Hey all! Another chapter that I'm nervous about posting because Lassie is in it! We're going to start our time jumps again and I will try to remember to put approximate dates at the beginning of each chapter. I haven't made any major edits in this chapter for a few weeks so it must be good to go! Thank you to those that are reviewing! I love the feedback and it sometimes gives me ideas for future chapters!
Enjoy!
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Chapter 8:
*About Two weeks later in Mid April*
"Hey Carlton" Sharon whispered into her phone as she stared into the night sky.
"Hey Sharon, this is a nice surprise."
"Yeah."
"How are you?"
"I'm okay, for now. How about you? How's work?"
"I'm good. Work is the same, although a bit quieter."
"What do you mean?"
"There haven't been many cases that need to be investigated, so we have been catching up on paperwork and training hours. Plus Spencer is out of town, so we've been able to work in peace."
"You must miss some of the chaos?"
"Can't say that I do."
"Not even a little bit?"
Carlton sighed, "Some of us enjoy a quiet work environment without having to be on the lookout for any eavesdroppers or pranksters."
Sharon laughed, "Listen, are you able to get off work on Friday?"
"Assuming there are no murders from now until then, I don't see why not. Can I ask why?"
"Well, I have a doctor's appointment Friday morning at 11am and I was wondering if you wouldn't mind coming with me?"
"Wouldn't you prefer someone closer to you to go? Like Guster?"
"As much as I love Gus, he gets very squeamish around medical issues."
"You haven't even told me what's wrong."
"Well, can I come over Thursday night? I have a flight scheduled to arrive around 5pm and we could talk."
"You're not going to break up with me, are you?"
"No."
"Okay. Can I pick you up from the airport?"
"Sure. I was going to have Gus do it, but this might be easier."
"So Thursday night about 5pm. What's your flight information so I can check for delays and the pickup terminal?"
Sharon smiled and shook her head. "I don't remember right now, but I will text you the info soon."
"Okay."
They sat in silence for a few seconds until Carlton sighed. "Hmm, this is nice."
"What, awkward silence?"
He laughed, "No. Companionable silence. Just listening to the other person breathe. Knowing that you're not completely alone. Or maybe I've just been single too long."
"No, it makes sense. Sorry. My drugs must be kicking in."
"Drugs? What type of drugs?"
Sharon rolled her eyes at his tone of voice. "Calm down, detective. Legal drugs provided by my doctor in order to help with the symptoms. One of them acts like a mild sedative, so I probably should get to bed before I fall asleep outside."
"Alright. I'll see you Thursday. Goodnight Sharon."
"Goodnight." Sharon put down her phone and hid her face in her knees, willing the tears to go away.
After a few minutes, Sharon noticed that her mom had joined her on the balcony. "Hey mom."
"Hey Goose. How did your call with Carlton go?"
"Okay, I guess. He's gonna pick me up from the airport on Thursday and come to my appointment."
"That's good! So you're going to tell him about the pregnancy Thursday?"
"Yeah. Maybe I'll stay with Gus that night, just in case."
"Oh, Goose!" Madeleine gently slapped Sharon's arm. "You said so yourself that Carlton has a hard time letting go; that he was separated from his ex-wife for 4 years before they signed the divorce papers. Granted, I do agree that you need to give him some space after you tell him; but only so he can have a chance to think it through."
"Mom, I'm tired. Can you shrink me tomorrow? And I mean psychoanalyze, not a shrink gun. Although, I wouldn't mind being a little smaller, just not ant sized."
Madeleine laughed as she stood up. "Oh Goose, you're not even showing yet! Just wait until you're 8 months along and then see how big you feel."
"Ugg, don't remind me. I don't even think Dad's Costco shirts would fit me by then."
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*Thursday April 22*
As Sharon exited the airport, she immediately spotted Carlton carrying flowers and a stuffed dog.
"Aww, are those for me?!" Sharon asked as she dropped her bag and reached for the toy.
