Chapter 16

Lily rested her head in Richie’s lap while he was speaking to Jon, from what she heard it sounded like Jon and Claire were leaving, Good I don’t ever wanna see her again , by all rights she should be just as angry at Jon , and part of her was but it was Claire that knew better, why did she have to tell ..

Richie’s words earlier replayed in her head, Did he really mean them ? He seemed sincere. I just hope he doesn’t live to regret it. Why did this have to happen now?

Richie disconnected from his phone call with Jon and smiled down at Lily, “You even wanna know what’s going on, or do ya still need time to cool down?”

“Let me guess, she is going with your friend “ Lily replied sarcastically “Good “ she turned on her side and gazed at the dark screen of her TV.

He sighed, brushing the hair out of Lily’s eyes, “Yeah, she’s gonna go to New York for a little while with Jon, and then we’ll meet up again on the 12th for Saturday Night Live. Do you wanna come with me then?”

“I dunno, do I have to speak to her ?“ Lily asked, the hurt and anger thickly coating each syllable.

“Well, that’s gonna be up to you, babe.” Richie replied, “Though, what are ya gonna do if she wants to talk to you?”

Lily sat up , staring straight ahead “Well she can talk all she wants , doesn’t mean I have to speak back “ she replied stubbornly.

“You’re really never gonna forgive her?” He asked, a sadness coming over him as he watched the emotions play out on Lily’s face, “Darlin’, she’s your best friend. I’m sure she had a good reason for this.”

“She betrayed me Rich , how can I forget that ? “ Lily turned to face him , tears started to coat her eyelids.

Richie pulled her into his arms, rocking her slowly, “I know, baby, I know. But, obviously she did it for a reason. I have a hard time believing she just decided to spill the beans to destroy your friendship and piss you off.”

“She just didn’t give me a chance, I mean yes I admit I did say I wasn’t gonna tell you but that was my first reaction, I didn’t have time to let it set in . I never expected this to happen at least right now. “

“But baby, you did tell Claire that you weren’t ever gonna tell me. And I think that’s why she felt someone needed to know,” Richie replied softly. “To be fair, you had her completely under the impression that you had already made your decision.”

“That’s 'cause I was scared! If I had more time to think, I still am trying to come to terms with it. We were careful and still . I never had this happen in the whole 11 years of marriage . Not even a close call “ Lily admitted sadly.

Richie kissed her passionately, his heart warming at the thought that he had done something for Lily that the garbage of an ex-husband had never been able to do for her. “Guess this is meant to be, then,” he said sweetly.

She returned his kiss, then pulled away searching his face “Are you sure this is ok? We have just known each other for six weeks . And we haven’t seen each other in how long? Its just- you have a family -what are they gonna think? “

He grinned, “I’m sure, baby. Don’t you worry, okay? I wanna do this. And as for family,” he continued, “all I really have left is my mom and my daughter. My mom will love you, trust me. And as for Ava?” He sighed lovingly, rolling his eyes. “Her mom’s dating a guy that she’s okay with. I’m sure she’ll be perfectly fine with me seeing someone too.”

“This isn’t the same though and you know it. “ Lily answered adamantly “There is another person involved now. How are they gonna respond to that fact ? I mean we just went from step 1 to the final step on just a few short weeks ? “

Richie smiled softly, “It’s gonna work, really. My mom, yeah she’s a little traditional, but she’s also had 25 plus years to get used to the fact that she’s the mother of a rockstar,” he chuckled, “I think she’s already psyched herself up for moments like this. And Ava, as long as she’s not forgotten, which she won’t be, she’ll be alright. She needs to learn that she doesn’t always have to be the center of attention anyways,” he winked.

Lily’s worry increased the moment he spoke of Ava “So she’s a daddy’s girl huh ? You really sure, cause if they think I want money , I got my own, not as rich as you of course“ she had to laugh a bit .

Richie chuckled, “Nah, mom’s not like that. She’s a strong, independent woman just like you are, and I think she’ll come to see that as soon as you meet.” He rubbed her shoulder, kissing her again. “See, baby? This is gonna work.”

Lily let out a defeated sigh “Okay I’m putting all my trust into that you’re right about this. Not even sure what my family will feel about this, they’re a traditional family too.”

He wagged his eyebrows, “I’m sure they’ll love me,” he winked.

“You a football fan? “ Lily asked , her body relaxing just a bit now they had talked.

