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away.
    “I just need you to roll or push down your pants to your pubic line and pull your shirt up to your bra line,” he says, pushing some buttons on the ultrasound machine he’s just wheeled over to the table from the corner of the room. He squirts some cold jelly around my belly button before pushing the wand down on my tummy and moving it around as he turns his attention to the monitor.
    He hits a button on the keyboard, and suddenly, a loud whooshing sound reverberates throughout the room.
    “That’s the baby’s heartbeat, right?” I ask even though I’m pretty sure it is. I just want to make sure. I heard it for a few seconds during the last ultrasound, and it’s almost impossible to confuse that beautiful sound with anything else. Everything except that amazing whooshing just fades out. It makes the fact that there really is a little person growing inside me more of a reality. The baby becomes a little more real every time I hear it.
    “Yes, and it sounds great. Everything else looks great too. I don’t see anything abnormal,” he says, still moving the wand around as he checks things out. I can’t tear my eyes away from the screen. It’s hard to believe that little peanut is inside me—although she’s not really a peanut anymore. I can definitely make out the shape of a baby now.
    “So, do you think that you might be interested in finding out the sex of the baby, Ashley?” Dr. Marcus asks.
    I see Quinn bouncing in her chair and shaking her head up and down.
    “Yes, but I thought it was still early to tell,” I reply.
    “You’re at about fourteen and half weeks. We don’t normally look for the sex at this point, but I’m already here, and I can tell for sure what the sex is. So if you want to know, I’d be more than happy to share.” He smiles down at me.
    “Yes, I would love to know,” I answer, my voice full of excitement.
    He points to an area of the screen that looks as though it could be the baby’s butt. “This view is what we sometimes refer to as the potty shot, and that right there tells us that you’re having a bouncing baby boy.”
    I gasp, and my eyes fill with tears as I stare at the image that is my son.

Chapter 3
    Tanner
     
    A few days after having dinner with Melissa, I called Davis, my agent, about my foundation idea. He must have jumped on it right away because it only took him a little over a week to get back to me with good news. While trying to start my own foundation to benefit underprivileged children could take months and even years to get off the ground, Davis has found something that he thinks is even better for me. The Tony Mathis Foundation has been looking for someone to take over as the public face of the organization since Tony passed earlier this year, and they think I’d be a great fit for them. The head of the foundation told Davis that, based on my recent activities in the community, the board would be more than happy to meet with me. The Tony Mathis Foundation is huge. It’s been around for decades and is basically a household name. It isn’t exactly what I’d been looking to do, but it’s a damn good alternative with little to no startup work. I told Davis I would take the weekend to think about it and get back to him.
    I’m just checking his latest email on my phone as I stand on the sidelines of the party. It’s my teammate Malcolm’s daughter’s birthday, and the whole team and all their kids have turned out. I read Davis’ email reminding me that I don’t have all the time in the world to make a decision and he really thinks I should do this. They don’t have much time to waste, and they want to have a set man for the job by Monday. Apparently, with the holidays coming up, they need someone to sign now so they can get things rolling for the new year.
    Just then, Alex comes over with a cold Heineken for me, “Here’s a beer, bro.”
    “Thanks, dude.” I grab the beer while reaching into my pocket for my key ring, which has a bottle