Suddenly a Bride (18 page)

After he gave her his work email address, he thanked her again and hung up, glad he could do something to surprise Caitlyn.  He couldn’t wait to see her face when she saw what her mother had planned.  Happy, he returned to work.

Chapter Fourteen

C
hris pulled up to the order menu at a fast food restaurant.  “Are you sure you want that many milkshakes?” he asked into his cell phone.

“Yes.  I wanted to drink a milkshake at the diner, but the machine broke so Jack has to fix it,” Caitlyn replied.  “I already ordered the pizzas so we’re good there.”

“Okay.  I’m almost at the window, so I have to go.”

She thanked him and hung up.

As the car in front of him drove forward, he pulled up to the menu and waited for the woman on the other end to say he
could give his order whenever he was ready.  Clearing his throat, he sa
id, “I’d like ten milkshakes; two vanilla, four strawberry, f
our chocolate.”

“Will there be anything else?” she asked.

He glanced at the menu and saw the sundae.  “I should get five sundaes.  Let’s make two strawberry and three chocolate.  That should be all.” He figured that proportionate to Caitlyn’s weight and the baby’s growth, the amount he ordered and the four large pizzas should be enough to get her through the night.  It surprised him that her pregnancy was mirroring how pregnancies had been on his planet.  He didn’t know what he thought would be different, exactly, but he figured there might be something unique about Earth women who carried Pandoran men’s children.  But perhaps that was why the agency sent him here.  The representative said he’d be compatible with a woman on this planet, and she was turning out to be right.

When he drove up to the window, he counted the cash and handed it to the woman who instructed him to go to the next window. 
He shook his head. 
What a complex system to get food.  One thing he did miss was being able to log into the files in the kitchen and
tailor-
make his meals.  Here, the food had to be picked up at stores or at restaurants and then brought home.  Some of it even had to be prepared.  It made little sense to him.  In some ways, Earth wasn’t utilizing its technology in the most efficient way.  He hadn’t realized how far his planet had come in making life easier for everyone.

But look at where that ease had gotten them.  Women figured they no longer had to bother with carrying children and giving birth, especially since they had to take their chances on the gene matching.  They preferred to specify the children they wanted down to the exact detail of their personalities, strengths, and how they looked.

After
a while
, all the children being born seemed to be duplicates of each other since women wanted the same type of child—gifted leaders who would lead the way to further technological advancements.  There were few people who pursued the creative arts or knew
how to work with their hands
.

Th
e idea of fiction, whether it was in things like books or
movies, was probably the biggest surprise to him when he first got here.  The value people put on sports and music was a secon
d one.  Then there were people who built things and gre
w crops with their own hands
.  Earth was full of variety, and one thing he looked forward to was seeing what his child would be like.  Having no control over the genes, the child would be completely unique—something no machine could fully duplica
te.

If that variety meant he had to give up some things that made life easier on his world, then he was happy to do it.  Smiling as he thought of Caitlyn and their child, he drove up to
the second window
and collected the milkshakes and sundaes in the cardboard containers the person handed him.

“Having a birthday party for your kid?” the teenager asked.

“No.  This is for my wife.  She’s going to have a baby,” he replied, unable to hide his excitement.  A year ago, he didn’t think he’d say those words, and yet, here he was on his way home to a woman who was expecting his child.  If life could get any better
, he didn’t know how.

The teen nodded.  “Gotcha
.  When my mom was pregnant, she craved french fries, so I was bringing them home every night.”

Chris’ eyebrows rose.  “So it’s normal for a woman to eat a lot more than usual when she’s pregnant?”

“Let’s just say they have the weirdest cravings.  My mom
dipped the fries into chocolate sauce
.”

The teen shuddered, but Chris didn’t see what was so weird about that.  Chocolate was a great boost for energy, and right now, Caitlyn needed a lot of it.  When the teen told him to come again, he figured that was his c
ue to leave, so he rolled up the
window and drove out of the parking lot.

When he arrived hom
e, he parked into his spot.  Another
thing he was looking forward to
was
his new house. 
On his world, e
veryone lived alone in their assigned apartment.  He hadn’t taken the time to think about how lonely the men on his world had become
, but they had
.

He got out of the car and collected as much of the milkshakes and sundaes as he could and headed for his apartment.  As he reached the door, Caitlyn opened it.

“Sorry.  I tried to wait for you, but then I got so hungry, I couldn’t resist.” She motioned to the half-eaten pizza in her hand.

“I don’t mind.” He entered the apartment where four boxes of pizza were on the kitchen table.  One box was opened and a slice was missing.

“It’s been crazy,” she said as she sat down and grabbed a milkshake.  “It’s like I can’t get enough food.  I figured if I ordered a lot, then we could save some for later.”

“I don’t recall how much women on my world ate while pregnant, but I know they ate a lot because the pregnancy hormones made food taste better than it was.”

She chuckled.  “So that’s why Jack’s food tasted better than usual.  I wondered about that.  You know, I ate so much of his food, he was getting worried.”

