Chapter 2
LORNA
PRESENT DAY
“ N o. No. No.” I scramble up off the floor and grab the box from the basin, checking the instructions because what I’m seeing can’t be true. “Fuck!” I compare the positive line that's in the window of the test, to the instructions in my hand and quickly turn my head back into the toilet so I can throw up, again .
This can’t be happening. I’m on the pill. I’ve had sex once in my entire life. Life can’t possibly be that cruel.
I stand up on my feet and throw some water over my face, then looking down at my flat stomach I feel more tears building.
“A baby. His baby.” I shake my head and let those tears erupt. Mother Nature has really fucked me over and there’s only one person I can talk to about this. One person who I know will understand, and it means I’m going to have to admit something that I swore I would take to my grave.
I take a deep breath, dry my tears, and brush my fingers through my hair, attempting to make myself look half-presentable before I pick up my keys and head for my car.
“Madalina, we need to talk.” I barge in on the DeMarco family breakfast, relieved to see no sign of Nic. He always seems to be hanging around here these days.
“Morning, Lorna, we weren’t expecting you, but isn’t that always the case?” Madalina’s husband, Dario, greets me with a sarcastic smile.
“Hi,” I humor him, then manage to find enough calm to bend down between my two favorite girls and kiss their cheeks.
“Still pregnant, huh?” I look across the table at my best friend and feel sorry for her. She’s pregnant for the second time, and a week past her due date. The thought of that being me in the near future makes me want to cry some more.
“Very much so.” Her eyes roll as she maneuvers her huge, round belly so she can reach for a croissant.
“You know you should have…” I reach both my hands around the girls’ heads to press them against my hips so their ears are covered. “... sex , it totally helps with that problem.” Releasing them I grab myself a plate and start piling it up with food. I seem to get really hungry after chucking up my first breakfast.
“Please, help yourself,” Dario offers, wiping the corners of his mouth with his napkin and looking irritated.
“I will, thanks, especially now that I’m eating for two.” I tear off the corner of my croissant while I nervously wait for a reaction
“Wait, did you just say…” Madalina’s face is blank as she stares across the table at me.
“All the way over here I was trying to think of ways to tell you.” I laugh to myself as I continue to eat. I guess ripping off the Band-Aid really does work.
“Lorna.” Madalina slides back her chair, and uses the table to aid her as she stands, “This is huge, how the hell are you being so calm about it?”
“Calm? Mads, I’m far from calm.” I hold out my shaking hand so she can see for herself.
Dario doesn’t hide his amusement. In fact, he throws his head back and erupts in deep, uncontrolled laughter.
“How did this even happen?” Madalina sees how upset I am, and after throwing her husband a dirty look, waddles her way around the table to comfort me. “Sorry.” She looks down at the obstacle her giant stomach makes between us and I burst into more tears.
“I don’t want to get fat.”
“Hey, don’t cry. I get that you're scared and this wasn’t planned but you're going to be okay. Remember how I felt when I found out I was pregnant? Now, look how happy I am.” She slides her hand up and down my arm while looking to Dario for support.
“I know, and I love the girls so much, of course, I’m going to love my own baby.” My hand automatically touches my stomach again. “It’s just I…” She has no idea how complicated this is going to be.
“I haven’t told the father yet and when I do, I know he’s going to be mad.” Now all I have to do is break the news to her, that the mad father is her brother.
“I’m sure he’ll be fine about it. These things happen all the time. Why didn’t you tell me you were seeing someone?”
“I’m not seeing anyone, this was a one-time thing,” I admit. Trying not to think back to that night.
“Well, now it’s a lifetime thing.” Dario takes the opportunity to fire another joke and Madalina’s head spins around so fast she must get whiplash.
“ Exactly , and I’m so mad at myself for being so stupid.” As annoying as he is, Dario’s right. This is a lifetime problem and I only have myself to blame.
“Come on, he can’t be that bad, not if you slept with him. I’ll bet whoever this guy is he?—”
“It’s Nic!” I rip that Band-Aid off, again. Shocking my best friend silent.
“ Nic?” she screeches and when the floor between her legs puddles with water I take a giant step back.
“Holy shit, did you just pee yourself?” I check.
“Her waters broke.” Dario gets up and rushes toward us. “Madalina, the baby’s coming!” I watch him take her face in his hands and smile.
“Nic knocked up Lorna.” She seems oblivious to the fact she’s gone into labor as she stares back at him, still in shock by what she’s heard.
“Yes...I heard but we can’t worry about that, now. We need to get you to the hospital. Lorna, watch the girls. Vito. VITO! Get the car!” he calls out, before crouching between the girls' chairs.
“Girls, Mommy and Daddy need to go to the hospital to have your baby brother. Auntie Lorna’s going to take care of you, okay?” He smacks a kiss on the top of their heads as he straightens himself up. “Come on.” He starts trying to usher Madalina to the door, but she isn’t budging.
“ Nic? ” She’s staring at me as if she doesn’t believe me.
“I’m sorry, it wasn’t meant to happen. As I said, it was a one-time thing, and no one is more mad about it than I am. I really hate him,” I promise her.
“ Ohhhh! ” Madalina grips the back of Isabella’s chair with one hand and strokes the side of her stomach with the other
“Okay, that was a definite contraction. We’re leaving.” Dario wraps his arm around her waist in another attempt to get her moving.
“No, wait.” She shoos him away. “You're pregnant with my brother’s baby.” She looks back up at me, surprising me with the huge smile on her face.
“What are you smiling for? This is a disaster.” I shake my head.
