I knew that a birthmark didn’t prove paternity, but Drew sure did, and I was a little more hopeful.
The fifteen hour delivery was nothing compared to waiting on that stupid test. My visitors all left except, Dawson, Lauren and of course Drew. My mom made me promise her that I would call as soon as we found out. She had gone home with Celeste and Alicia because she didn’t want to stay in our home alone for the first time. I think she was a little intimidated by it.
Finally at exactly ten twenty one, a man that I hadn’t seen before entered with a clipboard. My heart sank. Finally, it was over. One way or another it was finally going to be out.
The man stood beside me with Drew on the other side. Drew took my hand as the man begun to explain the results.
I looked down the chart with ten lines, all saying marker 1 through 10 with numbers that I didn’t understand.
I didn’t care. I just wanted the results.
“Based on the testing results obtained from analyses of the DNA, the probability of Drew Kelley being the father is 99.99%.”
“It’s Drew?!?” I asked. I was shocked. I had already set myself up for the bad news.
“Yes!” Drew yelled.
“You’re sure?” I had to ask.
He flipped the page and showed me the results saying that Dawson had a 0% chance of being the father.
That was a pretty low chance.
Drew kissed me and then his sleeping baby in my arms. His sleeping baby. I was ecstatic and sad at the same time. I knew that set it in stone and my life in Maine was over. I would sell the house and probably never visit there again.
Drew of course had to drag the technician out to Dawson. He didn’t want him there, and wanted him to know that he was free to go with no further contact needed.
I didn’t see Dawson again. He left without so much as a goodbye. I knew we had already done that. I still felt a little hurt that he didn’t see me before he left. Lauren did come in and say goodbye with a hug. She too knew that we probably wouldn’t stay friends. She hugged me with tears in her eyes.
I listened to Drew making the calls with the good news. I was suddenly exhausted. I had been up since five in the morning and endured a hell of a long labor. I had been running on adrenalin all day, waiting for the results. I couldn’t have slept had I tried.
The last thing that I remembered was Drew on the phone with my mom. I was out of it.
I didn’t wake again until around three in the morning. I heard Nicholas cry and opened my eyes to see Drew feeding him a bottle in a nearby chair. I smiled and watched him talk and hum to his baby. He was so proud.
There wasn’t an ounce of doubt left in me about the kind of father he would be. He was so in love with that little man.
Epilogue
I would have never in a million years dreamed that Drew would be so hands on with our new baby. He woke to midnight feedings, diaper changes and a postpartum crying wife. I think I had more of an adjustment melt down than he did. It took almost three weeks before I was done with the crying sprees for no apparent reason.
Alicia spent a lot of time at the house with me.
Celeste was there so much it was the only way they got to spend any time together. She was my new Lauren, and I loved her.
Drew made Alicia and Vincent come and spend the night with me five weeks after being home. It was the first time that he had to leave since Nicholas was born.
We had argued more than once about a nanny. I didn’t want a nanny. Just because I was rich didn’t mean that I was going to pay someone to raise my son.
I’m not sure how he got any work done at all. He called at least five times a day. He had to talk to Nick every one of those times. It was cute, but annoying as hell.
Alicia and I had a good time though and after Nick, and Vincent was down for the night we sat by the pool and drank a couple of beers, well, I did anyway. She had hot tea. I was so happy that it was her pregnant and not me. I wouldn’t be going through that again anytime soon.
I could have consumed more had Drew been there to take care of Nick. Alicia tried to tell me that she would take care of him, but I quit after two. The alcohol wasn’t doing anything for my sex life anyway. I hadn’t had sex in over two months, and damnit did I ever want it. I had one more week to go, and I couldn’t wait.
We called it a night when Nicholas demanded my attention through the baby monitor.
I changed him, talking to him as I did. He was so handsome, and he no doubt looked like his daddy now. I loved the little cooing noises that he made and the way that he stretched his little arms and legs like a cat. I knew his daddy was watching and as soon as I sat in the rocking chair with him he would be calling. It had become his routine if he wasn’t home at bedtime.
I had just gotten the bottle in his mouth when my cellphone rang. I smiled, answering it.
“You are the hottest little mama on earth,” Drew said.
“Do you know how hard it is to hold the phone, your son and his bottle at the same time?” I asked, teasing.