Total pages in book: 103
Estimated words: 98211 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 491(@200wpm)___ 393(@250wpm)___ 327(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 98211 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 491(@200wpm)___ 393(@250wpm)___ 327(@300wpm)
She waves her hand. “I’m sure he told Chase at the gym today. He’s horrible at keeping secrets.”
“Well, thanks again.”
“Bye, Chase!” Gwen hollers as she starts to back out of the driveway.
“Have fun?” he asks, those intense and hypnotic blue eyes already doing a number on my panties.
“We did,” I reply as I lead the way to the door. “I have something to show you.”
“Funny, I have something to show you too. It’s in my pants,” Chase replies, clearly resorting to humor to get him through this tough time.
I laugh as I unlock the door. Milo starts to fuss in his seat, and Chase instantly unfastens the buckles and pulls him from his restraints. “He’s probably ready for another diaper change. He had a bottle at the diner,” I state, my mind flashing back to getting sick and what Gwen said. I touch my forehead, but my temperature feels normal. Maybe this strain of flu virus is just a five-minute flu?
And maybe pigs will fly….
I’m torn between sequestering myself in my old room to keep from spreading anymore sickness or running off to the pharmacy to confirm what is only a pipe dream and isn’t true.
And the truth is, I want to have Chase’s baby.
I want a baby, not to replace the one we thought we had only the day before, but because it feels like my life was meant to. Yes, there’s still a very real, very raw hurt that came with finding out Milo was Colton’s son and not Chase’s, but that doesn’t mean it’s the reason I pray for a positive pregnancy test. Even if last night’s results proved Milo to be Chase’s, I’d still yearn for a baby.
The timeline is tight. We’ve only been together for two weeks, which means, if I were pregnant, I’d be like five minutes along, due to start my period today. Plus, we had protection. While not completely fool-proof, I’m certain my brother-in-law is the only one with supersperm.
A tear I didn’t even realize had fallen is swiped away from my cheek. His warm, calloused fingers make my skin tingle with familiarity and excitement. “Why are you crying?” he asks, taking my cheek in his hand.
“I’m just being emotional,” I reply, offering him my best reassuring smile.
He glances down at his nephew and smiles. “I get it.” Then, he reaches for my hand and pulls me toward the stairs. “Come on, Gabs. Let’s go lie down for a bit. I don’t think the little man is ready for a nap, but I just want to lie beside you both and hold you.”
My heart drops to my feet.
I can’t tell him yet. I don’t want to watch the excitement in his eyes, only to see it extinguished if the test comes back negative. No, not with all that’s going on with Colton and Laura and Milo. There’s too much uncertainty right now, and the last thing I need to do is add to the stress with a possible pregnancy. I’ll wait a bit, until we can talk to his parents and try to locate Colton.
Besides, Gwen might be wrong, and the last thing either one of us needs is another heartbreak right now.
We climb onto the bed, both Chase and I lying on our sides and facing each other, Milo lying between us. He’s moving his hands and feet a lot, looking around at his surroundings. I pull my phone from my back pocket and click on the images. Handing him the phone, I watch as he takes in the sight of his nephew on the All Fit T-shirt. His eyes hold a wonderment, his smile genuine and happy. “I love it.”
“I thought maybe when we get the proofs, we could order one for the office. It would be great advertisement, right?”
His eyes shine with love as he looks down at the baby. “It’s perfect.”
“Gwen had one done of Sophia too. We thought maybe we could put both pictures in the office.”
“And soon we’ll be able to add another picture,” he says, smiling warmly as he sticks his meaty finger inside Milo’s tiny hand.
My heart gallops in my chest. Does he know? Could he possibly believe there’s a chance I’m pregnant? But then it hits me like a brick to the heart. He’s not talking about us. I swallow past the pain. “He told you?”
“He wouldn’t stop smiling, even when I was handing him his ass on the mat,” Chase says. “I knew something was up.”
“I’m so happy for them.”
“Me too, Gabs,” he replies, reaching over and swiping my hair off my forehead.
Chase’s phone pings with a text message. He pulls the phone from his shorts pocket and exhales. “It’s from Jake Rodgers, my friend on the police force.”
I stop, my gaze locked on his. “What did he say?”
Chase swallows hard. “He found Laura.”