Chapter 10
CHAPTER TEN
Jo
Today was no better than the days prior, and if I was smart, I would've taken Grams’ suggestion and stayed home as long as I needed.
But that wasn't what I planned to do. As much as working at the diner was only supposed to be a side gig, I had come to rely on that money.
With a baby on the way, it was more important than ever that I saved up as much as I possibly could.
That was the only motivation for dragging my ass out of the house and over to the diner to work.
"Oh, dear." My grandmother fussed when I walked into the kitchen. "Are you sure you should be here? You look terrible."
"Well, hello to you too, Grams."
I grabbed my apron and wrapped it around my waist.
"I'm serious, dear. You don't look good, and I certainly don't want you giving whatever you have to our customers."
"Don't worry. It's not something they can catch," I mumbled under my breath.
"What was that, dear?"
I sighed. There was no time like the present to fill my grandmother in. That way she could hear it from me before the news got out.
Grabbing her hand, I practically dragged her to the supply closet.
"Is there a reason we're hiding out in here?"
Where did I even begin. I couldn't start at the beginning. That would be sharing entirely too much information about my life.
The middle it was.
"I need to tell you something, Grams, but you have to promise to keep it a secret."
If there was one thing my grandmother loved more than anything, it was a good juicy secret. She loved to know things before the other gossiping ladies in town.
"I won't say anything."
"I mean it, Grams. Not a word to anyone."
My grandmother took my hands in hers. "My lips are sealed. I promise."
We would see about that.
"Remember the other day when you asked me if I was pregnant?" Grams gasped and covered her mouth with her hands. "Well, guess what? It turns out you were right."
"Oh, Josephine."
Oh, brother. Grams was pulling out the big guns. She only ever called me by my birth name when something big was happening.
"I know, I know. It was a shock for me as well."
More than a shock. I still didn't think I had grasped the idea, but I had at least gotten bloodwork done and confirmed that I was indeed pregnant.
"May I ask who the father is? I didn't know you were seeing anyone."
I winced at the accusation. Seeing someone was a far stretch for what Maverick and I had been doing for the last eight months.
"I'm not ready to talk about that yet."
"It's okay, dear." Grams patted my hand. "You can tell me when you're ready."
I would forever be grateful for the unconditional love and support my grandmother had always given me. I never had to worry if she would judge my choices.
"We better get back out there before someone comes looking for us." I had my fill of gushy moments for the time being.
Grams of course did not. She waved off my words like they didn't matter. "Hell with them. I own this place, and I can do whatever I want."
I laughed at her declaration. That was the exact attitude that my grandmother went into every day with.
"Yes, but we don't want to keep the customers waiting."
"Oh, all right. If you say so."
I placed a kiss on her cheek, snuck out of the closet, and made my way to the front of the diner. Once I saw who was waiting for me at one of the tables, I wished that I could've gone back and hidden in the closet.
I was disgusted with myself as soon as the idea popped into my head. I wasn't the type of woman who hid from anything. Nope, I faced things head-on. Lifting my chin, I marched straight across the floor and didn't stop until I was standing next to the table.
"What are you doing here?" I questioned Maverick.
"A little birdie told me you were back to work, and I had to see for myself if it was true."
"So what if it is? Women go to work every day of their lives."
"Yes, but what about your"—he looked around to see if anyone was listening before he whispered—"condition?"
Was he serious right now? Pregnant women worked all the time.
"I don't know if you realize this but women in my"—I also whispered the word—"condition have been working for decades."
"I know that, but are all women as sick as you've been?"
I rolled my eyes so hard that I was sure they were going to be stuck that way. "I feel much better today." That was a complete lie. It was taking everything I had not to puke all over the place, but I was determined to have somewhat of a normal life.
"You don't look better."
My hands went straight to my hips as I scowled at him. "It's not nice to point out how a woman looks, Maverick."
At least he had the decency to look sheepish for what he said. "Sorry, that's not how I meant it."
I wasn't so sure about that, but I let it slide for the moment. "Do you plan on making it a habit to stop in when I work?"
"And if I said yes?"
"People are going to start talking if you do that."
Maverick shrugged. "So let them. It's not like you can keep it a secret forever."
Gah! I hated that he was right.
"Fine. Whatever. What can I get you?"
I took his drink and food order before stomping back into the kitchen only to be met by my grandmother.
"It's him, isn't it?"
I knew exactly what she meant, but I decided to play dumb anyway. "It's who?"
Clearly my grandmother didn't find me funny because she rolled her eyes the same way I did at Maverick.
"Maverick, dear. He's the father." She didn't exactly whisper it, so I had to look around to make sure no one was paying us any attention. Luckily the only one in the kitchen was the cook, and he was too busy making food to pay us any mind.
"Keep your voice down. This is supposed to be a secret, remember."
"That wasn't a denial."
Leave it to my grandmother to call me out and make me feel like I was a teenager all over again.
"Yes, it's Maverick, but you can't say anything to him."
"He doesn't know," Grams gasped.
"Of course he knows," I snapped. "He just doesn't know that you know."
"Ohhhh."
My life was becoming more complicated by the minute. I couldn't keep up, and if what I read on the internet was true, it was only going to get worse with pregnancy brain.
"I need to get back to work but please don't say anything to Maverick until I've had the chance to tell him you know."
Grams shut her lips, zipped them up, and threw away the key.
All I could do was shake my head before I went back out to work.
There was no doubt in my mind things were about to blow up in my face.