Absolutely Unforgivable (34 page)

I did speak up though. I reminded them that Billy still wasn’t one hundred percent and he had months of recovery ahead of him, so any thoughts of him doing anything but staying at home in bed could leave their little minds because it wasn’t going to happen. Now was my turn to take care of Billy and I wasn’t going to let them try and force him into performing before he was ready. I almost lost the love of my life and I wasn’t going to risk his health and well-being for a few bucks. No amount of money in the world was worth that.

When we got home Billy and I went into his room and closed the door behind us. We were going to be alone, truly alone for the first time in a long time.

We didn’t tell anyone about the baby. It was still too early for that. But Billy did insist on going with me and when the doctor examined me; and we found out I was only a few weeks along, as the nurse had thought. He would do a more thorough exam on my next appointment in two weeks but for now it looks like my due date was going to be July 23rd.

Because I was so small it was easy to hide my growing baby bump by wearing loose clothes. But Christmas was fast approaching and that meant two things. First it meant that we were going back home to see my family and if that wasn’t enough stress, we had also agreed to do an interview on The Ellen DeGeneres Show. I didn’t really want to but Trista had been bugging us about it non-stop and I felt kind of bad that the rest of the band had to put their own lives on hold while Billy recovered.

Billy had been feeling much better for a while now and performing one song and doing an interview was Okayed by his doctors, so I felt like I had to agree.

The real problem with doing the interview was that by then I would be about sixteen weeks along and I didn’t know how I was going to hide my ever-growing belly. I was in really great shape and had a small frame so chances are I wasn’t going to be showing a lot at sixteen weeks but there would still be a noticeable bump. I hadn’t let anyone else know I was pregnant yet, so I was on my own to find a dress that would cover my stomach.

I searched online for hours trying to find the perfect dress. When I finally found it, I was ecstatic. I found it at a prom dress store, of all places. It was strapless and the top part was all white sequins and was heart shaped. That worked out perfectly because my breasts were starting to grow and that style would bring attention to them instead of my stomach. The bottom part of the dress was made out of bright red tulle that poofed out. The dress had a high waist that was brought together by a huge red flower and that meant my entire stomach would be covered by the flow of the skirt fabric.

We would fly into Los Angeles a week before Christmas to tape the show. Ellen was having a big special so she was having a lot of guests that day, which was great because that meant our segment was only a small part. Hopefully we would be in and out and then we could be on our way to Oklahoma so that Billy could meet my parents. And we could tell them about the baby. I really wanted to tell my parents before the rest of the world. I wanted that more than anything but sometimes things don’t always work out like planned.

While we were sitting in the green room, Trista offered everyone some eggnog that the show had provided. I started to take a drink but when I put it up to my nose and took a whiff I could smell the alcohol in it. I was about to put it back down but Billy jumped up and took it from me. “There’s alcohol in that!”

The room fell silent. Trista looked at Billy, who was holding the eggnog glass in his hand and then back at me. She furrowed her brow and then asked, “Why do you care if there is liquor in the eggnog?”

I never got the chance to answer before Mindy and Bree jumped out of their chairs bouncing up and down, screaming, “Oh my God! Oh my God! Oh my God!” and ran to my side putting their hands on my stomach. “How far along are you? Why didn’t you tell us? Oh my God! I can’t believe it. This is so great!”

“Please, guys. I don’t want anyone to know.”

Mindy and Bree started to lift up my skirt to try and see if they could see a baby bump but I quickly put it back down. “Guys, stop it. I’m not really showing that much yet. I’m only about four months along.”

“That’s why you were so sick when Billy was in the hospital. It so totally makes sense now,” Mindy said as she squeezed my hand in excitement.

With everyone’s mind on the baby growing in my belly, all of the tension and nerves about the upcoming performance were gone. When the producer came to get us, she was barely noticed. Everyone was still so excited about the baby; even pervy Travis had some nice things to say.

The song the band was performing today was called
I Truly Love You
. It was a new song that Billy wrote for me.

“I really, truly love you. You are my heart and soul. Without you I'd be nothing, you're the half that makes me whole.”

After he sang out the first two lines of the song I had to try and turn my focus from him. Otherwise I might start crying. It was hard holding back my emotions now that I’m pregnant. It was hard before, but now it is near impossible. So instead of the words of the song I just focused on watching Billy sing. I loved watching him perform. He took my breath away. When the song was over, I melted into Billy’s arms and we kissed. I forgot for just a moment that there were cameras everywhere recording it.

After we kissed, someone in the background yelled out, “Cut!” Then a group of people swarmed around us, pulling us to the next spot we were supposed to be at. When we were all in place, sitting and standing around a long couch they had set up for our interview portion with Ellen, the cameras started up again.

“That song was great. I don’t normally like the slow songs. I like to dance but that one really tugged at my heart. Did you write it for anyone special?” She looked towards Billy and then to the other boys in the band.

“Yeah. I wrote that song for my fiancé, Stacy.” Billy, who had been holding my hand already, lifted my arm up. “I wrote the words and Zander, Travis, and Bran wrote the music to accompany it.”

“Will that be a single or released with your upcoming album? I heard you just signed with a label. Congrats!”

Travis spoke up next. “We just started working on it. But we think it should be ready by this summer. We’ve laid down a few of the tracks already.”

Without thinking, Billy had rested his hand on my stomach. It was something he did all of the time; he loved to put his hand on my baby bump, but this time we weren’t alone. We were on a sound stage recording a Christmas special for the Ellen show. Millions of people would be watching this.

Ellen, who had turned back towards Billy to ask him another question, instantly noticed where his hand was. Her eyes widened and she now had a huge smile on her face. I shook my head no but it was too late. She had already started to speak. “Well, Miss Keller. I can tell Billy really loves you.”

