14. Chapter 14

Chapter 14

Caleb

I see a car parked in her driveway when I arrive, and I suddenly feel bad for showing up unannounced. But I have to see her. It’s super late, which adds to my guilt, but after what my da told me, I have to know. She’s going to think that I’m a lunatic for even suggesting this, coming over so late, when she’s clearly got company. As I press the button on the security panel, I wave to her, and she opens the gate. Laney and Brandy immediately appear outside, as the exterior light comes on.

“Hey, Caleb. I wasn’t expecting to see you tonight.” Laney comments, walking up to me, giving me a kiss hello. “Did he eat you alive?”

I chuckle nervously, raking a hand through my hair. “No, not at all. I’m sorry if I interrupted you two. I meant to call, but I just…I just drove.”

She picks up on something. “Are you okay?”

Brandy interjects. “It’s okay, Caleb. I should go. Laney was just bringing me up to speed on all the craziness that’s been going on. I’m glad to see that my life isn’t the only one that’s nuts. Congratulations on becoming a dad.”

My face pales. “So, it’s true?” Then I stop myself. Idiot. She’s talking about Peg, stupid.

Brandy’s neck cranes. “Of course it’s true. What are you talking about?”

Laney has a concerned look on her face. “Caleb, seriously. Are you okay? You look like you’ve just seen a ghost.”

I swallow. “No, I’m okay. I just…with everything that’s going on, I just…I don’t know. I should go. I shouldn’t have come.”

Brandy’s voice is firm. “It’s okay, Caleb. I get it. It’s okay to freak out. You’ve just dropped a bomb on your dad, right after a bomb got dropped on you, you laid a woman to rest, took responsibility for her child, and fell in love with my best friend, all in, what…a month, month and a half’s time? Hell, I’d be knee deep in therapy.” She scoffs. “I am in therapy. And that’s just because of a stupid divorce. Hats off to you for keeping yourself sane after all that’s happened.”

Laney wraps her arms around me. “Yeah, baby. It’s okay to freak out. Frankly, I don’t know why I haven’t freaked out yet myself.”

“Because you’re a woman.” Brandy adds succinctly. “We’re built to take on shit like this in a moment’s notice.”

I look at Laney. My eyes search hers. If she’s having my baby, and she knows it, she wouldn’t be looking at me the way that she is. Not a sign of fear is in those eyes, not a sign of trepidation, nor of elusiveness. This is Laney. She’s not hiding anything from me. I feel it in my bones that she doesn’t know. And I start to wonder if maybe my da’s just said all that shit as part of his plan. Maybe it’s his way of manipulating the situation yet again. Maybe him making up the story about Laney being with child is another piece of the puzzle to somehow make me do something permanent with Laney, despite how clear she’s been with her desire to stay unmarried and without bairns.

“Well, the way that you jumped right in and helped Peg and Gretchen, I’d say that that’s true.” I concede. “I can’t imagine doing all this myself.”

“Please.” Laney states. “Before I came into the picture, you were.”

“Yeah, but now I’ve got to raise her on my own, Laney. She’ll need a mama.”

“I don’t intend to leave her, Caleb. I love her, too. My mama loves her, and my whole family is going to adore her, just like yours will, too.”

Brandy interjects. “You two keep talking like that, people are going to start thinking that you’re going to get hitched.”

I smile at the thought. “Laney doesn’t want to get married, and I’m okay with that.”

Something changes in Laney’s face, but she diverts it from my glance. “Shouldn’t we go inside? Grab some tea?”

“God, could you make it any more obvious, Laney?” Brandy scoffs. Laney gives her a look.

“Am I missing something?” I ask Laney, following her and Brandy inside.

“No, you’re not missing anything, Caleb.” Laney says, chiding Brandy. “My best friend just likes to meddle.”

“How is she meddling?” I ask.

Brandy pipes up. “Yeah, how is she meddling?”

Laney gives her a warning look. “Brandy, can it.”

Then I see it. The half bottle of wine on the table. And my heart skips a beat. “Laney, did you drink any of that?” I ask too quickly, panic rising in my chest.

“That piss water?” She gripes, setting the kettle on the stove. “No, that’s Brandy’s shit.”

I let the breath go that I was holding. “Oh, thank God.”

They both look at me, raising a brow.

“Err…” I hesitate.

“Why would you care if she drank my wine, Caleb?” Brandy asks, voice speculative as shit. She looks at Laney and Laney lifts both her hands in the air, indicating that she doesn’t know why, and more, that she’s not keeping anything from her best friend.

