Family and other surprises by Kakie
Chapter 2
Ally opened her eyes and looked at the clock, 2:50am. She removed Larry's arm around her and crawled out of the bed. She walked quietly down the hall and opened the door leading to the attic. After rummaging around for a few minutes, she found was she was looking for. She opened the box marked "Harvard" and began to go through it. She pulled out a pair of yellow baby booties. She held them to her face and the tears began to flow.
Larry reached over and felt air. He immediately opened his eyes and looked over. Ally was gone. The bathroom was dark. He crawled out of bed and went looking for his wife. He was about to head downstairs when he noticed a thin stream of light under the door to the attic. He quietly opened the door and began to walk up the stairs. He got far enough to see her, although her back was to him, he could see she was looking at something. Not wanting to intrude on her private time, he made his way back to the bedroom and promptly fell asleep.
"Maddie, come on, you're going to be late." Larry called again as he fixed breakfast. Ally was also running late. It was Ally's turn to cook breakfast but her time in the attic caused her to oversleep.
"Coming, coming." Maddie put her backpack by the door and joined Larry at the table. "Where's Mom?"
"She's running a bit behind."
At that moment Ally came rushing. She started to pour herself a cup of coffee but changed her mind. "I have to go. I have an early meeting."
"But you need to eat," pointed out Larry.
Ally started to object but decided against it. "You're right."
Larry nodded. "Good. So, what does your day look like?"
"I have a meeting first thing this morning, after that I'm not sure."
He turned towards Maddie. "How about your day?"
Maddie frowned. "A history test. How boring."
"History is never boring."
A beep-beep came from outside. "That's my bus. See ya."
"I am so looking forward for when she's a teenager." He turned to Ally. "I woke up last night and you were gone."
"Yeah, I couldn't sleep so I went downstairs and watched some TV."
Larry was rattled. For the first time he could remember, Ally had lied to him. "Downstairs? I don't remember seeing you."
Ally checked her watch. "Got to run." She kissed him on the head. "Love you." The door shut behind her.
"Yeah, love you too."
Larry returned from court and was met by his secretary Marissa.
"My wife called?"
"No, I'm afraid not."
All day Larry had been unable to shake that one tiny bit about watching TV. He knew it was nothing, but still. He picked up the phone and called Ally's office.
"Ally McBeal's office."
"Elaine, is Ally back from her meeting?"
"Hello to you too, Larry. Ally didn't have a meeting this morning. I haven't seen her today. That's the other line. I'll let Ally know you called when I see her."
Larry hung up the same time Bart entered his office.
"Want to go grab some lunch? Rumor has it that the deli hired a new blonde college girl."
Larry chuckled. "Aren't you a little old to be going after college age girls? Not to mention three times divorced."
"Hey man, I'm not looking to marry one, just have a little fun."
"That kind of fun I can do without."
"There was a time, my old friend when."
Larry interrupted him. "That was law school, Bart. I stopped looking at other women the day this brunet walked into my office by mistake and changed my life. Besides, I have a preteen at home and the idea of some guy checking her out makes my skin crawl."
"Congrads, Larry, you sound like a dad. Now, how about lunch?"
Over sandwiches, Bart kept a steady stream of chatter but Larry wasn't listening.
"Yo Lar, where are you?"
"Sorry, I just have something on my mind."
"Like what?" Bart signaled the waitress.
"Ally lied to me today."
Bart smiled at the waitress. "So what? My ex-wives lied all the time. It's what they do."
"No, it's different with us. We don't lie to each other."
"You're still a newlywed. It's okay to think that way, all idealistic."
Larry stirred his tea. "Something is going on with her. It's like she's hiding something."
"Maybe she's seeing another man."
Larry nearly knocked his tea glass over. "What?"
Bart shrugged his shoulders. "It's a possibility."
Larry shook his head. "No it's not. It's..It's ridiculous. Ally is not having an affair. She is as devoted to me as I am to her."
"That's what I said too until I came home one day and found my first wife in bed with our son's soccer coach. It happens."
