Two Wrongs Make a Right (11 page)

Depression came in waves, ebbing between her consumption of donuts purchased on her way home from Medicine Man’s dismissal. She still couldn’t believe it. The one guy in her online dating stable with real potential, and he’d rebuffed her. She had a good mind to contact him and ask what caused the deal breaker.

So what if eating fruit and drinking water wasn’t enough to make her a fitness guru? She stuffed a bite of chocolate-glazed goodness into her mouth. And what was wrong with being happy as a staff reporter? Her measly annual salary probably didn’t hold a candle to his. That could be the reason he wasn’t interested. He saw her as a liability, instead of a contributing partner. She wrapped her lips around another thick chunk of dough.

Or maybe her mother was right, and her casual wardrobe had been a turn-off, but what did he expect in the middle of the day, for a coffee date? Satin and stilettos? Pulling the box of Krispy Kremes closer, she waved her hand over the contents, as if choosing the right one produced a prize, and then settled on the jelly-filled cream puff. Strawberry filling squirted as she bit into it, dropping onto the top of the carton. She scooped the glob up with her finger and licked it clean. Yep, just another daily portion of fruit. Take that, Mr. Medical Researcher.

She hated being judged. Her mom furnished plenty of that. Lucy and Ethel followed Quinn into the kitchen and twined around her ankles. She looked down at them. “You don’t know how lucky you are. A little surgical procedure and now you don’t give a hoot about a tom cat.” Lucy licked Ethel’s face. “Well, even when you cared, it was only a few times a year. I should be so fortunate. Find a guy. Mate. Move on. You girls have the right idea.”

Quinn took another bite, then mulled over what she’d said. That was it! In today’s world, a woman didn’t need a husband or marriage. Only—before the thought finished forming, a tap at the door got her attention. She went to open it, carrying the donuts with her.

Raynie blew in as if being chased. “What about the Medicine guy? How’d that turn out?”

“Come in.”

“Oh. Yeah. Sorry. I’m in a hurry. I left the shop under the care of that new high school girl I hired, and I’m afraid she’ll abandon ship to lust after Rico and his clients.”

“You could have called or texted.”

“Yeah, but I did a reading two streets over, and while I was in the neighborhood, decided to stop by. So? Tell me.”

Before Quinn could answer, someone else knocked. This time, Megan stood in the doorway holding a fast food bag. “I took a late lunch so I could get a report. I had a good feeling about this guy. Did you like him?” She walked to the counter, sat on a stool, and lifted a child size burger and fries from the sack.

“I did. You want something to drink with that?”

“Yay! I knew it,” Megan said. “I had our resident gypsy here, do a seven card reading. Yeah, water will be good.”

Raynie waved her hands in the air, then slid onto the stool next to Megan. “The cards never lie. They showed he possessed strong curiosity.”

“That’s correct,” Quinn said. “He’s a medical researcher. Works at the new Dell Medical facility. What else did you get?”

“Knowing you the way I do, according to the spread, he’d be someone you’d be interested in, which proves you should never give up. The best came last. When can we meet him?”

Quinn went to the fridge, took out a bottle of water and handed it to Megan. She loved her friend’s enthusiasm, but those damn cards never seemed to turn in Quinn’s favor. “You’re not. I liked him but he wasn’t interested in me. He practically burned the rubber off of his shoes getting out of there.”

Megan’s and Raynie’s jaws dropped. Megan spoke first. “You’re kidding! What happened? Never mind. Don’t answer. Clearly the man has a serious flaw.”

Raynie scrunched up her face. “I should have done a dual reading. But I never dreamed he’d have no interest.” She moved to stand next to Quinn and hugged her. “This settles it. I’ll fix you up with Rico.”

Quinn broke the hold. “No. He’s not my type and there’s no need to waste time with him.’

“Oh honey, trust me, it will not be a waste of time.”

Quinn shook her head. “Before y’all got here, I talked with Lucy and Ethel and decided. I’m looking at having a family all wrong. I don’t know why I didn’t see it before.” She picked another donut from the box, pinched a bite, and crammed it into her mouth.

Megan finished her baby burger and washed it down with a gulp of water. “That’s not true. You’ve barely scratched the dating surface. There are tons of men out there. You have to keep going out until something clicks with one of them.”

