Chapter 19

Guess Who's Coming to Dinner

Wilson looked at the tickets and grinned. He had made arrangements to take Jennifer to Yosemite for Thanksgiving. After House came back with photos practically gushing (for House) about how gorgeous it was, Wilson thought the Ahwahnee was the perfect place to take her away for a long weekend. He was leaving in four hours and really looking forward to getting away for awhile, things had been rough around work.

"Do you want me to take her anything? I'm renting a car and driving up from Fresno. I could swing by and see her while we're there." Wilson was sitting in House's office, leaning forward trying to get a read on House, who as unusually quiet.

House shook his head no. "Nothing to give her. If you see her, say hello for me." He got up and grabbed his jacket in a huff, "I was invited to Cuddy's for Thanksgiving. Seems she's my new best friend now that you've gone all ga-ga for the next alimony check."

"Cuddy always invites us. She has a buffet every year for her family and friends. But I'm glad you have somewhere to go. How did your date go with Patricia?" he asked as he watched House put on his jacked.

"Uneventful." House paused and took a breath. Turning serious he mumbled, "I shouldn't say that. She's funny, it was ok, better than I thought it would be."

"She has a wicked sense of humor." Wilson offered.

"It's my humor that's wicked, hers is just dry. I asked her out for Friday night. We'll see."

Wilson and Jennifer Waterson arrived in Fresno at six in the evening, their plane having left a good half hour late. Wilson was upset because the car he had reserved wasn't available and so they gave him a 4x4 Explorer. Driving north through Oakhurst, the scenery took a dramatic change as they climbed into the pine forest. They reached the south gate of Yosemite National Park around nine. The Ranger took their fee, handed them the map and activities newsletter then waved them through. Wilson hadn't realized how big Yosemite was. When asked, the ranger told him at the gate that the Ahwahnee, which sits in the middle of Yosemite Valley, was an hour from the gate. It was now nine o'clock,dark and windy.

Passing the Wawona Hotel, a lovely plantation style hotel overlooking a golf course, they could barely make it and the golf course out in the dark. They passed signs that indicated a turnoff to a ski resort called Badger Pass.

Turning to Jennifer, Wilson shrugged, "I didn't know that they had a ski resort here."

"I didn't either, but take it easy, that wind is pretty strong."

By the time they passed through the tunnel and came to the Valley overlook it was far too dark for them to see anything so they kept driving arriving at the Ahwahnee at 10:15 pm. The bellboy took their luggage from the back and put it on a cart while they check into the hotel.

Jennifer was a petite brunette that Wilson had been dating for a little over two months. They had met at a University fund raiser. Jennifer was a Grant Writer for Princeton University and very good at her job. Wilson thought she was a nice balance between Amber's assertive nature and his previous wives' neediness.

Walking up to the desk, Wilson saw a blonde woman behind the counter and immediately recognized Teagan who was currently helping another couple. She held up a finger to indicate that she would be with them in a minute. After helping the couple, Teagan came around the reception desk and gave Wilson a hug. "Dr. Wilson, it's so good to see you! How have you been?"

"I didn't expect to find you at the Ahwahnee! What are you doing here?" Wilson asked, still somewhat surprised to see her.

"Picking up some seasonal work. Do you have a reservation here?" She asked as she went around the back of the reception counter to pull up his reservation. "Oh, you're here for Thanksgiving! That's wonderful. I'll be serving that day in the dining room."

"Jennifer, this is Teagan Furey, she's the cousin of a former patient of mine."

Teagan had Wilson sign in and gave them the card keys to their room. She pulled out a map and made some suggestions for touring the Valley. "Unfortunately, my favorite part of Yosemite is closed for the winter, the Tioga Pass. It closes at the end of August because it usually starts to get snow about then. But Vernal falls is still open and several other gorgeous areas are open to see. You'll love it."

Wilson and Jennifer's bellboy came over and escorted them to their room. When they were in the elevator he leaned into Jennifer, "Teagan is the psychic I told you about."

"The one House is in love with?" she asked.

"Yep, the one he won't admit he's in love with."

"Do you think she would read me?" Jennifer asked.

"I don't know. Maybe if I asked. Isn't it strange that she never asked about him."

"I was thinking that myself."

I knew someone was coming, because I kept feeling a familiar force at the gate. All evening I could feel them getting closer and closer. I have to keep the gate closed tight when I work in the Valley. Tourists bring a lot of psychic junk with them and I have to fight it off every day.

I wanted so bad to ask about Greg. I wanted to hear that he was happy and doing well. But I didn't dare ask because it would just send me spiraling down to know one way or the other. If he was happy it would hurt because he had been able to get over me while I was still wallowing. If he was still sad then it would hurt even more, because deep inside I really wanted him to find happiness. So I didn't ask. I need to keep my emotional energy for the baby. He's already draining me of my physical energy. I felt him yesterday fluttering inside. I'm excited, scared, worried. Inever thought I would have a baby and now he's growing inside me. It seems so strange, I keep thinking it's like that creature in Alien that pops out of the man's stomach.

