Best Thing In Town

"How does he know?" Audrey wondered, pacing back and forth in the kitchen. She looked at her grandma and scowled. "You called him, didn't you? Why would you go behind my back, gram? It was supposed to be my decision when I told him."

"And when was that going to be? When the baby was graduating from high school?"

"It crossed my mind." Audrey gave her grandma a cross look and placed her hand to her forehead as she pulled out a kitchen chair and sank down into it. "Oh God. Now what do I do?"

"Pray he does the right thing."

"And what's that? Comes here to sweep me off my feet and marry the mother of his unborn child?" Audrey shook her head. "I didn't do it with Dan. What makes you think I'll do it this time?"

"You didn't get a chance with Dan because he was killed. I know you would've married him."

Looking at her grandmother in the eye, she knew the older woman spoke the truth. She was more than ready to marry Dan. But he got sent away and then was killed and that chance was stolen from her. But she'd been fine for three years. Her grandma came off a little bitter at times from being scorned by grandpa, but that didn't mean Audrey had to become bitter while raising her children as a single mother. She could do it. Right?

Audrey looked away from her grandma and buried her face in her hands, letting out a sigh. "This is what I get for mixing my professional life with my personal life."

* * *

Two days later...

Audrey sat on the front porch, wearing her big parka-like coat, her skull cap, a scarf, mittens and was holding a mug of hot cocoa as the steam rose up and slowly fogged up her glasses. She watched Katarina trying to make a snowman with her grandma on the small patch of lawn as neighbors came out of their houses to shovel their driveways and sidewalks. A plow came thundering down the street, pushing the snow aside; the sound of his driving past scaring the hell out of Katarina who squealed and turned to look up at Audrey with wide, hazel eyes and a red nose that looked like it was going to run at any second.

When a yellow cab came rolling down the road, Audrey paid no attention as he drove by until she took note of it heading back toward the house in reverse and stopping dead in front of the house. Narrowing her eyes, Audrey craned her neck to see who was inside. Damn glare.

Slowly, the door swung open and her heart did a somersault. Mike stepped out and looked at her grandma and daughter first with a smile, as he held a small tote bag in his hand. She watched as his lips mouthed a hello to her grandma and Kat...and as his eyes drifted upward to the porch where she sat. He seemed to stop dead in his tracks as their eyes locked.

Oh God. She looked like shit. Oh God. What was he doing here? Oh God. She really looked like shit.

"Um, I guess I have the right house," he remarked with a smile. "Hi, I'm Mike Pritchard." He set down his tote bag in the snow and offered his hand to Audrey's grandma. "I take it you're Gloria."

As they shook hands, every bit of sound seemed to get drowned out by the thumping of her heart. She saw her grandma nodding and turning to look at her as Mike grinned down at Katarina, patting her head. Off the nod he got from Gloria, Mike began to walk up the small walkway and up the steps to the porch. Audrey stood, still holding her mug of hot cocoa in her gloved hands.

"What are you doing here?" she asked, warily.

"We need to talk. And I'm not risking a phone call where you can hang up on me. It has to be in person," he replied. "I needed to see you."

Audrey through a look to her grandma who shrugged then made a shooing motion with her hand. Nodding, Audrey nodded. "Fine. Um...you might as well come inside." She lead stepped to the front door and opened it, walking inside first and letting him follow her in. Her glasses immediately fogged up so she took them off as well as her hat, which left her hair slightly disheveled. She bit at her chapped lips and set her mug down on the coffee table as she pointed to his shoes. "Don't go any further until you take those off," she warned as she slipped off her snow boots and let them sit by the door.

Mike nodded, kicking off his boots and setting his tote down beside them. "Nice house."

"Thanks." Audrey unzipped her coat and took off her gloves as offered him a place to sit on the couch. Taking a seat beside each other, he folded his hands between his knees, leaning forward a bit.

"Uh...well, Merry Christmas," he began.

"Yeah, you too. Merry Christmas." Silence. Crickets would go insane with this silence. "So...what did you come all the way across the US of A to talk to me about?"

Mike gave her a look. "You know why I'm here." He gestured to the vase on top of the entertainment center that was full of the flowers he'd sent. "You got my message."

"Yeah, I did. Apparently my grandmother called you and spilled the beans."

He held her gaze when she met his eyes with her own. "Why weren't you going to tell me? Don't you think I deserved to know? I mean...you're pregnant...with my child."

"Our...our child," she corrected, biting her bottom lip. She slipped off her coat and grabbed either side if her scarf, holding it in her hands as she looked down at her lap. "I-I thought of telling you. I did. I just...I couldn't bring myself to. Not after the way we parted. Er...I parted, anyway. I thought it'd be better this way."

"How is it better? I told you I felt something for you, that I liked you. Audrey, I fell for you that night and you walked out. I've spent the last three months wondering about what I could've possibly done or said to make you stay. All I wanted was just a few more hours. Instead you gave me 90 days without you, wondering how you were, what you were doing, if you thought of me too. All along you were pregnant."

"I only found out two months ago."

"Okay, fine. Then two months ago you could've at least picked up the phone and said, 'Hey Mike, I think you left something in Buffalo,'" Mike bit out. "I may be upset that you weren't planning on telling me any time soon, but you have no idea how happy I am at the same time. I never thought I was going to be a dad again. I thought Estelle was it, and not that I'm unhappy having her in my life..."

"I understand," Audrey spoke. "And I'm sorry..."

"Audrey...you..." he sighed. "You don't have to be sorry." He unclasped his hands and moved his right one onto her knee. "I just wanna be a part of this. I deserve to be. It takes two to make a child and I wanna be there as it grows. I wanna do the lamaze classes and the doctor visits. Picking out names for a boy or girl. I wanna be a dad again."

When Audrey started to cry, Mike's eyes widened, worried he'd said something wrong. Scooting closer to her on the couch, he instinctively pulled her into his arms, into a hug and rubbed her back soothingly.

"It's okay..." he whispered, lamely.

Hunching slightly, Audrey let her head drop onto his shoulder as she held onto him, letting her tears roll down her cheeks.

"Thank you," she whispered back, through a sob. She reached her arms up and held onto him a bit tighter, and Mike gathered her body closer to his, more than happy to feel this woman against him once again. He pressed his lips to the side of her head and kissed the top of her ear.

"You're welcome." He smiled as he pulled her back from him and put his finger under her chin and lifted her head. He pushed her hair out of her face and placed both hands on either side of her face, cupping it gently as his smile spread to his eyes. "I'm gonna kiss the mother of my unborn child, now, okay?"

She let out a laugh and nodded as he moved in and pressed his lips against hers, kissing her in a way that made it seem as if he was making up for the three months he hadn't been with her.