Total pages in book: 116
Estimated words: 114068 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 570(@200wpm)___ 456(@250wpm)___ 380(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 114068 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 570(@200wpm)___ 456(@250wpm)___ 380(@300wpm)
Which means my alarm never went off.
I never took that pill, did I?
Leaning forward, I retch. Mollie lunges forward to hold back my hair.
“Oh, honey,” she says. “What can I do for you?”
Could I actually be pregnant? Duke and I had so much sex.
So much really great, really athletic, really raw sex. And if I did indeed miss a pill…
Oh my God oh my God oh my fucking God.
My boobs hurt as I press them against the toilet seat to throw up again. And again. Mollie runs a hand over my back. I’m dizzy. I have nothing left to throw up.
I don’t remember feeling like this the handful of times I got the stomach bug. I’m nauseous, but I’m also sore and so tired and just…
I feel off in a way I never have before.
I’m crying when I straighten, wiping my mouth with the back of my hand. “Do you think you could come to the drugstore with me?”
“If you’re looking for pregnancy tests, I have some.”
I’m gripped by a fierce, full-body sob. “Mollie, what if—”
“We’ll cross that bridge when we get there.” She pulls me to my feet and puts her hands on my shoulders, looking me in the eye. “Chances are you just have a bug. Let’s get the tests out of the way, though, so you can rest easy.”
We hop in an ATV, which Mollie drives the half mile or so to the adorable little cabin where she and Cash live. She holds my hand the whole way. It’s the comfort I need to keep from getting sucked into an all-out shame spiral.
But really, why didn’t Duke and I use condoms? They’re easy. Everyone says you should use a backup method.
And why didn’t I take my pill first thing when I woke up, same as I always do? It would’ve taken all of three minutes to dart upstairs and grab the blister packet from my bathroom.
The cabin is tucked into a stand of old oaks that block the ardent spring sunlight, dappling the ground with their new leaves. I feel like a zombie as I follow Mollie up the front porch steps and inside the house.
“Cash isn’t here, is he?” I glance left and right. As far as I can tell, the place is empty.
Mollie’s boots hit the floor with a comforting thump as she heads to the back of the house. “Nope. C’mon, you can take the tests in my bathroom.”
I’m shaking so badly that I end up peeing all over the sticks and my hand. Mollie is by my side the whole time, a hand on my shoulder. She sets out a towel on the vanity, and I place both tests—she insisted I take two—on the towel, a single blue line already appearing in the window.
“One line means not pregnant. Two lines—a cross—that means it’s positive.” She taps the start button on the timer on her phone. “We’re going to laugh very hard about this in exactly two minutes.”
Dropping the lid onto the toilet, I sit down heavily. I rest my elbows on my knees and press my fingertips into my eye sockets.
“I forgot to take a single pill.” I suck in a breath. “I can’t be pregnant, right?”
“The chances are very, very slim.”
I shake my head. “I should’ve never…”
“What? Succumbed to the charms of a sexy-ass cowboy who’s obsessed with you?”
Letting out a mirthless laugh, I straighten and blink the blurriness from my eyes. “Did you know Duke wears glasses?”
“I did. But he doesn’t wear them often. I think he’s a little embarrassed.”
“Why? Glasses look so good on him.”
Mollie smiles. “They do.”
“These Rivers guys—they’re far more charming than they have any right to be.”
“Don’t I know it.” Mollie rubs her belly. “Obviously I’m biased, but I still think you should give Duke another shot. Maybe he’s the distraction you need right now with his glasses and his flirting. Or maybe he ends up being more than that, and he shows you the healing powers of—”
“Jesus, Moll, don’t make me puke again.” I cover my mouth with my hand.
“Just sayin’.” She smiles. “I didn’t come here looking for love either. But I’m glad I gave Cash a chance.”
But you’re different, I want to say. She’s not a bruised-up mess with a traumatized brain and some serious daddy issues.
Well, that’s not entirely true. Mollie actually has some pretty epic daddy issues of her own. She didn’t let them stop her from living her damn life, though, did she?
Why am I letting my fucked-up family’s fucked-up opinion of me still mess with me all these years later?
I feel like I should’ve moved on by now. I want to move on. I just—
The timer beeps. My stomach bottoms out. Mollie hits the off button on her screen, and together we peer at the tests on the vanity.
Two blue crosses, clear as day.