“I’ll look for both of us.”He stood, ignoring the way his instincts demanded he bolt from the room—from the truth that sat a few feet away.That was the coward’s path, and Jude was many things, but a coward didn’t number among them.He wouldn’t leave Sloan to face this alone.
The walk to the bathroom seemed to take hours, but it was the sum of four steps.He paused in the doorway, and then cursed himself for pausing.It was a fucking pregnancy test, not the goddamn boogeyman.He stalked across the remaining distance and snatched the test up.
He’d read the instructions too many times to misinterpret the two blue lines showing in the little window.
“You don’t have to say it.I can see the truth on your face.”
He looked up to find Sloan leaning against the doorjamb, her arms wrapped around herself.He couldn’t keep silent.He had to give the truth words.“You’re pregnant.We’re having a baby.”
A baby.Hisbaby.
Chapter Twenty-One
Upon hearing that she was going to be a mother, Sloan went into a sort of strange shock.She was aware of Jude ushering her to his truck, where he then drove them…somewhere.She blinked and looked around, taking in the trees and lush greenness so similar to the area around Callaway Rock.“Where are we?”
“About to take a ferry.”
She looked out over the water.It wasn’t as open as the ocean off the coast of Oregon, and there were islands in the distance.“A ferry.You must be joking.”
“I have a piece of property on Orcas Island with a private airstrip attached.It’s easily defensible and has a built-in escape plan.”
Her mind stumbled over that for a moment.“An airstrip.You’re a pilot?”
“I don’t like going into a situation without a way to get out of it if things go sideways.”
So he’d learned to fly a plane.
She had to wonder what other skills he might have acquired because of that logic.It baffled her, though she found it comforting that he was so capable.She had a lot to learn to be able to take any situation without so much as a hiccup of stress because she had the skills necessary to survive.“If we were chased into the woods, could you keep us alive?”
“Yes.”He gave a tight smile as he pulled into the line of cars leading to the dock, slowly making their way onto the ferry, which didn’t look nearly large enough to dock them all.Jude waited until he’d paid and parked in between a minivan and a Prius.A couple got out of the Prius and wandered toward the door leading inside, but he made no move to get out of the truck.“Winter would be tough, but we could live off the grid indefinitely.”
“That’s impressive.”She didn’t know the first thing about what it would take to manage that, but it had to be difficult.More than difficult.And yet Sloan had no doubt that with the proper preparation he could keep them alive and as close to comfortable as possible.
Jude turned off the truck, removing what little light they’d had.There was a sole bulb shining from the door to the inside of the ferry, but it might as well have been on Mars for all that it illuminated them.
“Is that what you want to do?Take off into the woods with me?”He asked it oh so carefully.
He’d been doing that a lot since they left Callaway Rock, at least after her conversation with Teague.Everything was as close to hesitant as Jude was capable of.She appreciated that he cared enough to try to be gentle with her, but it felt awkward and strange, and not like the way they were at all.
So she did the one thing she knew would put them back on familiar ground.
Sloan slid across the bench seat and crawled into his lap.His hands settled on her hips, his face almost lost in the darkness.“I’m not in the mood.”
“Really?”She reached between them to stroke him, finding him already hard.“How long is this ferry ride going to take?”
“Fifty minutes.”
“Plenty of time.”She kept stroking him through his jeans, never taking her eyes off his face.“Everything is changing and I know neither of us planned on this, and we’re both terrified in our own ways, so I could really use some comfort.”
He chuckled, and she knew she had him.Jude used his thumbs to inch her dress up.“You find my cock comforting.”
“Very.”She dipped her hands beneath his shirt, scraping her nails lightly across his chest.“I still want you.”She unbuttoned his jeans, and then he was in her hand, hot and hard and ready for her.“God, I want you so much, it makes me wild.”
“Trust me, sunshine, the feeling is more than mutual.”He pulled her panties to the side, dragging his thumb over her, spreading her wetness up across her clit.She hissed out a breath, almost shaking with need.He knew.He always knew.“It’s been hours since I had you, and I’m going to hell for this, but the feeling of you without a fucking condom is perfection.I want it again.Now.”
Good.That was exactly what she wanted, too.“Yes.”
“I’m clean.We had that conversation, but it’s worth saying again.I can get you test results—”