“Yeah, why would you care, Caleb?” Laney asks, hand on her waist.

I sigh, resigning myself. “Fuck.” I put my head in my hands and take a seat. “My da thinks you’re pregnant.”

Laney shrieks. “What? Why would he think that? What did you tell him?”

“I didn’t tell him a thing, I swear.” I lift a hand, pleading. “He just came up with this crazy idea that you’re pregnant. Apparently, he has a gift for sniffing out women who are with child. Evidently, you smell pregnant. It’s crazy, I know, but da is adamant.”

Laney and Brandy exchange a look. “Wha… are you pregnant?” I ask Laney.

She hesitates for a second, making my heart jump. I’m not sure if it’s excitement, shock, or if she’s scared shitless of what will happen next. If Laney is pregnant and she doesn’t want it, oh God, I don’t even want to think about it. “God, no.” She says, with less conviction than I would expect.

“Doing period math, Lanes?” Brandy checks.

Laney stands there for a moment, and then she pulls her phone out, to check something. “No.” Her brows knit together. “I’m just a little late. We used protection.” She says, as if convincing herself.

“Bonnie, we didn’t the first time, if you recall.” I remind her carefully.

“It’s impossible.” She shakes her head. “I can’t even tell for sure if I’m late. My last period was a bit foggy.”

“Meaning that you forgot to record the exact date.” Brandy clarifies.

Laney nods. “Yeah. I was right in the middle of taking on a new client. I think I was two or three days in when I remembered to put it in my calendar. Or was it when it was over…shit! I don’t remember!”

Brandy confirms. “But you know for sure that you haven’t had a period since.”

Laney looks at me. “No. Not since Caleb and I met.” She swallows, and I see a hint of something in her eyes. We met something like over two months ago.

“Laney, it’s okay.” I tell her in a calm voice. “Before you go panicking, why don’t we get a test?”

Brandy pulls her car keys out of her purse. “I’ll be right back.”

“Uh, I don’t think so, Brandy.” I tell her. “You’ve been drinking.”

Laney looks at me. “She drank that hours ago, Caleb. But thanks for the concern.”

Brandy winks at me. “You’re going to make a great father, Caleb.”

I’m not sure if she’s talking about with Peg or with this possible new baby, or if she’s teasing me, or what, but I thank her tentatively, all the same. As I watch her leave the house, I walk to Laney. “Let’s not worry about this until we know, okay?”

She swallows, as tears come to her eyes. “God, Caleb, this is all happening so fast.”

I pull her into my arms. “It’s okay, baby. Whatever happens, we can get through it together.”

I hear a sob as I hold her tight to me. “Caleb, I don’t know why, but ever since we said, ‘I love you’, I feel like everything has changed.”

My face meets hers. “Changed for the good or for the bad?”

“I…I don’t know. But I know that since the moment I knew I loved you, something inside me changed. Brandy and I were talking about it, that’s why I stifled her, because I didn’t think that it was the time to tell you.”

“Tell me what, baby? There’s nothing that you should be afraid to tell me, Laney. I love you. I love you so much.”

She searches my eyes. Her voice is tentative, choppy. “Caleb, I’m…I’m not opposed to getting married anymore.”

After a swallow and a kiss on her forehead, I tell her. “If I’ve had that effect on you, I’m flattered. I figured, if anything, I’d have the opposite effect. I thought that after coming here tonight and telling you what I did, that you’d slam the door in my face and tell me to go to hell.”

“Well, Caleb, marriage isn’t all I’m not afraid of anymore. The second I met Peg that whole mom aversion thing I had before, well, it evaporated.”

I smile. “Before I met her you couldn’t pay me to interact with a child. And now I’m adopting her. I can relate, baby.”

“But doesn’t the thought of being a da scare the hell out of you? I mean, most men would run for the hills.”

I frown. “No. Not with Peg. And not with you, Laney. Even if you aren’t with child, raising Peg with you, well, the thought couldn’t make me happier. That’s why I wanted Gretchen to bring Peg closer to me for so long. I wanted to be the da she never had, as sappy as that sounds. I’ve known her since she was a wee bairn, and I always tried to be that for her, as much as I could. That little angel deserves nothing less.”

“And if I am pregnant, Caleb? How is this all going to fit in?”

I pull her close to me again. “Laney, it fits in however you want it to. I love you and I want you to be happy, no matter what. We’ve established that raising Peg together will make us both happy, so we just need to figure out if having our own bairn will also make us happy.”

“Will it make you happy?” She asks, voice cracking with emotion.