I'm showing a little, not much but I did have one person ask me if I was pregnant, Sylvia. She's fairly observant as it is. I asked her to keep it a secret but I don't know how long she can, she likes to gossip. My old dresses were big for me anyway but now they're pretty snug. I've got to get into the thrift store soon to get some maternity clothes.

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The morning of Thanksgiving, Sylvia and Wilson slept in and then enjoyed some rather athletic sex, something Wilson had missed since his Amber's death. Although Amber had been a ball-buster, she had been good in bed. After they got up they went down to have a late breakfast. They were lucky, the kitchen was about to close to prepare for the Thanksgiving feast. Eating in silence, they were too tired and too busy looking around for small talk. The gorgeous hall, huge windows and towering fireplace were more impressive than House had described. The waiter came by and handed them an envelope. In it were their tickets for their seating for Thanksgiving dinner. Wilson had requested a 6:00 p.m. seating so they had all of the afternoon to play. Once they were done with breakfast, they took their map and started to hop the shuttle from one stop to another, getting off at each top to walk the beautiful Yosemite Valley.

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"Hey are you on for this evening?" Sylvia asked.

"Yes, I have the six to ten shift. You?" Teagan replied

"The same."

"Great. Guess who's here from Princeton?" Teagan said with caution in her voice.

"Your Dr. House?"

"No, his best friend, Dr. Wilson."

"Do you think he'll tell Dr. House about the baby?" Sylvia asked.

"No. Dr. Wilson doesn't know."

"Are you sure? You're starting to look a little pregnant. Just a little."

"My dresses cover it pretty well so far." Teagan thought again about getting to the thrift store.

"Teagan, you can't keep working six days a week, it's not good for the baby. You need to take it easy." Sylvia was concerned, Teagan was working way too hard and it was showing. She had circles under her eyes and even though she was pregnant, she appeared thinner in her face and arms.

"It's only until January. I have to, I have to save enough money to make it through the rest of the winter and buy some baby things. I really have no choice."

"There's always choices, what about the choice of calling Dr. House?"

"Funny...ha,ha. He's the kind that once he knows he'll have to make it all about him."

Teagan, Sylvia and the night crew went to have Thanksgiving dinner in the staff's dining room. It was a lot of fun because it was all the workers that had nowhere to go for the holiday and stayed to work because they received double holiday pay. Although no one imbibed any alcohol, everyone was in a good mood and a lot of ribbing went on between everyone.

"Hey Teagan, you've been stretching that dress out, you putting on weight or is there a bun in the oven?" Manny Jimenez loved to tease Teagan because she either blushed profusely or had a great retort. He was a fresh 22 year old that usually lived in Fresno and worked the winters in Yosemite.

"Wouldn't you like to know!" She smiled.

"Do I need to take a paternity test?" Manny joked.

"Only if the baby turns out ugly, then we'll have to test you." Everyone laughed. But now everyone was looking at her belly with interest. "Ok, the cat's out of the bag. I am pregnant and it was the immaculate conception...ok?" There was some clapping and a lot of congratulations. A couple of the women came up and offered Teagan their used maternity clothes. Teagan was happy to say yes to their generous offers.

The Thanksgiving Feast at the Ahwahnee is famous nationwide for it's great choice of meats and deserts. The Dining Lodge was beautiful, decorated with pumpkins, squash, fall leaves, Native American Katankas and washed in gold, orange and green streamers. When everyone was seated the carvers rolled a dozen large turkeys individually out to the aisle and twelve men started carving. Cameras flashed like they were all celebrities. Out came the plates of ham, duck, marinated buffalo, goose and salmon. In the meantime the waitresses delivered bowls of hot vegetables and mashed potatoes with gravy. The food was served family style where everyone at the long tables passed the plates around.

Teagan managed to get the maitre'd to put Wilson and Jenny close to the fireplace, the most coveted spot of all. Unfortunately, she was assigned tables on the opposite side of the aisle. Occasionally they would smile at each other, but Teagan was grateful that she wasn't their waitress, it would have been awkward and hard for the couple to concentrate on their own conversation.

When the meal was done, the waitresses rolled out large carts of pumpkin pie, mince meat pie, pecan pie, sherry trifle, creme brulee, chocolate cake, cheesecake and bread pudding. Everyone clapped.

At the end of the evening Teagan was in pain. Her feet were swelling and her shoes were cutting into her. When her last guest left she went in the back and took off her flats. When Manny saw that her feet were rubbed raw and cut, he brought her a pan filled with warm water for her to soak them in. She was soaking her feet when she felt Wilson coming. She opened the gate to find out why he was looking for her. It turned out he just wanted to wish her a Happy Thanksgiving.

