Monroe, Marla - The Carpenters' Helper [The Men of Space Station One #5] (Siren Publishing Ménage Everlasting) (15 page)

“I wouldn’t be so smug if I were you, Brad. You let him give me the shot.”

It was Kirk’s turn to smile now.

By the time they had her dressed and were tired of looking around the big room, Scott came back and led them to the doctor’s office.

“Make yourselves comfortable. He’ll be right with you.” Scott closed the door behind him when he left.

“Do you think he found something?” Carmen asked in a whisper.

“Just that you’re a walking miracle, babe, but we already knew that.” Kirk poked her in the ribs.

A few seconds later, the doctor walked in carrying a folder in his hands and sat down behind the desk. He looked through the folder again then sat it on the top of several others on his desk.

“What is it?” Brad finally asked.

“Everything about this planet is strange. I don’t know why I’m continually surprised by what I find.” He licked his bottom lip and blew out a breath.

“You shouldn’t be alive, young lady. You still have a large amount of toxin in your bloodstream. I honestly don’t see how you are walking around with as much as you have inside.”

“Is she still in danger?” Kirk immediately asked.

“No. I don’t believe so. Her body has somehow adjusted to it and the stuff isn’t poisonous to her anymore. Saying that, I don’t want you to go out and grab some more of that thistle bush. I can’t promise fresh poison won’t still make you sick or even kill you.”

“Don’t worry. I’m never going to pick flowers without gloves again.”

“Besides, we burned all the thistle we could find in the area,” Brad admitted.

“That was probably a good idea regardless,” Doc said. “Okay, more news. You have the same weird cell in your blood that most of the inhabitants here have. I’m figuring it is in the food and water here. It’s not bothering anyone, but it’s not something I’m pleased with, either. We are working on trying to figure out what it means and how it will affect everyone as time goes on. So far, we don’t have a clue.”

“What about us? Do you need our blood?” Brad asked.

“Speak for yourself, asshole.” Kirk frowned.

Jeff chuckled and nodded his head. “I’d like a sample from each of you if you don’t mind.”

“Fine, but you go first, Brad.”

Carmen watched them take the lead. She was still worried about what all of the strange stuff in her body would mean for a baby. Would she be able to get pregnant, and what would it do to it? She was afraid to ask him in front of the men. She didn’t want to worry them. Besides, if they thought it could cause a problem, they might not make love to her anymore.

Jeff called Scott in and the nurse led the men to the lab so he could draw their blood. The doctor kept Carmen in the office.

“I can tell you wanted to talk without the men. Here’s your chance. What did you want to ask?”

Chapter Twelve

Carmen licked her lips, nervous now that she was alone with him. Finally, she looked at the door and blurted it out.

“What does this mean for having a baby?”

“You’re not pregnant, Carmen. You don’t have to worry about that right now.”

“Will it stop me from getting pregnant, though?”

“I honestly don’t know, Carmen. If it were just the strange cell that everyone else seems to have, I’d say unequivocally not, because there are others pregnant that have it. However, you have that toxin in your body, so I’m just not sure.”

“What would happen if I did get pregnant? Will it harm the baby?”

He sighed and leaned forward. “I don’t know. I wish I had the answers, but all of this is new to me and everyone working on it. We just don’t know yet.”

“I’m scared, Doc. What happens if I can’t get pregnant? Will they send me back to Earth?”

“No! Of course not. You’re going to be fine, Carmen. Don’t worry about it, and everything will work out like it is supposed to.”

The door to the office opened and the men filed back in. Scott nodded at Jeff. She was glad she had been able to at least ask her questions without the men being able to hear how worried she was.

“Well, if that’s everything, we promised the wife that we would let her do a little shopping.” Kirk took her by the hands and pulled her softly to her feet.

“If you have any problems, call or come back, Carmen. I’m always here.”

“Thanks, Doc. I appreciate it.”

The men hurried her out of the office and then the building. They climbed up in the transport and Brad flew them farther into town. He parked outside a store that boasted all sorts of kitchen supplies. Brad dropped them off and went to see about getting a few more supplies for the as-yet-unfinished house.

“I’m going to leave you and Kirk here to shop while I grab some more of those things we needed for the site.”

“Good idea, Brad. I’ll take care of our wife.” Kirk unsnapped her harness and pulled it over her head. “Come on, baby. Let’s see what we can find for you.”

“It’s just canning supplies, guys.” She rolled her eyes at them, but was secretly glad they were being so attentive. She felt a little delicate right then.

She had too many thoughts rolling around in her head. Worries about babies and the garden and what the future would hold for them filled her brain to bursting. She needed this distraction.

They walked into the store and a bell chimed, signaling they made their entrance. A clerk immediately walked out. She smiled when she saw them.

“Hey! You must be new. I’ve never seen you here before.” She held out her hand. “I’m Nancy. My husbands and I run the store. What are you looking for?”

