a fortunate misfortune

Oliver wished the dog across the ally would stop howling. He tried not to think of the mournful tone as he was trying to watch the time on the oven for the roast he was making. It was a family dinner at his place.

"See, I dunno why you didn't invite that cousin over," he turned to Kayla then, who was setting the table. "What's her name?"

"Audrey." Kayla looked at him, kind of bitter. "I don't want her, over here." Her hands were on her hips as if he would not speak of her.

"Why? She's family." Oliver thought that's what it was about. This was a family dinner. His parents were coming. Ian and his girlfriend were bringing little Liam. Jules and Willow would be here. "What's one more? Huh?"

"No." Kayla went to find wine glasses.

"Babe? What could be the problem?" He half teased as he checked on the butter and cream in the potatoes he was about to mash.

"You don't want to know." Kayla snapped. Just then Jules let himself in. He had something to show Oliver on his cell phone.

"Look at Gilly's baby." He held up the picture of Gilly and Tristan.

"What?" Oliver winced as he took a gander. "Its true. His kid." Jules stressed. "Collette's baby is Gilly's kid."

"So? He adopted it." Oliver shrugged with a sigh. He wished he had his own kid to worry about it. Before he turned around there was Lola and Ian with Liam. Willow was looking at the baby's new sneakers.

"For real. His actual kid." Jules looked at him point blank. "Tristan is his." Jules eyeballed him.

"All righty then." Oliver made a silly face back at him.

"Ian, you know about this, don't you?" Jules went to talk to him about the baby picture.

"Know what?" Ian winced.

"Gilly's kid. Collette had Gilly's kiddie." He showed him the picture of Gilly and Tristan.

"Huh." Ian squinted hard looking at the picture as if he might need glasses.

"Oliver doesn't believe me, but the little bugger is his. Paternity test proved it." Jules was a bit hyper.

"He looks a bit like Gilly, come to think of it." Ian then said. He showed the picture to Lola. He handed the phone back to Jules. "Why don't you take a picture of Lola and me with Liam. Send it to him."

"Then he'll think you've got a kid." Jules told him.

Oliver couldn't keep from laughing.

What was all this talk about babies? It seemed everyone was good in this department, but himself. He thought of how Eric teased him how Oliver might have Kayla knocked up the first month they were married, but Oliver was beginning to think it might never happen. He suspected they'd get him to the doctor to tell him his sperm count was too low. As of yet, it wasn't something Kayla talked about. Then again, she might never talk about starting a family.