"And you’ve been wonderful under the circumstances." I patted for him to come and sit with me. He walked over, sat down, and took my hand. "Most guys would’ve run in the opposite direction if they found out they got a teenage girl pregnant."
"I’m not most guys," he said. "I’d hoped you’d see that by now."
"I do," I whispered. "Tomorrow’s your birthday."
"Oh, yeah, I kinda forgot." He smiled.
"I can’t get you much." The man just spent a small fortune on flowers that were going to die in a few days, and I couldn’t afford to get him a present. But I hoped coming with me to the appointment would make up for that.
"You’re already giving me a present." He glanced down at my stomach.
"I know, but I made the appointment for tomorrow on purpose."
"Did you?" He grinned.
"I was hoping we could find out the sex of the baby." I bit my bottom lip. "I mean, if you want to."
"The suspense is killing me." He laughed. "That would be the best present ever."
"Then you’ll come?" I asked, just to be certain.
"I wouldn’t miss it." He pulled me closer to him. "Thank you for including me."
"I know I hurt you," I whispered. "I’m sorry."
"I know you are," he said as he stroked my hair. "Just give me some time, okay?"
"I can do that."
I didn’t have a choice. I knew what I’d done to him, and he didn’t turn his back on me or freak out. Ever since the night he found out about the pregnancy, he’d been there. He was trying to support me, and that was all I could ask for.
Our baby was lucky to have him. And so was I.
Chapter Twenty
Alex followed me into the exam room and waited patiently for the technician to come in and start the ultrasound. I lay quietly on the table, but I was fidgeting and having a hard time focusing.
"Are you cold?" He rubbed my arm. "You’re shivering."
"I just get nervous when I have any kind of exam, and this is nerve-wracking because they could find something wrong with the baby."
"You’re healthy, and so is our little one," he said, voice firm. "This is a happy exam. We’re going to get to see her."
"Or him." I smiled. "Will you be disappointed if it’s a him?"
"Of course not. As long as she’s healthy, it doesn’t matter."
"I’m just glad we’ll know for sure, and then we can pick out a name," I said. "Do you have any in mind?"
"No." He shook his head. "I haven’t thought that far ahead. You?"
"No," I said. "I wanted to wait for you to come home."
The technician walked into the room and introduced herself. She hardly glanced at me; she couldn’t seem to take her eyes off Alex. I briefly panicked, the crazy thought she might’ve been a one-night hook up for him, but he didn’t seem to know her. I tried to ignore her blatant attempt to eye him; I was just anxious for her to start.
I pulled up my shirt, and Alex was immediately mesmerized. He’d been placing his hands on the tiny bump for the past few nights, but that was over my shirt. This was the first time he’d seen it in the flesh, so to speak.
His baby is in there!