“How long do you think that will take? Six months? A year?” Quinn punctuated the air with a half-circle of dough. “No. I’ve made up my mind. I’m having a baby. Three years wasted on Brad. No connections on the dating site. Not rich enough for the sperm bank. I’m out of options, so I’m becoming a rebel with a cause. My mother won’t approve, but these are modern times. I don’t need marriage to have a child.”

“When did you go to a fertility clinic?”

“The other day. I don’t have the money for it. The procedure costs thousands and I still may not get pregnant. I may as well try on my own, for free.”

Megan finished her fries, then crumpled the wrapping. “Okay, now I’m confused.”

“I need your help. You offered to fix me up with some men from work and I want you to do just that.”

“No problem. I’ve already told you I know a couple who’d be worth dating.”

“I don’t want to date them.”

Megan frowned. “I don’t get it.”

“Bring me pictures of the guys you have in mind and I’ll choose one.”

“You’re going to ask one to get you pregnant?”

“I don’t intend to tell him.”

Raynie narrowed her eyes. “You can’t do that. Forcing a guy to be a father when he may not want to be. That’s wrong.”

“My clock is ticking, and I’ve already invested too much of my life in men I thought were perfect and look where it got me. I can’t afford to devote that much time into another relationship with no guarantee of matrimony.”

“You don’t have to. There are men who will be more than happy to knock you up. We just need to put the word out. Crap, Rico will probably do it.”

“Nothing against him, but it will be better if it’s someone I don’t know. That way, I won’t have to see him all the time. Because of our friendship, I’d cross paths with him.”

“You’re upset about Medicine Man, and I don’t blame you,” Megan said. “At the beginning, we had high hopes you’d find Mr. Right. But to do what you’re suggesting—well, this isn’t you.”

“It may sound crazy, but women do this all the time. They get pregnant to save a marriage—trap a man—extort money—or force a guy to leave his wife. I’m not doing any of those things. During ejaculation, men release fifty to five hundred million little swimmers. Five. Hundred. Million. And all I need is one.”

Quinn stood her ground. “Let’s say I do it the normal way. I stay on the dating site a few more weeks and find the man of my dreams.” She glanced at one friend and then the other. “I love him, he loves me, blah, blah, and blah. The only hold up is he wants a long engagement. For the sake of a time line, I’ll say a year. By that time, I’m almost thirty-six.”

Megan held up her hand, but Quinn waved her off. “Let me finish. After that, we marry, but he wants to wait a couple of more before we have a baby.” She rolled her eyes up as if calculating. “I’ll be approaching thirty-nine. Or, let’s say after twelve long months of dating and planning my future with him, he pulls a Brad.” She heaved a heavy sigh. “I can’t gamble on that.” Then she gazed back at Megan. “Okay, now plead your case.”

Megan checked her watch. “I don’t have time for this. I’ve got to get back to work but I want you to contemplate long and hard about everything that can go wrong.”

Raynie giggled. “Long and hard definitely plays into it.”

“You’re supposed to be on my side.” Megan shot her a look. “Don’t encourage her. This is a crazy idea.”

“It is crazy,” Raynie said. “But she made some good points. Maybe it’ll turn out like a romance novel where two people get thrown together, then end up in love.”

“Says the woman with two failed marriages,” Megan huffed and headed toward the door.

Raynie scowled. “That was harsh and uncalled for. My botched nuptials have nothing to do with Quinn, but thanks for the opportunity to say nuptials. I love that word.”

Quinn giggled, then straightened her face. The family curse of early menopause was fast approaching, and pregnancy needed to happen while she still had an egg. She placed her hand on Megan’s shoulder. “Are you going to help me or not?”

“I haven’t decided yet.” She pulled on the knob and stepped onto the porch, with Quinn right behind.

“I’m asking a lot and I wouldn’t if I thought I could make a love connection, marry, and have a baby before my ovaries take a permanent vacation. Consider you’ll be doing the guy a favor. Since he’ll never know about the baby, once I start through the change, he’ll avoid my mood swings, night sweats, hot flashes, and palpitations, not to mention the anxiety.”

“It’s not just ethically wrong. I’d be committing a crime by using their personnel files for information.”

“Not really. You said you had some guys in mind for me, so give me those names. I’m not asking you to do anything you haven’t been willing to do all along.”

