Amelia

 

Amelia rubbed her temples and sighed. There was a headache building just behind her eyes. Probably from the sheer weight of the stress she was putting herself under. It was a little early, but she was tired of wandering aimlessly around Ethan’s house while he was working, so she’d decided to get one of the baby related tasks that was nagging at her out of the way.

 

So, with a fully charged phone and a sheet of paper, she’d sat down at the kitchen table and prepared to make a list of all the things she would need to buy before the baby came, complete with prices and name brands. She’d been working steadily for nearly an hour and the list was much longer than she’d ever thought it would be. It was also astronomically more expensive than she’d planned.

 

She’d started simple enough, or at least she’d thought she had. The baby would need a crib. Once she looked up the crib, she had to find a mattress, and after that she spent a long time looking at the different crib sets. The pink and white frilly sets caught her eye, but the black and white minimalistic ones were apparently supposed to help develop the baby’s vision. She’d had no idea about that. And hadn’t she heard about babies suffocating under those cute little quilted crib bumpers? She was pretty sure she had.

 

And they’d fallen out of certain high chairs, strollers, and swings, too, at least according to reviews and recalls. It didn’t seem like any equipment was safe. When she looked up bottle sets, she found arguments about the superiority of breastfeeding. When she looked up nursing bras, she found complaints about loss of sex drive and sex appeal.

 

The research that was supposed to ease her mind and calm some of her fears was getting more than a little depressing. Not the least of which because she had no idea how she would pay for all of it. Ethan’s salary hadn’t been discussed and she didn’t want to ask. Not when the income difference between him and her father was so obvious.

 

Amelia’s phone rang, breaking the quiet of the room so effectively that her hand jerked, making a huge dark mark on her paper. She glanced at it warily; she really didn’t need a call from her father to underscore her fears.

 

She nearly knocked her phone off the table in her eagerness when Aubrey’s number popped up for FaceTime.

 

“Aubrey!” Amelia’s undisguised relief made her friend catch her breath.

 

“Amelia, what’s wrong? I’ve been trying to get in touch with you for days. I was really starting to worry.”

 

“I’m sorry,” Amelia said. She and Aubrey typically spoke on the phone every five days or so and usually messaged back and forth daily. They hadn’t spoken since she’d left with Ethan.  “I don’t have my laptop right now and this is the first time I’ve turned my phone on in a few days. I guess the missed calls from Dad buried yours.”

 

“Why are you missing calls from your dad?” Aubrey asked, picking up on the last sentence.

 

“I...” Amelia couldn’t think of a good excuse and suddenly she was tired of trying. Aubrey would find out sooner or later anyway. “I’m pregnant.”

 

Aubrey made a sound halfway between an exclamation and a gasp.  Amelia waited patiently while her friend sputtered out half questions.

 

“Did you say...you said...you’re...with...Oh my God!” Aubrey took a breath. “Okay, important questions first, Aubrey,” she muttered, clearly talking to herself. “What does Anthony have to say about it?”

 

Amelia felt a small flash of amusement. “It’s not his.”

 

“What?” she blurted out. “Did you just say you’re pregnant and it’snotAnthony’s baby?”

 

“That is exactly what I said,” Ameliaconfirmed. “I’m pregnant, and it’snot Anthony’s baby. There’s no chance it’s even his baby, to tell the truth.”

 

Aubrey blinked, staring at Amelia through the phone. “I... I don’t even know what to say, Amelia.”

 

Amelia was suddenly nervous. “What do you mean?” Was Aubrey going to say the same things that her father had said? She didn’t think that she could handle that kind of rejection from her friend. That was the biggest reason that she hadn’t wanted to tell her. Amelia knew how the story sounded. Pregnant by the guy she’d had a one-night stand with and engaged to someone else. Her face burned.

 

“What do you expect me to say?” Aubrey demanded. “First you tell me you’ve been seeing some guy and you think it’s getting serious.” She held up her hand, counting on her fingers. “Then you completely fall off of the face of the earth. Now you’re telling me you’re pregnant. And you’re also telling me he’s not the father!” She leaned back in her chair, looking completely shocked. “I’m completely at a loss here. Why didn’t you talk to me before?”