“It’s going to be like this until you give birth.”

Pausing in drinking her shake, she placed her hand on his arm.  “Tell me the truth.  Am I going to gain a ton of
weight?”

Her worried look amused him.  “No.  This is all necessary for the child.”

“Yeah, but you said the baby only weighs seven pounds when it’s born.  It feels like I’m eating enough for a twenty pounder.”

He slipped his arm around her waist and kissed her.  “Most of the food will go to the child’s brain development.”

“Hmm…  So is this kid going to be a genius?”

“Well, I wouldn’t say the kid is going to be superior to his or her peers because he or she won’t have the benefit of learning on my world.” He caught the subtle sigh that escaped her lips
and gave her waist a slight squeeze.  “Let’s just say that our kid will be above average.”

“I guess that’s good.”

“Of course it is.”

“I hope our kid won’t be a big show-off.”

Laughing, he asked, “What’s a show-off?”

“Someone who thinks they’re a lot better than everyone else and brags about it.”

“Oh.  There’s no way to predict something like that.  Those things are determined more by environment than genetics, aren’t they?”

“I hope so.”

He thought she might say more
,
but then she turned her attention back to the pizza so he
went back to the car and got
the rest of the milkshakes and sundaes
.  When he returned, she had finished off another slice of pizza and was drinking her second milkshake.  He stood still
and watched her as she ate the
next slice of pizza with surprising gusto.  She
assumed they were going to have leftovers from this, but he wondered if they’d have enough food to last her for the rest of the night.

“So,” he began as he loosened his tie and sat across from her, “did the realtor call?”

“She did, but there’s another couple who’s interested in the house so they’re going back and forth right now in who to go with.”

He picked up a slice of pizza and nodded.  “I guess we’ll wait and see.  Even if this one isn’t for us, I’m sure we’ll find another house that’s just as good.”

“Probably.  But I really like this one.”

He did too, but as long as he was with her, he didn’t care where they lived.  Biting into his pizza, he had to admit this was actually pretty good.

“Why did you get sundaes?” she asked after she swallowed the last of her pizza and wiped her hands on the napkin.  “Did I ask for them?” She reached for the one closest to her and opened the lid so she could put her spoon into it.

“I thought you might like the treat.”

She smiled at him.  “That’s very thoughtful of you, Chris.”

His face warmed from the compliment.  “It was nothing.  I was right there at the drive thru window.”

“Well, it’s still nice of you.”

“
You know,
I heard that pregnant women on my world likened eating to having a sexual experience.”

Her eyes grew wide.  “You’re kidding?”

“That isn’t how you feel about it?”

Shrugging, she said, “I guess it is kind of like it.  I’m not having an orgasm or anything, but I’m enjoying it a lot.”

He laughed.  “I can tell.”

“I’m that obvious, huh?”

“I’m afraid so.”
Reaching forward, he squeezed her hand.  “But it’s worth it, right?”

She squeezed his hand in return.  “Right.  I’m excited about having a baby.”

Relieved, he turned his attention back to the pizza.  Just as he suspected, she polished off all but one large pizza and a milkshake.  He finished those food items and helped her clean up.

After she wiped down the table, she went over to him and hugged him.  “I have a surprise for you.  Actually, it’s a surprise Sandy bought for you.”

“The gift she got us.”

She giggled.  “No.  The gift she got you.  Sure, it’s something I wear, but it’s really for you.”

“I’m not sure I understand.”

Patting his butt, she whispered, “You will.  Why don’t you get into the car, and I’ll surprise you.”

“The car?”

“Yeah.”

“W
e’ll be in the car like we were the first time we were together?”

“No.  This is something different.” She winked at him in a suggestive way.

Intrigued, he decided he liked the suspense.  “Okay.” He walked toward the front door but realized she was heading for the bedroom.  “You are coming with me, aren’t you?”

She halted her steps and giggled.  “I’ll be there.  I just need to slip into something a little more comfortable.”

He scanned her uniform.  Naturally, she had to change, but he didn’t see what that had to do with her coy expression.  Shrugging, he left the house and went to the car.  He slipped into the passenger seat, sure that whatever she had in mind, she’d want to drive.  When he saw her come out of the apartment with a rolled up blanket tucked under her arm, he wondered
what in the world her surprise could have to do with a blanket.

She put the blanket in the backseat before she got into the driver’s seat.  “Technically, we can do this in the bedroom, but I always wanted to try some place a little more adventurous.”

“Adventurous?”

With a shrug, she started the engine.  “Yeah.  Sometimes it’s nice to do something different.  You know, add a little spice so life doesn’t get boring.”

At that, he laughed.  He could hardly imagine life on this planet ever getting boring, especially with her there.  “Where are we going?”

“You’ll see.”

“Come on.  Not even a hint?”

“When we get there, it’ll become self-evident.”

With a sly grin, he reached over and caressed her thigh.  “One tiny hint?”

She took his hand and squeezed it.  “Fine.  Just one.  I wanted to wait until aft
er dark so that we won’t risk getting
caught.”