Jeremy was asleep. He was usually the first one up, but I was nervous when I woke up. If I stayed in bed, I’d only toss and turn and wake him. I carefully placed my feet on the floor and walked to the bathroom. The tests were scattered everywhere. I picked each one up and checked them. Still pregnant. I grabbed my phone off the charger and took a picture of them lined up together. This I would put in the baby book.

I brushed my teeth and tied my hair in a bun. I crept downstairs to make a pot of coffee when I remembered. No caffeine. Shit.

I didn’t think I could go cold turkey. Frannie had coffee every once in a while when she was pregnant. I started to make the pot for Jeremy. While it was brewing I sat at the kitchen table and googled caffeine and pregnancy. I felt better when I read the consensus from obstetricians was that small amounts would be ok. I’d try half a cup and leave it at that.

I looked up when Jeremy shuffled into the kitchen.

“Good morning.” He grinned. I loved that sexy morning look on him. I think my heart melted more, knowing he was going to be a daddy. His hotness factor had tripled overnight.

“Good morning.”

He pulled me toward him. “How are you and the baby doing?”

“Tired.” I looked in his eyes. “But good. We’re good.”

He kissed my neck. “Should I tell the pilot to push back our take-off time? We don’t have to leave so soon if you want to hang out here a little longer.”

“It was a good weekend, but I’m ready to go home.”

He looked surprised. “You’re calling the warehouse home now?”

“It is home, isn’t it?”

He walked over to the coffee pot and poured a mug. I noticed he had left two of everything in the kitchen. The rest was packed in boxes. He had accomplished a lot in two days.

“Don’t freak out, but I’m going to have a small cup of coffee. I read that it’s ok.”

Jeremy shrugged. “I’m not an expert in the pregnancy department.”

As soon as I poured the cup I cringed.

“What’s wrong?” he asked.

My stomach rolled. I held my hand over my mouth. “I think it’s making me gag.”

“Hold on.” He rushed over to my side and threw the cup into the sink. “How about some tea instead?”

I nodded, staggering to the kitchen table. I couldn’t believe how quickly I hated coffee. I loved coffee. I felt tears sting my eyes. Jeremy was heating water and slamming cabinets looking for tea. He looked at me.

“What’s wrong?”

“I love coffee.” I sniffed. “I really love coffee.”

He chuckled. “It’s ok, babe. I’ve got some caffeine headed your way.” He placed the steaming mug in front of me.

I wiped the tears from the corners of my eyes and held the mug. The tea didn’t smell putrid like the coffee did. The lemon actually smelled amazing. I stopped crying after a few sips.

“I guess the baby solved the coffee problem.” I wrinkled my nose.

“I guess so.” He leaned back in his chair. “We have two hours before we’re supposed to leave. I told your mom last night we’d stop by on the way to the airport.”

My jaw dropped. “We can’t do that.”

“Why not?”

“They are going to know.”

He shook his head. “No way. Evie, you aren’t showing yet. Unless you’re telling me I married into a family of fortune tellers, she isn’t going to know.”

“It doesn’t matter. She’ll figure it out. I need to call her and tell her I came down with a cold or something.” I paused. “Shit. If I do that she’ll try to bring Italian wedding soup over. I’m not ready to tell anyone. I want to see a doctor first. I want to make sure everything is ok.”

“It is ok. And you and the baby are fine. It’s not the end of the world if your mother figures it out.”

It wasn’t that I didn’t want to share the joy with her. I did. I heard what she said to Sylvia Hartwell last night. My mom loved her grandchildren with all her heart. She would be ecstatic to know I was finally going to have a baby. But she had been through so much. She had survived a grueling cancer battle. I wasn’t going to put any stress on her that wasn’t necessary. Until I knew for sure this pregnancy was going to stick, I couldn’t tell her. I’d spare her any pain I could, especially for the sake of her health.

“Frannie figured it out before I did,” I explained. “She’s the reason I took the test Friday. I’m telling you. Those two will know. And if Frannie knows she’ll tell the cousins, then Aunt Sophia, and next thing you know we’re in the Newton Hills weekly Gazette.”

“Ok. Ok. I get it. The Rossi grapevine is basically one big social media announcement without our endorsement.”

“Exactly.”

“Drive-by?” he suggested.

I laughed. “That won’t work.”

“Video call?”

“Good idea, but no.”

