Page 30 of Masked Indulgence
Nixon
Afew dayshad passed since we’d gone to the doctor. I was having lunch with August as our other partner, Gannon, was busy with other things that day. I guessed a two-year-old could take up a lot of time, but my bet was that it was actually the hot young babysitter that had Gannon Forester so busy thesedays.
I’d made this vow to myself about telling as few people as possible about the pregnancy, but I couldn’t stop myself. “So, I’m going to be a little busy myself come the end of July.” I put a piece of pepper steak into my mouth as I waited for August to ask me why thatwas.
“That’s some time off, Nixon. You have another deal going on or something?” he asked me, then took a long drink of his icedtea.
“You remember when I left town for Halloween?” I ran my hand over my beard, remembering how that night had marked the beginning of me growing it out. I’d soon have a much more permanent reminder of that fatefulnight.
“Yeah, I remember you ditching us that night. So, what about it?” He stopped eating to give me his full attention. “You look different,Nixon.”
“Yeah?” I asked. “Howso?”
He shrugged. “Not exactly sure about that. You just look a little different. A little happier or something. You must be getting more sleep than you usually do. You have a healthy look goingon.”
I’d had less sleep than usual lately, as Katana and I had spent at least two hours of every night since she moved in engaged in some mind-blowing sex. Her bedroom was merely a place for her clothes to be kept. But I had been eating better—spending more time at home with Katana eating the healthy foods Mona made us instead of eating out somuch.
“So, the thing that will have me so busy by late July is actually a baby.” I stopped, waiting for his reaction—dropping the mic, so tospeak.
August blinked a few times. “Have you been seeing someone seriously that you’ve left out of ourconversations?”
“Well, now I am.” I chuckled. “The woman I met on Halloween is pregnant—and it’s mine. When she called me and told me she took a test that came back positive, I moved her into myplace.”
Being a wealthy man himself, August was cautious where women were concerned. “Hold on. This woman, have you had her checked out? You can’t be sure that baby is yours, not until after it’s born and you can have a paternity test done. Don’t you think that moving her in with you is jumping the gun by a whole hell of a lot?” He shook his head. “It’s not like you to do something stupid likethis.”
“No, it’s not.” I fidgeted in my seat, as it never sat right with me when anyone thought I was making a mistake. “And I will have a test done after the baby’s born. But I don’t want to miss out on a thing if the kid is mine. Which I do think it is. This woman has given me no reason to believe she’s aliar.”
“And what does this woman do for a living?” August asked as he put his hands behind his head and leaned back, as if he was my therapist getting ready for one longsession.
“She’s a book cover designer. She freelances and works from home.” I winked at him. “Pretty cool,right?”
He finally smiled and sat upright. “Thank God. I was pretty sure you were going to tell me she’s astripper.”
“Damn, August!” I laughed, and so didhe.
“I’ll have to introduce you to her soon. You’ll see, she’s genuine. And I must admit, I’m starting to fall pretty hard for her.” I shoved my hand into my pocket and looked down. “She sure is making me think alot.”
“Uh oh.” August shook his head atme.
Now, why would that be considered an uhoh?
“Care to add to that, August?” I asked him as I picked up my iced tea and took asip.
“You wouldn’t do anything stupid, right?” he asked, then tapped the tabletop with his finger. “Like marry her on a spur of the moment kind of thing, without having a prenup,right?”
“A prenup?” I asked then shook my head. “Why would I need one of those things? I don’t believe in divorce. My parents raised me right,August.”
“But did hers?” he winked at me and wagged his finger at me. “You aren’t the only one who can file for a thing like a divorce, Nixon. She could too. And she could take you for half of everything you’vegot.”
His question about her upbringing did send a red flag floating through my brain. “She was raised in foster care. She didn’t know her father and her mother abandonedher.”
“Damn,” he murmured. “That sounds like one hell of a rough life. My heart goes out to the poor thing. That said, now you really need a prenup. She’s what I like to call a wildcard. You have no clue what she might turn into. When you know a person’s family, you can get a rough idea of what the person is like and will be like later on in life. You’ve heard the saying, look at her mother to see how she’ll be in twenty years,right?”
“And her mother is a low-life,” I mumbled. The thought wasn’t pretty, nor was the vision that appeared in my head of Katana turning into her absentee mother. “Damn.”
“Look, don’t rush into anything. Just because she’s pregnant, that’s no reason to go faster than you would with anyone else.” He waved the waiter over. “Can you bring thebill?”
The waiter gave him a nod and headedoff.