“Uh, yeah,” Richie answered slowly, “why?”

“Then my dad will love you “ Lily smirked . Her fingers intertwined with his , then gently squeezed it.

Richie laughed deeply, “As long as he’s not a Dallas fan!” he winked, lifting her hand up and kissing the back softly.

“Oh no, Carolina Panthers and Atlanta Falcons “ Lily answered “But definitely not a Cowboys fan “

“Phew,” Richie joked, “This could possibly work then, there’s hope,” he said, laughing again, his eyes bright with excitement.

“Yea it would be war if you mention the Cowboys. “ She laughed “Are you hungry? I can fix something to eat? “

Richie shrugged, “Only if you are, babe.” He smiled sweetly.

“You’re no help “ Lily shook her head then stood up and walked into the kitchen .  “What do you like? “ she winced , [i]Hell I didn’t even know what he liked to eat, how does he expect this to work? [/i] she kept silent though , because he would just be more insistant that it would.

Richie stood up and followed Lily into the kitchen, “Ah, see that’s where I’m easy,” he winked devilishly, “I’ll eat just about anything. The guys call me ‘Garbage Gut’.” he laughed, “What is it you’d like? You probably should eat something after you emptied your stomach,” he added.

Lily opened her fridge and glanced in  “Well its still fairly early, I think my stomach can handle breakfast - I think? “

“You could try,” Richie said slowly, truly uncertain as to how morning sickness worked. Again, he felt a sense of excitement as he imaged getting to go through all of this with Lily for really the first time.

She reached in and grabbed a few eggs and bacon, placed them on the counter, then whipped around for a frying pan . “Fried or scrambled ? “ she asked while she reached in the potato bin for a few potatoes .

“Mmm...” Richie replied, watching her make him breakfast was terribly sexy. “Don’t care,” he said softly, nuzzling her neck.

Lily pinched her eyes shut and a soft moan escaped her lips “Well it all burn if you keep that up.“ while she pealed then grated the potatoes in the hot skillet .

“Hmph,” he replied, backing off and hopping up to sit on the counter. “Speaking of burning,” he said slowly, watching her backside as she stood over the stove, “Baby you are smokin’” he chuckled at his lame line.

She whipped around, staring at him incredulously “You can’t be serious?! “ then returned her attention to the stove as she whipped the eggs into a light batter then poured them into the other skillet , stirring it with a fork until they were light and fluffy.  “Could you put the bread in the toaster please? “

Richie stood up and crossed the kitchen, grabbing the bread and plugging in the toaster, then he paused. “Uh, baby?” he blushed scarlet, Holy shit, how long has it been since I’ve made fuckin’ toast? “What, uh, little number thingy should I set it on?”

Lily bit back a snicker , “It’s all set to go, unless you want it darker ? Oh can you get me two plates please too - they're up in the top right cupboard."

He shrugged and placed the bread in the toaster, then pushed it down, hoping for the best. Then he grabbed the plates and set them on the counter next to Lily, watching her interestedly. “You’re good at this,” he grinned, kissing her neck again.

“I didn’t have cooks to do it  for me “ Lily teased while she emptied the eggs onto the two plates . A few moments later, she added the bacon and hashbrowns . “You think you can butter the toast? “ she asked her eyes twinkling with delight.

Richie opened his mouth to retort, then thought better of it and turned around to the toaster, which still hadn’t finished. “How long should this be tak- Shit!” he yelled as the toast popped up, scaring him. He laughed outright at himself, pulling the toast out and grabbing the butter from the fridge, then got down to the task at hand.

Lily watched him with amusement then carried the plates over near the toaster . “Stick with me and you’ll learn all sorts of things “

He raised an eyebrow, “Oh yeah?” he chuckled, “like what?”

“Like maybe wash a dish or two “ She winked while  carrying the plates to the table.

Richie snorted, “I know how to do that. Mama had me on full dish detail, eons ago,” he joked.

“Thats good then you can wash these when we’re done“ she grinned “Do you know how to wash your clothes? “ then sat down to her food, picking up her fork and digging into the fluffy eggs.

He grinned as he stuffed a bite of hashbrowns into his mouth, “Uh, I’m sure I could figure it out..” he winked.

“You know I’m just teasing , Shit I forgot our drinks , What would you like ? “ She asked while she scooted back then stood.

