Something Different

Chapter 7

This chapter could not have done with out the help of Cindy

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Six days later, and three days into my vacation, I was lying on the beach, in my new two-piece, soaking up the sun and scoping out the very fine scenery - I just love mirrored sunglasses!

Even for the middle of January, the beach wasn't crowded at all, but there were still enough of butts to check out.

I sat up and glanced at my watch, time to go and meet Mary Lou at the hotel. After a lot of thinking, I had invited Mary Lou to come with me. It's amazing how many of my "old" friends called to see if they could come. Even that bitch Joyce Barnhardt called. But in true form when I told her no, she hissed, called me a bitch and hung up on me. My mother even offered to pay me if I would take grandma. As tempting as it was (I still had to make rent), I said no. So in the end I reverted back to old faithful -- names in a bowl (only this time I didn't peek.)

Getting back to the present, I stood up, collected my bag stuffing in my empty bag of baby snickers, half eaten bag of Cheese Doodles, jug of water, and towel. The apples I had thrown in before leaving the hotel were still there. So much for the fruit basket. I scanned the beach once more and noticed a very, very fine Italian man checking me out, from down the beach. I took a good look at him. He looked very familiar, kind of like Morelli, but then again this was LA, and I'd swear I'd seen him three times already -- along with two Mary Lou's and a couple of Lula's.

To my surprise, he waved to me and gave me a huge smile. I in turn (just being polite) gave him my sexy smile, the one that set Joe off and racing!! I turned away and started the short walk back to my hotel room.

Half an hour later I was back down stairs in the lobby waiting for Mary Lou to arrive. She hadn't been able to come with me to begin with because she hadn't been able to find a baby sitter for her kids. Imagine their father not wanting to take care of his own kids? Geeze you would of thought she was going to be gone for a month the way Lenny carried on. He claimed he didn't know how to change a diaper or mix a bottle of formula. Geese, the kids were 6 & 7 they potty by themselves and eat anything and everything not nailed down.

After waiting around for about an hour, I decided that something must be wrong, so I went upstairs to call her.

In my room I picked up my phone and started to dial her number. Just before I pressed send, there was a knock at my door. Expecting it to be Mary Lou, I threw open the door with an "It's about time, I was starting to get worried!" only to find Joe Morelli standing there.

"Hey Cupcake, how are you?"

I tried to shut the door, but Joe placed his foot in the jam.

"Aren't you going to invite me in?"

"No. What are you doing here?"

"How often do you wave at strange men on the beach?"

I gasped, "That was you??"

"Yeah. And might I say you looked very cute."

I wasn't trying to be cute. I was trying to look sexy as hell. I was trying to look unattached, relaxed, and thin. I know that's a little hard when you are licking the chocolate off the inside wrapper of a snickers bar, but I had been hungry. In fact, I was starving right now. But, whoa, hold everything, what is he doing here? As I thought back to the other days I had seen his look-a-like, I began to wonder, could that have been him all along? He had his hands in the pockets of his shorts and was rocking back on his heels. His eyes were pleading to be let in. "Okay, you'd better come in."

He walked though the door and stopped to kiss me lightly on the lips. I felt my whole face go numb. "I guess we have a lot to talk about," he said as he settled himself into one of the standard hotel chairs.

I took a good look at him, unshaven, hair in need of a cut, and a black eye. "How'd you get the black eye?"

"Ranger came to see me the day after you left. We got into a fight, but then he explained something's about him, and you. He must have spoken to Mary Lou, too, because right after he left, she came over with the plane Ticket. She suggested -- no -- told me to come and see you. So I jumped the next plane, and here I am."

"You've been here a few days?" I squeaked. "Staying next door? You creep! Here I have been worried about Mary Lou and you have been here all the time. Someone should have warned me!"

With that I grabbed my phone and headed to the bathroom to called Mary Lou.

"Hello, Mary Lou, it's Steph. Why didn't you tell me?!"

"Hey Girl Friend, how's your holiday? How are you feeling? And what do you mean, tell you? Tell you what?" I could hear the innocents ringing in her voice.

"Don't play stupid with me. Just take a wild guess who showed up at my door this afternoon. Why the hell didn't you tell me that's what you had done."

"Stephanie, I know you. You are my best friend. If you had known, you would have gone somewhere else. You guys really, really need to talk! This isn't just about you and Joe anymore. This is bigger, much more important. And I know he was the one you really wanted to invite"

I stayed quiet for awhile, "I guess you're right. I just wish I had a little bit more warning. This is such a shock."

