Page 46 of Knocked Up By the Silver Fox

I didn't want to leave her side. I wanted to take her hand and march her back to my office and tell her how I really felt, what I really wanted. But standing outside the boardroom knowing they were waiting on me, I knew it wasn't the right time to have that conversation.

"I'll expect it." My eyes lingered on her as she turned and walked away. Her shoulders sagged. I couldn't imagine what she'd do if she was actually fired. I, of course, would insist on helping her, caring for her. But she had a stubborn independent streak. She'd probably reject my help and try to do it alone. I just didn't know how to make her see…

I turned and walked back into the boardroom to face them all. Now I had new suspicions about what really happened, and I wasn't going to shy away from telling them. If they wanted the truth, they'd have to look somewhere besides Beth. My gut told me Sarah was involved, and while I had always appreciated her and the work she did for me, I wouldn't tolerate a rat.

The cat was on the prowl now, and I was going to track down the truth if it was the last thing I did.

31

BETH

Ididn't even bother going back into the boardroom. They weren't interested in hearing my side of things, and even if they were they didn't care about facts. They wanted someone to take the blame for the chaos and unfortunately Will was bearing the brunt of that. My heart was heavy, but that small interchange, seeing how quickly his anger diminished when I touched him, told me everything I needed to know.

Will might not have been able to articulate it, but he needed me. I couldn't just sit and wait in his office. If his workday today was anything like the past four days, he wouldn't have time for me anyway. So I went down to the lobby and opened my Uber app. I thought about just going home and curling into a ball, waiting for Will to call me, but I remembered Abby saying she wanted to get together. So I shot her a text.

Beth 1:09 PM:Hey, Abby. Any chance you're up for coffee now?

It only took her a few seconds to respond and I smiled at my phone when her text came in.

Abby 1:09 PM:Just got done with English…I can be home in 10?

Beth 1:10 PM:See you then!

I looked up from my phone and thought about Will for a second, wondering if he knew Abby was meeting with me. Then I saw his car parked out front, the driver waiting in the driver's seat like normal. I glanced around and decided it was worth a shot to ask his driver, who knew me well by now, to take me to his house and save a buck on the Uber.

When I knocked on the window he rolled it down with a smile and gladly accepted my request. Ten minutes later I was parked outside Will's building and feeling a bit nervous. The driver opened the door for me and I felt a little spoiled. He nodded and smiled, and it was awkward. I didn't know if I should tip him or not, so I shook his hand and thanked him. Then I headed up to Will's penthouse.

Abby opened the door for me with a huge grin on her face. "Beth, I'm so glad you came. I am so excited to talk to you. I just got accepted to Columbia!"

"Wow. Columbia is no joke," I said, grinning back at her. I shed my jacket and hung it on the back of a chair as we walked toward the sofa, and Abby's eyes got wide.

"Your belly," she said, gawking at me. "I mean, I heard the rumor but…" Her hand reached out and I smiled.

"Of course," I told her, pulling my sweater tight around my belly. It stuck out a little more than last week, but I could still effectively hide it from people who didn't know. Abby's palm rested on my stomach, but Baby Caldwell was being reclusive today. The little flutters I'd been feeling were growing stronger but currently my stomach was calm.

"Bummer," she said, and she flopped onto the couch. "I can't believe you're having a baby."

I sat slower than she did, but it wasn't due to awkwardness or discomfort. I felt at home with her here, like I belonged finally, or at least like I was accepted. It was a good feeling, especiallyfollowing my interaction with Will and seeing how he responded to me.

"Yeah, I can't either." I rested my hand on my bump and sighed softly. It had taken me a while to grow accustomed to the idea, but as soon as I saw Will's reaction and how happy he was to be having another baby, I fell in love with the idea.

"Do you think you and Dad are gonna be okay?" Her honest question was something I didn't have an answer to. I knew the answer I wanted to say—that more than anything I wanted that to be the case. But deep down, Will and I had a few things to work on and the only thing I could tell her was the truth.

"I'm not sure. But I know we're both committed to trying." I shrugged a shoulder and as I did, I felt the baby moving. "Oh, here, here!" I smiled as Abby leaned over. I positioned her hand on my abdomen right where the baby was kicking and her eyes popped open wide.

"Oh my God. It's moving. Aw…" Her eyes welled up. "I'm gonna be a big sister."

I loved sharing that precious moment with her. Seeing her face light up and the tears in her eyes warmed my heart. I held her palm against my belly until the movement stopped and she sat back and seemed content.

We talked for two hours about her different college choices and the benefits of each school. She had a really good head on her shoulders, and I could tell Will had really worked with her to help her understand her options and what she wanted. I was so honored to have been chosen by her to have these hard conversations, and I was proud of her for being such a responsible high school senior.

Eventually she went off to her room to do homework, and I sat on the couch waiting for Will to come home. Unless his driver told him he'd brought me here, Will had no knowledge that I was at his house. He sent me a text telling me he was looking forwardto speaking with me this evening and the chime of my phone startled me. I had dozed off and it woke me up.

The clock said almost six in the evening, and I knew he was probably on his way home now. So I got up and made a pot of coffee which finished just as the front door struggled open and a very tired-looking William Caldwell walked through the door.

His eyes swept over the living room area first, and when they landed on my jacket draped over the back of a dining chair, he looked more intensely. I poured some coffee in a mug and held it up in his direction as he finally spotted me.

"Beth?"

---