Chapter 10

"Can I help you ladies?" inquired a woman's cultured voice.
"Yes ma'am, you can, as we need absolutely everything for a newborn that will be here in a few months," Diana told the woman politely with a smile. "My daughter is pregnant."
"Yeah, this was a good time to do some shopping before I get further along," Lynnette agreed. "especially with my mother in town for a few days."
"Well, let's get you started then," the lady said. "First, let's get you a cart and we can start at cribs for your upcoming little one," The lady said.
"First, let me introduce myself. I'm Lynnette Rossi and this is my mother, Diana Reid and my daughter-in-law, Michelle."
"I'm Janine," the lady answered, knowing that Lynnette was the one that had married well known philanthropist David Rossi. Miss Rossi and her party would be extended every courtesy, as she would receive a large commission if they bought everything they needed here.
Janine was well aware that hearts had been breaking up and down the country when the news of David Rossi's marriage had made the rounds. Now, apparently, Miss Rossi was pregnant and while she wasn't showing yet that didn't mean she wasn't. Janine was sure that a lot of young ladies would be disappointed that David Rossi now had heir on the way, as that meant that he wasn't about to divorce his wife.
Personally, Janine thought that those women that had held out at least a faint hope that it was a marriage of convenience were delusional at best, as she doubted David Rossi would have married at all if he didn't love the woman in question because from what she had heard, he wasn't like most of the wealthy. He had after all been single for a lot longer than his peers, as it was said he was in his 50s, which told Janine that he never would married at all if it wasn't truly in love and sure of his feelings. He wasn't the type, from what she had heard to marry by arrangement, just to have children, so that he was married now told Janine that he genuinely loved Lynnette, as she didn't see the wealthy David Rossi marrying her otherwise.
Also, the fact that the wealthy David Ball see had adopted three children told Janine that yes, he definitely never would've married if he hadn't truly been in love as most of the wealthy set never would have adopted at all as that was sure they wouldn't have a drop of the family's blood. Of course, the wealthy set never thought about the fact that countless children had lost their homes and their families through no fault of their own, as most of those types didn't have a compassionate bone in their bodies for an orphan.
They all shook hands cordially before Janine got Lynnette a cart. Diana also took one as did Michelle, as one cart wasn't enough when you needed everything for babies, which required a lot of extra equipment. The only good thing was that the equipment could be reused for every subsequent birth, so it only had to be bought once.
"To the cribs," Lynnette declared, as Janine led them in that direction the other three women trailing behind her.
Several hours later, they had filled all three carts with various baby equipment and various outfits for both boys and girls, since Lynnette had no idea what sex the baby was going be.
The smallest baby equipment was in the cart, as some of the larger things like a rocking chair and the crib were going to have to be delivered.
"I think this is enough for right now," Lynnette said, looking at all three full carts. "I think it's time that we finish purchasing all these things and then go get some lunch. I, for one, I'm starving. We still have not quite six months to get anything else we need for our little bundle of joy. I think we've made a good start on buying everything that is necessary when you're expecting a new baby."
"Too bad you don't know what sex you're having yet," Diana said wishfully.
"Which is why I bought little girls and little boys clothes, as we can always save what clothes we don't need until we have the opposite sex," Lynnette said.
"Just let me know as soon as you do as I want to buy a few things for my grandchild as well," Diana requested of her daughter and Lynnette nodded.
"Trust me, Dave will probably want to shout it from the rooftops, so there's no way he'll be able to keep it a secret from the family."
"True, dad is very excited about this upcoming birth," Michelle agreed smiling. "I haven't seen him this excited in a very long time."
"I can hardly wait to learn the sex of the child you're carrying," Diana smiled at her daughter.
"Neither can Dave and I," Lynnette told her with a grin. "There's absolutely no way that Dave is going to leave the sex of our child a mystery like some new parents do, especially since this is the first child he's ever had that will be his biologically. He can hardly wait as it is until the doctor can tell what the sex is, and there is still two months to go."
"It's nice to hear that Dave is excited about his upcoming son or daughter," Diana smiled. "Will was never excited, even about the birth of his oldest son. I suppose I should've taken that as a sign that he wasn't father material, but that's in the past and Will has been out of my life for years, so let's talk about happier things."
The three ladies and Janine headed for the register with the sales lady leading the way.
As they were walking towards the front, where the register was, Janine couldn't help but go over the facts of what she had just overheard in her mind. Apparently, the bride's mother was divorced, and the father was out of the picture. Really though, the father, not being part of his children's lives was a tale as old as time. A lot of men just didn't have any staying power, even though they supposedly married for life. That didn't mean, however, that many men didn't break their marriage vows and didn't abandon their wives and children often leaving them in a bad financial situation.
They reached the register, and everyone helped unload the carts, though the bigger things the cashier scanned in the cart, so they wouldn't have to be rearranged, so everything would fit since they would have to be put back.
"Why don't you call Michael and tell him we're done and that we're going to head to lunch," Diana told Lynnette. "By the time he gets here, I'm sure we'll be all done checking out."
"A good idea mom, as it saves us having to wait for him to arrive for wherever he could find a parking space," Lynnette agreed without arguing because her mother was very right about calling Michael so he would have time to arrive before they finished checking out. "We all know that parking on the street is a crapshoot, so he might very well be in a parking garage several blocks away for all I know."
"I'll do it while you pay for everything," Michelle told Lynnette and Lynnette nodded gratefully.
"Thanks, Michelle," Lynnette said to her daughter-in-law.
