Best Dating Rules by Tamie Dearen (no david read aloud .TXT) 📕

He always has an excuse. Tonight, he’s volunteering at a homeless shelter. But when I offered to go with him, he didn’t think it was a good idea.”

Steven frowned. “Well, it might not be safe for you. He’s pretty protective.”

“No. He’s lying to me. I know he is.”

“Are you sure?” asked Anne. “That doesn’t sound like Spencer.”

“I didn’t think so either, but I think he’s changed.”

Steven couched his words in a stern tone. “I don’t like this at all. If he’s lying to you, you should definitely break up with him. You deserve better. Do you want me to talk to him?”

“No, I’m in love with him—at least, I think I am. Why else would I feel this miserable?” Her lower lip trembled.

Now Steven started laughing. “As best I can recall, you’re probably right. It made me pretty miserable at first. And that probably also means you’re jumping to all kinds of wrong conclusions.”

“He’s right, Honey,” said Anne. “You two probably need to talk. I’m sure he’s in love with you. He sure looked it when you were in the hospital.”

“But we talked, and he didn’t say he was in love with me.”

“He said he wasn’t in love with you?”

“No, but he said he didn’t want to date any more after he graduated and got a job. Because he might not even get a job in New York and he might have to move.”

“That doesn’t make any sense to me,” said Anne.

“It does to me. He doesn’t want to commit because the future’s uncertain. And I respect that. I guess there’s always a chance he might decide he loves me before then. But now... Now I think he’s getting tired of me. He’s avoiding me a lot. Why else would he lie to me?”

“How do you know he’s lying?”

“I just feel it.”

Anne shook her head. “I know you think this is trite, but you can’t depend on your feelings. Especially when you’re highly emotional. You’ll get all kinds of misinformation sent to your brain.”

“Let me talk to him,” suggested Steven. “If there’s one thing I’m good at, it’s getting information out of people. I’ll find out what he’s up to.”

“No, because if he’s going to hurt my feelings, you’ll probably kill him.”

“No, I wouldn’t—”

“Yes,” said Anne. “You probably would. I’ll talk to him.”

“No, neither of you are going to talk to him. I’ll handle it myself. Let’s change the subject.” She turned her attention to her mom. “How are you feeling?”

“Pretty good. I’m developing a little pooch.” She stretched her shirt around her belly. Emily studied it, cocking her head to the side.

“That’s great, Mom. I’m sure you’ll start actually showing soon.”

“Yes, I’m certain I’ll be showing. Eventually, no one will doubt I’m pregnant.” She laughed. “I almost wanted to wear a fake belly when I spoke at the fundraiser on Saturday.”

“Oh, I forgot you did that. How did it go? Were you petrified?”

“Not at all.” Steven’s eyes crinkled in a satisfied smile. “I teased her so much about not being believable because she didn’t look pregnant, she waltzed right through her speech.”

“I can’t believe I fell for it. He suggested multiple times I shouldn’t even speak because people would think I was faking the whole pregnancy and illness.”

“She was so ticked off she wouldn’t speak to me all the way home. Even after she did a great job on the speech and I confessed I was only trying to distract her.”

“Well, it will never work again. Next time, I’ll know you’re distracting me.”

“Maybe you should take a sedative next time,” suggested Emily.

“Oh no,” Steven said. “Her body overreacts with any type of drug. Evidently this is true for all of you Best girls.”

“I feel like taking something now.” Emily dropped her head into her hands. “Maybe Steven can think up a distraction for me.”

“I have an idea for a distraction. Why don’t we see if we can get Charlie on Skype?” Steven raised questioning eyebrows to Anne.

She nodded at him. “Let’s do it.”

“I don’t want you to tell her what I told you. Okay? She’s too sympathetic to Spencer for some reason.”

“We won’t, but it will be fun to talk to both of you together,” said Anne. “You’ll see.”

Their luck held and Charlie was on the computer screen in minutes. “Hey, Mom. Let me see your stomach.”

Anne smoothed her shirt over her small baby bump.

“Tsk, tsk, tsk,” said Charlie. “Next time, I want to see some real progress. What’s going on up there? We had a fantastic rafting trip today. The water was up high and fast. Out of seven rafts, mine was the only one that didn’t turn over. You should have seen the video.”

Anne watched Emily brighten a little at her sister’s enthusiasm.

“Yay, Sister! And all the other guides were guys?”

“Yep, every single one. And all of them bragging before we started.” Her voice tinkled with laughter. “I said, ‘We’ll see—may the Best woman win.’ And I did, of course. And now I get to pick my crew for the next week.”

Steven laughed. “All men should beware when a Best girl decides to compete.”

“I’ve kind of beaten the odds myself,” said Anne.

“Yeah, Mom. Made it to the second trimester,” said Charlie. “Good job. You’ll make it all the way now, for sure.”

“She’s done more than that. Or she’s going to do something more than that.” Steven’s dimples danced with excitement.

Emily’s brows furrowed. “What are you talking about?”

“Can I say it?” Steven begged.

Anne laughed at her husband’s eagerness—sometimes he seemed like a little boy. She nodded.

“Twins,” he said. “Can you believe it? We’re having twins!”

There was a moment of stunned silence before Charlie said, “I’m gonna be afraid to talk to you on Skype anymore. Ohmygosh! Are you kidding?”

“No way!” screamed Emily, as she rushed to give her mom a hug. “How on earth are you so tiny?”

“Don’t worry. I won’t be tiny for long,” Anne said around Emily’s head.

“How on earth could you be pregnant with twins?” Charlie asked.

Steven answered before she could respond. “Women over forty-five