Pregnancy Plan (9 page)

“
Well—I thought—I might apply for the
job?” He shifted his weight from foot to foot.

“
Well,” she teased him with his own
word choice—“seeing as you gave me the brilliant idea...” She
paused, again to keep him in suspense. “I guess the least I can do
is give you the job.” She reached under the counter for the
application and held the form out to him. “How about you start
tomorrow afternoon after school?”

Frowning, he replied. “Well, school lets out
at three-thirty—then—if it’s okay—I’d like to start about four.
That gives me time to run home and get something to eat.” His voice
sped up. “Of course, over the summer I can work different
hours.”

She smiled at his nervousness. “Fine, four
it is.”

Shyly, he met her glance and smiled. “Well,
see you tomorrow.” He turned and left the store.

“
Well, well, well...” She dragged each
word out and laughed at her own silliness. “Now that the work day
is over, maybe I can have a little fun.”

****

What her friend had planned for the evening,
Jillian couldn’t imagine. From picking up guys to pigging out on
hot fudge sundaes, with Karen Ann one could never tell what ran
through her head.

Don’t be a chicken, it’ll
be fun
, whispered through Jillian’s thoughts as she
tugged off her clothes.

Bicycle rides with one of them on the handle
bars, taboo makeup parties, sleepovers where they’d escaped to
visit a boy, tears spilled, smiles exchanged, her mother’s illness,
her father’s clinginess. The two women shared a history that made
Karen Ann more like a sister than a best friend.

Which was another reason why Jillian didn’t
like lying. But her weekend activities were best kept in the dark.
At least until Derek returned home. Then everyone would be able to
check him out and there wouldn’t be so many questions to
answer.

Her gaze fell on the teddy bear sitting in
middle of her bed. The light tan fur, the bulky arms and legs, and
the solemn face reminded her of him, and her eyes blurred. He was
like a big cuddly bear. Had he made it to his assignment? Depending
on his layover in Germany, he could still be in route.

She slipped into her favorite pair of jeans
and retrieved her favorite Texas Longhorn’s T-shirt from the
dresser. Damn, but she missed him. For more than two days, he had
been her constant companion, her world. Now, she felt as if it had
never happened. But hopefully, there would be a small memento
growing inside her. She covered her stomach with her hand.

Could she be that lucky?

The doorbell rang, snapping her back to the
real world. She grabbed her shoes, and raced into the living room,
then slid on the hardwood floors to a halt in front of the door.
She checked through the side window to be sure it was Karen
Ann.

“
Hey, you’re early. I don’t have my
shoes on yet.” After letting her friend in, Jillian strolled in the
living room and sank onto the sofa. “As soon as I get my shoes on,
I’ll be ready to go.”

Karen Ann waited in the entranceway. “No
hurry. The movie doesn’t start until seven-thirty.”

A knock sounded on the front door.

“
Yeah,” Karen Ann yelped and
turned.

“
Who can that be?” Jillian popped up
from the couch and rushed to open the front door.

A tall man stood on the front porch. For a
moment her heart stopped, but looking closer, she noticed the sandy
brown hair. “Hey, Michael, what are you doing here?” She hugged her
brother around the waist and stepped back. “Is everything
okay?”

“
Yes, I was hoping we could talk.” He
didn’t appear happy with the prospect.

Karen Ann stepped forward, and Michael
offered her a charming smile that lit his face. The dimple on the
side of his mouth flickered. Old resentment surfaced and Jillian
looked away. Her brother could always get what he wanted with a
simple little smile. “Hi, Karen Ann, how are you this beautiful
evening?”

“
I’m fine. We were just on our way out
to see a movie.” She brushed her hand through her long blonde
hair.

His smile faded and he glanced at Jillian.
“I guess I should have called, but I never thought you’d go out on
a week-night.”

“
Gee, Michael, thanks for reminding me
I don’t have a social life.” She could tell he was sweating this
conversation but she had no intentions of making it any easy for
him.

