“You’re always so thoughtful.”
“Not always. But I’m trying to be.”
“You’re doing a great job.”
We get settled in the car and I reach for my phone.
“Close your eyes,” I tell him.
“Okay.”
I open the camera on my phone and pull up the video I took of the ultrasound that has the heartbeat as well. I turn up the volume and push play. Tate is confused at first but then his eyes pop open.
“Holy shit—is that…?”
I nod. “That’s our baby’s heartbeat.”
He stares down at the phone without moving. “That’s him…or her?”
“Yup. I brought these.” I hand him the ultrasound photos.
“Oh, wow.” He’s mesmerized and hits the button to play the video a few more times as he stares at the pictures.
“It’s a boy,” he says solemnly.
I laugh. “If you say so.”
“When is that appointment?”
“Right now it’s scheduled for the week after I get back, at my twenty-week scan. I made it for early in the day so I can FaceTime you and hopefully you won’t be at soundcheck.”
“I’ll make sure I’m available.”
“I felt it kick yesterday,” I say softly.
“Really?” He immediately puts his hand on my stomach.
“I don’t think you’ll be able to feel it yet. It’s more like a fluttering in my tummy right now, not like an actual kick. He or she is still pretty small.”
“Oh, right.” He looks down. “It’s getting real, huh?”
“It is.” I cover his hand with mine. “Are you okay with how fast everything is moving? I thought we might want to check in every so often, make sure we’re on the same page, you know? Like this is our second trimester check in and then we’ll have a third trimester check in…”
“Whatever you want,” he says, his blue eyes searching my face. “Are you doing okay without me around?”
“Now that I’m only working four days at the diner, it helps. And my pie business is taking off so I’m keeping busy. But at least baking pies I can do from home, and I can sit down whenever I want.”
“Are you going to go down to three days a week?” he asks.
I hesitate. “I’d like to, but right now the extra pie business only makes up for the loss of one day at the diner. I’m getting more business but it’s not enough yet.”
“I have money,” he says. “And our next payout will be in December. Sasha says it will absolutely be close to, if not over, six figures.”
That’s a lot of money.
But I understand that he doesn’t get paid regularly, so when he gets lump sums like that we have to make it last.
“Will you be getting paid every six months?” I ask.
