Page 7 of Trick or Treat

Trick was twenty-four, was nearing the end of his time with the military and his favorite color was navy blue.

For the next eight days they spent as much time together as possible. He’d been staying at Jackson’s house and Michelle was spending all her free time there. Not wanting to be a third wheel in his own home, Jackson opted to spend his nights in his room at the clubhouse.

Trick was back on base four weeks when he got a text from Michelle sayingI’M PREGNANT. His heart tripped in his chest and he was finding it difficult to breathe. The appearance of little black dots in his vision alerted him that he needed to take in more air. He took a deep, stuttering breath and let it out. “Fuck me.”

He ran a hand over his face and debated on what he should say in reply. “Shit.” He had to say something, but for the life of him, nothing was coming to mind.

“Hey, man. You good?” Colson, one of his fellow Marines, asked as he squeezed his shoulder.

“Yeah. Good.” It might have sounded more convincing if he hadn’t sounded like he was choking on something.

“Are you sure? You look a little green.” Jenkerson, another buddy, asked.

“No. No. I’m good. Just need some fresh air.” Trick offered a weak smile and headed out the door. He waited until he was outside before he dropped his hands to his knees and bent over, trying to get his breathing under control. When he thought he was well enough to breathe regularly, he walked over to a tall tree and leaned back against it. He needed to talk to someone before he called Michelle. He needed someone to help him get his head on straight. He lifted his phone and hit one of his speed dial numbers.

“Hey, Trickster, my man! How’s it going?” Jackson’s voice was hard to hear over the sound of many voices and loud music. He must be at the clubhouse. What Trick wouldn’t give to be there right now, drunk off his ass, so he didn’t have to think about Michelle being pregnant.

“Hey, Jackson. I…” his voice caught and he had to clear his throat before he tried again. “Michelle’s pregnant.”

“Come again?”

“I said…”

Jackson cut him off. “Hang on.”

Trick hung on until he could hear the noise fading into the background. He heard a door close and then Jackson saying, “All right. Say it again because I couldn’t have possibly heard what I thought you said.”

“You heard right. Michelle’s pregnant. She just texted me.” He rubbed his hand across his mouth and started to pace, completely oblivious to his surroundings. Good fucking thing he was on base at the moment or he’d be an easy target. He knew Jackson would remember exactly who Michelle was because she’d been at his house so much. And she had those piercing blue eyes.

“Fuck, man. What are you going to do? Does your family know?”

“I haven’t called anyone but you. I know I need to call her, but I need to get my shit together first.” He nodded at a couple of guys as they walked by.

“Are you going to tell her to get rid of it?”

The thought of Michelle ending her pregnancy, his child, was like getting slapped in the face with a brick. The thought did not sit well with him at all. He’d always wanted a family, he just thought he had more time. “No. I’m not going to tell her to get rid of it. It doesn’t matter how it happened or that it was a complete accident. It all comes down to the baby is mine, a part of me, and I want it. I want to be a part of this kid’s life.” Saying that out loud, he realized he really truly did want this baby.

“Are you going to marry her?”

“God, I don’t know. I barely know her. The only thing I know about her is that she’s nineteen, her favorite color is neon green and how to get her to scream my name when she comes.” If that didn’t sound like a loser, he didn’t know what did. His head fell back on his shoulders, giving him a perfect view of a dark clear sky and millions of twinkling stars. How had his life taken such a sharp turn? His plans had been to finish the next four months serving Uncle Sam, then move home and prospect for the Sons of Redemption.

Jackson chuckled on his end. “I wish I could tell you what to do. Just know that whatever you decide, I’m here for you. Whatever you need.”

“Thanks, man. I appreciate it.”

“You’re going to ask her to marry you, aren’t you?”

Jackson knew him too well. “Shit. Shit. Shit. Probably. Maybe. I don’t fucking know. I guess I need to sack up and call her. See how things are before I completely lose my shit.”

“Okay. Call me back if you need me.”

“Thanks. I will.” He disconnected, scrolled down to Michelle’s number and called.

“Hello?”

“Hey, Michelle. I got your message.” He moved back to the tree and dropped to his ass and leaned back, resting one arm on his knee and pinching the bridge of his nose with the other.

“I really didn’t want to tell you that way, but I chickened out when I started to call.”

---