Chapter 6

After leaving Sandy in the parking lot, Eddie was even more unsettled, so his mind began freewheeling: Less than a year ago, he was ready to divorce Carol as soon as he could find a good time. He was even more adamant about it when he met Lorna, though he gave himself about a five percent chance of anything developing between them. Phyllis was, literally, a one-night stand, until she turned up pregnant, and he had thought if he ever returned to New Zealand as a single man, she may want to develop their relationship further. Now, here was Sandy hinting at having feelings for him, albeit because of his sexually satisfying her. He admitted to himself that he had married Carol primarily because of her physical resemblance to Gloria, Edward’s mother, but when he found out what a shrew she was, he’d just gritted his teeth and put up with her bullshit because of their children, who he loved unconditionally. He’d assuaged his need to make love with women in his own manner through his extra-marital flings. He’d never considered them as affairs, since he thought of an affair as an ongoing relationship, and he’d not really gone past a one-nighter, in most cases. Since Carol was the mother of his children, he’d been fond of her, despite her fucked up attitude toward sex, but since she’d changed so much, he admitted it was now real love. And now that he was getting the kind of sex he found satisfying from Carol, he felt guilty going outside his marriage, or more correctly: outside his family, since incest had been part and parcel of his early life, and now it was again, as distasteful as that may seem to others. Shit, he thought, were there psychologists who could listen to his strange lifestyle and experiences and not jump in his shit for being an amoral asshole? He could see his picture, or at least his name, throughout a book written by his imaginary analyst about the Abnormal Psychology of a Horndog Sailor. By the time Eddie got home, he was in such a funk, he hit his seldom used liquor cabinet with a vengeance and was shit-faced by the time Carol came home. She listened to him ramble for a few minutes, then had Steven help her put him to bed. The alcohol made it easy for him to shut down his mind.

Luckily for Eddie, he’d slept off most of the booze by the time Carol roused him from his alcohol induced stupor.

“Eddie, honey, I hate to disturb you, but I’m pretty sure I’m starting labor. I got up to go to the bathroom, like I’ve been doing, and I think my water broke while I was peeing. I came back to bed, but I started to have pains I remember from my other three pregnancies. It’s not critical, but I thought you may want to get up and get something in your stomach, since you drank your dinner last night. It could be a while before you get the chance to eat again. Do you understand what I’m saying, honey?”

“I’ve got it, sweets. I just feel like shit, and now I remember why I seldom drink. I may puke before I make it out of the bedroom, but it may make me feel better. Have you woken anyone else up, yet?” Eddie inquired.

“Not yet. I wanted to see if you were feeling like taking me to the hospital, but if you were still under the weather, I’d have Steven drive me. I can still do that, if you’d rather get more sleep.” she replied.

“No, I’m going to take my wife to the hospital. I can always sleep later, while you’re sleeping. I think I’ll make me some toast and maybe some tea: something gentle on my stomach. If I feel like it, I can always hit the cafeteria at the hospital. What are you going to do while I’m getting ready? Do you want to just sit and relax?” Eddie asked.

“I need to go tell the kids what’s happening. I don’t want to run off and have them wondering where their parents are when they get up. Umm, have you, uh, thought about the timing?” she winced.

“Yeah, this is a little earlier than we’d anticipated. It may be the baby is premature, or it could mean you were pregnant before I got home. Carol, I’m not going to throw stones. I love you, and I’m behind you no matter what.”

“Thank you, honey. I love you so much, and I hope this is either a premature baby, or maybe it’s Steven’s, from our time at Ronnie’s. I still want a DNA test run; on all our babies.” she announced.

While Eddie took a shower and dressed, Carol went to each of their children’s bedrooms and informed them of the events that were unfolding. Each of them were surprised to hear it was happening so soon but refrained from bringing it up to their mother. By the time Eddie got to the kitchen, Carol had water on for tea and Steven was up making coffee for himself and whoever else wanted it. Instead of toast, Eddie opted for frozen waffles with frozen strawberries and whipped cream. Wondering how they would sit on his stomach; he took his chances. Carol chose not to eat, though she did have a cup of tea. When Breeanne and Marley came out of their rooms, Carol was having another contraction and they were close enough together, she figured they should leave. Luckily, while the three women were going through their ‘nesting’ period, they had each put together their ‘go bags’, and had them in their respective bedrooms. Eddie retrieved his wife’s bag. grabbed a book for himself, and they were off to the hospital.

