Howie and Mikayla took their lunch to her house. Howie was amazed that she lived in such an incredible place. She obviously didn't need any financial help with this baby, regardless of who the father was.

"SO... what do you do, Mikayla?" he asked, curious about all this money and hoping she wasn't some kind of madame or something.

"I buy and sell things," she said, smiling over her shoulder as she walked through the foyer of her house. "And I own things."

"What kind of things?" he asked, looking at all the gorgeous antique furniture and paintings. This stuff must have cost a fortune.

"Oh, just stuff. I own three gentlemen's clubs in Atlanta, a professional football team, a casino in Vegas... just stuff. Hey, let's eat on the beach, ok?" she said, changing the subject.

Howie laughed, but followed her through the house and out the back door. They made their way down to a gazebo overlooking the Gulf. The weather was perfect. A gentle gulf breeze cooled the air, and they sat at the table and talked ... really talked... for the first time ever. Howie watched how the breeze blew through her hair, and how the sunlight reflected in her eyes. As they talked, he gradually got a whole new picture of Mikayla. She really wasn't the aggressive, domineering person he thought she was. She was actually very smart, and really funny, if not a little sarcastic. He glanced down at his watch and noticed they had spent the entire afternoon together.

"Oh man, I'd better get back. It's almost six. They're gonna think I ran off with you or something," Howie said, laughing.

"Ok. Howie, I'm glad we had this time together. I just hope we can be friends," she said, smiling and placing her hand on top of his.

"I think we can," he said, winking at her. He picked up her hand and kissed it.

********************************************

Nick wasn't taking the news of his impending possible fatherhood very well. He was terrified. He didn't know what to do, so he made his way to Mikayla's house. He passed Howie, who was leaving her driveway. Mikayla saw Nick driving up, and she met him at the door. He was pale and looked very shaken.

She held her arms out to him, and he ran to her burying his face in her shoulder. She rubbed his back as he held her.

"Nicky," she said, smiling. "It's going to be ok."

"Just keep telling me that and maybe I'll believe you one day," he said, sniffling. "How did this happen?"

Mikayla laughed. "Well, remember that night when me, you, AJ, and Kevin... um..."

Nick smiled and nodded.

"Well, that night, I didn't take my pill like I was supposed to. I got pregnant shortly after that," she explained. "I guess if you're gonna play, you've got to be willing to pay, right?"

"I guess so. Mikayla, I'm worried. I can't be a dad," he said, casting his eyes to the ground.

"I know, Nick. I know. You're way too young. But if you were the dad, would you want to know?"

He nodded silently, placing his hands on her stomach.

"I thought so," she said, looking out at the sunset. "I really didn't want to find out either way, but I guess the rest of you want to know, so we'll find out soon enough. I only have a few more weeks, then all this will be over. Let's just try not to worry about it too much until then, ok? Let me enjoy the last few weeks of this."

"So is it a boy or a girl?" he asked, smiling his sweet little Nick-smile.

"I don't know. I decided to wait until it got here to find out. It's more exciting that way. I have an idea, but I don't know for sure," she said, placing her hands on top of his.

"Can you imagine what it's going to be like, Mikayla? I mean this is going to be a really cute baby! And it'll be able to sing!" he said, getting excited.

If it's your baby, it's going to be beautiful, she thought, smiling.

*************************************************************

Over the next few weeks, AJ was a mainstay at Mikayla's house. He waited on her hand and foot. He rubbed her increasingly aching back, and catered to her every whim. If she wanted chili dogs with kraut at midnight, he got them for her. If she wanted a backrub at 3am, he did it. Mikayla found his devotion very endearing, and she appreciated every minute of it.

One night, AJ lay with his head propped up on his hand, lightly rubbing her exposed stomach as she watched television. She wasn't paying much attention to him, as she was enthralled in the latest episode of Survivor.

"Hey little baby," AJ said softly, leaning close to her tummy. "It's AJ. I can't wait to see you. You only have about two weeks before we get to meet each other, too. I'm gonna see if your mommy will let me be there when you're born. You're gonna be a beautiful little baby, too. Especially if you look like your mommy, cause she's a hottie." Talking to the baby had become a normal thing for AJ. He was always telling the baby secrets and singing to it. Mikayla thought it was adorable. He was so excited about this baby. She even secretly hoped that he was the baby's father. He had proven himself to be a wonderful guy. Any kid would be lucky to have him.

"Mikayla, can I be at the hospital when the baby's born?" he asked, hopeful. "I want to be in there with you."

"Well, there's not going to be any hospital. But sure, you can be here," she answered, smiling.

"No hospital?? What are you talking about. Babies are born in hospitals," he said, getting concerned.

"Not this baby. This one is going to be born right here. I don't do hospitals, AJ. People have babies at home all the time nowdays. I have a midwife, and she'll come here and I'll have the baby, then she'll leave. That's how I want it. Hospitals are for sick people, and I'm not sick."

The determination in her voice silenced him, but he still couldn't help but worry. He didn't mention it again. After Survivor, Mikayla turned off the light and snuggled up against him. He put his arms around her and kissed her forehead. She drifted off to sleep.

Early the next morning, she was awakened by a strange pulling ache in her back. She got up, leaving AJ asleep in the bed. She walked out to by the pool to see if she could get the ache to go away. It did, temporarily, but then returned a few minutes later. She noticed that she was having light contractions, but that wasn't unusual. She'd been having those for weeks now. She went to the kitchen and made a cup of hot chocolate, then took it back out to the pool. She sat in a chair and watched the sun rise. The pulling pain her her back returned several more times, getting a little worse each time, and she began to realize she was in labor. A calmness came over her as she realized that today, she would finally meet her baby.