Suddenly a Bride (25 page)

“That ultrasound will show you a lot more than this one can, and it’ll give us a better idea of what due
date we’re looking at,” she
concluded.

“When will this ultrasound be?” he asked, anticipating another opportunity to see his child.

“Whene
ver the tech can do it,” she
replied with a smile before she looked at Caitlyn.  “I also need you to run to the lab and go through a series of blood tests.”

“Blood tests?” Ch
ris asked, surprised this was
part of the process.

“Yeah.  Each time a woman is pregnant, they make her go through a lot of blood tests to make sure everything looks good.”

His eyebrows furrowed.  “But the baby is alright, isn’t he?”

“The baby looks fine.  These tests are routine.”

Feeling easier about that, he nodded.

Caitlyn sat up on the table and answered a few questions about how she was feeling during the pregnancy, and then the doctor told them to make an appointment in another month so they left.

On their way out, Caitlyn checked her watch.  “I’ll get the blood work done next week.  Right now I
need to get something to eat.  I don’t feel so bad eating all the time now that I see how big our baby is.”

He put his arm around her shoulders and drew her close.  “That was amazing, wasn’t it?  It’s too bad we can’t have one of those machines to watch the baby all the time.”

She laughed and patted him on the chest.  “It was fun.”

“You’re looking forward to the baby?”

“Yes, and it’s nice that I’m in the second trimester already.  That means I skipped the morning sickness and exhaustion and went straight to the good stuff.  Soon I should feel the baby kick.”

“Really?  What does that feel like?”

She shrugged.  “I haven’t felt it before so I don’t know, but when I start noticing the baby moving, I’ll let you know.”

Content, he kissed her cheek as they left the building.

Chapter Nineteen

T
he next afternoon
, Chris
pulled into the parking lot in his sedan and checked the address on the p
iece of paper to be sure he drove
to the right place.  He glanced at the large hotel that stood on the beach.  Sure enough, he was at the right place.  Getting out of the car, he tucked his dark blue shirt into his khaki pants and headed on into the building.  He didn’t miss the jeans and t-shirts and was glad Caitlyn really didn’t care if he wore them or not.  Why Randy insisted on wearing them, he didn’t know, and now that he knew Caitlyn loved him for him, he didn’t care.

As soon as he entered the lobby, a woman called out to him, and he stopped and turned toward the
sofa in the center of the large room.  “Hi, Mrs. Rogers,” he greeted her mother who motioned for him to follow her.  “Am I late?”

“No.  But I wanted to show you w
h
ere the ceremony will be,” she said as she strode through the lobby and down a hall.

He took in
the chandeliers and expensive furnishings.  “This is a fancy hotel.”

“It’s where Lexie will be marrying the doctor.  His family owns this hotel chain, so I got a nice discount for your wedding.”

“Oh, okay.”

“Yes, her father and I are proud she’s marrying so well.”

He wanted to ask if she approved of him marrying Caitlyn but then decided he already knew the answer to that one.  She wasn’t.  When she talked about the doctor, there was a reverent tone in her voice that she never used with him, but then she hadn’t used it when she mentioned Randy either so he could live with it.  He didn’t care what her mother thought of him.  All that mattered was what Caitlyn thought.

“I think
I should tell Caitlyn about the wedding,” he said as they neared the veranda.

She stopped and turned to him.

He almost ran into her.  “What?  Did I say something wrong?”

“Chris.” She shot him a scolding look before she chuckled.  “The whole point of this wedding is to surprise her. 
It’s my wedding gift.  Are you saying you don’t approve of my gift?”

How did she deduct that?  “No, of course not.  I think this is a lovely gesture you’re making.”

“But…?”

Shrugging, he said, “I thought Caitlyn might like to dress up for the occasion.  I’m wearing a tuxedo.  Shouldn’t she wear
something equally as nice?”

“She will be.  I’m getting her wedding dress made as we speak.”

“But what if she doesn’t like it?”

“What’s not to like about a wedding dress?  They’re all beautiful gowns, and—” she patted his arm—“I have excellent taste.  I know how to pick a gown that will accentuate Caitlyn’s best features.  Do you know what she married Randy in?  A white dress she bought from a department store.” She shivered.  “Can you believe that?  I nearly died.”

“That was a nice dress,” he said, recalling the picture he’d
seen of Caitlyn and Randy at the Rogers’ home.

“If you don’t mind looking like you shopped at a dollar store for your clothes, it is.  But this time, we’re doing things right.  You might not be a doctor, but you dress much better than Randy.  That’s a good thing.”
He considered pressing the issue about Caitlyn’s wedding dress, but her mother continued, “Are you a woman, Chris?”

Thinking that was a ridiculous question, he said, “No.  Can’t you tell I’m a man?”

Her eyes widened for a moment before she snickered.  “Cute comeback.  What I’m getting at is that I know a woman’s mind.
  Believe me, we’re complicated creatures.”

“I believe that.”

“Good.  And while women are complicated, men
are simple.  As long as their
stomachs are full and they have sex, they’re happy.”