"Who else would they be for?" Carlton rolled his eyes as he handed it over.
"I love it." She hugged it and kissed Carlton on the cheek. "Thanks."
Carlton blushed and cleared his throat. "You're welcome. I tried to ask Guster what your favorite animal was, but he claims that you don't have one."
"So instead you went down to the police station's community outreach items and stole a toy police k9."
"I did not steal it! I told the desk sergeant to take it out of my pay."
"Aww, so romantic!" Sharon teased.
Carlton rolled his eyes as he bent to pick up her bag. "How was your flight?"
"It was fine; although I slept through most of it. Apparently I developed motion sickness the last time I flew, so I took some medicine."
"How do you feel now?" He led the way to where his car was parked in the pickup lane. "Should I grab us some dinner?"
"I would love a cheeseburger with fries."
"Okay let me call it in and we'll pick it up on our way."
"Sounds good." Sharon smiled as they reached Carlton's car.
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They ate their dinner in front of the TV and curled up to watch a movie. After it was over, Carlton went to stand up when Sharon pulled him back.
"Look, Gus is supposed to text me in 10 minutes to see if he needs to pick me up, so I need to tell you what has been happening in order to prepare you for tomorrow."
"Okay…."
"Shhhh!" Sharon placed a hand over Carlton's mouth. "Don't talk! If you interrupt me, I might not finish. Okay?"
Carlton raised an eyebrow at her as he lowered her hand and held it. "Okay."
Sharon nodded before taking a few deep breaths. "I don't know how else to tell you this; but I'm pregnant with your child and I have an appointment tomorrow with the doctor to make sure everything is alright because this is a high risk pregnancy and I didn't even know I could get pregnant and what type of idiot doesn't know that they can get pregnant! And I need your medical information so the doctor can be prepared or whatever; I don't know, it was very overwhelming as my first appointment and I know I should have told you when I found out but I was in shock and was freaking out and I didn't want you to hate me but I know I had no right to keep this from you so I'm just gonna wait outside for Gus and I'll text you the appointment details tomorrow and maybe have Gus drop off the medical information the doctor needs so you don't have to show up and I can just get back on a plane and we can pretend we never even knew each other if that's what you want and I'm sorry I'm such a horrible person and I…."
Carlton gently covered her mouth so she would stop talking. After a few seconds, he moved his hand so she could take some deep breaths. Carlton gently retook her hands and said, "So you're pregnant and you disappear for three weeks before telling me. Is it because you are ashamed of me or the, the baby?"
Sharon shook her head, "No, not at all. If anything, I am ashamed of myself. Like I have a medical condition and I didn't even think I could get pregnant and this pregnancy might kill me if I have the baby, but if I try to abort, it still might kill me, so I am just so scared and I didn't want to lose you after you found out how screwed up my life is right now."
"I can't say that I understand, because I feel like I'm missing a lot, but I am here for you. I will not abandon you even if you try to push me away."
"Oh my God! You don't know how relieved I am to hear you say that!"
"I honestly didn't even think this was a possibility when you were sick."
"Me neither."
"And we have a lot to talk about; but later. Right now, I think we need to take a step back. If you need to leave tonight, I won't stop you; but I would like for you to stay. We can talk about other things. Or we can just sit here quietly and watch more television."
"Sure." Sharon turned away when she heard her phone beep. "I'll tell Gus to pick me up in an hour, hopefully I will stop crying by then."
"I wish you would stay longer."
"I would but Gus is leaving for a conference tomorrow and wanted to hang out while I'm in town."
"Do you want to come back here after your appointment? You can stay as long as you want, even after Guster gets back."
"Can we just take this one day at a time? I don't even know what the doctor will say and I have a few loose ends that I still need to figure out."
"Yeah, whatever you need."
"Thanks." Sharon kissed him on the cheek before picking up the remote. "Do you have one of those channels that just has a fireplace?"