"Not to us, it doesn't. Ally is not having an affair. There are no problems in our marriage. That's final. Now I'm going to walk back to the office."
Larry tried to get what Bart said out of his head but it wasn't working. Another man? Never. He picked up the phone and called Mrs. Lewis, an elderly lady who lived next door and took care of Maddie when necessary.
"Mrs. Lewis, this is Larry Paul."
"Larry, my dear, how are you?"
"I'm fine. Is my wife's car in the driveway?"
"Let me look."
Seconds rolled by.
"Yes it is."
"Are there any other cars?"
"A green truck in front of the house."
"Thank you Mrs. Lewis."
Larry felt sick. He left a note for Marissa and headed home to confront his wife.
He pulled into the driveway and ran into the house. He ran up the stairs and into the bedroom. He looked around. Empty. The bathroom door opened and he jerked around. Startled to see that she wasn't alone,
Ally shrieked. She put her hand to her chest. "Larry, you nearly gave me a heart attack. What are you doing here?"
"What are you doing here?"
She sat on the bed while her heart slowed down. "I had an appointment this morning. Afterwards I wasn't feeling so good so I came home."
Larry glared at her. "Are you having an affair?"
"Of course I am. With a new husband, a daughter, a stepson and a partnership at work, it was all I could do to squeeze one in."
"I'm serious, Ally."
She looked at his face. "I can see that. Why would you think I was having an affair?"
"You've been lying to me. You lied to me about watching TV last night. I knew you were in the attic. And today you told me you had a meeting which Elaine knew nothing about. You're a smart girl so I'll ask again, are you having an affair?"
Now Ally was angry. "You stupid jackass. I'm not having an affair. I'm pregnant. But at this very moment, an affair sounds pretty good." She stormed past him and down the stairs.
Larry stood in the bedroom shocked and in disbelief. It took him a minute to collect his thoughts and he ran after her.
He found her in the backyard with her feet in the hot tub he bought her as a wedding present.
"You're pregnant?"
Ally glared at him. "Yes, and before you can ask, it's your baby."
Her sarcasm hit home. "Yes, I suppose I deserved that."
"You did." Larry stepped closer. "Look, I'm."
"Save it. You have said quite enough today." She pulled her feet out and slipped back on her shoes. "I can't be around you right now. I'm going for a walk to clear my head. Maddie's class was cancelled today so she should be home soon."
He watched her go inside the house. He punched into the water. "Dammit!"
Maddie knew something was wrong. Larry was unusually quiet and her mom had come in from a walk and pretty much ignored him. Larry looked so sad.
"Are you an Mom fighting?"
Larry looked up from where he was stirring soup. "No, we just had a misunderstanding. Everything will be fine."
Maddie wasn't so sure. They had had misunderstandings before but it usually ended with them laughing, not where her mom went upstairs to her bedroom. What ever this was, it was serious. Maddie decided to mention something she had thought about for a while.
"Larry?"
"Yeah?" he responded from the fridge.
She took a deep breath. "There's a dance at school, its no big deal, just a father and daughter dance and I was wondering, and it's okay if you don't want to, but I was wondering if you would like to go."
Larry closed the door and turned to Maddie. "A father and daughter dance, you say? I have never been to one of those. Probably because I was never a daughter and Sam would have looked silly in a dress. Do I get to pick out the daughter?"
Maddie giggled. "No, I'm the daughter you have to take."
"Then I would be honored to escort Miss Madison McBeal to her father and daughter dance."
Maddie beamed.
Ally entered the kitchen and saw Maddie's face. "Why are you so happy?"
"Because," Larry said as he came up behind Maddie, "she has the best looking date for the father and daughter dance." He kissed her on the top of her head.
Ally's heart warmed. "You two will be the best looking couple at the dance." She walked over to where Larry was and pecked his cheek. "Thank you."
He decided to make his move. He turned off the stove and removed the soup. "Maddie, order a pizza." He turned to Ally. "We need to talk." He grabbed Ally's hand and walked with her out the door.
