The Ladies' Man

“You’re one to talk about timing,” the older woman said, pushing past him to stand in front of Rachel. “A man who gets a woman pregnant without meaning to should talk about timing. Apparently he’s very good at it.”

Mama? As in…his mother?

She was about five foot two, with short blond hair and Carter’s eyes. Tiny, but Rachel could feel the energy pouring off her. The other two women were taller and pretty, but they were a little intimidating, too.

“H-how did you know?” she asked, not sure she wanted the answer.

Carter slumped into one of the club chairs opposite the sofa. “Jenny called her. Rachel, this is my mother, Nina Brockett, and two of my sisters, Liz and Merry. You don’t need to know who is who because they won’t be staying. Mama, this is Rachel.”

“Of course we’re staying,” his mother told him, then turned to Rachel. “You should sit.”

“Why would the bartender call you?” Rachel asked, wondering if this would ever make sense.

“Jenny’s a friend of the family,” Nina told her.

“We stay in touch with most of Carter’s old girlfriends,” one of his sisters offered. “There have been lots, but you’re the first one to get pregnant.”

Jenny from the bar was his ex-girlfriend?

“She’s married,” Carter said, as if he could read her mind. “I doubt you can make your escape now. You might as well sit.”

“Of course she should sit,” Nina said, moving next to Rachel, taking her hand and urging her back on the sofa. “She needs to rest. She’s going to have a baby.”

“The baby is maybe four cells big,” Carter told her. “I doubt it’s going to tire her out.”

Rachel looked at him. “You went out with Jenny?” she asked, feeling herself blush. “She pretended not to know who you were. She made me describe…”

She suddenly became aware of the other three women in the room and sank onto the sofa.

“It doesn’t matter,” she whispered.

“That Jenny has a real sense of humor,” Carter muttered.

One of the sisters smiled. “She’s great. Carter was an usher in her wedding and she was a bridesmaid in mine.”

This was way too much information, Rachel thought frantically, glancing at the door and wondering if she could make a run for it. This wasn’t happening. She hadn’t just met Carter’s mother, two sisters and his ex-girlfriend.

Nina patted her hand. “You’ll be fine. This is shocking now, but that’s because Carter didn’t tell you about us. Why my only son wouldn’t mention his family to the mother of his child, I don’t know. But I’m only the mother. No one tells me anything.”

“Save me,” Carter muttered as he rubbed his temples. “Mama, you’re not helping.”

“Of course I’m helping,” his mother insisted. “I want to help. It’s what I do best. So, what were the two of you talking about when we got here?”

Rachel glanced at the envelope on the table. Suddenly Carter’s unwillingness to walk away from his unborn child made a little more sense.

“That’s private,” Carter told her.

“You might as well tell us,” one of his sisters said. “We’ll find out anyway.”

“No, you won’t,” Carter told her. He looked at Rachel. “If you want to make a run for it, I’ll cover your back.”

“She’s not running,” Nina said and it was only then Rachel realized the older woman still had a firm grip on her hand.

Rachel tugged it free. “Carter and I have some things we need to work out,” she said weakly.

“Of course you do.” Nina smiled at her. “You’re a nice girl, I can tell. You didn’t mean to get pregnant. But it happens. So we’ll deal with it.”

We? No, no. There was no we. “Technically, I’m the one who’s pregnant,” she began.

Carter’s gaze narrowed. “And I’m the father.”

“I’m not denying that,” Rachel said, bristling. “I’m the one who came to you.”

“I would have been happy to do things the other way,” he reminded her. “You didn’t call.”

The sisters looked at each other. “Really? You went out with Carter and didn’t call the next day?” one of them asked.

“Ah…”

“The women always call,” the other sister said. “Some of them won’t stop calling.”

“Ah…”

“It gets embarrassing,” the first one continued. “I want to take them aside and tell them to have a little pride.”

“It’s not their fault,” Nina said with a proud smile. “It’s my son.”

Rachel raised her eyebrows. “Really?”

Carter groaned. “Ignore them. I mean that.”

“Maybe I want to hear about ‘the women.’”

“You don’t,” he told her. “Trust me.”

“About the baby,” Nina said, breaking the mood. “We need to talk.” Nina patted the back of her hand. “I understand. If you young people insist on putting the cart before the horse, then they need to turn the horse around.”

“What?” Rachel and Carter asked together.

Nina glanced between them. “Isn’t it obvious? You have a baby coming. You need to get married.”

Chapter Four

Carter stood. He’d been willing to let the moment run its course. Thirty years of being his mother’s son had taught him that was the easiest way to deal with her. He would listen and then do exactly what he wanted. But mother or not, she’d just crossed the line.

“Okay, that’s enough,” he said flatly and walked to the door. “Great to see you all. Thanks for stopping by.”

His mother was about a foot shorter, but that never seemed to bother her. She rose and walked over until she was in front of him, staring up, glaring.