"It's mid-April."
"So? It's a video. I would also settle for a real live campfire or candles."
"I have neither a fire pit nor candles."
"How about a grill or a lighter?"
"I am not wasting charcoal just so you can stare into the flames for a minute before it dies down."
"Charcoal? Really?! Why don't you have a gas grill?"
"Charcoal is easier and safer to contain. Also, it travels better for when I go camping or to a civil war reenactment."
"I'm not sure I agree with you about easier, but I will give you points for travelability. Travelousity?"
Carlton shook his head. "Travelability is about how well one can travel on something. Travelocity is the travel agency."
"Then what word am I looking for?"
"I don't think there is a word other than compact and less mess."
Sharon sighed and shook her head. "Then I guess we will have to come up with a word and make it popular enough to end up in the Hipster's dictionary."
"Don't you mean Websters dictionary?"
"Oh no, I don't think it would gain enough traction for Webster's; but making it into the everyday Hipster's daily vocab is a possibility." Sharon grinned.
Carlton laughed and shook his head. "Are you going to pick a channel instead of just flipping through all of them?"
"Sure. How about….some old school Bugs Bunny."
"What are you, 5?!"
"No! If I was 5, I would have picked Dora the Explorer or Sesame Street. Bugs Bunny is a classic! It's funny, light hearted, and you don't have to think much during it. It's the next best thing to a fireplace."
Carlton sighed, "Fine. I guess there are more annoying things you could have picked."
"Thanks, I guess." Sharon laughed as she gave him a quick kiss before leaning back, bumping their shoulders. Carlton put an arm around her and tried to relax.
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Almost an hour later, Carlton found himself more entranced by Sharon's face than what was on the screen. Sharon had a light smile on her face and occasionally her face would brighten as she laughed.
As the current cartoon ended, she laughed and looked at Carlton, "Sometimes I wish I was Bugs Bunny."
"Why?"
"He can do almost anything he wants and still outsmart his enemies."
"He's a carton."
"Yeah. But real life can be so complicated."
"True, but would you really rather prefer a simpler life?"
"Maybe." Sharon smiled. "But only if you were there too." They kissed gently for a few moments before getting interrupted by Sharon's phone. Sharon quickly retrieved it and replied to the text message. "Gus said that he will be here in a few minutes."
"Okay."
"Look, you don't have to come tomorrow. Gus is bringing over the medical forms tonight so you can just drop them off and send over a blood sample."
"I will be there."
"You're not just going to make sure that I'm not lying?"
"No, I believe you. It would be really hard to fake that emotional display earlier."
"Hey!" She hit his arm gently.
"I'm just saying, you would have to be a really good actress to fake all of that."
"Are you calling me emotional?" She crossed her arms and narrowed her eyes.
"I'm calling you pregnant with all the rights and privileges that come with it."
"So I'm allowed to be emotional?"
"I will plead the fifth on that."
"Should have done that earlier, buddy." Sharon grinned as she leaned closer for another kiss.
*Knock knock*
Sharon sighed and turned towards the door, "There's Gus, right on time."
"I don't know," Carlton said as he kissed her neck. "he could have given us another minute or two."
"Hmm, true." Sharon smiled as she gave him a kiss on the lips. "Do you think if we ignore him, he will go away?" She asked as they heard more knocking.
"Doubt it."
"What if you pull out your gun, and I don't mean the one in your pants; although that would make him leave, too."
Carlton shook his head as he stood up. "You better leave before Guster breaks my door down."
"Alright, alright. I'm leaving."
As Gus knocked again, Carlton swung the door open. "Guster."
"Lassiter." Gus greeted as he shoved an envelope at Carlton. "Here, this is for you."
"Thanks."
"Gus!" Sharon exclaimed as she slipped past Carlton. "Long time no see!"
"And whose fault is that?!" Gus responded as he grabbed her bag from her and started back towards his car. "Come on, I don't have all night!"