As soon as they left the room, Maddie did a happy dance. Larry was taking her to the dance, her parents were about to kiss and make up and pizza was for dinner. Life was pretty good.
Larry didn't let her hand go until they reached the bedroom. He closed the door. "I know you are angry with me and you have a right to be. The truth is you scared me when you lied to me. We never lie to each other. It sent me on some tailspin and I got some bad advice, some really bad advice."
"You accused me of adultery. Had I ever given you any reason to think I would look at another man much less get involved?"
Larry shook his head. "No, never. I was so stupid. I love you so much. How can I make this up to you?"
"I know you love me and I know better than most about impulses and jumping to the wrong conclusion. I don't think there is anything you can do to make this up. You hurt my feelings." She stood toe to toe. "I love you but I'm not able to forgive you, not yet." She kissed him. "Come on, let's go see about that pizza."
The coolness between them was more than he could handle. That night in bed he desperately wanted to be close to her but she wouldn't let him. He tried to hold her hand but she pulled it back.
The next morning was no different. She kissed him goodbye but the hurt was still there in her eyes. He had to find a way to fix things. Once he arrived at work he asked Marissa to come in.
"Jeez, Larry, you look terrible. Rough night?"
"Yeah, really rough. That's what I wanted to talk to you about. I need some advice from a woman." Marissa took a seat. "Okay, talk to me."
"I said some things to my wife that really hurt her and I need to make things right."
"What did you say?"
"Is that important?"
"Well, I need to know how deep the hurt is so I can help you fix it."
Larry looked at the floor. "I accused her of cheating on me."
Marissa whistled. "Wow, that's a biggie. Was she?"
"No! She had been lying to me and in a moment of confusion I let Bart convince me she was having an affair."
"Larry, why would you listen to anything Bart had to say? I thought you were a smart man."
"Like I said, it was a moment of confusion. In the middle of our fight when I accused her cheating, she shot back with the news she was pregnant. She wasn't home during the day with her lover; she was home because she had just been to the doctor. She was right, I am a jackass."
Marissa nodded in agreement. "And now she won't speak to you?"
"No, we're speaking but she's so cold to me. I can't stand it. How do I fix it?"
Marissa thought for a moment then she smiled. "How far are you willing to go to make this right?" "As far as it takes."
Elaine buzzed Ally in her office.
"Yes, Elaine."
"You need to get out here and see this."
"Can't it wait? I'm expecting a call."
"No, it really can't."
Ally poked her head out the door. "What is it?"
"That," pointed Elaine.
Ally followed her glaze and gasped. It was Larry coming towards her. "Larry, why are you wearing ears and a nose and is that a tail? What are you doing?"
Larry looked around to make sure he had an audience. If he was going to do this, he was going all the way.
"You were right. I behaved like a jackass yesterday and the only way to make it right was to apologize like one." He pulled her close. "I'm sorry."
Ally barely heard the comments around her. "I can't believe you did this."
Larry, however, did notice. "Can we go into your office and finish this? The audience participation is over."
Ally pulled him inside and closed the door.
"Are we okay?"
"Any man who would be willing to humiliate himself for me not only has my forgiveness but my respect as well. Mr. Larry, you are always surprising me."
Larry closed his eyes and breathed a sigh of relief. "I love you and I am sorry."
"I love you too and I forgive you."
They kissed until he pulled away. "I want you to tell me again."
"I forgive you." Larry shook his head. "Not that. The news yesterday. I want you to tell me again, for the first time."
Ally smiled. "Larry, I'm pregnant."
"We're pregnant?"
"No, I'm pregnant but we're going to have a baby."
Larry let out a yell and swung her around. "A baby. We're having a baby."
"Larry, put me down, you're making me sick."
He stopped spinning her. "Sorry. Does Maddie know?"
"Of course not. You and I are the only ones who know. I was thinking about waiting until next weekend when Sam is here to tell both children. That seems fair."
"I agree." Larry looked at his watch. "I need to get back to work."
"Yeah me too. I'm expecting a call. How about we have our own celebration tonight?"
