Chapter 42: Forty Two

**Joel's POV**

After finally getting Jen cleaned and clothed, she grabbed herself a granola bar and we were out the door. We were running a little behind, but had just enough time to make it to the small clinic by the university hospital. I wasn't picky with her choice of doctor, but I did request that she not choose one in the same practice as the one Callie saw. I didn't need that stress and drama.

We were enjoying a soft rock ballad, allowing the minor chords to ease our nerves, when the unwelcome tune of my phone's ringtone interrupted, blasting through the car speakers.

Dr. Sutton.

"Fuck." I swore under my breath, my grip on the wheel tightening. Why the hell would he be calling? He said it would take a week for him to assemble the report and it had been three days.

Jen placed one hand on my thigh, rubbing gentle circles into my jeans as I answered.

"Doc."

"Hello, Joel. How're you doing this morning?" I knew he was being polite, but I was wary.

"Good so far. Just on our way to our first baby appointment. What's up?" I tried my best to sound casual and relaxed for Jen's sake, even though I was anything but.

"I see. Congratulations." I glanced over at Jen, who was watching me with cautious eyes, ready to offer support.

"Do you have news for me?" I prompted.

"As a matter of fact, I do. Chancellor Lawson has just contacted me. He would like to meet with you today, if possible." What?

"I thought it would take you longer to submit your report."

"Well, that's the thing. I haven't submitted it, just yet." Son of a bitch. I fucking knew it. Jen tensed beside me, her hand coming to her stomach as her eyes scoured my reaction.

"Somebody else reported me." I thought aloud, my chest tightening.

"I don't know that for sure. He wouldn't tell me why he needed to speak with you."

"What else could it be, Doc? Shit." Jen placed her hand over mine on the gearshift. "What time does he want me? I won't be available until this afternoon."

I pulled into the small parking lot outside of the clinic, the freshly poured asphalt hosting only ten spaces.

"Completely understandable, Joel. You take good care of her and continue putting her first. The meeting will be held in his office at one thirty." I forced a smile at his sentiment, because he was right. All I needed to do was focus on Jen. Jen and our baby. I turned up my hand to capture hers, lifting it to my lips for a kiss. She blushed adorably, smiling in return.

"Thanks for your support, Doc. I'll be there."

"We will be there." Jen added, making Dr. Sutton chuckle.

"Very well. I'll see you two later, then." The call disconnected, and I met her eyes.

"We?"

"Yes. We're doing this together, remember? Besides, I'm sure it'll be easier to convince them that whoever reported you is full of shit if I tell them directly, don't you think?" She smiled softly, squeezing onto my hand in reassurance.

"Fuck, I want to kiss you." I growled playfully, making her squirm in that sexy way she always did.

"Why don't you?" She asked, her big brown eyes challenging me. I popped open the car door.

"Because if I don't get you in there, you'll miss your appointment." She giggled, nodding in acceptance, before reaching for her own door handle. Once we rounded the car, she gripped my hand, and I led her up to the glass door. I held it open for her to enter first, but never surrendered her hand. I was a fucking mess, still, and wished I could smoke a whole damn pack of cigarettes to calm myself down, but Jen helped to curb those instincts somewhat.

A glass divider slid open at the reception window, revealing a middle aged woman with a name badge that read 'Stephanie.'

"Hello. Name?" Jen pulled both of us forward, and Stephanie's eyes widened a bit.

"Um, Jennifer Matthew's. Here for Dr. Williams." She answered. Stephanie's eyes shot back to the screen in front of her.

"Okay. I have you checked in. Just have a seat and the nurse will come get you soon." She slid the glass closed again and I cocked my head.

"No paperwork?"

"I did it online." She smiled, turning towards the mostly empty seating and picking a spot in the corner, the furthest from the other three women. Two appeared to be pretty pregnant, while the last was an elderly woman with her husband. All of their eyes were on us, but she pretended not to notice, flipping open her phone. I smiled when I saw the picture of me as her screensaver.

"We need one of us." I whispered into her ear, and she snorted.

"I'm not photogenic. I've seen your phone and I look like a hamster in that picture." I tried stifling my laugh. No she didn't. She looked beautiful. "There is this one picture I like, though." She added. I cocked my brow. For her to like a picture of herself was saying alot. She was so damn insecure.

She clicked on her chat page, ignoring all of her unread texts and opening up her conversation with Isabelle. After a little bit of scrolling, she landed on a picture of her, Isabelle, and Danny, seemingly taken the night of the Frat party.

Shit, she looked sexy. I had forgotten how flattering that dress was on her, every curve of her delicious body perfectly accentuated. I only wished she were smiling. But regardless, she was gorgeous.

Without a word, I plucked the phone from her hand, forwarding the image onto myself. She giggled, raising her brow.

"What?" I asked with a grin, handing it back to her.

"Jennifer Matthews." The sudden calling of her name drew our attention, and she stood, me following her closely. I usually hated doctors offices, especially OBGYNs. I had nothing but bad memories with them, but today would be different. It was a happy visit.

I stayed close while the nurse got her weight and height, chuckling at the way she frowned at the scale. The girl was tiny, so I had no idea why she was upset. Finally, we were lead to a small room. There was a portable ultrasound machine inside, along with a guest chair for me. Before I sat, though, I noticed her start to sway on her way to the bed. My arms darted to balance her, my heart nearly beating out of my chest in panic.

"Jen, what's wrong? Are you okay?" I asked, supporting most of her weight against me as she found herself again. She shook her head to clear it, her eyes focusing back on mine.

"I'm okay. Sorry. I just got, um, dizzy." I furrowed my brow. Dizzy? That couldn't be good, right? "I'm okay, Joel. Promise. Can you help me up?"

