Page 50 of SEAL'S Baby Surprise
“Then you need to take your share of responsibility for birth control, dear,” Mrs. Hubbard says, then sips her tea. “They’ll take care of you even if you don’t have any money. An ounce of prevention . . .”
“Worth a pound of cure,” I recite back at her. “I know…I just hate getting poked, prodded, and having strangers peer up under there.”
“So go volunteer or something,” Mrs. Hubbard says. “Then the doctors and nurses won’t be strangers. But don’t put it off too long. Mother Nature has a way of being insistent.”
The grandmotherly woman stands up. “You two kids try not to get into too much trouble, all right? Life is hard enough without making it worse by not planning ahead.” She puts her glass intothe dish tub, hugs each of us, and goes on up the path to her home.
“Well,” Austin says, “I guess you might as well come sleep with me tonight. I think our secret is out.”
I giggle a little foolishly, then say, “I’d like that. It’s been a rough, bumpy kind of day.”
“That it has,” Austin agrees. “Let me just do the dishes. We don’t need to toll in any trash bandits.”
“Trash bandits?” I ask.
“Raccoons, possums, rats,” he says.
I shudder. “No, don’t want any of those.”
“You go on and get ready for bed,” he says. “Holler if you need help.”
“Alright,” I say, and go in to get out of my soiled, sandy clothing and into a clean sleep shirt. I have a lot to think about — including what kind of danger I might be bringing to Austin and Julia. But I could have one more night, couldn’t I? Just one more, sweet, wonderful night.
23
AUSTIN
I placethe teakettle over the coals in the grill. I could have used water out of the tank, but I hear the shower kick on. Lee has had a rough day, and she’s held up through all of it. She deserves to have hot water.
It doesn’t take long at all for the water to heat, and I quickly wash up the cups and glasses, which is about all there is since we used disposables. Not the most earth-friendly approach but sometimes you have to think about the people.
I am just finishing up when I hear the water shut off. Lee has saved me some hot water for my own cleanup. It is one of the things I love about her. Once she understands how something could affect others, she is amazingly considerate.
Izzy had never been like that. She had always grabbed for the last roll, used all the hot water, and danced wild and crazy after I had put in a long, hard day and just wanted to relax.
Still, I miss Izzy. I miss the way she would wake up with her hair in a wild tangle, the way her eyes would flash with temper when I did something she didn’t like, and the deep passion with whichshe embraced causes — usually a new one every week. Kind of like the old Jefferson Starship song, “Crazy Miranda.”
I shake my head. Comparisons are insidious, especially between the living and the dead. Izzy is gone, by misadventure if not by her own hand. Some of the things I had loved had been symptoms of her mental illness. Am I repeating the mistake with Lee?
Then I shake myself. Lee is not Izzy. Yeah, she has panic attacks. And when it comes to a lot of real-world practical things, she is kind of clueless.
But one thing I have noticed is that she rarely repeats the same mistake, not even once. Which means she is unlikely to paddleboard without using her ankle tether. And if I wrap anything in foil to cook it, she won’t try to pick it up barehanded.
Poor mermaid! That had to have really hurt. Especially that melted butter. Grease burns are the worst.
I make sure the coals in the grill are smothered, and the lid on tightly. We aren’t into the hottest and driest part of the year, but no point in taking chances.
By the time I get my shower and have pulled on a pair of boxers, just in case Julia gets up and wanders around, Lee and Ark are curled up together in the very middle of my bed.
They are so cute together, I don’t want to disturb either of them, so I ease my way over to the backside of the bed, where I can curl up against Lee.
She murmurs sleepily, and stretches out, snuggling against me. Ark gives us a look I interpret as disgust, and heads toward thefront to take over Lee’s bed. It had been his bed before Lee entered the picture, so no surprise that he would take it back.
Fortunately, he doesn’t seem to be jealous of Lee, accepting her as a member of his pack and under his protection.
I run my hand over the soft brush of hair on Lee’s head. Something has been bothering her today. I wish I knew what.
She wakes a little, and burrows into my armpit like a puppy. “Love me,” she begs softly. “Make me feel good.”