"Yeah you do." Sharon turned back to Carlton with a grin. "See you tomorrow?"
"Yes. Should I pick you up?"
"Nope, Gus will drop me off. There should be a business card with the address in the envelope. If not, text me."
"SHARON!" Gus yelled from near his car.
He gave her one last kiss on the lips. "Goodnight, Sharon."
"Nighty night, Lassie." Sharon grinned as she hurried down the steps. She waved one last time before getting in the car.
As they started driving, Gus asked, "So, how did Lassiter react?"
Sharon shrugged. "Okay, I guess. He didn't kick me out and is coming to the appointment tomorrow. He wasn't exactly jumping for joy when he heard the news."
"Neither were you. You just gotta celebrate the small victories, right?"
"Ugg, have you been talking with my mom, again?"
"So what if I have? You haven't exactly been very talkative the past few weeks; I was just checking in."
Sharon rolled her eyes. "Can we just pretend, for one night, that everything is normal? That I'm not pregnant with Lassie Jr or stuck as Sharon for the next several months?"
"Sure. Want some jerk chicken or fries quatro queso dos fritos?"
"As tempting as those sound, I don't think my stomach is up for the challenge yet. How about pineapple smoothies?"
"You know that's right!" Gus smiled as he held out a fist.
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*The next morning*
Carlton was waiting by his car when Sharon and Gus arrived at the doctor's office.
Gus parked the car a few spaces away and turned towards Sharon. "Are you sure you don't want me to come in?"
"No, Gus! Go to your conference, we will be fine." Sharon smiled as she grabbed her bag from the backseat.
"Okay, but text me if he does anything stupid."
"Sure thing." Sharon laughed as she got out of the car and walked towards Carlton. "Hey, Carlton. Thanks for coming."
"Hey. I brought you some water since I don't think you're supposed to have coffee right now."
"That was nice of you."
"Here, let me put your bag in my car."
"Thanks."
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"Ah, good morning Ms Spencer!" The secretary greeted.
Sharon cringed as Carlton whispered, "Spencer?"
Clearing her throat, Sharon addressed the secretary. "Hey Dave. I thought I told you to just call me Sharon?"
"Oh, I'm sorry, ma'am."
"Don't call me ma'am!"
"Sorry! My parents taught me how to be a good, respectful, Southern Gentleman."
"While I appreciate that, I would prefer you just call me Sharon, okay?"
"I will try."
"Thank you. Now," Sharon turned to Carlton. "This is Carlton Lassiter. He is my, um. That is, he's…." With a sigh, she turned back to Dave. "Dr Jen asked me to bring Carlton with me today. Here is his medical history and he still needs to give a blood sample." She handed over the envelope.
"Alright, I will let the doctor know that you are both here! If you would like to take a seat, a nurse will be out to get you shortly."
"Thanks Dave!"
Sharon turned around and headed towards a set of chairs away from the other people waiting. Once Carlton sat down, Sharon immediately asked, "So, have anything good for breakfast? Gus and I went to the old Waffle House. Nothing too exciting, since we wanted something familiar. Like you, Gus wouldn't let me have any coffee; although with all my nervous energy, I guess it was a good decision and…."
Carlton placed a hand on her knee to still her. "Hey, you have nothing to worry about."
Sharon laughed, "Weren't you listening last night when I said that this pregnancy might kill me?! Obviously I have something to worry about."
"I didn't take you as a pessimist."
"Usually I'm not. Although my mind tends to fixate on certain things."
"How about a distraction?"
"Hmm, as tempting as that is," Sharon leaned closer and whispered into his ear. "I don't think getting arrested for public indecency would look good for you, even if you are HEAD detective."
Carlton blushed and said, "I meant a change in subject. Like, why didn't you tell me that your last name is Spencer?"
Sharon leaned back and shrugged, "I try not to use my last name, it makes things more complicated."
"I always thought Shawn Spencer was an only child."
