Something warm spreads through my chest at his words.
He leads me out to the living room, easing me down on the couch with a warm, cozy blanket and a glass of ginger ale, before rushing off to the bedroom to get dressed.
About forty minutes later the front door bursts open.
“Where is she?” Josh says frantically before his eyes land on me on the couch. He rushes across the living room and straight to me, wrapping his arms around me in a tight hug.
“Hey, hey,” he murmurs into my hair. “Everything’s gonna be okay.”
I cling to him for a second before pulling back.
“How?” I ask quietly. “I’m on the pill.”
Josh rubs the back of his neck thoughtfully.
“You could’ve missed one.”
I start to shake my head because I never forget. I take them every morning, religiously.
Then I pause. I didn’t when I was taken.
“Oh,” I whisper. I missed more than one. I swallow hard. “I… I missed a few days. When…”
Neither of them says anything for a moment. They know when I’m talking about.
“Only one way to know,” Josh says as he holds out the pregnancy test to me.
My hands shake slightly as I take it.
I walk back to the bathroom, following the instructions. A minute later I return to the living room, holding the little stick. I set it carefully on the coffee table in front of us.
The time crawls by painfully slowly as we sit and stare at the box. No one talks. No one breathes.
Finally, the timer on Josh’s phone goes off. We all lean forward at the same time.
Two pink lines.
Pregnant.
My heart flips violently in my chest.
Fear rushes in first. Then something else. Something warm. Something bright. Excitement. I press my hand over my stomach, still trying to process it.
I’m going to be a mother. A tiny little human is growing in my belly. The only fear I have is if I’ll be doing this alone. A kid, this soon in our relationship is something I know none of was expecting.
Luke suddenly lets out an excited shout. “We’re gonna be dads!”
Before I can react, he wraps his arms around me and Josh, pulling us both into a tight hug.
And for the first time, I feel like maybe everything really will be okay.
Chapter 41
Hank
Themusicinthebar is blasting, feeding my brewing headache. I’d rather be at the door, checking IDs of the patrons, but instead I’m on the inside tonight. The crowd’s been a little rowdier tonight than usual, and they need my muscle.
I didn’t object because it gives me time to see her. Vee.