"Sorry, but it is for your own good. Trust me. So, how have you been? Feeling okay?"

"Really, I'm having a great time. But, I've been sleeping a lot. And I am really hungry. I eat and eat and just when I think I'm full, I get these really weird cravings. Good thing this hotel has room service and this trip is all expenses paid."

Mary Lou laughed. "I remember thinking that a can of that canned frosting looked really good! Have you been sick yet?"

"Sick? You mean like throw up sick?"

"Yeah, throw up sick. Should be hitting you anytime. Ooops, got to go, Lenny just showed up. Seen you soon. And talk to him! Bye."

"Bye." Sick? Why would I get sick? I thought as I hung up the phone.

I came out of the bathroom, and surprisingly Joe was still there.

"I wasn't expecting you to still be here."

"Where else have I got to go?"

I shrugged. "Can ask you a few things?"

"Sure."

"You're staying next door right?"

"Yes."

"Have you been following me around?"

"Sometimes. But really I just wanted to make sure you where okay. You are carrying our child and if anything were to happen to either one of you, I don't know what I would do."

I must have looked shocked. "What?" he asked, eyebrows squeezing together wondering what was going on inside my head.

"That's the first time you have said "our child.""

"I know. But you haven't given me much of a chance, have you? I know I was a bit of an ass, but after Ranger came to see me…"

I could feel anger bubbling up inside of me. "You didn't believe me when I tell you you're the father, but when Ranger tells you you're the father you believe him?! Why? You don't even like him. And, why would I lie to you? What would that prove? I didn't have to tell you at all! But somewhere deep inside I thought you would care. That you would trust me enough to believe me. Geeze, Joe, why are you here?"

"I know, I made a mistake, but I want to make it all up to you." I narrowed my eyes,

"What do you mean?"

"Your pregnant, its my child, I want to marry you"

"What??" I said, sitting down.

"I want to marry you. It's not about you and me anymore. It's about this baby that living and growing inside you that we made together. I've told you before that I love you. And, I know, I've also told you that I didn't want to get married. But that was for a selfish reason. We cannot be selfish anymore. This child didn't ask to be conceived. He or she should have two parents. Two parents that love each other and the child they've created. I've loved you for a long time, and when you walked out the door seven days ago, I admit I was confused, stunned, and blindsided. I walked around in a daze all afternoon. Then when you took off at dinner from your parents, you took my heart with you. I thought you didn't want me. You didn't think I could be a father or a husband. Well, I'm here to tell you I can and I will be the best father I can, and a great husband if you'll just give me the chance. So, what do you say?"

I sat there stunned. My jaw must have dropped down to my belly button because he reached over and closed my mouth with his fingers. Was this what I really wanted? Did it matter what I really wanted now? Okay, so, yes, it did matter what I wanted and it did matter what was the right thing to do. Besides, I deserved a Morelli-induced-orgasm every night for the rest of my life. But I had a nagging feeling in my head and in my tummy. "Why all of a sudden? Do you only want to marry me because I'm pregnant?"

"No. I was planning to ask you the other night when I cooked you dinner, but Ranger interrupted. Then you kicked me out. I had been gone for a month and I missed you. You weren't there when I got home. The house was empty. I was empty. I needed more than a peanut butter and olive sandwich."

I tried to think but a sudden wash of nausea came over me. My ears started to buzz, the room started to spin and I was getting really hot.

"Steph, you don't look so good, is something wro….." I grabbed for the waste basket near the bed. It was further than I thought and I missed it but hit Morelli. He has snickers, cheese doodles and something else that I must have consumed earlier oozing out of between his toes. Joe grabbed the waste basket before I could heave again and went to get me a damp wash cloth. He came back with clean toes and whipped my face off.

"Wow, that must have been what Mary Lou was talking about. I feel much better now." I looked up and Joe had a very concerned look on his face. "What, did you forget I'm pregnant. I guess you can get morning sickness in the afternoon too. Go figure."

After thoroughly washing my face some more with cold water, I had time to think. I came back into the room. "About what you were saying earlier. If my memory serves me correctly, we have only been out on two dates. I don't marry anyone after just two dates. With Dickie it was four, and look how that turned out."

Joe went quiet. "I'll be back in a minute." he said, leaving the room.

Five minutes later my phone rang. "Hello?"

