Chapter 22 ----I've updated this cross FF story. Hope you enjoy it and thanks for the feedback!
That night the girls got together to play another game in their ongoing Scrabble tournament and promptly decided it was naughty word night. Actually, it was Ruth Ann that had decided that for all of them because it was her night to set the rules for play.
And it quickly became clear why Ruth Ann had done that because within the first 30 minutes of play, she had taken a huge lead.
Shelli sighed and hoisted herself up to make another trip to the restroom.
"That's it for me," she said, "Ruth Ann, I think I've just met a whole different side of you."
The other women had to nod in agreement as the older woman collected her winnings with a huge smile on her face.
"It's only fair," Ruth Ann said, "Seniority should have some benefits besides Eve made up a lot of ground in that last round."
Maggie pushed her panel of letters aside.
"That's only because of that rule allowing double points if you knew how to spell the words in Latin," she said.
Eve shrugged.
"I'm a student of medicine so Latin is my second language," she said.
Shelli waddled back to her seat.
"Besides, she won that ruling on whether 'cigar' counts as a word."
Eve gingerly bit into the organic hypo allergic, gluten-and-sugar-free cookies she had baked.
"Freud says it counts," she said.
Maggie didn't appear impressed.
"No he didn't," he said, "He said sometime's it's just a cigar."
Several women argued and the others who sat and listened, hoped that the cold snap would end soon before cabin fever set in. Shelli got up to refresh the snack table with some of Dave's beef jerky which had proven popular.
C.J. stretched her arms. She had tried to keep her attention focused on the game but that had proven difficult to do given her last conversation with Matt stuck in her head. Maybe Chris had been right in that he had in a sense lost his own voice and she had to help him find it. No wait a minute, wasn't he supposed to help her without smothering her in a perfunctory marriage proposal? She wanted what she had thought they shared the night they had conceived their child but felt alone there.
"So I heard you're having your ultrasound tomorrow," Shelli said.
It didn't appear that there were any secrets in Cicely, C.J. thought.
"It's scheduled for tomorrow morning," she said, "I can't wait."
Shelli smiled broadly.
"It's so exciting to see your baby for the first time," she said, "even if it kind of looks like a blob."
Eve disagreed.
"I think more like a frog," she said, "But there's a reason for that, according to most experts. The development of the baby from zygote to full term, through the fetal stages mirrors the evolution of the human species."
Shelli's mouth hung open.
"Could you like say that in English?"
Eve looked at her with pity for a moment, before remembering not everyone had informed themselves as much on the gestational stages of pregnancy as she had even before she had gotten pregnant.
"An amphibian is an earlier form of the Cro Magnum species so it only makes sense that an early fetus looks like a frog."
The other women looked at each other and started talking at once.
"Just remember if you think you see a tail," Shelli advised, "That it's not a tail."
Maggie scowled.
"Don't listen to them C.J.," she said, "I'm sure it will be an experience that will leave you feeling fully empowered as a woman in charge of her own destiny and that of her body."
Shelli shook her head.
"Spoken by a woman who's never had to pee a dozen times a day."
The other women muttered in agreement. Shelli held her hands up.
"I still think it's an absolutely bitchin' experience," she said, "although Hollings passed out during the first one. Joel's been keeping a stash of smelling salts close by ever since."
Maggie looked at C.J.
"Will Matt be going with you," she said, "or would you like one of us to come?"
C.J. looked at the pilot thinking that was one of the nicest offers she had received in a while but she knew who she wanted there with her.
"I'm going to invite him," she said, "It's up to him if he wants to come."
Maggie nodded approvingly.
"That's the spirit."
Shelli shrugged.
"I'm sure he'll want to come," she said, "if just to prove that he has hit the bulls eye. Men are just funny like that."
C.J. knew that Matt could never stay away from the opportunity to be involved in his child's life which would include her pregnancy. She knew also she would never deny him that no matter how much he frustrated her right now. She understood why he had pushed the marital issue with all the subtly of a busting bronc but she didn't agree with him that a piece of paper could ensure their child both a life filled with love and stability. That was something that both parents had to commit to providing whether they lived together or not and she knew that beneath it all, Matt understood that. Even if he was having trouble saying it right now.
"I'm sure wild horses wouldn't keep him away," she said, with a smile on her face.
Hollings had sent Dave home for the night and swept the floor of the Brick while the women held their tournament upstairs. Matt still sat the table finishing some paperwork after having faxed the last of the business invoices to Murray before returning to the restaurant to review several quarterly reports of companies that he had incorporated into Houston Industries.
The older man gave him a couple looks while getting ready to close up for the night.
"They should be wrapping it up pretty soon," Hollings said when he neared Matt's booth.
Matt nodded and started placing the reports in the folder.
"You must be very busy with your company to give it so much time," Hollings said, "I only own one restaurant and I was thinking of hiring some more help when the baby comes."
"I've got plenty of help," Matt said, "There's just a few responsibilities only I can handle even though I don't deal with the day to day operations anymore."
"You don't," Hollings said, somewhat surprised, "You could have fooled me with all those papers you've spread on my tables the past week."
Matt smiled.
"I started this company from scratch and built an empire," he said, "but about a year ago, I walked away from it to focus on my detective agency. The majority of the profits now go to a charitable foundation."
When most people had gotten the news about his move, they had thought he had been crazy or at the very least, eccentric. Not Hollings, it appeared. Besides if Matt truly marched to the beat of a different drummer, he was in the right place in Cicely.
"That's awfully generous of you," Hollings said, "You must help a lot of people that way."
"C.J. left the company with me after being my right hand man and partnered in my agency."
Hollings nodded.
