“Don’t remind me.”
If it weren’t for the fact she loved Arik, she would have strangled him with a pillow while he slept last night.
She didn’t want to hear that there was no reason for her to work.
There would already be talk about his background and hers. Some might say she planned it this way.
She hadn’t and wouldn’t have.
“Before I address that, how are you feeling?”
“I feel good. Not sick or anything like that. A little tired, but I know it’s normal. Could be work is getting busy.”
“And he doesn’t want you to work?” her mother asked.
“He didn’t say it directly. Just that he doesn’t want me to work as hard. He brought up my staying home with the baby if I wanted. It was an option.”
“Which set you off,” her mother said. “Because then you’ll worry that he will think you wanted him for his money? Or other people will think that?”
“You know as well as I do it’s going to come up,” she said. “Right?”
“You’ve never cared what other people have said before. Why do you now?”
“I’vealwayscared. I just never let it be known.”
“Now you’re going to have to work extra hard to make sure you don’t actually care or you don’t let people think you do. I’m willing to bet Arik doesn’t have a thought about it one way or another.”
“Because he can afford to do that. He’s his own boss.”
“Which brings us back to him. You said you love him. Do you know how he feels?”
The soft smile filled her face when she remembered him giving her the words she’d been dying to hear.
“I do,” she said softly. “He told me first right after my appointment while we were sitting in the car. He said he felt it earlier too. And I can see how hard he’s trying to prove he’s not going anywhere.” She could admit this to her mother, if no one else. “I was terrified when I found out I was pregnant. No amount of makeup could cover that. But he just laughed, pulled me into a hug, and said he was thrilled. You can’t fake that kind of reaction.”
“Good for him. It’s exactly what you needed. Both times. Right?”
“It was.”
“He’s good for you.”
“In a lot of ways,” she said. “More than I thought possible. I want this thing we’ve got more than anything else in my life, but I’m scared.”
“It’s only natural to feel that way, Natalie. All you can do is trust what he says. Follow his lead and listen to your heart.”
“I’m trying.”
The back door creaked open, followed by the familiar thud of her father’s heavy footsteps. She’d been Daddy’s little girl for so long, and now the thought of seeing disappointment in his eyes twisted in her chest, sharp and nauseating.
“What are you doing here, Natalie?” her father asked as he wiped his hands on a dirty rag.
“I came to talk to you both.”
“Natalie has wonderful news to share,” her mother said.
She saw the excitement radiating from her mother. The way she bounced on her toes, her smile lighting up the entire room. Her fingers flexed with anticipation as if she was already aching to hold a baby still many months away from arriving.
“That’s how you looked when Avery said she was pregnant,” her father said.