“Laney, anything that makes me closer to you makes me happy, but only if it makes you happy, too.”

She takes some time to digest that, as I hold her to me. We stand there, just embracing one another, until Brandy returns with the test. She hands the paper bag to Laney. “Do you want me to stay or is it better if I leave while you two do this?”

Laney swallows. “If it’s okay with Caleb, I’d like you to stay. You’re my best friend.”

I look at Brandy and frown, nodding. “What Laney wants is what I want, Brandy. You’re more than welcome to stay.”

God love her. Brandy takes Laney’s hand and leads her into the downstairs bathroom. She closes the door while I offer a warm, but a thin-lipped smile. Laney is terrified. It tears my heart out. I hear them opening the box, and then it gets quiet, while she does her thing. A moment later, the door opens, and Laney seems to have gained some of her bearings back, as she lifts a hand and with soft eyes and a warm smile, she says. “Let’s give it a minute.”

“Okay, baby.” I smile. “You okay?”

She draws in a deep breath and lets it out. “I’m fine. It’s crazy, but as I was peeing on the stick, I was thinking to myself, you know, I’ve signed billion dollar deals with the hardest men on the planet, I’ve helped my da build up the family business to what it is, and I did it with integrity, I can certainly handle this.”

I grin at her. “There’s my girl.”

Brandy pats her on the back. “And let’s not forget the friggin army of help that you’ll have, too, Laney. Both of your families are going to be over the moon if this test is positive. God, that kid will need for nothing.” She scoffs.

Laney looks at me. “Caleb, your da is nothing like what I thought he would be, you know.”

I snort a laugh. “That’s all you, Laney. Trust me.”

Brandy interjects. “What, you mean he’s only all nice and sweet when Laney is around? I thought you said that he didn’t tear a strip out of you earlier?”

“He didn’t. I’m saying that since he met Laney earlier, it’s like he’s a changed man. I never known my da to be like this.”

“It’s not me, Caleb. It’s Peg. She’s had that effect on all of us.”

“Laney, if you recall, the moment you walked into his office, before he even knew about Peg, he was on his best behavior. It’s you, Bonnie. He adores you.”

“And you’re sure it’s not because he knows that I’m the CEO of his rival financial business?” She asks, but not with the cutting tone that I would expect. It’s more with a warm, yet speculative tone.

“I think it’s more because he senses that you’re carrying his first grandchild. And also because he sees how happy you make me, Laney.” I take her in my arms and hold her close. “Whatever happens, I’m so glad that we have each other, and that things seem to be falling into place.”

“Get back to me in nine months when her water breaks.” Brandy says with a playful scoff.

I figured Laney would freak out at the comment, but instead, she lifts her head from my shoulder, and slaps Brandy playfully. “Not helping. You wait until it’s your turn and see how it feels.”

“Alright, fine, fine.” Brandy tuts. “Shall we go see what the future holds?”

I pull Laney close. “I already know what the future holds.” I kiss her on the mouth. She kisses me back, smiling warmly.

“Yeah. The world’s most expensive fucking nanny.” Brandy says.

We both look at each other and laugh, as Brandy goes inside the bathroom and lifts the test stick. “Alright, will you have one baby to look after, or two?” She says teasingly, twiddling the stick between her thumb and index finger.

“You do know that I pissed on that, right?” Laney reminds.

“If you’re having a baby, we’re both going to be knee deep in piss, shit, puke, every bodily fluid, girl.” She says with a playful smile. “What do you think? Are we ready to find out if there’s a plus or a minus sign on this thing?”

I take my hand and squeeze Laney’s hand. “I’m ready.”

“Go ahead.” Laney says with a nod, after looking at me.

Brandy looks at the display and blinks. “Holy fuck…you must be fucking joking.”

“What’s wrong?” I ask, as Laney’s face falls. And I’m not sure what to make of that.

Brandy looks up at us. “It’s fucking negative. We stood here and made total asses of ourselves, and it’s fucking negative.”

I look at Laney and it’s like I just told her I don’t love her anymore. “God, my da was so sure.”

Then Laney lifts her hands in the air and says flippantly. “Oh, well.” She barks, almost irritated. “I must have really fucked up when I recorded my last period.”

I stand there, blinking, as Brandy sets the test stick down, and walks to Laney. “Are you okay? You sound weird.”

