24. Beau
24
BEAU
A knock on my office door startles me out of my Google search. I quickly minimize the screen showing home remedies for morning sickness. In the week since the ER visit, Marley has continually gotten sick, and not only in the morning. Apparently morning sickness doesn’t just mean she’ll only be sick in the morning. Sometimes, it’s an all day thing. Her first official appointment is tomorrow morning in Cinder Valley, and I’m looking forward to joining her. I’ve made a list of all the things I’ve noticed about her pregnancy so far, and I plan to ask if there are things we can do to ease her discomfort.
My gaze lifts from the screen after I lock it, and in front of me stands Josie, my new sister-in-law. “Hey,” she says. Her red hair is pulled up in a ponytail, and she’s wearing a pair of black leggings with a Cunningham Bespoke Woodcraft shirt on top. “I dropped off a bouquet next door, and figured I’d stop by, say hi!” Her voice is cheery, much like her personality.
Josie’s an incredible person, and I truly couldn’t imagine someone better for my little brother. I stand from my chair, rounding the desk to give her a quick hug. “How’s the day going? Busy?” I ask.
“Yep,” she says, dropping down into the chair I have for clients. “But it’s a good kind of busy. Not too stressful.”
“Good.”
“How’s Marley?” Josie asks, arching an eyebrow. “She’s been so busy this week, too, I haven’t even seen her since she passed out. Lucky you were there.”
“Hmm,” I mutter noncommittally. “Yeah. She’s good though, I’ve seen her a few times since.” I’m not about to tell her that I’ve pretty much moved in with her, cause not only is she pregnant with my child, but she’s pregnant with my children .
One thing about Josie, though, is she's extremely perceptive. I know she knows something is up. Especially since she’s watched Marley and me interact for the last year and a half. She’s seen the tension and mutual fighting of feelings between us. For things to suddenly be so chill, she has to know something is up. I also suspect she didn’t have a delivery next door. Andrew probably put her up to this.
I’m pretty sure he’s been conspiring to get Marley and I together for years. It feels good to know that I don’t have to fight things between us anymore, even if I do have to take things at her pace. I don’t have the pain of not knowing if she will ever be mine anymore.
“How are things between you two? You stopped begging me to send her flowers…” Josie trails off in a slightly sing-song voice.
I clear my throat, running my hands through my hair. “Things are fine.”
“Just fine?”
“Just fine,” I say. I will not crack, I will not tell her. “We’re working things out.”
Josie’s eyes light up. “Working things out… as in…. working things out?”
“You just said the same sentence twice.” I point out. “How am I supposed to know what that means?”
“Oh shush,” she replies. “You know what I mean.”
“Not really,” I reply. I’m totally playing dumb right now, but I can’t break. “We’re fine, same as always.”
Josie groans. “Ugh, you’re like a freaking brick wall. All three of your brothers fold within a second of interrogation from me, but I don’t think I’ll ever get you to crack.”
“Does that mean you’ll stop trying?” I ask hopefully. I don’t care that she likes to interrogate me, I think it’s funny. I just can’t tell Marley’s secret right now, and especially not to her best friend. Well, her best friend besides me.
“Never,” she states.
I chuckle. “As fun as this has been, I need to get going. I have a showing in thirty minutes.”
She huffs a sigh, standing from the chair she was in. “Fine, but this conversation isn’t over, Beau Joshua Cunningham.”
“That’s not my middle name,” I reply as we walk toward the glass doors of the realtors office.
“Yeah, it didn’t sound right even as I was saying it.”
I walk her over to where her car is, and give her a quick hug. She murmurs something into my chest that has my heart squeezing. I’ve never had a sister before, but having Josie in our lives has been amazing. “Are you really okay? You’d tell someone if you weren’t, right? Or if Marley wasn’t?”
Her strong confident voice from before is gone, insecurity in its wake. The knowledge that I’m lying to her, that I have to keep this secret from her hits me hard. This is Josie’s best friend, and my sister-in-law. I know she means well, but I can’t think of a way to let her in on this without betraying Marley’s trust in me.
I squeeze her tightly. “Promise. I’m good, Josie. Really.”
She nods, and we say our goodbyes.
“Stop bouncing your leg,” I say, reaching over and pushing down on the top of Marley’s thigh. She’s sitting on the exam table, dressed in one of those scratchy hospital gowns. She looks like she’s ready to hurl, but from nervousness, rather than morning sickness. Her chestnut brown hair is curled in waves, but pulled into a half ponytail with a clip.
She glares at my hand. “I can’t help it.”
“I know, but you’re going to shake all the sterile tools off the table.” I point to the small rolling table with various items on it. It rattles with the bounce of her leg.