"Sounds great."
Chapter 2
Ally opened her eyes and looked at the clock, 2:50am. She removed Larry's arm around her and crawled out of the bed. She walked quietly down the hall and opened the door leading to the attic. After rummaging around for a few minutes, she found was she was looking for. She opened the box marked "Harvard" and began to go through it. She pulled out a pair of yellow baby booties. She held them to her face and the tears began to flow.
Larry reached over and felt air. He immediately opened his eyes and looked over. Ally was gone. The bathroom was dark. He crawled out of bed and went looking for his wife. He was about to head downstairs when he noticed a thin stream of light under the door to the attic. He quietly opened the door and began to walk up the stairs. He got far enough to see her, although her back was to him, he could see she was looking at something. Not wanting to intrude on her private time, he made his way back to the bedroom and promptly fell asleep.
"Maddie, come on, you're going to be late." Larry called again as he fixed breakfast. Ally was also running late. It was Ally's turn to cook breakfast but her time in the attic caused her to oversleep.
"Coming, coming." Maddie put her backpack by the door and joined Larry at the table. "Where's Mom?"
"She's running a bit behind."
At that moment Ally came rushing. She started to pour herself a cup of coffee but changed her mind. "I have to go. I have an early meeting."
"But you need to eat," pointed out Larry.
Ally started to object but decided against it. "You're right."
Larry nodded. "Good. So, what does your day look like?"
"I have a meeting first thing this morning, after that I'm not sure."
He turned towards Maddie. "How about your day?"
Maddie frowned. "A history test. How boring."
"History is never boring."
A beep-beep came from outside. "That's my bus. See ya."
"I am so looking forward for when she's a teenager." He turned to Ally. "I woke up last night and you were gone."
"Yeah, I couldn't sleep so I went downstairs and watched some TV."
Larry was rattled. For the first time he could remember, Ally had lied to him. "Downstairs? I don't remember seeing you."
Ally checked her watch. "Got to run." She kissed him on the head. "Love you." The door shut behind her.
"Yeah, love you too."
Larry returned from court and was met by his secretary Marissa.
"My wife called?"
"No, I'm afraid not."
All day Larry had been unable to shake that one tiny bit about watching TV. He knew it was nothing, but still. He picked up the phone and called Ally's office.
"Ally McBeal's office."
"Elaine, is Ally back from her meeting?"
"Hello to you too, Larry. Ally didn't have a meeting this morning. I haven't seen her today. That's the other line. I'll let Ally know you called when I see her."
Larry hung up the same time Bart entered his office.
"Want to go grab some lunch? Rumor has it that the deli hired a new blonde college girl."
Larry chuckled. "Aren't you a little old to be going after college age girls? Not to mention three times divorced."
"Hey man, I'm not looking to marry one, just have a little fun."
"That kind of fun I can do without."
"There was a time, my old friend when."
Larry interrupted him. "That was law school, Bart. I stopped looking at other women the day this brunet walked into my office by mistake and changed my life. Besides, I have a preteen at home and the idea of some guy checking her out makes my skin crawl."
"Congrads, Larry, you sound like a dad. Now, how about lunch?"
Over sandwiches, Bart kept a steady stream of chatter but Larry wasn't listening.
"Yo Lar, where are you?"
"Sorry, I just have something on my mind."
"Like what?" Bart signaled the waitress.
"Ally lied to me today."
Bart smiled at the waitress. "So what? My ex-wives lied all the time. It's what they do."
"No, it's different with us. We don't lie to each other."
"You're still a newlywed. It's okay to think that way, all idealistic."
Larry stirred his tea. "Something is going on with her. It's like she's hiding something."
"Maybe she's seeing another man."
Larry nearly knocked his tea glass over. "What?"
Bart shrugged his shoulders. "It's a possibility."
Larry shook his head. "No it's not. It's..It's ridiculous. Ally is not having an affair. She is as devoted to me as I am to her."
"That's what I said too until I came home one day and found my first wife in bed with our son's soccer coach. It happens."
