Tallulah leans her head against my shoulder. "I want to stay with you."
"You're my little girl, and I'll always protect you."
Tallulah grins, but she's freaked now. Zombie takes his fucking salad and leaves. I figure Tallulah will relax. Yet even while we eat pizza, she clings to me. Bebe notices this fact as soon as she walks in.
"What happened?"
"Nothing much."
Tallulah climbs into her mother's arms and studies me. Suspecting she'll snitch me out, I decide to beat her to the punch.
"Zombie came around being creepy, so I told him to fuck off. Tallulah got scared because he's a freak. The end."
Bebe frowns, wanting more drama out of this moment. I decide to give it to her since Zombie knows no boundaries.
"If you ever see him coming," I whisper to her, "and I'm not around, you run. Don't play cool or try to fight him like you did Creepy Spencer. The guy carves up women. He's a monster, so just run, okay?"
Based on her expression, I know Bebe gets it. A good girl from another world might shrug off Zombie with his goofy smile. Bebe knows men like him though. Understanding the lies they tell, she's also seen how quickly they can turn violent.
One day, Tallulah will need to understand too.
42
Bebe
Who Wants a Tom?
Pax and I decide I should be a fulltime mom and wife. Not only will I need to leave town soon, but also Tallulah needs more stability. On my first day home after quitting my cleaning job, I spend hours scrubbing the house for the upcoming holidays. Shay laughs when I tell her this fact. In fact, she laughs so hard and long that I hang up on her. Like a bitch, she calls me right back while still laughing. I sense being a stay-at-home mom will involve more silly time with Shay.
When they return from walking Folgers, Pax and Tallulah wear big smiles. They've clearly been making plans again. Grinning, I set out dinner and wait to hear what they have in mind.
Tallulah sits at the table, looking over the casserole. Her expression makes me feel like a world-renowned chef. She smiles at me then glances at Pax strutting into the kitchen. Oh, he's got something planned.
"We were talking," Pax says, wrapping me in his arms, "about how much work it takes to get Tallulah's hair into braids and ponytails. She really doesn't like having her hair pulled. I mentioned how you wanted to get her the short haircut. You know, the Tom thing."
"It's called a bob," I say, laughing.
"Yeah, a bob. So she wants a haircut to make it easier for you to keep it pretty. Girls like being pretty, don't they, Tallulah?"
My smiling daughter nods. "Tell Mom the other thing."
Pax smiles at Tallulah then kneels down in front of me. He kisses my stomach before staring up at me and setting my entire body crazy with need.
"Tallulah wants a little brother or sister, so we'll need to start working on that."
"Now?"
"No," Pax says, snuggling my stomach. "We'll do it March 13."
"Why then?"
"It'll be Friday the 13th. Feels lucky."
Tallulah laughs at an inside joke. Grinning, I try not to give away how overheated Pax has my body.
"If we have a boy, I want to name him Roy," he says.
"Why?"
"Roy Reed sound badass."
"Roy though? It's an old F U C K I N G man's name."
Pax glances at Tallulah. "She's spelling again."
"Dad doesn't like spelling," Tallulah tells me.
I'm so busy melting at how she's calling him Dad that I nearly miss Pax's fingers inching up my shirt. My body suddenly goes into overdrive at the feel of his lips on my belly button.
"I thought of lots of names that start with 'R,' but none work."
"What about Randy?" I ask, wiggling under his touch.
"Randy Reed sounds like a nerd."
"Rick Reed."
"Perv."
"Roddy."
"Ah, a wrestling reference. Nice, but no on the name."
"I'll think about Roy," I mumble as he sucks at my waist. "Now get off me, so I can get our plates ready."
Pax stands up and kisses my cheek. "March 13th will make it a winter baby. Tallulah and I did the math. Winters are boring, so a baby would make shit fun."
"Uh, I'd be pregnant through the summer."
Pax leans into my ear and whispers, "Just thinking of you with one of those bumps is giving me a bump in the pants."
"What poetry," I tease, wiggling away. "March is months away, so I'll have lots of time to think about it."
"I'll do that Lamaze thing with you," Pax says, pouring drinks for us. "Tallulah and I will change diapers. We don't mind poop, do we, kid?"
Laughing, she bounces in her seat. "Thank you," she adds when I set a plate in front of her.
"My little girl has great manners," Pax announces. "I'm taking credit for that."
I laugh at his sincerity. "When can we get the haircut?"
"Tomorrow," Pax says then looks at a nodding Tallulah. "She'll have a new haircut for Christmas and her big birthday."
The mention of the upcoming holidays sends Tallulah into giggles. Joining them at the table, I eat a few bites of food before the logical part of my brain kicks in.
"Babies are a lot of work."