Surprise Delivery(40)

The waitress arrives and clears the table. She comes back a moment later and hands Brad a dessert menu. Frankly, I’m ready to be done and get home. A nice, hot bath sounds amazing to me right about now.

“I think I want the tiramisu,” Brad says, then turns to me.

“Oh, I’m stuffed, thanks,” I say.

“Seriously, you have to try it,” he insists. “It’s world famous.”

“No, really. I’m full,” I tell him. “But, thank you.”

The waitress gives me a smile and starts to turn away, but Brad stops her, and she turns back to him.

“Bring her a piece of the tiramisu too, please. She doesn’t know what she’s missing,” he says. “And two cappuccinos as well.”

The waitress glances at me and I just roll my eyes. She gives me a sympathetic smile and leaves the table to put in the order.

“I told you I’m full,” I say sternly.

“I know, but you can always take it home,” he says. “I’d just hate for you to miss out on –”

“Brad, I’ve lived in this neighborhood for a while now,” I interrupt. “I’ve had the tiramisu before.”

“Oh, I didn’t know that,” he says.

“Maybe if you didn’t just assume you know what I want –”

He holds his hands up to me in surrender, an abashed look on his face. “You’re right. I’m sorry,” he says. “I wasn’t thinking, and that was rude.”

“Not to mention presumptuous.”

“That too,” he says and smiles.

I know in the grand scheme of things it’s harmless. I just don’t like anybody presuming they know what I want or need better than I do. If I say I don’t want something, I don’t want it. I’m a big girl and can make my own decisions.

“Forgive me?” he asks.

He’s looking at me with puppy dog eyes and a small smile playing on his lips. He’s doing his best to look cute and charming to stave off my irritation. And because I’m not the stone-cold bitch I need to learn to be sometimes, I just shake my head and grin at him.

“Forgiven,” I say.

“Good. We can be friends again.”

I laugh. “Friends.”

“Absolutely. Friends,” he says and holds his hand up in the Boy Scout salute. “Scout’s honor.”

“You were never a Scout.”

“Actually, I was,” he replies. “Almost went the Eagle Scout path but decided not to.”

“Why is that?”

“People already made fun of me for being a dork as it was,” he says and laughs. “I didn’t want to give them even more ammunition.”

I laugh, though it’s probably not something I should be laughing at. Being picked on and bullied sucks. But, it’s in the past and Brad’s come out of it alright, all things considered. The waitress arrives and drops off our desserts – setting a box down beside my plate and giving me a smile. I thank her, and she leaves the table without another word. Brad digs in, but I scoop mine into the box and close it up. It’ll probably be decent for breakfast.

With the evening winding down, I know I need to tell him. I take in a deep breath and silently let it out as I steel myself. Brad looks up at me and cocks his head.

“You okay?” he asks.

I nod. “I’m fine,” I say. “There’s just something I need to tell you.”

He puts his fork down and leans forward a bit. “Uh oh. This sounds serious.”

I fidget with my napkin again, struggling to get the words out. I need to suck it up. This is reality for me now and there’s no running from or getting around it. I look up at Brad, pursing my lips.

“I’m pregnant, Brad,” I rush out.

He sits back in his seat, a stunned look on his face. He scratches at his beard and seems to be turning the information over in his mind – which is good. Maybe, this will force him to abandon any romantic notions in his head and, if he’s being sincere, focus on being a friend to me.

“Wow,” he finally says. “Didn’t see that coming.”

My bark of laughter is sharp. “Yeah, that makes two of us.”

He leans forward again and starts picking at his tiramisu, popping a small morsel into his mouth and chews thoughtfully. We both fall silent for a moment, each of us wrapped up in our own thoughts.

“Is the father – is he in the picture?” he asks.

I shake my head. “No,” I admit and fight off a wave of emotion. “At this point, I can’t really count on him for anything.”

“That’s horrible – to leave you alone to deal with this all on your own,” he frowns.

It’s not really Duncan’s fault. It’s not his fault at all. The guy is overseas and doesn’t know. But I don’t want to give Brad that information. It’s not his place to know it. I don’t know why, but I feel like I need to guard this information and keep it to myself.

“It’s a complicated situation,” I sigh.

“Doesn’t seem all that complicated to me,” he says. “This – man – got you pregnant and then bails on you? That’s not much of a man in my book. A man provides for his family – intended and expected family or not. A man doesn’t run away from his responsibilities.”