Owen nodded. “He knows they’ve not been seeing much of each other. He adores her, Payts.” He moved a strand of hair from my face. “These Callaghan girls cast a spell on poor men like us.”
His kiss wasn’t unexpected but it did magic my legs into noodles. It was soft, contained no demand but was filled with promises that I was looking forward to cashing in on.
“You need to go back to your party.”
He slapped my ass and gave me a full-of-shit grin, before leaving me staring after him.
Baby-daddy. That could be my baby-daddy.
He’d cringe at that term – and secretly love it.
Two hours later and it was definitely time to find out. Owen had gone to the supermarket with Jackson to stock up on yet more beers, because they apparently didn’t have enough. This gave me enough time to pee on a stick and see if it could tell me my future.
A weird sort of crystal ball.
I sat down on the bed and looked at myself in the opposite mirror. I still looked like me: blonde hair that was slightly longer than it used to be, a forehead that had a few more lines when I frowned. I couldn’t see a glow that pregnant women were meant to have and nothing felt any different.
But I wanted it to feel different.
I knew that if it wasn’t positive, I would be disappointed. An overwhelming tide of needing to see those two blue lines engulfed me.
I was saved from drowning by a knock on the door.
“Payts, it’s me.”
I never understood why someone said ‘it’s me’. If you knew who me was, you wouldn’t need to say anything as you’d recognise their voice. Otherwise, a name would be good.
My twin was at the other side of the door wearing a T-shirt that told me he’d been spending even more time in the gym.
“What’s up? I thought you’d gone to the shop with Owen?”
He shook his head. “I needed to wrap presents.”
I raised my brows and polished the startled look. “I take it you need me to help?”
“No. I wanted to talk to you about Ava… Payton, what’s that?”
I followed the direction of his finger and realised the pregnancy tests were still out.
“Close the door.” This wasn’t a conversation I wanted to be overheard, or even have, but Seph had always been my best friend. My confidante.
Those nine months in a womb together had made us pretty close.
“Payton, are you, you know, preg – having you know, a baby?” His eyes were wide.
“I don’t know, Genius. That’s why I’m about to take a test.” I picked up one of the boxes and glanced at the back. I didn’t need to reread any instructions – I’d already done it several times. They were pretty much memorised by now.
“Shouldn’t Owen be here for this?” He shifted from foot to foot and looked uncomfortable.
I rested against the en-suite door. “Probably. But I need to do the test and know myself.”
“You need to organise how you feel.”
My brother knew me well.
“How will you feel if you are?” He sat down on the bed, the same spot where I’d been a minute before.
“Excited. I don’t even think I’ll be scared.”
