Page 24 of My Girlfriend is Not the Father

‘Yeah, just in case …’

She hated the crack in Drew’s normally ultra-confident voice, but she felt it too. Lucy was not a praying kind of woman. But there have been more than a few nights right before she fell asleep where she whispered to the universe that she hoped everything turned out healthy and safe for the future little nugget. ‘Nope. You’re not jinxing anything.’ She patted him on the leg. ‘Everything’s going to be fine.’

An hour later, after Drew had left to meet Mason for dinner, Lucy picked up her phone and grinned at an unread message from Jade. At some point she shouldn’t get flutters this intense, right? One would think after weeks of chatting, the thrill of getting pinged would dissipate. Indulging in these little zings and zangs was fun, at least for now. But she really needed to pull herself back, and keep her mind focused on the mission at hand.

Although, a few texts couldn’t hurt …

Jade: Do you remember in high-school chemistry when we learned about color molecules?

Lucy: No, but why?

Jade: I have a redhead who wanted to go platinum blond in one sitting.

Jade: Told her no. Impossible. Her hair will fall out, so she finally agreed to do it in multiple appointments.

Lucy: So, what happened?

Jade: She is currently cat-pee yellow/orange and I’m trying to do some semipermanent toner on her, so I don’t ruin my reputation around town.

Lucy: Oh no haha. You got this.

When Jade didn’t respond, Lucy shoved the phone in her back pocket and took out the recycling. She pictured Jade at work, laughing with clients, her sleeved-tattooed arms working the round brush as she styled someone’s hair. She wanted to be wrapped in those strong arms again. She hated that she’d rejected Jade’s last two offers to get together. But these emotions were unfamiliar, and her brain wouldn’t settle.

And it wasn’t just that she was unsure of what to do with these feelings. Lucy had also signed documents stating she wouldn’t engage in sexy nefarious acts, and that a partner wouldn’t interfere with the surrogacy process. The doctor, therapist, coordinator, even the legal secretary had all seen Lucy’s sworn statement of singlehood.

Lucy wasn’t a relationship guru or anything, but it seemed obvious that no one would want to date her with the promise of nothing but hand holding, cuddling, and witnessing morning sickness in their future. It was like there was a pending doom of rejection hovering in the air, before they’d even got started. And sure, although Lucy had never experienced this in her life, she wasn’t totally obtuse in thinking that the fear of rejection was uncommon when you are in the beginning stages of developing feelings. But this seemed like a guaranteed way to snuff the flames before they even had a chance to burn.

Her phone pinged.

Jade: What are you up to?

Lucy: Drew just left. About to dive into a bag of chips and sour cream and watch Golden Girls.

Jade: I LOVE The Golden Girls. Which one are you?

Lucy: Really? I figured you knew me a little better by now. Rose, of course. You?

Jade: Dorothy

Lucy: No nonsense. Kind of salty. Love it.

Lucy: What are you up to tonight?

Jade: On a Saturday night? Going home. Taking a bath. Passing out by 10.

Lucy’s heart skipped a beat. Should she? No. Yes? Maybe. Gah! They were just friends. They both had the day off. They loved Golden Girls. This was fine.

Lucy: Want to come over?

And then she dropped the phone like it was burning her palm and rubbed Chucky’s fur until her breath evened. I cannot believe I just did that …

Chapter 10

Jade

Jade finished cleaning and closed the shop in record time. She normally liked to take a shower after a long day of work. But it was already seven, and she had to swing by the grocery store before going to Lucy’s. She made a quick call to her sister Bethany both to check in on how her summer grad school classes were going, and to distract herself from the perma-tingle in her stomach during the drive. Thirty minutes later, she pulled into Lucy’s driveway.

Whoa. This woman really, really liked lawn ornaments. And hanging things, and butterflies.