Daddy, Unexpectedly

by Lee McKenzie

  * * *

  STILL HIDING BEHIND her sunglasses, Claire rang the doorbell at Kristi and Nate’s place. She hoped her friend would answer the door and not her husband, her teenage daughter or her twin stepdaughters. Claire couldn’t face anyone else right now. Bad enough that Kristi had to be the one to witness her meltdown. Luckily it was Kristi who opened the door because meltdown was a little bit of an understatement.

  “Oh, sweetie. I’m so sorry.” Kristi hugged her. “Come in, come in.”

  Claire pulled off her sunglasses and dabbed at her eyes with a tissue. It would be easy to let herself have a good cry, but she was still too furious for that.

  “Come with me.” Kristi led her down to the bathroom, got out fresh towels and a washcloth. “Take your time, wash your face, I’ll go find you something comfortable to put on. Oh, Sam’s on her way. She should be here any minute.”

  “What about your family...?”

  “Not to worry. Jenna’s at a sleepover at a friend’s place, and Nate took the twins and the dogs over to his mom and dad’s for the evening. We have the place all to ourselves.”

  That was something of a relief. It was one thing to let her two best friends see her like this, but she couldn’t cope with anyone else right now.

  She splashed some water on her face, ran a comb through her hair and changed into a pair of sweatpants and a T-shirt that Kristi had produced. There was no way Kristi’s clothes would fit her so these must be Nate’s, but she was beyond caring.

  In the family room, she found that Sam had arrived.

  “Come sit here,” she said, patting the sofa seat cushion next to her.

  “I’ll go fix us some drinks.” Kristi urged her to take a seat. “Be right back.”

  Claire sat and sank into Sam’s embrace, and Sam plucked a tissue from the box and pressed it into her hand.

  “Thanks.” She had never been a crier, though. It didn’t solve anything anyway. It was just that this hurt so darned much.

  “Kristi gave me the Reader’s Digest version of what happened with Luke. I had already seen the TV news coverage about the place they busted and the arrests, but I never put two and two together to come up with Luke using your place for whatever kind of surveillance they were doing.”

  Surveillance. That’s what Luke was doing, using her place, using her. “I honestly had no idea.” She was that big a fool.

  Sam filled her in on the sordid details of the young women who’d been smuggled into the country and forced into the sex trade, the drugs and how it had been the overdose and death of one of the young women several weeks ago that tipped off the police and launched the investigation.

  “So it was...what? A brothel? Seriously? In my condominium complex?” Claire groaned. “And just after I’ve listed it. Who’s going to buy it now?”

  Her life was turning into a vortex and she was watching it all being sucked down the sewer. What else could go wrong?

  Her phone rang. “La Cucaracha” played.

  Sam snatched the phone out of her hand. “No freaking way is that loser getting to you now. Just ignore him.”

  “He’s probably heard the news and I’ll bet he’s thinking the same I am, that between this and the current state of the real estate market, we’ll never a find a buyer.”

  “Too bad,” Sam said. “There’s not a damn thing you can do about any of it, but he’ll try to pin it all on you anyway.”

  That did sound like Donald. At least he’s predictable. Luke had been full of surprises since the moment they’d met, and she’d had enough surprises to last a lifetime.

  Kristi returned with a tray of drinks. “Sam, that’s decaf coffee for you. Claire, I was going to make you a latte, then I decided something stronger was in order. Have a few sips of this,” she said, pressing a glass into Claire’s hand.

  Absently Claire gazed at the amber-colored fluid in the cut-crystal old-fashioned glass, heard the clink of ice as she raised it to her lips. She quickly lowered it when the sharp, peaty scent filled her nose.

  “What is this?”

  “Scotch, on the rocks. It’ll take the edge off.”

  Claire set the glass on the coffee table. “I can’t drink that.”

  Sam picked up her coffee cup. “We know you’re not much of a drinker, but this is one of those times when you can make an exception.”