Karen Ann joined in. “You’ll just have to
come back another night. Jillian and I have been looking forward to
seeing this movie.”

“
I really need to talk to you
tonight.” He silently begged her to stay home with him. “Can’t you
go to the movies some other night? I drove all the way from Dallas.
I’ll make it up to you, I promise.”

Jillian didn’t want to, but habit forced her
to adjust her plans. She turned to Karen Ann. “I guess we’ll have
to make it another night. Looks like I’m staying home to talk to my
brother tonight.”

“
Okay, but what are you going to do
for me?” Karen Ann nailed Michael with a stern glares. Jillian
smiled.

Confused, he answered. “What?”

“
You interrupted our plans.” She said
the words slowly so he’d understand. “I think I deserve at least
dinner and a movie. Next Friday night I’m busy. Let’s make it the
Friday after that. Pick me up at seven at my place.”

Turning, Karen Ann smiled at Jillian and
walked to the door. “See you later, Jill. Hope you have a nice
evening.” The wink behind Michael’s back lifted Jillian’s spirits.
Karen Ann left with a small wave.

“
Was she kidding?” Michael still
appeared confused by her friend’s demands.

“
No. After all you did say you’d make
it up to us for canceling our evening.” Jillian strolled toward
kitchen, leaving her brother standing in the front
entryway.

“
Jillian!” Michael yelled after
her.

She didn’t stop to wait and continued into
the kitchen. “Yes?”

He rushed in after her. “Look, I’m sorry
about ruining your plans. But we really need to decide what we plan
to do with the house. I have to pay off that margin call.”

“
Why don’t you sell some other stocks?
Surely, you have other investments you could use.”

“
Can’t. Everything else is in my 401k
plan. If I sell them, I’ll take a big hit on my income tax. Come
on, I don’t need much. Let’s say ten thousand. You have that much
in your savings account.”

Her temper snapped. “And it’d wipe me out,
Michael.” Her fists landed on her hips. “Then I’d have nothing to
fall back on if something should happen? I can’t count on you to
help me.” She glared at him angrily.

“
I’ll pay you back. If we sell the
house, you’ll have more than enough money to tide you over in case
of emergency.”

“
Look at me and read my lips. I am not
selling this house. Do you understand? I will buy you out, but I
will not—I repeat—will not sell this house.” Her voice rose to a
screech.

“
Okay Jill, I’ve got it. Calm
down.”

He didn’t understand. She loved their
parents’ old house and refused to live anywhere else.

“
Maybe seven thousand? Then you’ll
have some to fall back on and it shouldn’t take that long to get a
house loan.”

“
Five.” She twisted her hair around
her finger.

He studied at her as if judging whether
she’d budge on the amount. Jillian didn’t usually make a habit of
arguing with him, but tonight she won’t compromise. “Okay, that
should get me by.”

“
It’ll be deducted from the amount
I’ll owe you for the house. I’ll get appraisals on the house later
this week. Once we settle on a price and split the difference, I’ll
go to the bank and get a loan. Then, and only then, will you get
any more money. This will have to be enough.”

She walked to her purse on the counter,
extracted her checkbook and wrote his name on the first line. “I
want a receipt.”

Her face burned with resentment. When was he
ever going to grow up? She tore the check out of the book.

“
I’m sorry. I really didn’t think this
house meant that much to you.” His voice soft, he worked to make
amends.

“
Well, now you do.” She held the check
out to him, hoping he’d finally see that she wouldn’t give in to
his demands. He might not like the way she lived, because she
didn’t party every weekend like he did, but she had the right to
live the way she wanted without him interfering.

She ripped off a slip of paper from the note
pad on the counter. “You can write the receipt on this.”

He wrote in silence. “There you go. Now
we’re both happy.” He handed her the receipt and smiled.

“
Yeah right, happy.” Jillian walked
toward the kitchen door. “I’m sorry, Michael, but I’m really tired.
Make yourself at home. I’m going to bed.”

