One to Tell the Grandkids by Kristina M Sanchez Page A

I’d like that.”
     
     
     

 
     
    Chapter Seven
     
     
    “I hate doctor’s offices. I hate them, Mel. I hate them with a passion.”
    “That chick you got this gal’s name from said she was nice, didn’t she?”
    “It’s not about that. I know it’s silly, but I always get this feeling I’m going to test positive for something.”
    “I’m pretty sure you’re only going to test positive for pregnancy, doll face.”
    “You don’t know that. If there were no chance of them finding something, they wouldn’t go looking for it.”
    “It’s just a precaution.”
    “It’s a precaution because shit happens.”
    Mel stood and walked a few steps over to where Taryn was swaying back and forth on the balls of her feet. She put her hands on Taryn’s shoulders, stilling her nervous movement. “Hey,” she said and waited until Taryn looked up. “You’re fine. Patch is fine. It’s just a little pee, a little blood, and your doctor seeing more of you than your baby daddy remembers seeing.”
    “Nice.” Taryn sat on the edge of the couch and let her shoulders slump. “I really hate needles.”
    “Girl. You know I don’t want to hear that from you. You with the easy peasy veins. They stick you in the arm and you’re done. I, on the other hand, got stuck with game-playing veins. Jerks are fantastic at hide and seek. Do you know how hard it is to get a vial of blood from me? They stick me in one arm, fish around a bit because that’s pleasant. Then they stick the other arm, rinse and repeat. Finally, after I’m already full of holes, they go ahead and stick my wrist, which I’ll have you know is fine going in but stings like a mother bitch coming out, and if that doesn’t work, they—”
    “Ugh. Stop.” Taryn held one hand out to her friend and spread the other over her very rebellious stomach. “I’m pregnant. You’re supposed to be nice to me.”
    “I’m saying that’s not what’s going to happen to you.” She shook her head and grabbed for the remote. “Here. I’m going to leave you in the capable hands of the Avengers,” she said, flipping to her Amazon collection and calling up The Avengers movie.
    “You want me to watch The Avengers ?”
    “Concentrate on the pretty. It will make you feel better.”
    Taryn eyed her friend, some of her anxiety melting away as she teased, “You know if you make me watch this again, I’m just going to come up with more reasons why Iron Man wants to get it on with Captain America.”
    “There’s something very wrong with you. Iron Man is in love with Pepper, dammit.”
    “You have a girl-crush on Gwyneth Paltrow.”
    “Entirely beside the point.”
    After she started the movie, Melanie gave Taryn a hug. “Try not to worry. Promise me.”
    “I’ll try.”
    True to her word, Taryn tried not to fret. It proved to be an exercise in futility. The ability to be blasé about doctors was something she’d lost a long time ago.
    Was she doomed to be the paranoid mother her own mother had been? It wasn’t what she wanted, but she was headed down that road faster than quick.
    Her cell rang. A glance at her screen only changed the direction of her pessimistic thoughts. Slate was supposed to pick her up so they could go to the doctor together. Taryn kept waiting for Slate to show his true colors. He kept insisting he wanted to be there for her, for the baby, but every time she received a text from him, Taryn expected an excuse. Her stomach twisted with dread as she connected the call. “Hello?”
    The static on the other end was horrible. “Taryn?”
    “Slate?”
    “Hey, look. Your car. I thought it was fixed, but . . . well . . .”
    “You’re not coming.”
    He groaned. “Taryn, I want to be there. You know how much I want to be there. But your car. I’m broken down on the side of the highway. It’s going to take awhile to get a tow, and I’m too far away.”
    Taryn swallowed hard to keep her throat from closing off. She forced a light