There was nothing I could really do to stop her. Luckily this won't air until Christmas Day so we would have time to tell my parents before the rest of the world found out.

“So how far along are you?” Ellen asked as she leaned in to put her hand on my stomach.

“About sixteen weeks. We are flying home to tell my parents after this.”

“Well, won’t that be an interesting Christmas surprise for them!”

I didn’t get a chance to answer because next she turned in her chair and started speaking into the camera about some upcoming parts of the show. She wished us a Merry Christmas and then sent us on our way.

After Billy and I said our goodbyes to everyone in the band, they took a flight back home to Houston while Billy and I boarded one heading to Oklahoma.

One of the great things about being back in Oklahoma was that people here just didn’t bother you. We got off of the flight and I was still decked out in my fancy dress from the Ellen show but nobody even seemed to notice or really care. It was Christmas time and they had their families on their minds, not us. The only time we even knew for sure someone had recognized us was at the baggage claim. An adorable little girl was tugging on her mom’s coat. “Mommy. Mommy. Mommy, look. It’s Billy and Stacy.”

The mother bent over to hear her daughter speak and then turned her head to look at us as the little girl pointed. “Britney! Don’t point. That’s rude. They are probably here to see their family. Let them be.”

We grabbed our luggage and made our way outside where my father was waiting for us. We jumped in the car and drove home. He told us that my mother had been cooking all day and would have dinner ready for us by the time we got there. My sisters were already at the house; they both had arrived there earlier that morning.

When we got there my father opened the trunk and started pulling all of my luggage out. I walked back there to give him a hug and he looked down at what I was wearing and just shook his head.

“Daddy! We didn’t have time to change after taping the Ellen show.”

Billy helped my father. When we went into the house my mother and sisters showered us with hugs and kisses. Billy and my father went to put the luggage in my old bedroom. My mother took me by the hand and twirled me around. “Let me look at you.”

My sisters started to ask about the Ellen show but my mother broke in. “Well, well.” They stopped what they were saying and turned to look at her. She put her hand on my stomach and asked, “So how far along are we?”

I couldn’t believe it. How did she know? And why was that always the first question everyone asked me when they found out?

“I’m your mother, Stacy. Did you really think you could hide something like this from me with a frilly little dress?”

“No, Mother. It’s not like that. We didn’t have time to change after the Ellen show. We had to run to catch our flight. This is what I wore for the Christmas special.” My sisters stood off to the side in stunned silence.

As Billy and my father returned from dropping off our luggage my mother leaned in and said, “Let’s put this conversation on hold for a bit. Let your father get to know Billy first.”

My sisters and I nodded in agreement and then went off to the kitchen to set the table for dinner.

My normally boisterous sisters were very quiet over dinner and my father knew something was wrong, but he seemed too distracted by Billy to worry about my sisters for now.

“So, son, you’re in a band, huh?”

“Yes, sir. But I also have money in trust from an inheritance from when my parents died. I also own quite a bit of real estate. So if you are worried about me being able to support your daughter, you don’t need to. I’ll take good care of her.”

My father grunted. I knew that wasn’t good. “There is more to a relationship than being able to afford it.”

I looked up at Billy. I was scared. I didn’t know what he was going to say to my father but he gave me his adorable smile and I knew it was going to be okay. “With all due respect, sir, I know that. I love your daughter very much and I want nothing more than to spend the rest of my life showing her just how much.”

My father didn’t grunt that time. That was a good sign.

Then my younger sister Stefani spoke up. “So let’s just ask what everyone wants to know.” I looked up at her, panicked she was going to spill the beans about the baby. But what she said was probably even worse. “Billy is drop-dead gorgeous. How are you going to handle all of those groupies that want to get with him?”

My mother gasped. “Stefani! That’s not appropriate dinner conversation.”

Surprisingly, my father defended Stefani. “Now, now. That’s not a bad question. Billy’s clearly not without his charms. Stacy needs to really think about what she’s getting herself into here.”

I rested my head on my hands, utterly shocked at where this conversation had gone. I took a deep breath and spoke up. “Daddy, I love you. I get that you are worried about me. I appreciate that and I get that it’s your job to terrorize my boyfriends. But Billy isn’t just some guy. I love him. We are going to be married and he’s going to be the father of my children.”

My father sighed. I could tell he hated to hear what I said but he also knew I was right. “Let’s get you married before we start planning any little ones.”

“I’m not a child anymore, Daddy. I’m an adult now I’m going to be a mother.”

“This is a ridiculous conversation to even be having. I’m sure when the time comes, Stacy, you are going to be a great mother. But that’s not even the point I’m trying to make here.”

“No, Daddy. I’m going to be a mother now, well, in a few months. Billy and I are having a baby and next week the whole world is going to know about it.”

My father looked at me, seemingly confused by what I was telling him. I shrugged. “It kind of came out on the Ellen show. We didn’t plan it to happen that way but it’s out there now and we can’t exactly take it back.”

“How ...” he started to say but then my older sister Sarah jumped it.

“Seriously? That’s what you want to know, how she got pregnant? I would think that was the one part of the story that was obvious.” She pointed to Billy and continued. “Her rock star boyfriend knocked her up.”

“Okay, that’s enough of that,” my mother said as she got up from the table and started clearing the plates.

“Well, son, I guess the only thing left to say is welcome to the family.” My father put his hand on Billy’s shoulder and stuck his other hand out to shake Billy’s. I’m sure he was still worried about his baby girl, but at the same time, what could he really do? Billy was going to be part of my life from now on and I was glad my father finally accepted it, or at least was trying to.