Chapter 5

There are only two options regarding commitment. You're either in or you're out. There's no such thing as life in-between.

-Pat Riley

"Calm down," Dave said, reaching for her hand as he pulled the car into the parking lot of the clinic. "It's a doctor's appointment, not a lethal injection.

It was one week since she chased him down her driveway after what could only be described as the most volatile marriage proposal of the 21st history. And so far, no one was dead.

Erin pulled the visor down and straightened her sunglasses.

"I don't know what you're talking about," she said tightly; opening the car door.

"We'll go with that," Dave reached for the soda in the cup holder, "Do you need that?"

"I agreed to let you drive not—hover over me as though I have a terminal illness. I'm pregnant," she muttered and brought the bottle to her lips, "not dying."

The sun warmed liquid felt sticky on her tongue. Even with the air conditioner, her hair still clung to the nape of her neck.

She opened the door and stepped out of the car; and winced sharply as the ache in her head intensified. "Erin, are you okay?" Concerned, Dave grabbed her cool hand in his and held her close.

She nodded slowly in response, as they walked across the parking lot. "It's just the heat. And before you start, it is 85 degrees outside; a little heat exhaustion is perfectly normal."

"You've been sick every day this week, shouldn't you at least mention it?"

"Now how could you possibly think that?" They lived in different houses and his office was one floor below hers.

His eyes twinkled, at how easy it was to ruffle her feathers, "There are certain perks to being me, Sweetheart. And if you don't bring it up to the women in a white coats, I will."

"Stop bribing my assistant," she griped, her health was no one's concern.

Dave shrugged, "Hey, whatever works, I can't be there all the time to to in your words, 'hover over you.'

Coming to a dead halt in front of the sliding door, she stared at him. "Contrary to your belief, I have done this before-"she huffed in annoyance.

"Then you won't mind my tagging along-"

Her lips pressed into a thin line of disapproval "Listen here, when you grow a uterus-"

He cut her off, "I can have an opinion?"

"You've got it." With a mocking pat to his chest, she walked into the doctor's office.

Dave shook his head and smiled, this was just the beginning and it could only get better.

Erin sat on the edge of the exam table clad in a thin paper gown, the rustling sound that accompanied her movements, grated on her nerves.

"So, what now?" Dave asked from his seat across from her she'd made sure he knew of his place in the room, damn near silent and almost invisible. He'd paced the hallway for the first part of the exam.

She looked towards the ceiling, counting the speckled tiles, "Now we wait."

As if on cue, the door swung open and Doctor Welby walked in.

"Erin, I have your results-"

"So, what's the verdict?" Dave cut in.

"Oh, is this your husband?" The doctor asked, catching sight of Dave, sitting in the corner.

Dave stood next to Erin and took her hand,"We're...negotiating." Erin said, the word fiancé tasted bitter on her tongue. And 'boyfriend' made her nauseous, that wasn't what they were. True, they'd come to an understanding but Webster didn't have a word for that.

"Good answer, Babe." Dave remarked, shaking the doctor's hand "David Rossi. What's the verdict, will two soon become three?"

The doctor cleared her throat lightly, after 25 years of caring for the aftermath; she was supposed to be immune to the charms of men.

She pulled a slip of paper from her pocket and turned to Erin, giving her a knowing smile.

"I've seen you through three healthy pregnancies, Erin. I think you know the answer to that question."

Erin smiled and nodded in response, "Well, thanks for that vote of confidence Mary. But it really would help to have it confirmed," She scoffed.

"You're about 7 weeks along." The doctor said.

Erin smiled. "David, you might want to rephrase your question to: "Am I ready to take on a woman with four kids?"

If his jaw dropped neither woman noticed, the air left him like he'd been hauled over by a semi. Of course he knew Erin had kids, but the pieces didn't fall into place until right then. The optimism he'd felt just a few minutes before, faded leaving a cloud of self doubt in its wake. Erin had three kids, no, not kids. Three teenagers who were, without a doubt still adjusting to the divorce of their parents. Throw in a new baby and another man, and it was asking for trouble.

Erin could practically feel Dave's walls between them as he drove towards the FBI compound. His jaw was tight like he was holding something back. Chewing on words before he said them. He'd held her hand on the way to the clinic, now both his fists clenched on the steering wheel. Maybe reality was setting in, he was finally seeing the bigger picture. His perfect fantasy was crumbling around him and she almost felt bad for him. Almost.

"This isn't what you want, is it?" She asked, with one hand laying flat against her stomach. "You've changed your mind."

Tires screeched and the car careened onto the shoulder of the road. "Don't put words in my mouth, Erin. I never said that."

"You don't have to, I know you." She bit out. "You don't have to be a profiler to read your reaction. I'm sorry that my kids don't fit into your fantasy plan-"

Slamming the car in park, he said, "seriously? Stop, just stop trying to drive me away because it's not going to work."

"Then tell me, what will work? I need to know. Let me get it out-of-the-way and you can leave with a clear conscience. Tell me, so I can mend my heart now instead of months down the road. When you've changed your mind."

"Erin-"

She held up her hand to stop his protest. "Don't. Don't say it. Whatever it is. I heard it before, remember? You fed me the lines and the lies, and when it got too much and you couldn't dig yourself out you cut me off and married wife number two. How can you expect me to believe anything you say to me now."

His ears rang from her verbal assault, he had fallen in love with her once, a lifetime ago. Thoughts of what they could have been, haunted him until the day she married. After that, the thought of having it all with his former best friend's wife, was beyond comprehension.

"What do I have to do to make you stop trying to find the worst in me?"

Erin stared out the window for a long moment. Watching traffic speed past them she had planned for him to walk, to leave and never look back. Everything but this. Bowing her head, she closed her eyes briefly. A second later, she opened her eyes, and turned her head to nail him with her infamous death glare. "Simple. Prove it."

Feeling calmer than before, he put the car in drive and pulled back onto the highway. At least now he had something to shoot for. His mother always said he'd been charming women since the day he was born. And his divorce record cemented that theory, but now he was playing for keeps.

"What do you say, we start with lunch?"