“You’re what?” he said, not moving from his spot, his eyes wide.
“Pregnant.”
There was only a moment of silence, but it felt like eternity. He looked around the room like he was trying to center himself, to convince himself that he was, in fact, where he thought he was. His jaw slacked open and bobbed there for a moment like words were trying to come out. Then his gaze returned to me, and he rushed over, shocking me in his sudden movement, and wrapped me up in a deep embrace.
My heart melted when his arms pulled me into his chest. All the worry, all the anxiety began to melt away as he nearly vibrated with excitement. I couldn’t help but let a small smile cross my face, a tear dropping from the corner of my eye where it must have been waiting just in case. I could taste the salty bitterness of it as it slid into the corner of my upturned lips.
“When did you find out?” Tyler said, pushing me to arm’s length and staring deep into my eyes. The excitement in his voice was palpable, and a big, wide grin stretched from ear to ear.
“The night I went over to Melissa’s,” I said. “I found out when I was over there.”
“Why didn’t you say something sooner?” he asked, and I cringed. He could be angry with me, even if he was happy about me being pregnant. I couldn’t blame him for being upset about not knowing.
“I came to tell you,” I explained. “But Nick was here, and I just couldn’t.”
“Oh, right, that makes sense,” he said. “The drink!”
“What?”
“At the bar!” he exclaimed. “That’s why you didn’t want it. I thought you were just upset at me for some reason, but you didn’t want to drink because you were pregnant!”
“Yes,” I said, laughing at his enthusiasm and goofiness at figuring out why I didn’t want his cocktail.
“I never would have tried to serve you if I had known,” he said, shaking his head.
“I know,” I said. “Are you mad at me?”
There it was. The big question, and the only one that mattered at that moment. He looked at me almost unbelievingly and shook his head.
“No, not at all,” he said. “I understand why you would want to wait. Nick can be a challenge at the best of times, and how he’s reacted to the two of us even dating would be enough to convince anyone not to mention a baby.”
I curled back into his arms for a moment and clawed at his back until I had handfuls of his flannel shirt. I took in the smell of him, my heart leaping in happiness.
“I had been so afraid of how you would react.”
“You shouldn’t have been,” he said as he rubbed my back.
“But we never talked about children,” I started.
“I love kids,” he interrupted, pushing me out to arm’s length again. His eyes were sparkling with what looked like unrestrained joy. “I have always wanted to be a dad.”
“Really?” I asked.
“I have always wanted to have a kid.” He grinned, and I felt my heart soaring. “Or more.”
I laughed, tears streaming down my face. “Let’s just get through this one first,” I said.
He pulled me back in for another deep hug, and we laughed and held each other.
“Okay,” he said. “One at a time, I guess.”
“Yes,” I said, pulling his shirt to make him as close to me as I could. “One at a time. For now.”
31
Tyler
I was already resigned to the fact that working was going to be insanely difficult. Being around my brothers and not saying anything was going to be torture, that I knew. But the level of excitement, and the anguish of not spilling the beans and reveling in sharing the news, was way worse than I anticipated. My brothers had noticed my good mood, mentioning it on occasion through the day, but I had kept my mouth shut as to why. Most of them just assumed I got laid that morning and made more than one joke about it.
But telling people was something Becca and I needed to make a decision about together. Especially since I didn’t know if she wanted anyone else besides us and Melissa to know just yet. I understood the need for her to tell her family first, since they had been more resistant to her even beginning a relationship. Yet, while I knew all that, and agreed wholeheartedly with it, it didn’t make not telling my brothers any easier.
My good mood extended all the way through the lunch rush, and as much as I was looking forward to a night at home, I felt like I could bounce through the entire day and close the bar down and still be energetic and happy. It was infectious. Even my brothers began to get sillier and goofier, and the energy in the bar was positive and fun.