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I went to dinner at the O’Riley’s a couple of times and enjoyed Mrs. O’s matronly attention. She and Sarah were always so interested in how I was doing, and they seemed as excited as Drake and I were about our pregnancy.
My father was doing much better, having finished almost a year of rehabilitation, and could now get around really well with just a cane, most of the use of his paralyzed side returned, although there was still some loss of control. He was alive and he was much happier.
The only hole in my life was Dawn. With my delivery fast approaching, I felt sad that she and I had not yet found our way back to each other. There had been no further developments on either side, and she had not stayed with Kurt so I had no idea whether she was back to her old views of kink or whether she still felt as awkward as
I did about renewing our friendship.
It was early June and I had started feeling more energetic during the day, getting up before noon, and even going out each day for a walk now that the weather was getting really nice. I would take the same route down 8th Avenue to Central Park’s west entrance, sit for a while and listen to the birds, enjoying the warmth of the afternoon. I'd stop and get a decaf tea at the Starbucks near Columbus Circle, then make my way back to the apartment to get some work done, make supper, and wait for Drake to come home.
On my way back to the apartment, I took my time, wandering down the side streets , enjoying the green that was returning to the city, and the sounds of the traffic surrounding me.
“Kate!”
I heard someone call my name and turned around to see Dawn running down the street towards me. At that moment, a black SUV screeched to a stop at the curb beside me and out jumped a huge man with a shaved head, dark glasses. He stood between me and Dawn and held his hand out, his other hand on his hip as if he were reaching for a weapon.
“Stop right there,” he said in an authoritative voice.
When I realized who he was – one of the security guards Drake had hired to protect me – I held my own hand up to stop him.
“It’s okay,” I said quickly. “She’s a friend.”
“You sure, Mrs. Morgan?”
I waved him off. “Yes,” I said. “She’s my oldest friend.”
He adjusted his jacket and nodded, then got back into his SUV.
“What the hell, Kate…” Dawn said, an expression of horror on her face. “You have a frickin' bodyguard now?”
“Drake wanted to be extra safe,” I said, trying to shrug it off. “I barely know he’s around.”
“What’s up with you two that you need a bodyguard?” Dawn said, apparently unwilling to let it go. “Have you been threatened?”
I shook my head. “No, just being safe. Drake’s worth a lot of money and now so am I, I guess.” I forced a smile.
“Look at you,” she said and stood back, her gaze moving over me, coming to focus on my belly, which stuck out through the gap in my jacket. I had intended on getting a proper pregnancy coat, but hadn’t been out much so I was making do. “How far along?”
“Almost twenty-eight weeks,” I said and rubbed my belly. “She’s a little girl and we’re calling her Sophia after my mother and great aunt.”
“Sophia…” Dawn said with a wistful smile. “Who would have thought you’d be married and pregnant right away? I thought the two of us would finish our Master’s and then get jobs, travel the world… Speaking of our Master’s, how’s your thesis?”
I shook my head. “I had to do another leave of absence due to acute morning sickness. I’ll start again once I’ve adjusted to motherhood.”
“Don’t do that,” Dawn said, a look of horror on her face. “That’s what my mother said, and she didn’t go back. Go back before you’ve adjusted or you might never do it. From what my mother said, it never gets easier. You just get better at coping.”
I shrugged. “I’ll play it by ear. Whatever I decide, I can go back and finish in a semester, so it’s no hurry.”
Dawn didn’t look convinced. “Think of how much our lives have diverged in so short a time.”
“Life happens,” I said, unhappy with the note of disapproval I heard in Dawn’s voice as if she thought I had made a mistake marrying Drake and getting pregnant so quickly. “Drake happened. We fell in love. Why wait? I think his father’s death and my mother’s death made both of us feel that waiting could be a big mistake. You never know what could happen and then we might regret that we didn’t do it when we had the chance.”
“It’s your life,” Dawn said and smiled, but she sounded unconvinced. “You’re the one who has to be happy with it, not me.”
I nodded, hoping she meant it. “What about you? Are you still seeing Kurt?”
Her face actually turned red at that. “News sure gets around,” she said a bit sheepishly.
“You didn’t think I’d hear? We’re involved with Doctors Without Borders, so I do hear about Kurt now and then.”