“There isn’t any coffee, is there?” Richie asked hopefully, watching as she stood up and wishing he could be more helpful.

“No but I can hurry and make some if you want? “ She asked while walking over to the coffee pot , filled the glass pot up with water , added the filter then poured the water in.

“That would be great babe, thanks,” he replied sweetly, “Coffee seems to be my new addiction these days,” he joked dryly.

She walked over, placed her arms around his neck giving him a slight hug “It’s mine too and doesn’t give you a hangover either . But I guess I’m gonna have to give this habit up too at least for awhile. It should be done, Could you pour you some while I figure out what I’m gonna have? “ While he had his back turned , she walked over to the fridge , opened it and tossed out the half empty bottle of wine into the trash.

Richie stood up and walked over to the coffee maker, pausing before picking up the pot and dumping the contents down the sink. “Sorry babe, I shoulda thought. I’m not gonna drink it in front of ya.” He peeked into the fridge, “Orange juice?” he suggested, kissing her cheek.

“You didn’t have to do that , I’m fine really “ Lily smiled then slipped her arms around his waist and hugged him. “But that was very sweet of you . Hell we don’t know for sure I am. I guess I should find a doctor. “

He wrapped his arms around her, kissing her softly, “I could find you a doctor, set up an appointment if you’d like? We’ve kind of got a whole list of private doctors, no sense calling someone brand new. I can find someone who will keep things private”

“I guess not used to all this private thing , your life is so foreign to me but yea I think I would like that . Not sure I would want this all for the world to see right now . Not til I can get used to the idea and everything is okay. I mean I am not young either . I really gave up hope of having any children to be honest “

Richie nodded, “And I gave up hope of having another.” He grinned, this is really happening! “Alright, I’ll make some calls, and we’ll get this confirmed. Sound good?”

“Thank you , but you know my business is here and I don’t want to leave it . “ Lily pointed out.

He smiled, “I figured. Don’t worry, I’ll either find someone close or have them fly in. You won’t have to leave your work.”

Lily pulled back a bit “Really? That doesn’t upset you ? That I wanna stay here ? “

“Of course not,” Richie replied, “I understand that you wanna stay. It’s what I would do, if I were rooted to one spot,” he winked, “You’ve built a life here. I’m not gonna pull you away from it.”

She gazed at him for a moment with wonder , “Are you really real?  Where have you been all my life? I mean Daniel even had me move when we first got married “

Richie laughed softly, poking himself and smacking his own face, “Yep, all real baby,” he grinned.

Lily laughed “You have to be, to be this silly. Now we better eat before our food gets cold. “

“What do you mean, silly?” He asked as they both sat down again at the table. He took a bite of bacon, grinning with his mouth full, “I’m a serious man, Lily.” He stated.

“You’re like a big kid aren’t you? “ she grinned while taking a sip of orange juice .

He shook his head, laughing, “Why do people keep asking me that?”

‘I dunno just seem like it and I watched some videos lately “ Lily smiled “Old and new, Youtube is a great place to research. “

“Oh, shit,” Richie replied, his eyes bright with laughter. “I don’t even wanna know.”

“Should I boot up my laptop and refresh your memory?“ Lily teased .

“Nooooo,” Richie grinned, “it’s okay, really. I believe you. No need to embarrass myself further,” he said, taking a bite of his eggs.

Lily was about to laugh at his reluctance to see himself on video, when her stomach started to rebel again “Oh for fuck’s sake “ she darted off to the bathroom once again.

Richie took off after her, “Oh baby, not again!” he said worriedly, though inwardly he was thanking his lucky stars for letting him be a part of this.

All Lily could do was nod until she once again emptied the contents of her stomach. Then stood and once again rinsed her mouth . “Yea I guess grease is not a good thing “

She slowly walked out back to the couch and lied down, “I sure hope this doesn’t last long “

Richie lifted her head for a moment, sitting down and letting her rest on his lap, “Me too baby, hate to see you suffer. Glad I’m here though,” he winked, stroking her hair.

Lily nibbled on her bottom lip “I’m glad you’re here too. Not sure if I could have done this without you now “ she admitted honestly.

“Hey, whataya know!” Richie said sweetly, leaning down and placing a kiss on Lily’s soft lips.

She slipped her arms around his neck, returned his kiss and though her doubts were still there, having him here right now  helped her more than he would ever know.