by Austin Bates
“What do you mean, sir?”
Hugh leant back in his chair and said, “Well, what I mean is where would you like to go, Mr. Fitzgerald? I understand that you’re expecting a child with Noah, one of my favorites. So much so that I’m willing to extend an opportunity to you just to help him.”
“Why not just help him, sir?”
“Because I like you too,” Hugh replied. “How do you feel about moving down to the second floor?”
Issac looked at Hugh with wide eyes. “Me? I’m not second-floor material, sir.” Hugh broke into a huge belly laugh and Rhonda joined him.
“Would you look at him, Rhonda? They don’t make young men this humble anymore.”
Issac wiped his face clean and took on a serious expression. “I don’t want to move to the second floor because I don’t… want to be here.”
Hugh looked over to Rhonda and she held her hands up. Hugh leant forward and asked, “Excuse me?”
“I don’t want to be here, sir. When you requested that I come to this meeting today, I decided that I would terminate my employment at your law firm.”
“If you don’t want to be at one of the best law firms in Baltimore, where exactly do you want to be?”
“I’m going to head down a different path. As you know, I’m going through a lot of change in my life and I want to change my career path as well. I won the case, yes. I don’t want to be a lawyer, though. I wanted to be a lawyer because my father, your beloved Deputy Mayor, wanted a son that was a lawyer. However, I’ve been developing a habit of shattering expectations, sir. My resignation is effective immediately. Thank you for the opportunity.”
Issac rose from his seat. “Goodbye, Rhonda,” he said and excused himself from Hugh Walsh’s office.
****************************************
Noah reclined on Issac’s sofa as Issac brought a plate of steaming stir fry over to him. Issac sat down next to him.
Between enthusiastic bites of food, Noah said, “I still cannot believe that you quit today. You just told yourself you were going to quit, and walked up to Hugh Walsh himself and told him that you weren’t interested in working for him. Where did you get the gall?”
Issac laughed and said, “It was just so easy now that I don’t live to impress my father. I want to impress the baby by not being one of those miserable adults. I want them to know that life is about being happy.”
Noah nodded, cutting into a particularly thick chunk of broccoli. “Have you been reading self-help books?”
“Hush. I haven’t, I’ve just been thinking. I thought that it was time for me to do some growing up.”
“Well, your timing is both terrible and wonderful. What are you going to do about money? Do you have a plan?”
Issac snaked an arm around Noah’s shoulder and brought him closer to his chest. “Well, I thought that you and Jade could move to a new, bigger place with me. What do you think?”
Noah grinned and pretended to consider it. “I don’t know… I think Jade has something against gays.”
“Oh shut up.” Issac swatted at Noah and both men started to giggle.
“If you’re serious, then I would love to move into a new place with you. Mom reacted a lot better than I expected, but that doesn’t mean that she isn’t worried about the next seven months.” Noah ran a hand over his belly. “I think that she’s terrified that she’ll never get her house back.”
“She can have her house back, and we’ll move our family into a new house. Speaking of family, I wanted to run something by you.”
Noah stuck a piece of steamed bell pepper into Issac’s mouth. Issac finished chewing and said, “I wanted to see how you felt about Tristan living with us.”
“Your brother?”
Issac nodded. “He isn’t… understood by my parents. If I can get them to agree that it’s best for him, he might be a lot happier.”
Noah shrugged as he redirected his attention back to his food. “I’ll sleep on it.”
Chapter 30
Noah ran his hands along his belly as he strolled into Hugh’s office. Six and a half months had passed since Issac left the firm, and Noah had developed a prominent bump. His belly entered a room before he did, and just about everyone that he ran into made sure to tell him that. The baby shifted and Noah pressed his finger into the spot that he suspected his baby’s little fists were.
He eased into the seat across from Hugh, and Hugh watched in awe as Noah got situated in the uncomfortable wooden chair. “I’ll make sure to offer you my chair the next time that I make you walk all of the way down here. How are you, Noah?”
“I’m fine. The baby seems to weigh about 1,000 pounds, but I was a lot younger the first time that I gave birth.”
“How long until they’re born?”
Noah and Issac had chosen to keep the sex of the baby a mystery until it was born. When Noah gave birth to Jade, he was forced to find out her gender in order to buy the appropriate items for her. Or, at least that’s what Madeline preferred. “About six weeks.”
“Well, I have a special case for you but I don’t know if your condition would prevent you from doing that.”
“What’s the case?”
“We have a very big client in New York, and he had a guy up there but his kid got into an accident back home and he couldn’t finish the case. I was hoping that you could go up there for about a week to defend his client in court. What do you think?”
“I don’t know if I’m fit to travel for too long. How long would I be gone?”
“Roughly a week. I’m confident that you can get this wrapped up quickly, assuming that you’re not throwing up still. My wife threw up right until her due date.”
Noah grimaced. “Don’t jinx me. One week in New York? I could do that.”
“Fantastic! Rhonda will get your flight set up and you tell that man of yours that I said hello.”