  “No, I mean I really can’t drink that.” Her current reality was all but forgotten in the face of Luke’s betrayal. A simple glass of Scotch had it rushing back.

  “Why not?”

  “There’s no harm in one little drink.”

  Claire felt herself smile, and then she started to laugh. This is so not funny, she told herself.

  “Okay, now she’s getting hysterical,” Sam said. “What do we do?”

  “I’m not.” She took a long, slow breath to calm herself. “Honest. I don’t know why I’m laughing. I’m not hysterical. I’m not. But I... There’s a chance I could be pregnant.”

  Chapter Eleven

  “Pregnant?” Sam and Kristi chorused.

  “Are you sure?” Kristi swept the glass of Scotch off the table and set it on the tray.

  “Is it Luke’s?” Sam asked.

  “No, I’m not sure. And, yes! If I’m having a baby, of course it’s his. How many men do you think I’ve been sleeping with?”

  “Sorry, sorry, sorry.” Sam was obviously chagrined. “That was a stupid question. It’s just... Oh, my God, I was not expecting this.”

  “How did this happen?” Kristi asked. “I mean, I know how it happened, but I thought you were still on the Pill.”

  “I am, or I was, but I missed a few, quite a few, actually.” She told them how she had messed up and about the birth control her doctor had recommended until she knew for sure.

  “Have you taken a pregnancy test?”

  “Not yet. It’s only been a week and—” This was the hardest part of her confession. “Things were going so well with Luke and I didn’t want to spoil it. Even before what happened this afternoon, I knew this wasn’t a forever thing. He doesn’t want a family, isn’t interested in settling down, and he was completely up-front about that.” But she never would have suspected he was using her. The old Luke, sure, but this Luke? Never.

  “Claire, this doesn’t sound like you.” Kristi’s narrow-eyed scrutiny made her squirm. “Did you just plan to end things at some point and have his baby without telling him?”

  “Of course not! I would never do anything like that. The thing is, even though I knew he doesn’t want a family, I did believe he wanted to be with me.”

  He had been very convincing, and she had fallen for it. Thud. Knowing how gullible she’d been, how easy it had been for him to manipulate her, hurt every bit as much as his betrayal.

  “I guess I was secretly hoping his feelings were strong enough that he would change his mind. Now that I know that’s not true, I’m not sure how I’ll handle it.” If anything needed to be handled.

  “I don’t know that I agree,” Sam said. “When we met Luke last Sunday afternoon, I saw how he looked at you. Seriously, the guy could not take his eyes off you. It’s damn hard to fake that kind of thing. Most men aren’t good enough actors to pull it off.”

  Claire laughed, and even to her own ears it had a bitter edge to it. “Trust me, he’s had a lot of practice. He had a string of girlfriends in college, and they all believed he was crazy about them...until they found out he wasn’t.”

  “There’s a difference between reality and wishful thinking,” Kristi said. “I know what Sam means. The way Luke looked at you—”

  Claire stopped her. “Please, stop. You both mean well and you don’t want to see me hurting...I love you for that...but the thing Luke and I had, whatever it was, it’s over.”

  “Okay, fair enough.” But Sam’s concession was short-lived. “I have no trouble believing the guy was a player. I’ll bet girls have been throwing themselves at him since he hit puberty. But the baby...that’s a whole di
fferent matter. I’ll go out on a limb here and predict he has a change of heart after you tell him.”

  Of course Sam would believe that. Her husband would move heaven and earth to be with his kids.

  “I want to believe that as much as you do, sweetie, but I’m afraid it’s not going to happen. That first morning over breakfast, Luke told me about his ex, how he’d only found out she was having his baby after she was in a car accident and had a miscarriage.”

  “What did he do?”

  “He ended the relationship.”

  Sam and Kristi exchanged a look.

  “Can I ask one more question?” Kristi asked.

  “Of course.”

  “Are you in love with him?”

