Pregnant.
The word doesn’t stop echoing.
“Wren?” Levi’s voice pulls me back, concern etched in every line of his face. “You okay?”
I nod too quickly. “Yes. I just—where’s the powder room?”
Mrs. Maddox gestures down the hall. “Past the kitchen, on the left.”
“Thank you.” I push back my chair, my smile brittle, my legs shaky under me.
But when I reach the kitchen, I don’t turn left. I don’t make it to the powder room. My feet keep going, dragging me toward the back door, out into the cold night air.
The chill slams into me, sharp and bracing, but it doesn’t stop the shaking. My breath puffs in uneven bursts, my heart racing as though I’ve run a marathon.
Pregnant.
It can’t be. It can’t. I was careful. I followed every instruction. But the pills can’t work if they don’t stay in my system.
I wrap my arms around myself, shivering hard. I can’t go back in there. Not until I know. Not until I’m sure.
Fumbling, I pull out my phone, hands trembling so much I nearly drop it. I scroll until I find Norah’s name and hit call.
She answers on the second ring, voice cheerful. “Hey, you surviving dinner with the Maddoxes?”
I choke on a sob. “Norah.”
Her tone shifts instantly, sharp with concern. “What’s wrong?”
My voice shakes as the words tear out of me. “Can you—can you come get me? Please?”
There’s silence, then the sound of her grabbing keys, movement in the background. “I’m on my way. Where are you?”
“Back porch. I can’t—” My breath hitches. “I just need to get out. Please.”
“I’ve got you,” she says firmly. “Ten minutes.”
I hang up, clutching the phone to my chest, staring up at the dark sky. The stars blur through my tears.
Pregnant.
How could I have let this happen?
CHAPTER THIRTY-TWO
Levi
It takesme longer than I want to admit before I realize something is wrong. Twenty minutes, maybe more.
At first, I thought she’d just gone to the bathroom. She’d looked pale, perhaps even overwhelmed, so I figured she was catching her breath.
But twenty minutes is too long.
My mother excuses herself to check, and when she comes back shaking her head, saying the powder room is empty, my stomach drops.
“She must’ve stepped outside,” Beau says quickly, though his voice doesn’t sound as sure as his words.
Simon is already half out of his chair, his glasses glinting under the chandelier light. “I’ll check the porch.”