Noah rocked in his chair before getting onto his feet. “I will. He’ll be happy to know that you thought of him.”
Noah waddled out of Hugh’s office, pulling his shirt down over his extended stomach as he went.
***
Issac looked up from his notebook. “He’s got you flying to New York this close to your due date?”
Noah waved him off as he sat across the table from him. “I’ll be fine. I’m the one that’s been pregnant before, Issac. I know my limitations.”
Issac sighed and Noah tapped his fingers on the notebook between them. “How’s it coming?”
Issac shrugged. Issac had recently re-enrolled into college. He took a few classes during the week, and on the weekends he did some legal work for Gordon at the mayor’s office. “It’s coming. No one said that social work would be this difficult.”
Noah laughed. “I’m pretty sure that everyone thinks that social work is difficult. You’re just not used to it—oh!”
“What’s wrong? Are you okay?”
“The baby is kicking. Come feel my stomach.” Issac moved around the table and Noah grabbed his hand. Their baby changed positions and kicked, a small section of Noah’s abdomen extended before retreating back to its normal shape.
“Can you believe it? In six weeks, I’ll be holding my first child.”
“First?” Noah repeated. “You want more?”
“Well, maybe someday. In the future. Jade and this new baby will be enough for us to handle anyway,” Issac said.
Noah pushed back from the chair and said, “We can always talk about it later.”
Chapter 31
Noah closed the door to his cab and waved goodbye at the cabbie. The streets sang with life behind him; cars honked their way through traffic, conversations drifted from across the street and into Noah’s ears as he entered the hotel that Hugh arranged for him to stay at until the case was complete. He approached the counter and the girl smiled at him and then took the rest of him in.
“Oh my! You look like you’re ready to burst.” Her bright blue eyes ran up and down his body again,
and she wore a goofy smile. “Wow, you’re big.”
“Yeah, I have a really big bump. I’m checking in under Noah Wilson. The reservation may also be under the Law Offices of Hugh Walsh. I’m in town on business.”
Her nametag read: Abigail. Abigail pecked Noah’s name into her computer, then she pecked in the Law Offices of Hugh Walsh. “Alright, I have one reservation under the Law Offices of Hugh Walsh. Looks like you have a single king-sized bed and mini bar access!”
Noah pointed at his belly. “Well, I won’t need that but I think that it’s really sweet of my boss to think of me. Anyways, could I get a wake-up call at eight a.m. tomorrow?”
“Absolutely!” Abigail said, and waved her hand at the young man standing by the elevator. He took in her gesture and rushed over to Noah.
“I’ll take those bags off of your hands, sir,” he said, and Noah grinned, waddling after the bell boy. They rode the elevator up to the twenty-seventh floor, and the bellboy led him to the very end of the hallway. He opened the door and it gave way to a lavish suite. There was a large window that faced Times Square to the left of Noah’s king-sized bed, the carpet was in a coffee swirl pattern leading up to the window. A stark white arm chair was placed by the window for gazing at the nightlife.
Noah tipped the bellboy and eased onto the bed. The comforter was soft. He laid back onto the bed and was absorbed by the freshly laundered sheets. Noah braced himself upon feeling a particularly active movement from the baby. He ran his hands along his bump. Almost. Just hold on for a little longer, little one. Noah rolled over onto his side, and drifted into a deep sleep.
******************************************************************
The next morning, Ashton had reached out to Noah and invited him to join him for a meal while they discussed the case. Over the phone, Ashton had been cordial, almost professional but Noah’s jaw dropped at the slovenly man in the tacky grey suit that showed up instead. Noah gripped the edge of the table as his client lit a cigarette and let the ashes drip onto the floor of the restaurant. Hugh, you bastard. No wonder he couldn’t get anyone to come up here for this asshole.
Noah smiled and pointed at his belly. “I’m looking forward to winning this case for you and to go over your side of things, but would you mind putting that out?”
Ashton Monroe was an out of work banker under accusation of having embezzled half a million dollars from BellTower bank. Ashton’s scowl was almost swallowed by the thick, salt and pepper beard on his face. His eyes were tiny, round, and dark like a New York rat.
Ashton shrugged. “I see that you’re fat. What does that have to do with me?”
Noah’s false laugh bounced off of the walls of the shabby diner that Ashton requested they meet at to discuss the case. “I’m not fat, I’m pregnant. I’m due in about six weeks, and understandably, I don’t want to breathe that in.”
Ashton placed his palms flat on the table and leaned forward and snarled, “Understandably, I don’t want to put my cigarette out while I’m being fucked in the ass by BellTower, and I especially don’t want to put it out because you got fucked in the ass.”
An angry, red blush spread across Noah’s neck and cheeks. “If you would prefer to keep your cigarette lit, then that’s fine.” His voice was curt, and what Issac would refer to as default professional, nothing special—a purely robotic exchange.
