Page 83 of Love By The Falls

This woman has been through a lot with her ex and raising that boy on her own. I guess I can understand why she’d want to know right now whether I’ll be the same or not.

“I get it. I do. But I just found out I’m going to be a father. I need some time to process how a child will fit into my life.”

She inhales sharply and closes her eyes. “You’re right. This is a lot at once.”

“Let’s eat,” I say, then cut a piece of the spanakopita and put it on her bread plate. “We have a few months to figure this all out. We don’t have to do it all tonight.”

She runs her tongue over her front teeth while staring at the spinach pastry in front of her. “I guess we still have some time to talk about it.” She cuts a small piece and brings it to her mouth. Her lips circle the fork and pull the pastry clean off. It’s a simple act, yet my body stirs. I’ve felt that mouth on me and the memory is ingrained in my head.

“So,” I say, distracting myself from her lips. “Tell me how you nearly got arrested at my office.”

She smiles, and those lips spread over white, shiny teeth. “Funny story…”

21

Charlotte

Two weeks later…

My mother stirs a pot of chicken soup over the stove while my father awkwardly holds a screwdriver at an angle, trying to fasten the latch inside the cabinet. “I told you, that’s not how to fix it,” says my mother, looking at me but speaking to him. She wants to roll her eyes. I can feel it.

“Honey, I know what I’m doing.”

“That’s what you always say.” This time, she rolls her eyes.

My father hits his head on the shelf, trying to glower at her.

I wonder if this is still a good time to tell them about the baby. My knee bounces as I contemplate postponing the conversation another week, but I’ve already held it off for too long. I can’t hide it anymore. Caleb is coming to Cedar Brook Falls this weekend.

“Mom, Dad, we need to talk.”

My mother looks at me, and her eyes roam across my face. I bite my lip and swallow a lump in my throat.

“You better sit down, dear,” my mom says to my father. “This sounds important.”

My father peeks from behind the open cabinet door and catches my mother’s raised eyebrows. He puts the screwdriver down and pulls up a chair at the kitchen table next to her. They both stare at me.

I’m transported to my bedroom eleven years ago, and wring my hands together.Stop it. It’s not the same thing.

Right.

This is worse.

I close my eyes and swallow again.

“What is it, Charlotte? Out with it now. You’re scaring me. Are you sick?”

“No.”

“Is Charlie sick?”

“No, he’s fine.”

“Well, then it can’t be that bad.”

I scoff and shake my head. Here goes nothing.

“Mom, Dad.” I suck in a deep breath and exhale loudly. “I’m pregnant.”

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