* * * *
“Babe, how in love are you with the Corvair?”
“Excuse me?”
“I want a safe car for you and the baby, and the Corvair is pretty old.”
“What did you have in mind?” Whoever had owned it previously had taken pretty good care of it; it ran well and suited my needs, but once the baby came, we’d need something bigger, something with airbags and factory installed seatbelts, and with a roomy trunk for groceries instead of the engine.
“I was thinking of buying the Dodge and giving it to you.”
“Me?” Getting behind the wheel of Wills’s car, controlling that powerful engine…It scared me spitless. But he had a point. The Corvair was almost forty years old, and it had close to four hundred thousand miles on it. “But what about you?”
“I’m in line to get a new car at work, so I’ll still have a Dodge to drive.”
“I will miss the Corvair,” I said wistfully.
“If you want to hold onto it, I can extend the garage, make it two cars in tandem, and we can leave it in there until the kids are old enough to learn to drive. And we can take the Corvair out occasionally to keep it in running condition.”
But all I heard was, “Kids?”
“Sure. We’re going to have more than one, aren’t we?”
“You bet. But let’s have the first one first, okay?” I had no doubt he was going to be a great dad, but I still wasn’t certain about me.
“Okay, babe. Now, why don’t we take the Dodge out so you can get comfortable with it?”
“I’ve got a better idea. Suppose I pack up a picnic basket, and we drive out to the country, find a secluded spot, and fool around a little?”
“Just a little?” That half smile titled up the corner of his mouth.
“A lot works for me.” All this time together, and he still made me hard with a look.
“Cool. Let’s get going.” He reached down and squeezed my butt. “You’re still going to drive, though.”
* * * *
“I want to name our son Teodore William,” Wills said one night when we were in bed. “For you and Gramps.”
“But I thought the first son was named after both grandparents.”
“Eryx John? Sorry, babe. I don’t think so.”
I was relieved. Even after all this time, I wasn’t ready to forgive Poppa for preferring to tell the family I was a junkie rather than I was gay. “What about John Eryx?”
“There are a lot of Johns in my family. They’d wind up calling him Wills’s-and-Theo’s-John.”
“That is a mouthful.”
“I knew you’d agree. We’ll just start our own tradition.”
“So Teodore William it is?”
“You bet.”
I was so grateful he’d even consider adding my name to our son’s that right then I’d have given him anything he wanted, and I told him that.
“I have everything I want, babe. I’ve got you.”
After hearing that, what could I do? I pulled him under me and made love to him all night long.
* * * *
For our first wedding anniversary, Wills surprised me with a trip to Cambridge. This time he rented a van, and we stopped at the big house, picked up the entire family including Alice and Pat, and drove to City Hall.
Massachusetts had recognized same-sex marriages that past May. With the help of the company he worked for, we were able to be legally married.
* * * *
At four in the morning on October 11, Samantha’s voice over the intercom jerked us out of a sound sleep. “It’s time, guys.”
“Okay, give us two seconds. Theo will meet you at the top of the stairs.” Wills had installed stair lifts for her early in the pregnancy. Three flights of stairs would have been too much, even though she said the exercise would be good for her. “I’ve got to bring Miss Su downstairs.”
“No hurry, but…” She groaned, and I felt the bottom drop out of my stomach.
“We’re hurrying!” I caught the shorts Wills tossed to me and almost tripped getting my legs into them. “Goddammit.”
Wills was already dressed, stepping into a pair of jogging shoes and lacing them up. “You okay, babe?”
“Fine. I’m fine.”
“Samantha’s been packed for the past two weeks, so don’t forget her bag. And don’t forget Teddy Bear’s either.”
Before I could assure him I wouldn’t, he was out of the room, calling Miss Su.
“Uh…Theo?” Samantha was on the intercom again.
“I’m on my way!” I yanked on my jeans, wrestled with my shirt, and finally grabbed my Reeboks and bolted for the front door. Then I had to go back, because I’d forgotten the baby’s bag.
I ran up the stairs, but Samantha was already halfway down.
“Sorry.” I sat on a stair and got my jogging shoes on. “Okay, do you want me to carry you?”
“No.” She paused while she rested a hand on her abdomen and did the hee hee hoo breathing.
“Bad?” I asked when she blew out a breath.
“It’s better than a poke in the eye with a sharp stick. But not by much. Here, take this, okay?” She handed me her bag.
“How…how long?” I slid an arm around her waist and helped her off the lift and to the next one that led to the second floor.