 

“I didn’t want to drag you into it,” Amelia said, even more worried when she saw the hurt look on her friend’s face. Of everything she’d thought that Aubrey would say or feel, she hadn’t expected this.

 

Aubrey pushed her hands through her short, pink hair and sighed. “Amelia, seriously? It’s not like we’re casual acquaintances or brunch buddies. We’refriends. Hell, it’s more than that! We’rebestfriends. I’mhere to be dragged into stuff like this.”

 

“No you’re not!” Amelia protested. “You’ve got enough going on. The move, the new job--”

 

“None of that is as important as you,” Aubrey said firmly. “I’m coming up. Where are you staying?”

 

“What? No, you really don’t need to do that. I’m doing fine.”

 

Aubrey didn’t even bother to come up with a good argument. She simply raised an eyebrow and said, “Come on. Are you in a hotel?”

 

“No, I’m staying with Ethan.”

 

“Baby daddy?” Aubrey asked.

 

“Well...yes.”

 

“Tell me Ethan’s address, then. I’m coming up.”

 

“You don’t have to--”

 

“But I’m going to,” Aubrey said. “I’ve worked a lot of overtime and put out a lot of fires here lately. They can let me go. Now text me that address before I have to track you down, because I swear that I will. I’ll be there tomorrow.”

 

Amelia sent her the address without any further argument. It was pointless, for one thing. For another, she really didn’t want to argue any more. She was so happy at the thought of Aubrey’s visit that she felt tears gather in her eyes.

 

“So,” Aubrey said once she’d gotten the address. “Tell me about the guy.”

 

“What guy?”

 

“The President of the United States,” she answered with blistering sarcasm. “Who do you think? The guy you’re going to have a baby with. The one who seduced you away from a life of political boredom. Unless he’s a politician, too, in which case, I want you to forget I called it boring.” She smiled, flashing the dimple in her right cheek that made her look so impish.

 

“He’s not a politician,” Amelia said. “He’s a mechanic. But you weren’t far off when you said the president thing.”

 

“Oh yeah?”

 

“He’s the president of a motorcycle club called The Angel’s Keepers.”

 

Aubrey’s eyebrows soared. “Well, well. There’s nothing like a complete 180 from your previous type.” She paused thoughtfully and then went on. “Or did you really even have a type before? It’s not like you ever did a whole lot of dating. Not even in college.”

 

Amelia shrugged. “I don’t know. I guess I really didn’t.”

 

“Why not?” Aubrey asked. “I mean, I never really thought about it...but clearly you’re into some guys, so what was the deal?”

 

“It was probably because I always figured I’d end up with a politician, so that’s what I usually went for. And actually, I didn’t even go for them, I just settled for them. It turns out I prefer guys with calluses, scruff, and leather jackets.”

 

“What woman with good vision doesn’t?” Aubrey asked with a grin. “So, tell me more about him. All I know is his name and that he got you pregnant.”

 

“He’s thirty years old and he--”

 

“Cut to the chase,” Aubrey cut in. “We both know what I’m asking is whether or not he’s good in bed.”

 

“Aubrey!”

 

Aubreygrinned unrepentantly. “I mean, I’m going to assume he is, but come on. Wenever do this.”

 

“This, what?”

 

“The girly talk about sex.”

 

“Before Ethan, there wasn’t much for me to say,” Amelia protested.

 

“And now you’re twenty-three and you finally have some experience so spill!” Aubrey ordered. “You only have to say as much as you want, but you’ve got to give me something.”

 

“He’s amazing,” Amelia said.

 

“Okay, I lied. You have to give me a little more than that.”

 

Amelia felt her face flush hot. “Well...um...he’s got stamina and imagination and he’s bigger than average.”

 

Aubrey laughed. “There we go!”

 

“He’s good out of bed, too,” she went on, getting into the spirit of the thing. “He brings fries home every night because I’m craving them like crazy lately. He also got rid of all the mustard in the house because for some reason the sight of it makes me want to hurl. And he’s so tall, Aubrey. So damn tall.”

 

“Very nice, indeed,” Aubrey allowed. “You’ll give me more of the story when I’m there, right? Because I love the fact that he’s tall and hot and sweet, I really do, but I still have no idea how this happened and I need more information because I want to help.”

