Page 18 of Like the Season
Chapter Six
It took Boyd a moment to orient himself the next morning after a few hours of restless sleep. He wasn’t on his couch, and he wasn’t next to Caleb.
Ella.
And his body was still on Florida time, so it was only four a.m. locally.
Shit.
Knowing he was wide awake, he sat up and retrieved his phone from where it was charging on the end table by his head. No calls, no texts.
If he texted Caleb right now, it’d probably wake him up and he didn’t want to do that to his boy on a Saturday morning.
I’m going to be a grandfather.
He took his work phone into the bathroom to go over his e-mails while taking care of business. Nothing needing his immediate attention, no texts to reply to, either.
All the while, pulsing in his brain, the steady reminder of his new life.
He didn’t want to think about Ella maybe not keeping the baby, although he’d certainly understand, under the circumstances, if she didn’t want to. Except with all the new knowledge he held, that possibility made him more than a little sad.
After finishing in the bathroom he knew he wasn’t going to be able to go back to sleep. Quietly, he rummaged around in the kitchen until he found the coffee and filters and started a pot brewing. Then he dug out his iPad and earbuds to watch Netflix.
I hope Caleb was able to sleep last night.
He and Caleb were overdue for a long and detailed talk about Caleb’s family. The past several weeks since they’d broken through their barrier and become a secret “official” item had been spent working on them as a couple, talking, negotiating.
Fucking each other’s brains out.
It was nearly six o’clock when Boyd was startled by the sound of the bedroom door being thrown open and Ella bolting for the bathroom. He yanked his earbuds out and followed her, flipping the light on as the sound of her retching hit him. He knelt next to her and held her hair back for her as she puked into the toilet.
He knew nothing he said would be right, so he opted to keep his mouth shut and justbethere for her.
She started crying, leaning against him even as she spit again, dry heaves now hitting her.
“I hate that fucker,” she moaned. “Goddamn that asshole.”
“Want me to go beat him up for you?”
He was only half-kidding, but she managed a weak chuckle. Then she flushed and sat back, the hollows under her eyes deeper and darker than they’d been last night. “Sorry, I should have warned you the smell of coffee is a massive trigger for me right now.”
“Oh, shit. I’m so sorry. I—”
“It’s okay, Dad. You didn’t know. It especially sucks since Ilovecoffee, usually drink four or five cups a day, so I’ve been in caffeine withdrawals on top of morning sickness.”
He helped her to her feet and she cleaned up in the sink. “I’ll go shut it off and dump it,” he said.
“Thanks.” Her gaze met his in the bathroom mirror, and for the first time hereallysaw how much they looked alike. She had his eyes, his blonde hair, his fair complexion. Maybe a little of Helen’s nose and chin, but there was no doubt in his mind Ella was his daughter.
“I was thinking about what you said last night,” she started.
“Yeah?”
“About working until nearly time for me to have the baby and then moving.”
He nodded, not wanting to get his hopes up. “Caleb and I will help you move. That’s not an issue.”
“I don’t want to be alone anymore. After I lost Mom, I went through a period where I was so fucking angry over how she had to raise me alone. That she didn’t try to date or find someone to love. And it meantIwas alone when I lost her. I don’t want to be alone anymore. I don’t want to raise my baby alone, but I damn sure won’t have its father in my life.”