She watched as Manny showed Wilson through the door. Teagan smiled and said, "Happy Thanksgiving Dr. Wilson."

"Call me Jim. What's wrong with your feet?"

"They were swelling up tonight and I couldn't stop to do anything about it."

He looked down and said, you need to get them looked at and told her, "I suggest you buy sneakers to wear for awhile. Especially if your feet tend to swell. I was wondering if you have any time off, we'd like to take you to dinner tomorrow or Saturday."

"I work both days. But I don't start work until 4:00 p.m. Would you settle for lunch in the cafeteria at Yosemite Inn tomorrow?"

"Great, do you want us to pick you up?"

"No, I'll walk over. We do a lot of walking in the Valley."

When Teagan got back to the house she reached in and grabbed her five year old sneakers. They were pretty beat up and certainly not fit for the Ahwahnee. But she had no choice. She would have to talk to her boss about permission to wear them. In the meantime, she took off her shoes again and wrapped her raw little feet in hot towels. Teagan reached down and petted Molly before falling fast asleep in front of the television.

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"How do you like Yosemite?" Teagan asked as Wilson paid for their food at the cafeteria.

"It is spectacular. I've never seen any place as beautiful as this. I can understand why you'd want to live nearby." Wilson said as they sat down at a table by the window. "I see you have your sneakers on."

Teagan was embarrassed by the condition of her sneakers, but managed to say a cheerful, "Yes, I took your advice."

I opened the gate. Jennifer wasn't very talkative, but she was very nice. She sensed that I was pregnant, but hadn't said anything to Jim. She thought that I was showing a little and the swelling feet were a dead give away. Jim wanted to talk about Greg. He was dying to ask me to come to Princeton. Jim was about to ask questions about me and Greg and our relationship. I decided to beat him to the gun.

"So, is Greg seeing anyone?"

That stopped him in midstream. I already knew the answer was yes, I had felt that when I hugged him. But now he was trying to figure out what to say. If he said yes, then he thought I'd be unlikely to go to Princeton; if he said no, he took the risk that I was reading his mind and knew he was a liar. I felt sorry for him; he desperately wanted to do the right thing for his friend.

"He is dating, but it's not serious. He misses you. He's in love with you Teagan."

"Jim, we both know he never told you that. That's your assumption."

"It's my assumption after nursing him back from his break up with Stacy. I can tell. He could use your steadying influence in his life."

She started laughing. "Jim, no one can contain the hurricane known as Greg House. He is a force of nature. You just have to batten down the hatches and ride it out."

Jim and Jennifer both laughed. They made a cute couple. She was smart, grounded and discreet with a great sense of humor. More importantly, I could tell that she made Wilson laugh a lot when they were alone.

"Please think about coming to Princeton."

"It's not going to happen Jim, I have obligations here that prevent me from doing anything right now." Teagan looked at Jennifer and they exchanged a look that confirmed Jennifer's suspicions. "I have to use the bathroom, Jennifer, would you like to join me?"

"Sure," She smiled broadly, "don't women have to travel in packs to the bathroom? It's an unwritten rule."

When they reached the bathroom Jennifer said, "So you read my mind?"

"Not really, you projected it at me. I didn't have to try and read your thoughts, I just let them in. I guess you can sense that I don't want Greg to know and that means that Jim can't know."

"He's a doctor, he can probably tell." Jennifer answered in a shocked voice.

"No, he doesn't know and I am begging you not to tell him. Please?"

"Teagan, that baby needs a father."

"Babies get born without fathers in their lives all the time. This baby will be raised by a very loving community with lots of males making their presence known. You don't have to worry."

"You're asking a lot." Jennifer didn't like deceiving Jim, especially since the relationship was new.

"Yes, but this is my life, not Jim's, not Greg's. I doubt Greg wants to be a father, but knowing would put a pressure on him to do something and, frankly, I don't want to share my child with someone who lives thousands of miles away."

"Well, you have my word, but I think you're making a big mistake. I won't tell Jim, but I wish you would." Jennifer was firm but kind.

Teagan saw Jim and Jennifer a few more times when she was working at the desk. When they checked out Jim put his hand on hers and said, "I know which one of my patients is going to be the Ambassador. I remembered what you said and you were right, she did make me feel good to be a doctor again. Please, for House's sake, come and live with him. He won't admit it but he's miserable without you."

Teagan smiled, "Oh, you do exaggerate. I'm sorry Jim but we live in two different worlds and mine is here."

When she saw them go through the doors she felt sad. She liked James Wilson, he was as good as they get. House was lucky that Jim had stuck with him through all his crap. She wished she had a friend as devoted and loyal as Jim.