A knock on the door stops her suddenly. In walks the nurse who roomed us, a young woman with short blonde hair and plum colored scrubs on, as well as Dr. Ness. Dr. Ness is a middle aged woman who exudes confidence, but not to the point where it’s obnoxious. She just knows what she’s doing. “Hello hello,” she greets, a broad smile on her face. “It’s so nice to meet you!” She shakes my hand, then Marley’s. Marley smiles, her face relaxing immediately.
They get the basic introductions out of the way, and then it’s time for business.
“I got your notes from the ER and the ultrasound imaging. Both babies look great. What kind of symptoms are you having, Marley?” Dr. Ness asks.
“Um, just like overall tired, nausea,” Marley says. I wait for her to continue, tell her how she throws up pretty much non-stop, but she doesn’t. I narrow my eyes at her, and she waves me off.
“And you went to the ER because you passed out?” she asks, writing on her yellow notepad.
“Yeah. I couldn’t keep anything down and I must have gotten dehydrated,” Marley explains.
Dr. Ness nods. She goes over the basic dos and don’ts of pregnancy, followed by an exam, and a pap smear. I do as requested and stand at Marley’s head for that part.
At the end, Dr. Ness does a breast exam. Marley widens her eyes, and I take the hint, turning around, facing the corner while she has her gown open.
Dr. Ness fills the silence with small talk, and I tune it out, until she asks, “Do you have any concerns about the piercings, or any other questions?”
Marley coughs. “Um, I guess I’d forgotten about them. Do I have to take them out?”
“Up to you. If you plan to breastfeed, we suggest taking them out sooner rather than later, but otherwise, it all depends on what you're comfortable with. Some women experience a lot of sensitivity and discomfort in their nipples through their pregnancy.”
Fuck me, I never thought about the sensitivity of Marley’s nipples, but now, it’s all I can think about. If they were sensitive that night, I can only imagine what they might be like now. I will my hardening cock to knock it off, because there is nothing about this moment that is sexual. Except for the fact that I’ve totally zoned out their conversation, and I can’t stop thinking about the way Marley moaned when I sucked on the piercings.
“Beau?” Marley’s voice pulls me out of my daydream. “You can turn around.”
I whip around, eyeing her up and down quickly. The constant urge to make sure she’s okay hasn’t lessened, especially not since the ER visit. I’m constantly checking up on her, to the point where I’ve peeked through her open bedroom door more than once when she’s sleeping, just to make sure she’s breathing. I’ve sat outside the bathroom while she’s sick, there in case she needs help. I need to know that she’s okay. It’s probably not healthy, this anxiety, but I don’t see it going anywhere for a while.
“Everything okay?” I ask, raising my brow.
“Yeah,” she murmurs, her cheeks flushing pink as if she’s embarrassed. I step over to her, holding out my hand. She takes it, and I notice how clammy her hands are. I look down, catching her eye. She nods again, soothing some of my momentary anxiety.
Dr. Ness gives us a few pamphlets with pregnancy resources, as well as another prescription for the anti-nausea medication. “Any other questions?” she asks. “Oh, I forgot to give you my briefing on sex.”
I gulp, my throat suddenly feeling tight. My cheeks burn slightly.
Marley shakes her head maniacally. “No, we don’t need that,” she says hurriedly.
Dr. Ness apologizes. “I assumed you two were together, things seem so natural between you.”
“Yeah.” Marley chuckles awkwardly, dropping my hand like it’s burned her. “Long story. He’s my best friend. Drunken wedding, you know.” She fans at her flaming cheeks. “Now he’s stuck with me forever.”
I want to clamp my hand over her mouth to make her shut up. I get so frustrated when she says these belittling things toward herself, toward the change in our relationship. I’m not about to duke it out with her in the exam room though, so I settle for taking her hand back, squeezing it three times.
“Best friends since we were kids, just took us a long time to get our shit together,” I say with intent. How long will it take to get it through her thick head that I’m in this, that I want her for more than just my best friend or the mother of my babies?
The nurse in the corner smiles sweetly. “You two are adorable. Couple or not, you’re going to be amazing parents.”
Marley’s eyes turn glassy. “Thanks,” she murmurs.
Dr. Ness strides over, patting Marley’s thigh. “We will leave you to get dressed, and then we will see you in four weeks, sound like a plan?”
Marley looks down at where our hands are tangled. “Yep.”
Dr. Ness walks by us, patting me on the shoulder. The nurse, Peyton P., who’s name tag I’m just now seeing, smiles again, getting a pump of hand sanitizer from the machine by the door.
When the door latches behind us, Marley slides off the exam table, dropping my hand, and using her other hand to hold the blanket around her body. “Could you?” She makes a spinning motion with her head.
I dramatically sigh. “I suppose,” I tease.
“Thank you,” she mutters. I can hear her shuffling around behind me, grabbing her clothes and undergarments. In record time, she’s dressed, and we’re heading down the hall to make her next appointment.