Total pages in book: 116
Estimated words: 114263 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 571(@200wpm)___ 457(@250wpm)___ 381(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 114263 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 571(@200wpm)___ 457(@250wpm)___ 381(@300wpm)
CHAPTER 28
Mollie
THE LONGEST TWO MINUTES
Cash appears at the screen door as my footsteps thump across the cabin’s front porch.
He pushes the door open. His brows snap together when he takes in my panicked expression. “Everything all right?”
He’s still in his work clothes, although he’s pulled his T-shirt out of his jeans. The hem rises as he reaches up to spear a hand through his hair, revealing a slice of thick, muscled stomach and side.
His eyes are pools of bright blue in the shade of the porch.
“I’m late,” I blurt. Out of all the things I need to tell him, this seems like the most urgent.
“Late?” He steps out onto the porch, scrunching his forehead as he slips a hand inside my shirt. “Dinner’s not for another twenty minutes. We got plenty of time for a shower.”
Even now, sweating bullets and on the verge of a panic attack, my body ignites at his touch. “No, Cash. My period is late.”
He goes still. His expression morphs, but I can’t read it.
“I’m really good about taking my birth control, and I haven’t missed a pill or anything like that,” I babble. “But I usually get my period by now, and there’s no sign of it.” I draw a shaky breath and look up at him, trying to figure out what he’s thinking. “I’m pretty regular, so this is a little…yeah, scary.”
Without a word, he steps forward and pulls me in for a tight, fierce hug.
And without a word, I wrap my arms around him. I bury my face in his big, broad chest and let the tears flow.
My stomachache lessens, then dissipates altogether.
I love—love—how safe I feel in this man’s arms. There’s a very real possibility that we’re in very real trouble. But the way Cash is holding me, our embrace comfortable and familiar, makes me feel so much less alone in dealing with that trouble.
Come to think of it, I’ve never felt less lonely than I do when I’m with him. And the knowledge that Cash is here to face this with me is wonderfully affirming.
What if it felt like this all the time?
What if I had Cash by my side as I faced the rest of my life? Something tells me we’d make a really great team as we stared down life’s challenges. Celebrated its joys.
Here, in his arms, I feel like I could get through anything as long as he was with me.
I feel mushy and vulnerable and loved.
I cry harder.
“Aw, honey, I’m sorry you’re scared.” He presses a kiss into my hair. “Talk to me.”
“My doctor said the pill should be really effective. But obviously—”
“We don’t use backup.”
“Right.” I truly have lost count of how many times Cash has come inside me in the past few weeks. Twenty? Fifty? Five hundred?
I also wonder if the way he, ahem, pushes his cum back inside me could lead to a higher chance of getting pregnant. I can’t imagine it didn’t help his sperm possibly find a rogue egg.
“Let’s drive into town, then. Get you some tests.”
I look up at him, puzzled by the calm, cool way he’s handling this. “You don’t seem upset.”
“Should I be?” He tucks my hair behind my ear as he thumbs away my tears. The tenderness of his touch takes my breath away. “I don’t mean to make you feel wrong for bein’ scared. We obviously didn’t plan this. But if I’m being honest…”
My heart beats hard and fast as I wait for him to finish that thought. Cash has been open about wanting a family of his own. So have I.
But it’s way too soon, right, to have a baby together? I mean, yeah, Cash has practically moved me in with him. And he looks after me. And makes sure I’m fed, and comfortable, and happy. He asks about my work. Takes an interest in my opinions. He doesn’t ever look at anyone else, and he only ever dances and drinks with me when we’ve been out at The Rattler.
I come first. Literally and figuratively.
Is Cash in love with me too?
Looking into his eyes, I see softness and concern.
I see interest. A little heat.
They’re alive. Not tired or clouded over the way they were when I first met him. And isn’t that love? Someone else making you feel thrilled you exist despite the hardship and the heartache life brings?
I’m gripped by the need to tell him about my conversation with Mom. How the stipulation has been struck down. But if I do that, I’m going to have to tell him how I feel. It’s only fair he knows why I’m so torn over what to do next.
Will Cash want me to stay in Hartsville? Or will he make a fool of me for thinking I ever belonged here?
“Well,” he says at last, “let’s get the tests and go from there, okay?”