Page 146 of For Wrath and Redemption
“I cannot.”
“So right now all you get is exhaustion, sore boobs, and pickles?”
I laugh and nod. “And crinkly ranch potato chips.”
“Which end is the head on this one?” I glance over and find Sav holding one of the ultrasound images close to her face. “I can’t tell, and it’s not labeled.”
She turns the image to me and points just as Callie knocks on the door.
“Come in,” I call out, and then I go back to studying the ultrasound picture. “Oh, that’s the head.” I frown. “I think.” I take the ultrasound and study it. I barely register the sound of the door opening and closing. “Oh yeah, that’s the head. See right here? It’s a little arm.”
“What?”
There’s a collective, sharp intake of breath, and I clamp my eyes shut.
No. This isn’t happening.
My fingers tighten on the ultrasound picture. I flex my toes into the floor, then slowly open my eyes and lift them to the doorway.
Jonah’s face is pale, his attention stuck on the strip of ultrasound pictures in my hand.
“Who’s pregnant?”
No one answers. I feel Sav and Mabel’s eyes on me, and just as I open my mouth to confess, the door behind Jonah opens.
“The guy behind the counter knew exactly what I meant when I saidranch crinkly chips,Claire.” Callie laughs as she steps into the apartment. “Seems your pregnancy cravings are famous in that bodega?—”
She freezes as soon as she sees Jonah, but Jonah doesn’t take his attention off me. His jaw pops and his nostrils flare as he drops his gaze down to my exposed, still-flat stomach. He swallows twice, that heart tattoo beating with the movement, then locks eyes with mine.
“Are you pregnant, Trouble?”
Slowly, I nod. “Yeah. I am.”
38
CLAIRE
He staresat me until Sav, Callie, and Mabel leave.
Sav tells me she’ll call tonight. Mabel says she’ll see me tomorrow. I nod and say thank you, but I don’t look away from Jonah.
When the door shuts, signaling that we’re alone, I brace myself for whatever comes next. This isn’t the way I wanted to have this conversation, but it’s a conversation that needs to be had. Might as well be now.
I give him a tight smile and gesture to the couch.
“Do you want to sit?”
“Is it mine?”
My eyes widen, and I wince at the question. “Yes, Jonah. It’s yours.”
“Are you sure?”
“Yes, I’m sure.”
He narrows his eyes slightly, and I grit my teeth, anger heating my blood. He’s skeptical, and it makes me want to punch him.
“How far along are you?”
