Chapter 12
Chapter Twelve
“ A re you sure you don’t want something to drink? Or I can make you something to eat.”
Charlotte lifted the mug up to her lips and smiled. “I’m good, thanks.”
“What about dessert? I can run to the bakery—”
Addison placed a hand on Mason’s arm and squeezed. “Babe, you need to sit down and breathe. You’re just making Charlotte uncomfortable.”
Mason blew out a breath, and his shoulders sagged. “I’m sorry. I’m just nervous.”
Charlotte took a sip of her iced tea. “We all are. It’s okay.”
It wasn’t as if any of them anticipated they’d end up in this situation, least of all Charlotte. Half of her was tempted to set her cup down and tell them it was all a big misunderstanding. In time, they’d even laugh about it. But the other half of her, the one leading the charge, was determined to make her sit there and get through it.
Just breathe. It’s Addison and Mason. It’s not like you haven’t hung out with them before.
Only they’d never discussed the possibility of her carrying their baby before.
Mason had been hovering nearby, offering her everything under the sun ever since she walked in. Addison, on the other hand, sat on the couch, sneaking glances at Charlotte as if she was going to disappear. She wasn’t sure which of these reactions was making her more uncomfortable, but she was thankful for the mug of tea in her hands, offering her something solid and warm to hold on to.
She took another sip of her peach-flavored iced tea and cleared her throat. “So, where do you guys want to start?”
Mason leaned forward and linked his fingers together. “Well, first of all, we wanted to let you know that if you want to be a part of the baby’s life, we’d be okay with it. We should probably come up with an agreement beforehand though.”
Charlotte took another sip of her drink and glanced over at Addison. “That’s great.”
Addison sat up straighter but wouldn’t meet her gaze. “We’ve seen your tests, and we showed them to our fertility specialist. Usually, they prefer women who have carried babies to term before, but she said you’re healthy enough that this isn’t a deal breaker.”
Charlotte breathed a sigh of relief, and her shoulders sagged. “Okay, that’s good.”
She had no idea what she would’ve done if she’d gotten this far only to be turned away by the clinic itself. Being young and inexperienced wasn’t a point in her favor, but they weren’t holding it against her either.
She wanted to spin circles until she was dizzy with joy and exhilaration.
“We’d like to set up an appointment with the fertility clinic within the next few days,” Addison continued, finally lifting her gaze to hold Charlotte’s. Charlotte couldn’t name the emotion in those eyes, but they were glowing, and Addison had a half-smile on her lips. “You did tell me you like the clinic on Deer Pond Road. Our doctor does occasionally go there, so it works out.”
Charlotte nodded a little too quickly. “Great.”
There was so much more she wanted to say, so much more she should.
But the words kept leaving her mind, and she had no idea how to bring them back.
It was a combination of nerves and feeling like she was going to be sick to her stomach. When she got up to leave their house a short while later, Charlotte was feeling lightheaded. She set off at an even pace in the direction of her mom’s bakery, with the warmth of the afternoon sun on her back. Charlotte was so busy clenching and unclenching her hands and reminding herself how to breathe that she didn’t realize when she got there.
She also wasn’t looking when she pushed the door open and sent Patrick sprawling back and colliding with a member of the waitstaff. Horrified, her hands flew to her chest, and she surged toward Patrick, her hand darting out to land on his arm. After righting himself, Patrick and Charlotte both apologized to the dark-haired waiter, who offered them a smile and walked off.
“I’m so sorry. My mind is a little all over the place today.” She realized she was still holding on to his surprisingly toned arm and abruptly released it. “Let me buy you something to make up for it.”
Patrick patted his stomach. “I’m not sure if I should take you up on that. I’m going to hate myself at the gym.”
“Come on. You can always burn it off.”
Patrick smiled and followed her to the nearest booth. “Oh, all right, but if the trainer is at the gym next time and he starts giving me angry looks, I’m giving him your number.”
Charlotte chuckled as she slid into the booth and ignored the odd little twinge it gave at being in close proximity to Patrick. “He can’t be any worse than Principal Higgins. Did you see the necklace he wore yesterday?”
Patrick picked up the menu and scanned it. “Yeah, I heard it’s because of his stepdaughter. He’s trying to relate or something.”
Charlotte glanced around, spotted her mother behind the register, and waved. “Better men than him have tried.”
“Did you hear we’re getting more transfers? And they’re expanding class sizes.”
Charlotte swung her gaze back to Patrick and frowned. “Like the size of the students or the actual classes?”
Patrick set the menu down and raised an eyebrow. “Come on, you’ve been a teacher long enough to know that we’re not getting an expansion. They’re making budget cuts everywhere. Apparently, the science lab is going to start being rented out after school hours for anyone who wants the space.”
“What would anyone want with a middle school science lab?”
Patrick shrugged. “Beats me.”
After placing an order of two milkshakes and a banana blueberry muffin to split, Charlotte exchanged a quick look with Patrick and blushed. Then she leaned back against the booth and pretended to rifle through her purse for her phone. When she looked up, Patrick was looking out the window at the steady stream of people rushing past in either direction.
She liked that he wasn’t intimidated by the silence and didn’t try to fill it with inane talk.
Charlotte liked they were able to just sit together without any kind of pressure to be anything else.
It made her like Patrick even more.
As soon as the thought left her mind, his phone rang, and Patrick rose to answer it. He returned a short while later and gave her an apologetic smile. “That was my sister. She’s got some kind of plumbing emergency. I should go before she floods the whole house.”
