Co-Parenting

One: Unexpected Offers

Seattle had always been a misty city in the early spring, but this was just too much. Six straight days of rain were beginning to wear heavily, and it seemingly had no intention of stopping. It'd only been making my already sour mood worse. My 35th Birthday was next week, and I'd been morosely focused on all the things I've failed to do with my life. No husband, no dog, no house, no children. Sure, I'm the creative director in a wildly successful advertising agency, but I still can't shake the sense of personal failure.

"Are you planning on destroying that hard copy, or would you like to have something to salvage for our one o'clock staff meeting?" Hank asked as he walked up to where I had been daydreaming. Shit. I'd been inadvertently clenching the hard copy of the final print to be used for my latest project.

"Sorry. I didn't even realize I was still holding it. Art department just sent it up," I replied absently.

"What's up with you this week? You're even more distracted than usual. I'm taking it the date didn't go so well last night?"

The cringe was barely noticeable, but of course, Hank would pick up on it. He'd known me for more than a decade. Fine Arts for undergrad and MFA with a business minor immediately following didn't allow for much socializing, but Hank had been on the same career track that I'd been. It'd been platonic love at first sight during freshman orientation. The two of us just clicked.

"Oh, come on, D. This one at least showered regularly," he teased. "Better than the last one."

I'd always seemed to attract the wrong type of guy. They may have looked like grown men, but lost boys were my type. Jacob had been last year's mistake. A rock-climbing instructor. Tall. Tan. Late 20s. Built like a Greek god... IQ that rivaled a 6 yr old. He was adventurous and kind, but the only place we'd connected was under the covers. A girl can only survive on amazing orgasms for so long. Anything outside of my bedroom was painfully dull.

"Jacob showered. He just hadn't cut his hair in 5 years. Not all men with long hair are dirty."

Hank rolled his eyes and smirked. "Oh, my bad. Maybe it was the fog of axe body spray and chalk that threw me off."

Whacking Hank in the stomach, I glared at his smug expression. His dating record wasn't exactly pristine. He left a trail of vapid interns in his wake, probably because he had no interest in settling down any time soon.

"At least my dates are old enough to drink legally."

"Enough avoiding the topic. Let's go get lunch, and you can fill me in why the young, dumb and hung of Seattle aren't doing it for you anymore," he insisted as he rescued my copy and placed it on my desk.

We walked down the block to our favorite deli and settled into a corner booth before I whispered the sentence that would change the course of our future.

"I want a baby."

"I'm sorry...what?" he looked at me from across the table, sandwich midway to his mouth, his jaw practically unhinged.

"Don't make me repeat it," I whispered.

"Sorry," he shook his head and set down his sandwich. "I didn't realize you were seeing anyone. And definitely didn't know it was that serious already."

"I'm not." If I weren't so nervous talking about this, I probably would have laughed at his facial expression.

"So...um...how exactly do you plan on...you know?" he raised an eyebrow and nodded at my stomach.

"Getting pregnant?"

His mouth screwed up like I'd said something offensive. I didn't realize this topic would make him so uncomfortable. "Well...uh..." He ran his hand over his face and up through his hair.