“I know, but I kind of thought you were just sad. Is it food poisoning?”
“I don’t know. It’s been going on for a while.”
“How long?”
“A few days.”
Susie’s black eyes narrowed. “Grace… when was your last period?”
“A while ago,” Grace admitted. “But I’m always late when I get really stressed.”
“Right…” Susie bit her lip. “Honey, is there any chance that you might be pregnant?”
As soon as her friend said the word, the truth hit Grace hard. It was so obvious, she wasn’t sure how she’d missed it. She’d been nauseated. She’d missed her period. She’d been tired and headachy. There was one clear answer: she was pregnant. With Alex’s baby. The dates lined up well enough, and although they’d taken precautions, Grace knew as well as anyone that they weren’t always effective.
Grace took a deep breath. “I… need to go buy a pregnancy test.”
“I’ll go with you.” Susie stood up, already heading for the door.
“No, please. I need to do this on my own.”
Despite Susie’s protests, Grace escorted her friend out and walked a few blocks to the nearest drugstore, where she bought a test. Grace knew that Susie just wanted to support her, but she needed a little time on her own to process this. Susie would try to make everything sound rosy and happy right away, while Grace was still stuck in panic mode.
It wasn’t a surprise when the test came back positive. Some part of Grace must have known this for a while now, even if she hadn’t wanted to admit it.
Grace went back into the living room and sat on the couch, the positive test in her hands. She’d always dreamed of having children, but she’d never imagined that she’d be pregnant with the child of her ex-boss who’d recently fired her. And she’d never imagined that she’d be out of a job and living on her dwindling savings when the good news came.
Despite everything, thiswasgood news. That realization struck her, too. She was going to be a mother, just like she’d always dreamed. She was going to hold and rock a sweet-smelling infant. She was going to buy a race-car bed or a princess castlefor her toddler, help her elementary-schooler with fractions at the kitchen table, and tearfully attend her high-schooler’s graduation. She was going to be a mother, now and forever. The thought of that made her smile and lifted her heart despite her many, many concerns.
All of those dreams meant that Grace needed to somehow keep her apartment and not end up bankrupt. And for that, she needed money.
It would be hard to work with an infant, even if she managed to get another job. The best solution was a big up-front payment. Grace had avoided thinking any more about Patrick’s lawsuit, but now, she wasn’t sure she could ignore it.
Grace’s stomach flipped again. She felt extremely deceitful at the thought of suing Alex, but she didn’t have any other option. She wasn’t about to track him down to tell him that he was going to be a father—she didn’t want him involved in raising this baby, not after what he’d done. And he would probably deny paternity anyway, given the way he’d acted. The only way Grace could provide the kind of life she wanted for her child was to keep the pregnancy quiet, sue Alex, and win enough money to get by.
If there were any other solution, she would have taken it.
There wasn’t.
Grace agonized for the rest of the afternoon and most of the evening before reaching for her phone and dialing Patrick’s number. Cecilia picked up on the first ring, even though it was after six p.m.
“Patrick Hale’s office. How may I help you?”
“I need to speak to Mr. Hale, please.”
“Just a minute.” Moments later, Patrick’s voice came over the line.
“Grace. I’m glad you called. Does this mean you’re ready to work with me?”
Grace took a deep breath, summoning all her courage. “Yes.”
“Excellent. Come by tomorrow. I’ll introduce you to our lawyers, and we can start working on the case.”
“Okay.”
“Don’t sound so glum. You’re about to be rich! Well, rich foryou, anyway.” Patrick laughed at his own classist joke. Grace didn’t. “See you tomorrow.”
“Goodbye.”