“I’m Kirk, and this is my wife, Carmen. She needs some canning supplies. Do you have them here?”

“We sure do.” She led them to the area of the store that was dedicated to canning and drying foods.

“Wow, a dehydrator. I hadn’t even thought about that! We could dehydrate some of the fruits and even some meat to make beef jerky.” Carmen browsed around the area, looking at all the possibilities.

They spent well over an hour in the store. She got the dehydrator and supplies as well as the canning supplies she’d originally come into the store for. Kirk carried all of it out to the transport, making two trips to get it all. He wouldn’t let her so much as lift the instruction book that came with the new toy she had gotten.

“But I want to read about it on the way home,” she whined.

“I’ll give it to you when we get in the transport to head home. Are you hungry?” he asked.

“Hmm, I could eat.”

“Let’s go find Brad and then get something. There are several possibilities here for a late lunch.”

It took them nearly thirty minutes to find Brad and load up his things. By then, Carmen really was hungry. They chose a little café that had cold sandwiches and hot soups. Brad and Kirk discussed the purchases they had made with Carmen only halfway listening to them. She was thinking about what all she would try in the dehydrator.

By four that afternoon, they were ready to leave. Kirk helped her in the transport then gave her the instruction and recipe booklets for the new gadget. She spent the ride home reading and thinking. She didn’t even look out the window at the passing landscape to see if she saw any more of those weird animals from earlier.

When they got home, she was worn out and ready for a nap or bed, whichever came first. As it was, Kirk suggested she take a nap while they unloaded the transport. Carmen didn’t argue. She walked upstairs still holding the pamphlets for the new dehydrator in her hand. She climbed into bed after removing her boots and was asleep in seconds.

* * * *

Early the next morning, Carmen was up and had breakfast cooked for the men by the time they made it downstairs.

“Something smells good, baby,” Brad said.

“I can’t wait to get out to the garden. I hope there is something ready to pick by now.”

“You just want to try out your new gadget is what you want to do,” Kirk admonished.

“Well, I can’t help it. I’m excited.”

They finished breakfast and helped her clean up before they headed out to work.

“Now remember, if you need anything at all, you call us. How does that new holster fit you?” Brad had remembered to get her one to carry the gun. It worked even better than she thought it would.

“I love it. I can reach it, but it doesn’t worry me that it will go off by accident.”

“Stay safe, baby.” Kirk gave her a quick peck on the cheek and climbed into the transport.

She waved them off before heading for the garden. She walked the rows first just to see how everything was doing. She found that the tomatoes had regained some of their stolen ground and had a couple of ripe ones on the vine for her to pick. She quickly got back to work and discarded the weeds before tying up the plants that needed it and picking the few ripe tomatoes. She would fix them sandwiches for dinner. They could have roast sandwiches with tomatoes.

Carmen grinned and stretched. It was a little after noon by the sun’s location. She figured she better get something to eat and take a nap so she would be in good shape for the men that night. She expected them to make love to her. She was fine now. She had missed her men.

It didn’t take her long to finish a tomato sandwich for her lunch and eat it. Then she lay down on the couch and took a quick nap. When she woke up an hour later, she felt good as new. In fact, she really hadn’t felt this well since before the sun had started messing up back on Earth.

She shrugged and got to work on cooking a roast for dinner. She added currick to the roast with potatoes and carrots. Then she set it all in the oven to cook. She had picked some not-quite-ripe fruit to try her new dehydrator out. She was quite pleased with the results.

Brad and Kirk were home before dark. She was so excited to see them that she almost forgot the roast in the oven. They swung her around and kissed her until she remembered. Then she hurried into the kitchen to take it out. She sat it on the stove and soon had the men sniffing over her shoulder as she opened the lid to check on the meat.

“You both need to go upstairs and shower. You smell like you’ve been actually working somewhere,” she teased, closing the lid.

“That smells wonderful. How long till it’s ready?” Brad asked.

“Depends on how long it takes you two to shower and change.” She winked at Kirk.

Kirk took the hint and raced for the stairs. Brad wasn’t far behind him. She laughed as she heard them fussing in the bedroom. It didn’t take her long to set the table and pour up the glasses. Still, she had everything on the table and ready to eat by the time the men made it downstairs dressed and pretty much dry.

She giggled at the wet hair sticking up all over their heads. They needed haircuts. She would have to talk them into letting her give them a trim later.

“What are you grinning at, wife?” Brad asked, pulling her into his arms for a kiss.

“You both have wet hair. Did you even bother to dry off before dressing?”

“The clothes dried us off just fine,” Kirk said with a straight face.

She shook her head at him as they all took their seats.

Dinner was a hit. They all thought the tomatoes were extra tasty since they had come from their garden. They each made a sandwich with a slice and commented on how good the roast tasted with it.