He huffed. “I don’t know what to tell you, babe. I don’t do goodbyes at the Hartwell House. I just leave.”

I looked at Jeremy. I didn’t want that to be his normal anymore. No more running. This team did things together. I wanted to be able to come back to Newton Hills as a family. Our baby was going to know its grandparents, cousins, aunts, and uncles. We weren’t going to slink out of town like outlaws.

“All right. Then I’ll have to just take the risk.” I didn’t like it. “We get in. Hug. Get out.”

Jeremy laughed. “Are you planning a bank heist or telling your parents goodbye?”

I narrowed my eyes. “This is serious. No dilly-dallying.”

“Oh now I can’t dilly-dally? Fuck.”

I giggled. “I’m only trying to protect my mom. And us. I realize there are a lot of legal parts in the air right now. How are you going to tell your mother?”

The grin fell from his lips. “She can find out when she gets the counter-suit.”

“Jer, come on. It’s her grandchild. People change with babies. Maybe this baby could bring you two together.”

He shook his head. “No.” He emptied the rest of his coffee in the sink and rinsed it out. “I said what I needed to say to her last night. She doesn’t deserve any more than that.”

He climbed the stairs to the bedroom.

His phone rang on the table. I groaned when I saw Sasha’s face on the screen. Sometimes days went by when I forgot her existence. It seemed like as soon as I got used to her, I was reminded how breathtakingly beautiful and smart she was. Every time she called or texted I had to accept she was still Jeremy’s business partner. They were in touch regularly. They worked side by side. But something wasn’t right between them.

Why did she have to call on a Sunday morning? What could possibly be happening in the baseball world that required Jeremy? Couldn’t she handle a weekend without him?

I groaned and charged up the stairs with his phone.

“It’s Sasha.”

He was brushing his teeth. He looked confused, spit in the sink, and answered the phone.

“Yeah. What’s going on?”

I studied his face while he listened to Sasha. The deep crease formed between his eyebrows. Something was wrong.

“No. No.” He shook his head. “I can be there…” He looked at his watch. “…four hours, Sasha. Just tell him to not make any decisions until I can meet with him. Book us a table at Cipriani.”

He hung up. He exhaled an angry puff of air. “We need to go now.”

“What’s wrong? What happened?” I followed him into the bedroom. He started throwing clothes into his suitcase.

“We can call your parents on the way to the airport. Tell them it’s my fault we have to leave without stopping by the house.”

“Are you going to tell me why?” I folded my arms in front of my chest. I hadn’t realized until now just how tender my breasts were.

“The Sportsman’s Ball was last night.”

“Right. You said Sasha could handle it.”

He tossed his tux shoes from last night on top of his dirty clothes. “I thought she could.”

“But something happened?”

“Johnny Stepp was there.”

I winced. I was probably supposed to know who that was.

“He’s my fucking shadow. Snatching up my investors when I’m not looking. He’ll pay to get them out of contracts. He wants my team. And he’s willing to do anything to get it.”

“Johnny Stepp stole one of your investors last night?”

Jeremy zipped the side of his suitcase and set it down so the wheels rested on the hardwood.

“He thinks he did. But I’m going to sit down with Victor and I’ll bring him back on board. Can you get dressed so we can go? I’ll call the pilot while you get ready.”

“Sasha can’t do this for you?” I squeaked. I wasn’t ready to rush out of Newton Hills. I still hadn’t labeled the last of the boxes. I hadn’t gone through my clothes. I had a list of things I wanted to finish before we left.

“I’ve neglected Scout too long. I’ve spent too much time away from the company. This is my fault. I should have been there. I should have been at the ball last night and this wouldn’t have happened.”

My stomach flipped with nausea.

“I’ve lost three investors this month. Three. That’s more than I’ve lost in the past five years.” He lifted the bag and headed for the stairs in the hall. “Five minutes, ok?”

I nodded. There was nothing I could say. I didn’t know how to bring him back to this moment. Back to the softness of our happy news. Back to the love and warmth we had made in my bed. Back to planning my move. Planning our life. Talking about our baby.

I sat on the bed. I didn’t want to believe for one second that he could flip the switch so easily. That now I was pregnant, his mission was accomplished and he could focus on something else. That wasn’t the Jeremy I had fallen in love with.

That wasn’t the man who was the father of my baby. I wiped a stray tear from my eye.