Page 64 of Surprise Baby for Mr. Fischer

I didn't typically like surprises.Me: Ok. What is it?

Harper: You mentioned wanting to go to my doctor appointments, and I don’t have another one until I’m at thirty-four weeks. So instead of waiting another twelve weeks, I booked us a 3-D ultrasound.

My breath whooshed out of me. Feeling the baby was one thing, but seeing our child moving around, hearing the heartbeat? Anxiety flickered to life. Was I ready for this?

I must have taken too long to respond.

Harper: It’s okay. You don’t have to. I can call and cancel or go with one of my sisters.

Me: No, keep the appointment. Please.I grunted. I was an idiot. Thank God this was over text.

Harper: Are you sure? I don’t want to push you into doing something like this.

Me: No, I’m excited to go with you. Thank you for thinking of this.

Fuck. Now she doubted I wanted to go. I needed to reassure her that I wanted to be there. I pushed the button to start a video call.

She picked up right away.

My breath caught at how stunning she was. Her hair was tossed up in a messy bun, and her face was free from make-up. Her eyes sparkled, and her pink, pouty lips curved into a smile. My heart squeezed. In her face, I saw my future. A lifetime of love. “You’re beautiful.”

Her cheeks grew rosy. “You’re pretty good-looking yourself, you know.”

A female’s voice whispered loudly, “Harper, he just said you look beautiful. Is that any way to respond? Tell him, thank you.”

Harper’s head turned. “Mom, you’re embarrassing me.”

“Honey, you’re having a baby with him. I think you’re beyond embarrassment.”

Harper rolled her eyes.

“Ask him when he’s coming by so Dad and I can meet him. It’s bad enough you only recently told me he was the father of your baby.”

Harper’s wide eyes shifted to me, her gaze imploring me to understand. “I’m so sorry,” she mouthed.

I grinned. “How about tonight?”

“I’m sorry, what did you say?” Harper’s eyes blinked wildly at me.

“See, he’s a good guy. He knows it’s important to meet the parents. Although, before now would’ve been better.”

“Oh, my God, Mom. Stop, or I’ll hang up and call him back later. When you’re not around.” She shook her head. “Lincoln, I’m going to let you go.”

“Wait. Let me take you all out.” Harper’s mom was right. We’d done this all backwards, and I wanted to meet her family.

“Oh honey, that’s not necessary. We can eat at our house.” The phone swung to the side. When it stopped, I saw who I believed must be Harper’s mother. Although her mother’s hair was streaked with gray, they had the same auburn waves and blue-green eyes. The most significant difference was her mother’s wheelchair.

“Ma’am, I’d love to take you both out to dinner.”

“Nonsense. And please call me Hillary. This is not your typical meet and greet, Lincoln. And you’re not the typical boy next door.” She stopped and stared at me. I knew she meant I might be recognized.

“I’m sorry about that.” I made sure to hold her gaze even though part of me wanted to look away. I wasn’t embarrassed by my profession, but facing fans while we were out was not the first impression I wanted to make.

“As I told Harper, life happens. You’ve got to roll with the punches. Maybe we can all go out next time. Right now, we’d like to get to know you without a crowd.”

I nodded. “Then at least let me order dinner. I don’t want you to go to any trouble.”

She smiled. “Harper knows what we like. She can fill you in when you see each other later.”