“So I won’t be breaking any laws, but it will be impossible to work with a man who has a child with one of my best friends and keep it a secret. Y’all know I’m not good at deceit.”

“That
is
a consideration,” Raynie said. “She’s a lousy liar. You remember how we could never get in a club even with fake ID’s? She always caved and spilled her guts.”

“I’m begging you. Please do this for me.”

“Dammit, Quinn.” Megan sighed and shook her head. “I will regret this. But I’ll do it. You have to be careful and plan everything out to the letter. This can’t come back on me. Whoever you choose can never, and I mean NEVER, know I had anything to do with this. Understand?”

“Yes, and I promise he won’t. Bring me pictures of the candidates and I’ll take it from there.”

“I suppose the company newsletter has most of the photos so I still won’t be breaking the law. At least that’s one good thing, but there are so many things that can go wrong.” Megan looped her purse over her arm. “You need to consider that.”

Quinn gave her a warm hug, watched her walk away, then turned her attention to her remaining friend. “I have so much to do. I need a bogus background. Residence. Work place. An alias.”

Raynie nodded to each item, then smiled. “You’ll also need a place to do the deed. I’m guessing a hotel room.”

“Good point. And a cover story that puts me in town for just a few days. I don’t want him able to see me again, not that he would.”

“That will all be easy. The hard part will be how are you going to arrange a chance meeting?”

~~*~~

It’d been two days since Megan agreed to Quinn’s harebrained plan, at least that’s what Megan called it. During that time, Quinn researched ovulation kits, and determined the best one to use. To be double sure, she’d also bought a cycle calendar phone app.

Now, she sat at the kitchen table and stared at the purchases. She understood the confused expression on the clerk’s face as she checked the items. A strange combination for sure—ovulation kit, pregnancy test, condoms. She could tell the woman wanted to ask questions, and as crazy as it was, Quinn felt a need to explain. The same feeling she got whenever she withdrew money from her savings, as if she owed a reason for the withdrawal.

She walked to the mirror on the wall next to the front door, narrowed her eyes and puckered her lips. “What’s a nice guy like you doing in a place like this?” She straightened her face, then tilted her head to one side. “I’m new in town. Could you show me the way to your apartment?” She pulled the band from her ponytail and ran her fingers through her hair, then rolled her shoulders. “Want to make a baby?”

Throwing her head back, she laughed out loud. The sound filled the small room. Lucy and Ethel came from under the couch, hopped onto the end table and swiveled their heads between Quinn and her mirrored image.

She rubbed their ears. “Yes. There’re two of us. Both crazy. I’m practicing my alluring moves. Good or not?” She pursed her lips and fluttered her lashes. The cats stared, frozen in place. “Yeah. That’s what I thought. More sick than sexy. How am I ever going to tempt a man if I look like I’m in the middle of a seizure?”

As if answering, Lucy nudged Ethel with her nose, then ran her tongue across her head. “What? I should lick him? Maybe after I get him into bed.” Her cheeks heated, and the tattoo on the side of Rico’s neck flashed in her mind. Very lickable. She flapped her hands at the cats. “You girls get out of here. You’re a bad influence.” They sprang to the floor and disappeared down the hallway.

Her stomach jittered and jumped. There was always the chance she’d fail. Her seduction skills were lame. The thought of being with a stranger scared the hell out of her. Sweat beaded above her lip, and the fear of failure pressed heavy against her chest. No need to think that way. She never intended to see him again anyway. Besides, what single man ever refused a hook-up?

Having a child before it was too late meant everything to her. She may not realize her dream of having her dad walk her down the aisle, but she prayed he’d live long enough to see her give him a grandchild. Tears pooled. No need to be sad. He was gaining weight. His color was better. He had more energy. But as hard as she tried to stay positive, no doubt the cancer would come back. The oncologist said so. The only question was when?

Two years ago, she’d noticed the spot, but accepted her dad’s excuse of his eyeglasses causing it. She’d even bought him pads for the nose pieces. But it didn’t go away or get better and Dad had been stubborn in getting it checked.
Melanoma
. Such a deceitful word. It sounded more like a fancy china pattern, or a young fashion designer in place of a killer. It was her fault. She should have insisted he see the doctor sooner. She should have nagged more.