Laney ignores her. “Fuck! I can’t believe I let myself think I was actually pregnant.” She says, her voice raised an octave. “Here I’m thinking, oh, we’ll raise Peg and give her a little brother or sister, live in the perfect house with a white picket fence, you know? What a fucking idiot I am.” She laughs mirthlessly at herself, while scratching her forehead. “God, I am so stupid. Why would I even go down that road. I was lucky enough to find a man that I love and that loves me, why would I think that we could actually be a family?”

“Wait, Laney, it’s okay to want all those things, baby.” I tell her gently. “Just because it’s not going to happen now, doesn’t mean it’s not going to happen ever.”

Brandy interjects. “So, you wanted to have a baby?”

Laney sighs heavily. “I don’t know. For the last…I don’t know…half hour, I started letting myself believe that I could be that girl. All my life, I shunned myself for even thinking like that. But ever since I met you, Caleb, and since Peg came into our lives, I’ve been thinking how beautiful it would be to have something more than just a fat bank account.” She growls as she says the last three words in that sentence, as though angry with herself. Then she continues. “Let’s not forget how fucking hard I worked to get to where I am. How many battles I’ve had to overcome with clients, with my family, with the general public, since I’m a woman, and most of our clients are older men, chauvinistic bastards that think I should be at home, barefoot and pregnant, which is half the reason why I hated the thought, but my point is that this being pregnant thing, this falling in love thing, this having a family of my own thing, it would be the one thing that I didn’t have to bust my ass for.”

She licks her lips and continues. “God, when Caleb came to me, and we fell in love so fast, I…I couldn’t wrap my head around it at first. I was like, God, that was easy. Nothing for me has ever been so fucking easy. And then, when I thought I was pregnant, I thought, geez, how many women have to try for months, sometimes years, to get pregnant. Especially successful women, you know, starting a family doesn’t always come easy for them. And I thought, fucking aye, another one in the basket for me. And then Peg, god…damn…how the hell I got so lucky to find such a beautiful little bairn, and because of Caleb, I get to help raise her. I never thought anything like that would ever happen for me.”

Brandy and I are standing in the middle of the hallway, watching Laney circle around the house, arms flailing, nearly shouting at times, expressing her thoughts, as confusing as they are at times. And I want to go comfort her, but I feel like she just needs to vent, so both Brandy and I stand there and let her do that. She continues on her barrage. “And that’s the best part, too. With Caleb, I wouldn’t have to be the proverbial ‘barefoot and pregnant’, because he knows how important my career is to me, and he’d break down doors to make me happy with whatever arrangement we needed to have to keep our bairns safe and happy, and to keep us both happy. God…dammit!” She’s shouting, talking as if neither Brandy or me are here, but I just let her have her moment.

“So, what are you so pissed about, Laney?” Brandy asks, playing devil’s advocate. “That you’re going to lose your nerve, and not want to get married and have kids later? Or that when you want to, that the opportunity will be lost?”

She shouts. “Yes! God, fuck, you soooo get me! This is why you’re my best friend, god…dammit!” Her arms are flailing, and I think I see a shot of spittle fly out of her mouth, she’s so angry. Then she looks at me. “And, Caleb, your da, as crazy as fuck as he is for thinking I smell fucking pregnant, he’s a doll! He’s lovely! And I don’t know if that’s just because he really thought I was pregnant, but I don’t want him to feel like I failed him, either!”

I raise a hand, grinning. “Da is what he is, Laney. Believe me, he has no filter, so he holds nothing back. And you’re right, he is crazy.” I laugh.

Brandy looks at me and snorts a laugh.

I shake my head. “I should go and let you girls do your thing. It’s late, and I want to go pick up Peg first thing.”

“Why? What are you doing with her? Can I come along?” Laney asks.

I frown. “Absolutely. I’m going to go buy her a new bed. She saw this little princess one when I was looking on my phone earlier. I’m going to bring her and go get it. She’ll be so happy.”

Laney suddenly gets choked up. “God, it’s crazy, I know, but I was so looking forward to telling her that she was going to have a little brother or sister to play with. From what I’ve heard from her and Gretchen, she always wanted a sibling.”

Brandy snorts a laugh. “She’s always wanted a stable home, and she’s finally going to get that. She’ll be fine.”

I walk over to Laney and give her a kiss on the lips. “I love you, baby. I’ll pick you up in the morning. Sleep tight.”

“I love you, too.” She says.

As I walk to the door, Brandy rises, meeting me. “Oh, Caleb.” She clears her throat. “While you’re at it, you should probably pick up a crib, too.” She purses her lips together into a smile.

My brows knit together. Laney looks at her like she just told us that she’s got three arms.

“I lied earlier.” Brandy adds. “You’re pregnant.”