"Not to us, it doesn't. Ally is not having an affair. There are no problems in our marriage. That's final. Now I'm going to walk back to the office."
Larry tried to get what Bart said out of his head but it wasn't working. Another man? Never. He picked up the phone and called Mrs. Lewis, an elderly lady who lived next door and took care of Maddie when necessary.
"Mrs. Lewis, this is Larry Paul."
"Larry, my dear, how are you?"
"I'm fine. Is my wife's car in the driveway?"
"Let me look."
Seconds rolled by.
"Yes it is."
"Are there any other cars?"
"A green truck in front of the house."
"Thank you Mrs. Lewis."
Larry felt sick. He left a note for Marissa and headed home to confront his wife.
He pulled into the driveway and ran into the house. He ran up the stairs and into the bedroom. He looked around. Empty. The bathroom door opened and he jerked around. Startled to see that she wasn't alone,
Ally shrieked. She put her hand to her chest. "Larry, you nearly gave me a heart attack. What are you doing here?"
"What are you doing here?"
She sat on the bed while her heart slowed down. "I had an appointment this morning. Afterwards I wasn't feeling so good so I came home."
Larry glared at her. "Are you having an affair?"
"Of course I am. With a new husband, a daughter, a stepson and a partnership at work, it was all I could do to squeeze one in."
"I'm serious, Ally."
She looked at his face. "I can see that. Why would you think I was having an affair?"
"You've been lying to me. You lied to me about watching TV last night. I knew you were in the attic. And today you told me you had a meeting which Elaine knew nothing about. You're a smart girl so I'll ask again, are you having an affair?"
Now Ally was angry. "You stupid jackass. I'm not having an affair. I'm pregnant. But at this very moment, an affair sounds pretty good." She stormed past him and down the stairs.
Larry stood in the bedroom shocked and in disbelief. It took him a minute to collect his thoughts and he ran after her.
He found her in the backyard with her feet in the hot tub he bought her as a wedding present.
"You're pregnant?"
Ally glared at him. "Yes, and before you can ask, it's your baby."
Her sarcasm hit home. "Yes, I suppose I deserved that."
"You did." Larry stepped closer. "Look, I'm."
"Save it. You have said quite enough today." She pulled her feet out and slipped back on her shoes. "I can't be around you right now. I'm going for a walk to clear my head. Maddie's class was cancelled today so she should be home soon."
He watched her go inside the house. He punched into the water. "Dammit!"
Maddie knew something was wrong. Larry was unusually quiet and her mom had come in from a walk and pretty much ignored him. Larry looked so sad.
"Are you an Mom fighting?"
Larry looked up from where he was stirring soup. "No, we just had a misunderstanding. Everything will be fine."
Maddie wasn't so sure. They had had misunderstandings before but it usually ended with them laughing, not where her mom went upstairs to her bedroom. What ever this was, it was serious. Maddie decided to mention something she had thought about for a while.
"Larry?"
"Yeah?" he responded from the fridge.
She took a deep breath. "There's a dance at school, its no big deal, just a father and daughter dance and I was wondering, and it's okay if you don't want to, but I was wondering if you would like to go."
Larry closed the door and turned to Maddie. "A father and daughter dance, you say? I have never been to one of those. Probably because I was never a daughter and Sam would have looked silly in a dress. Do I get to pick out the daughter?"
Maddie giggled. "No, I'm the daughter you have to take."
"Then I would be honored to escort Miss Madison McBeal to her father and daughter dance."
Maddie beamed.
Ally entered the kitchen and saw Maddie's face. "Why are you so happy?"
"Because," Larry said as he came up behind Maddie, "she has the best looking date for the father and daughter dance." He kissed her on the top of her head.
Ally's heart warmed. "You two will be the best looking couple at the dance." She walked over to where Larry was and pecked his cheek. "Thank you."
He decided to make his move. He turned off the stove and removed the soup. "Maddie, order a pizza." He turned to Ally. "We need to talk." He grabbed Ally's hand and walked with her out the door.