Noah spread a few documents on the table and sighed as a piece of ash from Ashton’s cigarette smeared the first few words on the page a dark gray color. “Ashton, let’s hear your side of things. So, BellTower is basically suing you because you’re being accused of embezzlement. That much, I understand. However, what proof do they have that you’ve actually done this?”
“My company spending account. However, most of that was stuff that I purchased while I was traveling on business,” Ashton said and looked into his coffee cup with an air of disgust upon realizing it was bone dry.
“Okay, and I’m sure they were reasonable expenses, like lodgings, food, gas?” Noah asked. Ashton looked down at his empty cup and thrust it into the air. “Are you going to grab me another cup of coffee or are you just going to stand there and look pretty?” he called out.
Noah slid his hand over his mouth and repeated his question. “Were your transactions reasonable things like lodging, food, and gas?” he asked.
“Of course,” Ashton replied. “They were ‘reasonable’ things. I had to pay for all of that, but they can’t expect me to wear my own clothes on these trips. They might get damaged.”
“I’m sorry?” Noah asked. He pulled out a piece of paper that was underneath the pile in between them on the table. Noah watched the waitress fill up Ashton’s cup with what Noah presumed could only be stale coffee and spit. “Did you buy a new wardrobe for every trip that you went on? With company money?”
“Well, you’ve gotta fit in with every place you go to. You can’t dress for New York the way that you would dress for L.A.,” Ashton said, defensively.
“Y-yes, you can,” Noah replied. “No one needs—it doesn’t matter. Anyway, we’ll find a way to get you out of this. Maybe we can say that you donated half of the clothes to charity on behalf of BellTower.”
“But I didn’t.”
“That’s probably what we’re going to have to do.”
Ashton lifted the chipped coffee mug to his lips and drank about half a cup’s worth of black coffee. Noah jumped as Ashton harshly brought the mug back down onto the tabletop.
I’ve never wanted to quit a case before.
Chapter 32
Noah screwed on his most convincing smile as Ashton sorted through all of the clothes that he had bought on BellTower’s dime. He grimaced as he threw a gargantuan pile of tacky reds and golds onto the floor of his apartment.
“These are my fancy duds. These are some of the finest clothes that money can buy. I’m supposed to just give away all of these clothes so that some scrub at the thrift store can buy them?” he asked.
I can’t tell if he’s asking one of those questions that’s actually rhetorical, Noah thought, and Ashton kicked the pile of his clothes. He thrust a big, meaty finger in Noah’s direction. “You better know what you’re talking about in that courtroom. I wouldn’t have called Hugh Walsh all the way in Baltimore if I hadn’t heard how good you guys are supposed to be. You better come through.”
Noah nodded. “Thank you for that pep talk, Ashton. Are there any more clothes that we can take to the thrift store? We need to remember to get a receipt when we drop them off as well.”
Ashton turned to him and said, “You think I don’t know how a tax write-off works, Noah?” He pronounced his name as if he were reading the label on some brand of cheese that he had never heard of before.
Noah gritted his teeth. “No, I’m sure that you know how a tax write-off works, Ashton. I was just going over our plan so that we’re prepared to win your case,” he said.
Ashton narrowed his eyes and said, “Are you sure that you know how to argue a case? What kind of law firm sends a pregnant lawyer up here? I don’t take you seriously, they’re not going to take you seriously.”
“Is that right? You know, I’ve never had trouble being taken seriously. I’m having trouble taking you seriously. You bought all of these clothes to dress like you’re in the 1970s, and now you have to explain to a judge why you wasted company time and money to do it,” Noah spat.
“Excuse me?” Ashton said, kicking more of the tacky pants and shirts out of the way and walking over to Noah. He loomed over him from the position that Noah sat in.
“You don’t get to talk to me like that!” Ashton’s voice boomed off the walls of the apartment.
“Well, you have not been speaking to me appropriately since the second that we met. I think that Hugh is going to have to send you another lawyer.” Noah rose to his feet, cradling his belly, and roughly brushed past Ashton’s shoulder as he walked to the door.
“Hey! You can’t just walk out of here like I’m
a nobody!” Ashton insisted.
Noah groaned and his shoulders trembled as a clear trail of liquid splattered down his pant leg and dripped onto the floor of Ashton’s apartment. Noah slowly turned to look over his shoulder, and Ashton stood there, slack jawed.
“D-did you just pee all over my carpet?” Ashton asked.
Noah took a deep breath and gripped the edges of the chipped door frame. His voice came out low, and wiped clean of emotion. “Ashton, I need you to call an ambulance.”
“What?” Ashton said.
“Call… an ambulance… I’m going into labor.”
Ashton threw his hands up in the air and shook his head. “You’ve got to be kidding me. You come in here and tell me to get rid of all of my clothes in some half-baked scheme you took two minutes to think of to help win my case, and you go into labor in my apartment?!”
I’m so sorry for the inconvenience, you mentally unstable asshole. “Ashton,” Noah said, louder this time, his hands desperately clung to his bump as if it would keep the baby in place.
