I opened my eyes and was greeted with a big pink tongue. I winced and then realized it was a puppy’s tongue. I reached forward and grabbed the big yellow fluff ball and saw my husband sitting on the edge of the bed, a huge smile on his handsome face. The puppy was a golden retriever, maybe about six or eight weeks old, and he was furiously licking the air and whining while I held him at arm’s length. He had a big pink bow around his neck.
“Oh my gooooodddd!” I squished the puppy against me, “Tommy!”
“Like him?”
“I love him! I love you!” I put the pup down and threw myself at Tommy.
“Follow me.” He backed off the bed, putting me on my feet.
I scooped up my puppy and followed him downstairs and out the front door. Our house was similar to his father’s house. An older large Tudor style home and it had two big gates out front, which Tommy liked for security reasons. I liked it because the place had character. Big rooms, architectural details. Gorgeous gardens. Apparently I was a bit of a green thumb. I’d been spending time tending the flowerbeds and really enjoying it. Tommy said we’d see what was what and maybe we’d buy it.
Out front was a brand new metallic orange jeep. It had a big black bow across the hood.
“What?” I stared at it. I put the dog down. He went to a tree and lifted his leg and peed, “Good boy, Marley!” I said and leaned over and patted his head.
“Marley?” Tommy asked.
“Of course. What else could it be?” I replied, staring at the jeep.
“Is that for me?”
“It is. It comes w
ith driving lessons so you can finish your license.”
“Really?”
“Really,” he replied and put his arms around me, “Time to start livin’, baby girl. I’ll be a nervous wreck for the first bit so be patient with me, okay? And go slow. Don’t take off every five minutes or I’ll have to drag you home and tie you to the bed. Alrighty?”
“Alrighty.” I put my arms around his neck, “I love you. I need to run to the store now, actually. Do you mind if I dash out?”
“Uh…” he looked a bit flipped out, “you don’t even have your full license yet.”
“It’s just the drug store around the corner,” I said, “It’s like two minutes.”
“What do you need at the drugstore? Maybe me and Marley will just tag along.”
I smiled, took a big breath, and then I said, “I need to stop and buy a pregnancy test. I’m a week late.”
His eyes bulged.
“I did the math and my birth control implant has been in now for over 3 years so it’s possible it’s stopped working.”
His eyes bulged some more.
“Are you okay?” I reached for him. He grabbed me and squeezed and swung me around. He said nothing but his eyes were filled with wet. He reached into his pocket and handed me the keys and then whistled, “Marley, come. We need to go to the drugstore. And then maybe the cigar store.”
I opened the door to my new jeep and turned the ignition while my husband put our puppy in the back seat.
Tommy
While Tia was in the washroom doing the pregnancy test I got a text from Ben Goldberg. He wants me and Dare at the grand opening of Fete in Vegas. We own 34%, Ben owns 34%, John Lewis owns the rest. It’s happening a week before Christmas, two weeks after the Kruna partner summit, which got rescheduled due to Gan Chen’s injuries.
I replied to say I’d be there and I paced, waiting for my wife to come out and tell me whether or not we were going to be parents. Me, a father. The idea of sharing Tia with anyone else doesn’t sit well. But the idea of being a father, being responsible for molding a kid into the kind of person he’s gonna become? That’s fucking huge. Am I really ready for that shit? I’m still trying to keep my head together after the events of the last few months. And there are going to be some rocky months ahead what with the Kruna bullshit. But the idea of her carrying my baby? The idea that our love created life? It’s fucking beautiful.
As I’m pacing I see the pup has something. I lean over. Shit, Tia’s not gonna be happy. The dog has chewed one of her favorite pairs of red-soled heels. I grab the shoe from the dog, “No. Bad!” I tell him and hear the bathroom door open. She’s standing there, flushed, smiling, holding the stick.
“It’s positive,” she says, “It’s supposed to take two minutes but the second I peed on it, it went positive. Do you think it’s right?”