As soon as they left the room, Maddie did a happy dance. Larry was taking her to the dance, her parents were about to kiss and make up and pizza was for dinner. Life was pretty good.
Larry didn't let her hand go until they reached the bedroom. He closed the door. "I know you are angry with me and you have a right to be. The truth is you scared me when you lied to me. We never lie to each other. It sent me on some tailspin and I got some bad advice, some really bad advice."
"You accused me of adultery. Had I ever given you any reason to think I would look at another man much less get involved?"
Larry shook his head. "No, never. I was so stupid. I love you so much. How can I make this up to you?"
"I know you love me and I know better than most about impulses and jumping to the wrong conclusion. I don't think there is anything you can do to make this up. You hurt my feelings." She stood toe to toe. "I love you but I'm not able to forgive you, not yet." She kissed him. "Come on, let's go see about that pizza."
The coolness between them was more than he could handle. That night in bed he desperately wanted to be close to her but she wouldn't let him. He tried to hold her hand but she pulled it back.
The next morning was no different. She kissed him goodbye but the hurt was still there in her eyes. He had to find a way to fix things. Once he arrived at work he asked Marissa to come in.
"Jeez, Larry, you look terrible. Rough night?"
"Yeah, really rough. That's what I wanted to talk to you about. I need some advice from a woman." Marissa took a seat. "Okay, talk to me."
"I said some things to my wife that really hurt her and I need to make things right."
"What did you say?"
"Is that important?"
"Well, I need to know how deep the hurt is so I can help you fix it."
Larry looked at the floor. "I accused her of cheating on me."
Marissa whistled. "Wow, that's a biggie. Was she?"
"No! She had been lying to me and in a moment of confusion I let Bart convince me she was having an affair."
"Larry, why would you listen to anything Bart had to say? I thought you were a smart man."
"Like I said, it was a moment of confusion. In the middle of our fight when I accused her cheating, she shot back with the news she was pregnant. She wasn't home during the day with her lover; she was home because she had just been to the doctor. She was right, I am a jackass."
Marissa nodded in agreement. "And now she won't speak to you?"
"No, we're speaking but she's so cold to me. I can't stand it. How do I fix it?"
Marissa thought for a moment then she smiled. "How far are you willing to go to make this right?" "As far as it takes."
Elaine buzzed Ally in her office.
"Yes, Elaine."
"You need to get out here and see this."
"Can't it wait? I'm expecting a call."
"No, it really can't."
Ally poked her head out the door. "What is it?"
"That," pointed Elaine.
Ally followed her glaze and gasped. It was Larry coming towards her. "Larry, why are you wearing ears and a nose and is that a tail? What are you doing?"
Larry looked around to make sure he had an audience. If he was going to do this, he was going all the way.
"You were right. I behaved like a jackass yesterday and the only way to make it right was to apologize like one." He pulled her close. "I'm sorry."
Ally barely heard the comments around her. "I can't believe you did this."
Larry, however, did notice. "Can we go into your office and finish this? The audience participation is over."
Ally pulled him inside and closed the door.
"Are we okay?"
"Any man who would be willing to humiliate himself for me not only has my forgiveness but my respect as well. Mr. Larry, you are always surprising me."
Larry closed his eyes and breathed a sigh of relief. "I love you and I am sorry."
"I love you too and I forgive you."
They kissed until he pulled away. "I want you to tell me again."
"I forgive you." Larry shook his head. "Not that. The news yesterday. I want you to tell me again, for the first time."
Ally smiled. "Larry, I'm pregnant."
"We're pregnant?"
"No, I'm pregnant but we're going to have a baby."
Larry let out a yell and swung her around. "A baby. We're having a baby."
"Larry, put me down, you're making me sick."
He stopped spinning her. "Sorry. Does Maddie know?"
"Of course not. You and I are the only ones who know. I was thinking about waiting until next weekend when Sam is here to tell both children. That seems fair."
"I agree." Larry looked at his watch. "I need to get back to work."
"Yeah me too. I'm expecting a call. How about we have our own celebration tonight?"
"Sounds great."