"Cupcake?"

"Yep" I said with a grin. What was he up to?

"Do you have plans for tonight?"

"Nope" I said with a bigger grin.

"Would like to go out for dinner?"

"Yep" I said with a smile. "That would be wonderful. I'm suddenly very hungry."

He chuckled. "Good, I'll pick you up at 7pm, ok?"

"See ya" I hung up. Wow, a real date with Joe. This could turn out interesting. I patted my tummy.

Two hours later I was all dressed up and, waiting for Joe, eating an apple - I had finished the cheese doodles earlier. Promptly at 7pm he knocked on my door. "You look stunning" he said with a grin. His eyes brown and glowing. "You do have a little piece of apple stuck between your teeth."

"Thanks a lot" as I dug out a piece of dental floss. "You don't look half bad yourself. Where are we going?"

"That's a surprise." He took me by the arm, closed my door and guided me down the hall. Twenty minutes later, we where seated at a posh restaurant in Beverley Hills.

"This is very nice, how did you get a booking?" I asked

"Pulled a few strings, bribed a few people." I laughed, looking at him.

"Ok, I already had the table booked"

"That was very presumptuous of you, assuming I'd come out with you" He grinned and played with my fingers on top of the table. We spent the rest of the night enjoying each others company. I did manage to eat all the bread sticks -- So, I was hungry. At the end of the night, Joe simply kissed he on the lips and went to his room.

Every night for the next week and a half, we went out together, and not once did he try to get in my pants, so to speak. This was totally out of character and I was beginning to think that something was wrong. Can you get erectile dysfunction in your thirties? It's not like he needed to make a run to the drug store or anything. Geeze, a girl could start to get a complex.

On our second last night in LA, I invited him into my room after dinner. "What's going to happen when we go back to Trenton?" I asked Joe.

Joe went silent, go up and went to the window. "I'm not sure, what do you want to happen?"

"I want this to continue. Us being together" Joe came to where I was sitting on the bed, knelt down in front of me, put a hand on my stomach and said to my stomach "Hey there kiddo, do you think, that if I asked your mother to marry me this time, she'll say yes?" Joe looked up at me with those big brown eyes, and asked, "Will you marry me this time Steph?"

I looked at him, tears welling up in my eyes and nodded yes, clearing my voice "Only if we can do it here. I don't want a huge wedding, just you and me." I thought for a second, "Oh and it can't be in Las Vegas."

We sat and looked at each other when it looked like a light bulb had gone off in Joe's head. "I've got it! We are not that far from Lake Tahoe. We can leave in the morning and drive into Carson City to get our Marriage License. I have a friend in Carson City. John, John Lehuray. He is the Chef at the Nugget. He and his wife, Lynn, can be our witnesses." He was up pacing back and forth waving his arms around talking all the while. I was starting to feel just a bit dizzy.

"Um, Joe, I, um, Joe?"

He stopped pacing long enough to notice that I had turned green. Grabbing me up off the bed we flew to the bathroom where I promptly lost all those great bread sticks.

I guess while I was cleaning myself up, Joe made a phone call. Yes, his friend John was in town. Yes, they would be glad to serve as witnesses, and they knew the perfect place: North Shore of Lake Tahoe, just outside of Incline Village. There was a park where this lady minister regularly performed weddings. With the weather as perfect as it had been today and predicted for tomorrow, seemed like a perfect plan. Joe told him we would check in at the Nugget as soon as we got to town.

Joe was grinning from ear to ear, so very pleased with himself. I was feeling much, much better. I heard some of what he was saying as I looked around for my purse. Luckily I stuck the remaining two bread sticks into my purse before we left the restaurant. And, wow, a couple of baby Snickers I had missed earlier. I started eating one when Joe stopped talking, walked over and extracted the bread stick from my fingers. When I started to object, he silenced me with a kiss. Suddenly all my thoughts about premature erectile dysfunction vanished. In it's place all the sexual frustration and tension being held back from over the past week and a half came out and the room got very hot again. Only this time I didn't get sick. We proceeded to get all hot and steaming, with the need to lose some clothes.

Joe held me tight and whispered in my ear, "Besides, if you don't marry me, who is going to teach our son how to shoot a gun, drive a car, and pick up chicks?"

"Son? How do you know it's a boy? What happens if she's a girl?"

"Well, if she's a girl I'll teach her out to shoot a gun and drive a car. And, I guess, we will have to buy another cookie jar."