“Can I get you a glass of water?” he said.
“Yes, please.”
While waiting for him to return from the kitchen, she steeled her courage.
He watched her closely as she drained the glass, reminding her of an anxious parent. As soon as she set it aside, he sat down beside her, tucked her hair behind her ears, and peered at her face. “You have more color now, but you should probably be in bed.”
Oh, how she longed to do exactly that, burrow under the covers and forget all about sharing her news with him. But if she didn’t say something to him now, she couldn’t live with herself. “Forget about bed,” she said. “I need to talk to you.”
“So you said right before you threw up. Whatever it is can wait until you’re better.”
“No. You have to hear this now.”
The somber expression on his face and the dark concern in his eyes tore at her. He may not want a relationship with her, but he cared.
“My God, you’re really sick.” He was rigid with dread.
Lana forgot her own fears. Wanting only to reassure him she was healthy, she smoothed his furrowed forehead with a caress. “I promise you, I don’t have cancer or any other disease.”
“Thank God.” He sagged against the sofa cushions, the relief on his face touching her deeply. “My mother died of cancer, and I don’t wish that on anyone.”
“You were eleven, right?” she asked.
He nodded. She couldn’t imagine losing a parent, especially at such a tender age. Her worries at that age had centered on being popular and whether her mom would let her go to a sleepover.
Then to lose his father two years later... “That’s so sad,” she said.
“It was a long time ago.” He pulled her hand to his lips and kissed her knuckles. “So, it really is a bad flu.”
She forced herself to meet his gaze. “It’s not the flu, either. I threw up because...” Knowing the world was about to change forever, she paused a moment. “Because I’m suffering from morning sickness.”
“I... Huh?” The confusion on his face was almost comical. But there was nothing funny about their situation.
“That’s right, I’m pregnant.” There. The secret was out.
“Pregnant,” he repeated with a stunned expression. “From that night?”
“Yes. You’re the only man I’ve been with.”
“But you said you couldn’t get pregnant.”
“That’s what I believed. My ex-husband and I tried for four years, first the normal way, then using artificial insemination. We didn’t have any luck. Tests showed I was the one who couldn’t conceive. That’s why Brent left me.”
“The jerk.” Sly scrubbed his hand over his face. “If you can’t conceive, how can you possibly be pregnant?”
“Because miracles happen?”
“You’re happy about this baby,” he said, looking anything but.
Lana nodded. “I’ve wanted children for as long as I can remember, since I was a child myself.”
Sly glanced at her stomach, which was still relatively flat. “When did you find out about this?”
“Wednesday—the night you called and I didn’t answer. When the phone rang, I was waiting for the results of the first pregnancy test. I took two more to make sure. But even without the tests, I knew. I have all the symptoms.”
Although her body still looked the same as always and she couldn’t yet feel the life growing inside her, she already loved her baby. With both hands, she cupped her abdomen.
“You waited until now to tell me?” he asked, frowning. “What were you planning to do if Sophie had come over today? Springit on us both together?” He barked out a laugh that totally lacked humor. “Oh, that would’ve been a real kick.” He eyed her stomach coolly. “It’s obvious you’re keeping the baby.”
