“Uh, yeah, sure.”
“Wait here, big guy,” she cooed. “Let me just grab some plates and utensils from the kitchen. We’ll eat in the living room. You decide what you want to watch.” She threw that last part over her shoulder as she rushed in the opposite direction toward the kitchen.
I started for the living room, but a sound from Hound stopped me. He nudged his head toward my feet. That was when I noticed a line of shoes sitting at the edge of the door.
“Oh, my bad.” I laughed and heel-toed off my sandals and pushed them out of the way with my foot before entering. After putting the bags of food on the coffee table, I picked up the remote and thumbed through the various channels and options to watch.
“Did you decide?”
“There’re too many options,” I responded to Jodi. I stood and took one of the black porcelain plates from her. I wasn’t a massive fan of television, so I didn’t know anything about half of the shows listed.
“Let’s watchThe Walking Dead,” Jodi said.
With a shrug, I replied, “Sure. I don’t know what it is, but whatever.”
“It’s good. I’ve started re-watching the older episodes with Micah.”
We fixed our plates.
“Mm, fish tacos.” Jodi almost drooled as she placed one of the tacos onto her plate.
“You said chicken was off limits, so I opted for beef and fish.”
Scrunching her face up, she rubbed her belly as she shook her head. “Please don’t mention the C word. The baby hates it these days, and even hearing the name makes me want to hurl.”
“It’s that bad, huh?” I asked while placing two of the beef tacos onto my plate. I drizzled it in the red sauce it came with and the pico de gallo.
“Most of the time, it’s not. My morning sickness isn’t too bad. This issue with the food that shall not be named started a few days ago.”
I watched Jodi for a minute as she took a bite of her food. Though she wasn't showing much yet, now and again, when she moved, I could see a little belly through her T-shirt. And there was a glow about her skin that I hadn’t ever seen before.
Jodi and I hadn’t been extremely close when she worked as part of my PR team, but our relationship was changing during my time in Harlington.
“What’s it like?” I asked.
She paused and gave me a curious look. “Being pregnant?”
I nodded before taking a bite of my taco.
She shrugged. “It’s strange, to be honest.”
“How so?”
“To think there's life forming inside of my belly. That everything I eat, drink, or think could alter the trajectory of this little being can be overwhelming if I let myself dwell on it for too long.”
A small smile touched my lips. “I bet you’ll make a great mom.”
“You think so?”
I tilted my head to the side. “You have doubts?”
“Hell yeah.” She laughed. “My mom told me that’s normal. Micah will be a great daddy, though.” A huge smile covered her face. “I can’t wait to see him teaching this little guy how to ride a horse, or shave, or cook.”
“Cook?” I sat up.
She nodded. “Most definitely. We’re living in the twenty-first century in this household. Equal division of labor around here. Plus, Micah loves to cook.”
We ate and talked more about their impending parenthood. They didn’t know the gender yet, but she kept referring to the baby as he. Somewhere along the line, I got caught up in the fantasy and imagined my belly swollen with a baby.
