Page 11 of The MC's Surprise
I huffed, unable to stop myself. “Words. That’s an improvement.”
He visibly winced. “Sorry. I know I reacted… weird…”
Shaking my head, I dropped onto the couch, curling my leg under myself by habit. “I get it. Pretty sure if I wasn’t in a busy doctor’s office when I found out, I would’ve reacted the same way.”
He sat on the couch with me, the middle cushion empty between us. After how affectionate he’d been when he first saw me, the difference was a little painful. Gone were the casual hugs. Was it wrong to feel disappointed?
We sat in silence for a minute. I wasn’t sure what to say, and from the look on his face, neither did Vegas. He rubbed his hands on the knees of his jeans, his brow furrowed as he opened his mouth and closed it again. I thought maybe it’d be another repeat of his office, but he eventually summoned the words to speak.
“When–” He cleared his throat. “Why–” He stalled out and sighed heavily. “Shit, I’ve got no clue what to say right now.”
I snorted, and something in my chest eased when his familiar smirk flashed across his face.
“That makes two of us. I never thought I’d be in a situation like this.”
He swallowed hard, frowning at me. “How did you end up–” He shook his head, reframing the question. “I don’t understand how it happened. We used protection.”
“Yeah.” I huffed a laugh. “Two forms, actually. You used a condom and I had an IUD. I thought we were covered. But apparently, my IUD wasn’t working. The doctor said it wasn’t placed right and probably never worked how it should. And condoms are only like ninety seven percent effective or something. Whoever this kid is, they were determined to be here.”
Bad luck. That’s all it was. We did everything we were supposed to do. I just ended up being that 1% that still got pregnant despite contraceptives.
“And, uh… You’re sure its mine?” He winced again. “Sorry, I feel like a dick for asking, but–”
“But you don't know me that well,” I stopped him. “I get it. And I’d be happy to do a paternity test if that’s what you need.But yeah, I’m sure. You were the only one in like two years, actually.” At his incredulous look, I shrugged. “I was busy. Work stuff.”
Was I going to admit to him that I was an even bigger failure than I let on? Not a chance in hell. He didn’t need to know just how far I’d fallen to end up like this. That it wasn’t just the accidental pregnancy that influenced me winding up living with my parents again. He’d run for the hills and probably take the baby with him to protect it from me.
He let out a slow breath, nodding. “I’d appreciate it. I don’t think you’d be the kind of person to lie, but my prez will kick my ass if I don’t.”
I tipped my head, frowning. “Prez?”
He frowned back for a second. “Did I not tell you I was in an MC?”
I jerked my head back, letting out a startled laugh. “Holy crap, how did I forget that? You wore that jacket all the time and–” I shook my head, still chuckling. “I’m sorry. Things have been… crazy for the past few months. I actually just got into town a few days ago.”
Slowly, we both relaxed as the conversation slipped into easier territory. He asked about the move, and I asked about the casino. Neutral topics that helped us both get on even kilter. It made it easier when the topics switched back to the elephant in the room. Namely, me.
A familiar burning made me grimace and shift uncomfortably. Vegas straightened with a frown.
“What’s wrong?”
I waved away his concern. “It’s nothing. One of the reasons I didn’t realize I was pregnant was because I didn’t get many of the fun symptoms that would’ve tipped me off. The one symptom I did get with a vengeance was heartburn. Its constant and sometimes gets so bad it feels like I’m about to breathe fire.”
He was on his feet in an instant, heading into the kitchen. I stared at him, startled, as he walked away. Confused, I stood to follow him, but he called out to me before I could join him, his voice muffled.
“Which cabinet has the glasses? Or are there bottles of water in here?”
Warmth that had nothing to do with the heartburn filled my chest and I had to bite back a smile as I went to join him. He’d found the pitcher of water in the fridge and was poking through my mom’s kitchen to find me a glass. Chuckling, I opened the cabinet closest to me and grabbed two glasses, offering him one as well.
“Do you always comandeer strangers’ kitchens when you visit their homes?”
He grinned sheepishly as he handed me back the full glass. “Uh, no. But a buddy of mine, his old lady was pregnant and said the heartburn made her nauseous. We knew better than to make her wait for water. Someone always jumped up to get her some whenever she got uncomfortable.”
So my pregnancy wasn’t the first one he’d experienced. That was kind of nice. At least one of us had a clue what was happening.
We moved to the table while I paced my drinking. I wanted to inhale it to make the burning stop, but that would almost guarantee I’d throw it all back up. Better to take it slow and steady.
“You said you didn't know until recently,” he began after I’d had at least half a cup. His gaze was back on my belly, which I got. Now that I knew what was going on, I realized how dumb I was for not realizing sooner that I was only gaining weight in one major area.