  Claire inhaled slowly, then exhaled with a whoosh. She had doubts about a lot of things right now, but she was absolutely certain about this. “Totally, madly, head-over-heels.”

  “You should tell him,” Sam said.

  “Right. Because I haven’t been humiliated enough already.”

  “No. Because if I’m right and he is as crazy about you as I think he is, then—”

  Claire’s phone went off again, this time vibrating on the coffee table where Sam had set it. Speak of the devil...

  Sam picked it up, read the display name and grinned at Kristi.

  “Don’t answer it!” Claire said.

  “It says...” Sam paused. “Lucky Devil?”

  “Luke put that in my phone. I can’t talk to him. Not right now.” She didn’t bother trying to hide the bitterness. “He’s had that stupid nickname since college. It’s what his buddies called him, given his way with women.” He even had the T-shirt to prove it, she thought, remembering the day she’d run in to him. At the time she’d found it funny. Now the joke was on her.

  Before either of her friends could respond, her phone rang again.

  “Oh, my God,” Sam said. “You need to turn this thing off.” Sam read the call display again. “This one’s from Brenda Billings. Isn’t she your...?”

  “My Realtor.” Claire grabbed the phone. “I do have to take this call. We put an offer on the house this morning—”

  She jumped up and crossed the room to the sliding doors that overlooked Kristi’s patio. “Brenda, hi. Thanks for calling. Any news?”

  “Yes, I have, and it’s good news. They accepted your offer, including all the conditions. They’re moving out of the city at the end of the month, so they’ve even agreed to the early possession date you asked for.”

  “Oh, um, wow. That’s good. Really good.” A few hours ago she had wanted this so much it hurt. Now she wanted to feel happy about it, and couldn’t. It was all too much. Being with Luke, the maybe baby and now a new home.

  “Claire? Is everything okay?”

  She whipped off her glasses and dabbed the corners of her eyes with her sleeve. “Fine. Everything’s fine. I’m right in the middle of something, though. Can we meet, tomorrow maybe, to go over the details?”

  “Of course we can. How’s ten? Or is that too early?”

  “No, that’ll be perfect.”

  “Would you like me to come to your place?”

  “Um, no. I have to run errands first thing. Can we meet at my office instead?” Since Brenda hadn’t asked, Claire assumed she hadn’t seen the evening news, and she didn’t know if she could get back into her building tomorrow morning.

  “Your office tomorrow at ten. See you then. And Claire...?”

  “Mmm-hmm?”

  “Congratulations! You just bought a house.”

  “Thanks.”

  She turned back to Kristi and Sam, who looked as though they were waiting to pounce.

  “I got the house.”

  Then they were on their feet, she was sandwiched in a group hug, and they took turns assuring her that she was doing the right thing.

  “So happy for you.”

  “It’s a perfect house for you.”

  “A chance for a fresh new start.”

  “We’re going to throw the most awesome housewarming party.”

  A housewarming party. That would be fun. But not as much fun as a baby shower. With that thought, she gave in to the tears, although she couldn’t have said if they were happy or sad.

  * * *

  THE SKY WAS TURNING from dusk to dark when Luke left Claire’s condo. The patrol cars, barricades and crime scene tape were gone and the street was quiet as he led Rex out the front door and onto the sidewalk. Everything back to normal. And then the hair on his neck went up.

  Donald? Had to be, he decided, making a show of looking around as he hitched his duffel bag onto his shoulder and unclipped Rex’s lead. Bring it on, asshole.

  He spotted the Lexus halfway down the block. In this light the driver’s side appeared empty, but he couldn’t be sure. He’d parked his truck on the next block so he had to walk past Donald’s car anyway. Not that he needed an excuse, and the mood he was in right now, it would be best for Claire’s ex if he was inside the car. With the doors locked.

  His first instinct was right. The car was unoccupied, but Donald was there. He stepped out of a recessed doorway as Luke approached.

  Luke stopped walking. “Rex, watch.” The dog immediately halted and fixed his sights on Donald. “Good dog.”

