The crafty smile on Mom’s face made it abundantly clear that she’d somehow gotten wind of the news.
Veronica!There was only one person who could’ve told her.
Mom clutched her purse eagerly, the excited expression on her face making her seem like she might burst where she stood.
I had to get her out of there, and fast. A quick check of my watch revealed that it was a little after four. I always made sure to keep the last hour of work open for whatever little things might come up. In this case, I was going to need to use that free time to get Mom away from my staff before she spilled the beans about Maddie.
“Nothing,” I said, keeping my voice nice and calm. “Mom, why don’t I take the rest of the day off and we can discuss whatever’s on your mind outside, hm?”
Mom pursed her lips hard, the eagerness on her face like nothing I'd ever seen before.
“Sure, sure. Of course.”
I turned to Olivia. “For the next hour, send any of my calls to my cell. I’ll see you tomorrow.”
Disappointment flashed on her face. She wasn’t happy at all to be kept out of the loop.
“Oh, fine. Have a good day Dr. V. and you, too, Karen.”
Relief washed over me as we stepped out into the hallway, and then to the elevator. Thankfully, we were the only people inside, because Mom wasn’t going to be able to hold it in any longer.
“You’re a father!” Mom dropped her purse the instant the doors shut, throwing her arms around my shoulders and pulling me into a tight hug. “You’re afather!”
“Alright, alright.” I hugged her back, then let her go. “You know, when I told Veronica about this, I was very clear to point out that I didn’t know for sure. What if I would’ve found out that shewasn'tmine?”
“That’s not the case, though, is it?” Mom said with an eager grin. “And I had a feeling. Momsalwayshave feelings.” She let out a squeal, doing a little dance with her hands curled up into fists around her head. “I can’t believe it! I really, really can’t believe that my little boy is finally a dad!”
“I’m not happy about this, you know,” I said as the elevator went down. “This was supposed to be top-secret stuff until I’d found out for sure.”
“Oh, I'm sure you had your little plans. You’re just like your father, which means that you probably have some list at home written in very neat handwriting of all the things you need to do before you share news. Like I have time for any of that when there’s a little girl out there waiting for me to dote on her.”
“You’re going to have to wait a little longer,” I said, leading Mom through the lobby of the downtown office building where my practice was located. “Because Piper and I haven’t even started talking about how this is all going to shake out.”
“Piper? That’s her name? Oh, that’s so cute.”
I placed my hand on the small of Mom’s back, opening one of the tall, glass doors that led out onto the bustling street. Relief washed over me as soon as we were outside, away from the gossip-hungry staff.
“Mom, I love you, but do I really need to tell you that it’s not OK to barge into my office and spill what might possibly be the biggest news of my life?”
“Oh, I wasn’t going tosayanything.”
“You were thirty seconds, tops, away from telling Olivia at the front desk.”
“I was teasing. There’s a huge difference, you know.”
“You wanted to tell her, that’s for damn sure.”
“Maybe I did! Come on, Val, this is huge news!”
I stepped aside, leaning against the building. The sky was beginning to darken, appearing to promise summer showers.
“Alright. Is that all you came here for?”
Mom narrowed her brow and shook her head. “Now, now, is that any way to talk to the grandmother of your little girl? I wanted to share in the happiness with you, Val! Is that so wrong?” Before I had a chance to respond, she raised her finger. “Oh! I would like you to come out to dinner with your father and me tonight. You know, since you skipped out on dinner last night.”
“There was a reason for that, you know. I had dinner last night with Piper.”
“Yes, I know. But while I can keep a secret from those cute girls at your office, there’s no way I’m going to be able to hide it from your father, nor should I. He has a right to know, and if you don’t want to break the news to him tonight, I'm going to tell him.”