 

“I will,” Amelia promised. She chewed her thumbnail, feeling guilty for ever doubting her friend. “Aubrey...I really am sorry. I should have told you.”

 

“Hey,” she answered seriously. “You don’t have to tell me anything, Amelia. Despite the conversation we just had,” she said, flashing that dimple before growing serious again. “I just want you to know I’m here. I feel like you could have used me over the past few months. You’ll probably need me even more once you really get into all of the baby stuff. Have you gotten an ultrasound? Found a gyno? How’s your insurance?”

 

Amelia stared at Aubreyblankly and her friend laughed. “See?This is why I’m here. Helping women plan this stuff is literally my job.”

 

Amelia wiped away sudden grateful tears. “Thanks, Aubrey. It really means a lot to me.”

 

Aubrey grinned. “I’m not going to comment on the hormone-induced tears either, because that’s how good of a friend I am.”

 

They were both laughing as they ended the call. Amelia took a long moment to simply be grateful to her friend before she tackled the baby supply list once more. She felt like she could face it now.

 

# # #

 

When her phone rang again later in the day, Amelia paused, looking at the name on the screen. Her first instinct was to ignore it and finish finalizing the list she’d completed earlier. Then she reached out, picked up the phone, and answered that call, too. After the conversation with Aubrey and knowing Ethan was on his way home, she was probably never going to feel much stronger than she did now. And it was time to have this conversation.

 

“Hello, Anthony,” she said.

 

“Amelia,” he answered, clearly caught by surprise. “I didn’t actually expect you to answer.”

 

“Then why call?” she asked bluntly.

 

He paused and she imagined him gathering his thoughts. He wasn’t used to people challenging him. Too bad.

 

“Mainly because your father keeps calling me and asking me to do it. He said you’re back together with that biker guy. The one who got you pregnant.”

 

“I wouldn’t say we’re back together.” For that matter, she wasn’t sure she and Ethan had ever been together. They’d been sharing a bed for a week now, but she’d been too worried to try to define the relationship with him. But Anthony didn’t need to know any of that. “It’s a little more complicated than that at this point.”

 

“Then why aren’t we going out anymore? You’ve shown up in the press. At the moment, it’s just little gossip column things about us not being together, but we both know it will get out of hand when they find out you’re pregnant. They’ll be easy enough to get rid of if we’re seen together soon. We’ll just say it’s my baby.”

 

She pulled the phone away from her ear so he couldn’t hear her snort. Easy as pie, just cut her child’s father out of her life. And in his world, it was that simple. Amazing that it had been her world, too. “And that’s the whole point to you, isn’t it? To be seen together? Is that really the only reason you called?”

 

“There’s no sense in getting emotional,” he said, already sounding distracted and bored with the conversation. She wondered who he wanted to be texting at the moment. “You always knew what this was, Amelia. Don’t act like it’s a surprise now.”

 

“I was aware our parents set us up, but I wasn’t sure how you felt about it,” she said honestly. “If it was just for show, I would have appreciated us all being on the same page.”

 

“I can understand that,” Anthony said negligently. “Your father didn’t want you to know because he was afraid you’d run off if you understood that our relationship wasn’t real. And I guess he was right.”

 

“Why don’t you lay it all out for me?” she asked, trying to slow her breathing down. Anger was flooding through her, making her breathing ragged. She didn’t want him to know he was upsetting her.

 

“Okay. It doesn’t bother me to be seen out with you. You’re not my type, but I think this could be beneficial for us both. I won’t ever question you about who you fuck or where you go as long as you keep it out of the public eye. My dad owed yours a favor. He wants the debt paid; I want him off my back about my sex life. Is that clear enough for you to understand?”

 

Amelia blinked. “Oh.” It had been abundantly clear that she wasn’t Anthony’s type, but she hadn’t known that Governor Barlow owed her father a favor. “So you didn’t ever plan for us to be...together?”

 

“God, no,” he said quickly. “I never planned to have a... for lack of a better term... real relationship with you. And, as I said before, I’m not going to expect you to stay faithful to me either. You can have other relationships if you want. Not that Ethan guy, because that’s probably already too public...but other relationships. That would be fine with me.”

