Baby Come Back(22)

“I mean, I totally understand that things in sports happen quickly, but to announce something that up until that point was purely specul----Whoaa!”

Darin stopped chewing and stared at me with a look of alarm on his face.

I was squirming now in my chair.

“Are you okay, Gina?”

(Tristan had activated the remote on my silver bullet!)

Now Tylar and Trey were staring at me not sure whether they should be alarmed or not. Tristan sat there looking smug and impassive.

“Yes,” I laughed, “Just the little one kicking.”

“Oh, let me feel,” Amber said, finally raising her ass out of that chair to come over and lean down. She put her hand on my rounded belly, which is clearly a ‘no-no’ with pregnant women. I didn’t want to appear rude, so I remained silent for the time being.

She moved her hand all over my belly. It was starting to get weird.

“I can’t feel anything,” she said, a look of disappointment crossing her features. She was now resting her hand on my belly waiting.

Just then I got another round of vibrations from my silver bullet compliments of Tristan. I squirmed around in my chair.

“Is it moving again? I can’t feel it.”

“Okay. I’ve got to get up and walk this off,” I said, taking her hand and removing it from my belly. I got up and walked over to the chair she had just vacated, shooting Tristan a dirty look as I sat down next to him.

As soon as the conversation started back up between Darin and Trey, Amber sat down next to her date. I turned to Tristan.

“Nice move, Tristan.”

“Hey - it got you over here where you wanted to be, didn’t it?”

I had to smile at him. He knew me so well and yet he wasn’t scared off.

He leaned over and gave me a kiss; his eyes were sparkling with affection. Tristan loved me, I was sure of that. He didn’t seem the least bit phased or affected by Amber. I looked up then and saw Amber staring at Trey as if she wanted to devour him. When she saw me watching her, she quickly looked away, finally giving Darin some attention. I glanced over to see if Tylar had caught it but she had dozed off in her chair, her head resting against Trey’s shoulder.

When we got home there was a message on our landline voicemail that my mother had called. She wanted me to call her back at my earliest.

I phoned her back. She picked up the phone recognizing our number on her called ID.

“Oh Gina Marie, I have bad news,” she wailed, clearly upset.

(Oh God! Is Daddy okay?)

‘What is it, Mom?”

“Angie is dead. Leo found her this morning. She died in her sleep. They think it was a heart attack.”

“Mrs. Camerucci?”

“Yes, yes. Angie Camerucci is gone. My best friend; your godmother is dead, Gina.”

I talked to my mother for a few more minutes trying to get her calmed down. This was major for her; Angie Camerucci had been like a sister to her. She was my godmother and like an aunt to me.

My mother was going to call me the following day with the arrangements. I couldn’t tell my mother that I didn’t want to come back for the funeral. She would wonder why. I had nothing to tell her. I had nothing that I was prepared to tell her.

Tristan was coming out of the shower, towel drying his hair as he caught me on my way in.

“What is it, babe?”

His eyes were looking into mine. He knew something was wrong even though he had been in the shower when I returned Mom’s call.

“Oh it’s nothing, Tristan. My mom’s best friend - and my godmother - passed away suddenly. She apparently had a heart attack and died in her sleep. Mom’s really upset.”

“Well it sounds like something to me, babe. Are you alright?”

“Yes. I’m fine, Tristan. Mom is calling tomorrow to let me know the funeral arrangements, but you know, I think I’m going to explain to her that I can’t make it.”

“Why would you do that, Gina? Were you not close to this person?”

“Mrs. Camerucci? Yeah, sure. She was like an aunt to me. I knew her from the time I was born, I guess.”

“Then why don’t you want to make the trip? At the very least, it will probably be the last trip you will be able to make there before the baby arrives.”

“I just don’t think I should leave you alone to handle the club and all.” I saw a frown cross his face; I knew that he wasn’t buying my excuse, damn him.

“Gina, you work two shifts a week. I think we can get someone to fill in for you.”

“What if I don’t want to go, Tristan? Maybe I just don’t f*cking want to go!”

I started past him into the bathroom to start my shower. He was right here, pulling me back to him. He tilted my head up so that I was forced to look at him.

“Are you going to tell me what the problem is, Gina? I didn’t think that we had secrets from each other.”

I wasn’t going to let him pull that number on me. We sure as hell had secrets. I knew that for a fact. When I didn’t answer him immediately, he stuck the knife in a bit deeper.

“Well, apparently you have secrets from me, I guess.”

My temper flared instantaneously at his comment.

“Oh no you don’t, Tristan. Don’t you dare act as if you haven’t kept secrets from me, because I know better.”