“That’s not entirely true.  We need more than that to be fulfilled.”

She laughed and shook her head.  “You look like you actually believe that, but I’ve been married for thirty-nine years.  I know all about men.”

“Well, I’m a man, so I know how a man thinks.”

Looking irritated, she rolled her eyes.  “Whatever.  My point is that it’s wrong to give away a surprise.  A surprise isn’t a surprise unless the person being surprised
is surprised.  Understand?  Now
come on.  Everyone is here and waiting for you.  We need to get the rehearsal underway.”

He weighed the pros and cons of arguing with her
and finally decided it wasn’t worth ruining what he and Caitlyn had developed so he followed her out the door and stepped onto the veranda.  Even if he didn’t care much for Mrs. Rogers, he refused to let her spoil his good day.  Caitlyn said she loved him, and that was more important than bickering over whether or not Caitlyn should pick out her own dress or be surprised at the wedding.

Once they were outside,
Mrs. Rogers asked, “Will your parents or anyone from your side be coming?”

His parents had been a sperm and a cloned egg, so he opted not to comment regarding that.  They didn’t have parents raise children like they did here on Earth.  He was created and born in the lab with the other males on his planet, and they were raised by teachers who instructed them in their lessons.  The notion that he’d get a chance to raise his child with Caitlyn was much
more exciting than her mother c
ould fathom, despite her belief she knew everythi
ng
.

“Chris?” her mother said, breaking him out of his thoughts.

Tu
rning to her, he replied, “Mark is the only one from my side.”

She frowned.  “You don’t have any family?”

“Caitlyn and our child is my family.”

For a moment, she stared at him, her jaw dropped and the color drained from her face, and he immediately picked up on his mistake.  Caitlyn hadn’t told her about the baby yet.

“It’s not what you think, Mrs. Rogers.  We were married before she got pregnant.”

She narrowed her eyes at him.  “And when is the joyous event supposed to occur?”

“Joyous event?”

“The birth!”

He shrugged.  “I don’t know
exactly.  It’s not like women o
n this w
orld are equipped to know what day they’ll give birth
.
  All they can do is estimate a due date.
”

Caitlyn’s mother put a hand on her hip and glared at him.  “Well, excuse us women for not being speci
fic enough for you.”

“It’s not your fault.  Science hasn’t progressed far enough yet.  I’m sure sooner or later, there will be tests created to know for sure.”

“Really?” Though she phrased it as a question, she looked doubtful.

“Yes, really,” he replied, starting to get upset with her.  “It’s possible to narrow it down to the exact date and time, and if
you weren’t so delayed in medical
progress, your question could be answered more easily.  As it is, you’ll have to do with a vague answer, which is ‘I don’t know’ exactly when the child will be born.”

She shook her head.  “I bet she’s further along than you’ll admit.  Amazing.  I thought I raised her better than to give it up before she got married.  No wonder she was too ashamed to tell me and her father when you two got married.  I hope she’
s not showing yet.  I can’t have you two embarrassing me in front of my family and friends.  You two really did get married, didn’t you?”

“Yes.” His face grew warm.  “I don’t care if you believe me or not, but we were married first.”

“Well, I have to get the minister so we can do it right.”

While her mom went to find the minister, Chris
had the urge to leave the whole thing.  He didn’t need to go through a ceremony on this planet to make the marriage legit.  The bonding was his planet’s way of getting married, and he saw nothing wrong with it.  At least the bonding was permanent, unlike the ceremonies o
n this world which could lead
to
the
divorce
s
Mark discussed with him.

He stood still for a moment and caught sight of
Mark lounging i
n one of the chairs by the pool
talking to Lexi
e.  Maybe Mark would know whether or not Caitlyn would like to go through with this ceremony and be surprised about it.  Mar
k
was, after all, collecting information from women, so
regardless of what Mrs. Rogers
claimed to know, he was sure Mark’s knowledge was sufficient.

***

M
a
rk took a sip of the wine and took another look at Lexie who had her
dark brown hair
pulled back into a ponytail.  She didn’t wear as much make up as some women on this planet did, but with her natural beauty, she didn’t need it.  “Your mother is going all out for your sister’s wedding, isn’t she?  I mean, I haven’t been to an actual wedding, but I’ve seen some movies where the couple gets married.”

Lexie shrugged from where she sat across from him at one of the tables covered by an umbrella.  “If you knew my mother, you would understand that this is normal for her.”

“She really goes all out, huh?”

“In everything.  She drives my sister nuts.”

He chuckled and tried not to let his gaze fall back to h
er
, but she was beautiful. 
Lexie was, by far, the most intriguing woman he’d come across.  As soon as he saw her at the rehearsal, he went over to her table and introduced himself.  He didn’t understand why the other men weren’t hovering around her, but their loss was his gain.

“Does your mother drive you nuts?” he asked.

She groaned but nodded.  “Don’t tell her I told you that.”

“My lips are sealed.” After he took another sip of his wine, he asked, “So, what do you do for a living?”

“Unofficially, I write romance novels.  Officially, I’m a hair dresser.”

“Unofficially?”