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Then…
They’d had sex twice and they’d used protection both times. There was absolutely nothing to worry about.
Unfortunately, common sense and rational thinking were doing nothing to ease Whitney’s anxiety as she scanned her monthly menstrual calendar and realized she was six days late. She was always on schedule. Living with Jess, the two of them had synced up, and Jess used to tease her that Whitney was her monthly reminder.
But she was definitely late this time.
Standing, she closed her office door and squeezed her breasts. They felt fine. Maybe a little sore… But that happened at the start of her period, too. She’d been irritable and slightly more emotional the last few days—even crying over a touching life insurance commercial—but again, she was often more sensitive the days leading up to her flow.
Damn, if only the signs were a little more obvious.
She’d barely even noticed the missed start date. If it hadn’t been for Jess asking to borrow a tampon earlier that day and Whitney not carrying one, she may not have even realized. So busy with work and late nights seeing Trent, getting the bar ready for the grand opening event had preoccupied her time and thoughts.
But women missed periods all the time because of stress or other reasons. Didn’t mean for sure that she was pregnant, right?
She sighed as she checked her watch. Only one way to find out.
Fifteen minutes later, she was standing in the family planning section of the local pharmacy, hoping no one she knew saw her as she scanned the various options for pregnancy tests.
Two lines. Plus signs. One that said “yes” or “no.” That was the one. Couldn’t get that message confused. She reached for it with a shaky hand and quickly made her way out of the aisle.
“Hey, pretty lady.” Trent’s voice behind her as she headed toward the cashier made her freeze in her tracks.
Oh no. What the hell should she do? She hadn’t wanted him to know until she knew for sure…
She quickly hid the test behind her back as she turned to face him. Her smile felt forced as she met his gaze. “Hi…” She noticed the pack of condoms in his hand and almost winced at the irony. May not be needing those…
“Taking a lunch break?” he asked as he approached and leaned in to kiss her cheek.
“Yeah, just a quick one.” She’d planned on taking the test in the office bathroom, then figure out what to do before seeing him that evening at the bar.
“Want to grab a bite?” he asked, taking her free hand and leading the rest of the way toward the cashier.
“Oh, I should get back,” she said, her heart pounding as he placed the condoms on the counter. He gestured for her to place her item on the counter as well, and she shook her head. “That’s okay, I got it.”
“I insist,” he said. “Least I can do if you won’t let me buy you lunch.”
She sighed as she reluctantly took the test from behind her back and placed it onto the counter. She sucked in her bottom lip and winced as she stared at his reaction.
Don’t freak out… Please don’t freak out.
He looked slightly confused and more than a little surprised as he turned to face her. They’d agreed to be exclusive, so there was no question that if she were pregnant, then the baby was his, therefore Whitney tried to read his conflicted expression as the cashier rang in their items, with her own expression one of unconcealed amusement at the irony. “Twenty-two sixty,” she said. “Unless you’d like to put the condoms back.”
Trent ignored her. “Are you…?” he asked Whitney.
“I don’t know for sure,” she said, handing the cashier several bills and taking the test. This wasn’t exactly a conversation she wanted to have in front of an audience. She hadn’t been expecting to have this conversation with Trent so soon. She’d been hoping to know for sure, hoping to have time to decide what to say, decide how she felt about it, decide what she wanted to do…
But here they were.
She picked up his condoms and handed them to him, then led the way outside for privacy. Immediately, she turned to him and started to speak. “Look, it’s probably nothing, but I’m late.”
The bright winter sun made it almost impossible to see his expression as he said, “How late?”
“Almost a week. Which is unusual for me, so I thought I should check.” She swallowed hard, and her hands shook slightly in the silence that followed. Of course, he was freaking out. Why wouldn’t he? She should be freaking out, too. They barely knew each other. The relationship was new. “I should get going. I’ll call you later.”
She turned to leave, desperate to escape the thick, awkward tension in the air around them.
“Whitney, wait!”
