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When he walked out the door, Rip swung around and looked at me.
“Furniture, Rip? That was a dead giveaway!”
“What?” I gaped. “We’re remodeling a house. How is that a giveaway?”
I rolled my eyes.
We walked out of my office and out the back door. “Your grandmother probably told him.”
“Where you kids going?”
Screaming, I covered my chest with my hand.
“Trevor! You scared me to death,” I gasped.
“Why you two sneaking out of here whispering like you’re up to something?”
“We are not sneaking! Why does everyone keep saying we are sneaking?”
A wide smile grew over my uncle’s face. “Maybe it’s because the two of you snuck off and got married.”
Rip reached for the wall, and I almost did the same thing.
“How do you know that?” I whispered.
“Damn Dorothy! I knew she couldn’t be trusted,” Rip said. “I told you we should have sent her that beef jerky basket. The woman loves beef jerky.”
“Who all knows?” I asked.
“Scarlett. She was at the county clerk’s office that day visiting a friend she used to work with. She saw the two of you and was about to go say hi when she overheard y’all asking for a marriage license. She told me, and don’t worry, no one knows. Your little secret is safe.”
Rip and I both exhaled. “Thank you, Uncle Trevor. I don’t want anyone’s feelings being hurt.”
“So, you couldn’t wait, huh?”
With a smile, I leaned into Rip, and he wrapped his arm around me. “We waited long enough. I mean, we want the wedding with our family and friends, but first we wanted to do it just the two us.”
“I get it, you don’t owe anyone any explanations. What are you sneaking out in the middle of the morning for?”
Rip and I looked at each other and then back to my uncle.
“Furniture shopping.”
“Going wedding shopping.”
“Rip!”
“What! You got mad at me for saying furniture, so I said wedding! I can’t keep up with the way your mind works.”
Uncle Trevor put his hand on Rip’s shoulder and slowly shook his head. “Son, don’t even try. I’m telling you right now. Don’t. Try.”
“Chloe, please stop pacing.”
“I can’t help it. What is taking them so long?”
Rip sat calmly in a chair, looking through a book titled What to Expect When You’re Expecting.
“This book has some pretty neat information in here. If you are pregnant, I think we should buy one.”
I nodded. “Okay. But what if I’m not? What if that birth control jacked up my system and now I’m at risk of never having a period again!”
Rip lifted his eyes from the paperback and looked at me. “Would that be a bad thing?”
Grabbing the pillow off the examination table, I tossed it at him. There was a light knock on the door and I quickly jumped back up on the table. Doctor Buten walked in and gave Rip and me a polite smile.
“How is it going, you two?”
“The birth control you put me on…it’s damaged me!”
My hand came up and stopped me from speaking.
Rip chuckled. “Apparently it’s made her spontaneously yell out strange things in the last thirty minutes.”
Doctor Buten tried not to laugh at Rip’s joke and failed. “You know birth control is never one-hundred percent effective against pregnancy.”
“I spotted a little bit a month or so ago, but I haven’t had a period.”
He nodded and looked at my chart. They had drawn blood and had me pee in a cup as soon as they brought me back to the room.
Looking up from the chart, he smiled. “The nurse said you haven’t taken any at-home pregnancy tests. Is that correct?”
I nodded. Rip walked over to me.
“It also appears you got married. Congratulations.”
“Thank you,” Rip and I said at the same time, while looking at each other in that silly, lovesick way we couldn’t help.
“Well, Mr. and Mrs. Myers, looks like you’re going to not only be newlyweds, but new parents.”
Tears pooled in my eyes. I slid off the table, and Rip wrapped me so tightly in his arms I almost couldn’t breathe. Or maybe I was just overcome with emotion.
“We’re having a baby.”
A swirl of thoughts raced through mind. I was excited. Thrilled. Scared. Overjoyed. Then I swung back to definitely being scared.
“Oh my goodness, a baby.”
Rip pulled back and studied my face. “Are you not happy?”
“Yes! I’m just shocked, I think. We were not planning on this. There is so much going on and…”
“Chloe, why don’t you take a seat on the table,” Doctor Buten said.
With a quick nod, I sat back. Rip held my hand for a few extra seconds before letting it go and sitting back down.
A new emotion rushed through my veins. Guilt. Rip looked beyond thrilled about the news and here I was trying to decide how I felt. The first thing I’d said was ‘there was so much going on.’
I closed my eyes and willed myself not to cry. At least I knew why I could tear up at the drop of a dime these days.
