Page 103 of Feels Like Home

I creek the door open and poke my headin.

“Hi.”

Her shoulders sag, and she bites her lower lip, letting out a pitiful laugh before she drops herhead.

“Watching to see if anything will comeout?”

A burst of laughter leaves her. “No, you jerk! This. It’s all… I don’t know. It’s toomuch.”

“Why?”

“Are you kidding me right now? Why do youthink?”

“Honestly. I don’t know. I’m a littleecstatic.”

“You’remental.”

“No. I just love you and I know this is pretty perfect. We didn’t get a normal start, and our family is blended, and we haven’t done this baby thing in a really, really long time, and we’re walking blind here, but there’s no one else I’d rather do that with thanyou.”

“How do you always know the exact right thing tosay?”

“I don’t. Not always. Remember when I asked if you could fold my towels differently when you were helping out with laundry at my house? Or when I asked who taught you to drive? Or what about when I told you that I was going to take away your tools when the curtain fell on my forehead after you hung them? Or whatabout…”

She holds up a hand to stop me from literally digging myself into a hole. “Or now? Seriously. I don’t need a reminder.” She rolls her eyesplayfully.

“See? I’m not perfect. We’re just perfecttogether.”

“Daaaaaw! You say the sweetestthings.”

“Only for you, baby, only for you.” I kiss her on the forehead. “Now take a piss on that stick and prove to me that I’m right and that you’re carrying my littlegirl.”

“Fine,” she grumbles. “But I seriously can’tpee!”

I reach down and grab one of the bottles of Vitamin Water I picked up at the store and the curly straw, because it’s more fun to drink out of that way. I twist the top off and drop the straw in, lifting it to her lips, encouraging her todrink.

“Good girl,” I coo when she drinks down several ounces. “Want me to tell you a story while wewait?”

“What kind ofstory?”

“Hmmm, how about a lovestory?”

“Oooh — will I likeit?”

“Pretty sure you will, yes. Once upon a time…” Her giggles interrupt me so I repeat, “As I was saying, before you so rudely interrupted, once upon a time, there lived three bachelors. They weren’t the best at living. That is to say, they weren’t the happiest members of society. Too often, they would find themselves eating dinner in front of the TV, barely speaking to each other. They were angry and cynical and frustrated with life. Until, this raven-haired beauty and her daughter walked into their lives one day and reminded them that there’s an entire world out there of lightness and it’s dumb to let the darkness ruin everything. The two younger bachelorsmayhave had a little crush on the daughter before they realized that they loved her for so much more than her looks. But the older of the three bachelors? Well he just fell. And fell pretty damn hard and fast for the beauty. He soon learned that it wasn’t just her outside that was so gorgeous. But her inside was, too. And it made him want to be… better. And it made the younger bachelors want to be better, too. So, after talking to the youngsters” —she giggles again— “he decided that she needed to be in his life more. And possibly, probably, absolutely, forever. And then she let him get a look at her rocking bod, and he was a goner. Theend.”

“Oh, my gosh! You were doing so good!” She laughs so hard and then…pees.

“You’re peeing though, aren’tyou?”

“Well you don’t have tocommenton it! Yeesh. It will scare the pee backup!”

“I’m not a doctor, but I don’t think that’s medically possible. Did you get it?” I ask, nodding toward the stick dangling between herlegs.

She nods then swallows. “I thinkso.”

She places it on the counter, stands up, pulls up her pants and washes up. I take her face in my hands and lean in to kiss her. “No matter what that says, you’re stillmine.”

“Promise?”

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