Page 78 of One Reckless Night

“I’ve just been feeling sick like this for three weeks now. I don’t know what’s wrong.”

Clair crouched down beside me, her brow furrowed as she studied me. Like she could look into my eyes and see the cause. “Three weeks? That’s not normal. Have you seen a doctor?”

I shook my head, my stomach churning once again. Damn tuna. “No. I thought it would pass. And it did. For a bit. I think it was my lunch. I shouldn’t have eaten the tuna. It sounded good this morning, but now I realize that was a mistake.”

“Amelia, is there any chance you could be pregnant?”

I froze, my heart pounding. “I don’t think so. I don’t know. I thought that but I just can’t believe that.”

Clair raised an eyebrow. “When was your last period?”

I hesitated, my mind racing. “I… I don’t remember. It’s been a while.”

Clair’s eyes widened. “Amelia, you need to take a pregnancy test.”

I shook my head, panic rising in my chest. “No. No, I can’t be. It’s just stress. Or the tuna. That can probably had a little dolphin mixed in.”

Clair stood up, holding out a hand to help me to my feet. “Come on. Let’s get you home. No more questionable tuna. If you are pregnant, I don’t think you’re supposed to eat tuna. Too much mercury, I think.”

I nodded. “No sushi either.” I let her lead me out of the bathroom. “I can get home on my own. I’ll be fine. It was a moment of weakness.”

“Go home and lie down,” she said. “I’ll be there shortly.”

She didn’t have to tell me twice.

I went back to my condo and tried to convince myself that Clair was overreacting. Just like the woman on the plane.

I made myself a cup of tea and grabbed the box of saltines I’d been munching on for the last week. There was this battle going on in my head. Logic and disbelief. As many excuses as I gave myself, there were twice as many reasons to believe otherwise. Deep down, I knew Clair was right. The stranger on the plane was right. That little voice int he back of my head was right. I’d been doing the math in my head, and the numbers didn’t lie.

When Clair arrived an hour later, she had a bag in her hand.

“I’ve come armed with everything we need to solve this mystery,” she said. “And I brought you some Sprite. And Gatorade if the Sprite is too bubbly. And ginger ale if the Gatorade is too much. And crackers.”

“You are a good friend.”

She pulled out a few pregnancy tests. “Pick a test, any test,” she said with a grin. “Let’s find out for sure.”

I stared at the tests. “Clair, I… I don’t know if I’m ready for this.”

She gave me a sympathetic smile. “You don’t have to be ready. But you need to know. Denial isn’t going to make the results any different. You’ll be able to make appropriate decisions once you have answers. We’re doctors. We need data before we can make decisions.”

I stared at the tests Clair had spread across my kitchen counter. The bright colors and promises of quick results made it all too real. I reached for the first one.

“All right,” I said, feeling like I was stepping off a cliff. “Here goes nothing.”

I took the test into the bathroom, closing the door behind me. I leaned against it for a moment, gathering my courage. My heart was beating wildly, and not just from nausea this time.

I followed the instructions on the back of the package, my hands shaking so badly that I nearly dropped it in the toilet. Finally, it was done. Now came the worst part: waiting.

The longest three minutes of my life ticked by with agonizing slowness. I sat hunched over on the edge of the bathtub, staring at the test sitting on the sink’s edge as if sheer will could change whatever result might appear.

“Amelia?” Clair’s voice came through the door gently. “Are you okay?”

“I’m about to find out,” I said, looking at my watch again. Only thirty seconds had passed since I last checked.

“Do you want me in there with you?”

“I—” Yes? No? I didn’t even know what I wanted anymore. “Maybe?”