Page 60 of Devil's Dilemma

I show him my middle finger as I walk off.

I take a car, Mel’s stopped riding on the back of my bike now, not so much because she’s too big, but she’s terrified she’s going to fall off. I suppose our supposition that Skull was killed in a riding accident doesn’t give her confidence.

Pulling up outside her house, I toot the horn. The door opens, and she steps out. As normal my gut clenches at just the sight of her, and my cock starts to swell.Down, fella, down.I mentally recite all the parts of an engine.

By the time Mel’s eased herself in, my chubby has, at last, diminished.

“Ready for this?” I ask as I drive down the road.

“Don’t get too excited, Ro. The baby may not cooperate, and we might not be able to see what sex it is.”

“Just seeing it will be great. Hey, what’s the matter?” My hand closes the gap between us and squeezes hers. “What’s up Mel?”Is she wishing it was Skull sitting beside her?Be strange if she wasn’t, I suppose. But sometimes, like now, I have to force myself not to get jealous of a dead brother.

But she’s not thinking about her old man. She’s got something else on her mind. “I’m scared they’ll find something wrong with the baby, Ro. What if they do? What if its organs are inside out or something? Or it doesn’t have a head, or it’s not developing properly.”

I don’t make platitudes and tell her it will be fine. What do I know? Tightening my fingers on hers once again, I just reply, “Then we’ll deal, okay? I’m right here beside you. Anything shows up wrong, we’ll find out the options and make decisions from there.”

Turning my head, I catch her eyes which are open wide. But I do hear her almost whispered reply as I focus my attention back on the road.

“What did I do to deserve a friendship with a man like you, Ro? I honestly don’t know how I’d have come this far without you.”

I have nothing to answer her with. Instead, I promise, “I’ll be with you the rest of the way too. You can’t get rid of me now. I’m like some nasty rash you’ve picked up and can’t cure, I’m here to stay.”

I turn toward her again, this time, to wink.

As I hoped, she laughs.

But she’s tense in the doctor’s office. I stay by her side, holding her hand as the nurse puts a clear liquid on her stomach, I go still when they place the wand to her skin. I hold my breath as the doctor moves it around, then feel tears prick in my eyes when I hear a cross between a fast thumping and a whoosh whooshing sound.

“There it is.” The doctor turns the screen around. “See? The head, there’s one arm, the other’s hidden, and there are the legs.

“Is it sucking its thumb?” Mel asks in wonder while I’m too choked up to speak.

“Looks like it, doesn’t it?” The doctor proceeds to take measurements and makes satisfactory sounds. “Everything looks to be exactly how we’d want it. And fits nicely with your due date.” Then she adds the words I hoped to hear, “Would you like to know what you’re having?”

“Yes,” we both say together.

“Now this is my best estimate,” she warns. “There’s still a chance I could be wrong, but from what I can see, I’m fairly confident you’re having a boy.”

A son.No, a nephew. Fuck, I have to remember that. But I couldn’t feel any prouder.

“Pyro, are you crying?” an astonished voice asks.

“Nope,” I deny it, brushing my tears away. “Got something in my eye.”

“Strangely that happens to a lot of dads,” the doctor says drily. “Must be dusty in here.”

Mel giggles.

“Can we have a photo, doc?” I cough to clear my throat.

“Of course.”

It’s not long before I’m holding a colour picture in my hands. I hold it reverently, before passing it and the cardboard envelope over to Mel. Her eyes are glistening, she’s completely oblivious to the nurse wiping the gel from her stomach.

“You can get dressed now.”

I sit stunned during the rest of the appointment. I’d known Mel was pregnant, sure, but actually seeing the baby? While I know it was still small, not quite six inches long and still with one fuck of a lot of growing to do, I already know I’d give up my life to keep him and his mother safe.I love him.

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