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“Blake! What a wonderful surprise.”
I kiss him on the cheek. “How are you, Pa? You’re not working too hard, are you?”
I’ve begged him a million times to retire. I know he’s still young and has a lot left to give, but running a restaurant mostly alone for two turns every day is tough on his back. But he won’t have it. Claims he’d get depressed without his work. But at least Mom and I convinced him to hire a manager for the weekends so he can rest and they can enjoy more life together.
“I’m fit as a bull,” he reassures me, then turns to my friend. “Ah, Marissa! So good to see you, too.”
She gives him a hug. “Hey, Joe.”
“What can I get you, girls?”
“What’s the day’s special?” Marissa asks.
“Prosciutto.”
Her bright smile makes her look even younger. “I’m sold.”
“Me, too.”
He doesn’t ask about drinks because we’ve been drinking Coke with our pizzas since the first day I brought Marissa here seven years ago. “I’ll be right back with your orders.”
Dad gets behind the counter, and I hear him scream, “Tim, three regulars, one pepperoni, and two day’s special.”
I lean on the counter, facing my friend. “What’s the big secret? I’ve been dying to know all day.”
Marissa’s eyes sparkle as she prepares to speak. But my dad arrives with the Cokes and a basket of French fries, stalling her.
We both take a sip and wait for him to be gone again before Marissa joins her hands together and announces, “I’m having a baby.”
I spit half the sip of Coke back into the glass to avoid choking on it. “You’re pregnant?”
I didn’t even know she was dating someone.
“No.” Marissa shakes her head, still smiling. “Not yet, at least.”
“Okay, explain.”
“I’m almost thirty-five, Blake. I don’t have a husband, a boyfriend, or even the shadow of a man in my life. If I have to wait to fall in love to become a mother, it’ll never happen. I want to get pregnant with IVF.”
I don’t respond right away. The topic is serious, and I need a moment to collect my thoughts.
“I know I said not to talk me out of it, but please say something.”
Our pizzas arrive, giving me a few extra seconds to think before I speak. “I won’t say I don’t see where you’re coming from, but have you considered all the consequences?”
“Like what?”
“Let’s put some carbs into our bodies and then I can grill you.”
We eat the first slice of pizza in silence, then I ask, “Have you thought that if you do this, it’ll be even more difficult to find love?”
“Why?”
“For starters, you’ll have less time to date, and not all men are happy to take on the extra responsibility of raising a child not of their own.”
Marissa wipes her mouth with a paper napkin. “If someone doesn’t want to date me because I’m a single mom, I’d rather screen them out right away.”
“Fair point. And what about work?”