“You're having my niece or nephew.” She starts to laugh, in between rubbing her tummy and breathing slow, steady breaths.
“Can we talk about this when you're not in labor?” Dario looks really eager to get going and when he manages to get her a few feet closer to the door she halts when another contraction binds her up.
“Dario, I can feel that pressure. The one I felt just before the girls came.” She looks petrified when she looks up at him.
“Yes, I know, and we’re going to get you some drugs this time. You promised me, remember?” He urges her on like he’s training a puppy.
“No. I mean I think he’s coming, now! ” She leans forward and moans.
“He can’t be coming now, these things take time, we have to get you to the hospital first.” Dario shakes his head.
“Oh shit, I need to push.” She grips the back of another chair and crouches forward.
“Mom?” Little Carlotta looks worried when she sees the pain her mom is in.
“I’m fine, sweetheart. Why don’t you go play with Auntie Lorna?” Madalina smiles before looking up at me and gesturing her head toward the door.
“Come on, girls, let's go find those dolls Nonna Serena got you.” I take both their hands and get them out of the room as quickly as their little legs can carry them and when I hear the wails of pain coming from behind us as we climb the stairs, I do the only thing I can do and sing over the top of it.
I’m on the floor playing with Carlotta and Isabella when the door opens and seeing Nic step through it has me quickly leaping up on my feet.
“You okay?” He frowns suspiciously.
“Me…I’m fine. Why wouldn’t I be? How’s Madalina?”
“She’s downstairs… holding your new baby brother.” His eyes move to his nieces, glistening with adoration, and when I realize that I’m touching my stomach again I quickly shove both my hands into the back pocket of my jeans. Nic has always been so great with the girls, I don’t know why I would doubt that he would love his own kid.
Oh, yeah….Because he detests me!
“Do you want to go meet him?” He picks Isabella up and balances her on his hip, then taking little Carlotta’s hand he leads her to the door. It stirs a warm feeling in the pit of my stomach that I should probably ignore. Nic isn’t exactly father material. It’s easy to be good with kids when you can hand them back to their parents.
“You coming?” He pauses and looks back at me over his shoulder, and I quickly paste on a smile.
“Of course, I’m coming.” I go after them, scooping Carlotta up as I pass and carrying her down the stairs.
Nic knocks on the door to the living room and looks across at me with a smile. It’s the first time we’ve been together since the night that changed everything, and the new DeMarco arrival seems to be making this a lot less awkward than I expected, though Nic still has a lot to learn. He thinks the past is behind us, that this is us moving on and pretending it didn’t happen. All while his spawn is settling itself into my uterus and making itself at home.
“Come in,” Madalina calls out and when Nic opens the door I see her beaming with happiness, laid out on the couch with her newborn son in her arms.
“Mommy!” The girls call out in unison as they wrestle themselves free from our arms and charge forward to see her.
“Careful, Mommy is very tired.” Dario lifts his daughters, one by one, and places them on either side of her so they can get a first glimpse at their new brother. I remain standing in the door with Nic beside me and suddenly feel like an imposter.
“I should really get going. He’s beautiful.” I smile as I start to back away.
“Lorna, don’t be stupid. Get over here.” Madalina laughs at me and when Dario gestures his head for me to step forward, I do what everyone else in New York seems to do and follow his command.
“I can’t believe he’s here. That was so fast.” I look down at the not-so-little bundle in her arms and wonder how the hell she managed to push him out.
“It was fast,” Madalina agrees, looking as content as ever, bunched between all three of her children.
“Do you want to hold him?” She leans forward, offering him to me, and knowing that I’m carrying a child of my own makes me feel very weary of being judged.
“I’m fine, he looks comfortable where he is.” I shake my head and smile. Then notice Nic is right behind me.
“Are you feeling okay?” He laughs at me.
“I told you upstairs that I’m fine.” I snap back at him as the butterflies in my stomach flap out of control.
“Relax, I didn’t mean anything by it. But you have to admit when the girls were born you were kind of a hogger.” He nudges me with his shoulder and sniggers.
“How about you hold your nephew?” Dario suggests, taking his son from Madalina’s arms and placing him carefully in the crook of Nic’s.
“See, you're a natural,” Madalina tells him as she looks at me and pulls a prompting face.
“He’s a brute, sis, are you going to stick with Maximo?” He looks up from his nephew.
“Well, I guess he came out living up to the name.” Dario crouches down and kisses Madalina on the head, proudly. It’s obvious how much he loves her, to him, these children she’s given him are the greatest gift in the world. I can’t imagine Nic will have the same opinion when he hears what he’s got coming to him.
“It’s a great name.” I smile as I look over Nic’s arm at the latest addition. He’s got a cute button nose and a pouty lip, and it makes me wonder if my baby will share some of his features. They will be cousins, after all.
“I really should go.” I start backing toward the door when everything starts to get too much. When Madalina nods her head and smiles understandingly, I turn my back and pick up my pace.
“Hey, Lorna.” I hear Nic chasing after me and just before I make it to my car I take a deep, steady breath and turn around to face him.
“What can I do for you?” I make my best attempt to be polite.
“Well, for a start you can stop acting weird. Madalina’s not stupid and we don’t want her finding out about…you know.” He scratches the back of his neck awkwardly.
“No, that’s not what we want, at all.” My uterus suddenly feels as if it’s carrying a lead weight.
“Glad we’re on the same page.” He nods his head before rushing back inside to join his family and I watch him get further away and wonder how the hell I’m ever going to tell him that we’re nowhere near to being on the same page, we’re in different fucking books.