Page 91 of Submission

“You lost quite a bit of blood, Miss Taylor. You and the baby needed your rest.”

Dr. Yasmin conducts a routine checkup on me while I lay there, still processing the news. It’s only when she leaves the room that it all hits me like a ton of bricks.

“You got me pregnant?" It hurts to move, but I’m at least able to tilt to the side, grab the water cup, and throw it at him. “You idiot!“

I can’t think of any better insults right now, plus my hands are shaking in anger and fear.

“It’s good to see that you’re feeling better,” he says casually as he picks up the cup and places it back on the side table. “We’re going to need someone to come to mop up this water.”

“Why are you so calm?” I ask frantically. “I’m having a baby!”

“I know.” He smiles at me.

I stare at him, comprehension dawning on me, as I say slowly, “You’re happy about this?”

He steps closer to the bed. “Until I met you, I never wanted anyone in my life. And until learning about our baby, I didn’t realize I wanted a child. But I realize that with the right person, a lot of things you think you want or don’t want can change in an instant.”

“Oh,” I mumble, my heart feeling unsteady.

“How do you feel about it?”

“Scared,” I say softly. “I’m young, and I don’t have any experience with what good parenting looks like. What the hell do I know about being a mom?"

"You will be great. Look at it this way: at least you know what not to do."

"What does this mean for us?” I ask tentatively.

I see a sly look form in Hunter’s eyes. “Well, I guess it means that you’re stuck with me.”

“You want to raise it together?” I ask, still surprised by his reaction.

“Isn’t that what couples do?”

“I guess but–”

Hunter takes my hand. “You said something to me when I was bringing you to the hospital. I told you to keep fighting and say it to my face once you recover. So, I want you to tell me again.”

I stare at him, and when I remember the moment when I wasn’t sure if I was going to survive and I just wanted him to know my true feelings, my face gets hot.

“Technically, I’m not actuallyrecoveredyet.“

“I want to know, Megan.” His voice is serious. “I waited two excruciatingly long days for you to wake up and tell me.”

I don’t know why I’m so scared. He just told me that he wants to raise this baby with me. All he’s ever done since we met is show me how much he cares about me. Why is it so hard for me to say the words?

“I wanted to say thank you,” I begin hesitantly, watching him. “For everything you’d done for me until now. And that I love you. I am in love with you.”

I retreat into myself, irrationally fearing the response. The two of us have shared tender moments before, but this feels significantly different. I was shot. And now there’s a baby. This is serious now.

“When they took you inside for surgery, at first, I was overwhelmed with guilt.”

“This wasn’t your fault.”

Hunter strokes my hair, bending down even closer to me.

“But then all I could think about was how was I supposed to go on without you? I was driving myself crazy with worry. They had you on the operating table for more than three hours because the surgery got complicated once they discovered you were pregnant."

"Oh, my God."

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