"Yea, baby. Of course." I held onto her waist, offering support as she climbed the step to sit on the paper lining. Once she was secure, she gestured for me to sit, but I was unsure. What if she got dizzy again? I didn't want her to fall off. In compromise, I lifted the chair, moving it to the side opposite of the machine, before sitting. I then reached for her hand, taking it firmly in mine.

"Are you nervous?" She asked, chewing on her lip. Of course I was. The phone call from Sutton had served as a temporary distraction, but the fact still remained that we were going to see our baby today. It was a huge deal. I nodded, squeezing her hand gently.

"I didn't think this would ever happen." I added. She offered me a tender smile when a knock sounded on the door. And, in normal doctor fashion, the gynecologist didn't wait before entering. She was dressed in light blue scrubs and had a stethoscope hanging from her neck. Her hair was curly brown and she looked to be at least fifty. She smiled brightly at us.

"Hello, Jennifer. My name is Dr. Williams." She shook her free hand before moving onto me. "And you are?"

"Joel."

"And Joel. Nice to meet you. You're the dad, then?" I shook her hand, calming my emotions the best I could as I nodded my reply. Dr. William's chuckled at my bashfullness, lowering herself onto her stool and placing her hands on her knees.

"Now how about we meet your baby? Go ahead and lift your shirt. Dad, if you can help her tuck this washcloth in her Jean's so we don't get 'em dirty."

I accepted it, prepping Jen for the first ever ultrasound of our child. It was strangely intimate, and not even the thought that I might lose my job today could dampen my joy.

The doctor lifted the wand, squirting the thick gel over the end before raising it to Jen's stomach. I didn't even notice I was holding my breath until the little bean showed up on the screen, and I couldn't draw in any air.

Shit.

That was our baby?

A little thing, wiggling and bouncing around the small gray space. It was weird to think that in only eight more months, I would be able to hold them in my arms. Their dad. I was their dad.

I felt Jen grip my hand even tighter, and I couldn't tell if she was shaking or if it was me. I wanted to look at her, the beauty carrying my child, but I couldn't seem to pry my eyes from the screen. It was only made better when Dr. William's asked, "Would you like to hear the heartbeat?"

As if there was any question.

But Jen nodded enthusiastically. The doctor pushed in a dial, turning it up and moving the wand an inch to the right.

That noise. That glorious noise. Holy shit. With every badump, my worries and fears that this was all just one big dream vanished into midair. It was real. It was so fucking real, my heart could barely take it. I felt the tears on the brims of my eyes, but I didn't bother wiping them. She was crying too. I could tell by her sniffling.

"It's so fast." I mumbled, quietly so my voice didn't break.

"Perfectly normal at this stage. Fast is good." Dr. Williams assured me with a smile, her fingers working on measuring our little peanut.

"Joel." Jen sobbed my name, and my trance was broken. I looked to my love, catching her fallen tears with my thumbs. "That's our baby." Her hand covered mine over her cheeks.

"I know, baby." I leaned forward to kiss her forehead. "I love you. Both of you." Her lips lifted into an adoring smile, making my heart stop all together.

"I love you, too." She replied wistfully.

"Looks like your little one is a little over five weeks old now. Which means I'm setting the due date for… April 24th." April. A spring baby. How fitting. "Any more questions or concerns?" Jen wiped her eyes, clearing her throat to speak.

"Actually, um, yes." She pulled back from my touch, her eyes flitting to the floor. "I've been having dizzy spells for the past few days and I wanted to make sure it wasn't anything to do with the baby." My heart sank. What? The past few days? Why the hell didn't she tell me that?

"I see. Did these spells come on suddenly or did you experience physical trauma?" I felt her tense in the hand that still held hers.

"I hit my head on the floor. That's when they started." Fucking hell. Callie? Callie hurt her, and she didn't think I needed to know that? I was livid, but also concerned. I didn't know how to respond, but I knew I needed to calm down before I could try. I pulled my hand away from hers, running both of mine up my face and into my hair. I swore, if Callie hurt her or our baby, I would sue her ass into next century.

"Okay. Well, let's get some lab work first. We like to avoid imagining, especially in the first trimester, so we'll try this to see if it gives us answers. It could really be a million different things. Women's bodies during pregnancy can be pretty unpredictable." She offered Jen a kind smile, handing her the towel to wipe off the gel, along with a strip of three images she took of the baby. Jen handed them to me with an apologetic expression, to which I gave her a 'we'll discuss this later' look of my own.

We weren't supposed to have secrets. It was our biggest rule.

It didn't take long for the doctor to draw her blood and send us on our way. She said she would call when she had news for us and we scheduled our next appointment for a month from now.

It was exciting, new, and absolutely terrifying. I had a pregnant… girlfriend. It sounded strange. Probably because anytime I thought about being a dad, I imagined it would be with my wife. But obviously, that didn't work out.

A crazy thought popped into my head of making Jen my wife. Ha. Now that would be nuts. She had dumped me two weeks ago, so asking her to marry me now would be wishful thinking at its finest. Then again, I knew I loved her. And I even knew that I wanted a future with her. So wouldn't marriage just be a way of securing that commitment with her?

No one else would see it that way, though. No. It would be seen as impulsive and obsessive if I were to do it so soon. Not only so soon after my previous marriage, but so soon after meeting her.

Soon. What did 'soon' even mean to a couple that started with a one night stand and were currently living together and expecting one month later?

Fuck, I needed to slow down. It would scare the shit out of her if I were to say this crap. And I couldn't risk her leaving me a second time because of my stupid mouth.

I needed to talk to Isaac. He would set me straight.

Until then, I'd have to keep my mind far away from the topic of marrying Jen.