  “Nice night to walk your dog.”

  “What do you want, Robinson?”

  “I want to know what the hell went on here this afternoon. Claire isn’t answering her phone and I wanted to make sure she’s okay.”

  “Claire’s fine.” Although he doubted that was any more true for her than it was for him.

  “What about the police raid?”

  “What about it?” He was in no mood for questions, even less so for small talk. “If you saw the news, then you know what went down. Nothing more I can tell you.”

  “Bull.” Donald shifted, giving the appearance that he was stepping forward.

  Rex flattened his ears and growled.

  Donald took a step back instead. “What’s with your dog?”

  “I don’t think he likes you.”

  “He should be on a leash.”

  And you should be in a jail cell. “Rex won’t move...unless I tell him to.”

  Donald fished his keys out of his jacket pocket. “I have to get going.”

  “Good plan.”

  “If you see Claire, tell her—” Whatever the message, he seemed to decide against having Luke relay it.

  “I’ll tell her I ran into you.”

  Donald got into his car and made a show of peeling away from the curb. The jerk.

  “Good boy.” Rex followed him to the truck, hopped in when Luke opened the passenger door for him.

  Luke tossed his duffel bag in the back and then, behind the wheel, it was all he could do to resist squealing his own tires as he slammed the truck into gear and drove away from what was, without a doubt, the best thing that had ever happened to him.

  Twenty minutes later, after he’d dropped Rex and the rest of his stuff at his place and swapped the truck for the Ducati, he stood on the sidewalk in front of a downtown liquor store.

  In the two years since he’d quit drinking, this was hands down the stupidest thing he’d ever done. Hell, he hadn’t even done anything yet, but he was on the precipice of a long, slippery slope.

  Let yourself slide and you might never make it back up.

  You don’t know that, not for sure. Maybe one night, one slip off the wagon wouldn’t be so bad.

  Listen to yourself. Is this what you want?

  No. He wanted Claire. But right now he wanted this more. He wanted to wallow in self-pity and guilt awhile, until the booze let him talk himself into believing that none of this was his fault, and then finally have it wrap its silky tentacles around his consciousness until he no longer felt anything.

  He pulled out his phone to see if he’d missed a call from Claire. He hadn’t. Then he scrolled through the numbers in his contact list, paused at hers before he kept going, not eve
n sure what he was looking for until he found it.

  Norman G. His AA sponsor.

  We admitted we were powerless over alcohol—that our lives had become unmanageable.

  After two years, after all the work he’d done, how the hell had he ended up back at step one? He hit the call button, listened as Norm’s phone rang, felt his heart do a dip in his chest when it went to voice mail.

  “Norm. It’s Luke D. I’m...”

  What? What could he say? I’m this close to throwing the past two years down the toilet?

  “I’m taking it one day at a time. Some shit went down today, but I’m okay. I’m not going to hit the bottle.” He’d hit the road instead.

  Helmet on, he revved the Ducati, roared away from the curb and headed for the exit to the I-5. Where to go? North? Canada, maybe? South to Oregon? The lack of a passport in his pocket made it an easy decision. After he eased the Ducati onto the freeway, he opened her up and gave himself up to the ride. It was the only other way he knew to get numb.

  * * *

  CLAIRE WOKE IN KRISTI’S daughter’s room, vacant because Jenna had been at a sleepover. The rest of the house, judging by the commotion, was wide-awake. Water running, footsteps racing down the hallway, dogs barking and Kristi shushing everyone.

  Grateful as she was that she hadn’t had to go home last night to an empty apartment and the risk of running into Luke, she now needed to be alone. Quietly she slipped out of bed and into the bathroom down the hall, which was mercifully free. After a quick shower she put on the clothes she’d worn yesterday, brushed her hair and dabbed on some lip gloss, which was the only thing she could find in her handbag.

  Kristi was coming down the hallway with a cup of coffee when she emerged from the bathroom. “Good morning. How’d you sleep?”