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We took the simple breakfast out to the porch and after putting the coffee and mugs on the table, Chase went back inside to retrieve the two woven blankets from the couch and tucked one around me in the wicker chair I sat in before he took the seat opposite me.
We didn’t say much as we nibbled through the sweet bread and bowl of fresh berries I’d rinsed off. We drank our coffee and ate our breakfast and before too long, the sun began to rise with a breathtaking display of oranges and golden yellow flecks across the calm ocean.
Chase glanced over at me. “I can’t believe it’s morning already.”
“Me either. Jackson’s gonna run us both ragged today,” I said, laughing softly under my breath.
“Probably true.” Chase smiled at me. “Come over here.” He patted his lap and I got up and crossed over to sit on his leg. I wrapped my blanked around his shoulders and bundled up against his chest. He encircled me with his arms and I relaxed into his embrace, wishing I could stay there forever. Warm, secure, and safe.
“Chase…”
“Hmm?”
“There’s something I need to tell you.”
He released me and pulled back to meet my eyes. “What is it? You can tell me anything. I hope you know that.”
I smiled and paused to get my nerves back under control. It was now or never. Jackson would be awake soon and I would lose this moment to tell him the truth.
“What is it, baby? You can tell me anything.” Chase said, before casually taking a sip from his coffee mug.
I drew in an unsteady breath. “Well, I wanted to find a good way to say this. To do this. But I can’t think straight anymore…”
Chase chuckled. “Melissa, just say it.”
“I’m pregnant.”
His second sip of coffee sprayed all over the table as he’d gone to set his mug back down. He hurried to swipe his arm over his mouth and darted a wide-eyed glance up at me. “What?”
I looked down at my lap and then back to his dark brown eyes. “I’m pregnant. I took a home test about a week ago. One of the days that you and Jackson went fishing. I went to the pharmacy in Manzanilla and purchased a test after the woman who worked there asked me about my symptoms. I thought I had a vitamin deficiency from the change in diet or heartburn…”
I stopped talking, realizing that I was rambling. Chase was still staring at me, open mouthed, with his eyebrows halfway up his forehead. “Pregnant?”
“Yes. Pregnant. You’re going to be a daddy.”
38
Chase
“Wow,” was all I could manage to say as the news simmered through my brain. “I mean—just—wow.”
Melissa couldn’t have shocked me more with the news than if she’d told me she was really an alien from some distant planet masquerading as a human. I thought back to the first time we’d made love. My head spun as I sifted through the nights we’d spent together.
None of that mattered. All that mattered was that the beautiful, strong, resilient woman sitting in front of me was going to have a child.
My child.
“Wow…” I repeated.
Melissa smiled and tucked a strand of hair behind her ear. She was wearing it loose and natural, just the way I liked. “Yeah. That’s pretty much been my thoughts too. I actually argued with the lady at the pharmacy when she suggested it.” She blushed at the memory and I chuckled.
“I wish I’d been there to see that,” I said, laughing along with her. “So that explains the no wine and lack of an appetite, I guess?”
She nodded. “Yeah. Once the lady asked, I started thinking back and this is exactly how I felt when I was early on with Jackson. I’m sorry that I didn’t tell you right away. I just—”
“Melissa,” I stilled her with a finger to her lips. “You don’t have to apologize. I’m just glad you’re telling me now. That’s all that matters.”
She ducked her head. “Okay.”
I rubbed the back of my neck while I searched for the next thing to say. I couldn’t keep repeating ‘wow’ over and over but it was the only thing in my mind. I couldn’t quite wrap my head around it all—at least not enough to come up with something more intelligent to say.
“I also want you to know that I didn’t know it was possible. I wouldn’t have risked it if I thought I could actually get pregnant.” She shook her head in silent disbelief. “It certainly wasn’t my intention.”
“I know that,” I replied, surprised she even felt the need to vocalize it. “And again, you don’t have to apologize.”
Melissa flicked her gaze to the coffee spatter across the table and shifted her weight in my lap. “I understand if you don’t want to be involved…”
“What?” I snapped, shocked by the statement. “Why would you even say that? Think that?”
