Page 90 of Leviticus
“I want to give you space, but you missed dinner. I’m worried about you.” His words came as a bit of a shock. I pulled my hands up from the water and noticed the way they wrinkled, pruned from their submersion.
“I didn’t realize. I’m sorry,” I spoke softly.
“Please, don’t apologize,” he urged, sitting on the side of the tub. “But do you think you’re ready to talk to me, yet? I’m not trying to push. I’m just… well, we haven’t dealt with this before.” His vulnerability and sincerity spoke volumes, and I took pity on him.
Taking a deep breath, I sat up from the bath. It was now or never.
“Yes, but will you hand me a towel first? And can I get dressed before we talk?” I asked with a smile. He nodded, and I quickly set to work drying off and dressing myself. “Come in here, please. Join me,” I urged, sitting on the side of the bed. While my mind wasn’t as clear as I had hoped, I also knew that this was necessary. Levi had worked hard to be honest with me, to be open with me at every turn. The only time he hadn’t had been when it concerned his brothers. And that I understood.
“What’s going on, Ruth?” he asked, sitting beside me.
“I think I might be pregnant.” The words rushed out of my mouth quickly, like a freight train, unable to be stopped or taken back.
Now, there was only his response to worry about.
CHAPTER21
LEVITICUS
“I think I might be pregnant.”
The words hung in the air like the ringing echos of a gunshot. At least, that’s how it felt to me. Like a gunshot.
Pregnant.
A baby.
Me.
It took far longer than I want to admit for me to stammer a few words together and realize that I was not, in fact, the only person sitting in that room at that very moment.
“Are you okay?” I stammered out in a weak, thready voice. I felt like I had just had the wind knocked out of me.
By a gut punch.
From a giant.
“Yes, yes of course I’m fine,” she assured me, taking my hand in hers. “Areyouokay?” she asked with concern.
“Yes, why?” I stammered out dumbly.
“Well, because you look like you’ve just seen a ghost!” she laughed nervously. I tried to piece a sentence together, but failed miserably.Time to get it together, Levi, I told myself.
“First things first, are you sure you’re okay, Ruth? How are you feeling?” I already felt a little more in control, having given myself a short but necessary pep talk. Putting my shock and fears to the back part of my brain helped, too, I suppose.
“I am okay. Though I’m feeling… I’m feeling…” she searched for words. “I don’t know how I’m feeling. I am wondering how you are feeling.”
“Okay, so we are both feeling the same in that respect. Second, are you sure you are pregnant?” I didn’t want to sound callous, but if she wasn’t pregnant, that would alleviate half of my stress right then and there.
“My cycle is three days late. I’ve been emotional all day. I honestly didn’t even realize until Mama said something and —”
“Does your mother know?” I asked with great concern. That was the last thing we needed.
“She suspects, why?” Ruth asked with skepticism.
“Because we do not need the gossip. I would rather keep these things to ourselves as much as possible. At least for now,” I stated with as much kindness as I could.
“She does suspect, and will likely have half the town told by now,” she winced as she spoke. “I see what you mean.”
