Page 28 of The Do-Over
The door to the restaurant opened and Stephanie came in. Carlo stepped back from the table to make room for her.
“Oof,” Stephanie said, lowering herself slowly into the seat. “My back is killing me. I am through with being pregnant.”
“Just two more months, right?” Carlo said encouragingly.
“Yeah, but Nurse Thea here says I’m going to get a lot bigger in that time.”
“I didn’t say that,” Thea protested. “I just said that pregnant women tend to grow the most in the last couple of months.”
“Sounds like you did say it,” Carlo laughed.
“Go get us our chips, Carlo,” Thea said. He gave a mock salute and walked away.
“Honestly, you look great,” Thea said to Stephanie. “I know it must be a pain, but you’re glowing. And you’re going to be the best mom anyone ever had.”
“You’re sweet.” Stephanie grinned. “I don’t think I could do it without your support, Thea.”
“Yes, you could. You’ve got Jim.” Stephanie’s husband, originally from the East Coast, had fallen so deeply in love with her during their time at Iowa State that he had settled in Deer Ridge. Thea couldn’t have dreamed up a better match for her friend.
“Jim’s great, but he doesn’t know what he’s doing any more than I do,” Stephanie said. “Having a nurse for a best friend is what makes me feel relaxed.”
“I specialize in elder care, not obstetrics,” Thea said with a laugh. “And I hardly know anything about babies.”
“Yeah, but you studied everything,” Stephanie said. “Once the kid is born, you’d better expect me to call you at all hours of the day and night, panicking about stupid stuff. And you’ll tell me I’m being crazy, and that everything is fine.”
Thea smiled warmly. “Of course I will,” she assured her friend. If there was one thing she was used to, it was reassuring fearful patients. She would be able to handle that for Stephanie without any problem. And Steph was right—Thea might not have specialized in pediatrics, but she had studied every discipline in college. She knew far more than the average layperson about medicine. She would be able to help Stephanie after the baby was born.
“So,” Stephanie said as Carlo set down the chips and a glass of soda in front of her, “how are things on the dating front? Did you download that new app like I suggested?”
“I did,” Thea said. “But I got rid of it.”
“Already? You couldn’t have even given it a fair try yet!”
“You’re always trying to set me up,” Thea said with a fond smile. “When are you going to accept that it just isn’t in the cards? I have.”
“You’ve given up,” Stephanie accused.
“You make it sound so dramatic. But I’m perfectly happy on my own,” Thea said.
“How long has it been since you’ve had a boyfriend?”
Thea declined to answer that, sipping on her margarita instead. The truth was that she hadn’t had a serious relationship in years, and Stephanie knew it.
“Come on, Thea,” Stephanie urged. “You owe it to yourself to try.”
“I owe it to myself not to drive myself crazy looking for men when I’ve already met everyone there is to meet in Deer Ridge,” Thea corrected her. “There’s no one here I want, Steph. An app isn’t going to change that.”
“But you can set your own distance parameters on the app,” Steph protested. “You can search all of Iowa if you want to!”
“I appreciate you trying,” Thea said. “It’s just not for me.”
“I feel like lately all you do is work,” Stephanie said. “I feel like you never have any fun.”
“I’m having fun now!”
“Only because I ambushed you while you were eating dinner in your parents’ restaurant. When’s the last time you actually arranged something fun for yourself?”
Thea chose not to respond to that question either. What could she possibly have said? Stephanie knew why it was harder for her to be social these days. There was a time when the two of them had joked together about the fact that they were the last of their friends to be childfree.
And two months from now, Stephanie would be a mother, and Thea would be the only one left. The only one single. The only one without children. The rest of their college friends got together for playdates and mothers’ groups, and Thea couldn’t resent being left out of those things, of course. But because they all saw each other in those new venues, there was no reason to go out for drinks on a Saturday night anymore. Besides, they were all too tired.
She was happy for her friend. She was happy that Stephanie was going to have a child.
But it meant the end of a certain part of her own life, and she couldn’t help mourning that.
She was determined to keep her sadness to herself, though. “I’m fine,” she said firmly. “Don’t waste your time worrying about me. And definitely don’t bother trying to set me up with any guys.”
“I don’t like seeing you alone,” Steph said. “That’s all.”
“I’m just not in a dating place right now.” Thea took a long sip of her drink. “And I can’t see that changing any time soon.”
