Page 30 of Unexpecting

J.B. shrugged. “If you ask me, I think you’re wasting yourself on this guy. You can’t fix something that happened that long ago. This guy shouldhave moved on by now, and if he hasn’t, then there’s a big problem and you should steer clear of him. That’s what I think.”

I wondered for a moment if he was talking about me and David or himself and his ex-wife. Or maybe messed-up Talia?

″I never thought I would agree with J.B.’s advice on dating, but Case, I have to agree with him on this. Don’t do it. Don’t get messed up with him again. Cancel the movie—I’ll take you to see it next week if you really want to go,” Cooper urged.

″Go out for dinner with me tonight,” J.B. offered. “You don’t have to do my laundry.”

I smiled at both of them. “Thanks. I’ll be okay, I promise—and if not, you can both say ‘I told you so’ until I’m sick of hearing it. I’m going tonight, if only because this one has never felt finished, so let me see what happens.”

Chapter Thirteen

“Once the initial excitement of successfully conceiving a child colours your life, it’s easy to become frustrated and dispirited about the length of the gestational period, especially during the first trimester. It’s a good idea to focus on other projects during this time in preparation for the baby.”

A Young Woman’s Guide to the Joy of Impending Motherhood

Dr. Francine Pascal Reid (1941)

Despite Coop’s and J.B.’scomments and warnings, I don’t remember ever taking longer to get ready for a date. I shaved my legs again, did my hair, changed my clothes at least six times, and basically wasted the day in anticipation of seeing David.

Just before I was about to leave, I heard footsteps coming down the stairs. Instead of stopping at my place, they continued into the laundry room.

″Hey,” J.B. called out. “You still here?”

″I’m just about ready to leave,” I told him, following his voice into the hall. I’m always surprised how a laundry room can get so dirty. Cooper bought a bright blue washer and dryer last year but still hasn’t got around to taking out the old ones. The derelict machines now sit in a corner of the room, stacked with empty Tide containers, lint balls, and odd socks. I should make tidying up this room a priority.

J.B. started throwing his dirty clothes into the washing machine without separating the darks from the whites or anything.

″You look nice,” he told me, glancing up from his dirty clothes. “We couldn’t talk you out of it?”

″Nope.” It was nice to be reassured, especially with all the trouble I’d gone through to find the perfect outfit. “Don’t do that!” He’d just thrown a pair of black jeans into the washing machine with a tangle of underwear. “Colours stay separate. Do you want everything to turn grey?”

″And that’s how I get you to do my laundry,” J.B. grinned, stepping back and letting me take over. I just shook my head. I’m particular about laundry for some reason. And I love to iron, a trait of which Cooper and J.B., and now Emma, all take advantage.

″So who was your little friend this morning?” I asked coyly as I finished sorting his clothes.

″Aw, you know… she’s, uh—Christie. Her name is Christie,” J.B. managed reluctantly.

″How come you don’t have a problem razzing me about the guys I date, but when I try to turn the tables, you get all stammer-y and embarrassed?” I demanded, twirling around to face him with my hands on my hips.

″′Cause the guys you’re with never last for very long,” he retorted quickly. “And I’m not stammer-y—whatever that is.”

″To stammer,” I said pertly. “And at least my guys hang around for longer than a night. I—at least—get to know them, their full names and birthdays, at least. Why don’t you try—?”

″Don’t go there, Casey,” J.B. interrupted.

″Go where? I’m just saying I think it’s time you found a nice girl and settled down.” The strange thing is that as soon as the words tumbled out of my mouth, I realized that it was the last thing I actually wanted. Having him single and me—most of the time—unattached made me feel that we were sort of in this together. Like in When Harry Met Sally… and they talked about marrying each other if they didn’t find anyone else by a certain age. I like the thought of having someone like that in my life.

″You know.”

″Just trying to be a good friend. Cooper might have mentioned a Talia this morning…” I said before I told myself not to go there. I didn’t want him to think we were gossiping about him, even though that’s exactly what we were doing.

″I’m sure he mentioned a lot of things,” he said wryly. “Talia, Claire, Ruby… Betsey. The wife,” he explained at my expression of confusion.

″Her name is Betsey? I thought the card said Beth.”

″Elizabeth, but everyone called her Betsey. Except for Ryan—the one who took her off my hands. Maybe that’s why she hooked up with him. She hated the name, and he always called her Beth,” he mused, like I was no longer in the room.

″There must have been more reasons than that!”

---