“At least take the muffin.” Charlotte gestured to the plate in front of her. “I owe you one.”
Patrick took a long sip of his milkshake. Then, he broke the muffin in half and shoved it in his mouth. “See you around, Char.”
Charlotte sighed and watched him leave. “See you.”
When the door swung shut behind him, Charlotte began to root through her purse. She was taking out her phone to call Addison when Savannah appeared in front of her, wisps of hair escaping from her bun and clinging to her forehead. Without warning, her sister sat down and pulled the half-eaten muffin toward her.
“I know you don’t want to hear it,” Savannah began, pausing to tear the muffin into smaller pieces. “But someone has to tell you what you’re in for, and I’m not saying this to be mean. I know your heart is in the right place, but you really have no idea what you’re getting into.”
Charlotte put her phone down, a burst of irritation rising within her. She tried to push it down, but the stony look on her sister’s face only made it worse. Slowly, Charlotte counted backward from ten and blew out a breath. Then, she folded her arms over her chest. “And I suppose you’re going to tell me all about it.”
Savannah nodded a little too hard. “I wouldn’t be a good sister if I didn’t tell you. You do know that you’re going to have to sign a legally binding contract before you can even be inseminated, and the purpose is to ensure the rights of Addison and Mason as parents.”
Charlotte gave her sister a tight nod. “We’ve already discussed that.”
And she had no interest in hashing out the details with her sister.
Savannah was never going to understand her reasons, but a small part of Charlotte clung to the hope that she would come around.
Otherwise, how were they supposed to have a relationship that wasn’t centered around lectures and accusations?
Were they ever going to be in a good place?
“And a lot of people won’t tell you this, but studies show that a woman is more prone to depression during and after pregnancy. Other studies show that women are often inflicted with confusing feelings of loss and uncertainty after they’ve given birth. Also—”
Charlotte rose to her feet and held a hand up. “I’m sure you’ve researched the topic to death, and I know you mean well, but I don’t want to hear it anymore. My mind is made up, and I’m not going to change it.”
There were no more obstacles in her way, especially now that Addison and Mason were on board.
And Charlotte didn’t want Savannah ruining this for her, no matter how well-intentioned she was.
Savannah opened and closed her mouth several times. Finally, she pushed herself to her feet, hands fluttering at her sides. “Char, please. You should take some more time to think about it. What if you regret it?”
Charlotte took a few bills out of her wallet and placed them under the cup. “Then it’ll be my decision to regret, and I’ll have to live with that.”
Savannah sputtered, and her face turned bright red.
Without waiting for a response, Charlotte spun on her heel and left. Her hands were curled into fists during the walk to the fertility clinic, and there was a low pounding in the back of her skull. When she got there, a surge of relief coursed through her when she realized Libby wasn’t at the desk.
As much as she liked her new friend, she didn’t want one more person to look at her like she needed her head examined. Like she was losing her mind.
She wasn’t.
For the first time in a long time, she was sure and clear, and the path before her felt right, and she didn’t want anyone to get in the way of that.
After taking a few cleansing breaths and enjoying the cool AC air on the back of her neck, Charlotte stepped forward and waited for the dark-haired receptionist to finish the call. Her heart missed a beat when the receptionist hung up and gave her an expectant look.
Charlotte unglued her tongue from the roof of her mouth. “Hi, I’d like to make an appointment with Dr. Reese, please.”
A short while later, Charlotte walked out of the clinic with beads of sweat on her forehead and the back of her neck. She resisted the urge to glance over her shoulders as she walked away. When she found herself in front of Wilson Manor, some of the knots in Charlotte’s stomach loosened. With a sigh, she pushed the front gate open with a creak and walked up the gravel driveway.
At the end of the driveway, on the steps of the front porch, her great-uncle, Frankie, stood with one hand lifted to his eyes. Once she got closer, she saw the pit stains under his arms and the wisps of thinning hair plastered to his forehead. He stood up straighter and did a double take when he saw her.
Then, his mouth spread into a broad grin as he pulled her in for a hug. “Well, look at what the cat dragged in. How are you, kiddo?”
Charlotte pulled back to look at him and smiled. “I’m fine. How are you, Uncle Frankie? How are plans going for your new retirement party?”
Uncle Frankie’s expression fell. “Your aunt, Paula, is threatening to stop the parties until I actually retire. It’ll take some time, but she’ll come around.”
Charlotte chuckled. “Or you could actually retire.”
Uncle Frankie snorted. “I doubt that’s going to happen. Come on, let’s go inside where it’s nice and cool.”
In the spacious and well-lit living room, her great-grandpa, Frank, sat in his armchair by the fire, reading the paper. Her great-grandma, Jen, was in the kitchen with an apron covered in flour, the smell of cinnamon and sugar filling the air. Charlotte paused to greet them before peeling her shirt away from her skin.
“Oh, by the way, I saw you go into the fertility clinic earlier.” Uncle Frankie looked up from his drink and stared directly at her. “When were you going to tell us the good news?”
Charlotte’s stomach clenched. “Oh, I…it wasn’t for me. I was just going with a friend who wanted some company.”
A heartbeat later, the topic changed, and Charlotte’s shoulders relaxed. She joined her grandmother in the kitchen and tried to push her great-uncle’s words out of her mind. Not only was she nowhere near ready to tell the rest of her extended family, but she also had no idea if she was ever going to.
Because she doubted they would understand, and she wanted to keep her happy little secret a while longer.
Charlotte wanted to enjoy knowing what was coming next.