Turbulence

“Did you ever tell your parents?”

“Never.”

I raised an eyebrow at the man standing across from me. “Is there a reason for that?”

“I guess I always expected you to be wrong, you know? I thought you would come back within a few months, walk into my apartment and say ‘just kidding, I’m not pregnant’.”

“And when it never happened?”

“I never thought to tell them. What about you? How does your dad feel about having a grandson?”

I felt my cheeks change color. “They don’t know.”

“You didn’t tell your parents you were having a baby?”

“Do not make me feel guilty, Patrick. They will find out, eventually.”

“When do you plan on telling them?”

“In November at Davina’s wedding, that’s when I will see them next.”

“You’re going to show up at your sister’s wedding with Cameron and say what? ‘Surprise! This is my son, your grandson. His name is Cameron and he’s a year old.’ Something tells me they won’t appreciate that.”

“They aren’t going to appreciate any of it. Do you know how nerve wracking it is to have a father like mine? He expects me to be perfect, but you’ve met him so you know that. When I found out about Cameron, I wasn’t about to shatter his image of me.”

“But you’re willing to do it at your sister’s wedding?”

“Do I have any other choice? Why not make it as bad as it can be? I’ll go from Daddy’s little princess to the daughter who had a child out of wedlock, whose boyfriend left when he found out, and who crashed her sister’s big day.”

“They don’t have to know I left.”

“Patrick, stop.”

“Come on, Cee. Leaving was a mistake, you and I both know that, but it happened. No one said you had to tell your parents the truth all at once. I mean, you’ve already kept their grandson from them.”

“They’re going to ask about you and wonder why you aren’t there with me. They expect you to be my plus one.”

“Then, I’ll go.”

“You can’t keep inviting yourself to things, Patrick. Besides, I’m almost certain you have a game that night.”

“Why do you think that?”

Again, my cheeks turned rose colored. “I asked Jonny if he would come with me.”

“Really, Cee? Are you trying to replace me with him?”

“Patrick, I’m not replacing anyone. You and I had split and Jonny was the constant in my life when Davina told me I had to bring someone with me.”

“And you asked Tazer.”

“But, I declined.”

Patrick and I turned to the doorway where Jonathan was standing.

“I know my boundaries, Kaner.”

“Do you?” Patrick raised an eyebrow. “’Cause I’m pretty sure you crossed some kind of boundaries when you started looking after my son and my girlfriend.”

“Ex,” I put in, quietly.

“What?” Patrick’s eyes shot to me.

“Ex-girlfriend, Patrick, I’m your ex-girlfriend.”

“Whatever, that’s not the point.”

“Then what is the point, Patrick?”

“Jonathan should have said something.”

“About what?” Jonathan asked.

“Carey and Cameron.”

“It wasn’t my place.”

“Wasn’t your place? Then whose place was it, Jonathan? Because, honestly, I thought you were my friend.”

“Seriously, Patrick? It’s not like I’m sleeping with her. All I’ve been doing is babysitting and helping her out with whatever she needs. I’m just trying to be a friend to both of you.”

“Not sleeping with her? Do you really expect me to believe that? Cam isn’t even here on a regular basis, so who’s to say that you two aren’t spending every night together?”

“Stop, both of you.” I looked from Jonathan to Patrick. “This is exactly why I was trying to keep this quiet. I knew you two would start fighting and that’s the last thing you and the team need.”

“Is that why you told Bolly?” Jonathan’s eyes bore into the side of my head as I turned away.

“You told Bolland?” Patrick’s eyes nearly fell out of his skull. “And not just told him, but before you said anything to me.”

I opened my mouth to reply, but wasn’t sure what to say. The decision to tell David was one I had made several months ago, but never acted on until recently. It was bad enough that Jonathan wasn’t less than pleased with my choice, but he had let Patrick in on it.

“Thank you, Jonathan,” I spat, giving him a deadly look. “Yes, I told David everything, from our break up to having Cameron. It doesn’t matter when I told him. He’s an amazing friend and he deserved to know what happened to me and why I was avoiding you.” My eyes settled on Patrick’s fiery blue ones. “I don’t care what your opinion is because it’s been done.”

“Come on, Cee, do you really think-”

“Whatever you’re going to say, Patrick, just stop,” I interrupted. “If this continues on my decision to tell David, I’m leaving. You came here to talk about Cameron, not your teammates.”

“Apparently, my teammates have a lot to do with my son.”