Page 99 of Rockstar Baby
All the things I’d ever wanted were in front of me. My ice cream was going to be sold at Macy’s, and if I had my way, it would be in that ice cream truck before the summer was over.
Some time ago, I’d gone to that meeting Vee had put together at Brewed Awakening with all the women who were willing to do the baby thing alone. Now here I was.
Maybe it was just fate. I was supposed to do this on my own. Perhaps everything was going the way it was supposed to go.
Then again, maybe I wasn’t really pregnant.
I grabbed the other test out of my bag and ran down the hall to the bathroom. I took the test and sat on the edge of the tub as the minutes ticked by. This one was a five-minute test and the stupid purple tester kept blurring.
I didn’t even know I was crying until my brother crouched in front of me. The Jack and Jill door to the bathroom was open from his side. Yet again, tears had taken over and decided they were coming out, whether I wanted them to or not.
“Auggie.”
“Oh, shit. You don’t call me that anymore.” Then he must have seen the box because his green gaze flew to mine. “Ah, Ivy Rose.” His voice was gentle even as his hands went to fists. “Who is he?”
I curled my fingers around his huge, calloused hand. I could feel the rage under the calm. My brother was good at that. As the eldest of us, he was always the most responsible. The most reliable.
Our rock.
“No one you know.”
“Are you all right?”
“I don’t know.”
He swore and sat down right on the tile floor. “Does he know?”
“No.”
“How the hell is he supposed to step up if he doesn’t know? Or…”
I blew out a long breath. “It’s complicated.”
“Uncomplicate it.”
I laughed. “It doesn’t work that way.”
“You have his number, right?”
“Yes, Aug. I just know he’s not interested in starting a family.”
“Well, he was interested enough to get you horizontal.”
“Okay, can we not go there? It’s just weird to talk to you about sex.”
“Yeah, well, I don’t like thinking about it either. But he still needs to know.”
“He won’t—”
He twisted our hands until my smaller ones were enveloped by his huge ones. “He still deserves to know.” His eyes were serious and steady. “Then it’s on him. And if he doesn’t help at least monetarily—”
“No. I’ll take care of this baby. Somehow I’ll make it work.” I didn’t realize just how much I wanted it until I said that. Because it was true. This baby was mine.
I might have been in love with Rory, but I could survive without him. It would suck and a little piece of me would always be sad, but the baby was non-negotiable.
“It’s not just the responsibility angle, Ive. It’s doing what’s right. If I had a kid out there, I’d want to know.” He let my hands go. “But I’m here for you. Whatever you need.”
I nodded. “I know.”
