Triplets For The Texan

He held up his hands. “Don’t look at me.”

“Then who?” Naomi seemed genuinely befuddled.

Maybe Simone had been telling the truth about not having a man in her life. That shouldn’t have pleased him so much. Simone tried to sit up again, and again, he shook his head. “Too soon. Stay put.”

“Fine. Anyone ever tell you you worry too much?” She transferred her attention to her shell-shocked friend. “I wanted to have a baby, Naomi. And I didn’t want to wait. So I used a sperm donor.”

“A sperm donor...” Naomi repeated the words slowly.

“Don’t look so stunned,” Simone pleaded. “It’s a perfectly acceptable thing to do.”

“But it’s not something the Simone I know would do.”

Hutch saw Simone’s bottom lip tremble. “That’s enough, Naomi,” he said. “This has been a rough day for her.”

“Sorry,” she groaned. “What’s the matter with her?”

“She’s suffering from extreme morning sickness.”

“I’m right here,” Simone snapped. “And I don’t know why they call it morning sickness. It lasts the whole damn day.”

He and Naomi looked at each other, trying not to laugh. Hutch lifted a shoulder, edging toward the door. “I really do have some phone calls to make.” He looked at Naomi. “Shout if you need me.”

In the kitchen, he prowled restlessly. Neither of the phone calls was urgent, but he had needed some space to clear his head. He already regretted his impulsive decision to take on Simone’s crisis. The odd thing was, she was the one who usually jumped without looking. There was a time when he had admired her joie de vivre and her impulsive spirit.

He’d been the older one, the stick-in-the-mud. He’d often wondered if that was why she broke up with him. Perhaps his overly conscientious approach to life had struck her as boring and pedantic.

It didn’t matter now. If they hadn’t had anything in common five years ago, that was even more true now. Hopefully, her nausea would soon settle down and he could go back to pretending she was just another pregnant woman.

* * *

Simone looked at Naomi. “Help me sit up, please.”

Naomi frowned. “Hutch said that wasn’t a good idea.”

“Are you kidding me? Since when are you in the Troy Hutchinson fan club?”

“I didn’t say I was a fan, but the man’s a brilliant doctor, and you, my girl, look like something out of a zombie movie.”

“Gee, thanks.”

Despite her protests, Naomi stood up and grabbed extra pillows to put behind Simone. “Satisfied?”

Simone closed her eyes. “I’ll be satisfied when I can eat a milk shake and a cheeseburger without puking.”

“Can I get you anything?” Naomi hovered.

“No. Thank you.” Unexpected tears stung her eyes. “I feel so stupid.”

Naomi chuckled. “Well, you should. If anybody was going to knock you up, it should have been that Greek god doctor of yours.”

“He’s not my doctor,” Simone said automatically. “And besides, we’re not anything to each other.”

“Which explains why I found him in bed with you.”

“Don’t be dramatic. He wasn’t in my bed. He was sitting on my bed. There’s a big difference.”

“Not from where I’m standing.”

“For God’s sake, let it go, Naomi. Hutch and I were over a long time ago. And besides, even if I had the slightest interest in rekindling that flame—which I don’t—what man wants to be father to some other guy’s triplets?”

Naomi gaped. The look of total consternation on her face might have been funny if Simone hadn’t felt so wretched. “Triplets?” she said, her eyes round.

“Um, yeah. I guess I forgot to mention that part. I’m having three babies. At least I hope so.”

“What does that mean?”

“It’s still early. Too early to know if all the fetuses are viable.”

Naomi sprang to her feet and paced. “How can you be so damned calm? This is huge. What were you thinking, Simone? You own and manage a thriving ad agency. You have no husband. Why on earth would you do something so crazy?”

Sadly, Simone couldn’t tell the whole truth. Not to Naomi or Cecelia, and certainly not to Hutch. “I wanted a baby,” she said stubbornly. “By the time I got in the midst of everything, I began to have my doubts, but I didn’t back out. I should have, I suppose.”

“Ya think?” Naomi seemed more indignant than flat-out angry. Simone understood, really, she did. If the situations had been reversed, surely she would have expressed doubts about Naomi’s decision.

“I screwed up, Naomi. I know that now. But I didn’t know how sick I could get. And besides...”

“Besides, what?”

“I want them,” Simone whispered. “The babies. All of them. Hutch said it wasn’t too late from a medical standpoint to rethink my position, but I could never do that. I started this, and I’ll finish it.”

Naomi pursed her lips. “I hope it doesn’t finish you.”

Hutch returned in time to hear that last comment. He frowned when he saw Simone upright, but he didn’t say anything.

Simone looked at him. “May I have a drink of water, please?”

“It’s up to you. It would be good if you can manage it.”

With both of them watching, Simone didn’t want to make a scene, but she knew she couldn’t avoid drinking indefinitely. There was a pitcher and disposable cups on the bedside table. Hutch poured one glass half-full and offered it to her. She took it from him, wincing. “Bottoms up.”

With her two observers looking on eagle-eyed, she sipped tentatively. At first, the water tasted amazing. Her lips were partially chapped. The cool liquid felt wonderful in her parched throat. But moments later, her stomach cramped sharply. “Hutch!” She panicked.

He was there immediately, holding a small basin as the water came back up and she retched helplessly. Hutch held her hair. Naomi produced a damp cloth for her forehead. Oh, God. If she had ever felt so humiliated and miserable, she couldn’t remember it.

Hutch didn’t wait for permission. He removed the pillows and helped her lie flat again. “Okay now?” he asked.

She nodded, unable to look at either of them. “I’m sorry to drag you both into this.”