Page 62 of Sticking Out

She stands, and throws her arms around me. “I am so proud of you, Conner.”

Warmth and love well up inside of me as I hug her back. She presses her lips to mine for a sweet kiss and I tap her ass. “Okay, we’d better get moving. Don’t want to keep the dogs waiting or we’ll end up in the doghouse.” She groans at my corny joke. “Maybe I should leave being the comedian to you,” I tease.

We tidy up and head outside. Dark clouds have moved in and I suspect a good downpour. We hurry to her bus, and I take my usual seat. Of course, I’ll have to move when Trixie boards. She’s pretty possessive of her front row spot on the bus and I don’t enjoy the stare down until I move.

We travel and pick up all the dogs and by the time we’re done, I’m at the back of the bus. Dani parks and unloads them and I follow her inside. I spend an hour or so playing with the dogs until it’s time to take little Lucy to the nursing home. Back on the bus, Lucy sits on my lap, and for a little dog, she’s quite snuggly and quiet.

“She likes you,” Dani tells me, as she glances over her shoulder.

“What’s not to like?”

She rolls her eyes and I pet Lucy as she drives us to the nursing home. I carry Lucy off the bus, and Dani puts on her special vest. Inside, Marta greets us in her usually flirty way, and we make our way to the lounge. As I walk in, I find myself glancing around and listening, remembering the first time I was here. Not that I expect to hear that familiar laughter again. That would be a crazy coincidence, right? Although it is the same day of the week, and close to the same time of day.

The guests laugh and clap when they see little Lucy, and Dani casts me a happy smile as she picks Lucy up and carries her over to one of the ladies. She oohs and awws over the little dachshund, and I follow along behind. I glance over and see a freshly made pot of coffee.

“Is that for anyone?” I ask and Dani nods.

“Want one?”

“I’m good, thanks.”

I make my way over to the table at the other side of the room. I pick up the carafe, and fill a paper cup. Just when I’m about to add a splash of milk, that familiar laugh filters down the hall. I go still for a second, waiting. When it doesn’t come again, I glance over my shoulder and find Dani busy. Heart beating a bit faster, I step into the hall and look left and right. The laughter comes again and I start toward it, stopping outside one of the resident’s rooms.

I take in the woman standing over an elderly lady in her bed, her back to me. I can’t see her face, but I’d know that body and long blonde hair anywhere. My heart thuds so hard, I can barely hear. I grip the door to hold on, and just when I think things can’t get any worse, a little boy, who can’t be much older than one, runs around the bed, coming to halt when he sees me. His big blue eyes—eyes so similar to mine, it’s eerie—lock onto mine. Air leaves my lungs in a whoosh as every possible scenario races through my mind. Legs weak, I falter backward, move away from the open door, and brace my back against the hallway wall.

What the fuck is happening?

23

Dani

I study the stick, and my heart sinks into my stomach as the negative pregnancy sign stares me in the face. Dammit, I really hoped this would be it. I’m beginning to believe it’s never going to happen for me. I don’t want to believe I can’t get pregnant again, yet a small part of me is terribly worried. Tonight is the night we’re having a party to celebrate Conner’s turn hosting the cup. While I wouldn’t have widely announced that I was pregnant, as I know how wrong things can go in the first trimester, I would have at least whispered it to a few of the women.

Conner wraps his arms around me. “I’m sorry, babe.”

“Oh well, it’s fun trying.” I put on a brave face as he holds me, and I lift my face to his, trying to shake off my sadness. We do, after all, have a party tonight. All our friends, and relatives are coming, and I’m honestly looking forward to hosting everyone in Conner’s house. It will be nice to make this big place feel like a home. “We should get ready. Everyone will be here soon.”

I start to back up but he pulls me tighter. “Are you sure you still want to have this party?”

“Absolutely. Even if I didn’t, it’s too late to cancel now.”

“No, it’s not.”

I put my hands on his chest, and there’s just something so comforting about his strong heartbeat. “I really want to have this party.”

His face is serious. “Dani, were there any complications after last time?” His eyes narrow even more. “Did the doctors say…anything.”

“No, it happens, Conner. It just wasn’t meant to be.”

“This time, though.” He drops a kiss onto my forehead. “It’s definitely meant to be.” I nod, and inch back. I take in his blue eyes, which hold a lot of concern. While they’ve always held concern for me, I think something happened at the nursing home a couple weeks ago. He disappeared from the lounge for a few minutes and when he came back he was distracted. I’m not sure what happened. When I asked, he said it was nothing. He’s not a guy to lie, so I took his word for it.

I give him a whack on the ass to set him into motion. “Go, get ready. I’m okay. I promise.”

“I’m going to give Mom and Dad a call. They weren’t sure if they could make it or not.” He pulls his phone from his pocket as he leaves the bathroom and I turn on the shower. Being out and in big crowds is still hard for his parents. I do hope they can come for a short time to celebrate and honestly, they seemed so happy about Conner and me together. Everyone has been, and that’s such a surprise to me. Back in the day, Conner only wanted to be friends. His nonresponse to the letter proved that. God, I don’t want to think about the letter, or the fact that he might never have received it.

I strip off and climb into a hot shower, and when I’m done, I dry off and spend a little extra time on my hair and makeup. Still dressed only in a towel, I stand back and examine myself in the mirror, happy with the woman staring back. I’ve never felt so content in my entire life.

A curse sound comes from the bedroom, and I hurry into the room to see Conner, dressed only in his boxers, bend over, looking under the bed.

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