Page 53 of What A Croc
“Strangers,” I corrected softly, my hands swinging nervously at my sides, as I gave the table one last glance.
We were telling Wyatt and Becks about the pregnancy tonight and I couldn’t remember ever being more nervous in my entire life over something. Not even leaving Jane had me as in knots as I was now.
Somehow, I had managed to keep the pregnancy a secret the last four weeks, which was a miracle in itself. Thankfully, with my work schedule, I was able to make my appointment with Finn in the afternoon. It also gave me time to go home and nap, which I found I desperately needed each day.
Being pregnant at almost fifty was worlds different than being pregnant in my early twenties. I was exhausted all the time. And I seemed to have twice as many aches and pains, much earlier than the last time. Luckily, the pills Finn had prescribed for my morning sickness had kept it mostly at bay, and I had only been sick once or twice, first thing in the morning.
I was at ten weeks now, and everything was moving along well. Fingers crossed it stayed that way, but it was time to tell our respective children that we were having a baby. Wyatt would be fine with it, I hoped, but I wasn’t sure if Aiden would really understand what was happening. A small part of me still worried about taking the place of Levi in his life.
Jackson and I had spent practically every day together the last few weeks, in some capacity. Many nights, he and Aiden would stop by my place after he was off work, and we’d have dinner together. Most weekends I ended up spending at their house. Aiden understood his dad and I were dating, and we got along great, but a baby was a permanent thing. Still, for me being the only person he had ever seen Jackson with, there had been no drama from Aiden and I was glad of that.
Jackson opened the door, scooting Aiden out of the way so Wyatt and Becks, who was carrying Julianna on hiship, could enter.
“Come in,” he told them, while I fluttered nervously in the background by the dining room table, like a fifties house omega.
Get it together, Robert, I told myself, my stomach twisting with nerves. I did not need to throw up now.
“Something smells amazing,” Wyatt sniffed the air, smiling at me. “Hey, Pops.”
Julianna made grabby hands for me, yelling loudly, “Hops! Hops! Down!”
Becks chuckled, setting the toddler on her chubby legs. “Yes, ma’am. Here to do your bidding, ma’am.”
Jackson laughed, closing the door, then frowned at me when I scooped Julianna up, nuzzling her neck. She’d just seen me a few hours before at the daycare, but I never got tired of spending time with her. But I knew Jackson was worried about me picking her up. He wouldn’t let me lift more than a gallon of milk when we were together, even though I told him I was perfectly fine and I was careful not to overdo it.
“Can I get you something to drink?” He clapped Becks on the shoulder, moving into the kitchen and giving me a look when he passed me that told me how he felt about me picking up too heavy objects. Scrunching my nose at him, I rolled my eyes, making funny faces at Julianna.
“I wouldn’t turn a beer down, if you have it,” Becks answered, while Wyatt was greeting Aiden and taking in what he could see of Jackson’s house.
“It’s a nice house,” he told me, coming over and taking the beer Becks offered him.
Nodding my agreement, I said, “It is.”
“Well, dinner is ready, if everyone brought their appetites,” Jackson carried a tray laden down with pot roast, roasted potatoes and carrots to the table. “Aiden, can you grab the rolls for me, please?”
“Yep,” Aiden carefully carried the basket with the warm bread to the table, handing it to his dad.
“We don’t have a highchair, I’m afraid,” I told Wyatt. “We didn’t think to grab the one from my house.”
Wyatt waved my concern away, taking the baby from me. “We’ll just hold her. She can just eat from our plates.”
“Are you sure?” My hands were wringing again now that they weren’t occupied with my granddaughter, and I grabbed the back of a chair to stop them.
Wyatt took a seat, settling Julianna on his lap. “We’re used to it. Sit, Pops. I’m starving.”
“Me too!” Aiden grinned at him across the table, rubbing his belly.
Jackson nodded his head at me, indicating for me to sit, and silently telling me to also chill the fuck out with his knowing little grin. He was right, I knew he was right. I was being a nervous nelly. Sitting, I grabbed my water and took a sip, clearing my throat as soon as everyone had filled their plates.
Aiden was busy shoveling carrots in his mouth, and Wyatt glanced over at me as he handed a piece of potato to Julianna to munch on.
“Ah, so, we have some news,” I stammered, putting my fork down on my plate. Might as well just jump straight into the fire.
Becks took a sip of his beer, glancing from Jackson to me, while Wyatt gave me an expectant look. When neither Jackson nor I said anything, Wyatt joked, “Pops, if you’re going to tell me you’re moving in with Jackson, we know. You’ve pretty much been here every weekend the last month, so I’ve been expecting it. Not sure what we’re going to do with the cabin yet,” he shrugged, giving Becks a knowing look, “but we’ve been kicking around a few ideas.”
Blinking at my son, I looked across the table at Jackson, startled. Honestly, moving in with Jackson hadn’t really crossed my mind, but Wyatt wasn’t wrong. We had practically been living in each other’s pockets for the last few weeks. The only reason Jackson hadn’t stayed the night at my place was mainly because of Aiden. We both thought it was better for him to have the stability of waking up in his own bed each morning and having his things around him. He’d had enough upheaval in his life the last few months and was just starting to get comfortable in his routine since their move.
“Oh, ah, that’s not what’s happening.” Mumbling, I looked down at my plate of half-eaten food. My carrots were pushed to the side, because I was pretty sure they were the culprits that had been giving me heartburn lately. Or maybe it was just my nerves that was the cause.
