Hot stuff

“Visit?” Thoughts of Pierce’s skillful hands fled my mind and I was brought back to the present.

“Yeah.” Pierce continued, “The one you paid to your mum? You seemed upset by it yesterday, and you came back late. The reason you live here is so I can keep an eye on you and ensure the safety of my child. Your unreliable schedule isn’t helpful.“

“I was with my mother.” I did not think I needed to explain myself further.

“And you came back looking like you lost a pet, what happened? Is she good?”

Several months ago I would be preening from this attention he was giving me. Now, I shifted uncomfortably on the counter.

“Everything’s fine, my emotions have been all over the place since the baby.”

We had to stay on common ground. Although considering we were going to have a baby between us, knowing more about each other’s family seemed smart.

“Is it dementia?” He queried.

“Alzheimer’s, PTSD, chronic pain…”

“PTSD?”

“Yeah, my da-“ it occurred to me that I was crossing a line. “Yeah, PTSD.”