “You did not just say that!”
Ellsa shrugged and walked back to Carson, “Ugly way to keep a man sis.” With a bat of her eyelashes and a telling smile, she slid a card down his front pocket, taking the opportunity to feel out his chest, right down to his abs. She bit her lower lip and sighed. “Call me when you get tired of playing daddy.” She whispered.
With a final gaze she called out “Bye sis,” and left the apartment.
Seth whistled, “She’s something.”
“And then some,” Kris growled.
“Good night you two,” Kris dragged Seth into the living room. She stopped behind Carson, “One more thing,” she reached into his pocket and retrieved the card. ‘Don’t even think about it!’ she mouthed, then proceeded into her room.
Carson laughed, “Does your sister always do that? Hit on your boyfriend right in front of you?”
Ellie huffed, “It’s nothing. She’s just… it’s Ellsa being Ellsa.”
Nothing! Wow! He thought.
“I’m sorry if she made you uncomfortable.” Ellie was sincere and yet the apology sounded automated.
“You do that a lot, apologies for your sister?”
She nodded and laughed. “It’s become second nature to me. The minute she leaves a room, I find myself apologizing to everyone, even if I wasn’t paying attention. Ellsa can’t be in a room for five minutes without offending someone… or everyone.”
He picked that up, but there was something else that nagged him about Ellsa.
They stayed quiet, just staring at each other, neither one of them too keen to take the first step to each other. It was Ellie who broke the silence, the scent of the burgers driving her boarder line insane with hunger. At the rate she was going, she was going to end up giving birth to a ten pound baby. “Can I get you anything?”
“Do you have anything to drink?” he asked, taking off his leather jacket and placing it on the couch, “preferably something with alcohol in it.” Ellie brought out two cans of beer and set it on the counter for him. “Wait, you are not drinking, are you?” he asked, taking a seat. As far as he knew, pregnant women didn’t drink.
“No. The two cans are for you. I figured you’d want to chase them one after the other,” she said, pulling a burger out of the bag and biting into it. She purred when the sauce touch her tongue.
Carson laughed, “Are you okay? Would you and that burger like some privacy?”
Ellie smiled embarrassed. “It’s not easy eating for two. Food just… I don’t know… it’s kind of like a lover.” She laughed, “I can’t believe I just said that.” She picked up her burger and moved to the couch, Carson followed. “The food I used to love, I now hate, and that I rarely ate, I now can’t live without.”
“Is that how you noticed you were pregnant?” he shifted his gaze between her face and her belly. He could clearly see her small bump with the tight white vest she had on.
She put her hand on her belly. “I thought I was stress eating and when I couldn’t fit into my skinny jeans I went on a diet. Two days into it, I collapse in front of a class of fifty. Not my proudest moment.”
“Were you wearing a skirt or a pair of pants?” He chuckled.
“What does that have to do with anything?” She smiled.
His eyebrows arched upwards, “Really? You have to ask?”
She rolled her eyes, “I was wearing leggings. Anyway, I woke up to a smiling nurse looking down at me,” she laughed. “She freaked me out at first, but once I realized where I was, she yelled with this freakish high pitch voice, ‘you’re pregnant!’ She went quiet for a while, smiling to herself. “I was frightened at first, but after a few days it felt…. right.”
Carson stared at her, soaking in her happiness. He was happy she was happy, but he couldn’t help but worry. That was going to be his new role. “I’m happy you are happy.”
“But are you happy you’re going to be a dad?” She asked cautiously. She’d spent the day preparing herself for a bad reaction, but she still wasn’t sure if she would take it well. She was going to breathe through it, no matter what; she had Kris and Ellsa to help. Well… maybe not Ellsa.
“As hard as it is for my ego to admit, I’m scared and worried. There are so many bad things out there…”
“I’m not as worried. I googled the cases you guys have worked on and you have a good record.”