 

Amelia laughed bitterly. “You really think I would do that, Anthony?”

 

“I don’t see why not. You said you weren’t exactly back together.”

 

“That doesn’t mean I wouldn’t allow him to be in his child’s life!”

 

“Oh, so you decided to keep it.” He didn’t sound the least bit interested in that either. “I really don’t understand why you would. I told you the tabloids haven’t gotten hold of that information yet.”

 

She heard the door open and watched as Ethan walked in. He stayed quiet when he saw that she was on the phone, but she could see the curiosity in his eyes. Oddly, seeing him calmed her down.

 

“Yes, I have,” she answered Anthony. “And you don’t need to worry. I’ll be sending your ring back as soon as I can.”

 

“I guess it’s your mistake to make, Amelia.”

 

“No,” she corrected firmly. “It’s my decision. And it’s already been made.”

 

“You know,” Anthony said, sounding really annoyed for the first time, “you don’t have to sound so happy about this.”

 

“I’m just relieved to know you didn’t want to go to bed with me any more than I wanted to go to bed with you,” she said, happy to let him have a taste of his own medicine. “Good luck finding someone who wants a political partnership with you.” She hung up before he could reply.

 

Ethan stood leaning against the doorframe. “I guess that was Anthony. Unless you had some other guys on the line that I didn’t know about.”

 

Amelia stood and they walked into the kitchen together. “Yeah, that was Anthony. I’m going to be sending his ring back as soon as I figure out how.”

 

“Okay,” Ethan said carefully. “How do you...you know...feel about that?”

 

“I was supposed to marry him,” Amelia said helplessly. Now that the conversation was over, she realized exactly what she’d done. One more bridge back to her old life, and her father’s approval, burned. “But it’s not like we loved each other. And I’m having a baby with a different man.” She spread her hands. “I’m not sure how to feel, to be honest.”

 

“Well....” Ethan said slowly. “Since we’re the ones having the baby, you could always marry me.”

 

She stopped and stared at him in wide-eyed shock. A part of her was screaming with excitement, jumping up and down, relieved and exalted. Another part was frozen, waiting for him to say that more than duty had prompted his proposal.

 

But he didn’t. He didn’t say anything else; he just watched her. The silence filled the small kitchen until she felt it pressing in on her ears.

 

“I... I don’t...” she finally stammered out. “I don’t have any idea what to say to that right now. We...we hardly even really know each other.” And that had just occurred to her somehow. Her mind was suddenly spinning with all the things that she didn’t know about him. How could she marry him? On the other hand, how could she not?

 

Ethan held up a hand. “It’s fine. You’ve got time; there’s no pressure. Just think about it. Meanwhile, do you want to go down to HQ with me tomorrow? I’d like to show you around.”

 

“HQ?” Amelia was still too thrown from the fact that he’d proposed as casually as he asked her if she wanted pizza to think clearly.

 

“Headquarters,” he said with half smile.

 

“Oh!” She rubbed her temples, trying to get herself together. “I’d love to...oh, wait,” she interrupted herself. “I actually can’t. My friend is coming up.” Then she realized she hadn’t actually asked Ethan how he felt about meeting Aubrey yet. She didn’t want to make plans for him. Not when she wasn’t sure what they were. “Um, she wants to meet you, by the way.”

 

“When’s she coming up?”

 

“She’s driving up from Texas in the morning,” Amelia answered. “It’s about eight hours away, so she probably won’t be in until around five. She’s not exactly an early riser.”

 

Ethan nodded. “Sounds fine to me. And we’ll have time to go to HQ before if you’re into it.”

 

“Don’t you have to go to work tomorrow?” She hardly saw Ethan with the amount of overtime he’d been putting in. And from the list of baby necessities, she wasn’t about to complain.

 

“Not tomorrow,” he said. “I wrangled the day off.”

 

She batted her eyelashes at him. “Just to show little old me around?” she drawled in her best attempt at his slight accent.

 

“The accent needs work,” Ethan informed her. “But yeah, basically. I thought you might want to see what I do when I’m not at work.”

 

She put her arms around him. “I’d like that a lot.”