"I am. He is. I mean, it's complicated."
"How is it complicated?! Either you are Shawn's sister, his cousin, or Henry's way younger sister. Or even adopted. My sister is 10 years younger than me, but you have got to be at least 20 years younger than Henry, maybe 30. And I have met Jack Spencer, so I understand why you would not want to be associated with him."
"Look, can we just not…."
"Sharon?" A nurse called out.
"Oh thank God!" Sharon whispered as she stood up. "Hi Nurse Marie."
"Hello! And is this Carlton?"
"Yep! Dr Jen requested a blood sample from him."
"Alright. Sharon, if you will come with me, I will take you back for vitals and get you settled into an exam room. Then I will come back for a blood sample from Carlton."
"Sounds good. I'll see ya in a bit, Lassie!" Sharon quickly walked towards the exam rooms.
Once the door was shut, Marie started asking questions as they went through the vitals check. "Everything alright between you two?"
"Yeah. Things are just very, um, complicated right now."
"Happens a lot when there's a pregnancy, even more so when the couple isn't married."
"Well, I'm not exactly the marrying type."
"That's what my sister used to say, until she met the woman who is now her wife. You two seem like a good couple."
"There's too much baggage between us; nothing long term could ever work out."
"Not with that attitude! Besides, a baby changes things. You have to learn to work together; maybe you'll find out you're not too different after all."
"You sound like my mother."
"Well, mothers know best, right?"
"I guess, especially when they are also psychiatrists."
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Jen wrote some notes down as she addressed Sharon. "Okay, now the last thing we have to do is the ultrasound. I want to check that your cervix is expanding correctly. Since you are about 9 weeks pregnant, we might be able to hear the fetal heartbeat. Would you like Carlton to be in here for that?"
"I um, sure? I mean, that's an important event, right?" Sharon asked nervously.
Dr Jen chuckled, "Well, it is usually an important moment; it makes the situation more real, especially for the partner who is not carrying. Remember, it is your choice."
"Okay, then. He can come in."
"Alright. I will ask Nurse Marie to have him wait outside the door so we can let him in when the time is right, okay?"
"Yeah, sounds good."
"Good." Jen turned to the phone and dialed the front desk. "Hello, Dave? Yes, can you have Marie bring Carlton to exam room 3 but have him wait outside the door? Yes, and then Marie can come inside. Thank you." Hanging up the phone, she turned back to Sharon. "While we wait for Marie, how about we get you situated. I need you to move back so we can get your feet into the stirrups."
A few minutes later, Jen announced, "Alright, everything is looking good. Would you like Carlton to come in now so we can listen to the heartbeat?"
Sharon nodded and took a deep breath.
"Okay. Marie?"
Marie smiled as she moved around the privacy screen in order to open the door and asked Carlton to come inside.
Carlton glanced around the room quickly before going around the screen and to Sharon's side. "Hey, Sharon."
"Hey," Sharon nervously smiled before turning her head away.
"What's wrong?" Carlton asked the doctor. "Is something wrong with the baby?"
"No, we were just about to listen to the baby's heartbeat." Jen flicked a switch and suddenly they heard a fast, rhythmic beat. "And there it is."
Sharon laughed and blindly reached for Carlton's hand. "It's a baby."
"Yeah." Carlton whispered as he held onto Sharon's hand tightly. "It's beating fast."
Jen smiled. "The heartbeat seems to be pumping at a normal rate for 9 weeks, I don't hear any irregularities. It looks to be very healthy. Congratulations."
Sharon took some deep breaths and finally looked at Jen. "Can we see it?"
"Sure." Jen turned the screen around. "If you look carefully, you can see it's head and an arm."
Sharon laughed, "It has a tail!"
"I guess you can call it that, it will actually become the spine."
"We created life!" Sharon grinned at Carlton. "Isn't this amazing?"
"Yeah, it is." Carlton kissed the back of Sharon's hand.