Page 28 of The Complication with the Best Man

I still, putting him on speaker and scrolling to the Buzz Wheel app. Oh shit, did someone find out? Who? I’ve been so careful.

“What do you mean? I’m fine.” Buzz Wheel is taking forever to pull up, and I try to even out my voice so I don’t sound as if I’m hiding something.

“Are you sure?” He sounds skeptical.

“Yeah… why?” Come on, fucking Buzz Wheel.

“You haven’t sent me any memes in weeks, which is not like you. Thought I might have to send out a search party.” He chuckles, but the concern remains in his voice.

My shoulders deflate as Buzz Wheel finally loads on my phone, and I read about my cousins and the Anderson twins at Lucky’s.

“I’ve just been busy with work. I have some out-of-town clients taking up all my time.” I try to keep my voice light.

“Bullshit.”

I cringe.

“Be real with me, Harp. If you don’t want to talk about whatever it is, that’s fine. But don’t bullshit a bullshitter.”

I sigh. It’s not that I don’t want to tell Jack. Hell, everyone will know soon enough. But I know that he and his wife have been struggling to conceive a child for a couple of years. It feels insensitive to complain to him about an unplanned pregnancy.

Then again, if I don’t tell him, when he finds out in a few weeks, he’s going to be upset with me. Especially since he asked me directly.

“Fine. But you can’t say anything, okay?” I say.

“You know I can keep my mouth shut.”

“I’m pregnant.”

He’s quiet for a few heartbeats, and I worry that maybe I made the wrong decision in telling him. Then he laughs. “Don’t ease into it, Harp. Leave it to you to just blurt it out like that.”

I shrug, though he can’t see me. “I am who I am.”

“I’m guessing from your tone of voice this is not something you planned?”

“Well, let me see… I slept with the best man at Palmer’s wedding, and now I’m the wedding planner for him and his fiancée’s October wedding, so no. Not planned.”

Another beat of silence. I swear I have some uncanny ability to silence people.

“What the fuck? Are you serious?”

I explain the whole situation to him, including Adley almost outing me with her pink lines sick test and how I plan to tell Finn tomorrow.

“Jeez. Harp, that’s a lot. I’m sorry.”

“It’s my own fault. Everyone always told me this would happen.” I laugh, but I can hear the shrill note to my voice.

“Hey, stop that. I never liked those jokes, but even so, you’re entitled to live your life however you want. You’re not hurting anyone.”

“Are you sure? Because I’m about to throw a grenade into a happy couple’s wedding plans tomorrow morning.” I cringe.

“I’m pretty sure he was there too. You didn’t end up in this situation alone.”

I love Jack and didn’t realize until right now how much I needed his advice on this matter.

“I know.” I drag my finger over a line in the print on my comforter, following its path. “But I hate this so much.”

He sighs, and even over a phone line, I feel his empathy for my situation. “If you need anything, let me know, all right?”

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