"You are very welcome," Michelle told Lynnette warmly, smiling slightly, even as she took out her communicator in order to call Michael to pick them up.

~~~Dave and Lynnette~~~

"So where do you want to go for lunch Lynnette?" Michelle asked her friend.
"It doesn't really matter," Lynnette said, "but I do happen to know that Rubio's is close to here and they have an excellent chef. Dave has taken me a few times when we needed a night out."
"Well, Rubio's is OK with me," Diana said. "If you and Dave like it, I'm sure I will too, as Dave would never patronize anywhere that didn't have an excellent reputation."
"The reputation is deserved, as I've been there numerous, though not with Spencer as of yet," Michelle said.
"Well, you need to take him. He'll enjoy the good food, even if he has to be reminded to eat occasionally," Lynnette said.
"Yeah, he can just get so absorbed in a project that he doesn't remember that his stomach needs feeding," Michelle said smiling.
"Yeah, he does," Diana agreed smiling, as she thought of her oldest son. "I'm not sure, which side of the family his brilliant mind comes from but he is one of the most brilliant people I've ever known and the fact that he's my son makes me very proud."
"He has to get it from your side of the family, mom," Lynnette told her mother. "I mean, you're very intelligent yourself after all."
"I won't deny I'm intelligent Lynnette, but your father might be a lousy human being, with no loyalty to his family, but that doesn't mean he lacks intelligence. If there's one thing you can say about your father, and that is, he isn't stupid. Arrogant, demanding, impatient, especially with his children, quick to anger or get annoyed definitely, but unintelligence was not something you could associate with William Reid, Esquire."
"I still believe my brother's intelligence comes from your side of the family and I'll never believe otherwise," Lynnette said stubbornly. "If the man I shared DNA really was intelligent, he never would've abandoned you or his children and for no real reason."
"Oh Lynnette," Diana sighed, leaning up to ruffle her daughter's hair lovingly from where she was sitting in the backseat since Lynnette was in the front, so she could stretch out her legs. "I know you have a rather jaundiced view of your father, but you can be the most intelligent person in the world but have no loyalty and no sticking power. Just because you're intelligent, doesn't mean you're good with children. You've never met the man and for that I'm glad, but because you haven't you never saw how intelligent your father really is. I mean, he's a lawyer, a good one and you can't be as dumb as a bag of stones in that profession. A lot of men are also lazy as well. Lazy when it comes to their own lives and expect their wife to do all the chores in the home, even if they also have a job, which is usually the case."
"All right, he might be intelligent, but that doesn't mean he's not a grade A, dumbass," Lynnette conceded.
"I won't disagree," Diana sighed again. "Still, my point is that your brother's intelligence could very well have come from your father's side of the family."
"Personally, I think it's a combination of your intelligence and his father's," Michelle spoke up. "Both you and the Senior Reid are intelligent, even if the latter is an asshole for abandoning his family. Spencer after all, is a combination of your genes and his father's and sometimes genetics will create someone who is extraordinary when the genes combine in just the right way, which is what I believed happened in Spencer's case."
"Well, no matter how it happened he is still one of the most intelligent and extraordinary men I know, only without the ego that often goes along with being super smart," Lynnette said, "That he happens to be, my brother makes me prouder than I can say. Sure, Spencer has his hangups, which are a bit worse than most other peoples, but still, he's a good man."
Michael kept one ear on the conversation as he drove to Rubio's and soon he was parking out front so the three women could emerge from the vehicle.
"You know, I hope they have a table free, as we probably should've called ahead, as they're usually very busy," Lynnette said looking upset, as it hadn't occurred to her to do that.
"This also isn't one of the prime mealtimes, so we should be able to get a table relatively quickly," Michelle said. "The lunch rush should be over, so this is the perfect time to have us a long, leisurely meal."
"You're right," Lynnette agreed, as the women hit the front door, and Diana held it open for Michelle and her daughter since it was one of the few that was unpowered.
"Table for three?" asked the maître D, as the three women entered the restaurant. "Oh yes, it's very nice to see you again, Miss Rossi," The maître D added, recognizing Michelle.
"It's actually Reid now Antonio," Michelle told him with a blazing smile.
"Oh yes, I had heard about your marriage so congratulations from me and the staff here at Rubio's. We hope you and your new husband are very happy together for decades to come."
"Thank you, Antonio that is so kind of you," Michelle told him. "This is my new mother-in-law Lynnette and she's been here a few times with my father and this is Lynnette's mother Diana Reid. Now, if you have a table for three somewhere out of the way, if possible, where we can people watch I would appreciate it very much, Antonio. Lynnette here is starving, as she's pregnant."
Michelle added the last word in a whisper, and Antonio nodded in understanding. Michelle subtly slipped him a $50 bill, which Antonio knew meant to get them a table as soon as possible.
"If you wait over there, it shouldn't be long as you got here after the lunch rush," Antonio said, pointing at a bench that was placed against the wall, not far from the Maître D's station.
The three women did as instructed and sat on the bench, which was more comfortable than most restaurants had for customers to sit on while their table was being prepared. The bench actually came equipped with red cushions, which were very comfy, and so the ladies didn't mind the wait so much, though Lynnette kept rubbing her stomach and promising the baby that they would be getting fed soon.
It was only 15 minutes later than their names were called as their table was ready. All three women rose and immediately headed for the waitress that was waiting for them, so she could lead them to their table.

~~~Dave and Lynnette~~~