"That's how you wound up getting killed," he said, "in a manner of speaking."
"You could say that."
"You know it's going to be tough on a pregnant woman if she doesn't know whether you'll be coming home at night or not," Hollings ventured.
"I'm aware of that."
Hollings continued anyway.
"I had to give up a few of my higher risk activities," he said, "including rock climbing, rappelling down glaciers and bear wrestling."
Matt's eyebrows rose.
"My grand-daddy did that," he said, "in some Wild West show."
Hollings nodded.
"It's still a popular sport in these parts," he said, "You've probably heard about Jesse."
Matt had learned about him in bits and pieces since arriving in Cicely and tapping into the folk lore.
"You and he had some confrontations over the years," he said, "but he died during one of his winter hibernations and you thought his spirit had gone with him."
"After I realized that, I was able to settle down a bit and not long after that, Shelli got pregnant," Hollings said.
Matt wondered if the man who had pioneer blood running in his veins whether he realized it or not could ever settle down even to raise a child. But he Matt had been an adventurer too and he knew that despite his years spent living on adrenalin from one adventure to the next, his child would always come first in his life along with his or her mother.
His father had made time for him even if he hadn't always placed him first. Matt knew that his father had loved him even after he realized he couldn't mold his only child into his own image. That Matt had his own life to live and dreams to pursue. The two had gone through a period of estrangement about the time that Matt had enlisted in the military but the realization of how short could be pushed them back together. That and a stubborn young woman that would give his father the grandchild he wouldn't live to see.
C.J. walked down the stairs after the tournament had broken up for the night and saw him sitting in his chair, diligently working on something. Probably last minute attention given to some documents that Murray had sent him to complete. He looked so ruggedly handsome in his jeans and woolen shirt, it took her breath away just as it always did. As if sensing her presence, Matt looked up to see her standing there.
"You ready to go?"
Matt had promised to drive her back to the cabin. She had vetoed his offer at first but he had persisted, insisting that it was his responsibility to make sure that she got home safely. The problem was that if she were alone with him in the cabin, she wouldn't feel safe. And the kind of safety she meant had little to do with security, because she trusted him with her life. She just didn't trust him with her heart. The other night in the kitchen…well she couldn't let him do that with her again not with some critical issues standing between them.
She nodded and he picked up his things and put on his thick coat. She bundled herself up to set foot outside in the frigid air and they both said goodbye to Hollings and walked to Matt's car.
They drove in silence, and C.J. marveled at the reflection of the street lights on the icicles clinging to the tree branches. Matt turned down the familiar long drive to her cabin and parked in front. She opened up the cabin door quickly and stepped inside. He quickly moved to the fire place to get one started to warm up the cabin.
When he had started up a good sized fire, he turned around and she stood in front of him.
"That should keep you nice and warm," he said.
She nodded, not sure what to say next.
"C.J…"
She spoke too.
"I'm going to Dr. Fleischman's tomorrow morning for the ultrasound," she said, "It's my first one and if you'd like to come, I'd like you to be there."
He blinked his eyes.
"I wouldn't miss it."
She smiled at him.
"I'm really glad that you're here with me," she said, "with us."
"I wouldn't be anywhere else," he said, "and I mean that."
She nodded as he approached her, not knowing how to respond.
"Would you like something to drink," she said, "Some tea…"
He shook his head and the way he looked at her, made her forget what she had just asked him.
"I don't know…"
Matt interrupted her when he placed his hands on her shoulders and drew her in for the kiss, one of those he used to knock susceptible women like her off of their feet. When their lips met, everything else receded around them and soon enough, she had her arms wrapped around him, running her hands through his soft hair. She closed her eyes just inhaling the essence of him and then his fingers moved towards the buttons on her shirt and one by one, he began undoing them. He had gotten to the third one when she opened her eyes and suddenly pushed him away.
"I can't do this," she said, shaking her head.
Matt looked at her puzzled, his heart still racing.
"Why not?"
Her skin tingled where his fingers had brushed it while working on her shirt and she tried to remember why she had even interrupted him. But then she did and she tried to find the words that wouldn't hurt his feelings.
"I just can't," she said, "Not like this…"
He felt impatience build within him.
"Not like what," he said, "You were kissing me just a second ago."
She still felt that on her mouth, but she had to follow reason which told her to put the brakes on whatever had just happened between them.
"I know," she said, "but we have to think about this."
"Why," he asked, "It's not like you have to worry about getting pregnant now."
Uh oh, the moment those words had slipped out of his mouth straight from his libido, he knew he was in trouble. Her eyes sparked with something that looked more like anger than passion.
"Why you…I can't believe you just said that…"
Matt couldn't either but at the time he had just wanted her too much.
"C.J. I'm sorry," he said, "I'm not sure why but whatever I did or said that upset you…"
She looked at him, wearily.
"I think you should go now."
He didn't know if he had heard her right but the expression on her face didn't leave much room for debate. Searching his mind for any explanation for her behavior, he settled on some mention that Joel had made about hormones…yes it had to be from her pregnancy. The C.J. he had known all his life just didn't behave like the woman in front of him. But then again, he hadn't known everything about her including that she had a cute tattoo of a frog on her left hip until just several months ago. He had smiled to himself when he had discovered that.
"Okay I'll go but this discussion's not over."
She shook her head at him.
"Houston, we weren't even talking."
He walked to the front door and then turned around to look at her.
"I'll see you at the ultrasound tomorrow and then we're going to the Brick to celebrate, okay?"
She warmed to that suggestion and nodded.
"I'll look forward to it," she said.
He left the cabin then, closing the door behind her leaving her alone with her thoughts one of them being how she really needed a cold shower about now.