He frowned as she left the room. But for
once she didn’t care. He’d ruined her evening. Why should she have
to stay and entertain him?

Jillian sat in front of her computer in the
small cubbyhole she called an office. After the chaos of last two
weeks, she felt much better about her future.

The appraisals were done, the loan
secured. She only needed Michael to agree on a price. With the
extra funds, she planned to fix up the store, and the house. She
rifled through the bills on her desk while waiting for her email to
pop up. A subject line of
Here
drew her attention and she clicked on it.

Made a few stops before I got here. But I
finally made it.

Derek

She read the message several times. “You’d
think he could’ve written more than that,” she grumbled, typing a
response.

Glad you made it there safely. All is well here.
Been busy, hired a new part-time employee, arranged several
appraisals for the house, and secured a loan. All is well.

Here she paused. How should she end it? I
love you, I miss you, I can’t wait to see you? None seemed right.
Just thinking about him made her body yearn. It felt like a
lifetime since she’d seen him. But she couldn’t tell him all of
those feelings in an e-mail and end with

XXXXXOOOOOO,

Jillian.

She hit the send button, as her mind
conjured up a picture of him. His angry kisses, his rough words,
their fight. Was he still mad? Did he miss her? Or was he glad to
be free of her? Would he reply to her e-mail?

Jillian wanted to cry but instead opened her
checkbook. She didn’t have long before she’d need to open the
store. Maybe paying bills would take her mind off Derek. She
checked her watch. “Damn,” she muttered and pushed back her
chair.

Walking down the main aisle, she noticed Karen Ann
standing on the sidewalk, holding two cups of coffee and rushed to
unlock the door.

“
I thought you might like a cup of
coffee to get your day started.”

“
You must have read my
mind.”

“
No, just know you’ve had a rough
week. What time does Michael get in this afternoon?”

“
He said last night he’d be in about
five-thirty. After all, he has a hot date at seven.” Jillian sipped
her coffee.

“
That’s right.” Karen Ann paused. “You
think he’ll show up?”

“
I plan on making sure that he does.
After all a promise is a promise, but are you sure you want him
to?”

“
Why not? I get a free dinner and a
movie.”

“
Yes.” Jillian peered at her friend,
and read the true reason for her friend’s smile. She appeared
excited about the evening. “Just don’t get involved with him. You
know his problems.”

“
Is he dating anyone?”

“
No.”

Karen Ann backtracked out the door. “Well,
it’s just a friendly date, nothing more. Anyway, I need to get to
the beauty shop. We’re opening in a few minutes.”

“
Yeah. Can you get me in for a haircut
sometime next week?”

“
Sure, just let me know when.” Karen
Ann shut the door and strolled down the sidewalk to the shop where
she worked, her long blonde hair blowing in the wind.

Beautiful with a shapely figure and sexy
blue eyes, she could have any man she wanted. Yet, the men she
picked never seemed to take her seriously, or were afraid of making
a commitment. They considered her a fun girl to date, but not one
to marry. Michael liked those kinds of girls. Karen Ann had a soft
spot for him and still carried the crush she'd had back in high
school. Hopefully, she wouldn’t let that blind her to his faults.
Jillian didn’t want to see either one of them hurt. But maybe they
were right for each other. Her friend could certainly handle him.
Look at the way she’d gotten a date.

Michael, on the other hand, didn’t cheat on
the girls he dated. Once committed, he only dated one lady at a
time. Jillian shook her head. “Who knows? It could work.”

****

The silent hands of the wall clock
drew Jillian’s attention.
Almost closing
time.

She recalled that she needed to give John
Paul his paycheck and glanced at the sign over aisle four. He
should almost be finished with restocking the drill bits she’d
given him an hour ago.

The bell over the door tingled with the
entrance of a customer and she turned to a balding middle-aged man.
Martin York, John Paul’s father walked in the door.