“Facts.” She raised her cup and tapped it to mine in cheers, then leveled me with a skeptical look. “Okay, so what’s the problem with Archer? He’s hot. Like, the fires he fights are cold in comparison.”
I rolled my eyes, fighting the smile that was battling to take shape on my face. “There’s not aproblem. Well, other than that he was kind of a dick when I told him I was pregnant, and he wants nothing to do with the baby.”
“Yeah, but like, as far as baby daddys go, at least he’s not Liam, right?” she asked.
“I guess. I mean, yeah, okay, he’s attractive, and up until last night, he’d been nothing but nice to me.”
“Okay, so . . .” Shayna trailed off.
“So, my brother had always said he was bad news.”
“I guess it’s a good thing he’s not the one maybe carrying his baby. What doyouthink of him? And I’m not talking high school him. People change.”
I groaned and swirled my coffee. “I don’t really know who he is now. In high school, he was a bit of a loner, and the cops were always at his house, but no one knew why.” At Shayna’s exasperated expression, I pressed on. “But, present day Archer seems different. He’s got the whole firefighter thing going for him, and he seems to be doing pretty well. I think he’s probably changed.”
“Well, see? That’s not so bad then! I’m rooting for it to be his. Better his than jerkwad’s.”
I shook my head. “He still doesn’t want anything to do with me or the baby, Shayna.”
“You gave him five minutes after you bombarded him at a bar to process it all. Maybe give him some time.”
“He completely wrote me off, Shayna. He couldn’t even have a conversation about it with me, and he was so cold, like I was a nuisance.” Clearly the hurt I’d convinced myself I’d gotten past was still alive and well.
“I still vote you give him some time to come to terms with it all.”
I stayed quiet for a while. Archer seemed pretty confident in his stance on the matter, so I didn’t think him changing his mind was likely, and I didn’t want to give him anything. Not after how he treated me.
When Shayna realized I wasn’t going to respond to that she asked, “Well, are you going to have them do a paternity test? Get yourself some child support? Or at least know the medical history?”
I answered with a shrug and a sigh. “I don’t know. Getting a sample from Liam is out of the question, so unless I can convince Archer to do it, I’m kind of screwed. I can’t afforda lawyer to deal with either of them. Plus, I honestly think it might be easier to raise the baby without another party involved. Parenting sounds hard enough as is, but co-parenting sounds like anightmare. But knowing the medical side of things is a good point.”
“Fair enough. Maybe Archer will agree to do one.” I had to admire her and her faith in hot men. “So, what does that mean for work?”
“I’m pretty sure I can continue on as normal. With my clients it’s really just spotting and being on my feet. And as far as my personal workouts, the doctor said I can continue to lift whatever I usually lift for now, so long as I’m careful and don’t feel any pain or twinges.”
She bumped into my shoulder playfully. “You’re about to be one of those badass powerlifting pregnant women aren’t you?”
That got a smile out of me. “You know I am.”
Shayna leaned down toward my stomach. “You don’t know this yet, but your mom is the actual coolest.”
We walked back out to the gym, our first clients of the day coming in within the next half hour, and something about having Shayna in my corner had me feeling that little bit lighter.
NINE
ARCHER
I’d spent every day following my run in with Darcy at the firehouse. I wasn’t scheduled to be on, since that night at the bar was my first night off of four, but I didn’t care. The idea of sitting at home doing nothing but dwelling on the news she’d sprung on me sounded almost as bad as my nightmares.
The guys at the station weren’t even phased when I entered the engine bay four days ago and headed for the bunk room to drop my things. This wasn’t the first time I’d opted to spend my days off there instead of at home, and while I wasn’t legally allowed to work or volunteer, there were no rules against me simply being there. Besides, if there were, it’d be damn near impossible to stop me. The firehouse felt more like a home to me than any other four-walled structure ever had. Something about the white-tiled flooring, the faded, red brick walls, andthe vast openness made me feel at peace. Sure, I could’ve done with less people at times, or without the blaring of the alarms at unpredictable hours of the night, but I’d take that over being stuck at my house alone with my own thoughts.
Especially at the current moment.
I’m pregnant. And it might be yours.
Her admission still blared through my mind at a volume that rivaled the alarms, despite everything I was doing to actively not think about it. It was impossible. The words sat heavy on my chest, like each one weighed a ton—it was crushing, borderline debilitating.
When I’d gotten home after the bar, I ran straight to the bathroom, and proceeded to vomit up the one beer I’d consumed. Shaking, I’d collapsed back against the bathroom wall, letting my head hang between my knees, as I sucked air into my lungs in ragged pants. My skin was crawling, and I could feel the blood draining from my face, like even my own body was trying to get away from me. Like it recognized me for what I really was—a poison.
