Beth looked at Suzy in surprise and admiration. “Wow, you have really thought this out, haven’t you? You’re willing to sacrifice your own sister to make your life easier. I can’t even go to the kitchen and drink with you, so what exactly am I getting out of this?”
“It’s called taking one for the team—and you are the only one in a position to do it. They already know I’m living in sin with Gray and that we are getting married. They don’t know that their sweet little Bethie is living in sin with Gray’s brother and that she is knocked up. Come on, just think of the entertainment value here.”
Beth shook her head, laughing at Suzy’s logic. “So while I am shocking my parents into speechlessness, what are Nick’s parents doing? Don’t you think they might have some kind of reaction over the news, too?”
“Well, I don’t think they will be surprised, do you? I mean it’s not like Nick is a choirboy or anything. They probably expected a grandchild from him long before now. I’m sure they will just be thrilled that you aren’t paid by the hour or something.”
Groaning, Beth said, “You are terrible. If you weren’t my sister, I would be terrified of you.” As they were both laughing, Claire walked in and plopped in the other seat.
“Ahhh, it’s great to see some people that don’t need diaper changes.”
“Hey, I hope that never happens, but if it does, it’s nice to know that you will take care of it,” Suzy said, smiling.
Claire turned toward Beth and asked, “So since Nick survived the babysitting the other night, does that mean you’re going to give him a chance to do the family thing?”
With a sigh, Beth said, “I don’t know. I still feel like he’s going to cut and run when things get serious. I just don’t know how else to test that theory, short of throwing him out.”
“Hmm,” Claire said. “Let me think a minute.”
“No need to think, I’ve got it,” Suzy announced with an evil smile. “It’s time to commence Operation Clinger.”
With a wary look, Beth asked, “Operation what?”
“Operation Clinger. It’s time to see if Nick can handle having a noose around his neck. So far, Nick has mostly been coming and going as he wants so it’s time to give him a glimpse into the future. You may not be a clingy woman, but fatherhood will certainly put some demands on him. Let’s give him an early preview and see how he handles it.”
Intrigued despite herself, Beth asked, “So how would we do that?”
Claire jumped to her feet in excitement. “You will be the baby or babies, Beth!”
“I will? You two are starting to scare me.”
“It’s time that you became clingy. All of the freedom he takes for granted needs to suddenly become a lot more difficult. You need to be waiting at the door when he comes home and hanging on his sleeve when he leaves. He shouldn’t be able to walk more than a few feet without tripping over you. His swinging single days are over. Let’s see if he is ready to say good-bye to them. If he can survive it for even a few weeks without running like hell, then he might be a keeper.”
“I . . . I don’t know if I can do it. I like my space just as much as he does.”
“Well, if you don’t think you can pull that off, I can let you babysit Chrissy every evening for a few weeks to see if that does it,” Claire offered.
“Um . . . no, that’s okay. I think I can do clingy,” Beth quickly added.
“Okay, get started tonight and let us know how it goes tomorrow. Boy, I wish I could see his face,” Suzy said, and laughed.
Chapter Seventeen
Beth almost laughed aloud when Nick slowly walked through the doorway that evening. He approached her with a wary expression. She had intentionally avoided him all day, knowing it would keep him on edge. Part of her thought she wasn’t being fair to him, but then she remembered the babies she was carrying and how devastating it would be for all of them if he decided he didn’t want to be involved later on. Nick was a good guy, but sometimes good guys hit the road when things got tough.