Childbirth is always a miracle, and without going into the details, Carol made it to the hospital with just enough time to check in, get prepped, and deliver her baby. Since it was her fourth child, no one was surprised she had such a short labor. The baby, however, was only five pounds-seven ounces, which the doctor declared was a premature infant, though it was healthy enough to not require an incubator. Since it was early in the morning when they arrived at the hospital, Eddie took time out while Carol was being cleaned up after the delivery to call the school and tell them he wouldn’t be in that day, and why. He had already called his kids to tell them about their new little brother. They would be to see him and his mother later in the day. Carol and Eddie had already agreed to call him Tyler Scott Nolan, named after no one in particular. Eddie also left a text for Al, letting him know. Al had returned the text:

“Congratulations to you and your wife, but the answer is still no!”

Later in the afternoon, Eddie called his assistant department head and let him know he was taking the rest of the week off, which was only two days. He would return to school on Monday.

Eddie had visited Carol in her assigned room, where they brought their baby in so she could try to nurse it. Since it was a preemie, they kept it in the nursery except for feeding. Carol was weepy with her newborn but was anxious to try nursing. Her breasts had sag, due to her age and her nursing three previous children, but Tyler found her nipple with very little searching. You could see it on Carol’s face when he latched on. She grunted at the new/old sensation of a child nursing. It was a very different feeling from when Eddie gave her his ‘nipple love’. Each had its own special place in her heart. After Tyler ate, Carol dozed, so Eddie found a comfortable chair in the waiting room and flaked out for an hour, using earplugs to shut out the ambient noises. He awoke when his children arrived. When his daughters walked into the area, people were wondering if they were there to deliver, but they just collected their dad and went to their mother’s room. Now that she had delivered, Carol was wondering who would be next, and how long before that time came. Someone who didn’t know the family history would have guessed Breeanne would be next, since she was showing more. This was most likely due to her previous delivery (i.e. stretched muscles, etc.). Eddie had called Veronica Brady from the hospital to tell her about Carol and the baby.

By the time Eddie and his kids got home, it seemed strange to not have Carol there. If all went well, she would be home before Saturday. The baby may be kept longer, but only the doctors could tell. Since it was late, they had stopped off to pick up fast food, so no one had to cook. This was the beginning of the men picking up the slack, and fortunately the girls were far enough along to make having sex uncomfortable for them. As for their other responsibilities, Veronica should know within a few days whether they had been successful in impregnating her. Eddie knew he would need to try again to get Saundra with-child. And there was still the undecided matter of whether Al would ask for help with his wife. With Carol out of commission, and his daughters too pregnant to want sex, Eddie realized Saundra was the only game in town, but that wouldn’t be for a couple of weeks. So, unless he wanted to check on his list of nurses, to see if any were still around, he’d have to practice celibacy while at home, like in the old days, but his heart just wasn’t into ‘tomcatting’. It was then that he realized: it wasn’t like the old days! Carol had changed, and even though she wouldn’t be able to have intercourse for six weeks, he was almost positive she would not let him go without some form of sexual release.

Eddie was at the hospital by 1000, so he could check on his wife and son. When he walked into Carol’s room, she seemed to be sleeping, so he tried to be quiet. Possibly sensing someone in the room, Carol opened her eyes and upon seeing who it was, spoke:

“Hi, babe! How are you?”
“I’m supposed to ask you that question, honey. I had it easy last night. How did yours go?” he asked.

“Oh, you know: telling me to get some sleep, then waking me up every fifteen minutes for this and that!” she chuckled.

“How many times did they wake you up to feed Tyler?” Eddie inquired.

“Probably every hour and a half. He’s a hungry little guy. My nipples aren’t used to that abuse. Your nipple love is much gentler, but his nursing still makes me wet, so you’ll have to use some of your other methods to get me off for the next six weeks, lover.” she smiled slyly.”

“I was just thinking about that last night, and how I was sure the new you wouldn’t make me go without. I look forward to showing you what I can do, madame!” he smirked.

“I can hardly wait!” she sighed.

“Hardly wait for what, Carol?” Veronica questioned as she came into the room, followed by Hal.

“Oh, just a little pillow talk, that’s all. I’m happy you came to see me. How are you doing?” Carol responded.

“Well, I had to come see you outside your normal environment, and of course to get a close look at little Tyler. I spotted him in the nursery. He’s a good-looking little guy, but I couldn’t make up my mind as to his lineage.” Veronica tittered.

“We’ll know as soon as the DNA results come back.” Eddie huffed.