Teagan was happy that Greg was seeing someone. Jim had provided her the best of both worlds. He had told her that Greg loved her and he also told her that he was moving on and seeing someone else. She wanted House to have someone in his life. Now if she could find some handsome, rich guy who wanted someone else's baby and didn't mind living in the mountains...life would be hunky dory. Right now she would settle for some new shoes.

A week later Teagan went to the Yosemite shoe store which, like everything else in Yosemite, was decorated with Christmas decorations. It carried mostly climbing and hiking shoe. She knew the owner; they weren't close friends, but they were friendly. The shoes in the store weren't cheap even with her 10% employee discount. There was only one pair in stock that would be somewhat acceptable and they were $110 with her discount. The owner was willing to take another $20 off for her, but still $90 was three months of diapers. She decided to wait to buy shoes.

On her one day off she usually liked to sleep and veg out, but she really needed to make a run to Groveland, which was about an hour and a half away. Teagan let Molly in the cab of the truck and they putterd down the road towards home and Groveland. She stopped to see the cabin which was a little messy, but in good condition. They stopped so she could pick up some more socks, sweaters, and a few other items, including her winter parka because the weather was turning nippy and she expected snow soon.

When she drove into Groveland, Bertie, the thrift store manager, went over and opened the Thrift Store for her even though it was supposed to be closed. She found a pair of shoes in a size 6, half a size larger than her feet. They were the type that old ladies wear, flexible and comfortable and Bertie let her have them for $5.00. She also bought some maternity skirts and loose fitting sweaters for another $20.00. After she left the store she started the long haul back to the Valley. This was her life.

Teagan spent Christmas and New Year's Eve waiting tables and making good tips. Dr. Medina told her at her last checkup that she could come to the Valley anytime for a checkup and he'd do it for free, even if she was no longer working in Yosemite. She could feel that he was serious. On January 3rd, Teagan gave everyone big hugs and went home for the winter. There was already a blanket of snow, Badger Pass was open for skiing and the roads home were slicker than snot.

She had to start thinking about where the baby was going to be born. There was a midwife in the mountains who charged $1,000 to deliver the baby at home. She was a licensed midwife so Teagan went to see her on a day when anyone in their right mind would have stayed home. There was sleet and ice, making the trip long and tortuous.

Nora, the midwife, answered the door and greeted Teagan, "Oh, my! I didn't know you were pregnant. When are you due?"

"April 8th."

"For your build that would be just about right. So, do you want me to deliver you?"

"Yes, but I don't have a phone. I'm hoping that I will be able to get to the lodge to call you when the time comes."

"Don't worry; Aspen Valley will call me if you go into labor. They've done this before."

They talked about the delivery and the months leading up to it. She listened to the baby and checked Teagan's cervix. "You know, you're over 35, I highly suggest you get a sonogram just to make sure everything is ok."

"How much do they charge for one?" Teagan asked.

"About $800. But it would be worth it Teagan."

"I'll think about it."

Teagan was upset. Nora was right, but $800 was six months of formula. On the way back home Teagan started to panic. What was she thinking? How was she going to raise this baby? She could barely make ends meet for herself. Who was she kidding? Was this any way to raise a baby--hand to mouth?

It started to snow as she drove into Aspen Valley. Teagan needed to get back to get some wood inside, just in case this was a big storm. Molly came out to meet her as she pulled into the drive. She saw the Littlejohn's truck and wondered what they were doing here?

Hopping out, Teagan went inside where Yolanda greeted her. "There you are! We didn't know where you went so we just brought it in and set it up in the other bedroom."

"Set up what?"

"The crib! My son and daughter are done having kids and it was just sitting in their garage in Stockton. Come and see it."

Teagan drew in a deep breath when she entered the little room, the crib was a lovely Jenny Lind style with a drawer set at the end of it complete with a changing table on top. Teagan grabbed Yolanda and Luke and gave them a group hug. "Oh wow, it's beautiful and in such good condition. I really should give them something for it."

"Are you kidding? If you hadn't told Conrad to stay home he would have been in that Cessna that went down. He wouldn't take money if you forced it down his throat."

"Please thank them for me."

"Sure, but we better get moving;

they say this storm is going to be a big one."

Luke looked around, "Teagan, before I go, let me bring in some wood for you."

"I can do it Luke."

"Yeah, but I can do it better." They all laughed. Luke brought in some wood and kindling. He also topped up her generator with gas and made sure she was good for batteries. The snow was coming down fast when they left.

Teagan went inside to play with the crib and furniture. She opened and closed the drawers a dozen times. She made the bed up with the sheets Yolanda had left her. She was starting to realize that, in her case, it takes a village to raise a child.

Dear Readers-Thanks for continuing to read! I appreciate it.