AllFreeNovel
Share Us
Katie points enthusiastically to the person who said, ‘we’ and then she holds out her hand with three fingers up.
“Third word.”
Dirk grabs Katie and starts to mime thrusting into her from behind. People laugh and shout out a few comments.
“Doggie.”
“Intercourse.”
Katie and Dirk laugh but wave their fingers at us. They tap imaginary watches and then Dirk hands something to Katie and she squats over the item like she’s going to the bathroom. Then they both stand and Dirk pretends to rock something in his arms and Katie holds her arms out around her belly.
“Santa,” someone guesses and I laugh because it’s so clear.
“Baby,” someone else calls out and Dirk gestures that they are getting close.
“Pregnant,” I say and Katie jumps up and down.
“Can I guess?” asks a woman near the front who is bouncing in her seat ready to explode.
Katie starts to tear up and nods.
“We are pregnant!” the woman shouts and everyone in the room starts to cheer and hugs and high five Dirk and Katie.
“How far along are you?” someone asks and I realize this was their way of announcing the pregnancy.
“I’m four months and due in late February.” There are more squeals of delight and hearty congratulations and I start to feel like the dumbest person to walk the earth.
I finally make it to the happy couple and Dirk brings me in for a hug,
“I’m glad you’re here for the announcement, you’re a good friend.” I bring him in for a hug and Katie jumps in too.
“Congratulations you two, that’s one lucky baby,” I say and I mean it. How could a baby that’s already so loved not be the luckiest kid?
Someone passes around sparkling cider and we all drink a toast to the newest member of the Greyson family. After that, we settle into a surprisingly cutthroat game of charades. It’s mindless and fun and exactly what I need. There’s a little spark in my brain though just waiting for me to be less distracted.
When the game is over, a few of us head outside to the fire pit and roast marshmallows. Katie brings out chocolate and cookies to make s’mores and Dirk sits in the chair next to mine.
“There’s something churning in there,” he says knocking on my head. “How’s Mollie doing after selling her house in Westwood?”
Instantly, I hate myself because I didn’t even ask her how it went. I was so wrapped up in my own bullshit with my dad and then my tantrum about not having children that I forgot about how much she’s been through just in the past two days. Not to mention the past year.
“She seems okay,” I say knowing I’m a fat liar.
“Oh, I thought that was maybe why she didn’t come with you.”
“Nope, that would be because I fucked up and made her angry,” I admit and the more I think about why she’s angry the more I realize how wrong I am.
“Already? You’ve only been back together for a minute. Do you want to tell me what happened?”
I do, and I tell him the short version about my dad coming yesterday because he knows all about my job woes and I leave out Mollie’s miscarriages but emphasize that she wants a family. He didn’t know about my vasectomy and when I tell him he looks surprised.
“That seems so extreme for someone so young.”
“I think the idea of what my life was going to be with her never really left me. So when I thought about my future, I no longer saw a family there. It was a dark time for me, I was representing a guy who was molesting his ten-year-old niece and he was a particularly evil bastard.”
“That makes sense but now you’ve been freed and are reunited with her. What are you going to do now? Continue to abandon that dream or make it happen?” He asks, pointing his bottle of sparkling cider at me.
“I have to go, Dirk,” I say getting up. It’s starting to rain and everyone else is moving inside too.
